Harvard researchers say coronavirus testing needs to triple before the United States can reopen the economy.
Testing nationwide is currently at 150,000 per day but should go up to at least 500,000 per day if the U.S. wants to reopen by mid-May, they said.
"If you have a very high positive rate, it means that there are probably a good number of people out there who have the disease who you haven't tested," Dr. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute and incoming dean of Brown University's School of Public Health, told The New York Times. "You want to drive the positive rate down, because the fundamental element of keeping our economy open is making sure you're identifying as many infected people as possible and isolating them."
The rate of testing is a key metric, he said.
Rhode Island is the only state doing enough to safely reopen, as the state conducted an average of 185 tests per 100,000 residents during the week ending April 15. Massachusetts is well below the threshold, at 92 daily tests per 100,000 people.
More than 760,000 people in the U.S. have been infected with the coronavirus and more than 40,000 have died.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.