More than 00,000 people have died from coronavirus in D.C., Maryland and Virginia

Coronavirus case rates are beginning to plateau in the District, Maryland and Virginia, with declines in the Washington metro area. Vaccination rates are climbing upward in all three jurisdictions, though D.C. and several neighboring counties still have indoor mask mandates.

Case rates in the region started rising in July, driven in large part by relaxed restrictions on gatherings and the spread of the highly contagious delta variant among pockets of unvaccinated people. This bump in infections was not as high as the winter surge earlier this year — a testament to the effectiveness of the coronavirus vaccines, experts say. Virginia, which has struggled to boost vaccination rates in its southwest region, saw a bigger increase in cases than D.C. or Maryland.

Deaths, which often lag caseloads by several weeks, have increased in recent weeks, but not at the rates of previous waves of the virus.

Many restrictions on dining, shopping and gathering have been lifted, allowing ebullient but wary residents to reunite with their loved ones and resume some of their pre-pandemic routines. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new guidance in July, calling for both vaccinated and unvaccinated people to resume wearing masks in indoor public places in areas where coronavirus transmission rates are substantial or high.

Much of Virginia and Maryland are in this category, as is D.C. While some jurisdictions, including D.C., Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, and Baltimore City, have opted to restore their indoor mask mandates, with Prince George’s recently increasing it to cover children ages 2 to 5, other jurisdictions have kept it optional. Businesses have the option of keeping mask requirements in place.

[U.S. coronavirus cases and state maps: Tracking cases, deaths]

Teachers have been vaccinated in many places and most school districts have resumed in-person classes for the fall, though debate over stringent quarantine policies, rapid testing and vaccine mandates continue amid virus outbreaks at schools. Coronavirus vaccines have yet to be approved for children younger than 12.

Reported cases per 100,000 residents by county (7-day average)

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DeathsCases

Adj. for populationTotals

Daily averageCumulative

Counties/cities with highest rates of reported cases

Virginia, Maryland and the District are no longer facing more demand for the vaccine than they have available supply. Each jurisdiction has shifted from an appointment-based system to extensive outreach and walk-in vaccination options. They are also offering incentives for people to get vaccinated, including a Maryland lottery program for people who have been vaccinated that had a top prize of $400,000 and a college scholarship lottery for Maryland teenagers who have gotten vaccinated. Counties have started to bridge the large racial disparities among those vaccinated, though significant gaps persist between rural and urban areas.

[Tracking the covid vaccine: Doses and people vaccinated by state]

In April, as the supply of doses increased, eligibility opened to everyone over 16 in the District and across the country. In May, the CDC approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12-to-15-year-olds, prompting a surge of vaccinations among younger adolescents.

Hospitalizations have increased along with a recent bump in cases, but not to the extent that they did during the winter surge. Hospital systems in rural parts of the region, where vaccination rates tend to be lower, say they’re struggling to keep up with the influx of patients who have yet to be immunized against the virus.

Intensive-care hospitalizations have also risen, though they are still at low levels relative to much of the pandemic.