Is Wyoming Really A Risky COVID State?

You would think that a state that naturally social distances just because of its layout and population would be one of the safest places on the planet from COVID-19

But Forbes Magazine has declared Wyoming among the riskiest to vacation or travel to during this time.

We are not at the top of the list. Wyoming is listed as #10 in risk factor.

South and North Dakota and Iowa scored far worse than we did.

From Forbes:

Risk factors: No statewide mask mandate - 125.8 new daily cases per 100,000 people - 43.4% of Covid tests are positive. Wyoming’s percent positive rate is 43.4%, nearly nine times higher than the 5% target. Positivity has been rising for the past two consecutive weeks.

But get this - the 4 states at the top of the list have mask mandates and other stricter social restrictions.

Forbes also pointed to Gov. Mark Gordon’s impassioned speech where he said  "we've been knuckleheads about this."

Looking at the numbers like this, Forbes is pointing out the risk factors. But would it be more risky to live in a major city or heavily populated state where people are crushed together even when they try to social distance?

Let's look at these numbers strictly according to percentage of the population.

According to the website STATISTA, North Dakota is the worst place to be right now, when they look at the number of cases per 100,000 people. Wyoming ranks 23rd, in that case.

But what about just raw number of cases in each state? According to the data I found here from CNN, you are much better off here than in the most populated states or major cities.

The bigger the population - the bigger the crush of people, the higher the risk. So if you want to live or vacation in the safest place, pick the place with fewer people, obviously.