Goldman: States Containing 80% Of The US Population Have Paused Or Taken Steps To Reverse Reopening

Goldman writes:

Reopening is on hold in most of the US, as states containing about 80% of the population have explicitly paused or taken targeted steps to reverse reopening. Over the past several days, Washington has placed its reopening on hold, and Pennsylvania has now ordered bars and nightclubs closed and imposed occupancy limits on restaurants events.

The number of new virus cases per day is either increasing or at very high levels in almost every state. While the acceleration of virus spread (Rt) has been less sharp than in the spring, it is still occurring at a rate that appears to be preventing state governments from pushing forward with economic reopening plans.

While recommended federal criteria for reopening include a declining trend in case growth, governments may also pay attention to the level of new cases, which is also still high in many states, in deciding when it may be appropriate to return to an easing in restrictions.

And here is Goldman’s latest state tracker: