COVID-19 Surges Across US as Some Hospitals Stretched
Several U.S. states, many of them in the Midwest, reported record single-day increases in COVID-19 infections on Thursday, further evidence that the pandemic is accelerating anew as cooler weather takes hold in many…
Several U.S. states, many of them in the Midwest, reported record single-day increases in COVID-19 infections on Thursday, further evidence that the pandemic is accelerating anew as cooler weather takes hold in many parts of the country.
Indiana, North Dakota, Illinois, Montana, Oklahoma, Utah and Ohio posted daily records on Thursday, according to a Reuters analysis, while Florida reported more than 5,500 new cases, its highest single-day increase since Aug. 15.
Twenty-eight states have reported their daily record high of COVID-19 cases in the month of October alone.
On Wednesday, the number of coronavirus deaths reported across the country reached its highest in two months. Increases in deaths tend to trail spikes new infections by several weeks.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday formally approved Gilead Sciences Inc’s antiviral drug remdesivir, which has been in wide use under an emergency authorization, for treating patients hospitalized with COVID-19. It is the first drug officially approved for the disease in the United States.
Since the pandemic reached the United States earlier this year, the nation has lost more than 222,000 lives, the world’s highest total as well as one of the highest per capita death rates, especially among developed nations. (Graphic: https://tmsnrt.rs/35hBCSa)
The autumn resurgence and dire predictions that the spread would further accelerate in the cold winter months have once again cast a harsh spotlight on President Donald Trump’s handling of the pandemic.
The Republican incumbent will debate Democratic challenger Joe Biden on Thursday evening for the last time before the Nov. 3 election. But with less than two weeks before the election, Trump’s seemingly dismissive approach to the coronavirus has clouded his re-election prospects, with polls showing Americans losing confidence in his ability to handle the pandemic.
A report released on Wednesday by Columbia University estimated that between 130,000 and 210,000 COVID-19 deaths could have been avoided in the United States, calling the federal government’s response to the pandemic an “enormous failure”.