Readingâs Covid case rate has halved to less than 400 since pandemic peak three weeks ago Covid cases are rising sharply in Reading Reading’s Covid case rate has dropped to below 400 having reached a peak of more than 800 just three weeks ago. The Covid-19 case rate reached its highest peak during the pandemic in Reading on January 8, with a rate of 810.4. It has now gone down to 390.7, as of the latest data from January 29. The case rate or rate of infection is the number of people who tested positive for Covid-19 per 100,000 over the last seven days and includes a five-day delay.