The Covid-19 pandemic appears to be following the highway when it spreads, researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania said on Tuesday.
The Policy Lab project team based in CHOP has tracked cases in 384 US states with active outbreaks.
What their model saw was that, predictably, when the place opened again, people did not stay at home. The more people interact with other people, the disease is spreading. And cases appear to be moving south to north along the main traffic corridor – like a highway I-95 on the East Coast and I-85 in the South, and I-5 and I-10 in the West – said the team.
“We look at this data every week and pay attention to trends along the highway. We don’t see traffic with this model, but we think it’s interesting, “ Policy Lab spokeswoman Lauren Walens said.
What seems to slow the spread of the disease is the same from the start: staying at home, wearing a mask, washing your hands. “Personal vigilance,” Walens said, is the key.
“It’s impossible for us to know whether everyone wears a mask or not,” Walens added. “There are all these variables. Temperature is one of them, but there is a slight difference between the weather in Atlanta and Jacksonville, so the weather cannot explain the difference in the two cities. We think that’s part of mobility. “
The next group model update will be released on Wednesday.
