Special Report
These Are the Counties In the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metro Area Where COVID-19 Is Growing the Fastest
Published:
After adding over 702,000 new cases throughout the last week, the U.S. now has more than 81.9 million confirmed cases of COVID-19. There have been more than 990,000 COVID-19-related deaths — the highest death toll of any country.
New cases continue to rise at a faster rate. In the past week, there were an average of 26.7 daily new coronavirus cases per 100,000 Americans — an increase from the week prior, when there were an average of 20.3 daily new coronavirus cases per 100,000 people.
While COVID-19 has spread to nearly every part of the country, cities continue to be the sites of major outbreaks. Experts agree that the virus is more likely to spread in group settings where large numbers of people routinely have close contact with one another, such as colleges, nursing homes, bars, and restaurants. Metropolitan areas with a high degree of connectivity between neighborhoods and a large population may be particularly at-risk.
In the 50 largest metro areas, the incidence of coronavirus grew at an average rate of 28.9 new cases a day per 100,000 residents in the past week — 15.1% greater than the case growth in all counties outside of metro areas.
The Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, metro area consists of Fairfax County, Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, and 22 other counties. In the past week, there were an average of 38.1 new coronavirus cases every day per 100,000 Washington residents, greater than the national figure. The metro area’s average daily case growth in the most recent week is an increase from the week prior, when there was an average of 25.0 daily new cases per 100,000 Washington residents.
The spread of coronavirus depends on a variety of factors and can vary even between neighboring counties. Within the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area, COVID-19 is growing the fastest in Arlington County, Virginia. There were an average of 69.6 new cases per day per 100,000 residents in Arlington County during the past week, the most of the 25 counties in Washington with available data.
Case growth in the Washington metro area varies widely at the county level. In Rappahannock County, for example, there were an average of 8.9 new cases per day per 100,000 residents in the past week — the least of any county in Washington and far more than the case growth rate in Arlington County.
While Arlington County is driving the growth of COVID-19 in the Washington area, it does not have the highest incidence of cases overall. As of May 19, there were a total of 20,077.2 confirmed cases per 100,000 residents in Arlington County, the 11th most of the 25 counties in the metro area. For comparison, the U.S. has so far reported 25,247.6 cases per 100,000 Americans nationwide.
The pandemic has led to the closure of thousands of consumer-facing businesses around the country. These changes have led to widespread job loss and record unemployment. In Arlington County, unemployment peaked at 7.0% in April 2020. As of June 2021, the county’s unemployment rate was 3.6%.
To determine the county in every metropolitan area where COVID-19 is growing the fastest, 24/7 Wall St. compiled and reviewed data from state and local health departments. We ranked counties according to the average number of new daily COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents in the seven days ending May 19. To estimate the incidence of COVID-19 at the metropolitan level, we aggregated data up from the county level using boundary definitions from the U.S. Census Bureau. Population data used to adjust case and death totals came from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey and are five-year estimates. Unemployment data is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and is not seasonally adjusted.
Click here to see all current COVID-19 data for Washington D.C.
Rank in MSA | County | Population | New daily cases per 100,000, week ending May 19 | New daily cases per 100,000, week ending May 12 | Cumulative cases per 100,000 | Cumulative deaths per 100,000 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Arlington County | 233,464 | 69.6 | 58.7 | 20,077.2 | 137.9 |
2 | Falls Church city | 14,128 | 67.5 | 50.6 | 15,954.1 | 120.3 |
3 | Alexandria city | 157,613 | 55.9 | 45.0 | 20,950.0 | 119.9 |
4 | District of Columbia | 692,683 | 53.0 | 6.3 | 21,101.0 | 193.7 |
5 | Loudoun County | 395,134 | 44.4 | 32.3 | 18,374.0 | 97.4 |
6 | Fairfax County | 1,145,862 | 42.7 | 33.4 | 16,591.4 | 127.0 |
7 | Montgomery County | 1,043,530 | 41.9 | 29.7 | 17,261.6 | 196.2 |
8 | Fredericksburg city | 28,622 | 36.2 | 24.7 | 19,359.2 | 146.7 |
9 | Stafford County | 146,773 | 36.1 | 24.0 | 21,472.6 | 120.6 |
10 | Jefferson County | 56,506 | 31.0 | 20.2 | 25,784.9 | 233.6 |
11 | Prince William County | 461,423 | 29.4 | 22.6 | 21,375.0 | 162.1 |
12 | Charles County | 159,428 | 28.3 | 18.8 | 18,316.7 | 221.4 |
13 | Spotsylvania County | 132,833 | 25.4 | 25.5 | 20,932.3 | 226.6 |
14 | Frederick County | 251,422 | 24.4 | 16.8 | 18,767.6 | 208.8 |
15 | Culpeper County | 51,101 | 23.6 | 17.5 | 22,555.3 | 291.6 |
16 | Clarke County | 14,423 | 23.5 | 16.1 | 18,671.6 | 291.2 |
17 | Prince George’s County | 908,670 | 22.2 | 17.5 | 19,414.7 | 238.4 |
18 | Fauquier County | 69,728 | 21.7 | 12.2 | 19,110.0 | 206.5 |
19 | Manassas city | 41,174 | 21.7 | 17.6 | 22,667.2 | 172.4 |
20 | Madison County | 13,170 | 19.1 | 15.8 | 18,686.4 | 311.3 |
21 | Calvert County | 91,511 | 18.5 | 10.5 | 12,600.7 | 159.5 |
22 | Manassas Park city | 16,986 | 17.7 | 9.0 | 22,665.7 | 159.0 |
23 | Warren County | 39,492 | 16.0 | 11.5 | 22,045.0 | 397.5 |
24 | Fairfax city | 23,531 | 14.1 | 16.7 | 8,801.2 | 182.7 |
25 | Rappahannock County | 7,378 | 8.9 | 10.8 | 14,272.2 | 135.5 |
If you want your portfolio to pay you cash like clockwork, it’s time to stop blindly following conventional wisdom like relying on Dividend Aristocrats. There’s a better option, and we want to show you. We’re offering a brand-new report on 2 stocks we believe offer the rare combination of a high dividend yield and significant stock appreciation upside. If you’re tired of feeling one step behind in this market, this free report is a must-read for you.
Click here to download your FREE copy of “2 Dividend Legends to Hold Forever” and start improving your portfolio today.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.