COVID-19 cases are on the rise with the holidays quickly approaching, per a new update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Although a joyful time of the year, the colder months are when respiratory viruses like COVID and the flu are most likely to surge due to low, dry temperatures and an increase in traveling and large gatherings. Ahead of Turkey Day, the CDC is urging folks to stay up to date with their vaccines. To help prevent a potential nationwide spread, the agency has also released a list of U.S. states where COVID levels are the highest.
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To monitor the severity or likelihood of another potential COVID outbreak, the CDC collects wastewater samples from participating states and tribal and local health departments, testing for “viral activity level of SARS-CoV-2.” These findings indicate where infection levels are on the rise—and thus, warns residents, visitors, and local health officials of a potential regional surge.
According to the CDC, “sewage can be tested to detect traces of infectious diseases circulating in a community, even if people don’t have symptoms.” That’s because people who are sick with COVID shed pieces of the virus when using the bathroom, showering, washing their hands, or even doing laundry, despite being asymptomatic. The pieces travel to the sewage system, where samples are collected via your home’s drain.
Following lab tests, health experts use this data “as an early warning that levels of infections may be increasing or decreasing in [a] community.” The data also yields the CDC’s COVID-19 Current Wastewater Viral Activity Levels Map, an interactive tool that allows users to view infection levels by state and severity.
Unfortunately, new CDC findings show COVID levels are “very high” and “high” across the Midwest and in parts of Arkansas and Maine.
As of Oct. 31, Montana has the highest wastewater viral activity levels of all 50 U.S. states. However, COVID levels are also considered “high” in Wyoming, Nebraska, Minnesota, Arkansas, and Maine. (It’s worth noting that nine additional states are tracking “moderate” levels, and these have the potential to escalate by the CDC’s next updated report.)
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But despite all this, the CDC revealed in its 2024-2025 Respiratory Disease Season Outlook that nationwide COVID-19 test positivity rates, emergency room visits, and hospitalizations are steadily on the decline. The agency reported that flu and Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections are “low” as well.
The CDC says vaccinations will “play a key role” in keeping COVID- and RSV-related hospital visits down.
“Immunization remains the best way to protect yourself against serious outcomes from viral respiratory illnesses this season. While immunization is important for everyone, it is especially important for people at higher risk of developing serious disease complications,” says the agency.
