Health officials in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, say an increase in newly reported new coronavirus cases around Pittsburgh has been linked to bars, not protests, local media reports.
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald (D) told CBS Pittsburgh that the area has seen “some alarming spikes” in cases in recent weeks, adding: “We have seen more cases in the past two days than in the past two days. two previous weeks. ”
The latest county health data shows that more than 2,650 cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, have so far been counted in the region. According to the local CBS affiliate, more than 80 of those cases were reported on Monday alone.
Investigations into some of those cases reportedly found that a portion of those infected said they traveled to bars and restaurants in the area before becoming symptomatic or getting tested.
The station reported that the Allegheny County Health Department said several of the infected who claimed to have attended the protests, on the other hand, were “in single digits.”
The report comes roughly a week after an article published by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that “there was no evidence” showing that an increase in COVID-19 cases seen in various parts of the country was due to protests. Black Lives Matter that have exploded across the country in recent weeks, despite speculation to the contrary.
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