As a the delta variant continues to spread, new cases of COVID-19 are on the rise in the United States. There were an average of 43.0 new daily cases of the virus for every 100,000 Americans in the past week, up from an average of 38.0 new daily cases per 100,000 the week before.
In total, about 37,085,000 people tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the United States since the first known infection was identified on Jan. 21, 2020.
In keeping with the national trend, new daily cases are increasing in Rhode Island. Over the past week, there were an average of 29.7 new daily cases of the coronavirus for every 100,000 people across the state, compared to 20.8 new daily cases per 100,000 people the week prior.
Nationwide, the average number of new daily infections has increased in 44 states over the past week. Of all states, Rhode Island reported the 17th largest uptick in average new infections per day over the last week.
The current average daily infection rate in Rhode Island ranks as the 22nd lowest of all 50 states.
Since March 1, 2020, when the first coronavirus case was identified in Rhode Island, about 159,000 state residents tested positive for the virus. Rhode Island, home to about 0.3% of the U.S. population, accounts for about 0.4% of all known COVID-19 cases nationwide to date. Among all states, Rhode Island has the most cumulative COVID-19 cases on a per capita basis.
Nationwide, there have been 620,355 COVID-19 related deaths to date — and 2,748 of them have been in Rhode Island. Rhode Island’s coronavirus death per capita rate currently stands at 260 for every 100,000 people. For context, there have been 190 deaths per 100,000.
All COVID-19 data used in this story is current as of August 22, 2021. It is important to note that in some states, weekly infection rates may include cases of the virus that occurred earlier but were not previously counted.
| Rank | State | Change in new case rate | Avg. new daily cases per 100,000 ppl last week | Avg. new daily cases per 100,000 ppl 2 weeks ago | Total confirmed cases to date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mississippi | 24.0 | 120.0 | 96.0 | 401,201 |
| 2 | Tennessee | 17.6 | 68.7 | 51.1 | 963,647 |
| 3 | Wyoming | 15.7 | 55.9 | 40.3 | 69,844 |
| 4 | Kentucky | 15.6 | 64.3 | 48.7 | 525,746 |
| 5 | Georgia | 14.3 | 66.9 | 52.6 | 1,287,667 |
| 6 | Alaska | 13.2 | 53.3 | 40.1 | 78,407 |
| 7 | Nebraska | 13.2 | 29.2 | 16.0 | 236,346 |
| 8 | West Virginia | 12.4 | 35.1 | 22.7 | 175,638 |
| 9 | Oregon | 12.4 | 45.9 | 33.6 | 247,866 |
| 10 | South Carolina | 12.2 | 69.3 | 57.1 | 673,172 |
| 11 | Florida | 12.0 | 111.7 | 99.8 | 2,994,019 |
| 12 | Hawaii | 11.2 | 49.3 | 38.1 | 50,821 |
| 13 | Indiana | 10.9 | 39.7 | 28.8 | 809,545 |
| 14 | New Mexico | 10.6 | 37.3 | 26.7 | 221,960 |
| 15 | Idaho | 9.4 | 40.8 | 31.4 | 211,532 |
| 16 | Delaware | 9.1 | 29.3 | 20.2 | 115,236 |
| 17 | Rhode Island | 8.9 | 29.7 | 20.8 | 159,019 |
| 18 | North Dakota | 8.3 | 24.2 | 15.9 | 114,179 |
| 19 | Montana | 6.2 | 30.4 | 24.1 | 121,382 |
| 20 | Washington | 6.2 | 38.5 | 32.3 | 520,733 |
| 21 | South Dakota | 6.2 | 20.1 | 14.0 | 127,696 |
| 22 | Arizona | 5.9 | 40.1 | 34.2 | 972,925 |
| 23 | New Hampshire | 5.9 | 17.2 | 11.3 | 103,989 |
| 24 | Utah | 5.7 | 31.7 | 26.0 | 449,259 |
| 25 | Ohio | 5.4 | 23.0 | 17.5 | 1,168,111 |
| 26 | North Carolina | 5.2 | 50.0 | 44.8 | 1,131,243 |
| 27 | Minnesota | 5.1 | 21.1 | 16.0 | 630,512 |
| 28 | Virginia | 5.0 | 26.4 | 21.4 | 731,287 |
| 29 | Colorado | 4.6 | 22.6 | 18.0 | 595,585 |
| 30 | Alabama | 4.5 | 75.5 | 71.0 | 649,741 |
| 31 | Kansas | 4.2 | 41.5 | 37.2 | 353,390 |
| 32 | New Jersey | 4.2 | 19.8 | 15.5 | 1,065,736 |
| 33 | Oklahoma | 4.2 | 56.2 | 52.0 | 521,525 |
| 34 | Iowa | 3.7 | 25.8 | 22.1 | 392,970 |
| 35 | Pennsylvania | 3.4 | 16.2 | 12.7 | 1,256,324 |
| 36 | New York | 2.7 | 22.2 | 19.5 | 2,218,899 |
| 37 | Illinois | 2.6 | 26.0 | 23.4 | 1,474,285 |
| 38 | Wisconsin | 2.3 | 24.2 | 21.9 | 710,975 |
| 39 | Massachusetts | 2.1 | 18.2 | 16.2 | 740,626 |
| 40 | Texas | 2.1 | 58.2 | 56.1 | 3,380,120 |
| 41 | Connecticut | 2.0 | 17.3 | 15.4 | 364,891 |
| 42 | Maryland | 1.8 | 15.4 | 13.7 | 483,641 |
| 43 | California | 1.6 | 31.8 | 30.2 | 4,225,740 |
| 44 | Vermont | 0.3 | 13.3 | 12.9 | 24,605 |
| 45 | Maine | 0.3 | 12.3 | 12.0 | 73,269 |
| 46 | Michigan | 0.3 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 1,035,827 |
| 47 | Nevada | -0.1 | 35.1 | 35.2 | 376,080 |
| 48 | Missouri | -3.3 | 41.7 | 45.0 | 730,985 |
| 49 | Arkansas | -7.8 | 69.8 | 77.6 | 425,551 |
| 50 | Louisiana | -9.6 | 111.9 | 121.5 | 638,443 |