WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — The latest rankings when it comes to COVID-19 protection show Pennsylvania lagging behind. It is a study of coronavirus transmission, vaccination, testing, and death rates.
WalletHub analysts looked at the most recent data in all 50 states and Washington D.C., and with number one being the best, they found Pennsylvania ranked 39th for COVID-19 death rates, 29th for hospitalizations, 43 for vaccination rates, and 51st for transmission rates.
“Which means that in Pennsylvania right now, twice as many people are likely to give COVID-19 to someone else than say Alaska or Vermont where vaccinations are really rolling," said WalletHub analyst Jill Gonzalez.
With the numbers always changing, the analysts update their studies every two weeks.
They added with more and more people being tested and vaccinated, Pennsylvania could turn things around quickly.
“If I was a Pennsylvanian right now, I would be a little bit worried just in terms of how well vaccine is being distributed and who local governments are trusting with that distribution. I think there was a wake-up call early on, and hopefully, a lot of those processes can be reversed or fixed or mitigated in terms of any problem areas," said Gonzalez.
Those analysts said studies are key to understanding safety issues during this pandemic from state to state.
It is information people should use if they need to travel, for example, or just to get a better understanding of what is happening where they live.
“It’s also important for the local economy, to really gauge the safer people feel, the more open the economy can become, the more jobs can come back, things like that, so it really is important two-fold.”