COVID Cases Rising Quickly in Washington D.C. and New York City Again

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COVID-19 cases are rising once again in some major cities.

Although much of the country has seen a plateau in positive cases after the omicron variant surged through the U.S. late last year, cities like New York City and Washington D.C. have been seeing an alarming uptick in cases over the last few weeks – likely because of the highly contagious BA.2 subvariant hitting the Northeast.

According to data from the New York Times COVID tracker last updated on April 8, positive cases have increased 51 percent over the last two weeks in New York City, with an average of 1,572 cases reported per day. While cases have noticeably increased, the death rate for the city has fallen 53 percent, as well as hospitalizations, which have fallen 17 percent.

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The state of New York itself is also seeing a rise in cases, reporting a 58 percent increase from the average two weeks ago, but has seen a 7 percent decrease in deaths.

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Washington D.C. is seemingly being hit hard by the next wave of the coronavirus, reporting a whopping 106 percent increase in positive cases since the average two weeks ago, per the NTY. Death rates have remained roughly the same, but hospitalizations have decreased by nearly 40 percent.

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As D.C. is one of the areas that has been greatly affected by COVID-19, a slew of political figures have announced they have contracted the virus over the last few weeks.

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On March 22, Hillary Clinton revealed she had tested positive for COVID, writing in a tweet, "I've got some mild cold symptoms but am feeling fine. I'm more grateful than ever for the protection vaccines can provide against serious illness. Please get vaccinated and boosted if you haven't already!"

The same day, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki revealed she had also tested positive for COVID after meeting with President Joe Biden ahead of their trip to Europe.

On Thursday, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi also shared her positive diagnosis.

"After testing negative this week, Speaker Pelosi received a positive test result for COVID-19 and is currently asymptomatic," her spokesman, Drew Hammill, wrote on Twitter. "The Speaker is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is thankful for the robust protection the vaccine has provided."

"The Speaker will quarantine consistent with CDC guidance, and encourages everyone to get vaccinated, boosted and test regularly," Hammill continued.

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