Friday by the numbers in West Virginia:
—21.9 percent: The federal government reports that for the week ending April 18, West Virginia had an unemployment rate of 21.9 percent. That was second highest in the country after Vermont at 25.2 percent.
—20 percent: One in five American workers has now filed for first-time unemployment benefits since mid-March. The total number of unemployment claims filed since the lockdown measures took effect across the country is now at 33.5 million.
—13: West Virginia workers who have used up their 26 weeks of traditional unemployment can now file with WorkForce WV for an additional 13 weeks. Those whose regular benefits will expire in the future will be notified when to apply for the additional 13 weeks.
—24: The number of states, including West Virginia, that are reopening.
—4 percent: About 1,300 West Virginians have tested positive for COVID-19, but only four percent of those are age 19 or younger.
—3: The number of West Virginia counties that still have not had any positive tests. They are Calhoun, Doddridge, and Webster.
—58 percent: That is the percent of people who have tested positive for COVID-19 in West Virginia who have recovered. Thirty eight percent are considered “active cases” and four percent have died.
—90: There are approximately 90 assisted living facilities in West Virginia. It is estimated that about 3,500 residents and some 4,000 staff members at those facilities will be tested over the next two weeks.
—Rt: At last check, the R-naught (Rt) number for West Virginia was below 1.0. That means a slower spread of the virus. When the R-naught number is above 1.0, it means each person with the virus can infect more than one person.
—171,532: The number of Primary Election absentee ballots sent to West Virginia voters as of Tuesday. West Virginia is offering a mail-in ballot to any voter who requests it due to the pandemic. Also as of Tuesday, 54,164 had been cast.
—112: The number of years since the first Mother’s Day, organized by Anna Jarvis in Grafton, West Virginia, on May 10, 1908.
—92: The age of my mother, Laura Patricia Kercheval.