False: 58 percent COVID-19 positivity rate indicates that 58 percent of the population has COVID-19.

By: Ankita Kulkarni
February 10 2022

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The COVID-19 test positivity rate shows the percentage of people that tested positive out of the total number of tests conducted.The percent positive rate is a parameter that determines the current rate of COVID-19 transmission in someone's community. It ensures the requirement for strict restrictions in the locality to contain the spread of the infection. The Test Positivity Rate (TPR) or the Percent Positivity Rate is defined as the number of people who test positive for the virus among the overall tests conducted in the designated area. It indicates how widely the infection is spread in the region where testing is being conducted. The percentage varies depending on the volume of testing, and the population tested. A high positivity rate means that more people have tested positive for the infection in the community among those who got tested. It also suggests that more testing needs to be implemented. And likewise, a low positive rate means a low level of transmission relative to the amount of testing done, but most of the population may be vulnerable to infection. One of the most common methods used to calculate the test positivity rate in a region is by dividing the sum total number of people that tested positive for the virus by the total number of tests conducted in the area. The quotient of this calculation is then multiplied by 100 to determine the test positivity rate. Even though there are other methods to determine TPR, the above-aforementioned method is widely used. The positive rates do not depict the population infected in a region, as not everyone in the community is tested for the virus. And the particular region may also have asymptomatic individuals who may not be tested. Hence, we mark the claim as false as the positivity rate only points out the positive results among the number of tests conducted and not a percentage of the total population. The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19 including symptoms, prevention and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organisation or your national healthcare authority. The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19, including symptoms, prevention, and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organization or your national healthcare authority.