CBS17.com

Green day: Nearly 2/3 of NC’s counties now have lowest COVID-19 levels on CDC map

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Nearly two-thirds of North Carolina’s counties are in the CDC’s green zone with the lowest level of COVID-19 in their communities.

A total of 65 counties — including Wake, Durham, Orange and Cumberland in central North Carolina — have COVID levels described as low, according to data released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC had not yet updated its map by Thursday afternoon, but CBS 17 News obtained the data that goes into it and recreated it independently.

This is what the CDC’s COVID-19 community levels map for Sept. 29 is expected to look like, after CBS 17 News recreated the map with the agency’s newest data. (Graphic by Joedy McCreary)

In the latest sign that the surge driven by the BA.5 omicron subvariant continues to fade, the number of green counties was 22 more than last week’s total of 43.

Only 12 counties had high levels of COVID, down from 21 last week. Edgecombe was the only county in central North Carolina to reach that level.

The CDC advises people in orange counties to wear masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status, including in K-12 schools and other community settings.

Among the 23 counties in the yellow zone with a medium level of spread were a handful in the CBS 17 viewing area: Halifax, Moore, Nash, Northampton, Person, Sampson and Wayne.