All eyes are fixed on New York City, the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak with its skyrocketing deaths, but the six counties with the highest number of coronavirus deaths per capita are in two Southern states as of April 1. Manhattan is #7.
"Louisiana and Georgia have the six counties with the highest number of covid-19 deaths in the country per capita, followed by New York County in seventh place, according to data presented by Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) at a news briefing Wednesday afternoon," according to a April 1, 2:36 p.m. "live update" by David Montgomery of The Washington Post.
St. John the Baptist Parish, La., about 30 miles west of New Orleans, leads the nation with 27.8 deaths per 100,000 residents, followed by Orleans Parish — the city of New Orleans — with 25.8.
Lee County and Dougherty County, Ga., in and around Albany, are next, with 20.2 and 19.7 deaths per 100,000 residents, respectively. Jefferson Parish, outside New Orleans, and St. Charles Parish, west of New Orleans, follow with 13.1 and 11.3 deaths per 100,000 residents, respectively.
New York County (11.1), Wayne County, Mich. (6.8), King County, Wash. (6.7), and Miami County, Ohio (5.6), fill out the top 10.
In a separate piece published a day earlier, Montgomery reports that the ventilator supply is a key concern. "The state has ordered 14,000 in the past few weeks and received just 292, Edwards said."
Even with the shipment of 150 promised by President Trump, Edwards said they will reach their capacity for COVID patients in intensive care units (ICU) on April 6. "We expect people will die because they will not be able to receive the care that they need," he added.
Edwards pointed to high chronic health conditions per capita in his state as one of the reasons for the high death rate. Medical experts said that Mardi Gras held in New Orleans on Feb. 22 likely accelerated the crisis, according to a deep dive by The New York Times. [Ed.: The New York Times article has attracted strong criticism online for generalizing about the U.S. South, neglecting issues of race and social justice, and more. But the source of that controversy originated from a different article.]
Edwards issued a statewide stay-at-home order on March 22 and Gov. Brian Kemp (R) announced on April 1 that he would issue a shelter in place order, though it didn't appear on his website on Wednesday evening.
Hat tip to Rachel Maddow.
Related in Planetizen:
FULL STORY: Louisiana parishes lead the nation in covid-19 deaths per capita
Will the Coronavirus Spare Rural America?
Many counties throughout the nation have recorded no deaths from COVID-19. A perception exists that population density is responsible for the massive death toll in New York and New Jersey and that exurban and rural counties may be spared.
Louisiana Municipalities Go Beyond 'Shelter in Place' with Curfews and Checkpoints
Four parishes and one town in Louisiana, which has the nation's highest COVID-19 per capita death rate, are implementing strict containment strategies that go well beyond the statewide stay at home order to reduce community spread.
Omicron Breaks Another Pandemic Record: Hospitalizations
The highly infectious Omicron variant is contributing to a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the U.S. The record set in last winter's surge fell on Tuesday as hospitals suffer from massive labor shortages caused by the variant.
Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.
Driving Equity and Clean Air: California Invests in Greener School Transportation
California has awarded $500 million to fund 1,000 zero-emission school buses and chargers for educational agencies as part of its effort to reduce pollution, improve student health, and accelerate the transition to clean transportation.
Congress Moves to End Reconnecting Communities and Related Grants
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee moved to rescind funding for the Neighborhood Equity and Access program, which funds highway removals, freeway caps, transit projects, pedestrian infrastructure, and more.
From Throughway to Public Space: Taking Back the American Street
How the Covid-19 pandemic taught us new ways to reclaim city streets from cars.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Ada County Highway District
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service