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The Sick Times
@thesicktimes.org
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A nonprofit news site chronicling the #LongCOVID crisis. Founded by journalists @BetsyLadyzhets.bsky.social & @MilesWGriffis.bsky.social

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December 27, 2025 at 12:22 AM
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This is our final COVID-19 trends report for 2025. The Sick Times is off for a scheduled break through January 5, 2026.

Sign up for our newsletter to get our weekly report delivered directly to your inbox when we’re back!
The Sick Times. COVID-19 trends: December 23. Wastewater data from the CDC and WastewaterSCAN show that the Midwest and Northeast remain COVID-19 hotspots as of mid-December, while disease levels are relatively lower in the West and South. The CDC’s wastewater viral activity levels have fluctuated dramatically in recent weeks. I suspect this fluctuation may be reflecting issues with data reporting rather than actual trends in disease spread. Reporting delays and other issues may continue in the next couple of weeks as health officials take time off for the holidays. The Sick Times. COVID-19 trends: December 23. Meanwhile, the CDC healthcare system metrics — which tend to be more reliable than its wastewater surveillance metrics — are clearer in reporting slow but steady increases in COVID-19 spread. Test positivity and emergency department visits are both trending up nationally and across different regions. Flu spread also continues to increase, with flu leading to far more emergency department visits and positive lab tests than COVID-19 in the U.S. as of mid-December. The Sick Times. COVID-19 trends: December 23. Influenza-like illness (a metric representing doctors’ visits for fever, cough, and sore throat) is increasing rapidly and already at “high” or “very high” levels in some states, including New York, New Jersey, Louisiana, and Colorado. Virologist Angela Rasmussen wrote in a recent newsletter that the “CDC’s ability to carry out core activities for managing flu season is hindered or completely impaired,” thanks to the Trump administration. Map of the U.S. with states color-coded according to their levels of flu-like illness, a metric based on outpatient visits to healthcare providers for fever, cough, and sore throat. The title reads, "2025-26 Influenza Season Week 50 ending Dec 13, 2025." Colors on the map include shades of green for "minimal," greenish yellow for "low," yellow and orange for "moderate," orange and red for "high," and dark red and purple for "very high." States with higher levels include New York, New Jersey, Louisiana, and Colorado. New York City, represented separate from the rest of the state, is colored in purple for the highest tier of activity. Black text on a white graph paper background shows The Sick Times COVID-19 trends legend. WastewaterSCAN category for SARS-CoV-2: Lighter yellow = “Low” Darker yellow = “Medium” Orange = “High"; medium concentration and upward trend or high concentration and downward trend Red = “High"; high concentration and no trend or upward trend CDC wastewater viral activity level for SARS-CoV-2: Lighter yellow = “Very low” Darker yellow = “Low” Orange = “Moderate” Red = “High” or “Very high” CDC COVID-19 test positivity: Lighter yellow = Under 3% Darker yellow = 3% to 6% Orange = 6% to 10% Red = 10% or higher Week over week percent change Arrow directly down = -20% or less change Arrow diagonal down = -20% to -5% change Arrow in horizontal line = -5% to 5% change Arrow diagonal up = 5% to 20% change Arrow directly up = 20% or more change
December 23, 2025 at 6:05 PM
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December 22, 2025 at 2:00 PM
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Thank you!
December 22, 2025 at 2:39 PM
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Thank you, Hannah!
December 21, 2025 at 5:06 PM
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😷 Flu, along with RSV and other viruses that spread through the air and close contact in winter, offer additional reasons to wear high-quality masks and follow other health measures.
Chart from Biobot Analytics showing SARS-CoV-2 concentrations in wastewater by region. The X axis represents time, going from August 2024 to December 2025, and the Y axis represents virus concentration, going from 0 to 1000 copies/mL. The West is represented with a green line, Northeast with a yellow line, South with a pink line, and Midwest with a purple line. All four regions saw a wave in summer 2024, then one in winter 2024-25 (with significantly higher levels in the Northeast and Midwest than the West and South), then one in summer 2025 (with higher levels for the West and South). In the latest data, for early December, Biobot reports increases in all four regions, with the most pronounced spike in the Northeast. Text reads, “Wastewater data from the CDC, WastewaterSCAN, and Biobot Analytics show increasing SARS-CoV-2 levels at sewage testing sites around the country in the first week of December. All three sources report increases in their national averages and for the Northeast, Midwest, and (to a lesser extent) the South.” ID 3) COVID-19 test positivity is also increasing nationally, after a plateau for much of October and November. Health regions in the Northeast and Midwest report more aggressive increases in test positivity than those in the South and West. While we are clearly moving into a period of higher COVID-19 spread, seasonal flu continues to increase more rapidly. National test positivity and emergency department visits are much higher for the flu than for COVID-19 in our latest data. We have also passed the CDC’s threshold for flu season. ID 4) Flu, along with RSV and other viruses that spread through the air and close contact in winter, offer additional reasons to wear high-quality masks and follow other health measures. Health departments in New York City and California recently encouraged masking — something that other agencies should do, too. Screenshot of a text from the California Department of Public Health reads, “Traveling for the holidays? Stay well on your way by wearing a high-quality mask like an N95 in crowded indoor spaces like airports and planes. Also wash your hands frequently, cover your cough or sneeze, and avoid traveling if you’re sick.” ID 5) Black text on a white graph paper background shows The Sick Times COVID-19 trends legend. WastewaterSCAN category for SARS-CoV-2: Lighter yellow = “Low” Darker yellow = “Medium” Orange = “High"; medium concentration and upward trend or high concentration and downward trend Red = “High"; high concentration and no trend or upward trend CDC wastewater viral activity level for SARS-CoV-2: Lighter yellow = “Very low” Darker yellow = “Low” Orange = “Moderate” Red = “High” or “Very high” CDC COVID-19 test positivity: Lighter yellow = Under 3% Darker yellow = 3% to 6% Orange = 6% to 10% Red = 10% or higher Week over week percent change Arrow directly down = -20% or less change Arrow diagonal down = -20% to -5% change Arrow in horizontal line = -5% to 5% change Arrow diagonal up = 5% to 20% change Arrow directly up = 20% or more change
December 16, 2025 at 6:35 PM
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Thank you for your patience! I double-checked and we CAN indeed accept PayPal donations. They go to our fiscal sponsor (info@muckrock.com) and you can put "The Sick Times" in the description so that they know it's for us! Thank you for checking on this, and for reading!
December 15, 2025 at 10:32 PM