Where is the coronavirus in Montgomery County? Here are confirmed cases by ZIP code

Here is a list of coronavirus cases confirmed by the Maryland Department of Health across Montgomery County, listed by ZIP code.

What this list tells us:

The list gives a rough snapshot of the number of patients who were sick enough to seek medical attention, and who were given a test for coronavirus that came back positive, in a particular ZIP code. Because of the 14-day incubation period for the Covid-19 coronavirus, we're likely looking at what the situation was about two weeks ago in each ZIP code.

What this list doesn't tell us:

These numbers obviously don't tell us how many infected people were asymptomatic, and/or did not qualify to be tested, in each ZIP code. They are also not necessarily an accurate estimate of the overall health or safety of a particular community.

For example, there are quite a few nursing homes and facilities for the elderly in eastern Montgomery County, in places like Wheaton and Fairland. Nursing homes have been the biggest hot spots for coronavirus across Maryland and many other states, so this makes the numbers look worse than they are for the general public in those areas. By contrast, there are no nursing homes in the 20816 ZIP code, which has one of the lowest non-rural confirmed case totals.

The public needs and deserves more information than Montgomery County and Maryland have provided so far, which may have caused the virus to spread since many were unable to know if they had been exposed and should isolate, thanks to a lack of contact tracing information being released publicly by the county and state (think about how many times you've heard a public announcement that someone with measles shopped in a particular store, or traveled through an airport on a particular date - that didn't happen here with coronavirus).

But the ZIP code information does represent some data and information we didn't have prior to this week. So let's make use of it.

ZIP CODE (Towns/Cities in that ZIP Code): Number of coronavirus cases

20818 (Cabin John): 0
20817 (Bethesda/North Bethesda/Potomac/Cabin John/Huntington Terrace): 50
20816 (Westbard/Sumner/Westmoreland Hills/Spring Hill/Brookmont/Somerset/Glen Echo): 20
20815 (Chevy Chase): 50
20814 (Downtown Bethesda): 53
20812 (Glen Echo/Brookmont): 0

20832 (Olney): 24
20833 (Brookville): 0
20838 (Barnesville): 0
20839 (Beallsville): 0

20841 (Boyds): 17
20842 (Dickerson): 0

20850 (Rockville/North Potomac/Travilah): 44
20851 (Rockville/North Bethesda): 17
20852 (North Bethesda/South Rockville): 66
20853 (Rockville/Aspen Hill/Norbeck/Olney): 54
20854 (Darnestown/Travilah/Potomac/Rockville): 68
20855 (Derwood/Redland): 18

20866 (Burtonsville/Fairland): 26

20871 (Clarksburg): 20
20872 (Damascus): 11
20874 (Germantown): 74
20876 (Germantown/Clarksburg/Wildcat Forest): 45
20877 (Gaithersburg/Montgomery Village/Redland/Washington Grove): 61
20878 (Gaithersburg/N. Potomac/Darnestown): 58
20879 (Gaithersburg/Montgomery Village/Germantown): 35

20882 (Montgomery Village/Damascus/Laytonsville): 18
20886 (Montgomery Village): 45
20889 (Bethesda): 0

20892 (Bethesda): 0
20895 (Kensington/Garrett Park/Chevy Chase View): 31
20899 (Gaithersburg): 0

20901 (Silver Spring/Kemp Mill/WhiteOak): 81
20902 (Wheaton/Kemp Mill/Glenmont/Glenview): 135
20903 (Parts of Silver Spring/White Oak/Hillandale): 56
20904 (White Oak/Fairland/Calverton): 137
20905 (Colesville/Ashton/Sandy Spring): 21
20906 (Aspen Hill/Leisure World/Layhill): 126
20910 (Silver Spring/Takoma Park/S. Kensington): 92
20912 (Takoma Park): 44