Study says: Joplin now nation’s number one hotspot for COVID-19

Most of the time, it’s good to hold the top position. But not always.

Joplin is now the nation’s number one hotspot for COVID-19 according to the Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare Project.

Joplin took the top position this weekend because it ranked first for the daily growth rate of COVID cases over the last seven days.

The Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare Project bases its analysis on  “natural markets where residents of the United States receive their care,” and breaks the country into 306 hospital referral regions.

That means county case and death rates are aggregated to each of those regions. The project incorporates rates of reported COVID-19 cases (based on population), rates of reported deaths from COVID-19 (also based on population) and average growth rates in reported cases over the prior week.

The area under consideration, defined as the “Joplin referral area,” extends into southeast Kansas, northeast Oklahoma and as far south as the Arkansas state line.