Tracking COVID-19 data reporting and analysis in the United States
Abstract
The United States remains the epicenter for the COVID-19 pandemic. Having accurate data reporting and analysis at the local, state, and national levels would help steer containment efforts, build a more targeted response strategy, and foster learnings across cities and states as new hotspots arise. Throughout the course of the pandemic, Population Council researchers have been tracking how COVID-19 data are reported and analyzed using a comprehensive analysis of 62 COVID-19 data sources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and health departments across 50 states, Washington D.C., and ten major cities. We assessed data completeness for COVID-19 testing and four outcomes (cases, hospitalizations, recoveries, and deaths), and examined disaggregation of COVID-19 testing and outcomes by a core set of demographic indicators, including age, race/ethnicity, sex/gender, geography, and underlying health conditions. This analysis also investigated how social and community level data were reported and analyzed, variations in data reporting, and changes over the course of the pandemic. Having this information can equip national and local health officials to deploy a more targeted response effort such as testing, contact tracing, treatment, and containment strategy.