By mid-September, the seven-day average of COVID hospitalizations in the United States was nearly 12,600 admissions, up from 5,700 in early July. This amounts to 1.4 COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 people every day, up from 0.6 cases per 100,000 in late June but below 3.5 cases per 100,000 at the start of the year, according to the New York Times (using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). This uptick has led public health officials to urge Americans to get the recently released updated COVID booster. (These are the counties where the COVID-19 increase is the worst in every state.)
The infection continues to be a much bigger mortal threat to people over the age of 65 than to younger people without underlying medical conditions like diabetes, obesity, or chronic lung disease. But anyone can fall ill from COVID, even if they don’t wind up in the ICU, and the most acute non-fatal cases can lead to what the CDC calls post-COVID conditions – also known as long COVID – causing sufferers to experience symptoms like fatigue, difficulty concentrating, or heart palpitations for last weeks, months, and possibly years after infection.
To determine the states where the most people have long COVID-19, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on the duration of COVID-19 symptoms from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey for Aug. 23-Sept.4, 2023.
More than three years after the emergence of the virus as a public health threat, about 133.3 million U.S. adults have been diagnosed with COVID, and nearly 34.5 million of them have reported COVID symptoms lasting three months or longer, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Among the 50 states, the percentage of adults reporting these long COVID symptoms ranges from 19% of all reported COVID cases in Massachusetts to more than a third of cases in Idaho and New Mexico. Among the ten most populated states, Ohio leads in long COVID, with more than 1.4 million cases, or nearly 31% of all reported cases of the infection, followed by Georgia and Texas. (Here’s a list of the states with the most health-conscious residents.)
Methodology
To determine the states where the most people have long COVID-19, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on the duration of COVID-19 symptoms from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey for August 23-September 4, 2023. States were ranked based on the percentage of adults who report having COVID-19 symptoms for a duration of three months or longer after having received a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. Supplemental data on the percentage of the adult population that has completed the two-dose primary series of COVID-19 vaccinations as of May 11, 2023 and the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations from Aug. 1, 2020 to Sept. 16, 2023 – adjusted for population using data from the U.S. Census Bureau – came from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Data on the percentage of adults reporting poor or fair health came from the 2023 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps report of the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and is based on 2020 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System of the CDC.
50. Massachusetts
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 19.2%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,493.9 per 100,000 (13th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.8% (10th lowest)
49. New Jersey
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 20.5%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,867.4 per 100,000 (25th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.8% (10th lowest)
48. Rhode Island
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 20.9%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,205.0 per 100,000 (5th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.8% (19th lowest)
47. South Carolina
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 21.0%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 82.2% (18th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,804.7 per 100,000 (21st lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 15.9% (9th highest)
46. Pennsylvania
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 21.6%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,895.1 per 100,000 (25th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 13.1% (22nd highest)
45. Maryland
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 21.8%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,560.5 per 100,000 (14th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.6% (7th lowest)
44. Delaware
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 22.5%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,979.5 per 100,000 (18th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.8% (23rd highest)
43. New Hampshire
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 23.0%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,306.7 per 100,000 (6th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.8% (10th lowest)
42. Vermont
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 23.2%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 977.6 per 100,000 (the lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.6% (7th lowest)
41. North Carolina
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 24.5%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,578.0 per 100,000 (16th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 13.5% (20th highest)
40. Hawaii
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 24.7%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,362.6 per 100,000 (8th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.3% (4th lowest)
39. Minnesota
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 25.1%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 88.6% (25th highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,382.4 per 100,000 (9th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.0% (the lowest)
38. Illinois
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 25.2%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 88.3% (24th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,827.8 per 100,000 (23rd lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.3% (23rd lowest)
37. Arkansas
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 25.3%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 81.6% (16th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,220.9 per 100,000 (8th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 19.4% (3rd highest)
36. Iowa
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 25.9%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 81.8% (17th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,702.1 per 100,000 (19th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.0% (20th lowest)
35. Oregon
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.1%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 91.0% (21st highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,097.4 per 100,000 (4th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.7% (25th highest)
34. Kansas
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.2%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 88.5% (25th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,945.9 per 100,000 (20th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.8% (23rd highest)
33. Nebraska
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.4%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 85.3% (21st lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,606.7 per 100,000 (17th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.2% (3rd lowest)
32. Virginia
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.5%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,403.6 per 100,000 (11th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.4% (25th lowest)
31. Connecticut
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.6%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,790.6 per 100,000 (20th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.0% (12th lowest)
30. Colorado
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.7%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 93.8% (20th highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,663.2 per 100,000 (18th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.2% (3rd lowest)
29. Michigan
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.7%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 79.7% (11th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,924.7 per 100,000 (22nd highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 14.7% (15th highest)
28. California
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.8%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,568.1 per 100,000 (15th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 14.4% (18th highest)
27. Indiana
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 26.9%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 75.1% (4th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,044.1 per 100,000 (15th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 15.1% (13th highest)
26. Florida
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.0%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 94.4% (19th highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,574.6 per 100,000 (4th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 13.3% (21st highest)
25. Montana
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.1%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 78.3% (10th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,686.4 per 100,000 (3rd highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.1% (21st lowest)
24. Washington
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.1%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 990.7 per 100,000 (2nd lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.8% (19th lowest)
23. Maine
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.3%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,095.6 per 100,000 (3rd lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.1% (13th lowest)
22. New York
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.3%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,919.7 per 100,000 (23rd highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.8% (19th lowest)
21. Wisconsin
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.5%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 85.2% (20th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,149.5 per 100,000 (10th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.4% (25th lowest)
20. Texas
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.9%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 88.1% (23rd lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,034.6 per 100,000 (16th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 15.7% (10th highest)
19. North Dakota
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 27.9%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 81.4% (15th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,934.1 per 100,000 (21st highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.6% (15th lowest)
18. Tennessee
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 28.2%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 75.6% (6th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,858.6 per 100,000 (24th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 15.7% (10th highest)
17. Louisiana
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 28.3%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 74.6% (3rd lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,096.7 per 100,000 (13th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 19.0% (4th highest)
16. Arizona
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 28.5%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 87.9% (22nd lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,090.5 per 100,000 (14th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 14.5% (16th highest)
15. West Virginia
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 29.3%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 77.8% (9th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,395.8 per 100,000 (5th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 20.0% (the highest)
14. Georgia
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 29.3%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 80.2% (12th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,200.3 per 100,000 (9th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 15.1% (13th highest)
13. Alabama
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 29.7%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 76.9% (8th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,313.6 per 100,000 (6th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 18.9% (5th highest)
12. Alaska
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.1%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 84.7% (19th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,332.8 per 100,000 (7th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 12.2% (22nd lowest)
11. Wyoming
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.2%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 72.6% (the lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,965.3 per 100,000 (19th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.5% (14th lowest)
10. Utah
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.5%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 89.1% (24th highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,392.3 per 100,000 (10th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.9% (11th lowest)
9. Ohio
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.6%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 75.6% (6th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,222.9 per 100,000 (7th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 14.5% (16th highest)
8. Missouri
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.6%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 80.3% (13th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,119.7 per 100,000 (11th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 15.2% (12th highest)
7. Kentucky
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.6%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 80.4% (14th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 3,459.4 per 100,000 (the highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 19.5% (2nd highest)
6. Oklahoma
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.7%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 89.2% (23rd highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,740.6 per 100,000 (2nd highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 17.3% (7th highest)
5. Nevada
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 30.7%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 90.4% (22nd highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,034.1 per 100,000 (17th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 16.7% (8th highest)
4. Mississippi
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 31.9%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 73.4% (2nd lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,904.6 per 100,000 (24th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 18.7% (6th highest)
3. South Dakota
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 32.2%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 2,117.9 per 100,000 (12th highest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.4% (5th lowest)
2. New Mexico
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 33.9%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 95.0% (the highest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,812.6 per 100,000 (22nd lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 13.8% (19th highest)
1. Idaho
> Adult COVID-19 patients reporting long-term symptoms: 34.3%
> Adults with at least two COVID-19 vaccination doses: 76.8% (7th lowest)
> COVID-19 hospitalizations since August 2020: 1,430.7 per 100,000 (12th lowest)
> Adults reporting poor or fair health: 11.8% (19th lowest)