'If we do the right thing, we can beat this,' health expert says as COVID cases decrease in Florida

TAMPA, Fla. - Positive COVID-19 cases trending downward is a reflection of fewer people being tested and the virus having less prominence in the community, according to public health professor Dr. Thomas Unnasch from the University of South Florida.

The seven-day rolling average of positive COVID-19 cases in Florida is down 75% compared to when cases peaked on July 18, Dr. Unnasch said.

"Testing is also down by about 60 percent, so if we went back and we said, 'Well, if we were actually testing the same number of people today as we were testing back in July, how many positives would we have detected? If we tested that many people, the chances are based on the calculations I did, say around 7,000 people.'"

This makes health experts optimistic about the state of COVID-19 in the community.  

Dr. Unnasch attributes the drop in testing to fewer people who are asymptomatic getting tested. 

"There's less hysteria," Dr. Unnasch said.

He says COVID-19 cases should continue trending downward as long as people keep washing their hands frequently, social distancing, and wearing masks.