Largo, Maryland (Thursday, June 21, 2020) – Like many parts of the DMV, Prince George’s County is nearing a plan to reopen after months of residents having to stay put in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.  County Executive Angela Alsobrooks announced Thursday that if current data trends continue, the county is on track to move toward a modified reopening in 10 days.

Recent data shows the County on a downward trend in positivity, hospitalizations, and death rates.  Prince George’s leads the region and state in the number of COVID-19 cases with 12,830 persons infected as of Thursday night.  444 persons in Prince George’s County have died from complications of the virus.  COVID-19 is the leading cause of death in the county with 9 persons dying daily.

“After reviewing recent data, we are cautiously moving toward a modified phase one reopening by June 1,” said Alsobrooks. “While the data has improved, we are not out of the woods yet. I urge all Prince Georgians to exercise caution, use good judgement and observe the Stay-at-Home Order this holiday weekend so that we can stay on track to begin reopening by our target date.”

According to County data, the week of May 3 through May 9 was the highest number of COVID-19 hospitalizations with an average of 244 inpatients in County hospitals per day. The County began to see a decrease starting on May 10, with last week’s average being 208 patients. For this week, to date, County hospitals are averaging 184 patients, a 25% decrease from the peak.  COVID-19 is the leading cause of death in the county with an average of 9 persons dying daily.

In addition, preliminary data of tests collected last week have a 28% positivity rate, which is a decrease from a high of 41% the week of April 19. And finally, deaths have slowly decreased from a high of 72 during the week of April 19, to 66 the week of May 3. Preliminary data from the week of May 10 shows 59 deaths. While this is an improvement, COVID-19 continues to be the leading cause of death in the County since April, surpassing heart disease and cancer.

The County Executive will provide details on the modified reopening in the coming days.