County's Test Positivity Rate Climbs To Highest Level Since July

ROCKVILLE, MD — Montgomery County's 14-day test positivity rate for COVID-19 reached 5.1 percent on Friday — its highest level since early July.

The positivity rate, which measures the percentage of COVID-19 tests that come back positive in a two-week span, has been steadily rising this month — going from 3.1 percent on Nov. 1 to 5.1 percent on Nov. 20. Last time the county's test positivity rate was this high was on July 10.

The county, like the rest of Maryland, is seeing a resurgence in cases after easing COVID-19 restrictions. In an effort to stem the spread of the disease, both county and state leaders have clamped down on the number of diners in restaurants, set limits on public gatherings, and cut off on-site alcohol sales at 10 p.m.

On Friday, Montgomery County recorded 282 new COVID-19 cases, pushing its total to 30,580.

Since the pandemic started in March, the county's daily caseload has surpassed 400 a total of three times. In November alone, there have been 12 days in which the county has recorded more than 200 infections — and three days with more than 300 cases.

On Friday, the county recorded three new deaths linked to COVID-19. That pushes the local death toll to 881.

Forty-one others, health officials say, may have had the virus but died before ever getting tested. For now, they are considered "probable deaths." They won't be added to the official fatality count until they are confirmed by a lab test.

Across Maryland, there have been 177,086 coronavirus cases, 4,245 confirmed deaths, and 153 "probable deaths." Of the 1,207 patients being hospitalized for the disease statewide, 261 are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).