Some numbers to think about this Friday morning:
—Over 164,000: That’s the number of people who have applied for traditional unemployment in West Virginia since March 1.
—Over 13,600: The number of independent contractors, gig economy workers and employees of certain religious entities who do not normally qualify for unemployment in West Virginia but have now applied under the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program.
—818,000: The size of the workforce in our state in March.
—20 percent: Based on the number of traditional unemployment filings and the size of the workforce, it is possible that during the worst of the pandemic the state’s jobless rate could rise to 20 percent.
—$500 million: The estimated shortfall in revenue for the state for the fiscal year that ends June 30.
—$855 million: The amount of money in the state Revenue Shortfall Reserve Funds, better known as the Rainy Day Funds, which may have to be used to offset the dramatic drop in revenue.
—22 percent: About one in five of the virus infections that have occurred in West Virginia have been in the age group of 70 or older, the most of any category.*
—7.8 percent: According to the U.S. Census, just 3.6 percent of the state population is black or African American, but nearly eight percent of those who have died in West Virginia from the Covid-19 virus are black.
—Five: That is the number of counties that, as of yesterday, had reported no positive Covid-19 cases. Those counties are Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Ritchie, Webster.
—160: As of yesterday, there were 160 Covid-19 cases in Kanawha County, the most of any county.
—25: DHHR reports that of the 41 Covid-19 deaths as of yesterday, 25 had occurred in five nursing homes. The most were at the Eldercare facility in Jackson County, where 11 residents have died.
—21 percent: Pennsylvania has the highest percentage of positive tests of any of our surrounding states at 21 percent. Maryland is next at 19 percent. West Virginia’s has settled in at less than three percent.
—125: The state Division of Corrections has identified 125 prison inmates who attempted to apply for the $1,200 stimulus checks.
—39: The number of Covid-19 briefings by Governor Justice.
*(Correction: An earlier version incorrectly said 22 percent of the “deaths” were individuals age 70 or older. It should have read that 22 percent of the “infections” were individuals age 70 or older.)