NET Health addresses new data computation for COVID-19

TYLER — NET Health CEO George Roberts gave an update to the Tyler City Council on Wednesday. Part of that presentation included an explanation of the new formula being used to compute COVID-19 cases. “Confirmed is a PCR lab test, that is a test that we have been running pretty much from the start. The probables are what’s called antigen tests. This test really started in May or so and it’s a faster test. You are seeing more and more people doing that. In the antigen test, if it hits positive, the reliability is good. But if it hits negative, the reliability is not as good. So we basically are now combining them.”

The NET Health 7-Day Rolling Rate calculates the average number of all COVID-positive cases from the previous seven days. That answer is then divided by the population of the county, then multiplied by 100,000, and that final number is the 7-Day Rolling Rate. The numbers within the infographic relate to persons of any age who tests positive, and that this infographic should not be used as the only base of information for businesses, neighborhoods, school districts, worksites, or cities to consider future decisions. It is a new resource for everyone to use but other sources of information still need to be referenced.