Why state and Health Region 7 active COVID-19 figures differ
By Roxanne Thompson
Limestone County residents trying to keep up with the number of COVID-19 cases in the county have wondered why the number of active figures reported by Health Region 7 have been so much higher than those reported by the Department of State Health Services.
For instance on Friday, Oct. 2, the Department of State Health Services reported that Limestone County had an estimated 61 COVID-19 cases, but Region 7 reported the county had a whopping 496 active cases, more than an 800 percent difference.
Limestone’ Emergency Management Director Matt Groveton and others had conferred with Region 7 representatives on the matter and confirmed that while the Region 7 figures for cumulative cases for the county and fatalities for the county were correct, the number of active cases was wildly inaccurate.
“It’s not right and has never been right,” Groveton said. “But they’re the source that’s supposed to provide us that information, so it’s been frustrating, to say the least. I’m not criticizing them because they have a tough job, but it should have been rectified by now.”
Starting next week, Region 7’s table will remove the columns called Active and Recovered, and instead will have two new columns noting newly confirmed cases reported in the last 14 days and newly confirmed cases in the last 30 days, which will indicate the direction in which the county is moving.
Groveton said he will look at the tables at the Department of State Health Services and possibly use its figure for estimated active cases.
“The DSHS website provides recovery and active estimates that are more timely than our line list data,” said Region 7 Liaison Officer Yolanda L. Holmes in a letter to county officials.
“New cases over the past 2 weeks and past month are better measures to assess whether COVID-19 is increasing or decreasing in your county,” she added.
