The U.S. recorded more than 100,000 coronavirus cases in a single day for the first time, raising fears the country faces a bleak winter as Europe faced new lockdowns and China barred travelers from five countries to avoid another outbreak.
Five states — Colorado, Indiana, Maine, Minnesota and Nebraska — saw single-day highs, according to data compiled by a New York Times tracker that found more than 107,000 cases in data compiled Thursday for the prior day.
Testing capacity has improved, but other metrics suggest actual transmission is rising. Deaths are up over 20% from two weeks ago and more than 50,000 people are hospitalized for COVID-19 — up from about 30,000 a month ago.
The country likely crossed the 100,000-case mark weeks ago, because diagnostic efforts do not catch the full extent of the virus within communities, said Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
“However, officially crossing the mark underscores the fact that this virus is not under control in this country and we can expect this case number to go up as environmental conditions favor the transmission of the virus,” he said. “Hopefully, hospitals are able to weather the storm without having to compromise care.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Congress in June that he would “not be surprised” if the country hit the grim milestone during a summer surge across the South and West. That surge was brought under control, yet the virus found new places to spread, bringing the U.S. to the current juncture.
The seven-day rolling average of cases ticked over 90,000 in recent days, higher than the summertime peak of about 66,000 per day and more than double the daily average of 40,000 two months ago.
The U.S. case-fatality rate, or share of people who have tested positive and died, is down to 2.5%, yet more than 900 people are still dying from the disease per day, on average.
Transmission is acute in parts of the upper Midwest, notably the Dakotas and Wisconsin, though the Northeast is girding for another crisis, raising the prospect of new business restrictions.
The United Kingdom entered a four-week lockdown on Thursday, with stores closing and residents being told they can leave home only for essential reasons, such as buying food, getting medical care or engaging in exercise. Bars and restaurants can offer takeout, while universities and schools will remain open.
The coronavirus was discovered in Wuhan, China, in December 2019 and swiftly spread across the globe. It has killed 1.2 million people, including more than 234,000 in the U.S.
China’s communist government used draconian lockdowns and widespread testing to get the situation under control after an early crisis. Now it is trying to keep outsiders from bringing the virus back in.
On Thursday, it banned travelers — except for Chinese citizens — from the U.K., Bangladesh, Belgium, India and the Philippines.
The U.S. and world are banking on a vaccine to bring the virus down to manageable levels in 2021.
Drugmaker Pfizer has said it hopes to seek emergency approval of its candidate during the latter half of this month, while AstraZeneca told investors Thursday it expects data from its late-stage trials before the end of the year.
Drugmakers Moderna Inc. and Johnson & Johnson are anticipating results from their sprawling trials, too, offering U.S. officials hope there will be multiple candidates available.
The U.S. government also is supporting advanced efforts by Novavax and Sanofi-GSK. Both teams plan to start phase 3 trials soon.
As key states count the final votes for president, it is unclear whether President Trump, who directed $10 billion toward vaccine development through his “Operation Warp Speed,” would lead the full rollout or if the responsibility would transfer to Democratic rival Joseph R. Biden in the new year.
Either way, the Biden campaign said the nominee and running mate Kamala D. Harris received a COVID-19 briefing Thursday.
“We’re reminded again of the severity of this pandemic. Cases are on the rise nationwide and we’re nearing 240,000 deaths due to COVID,” Mr. Biden said. “Our hearts go out to each and every family that has lost a loved one to this terrible disease.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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