Coronavirus: US Hits Record High in Daily Cases
A recent
surge in infections and hospitalizations has prompted the states of Texas,
Florida and Arizona to pause reopening plans.
Texas's
governor ordered bars to close and announced other "targeted
measures" on Friday to bring infections down.
Florida announced
it was suspending alcohol consumption at its bars.
JHU's
previous high of 36,400 was on 24 April when less testing took place.
The US has
2.4 million confirmed infections and 122,370 deaths - more than any other
country.
While some
of the increase in daily cases recorded is down to increased testing, the rate
of positive tests in some areas is also increasing.
Health
officials in the US estimate the true number of cases is likely to be 10
times higher than the reported figure.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said up to 20 million Americans may have been infected with coronavirus. The estimate was based on blood samples collected from across the country which were tested for the presence of antibodies to the virus.
The surge in
cases was being driven by young people testing positive, especially in the
south and west of the US, said the head of the CDC, Dr Robert Redfield.
Texas, which
has been at the forefront of moves to end lockdown measures, has seen thousands
of new cases, prompting Republican Governor Greg Abbott to call a temporary
halt to its reopening on Friday.
He announced
that he was closing bars, stopping river-rafting, and ordering restaurants to
return to 50% capacity to try to stem the outbreak.
"It is
clear that the rise in cases is largely driven by certain types of activities,
including Texans congregating in bars," he said in a statement.
Texas
confirmed a record 5,996 new cases on Thursday, while there were also 47 more
deaths reported, the highest daily toll for a month.
On Friday,
Florida broke its own daily record for new infections, reporting 8,942 new
cases. The previous record was 5,508, reported on Wednesday. The state now has
a total of 122,960 recorded cases and 3,366 deaths.
State
officials announced that alcohol consumption was being suspended at bars across
the state. However, it was not clear how the new measures would affect
restaurants that served alcohol, the Miami Herald reported.
Earlier,
Florida's governor said there was no plan to continue reopening step-by-step.
"We are where we are. I didn't say we were going to go on to the next
phase," Ron DeSantis told reporters.
Arizona has
emerged as another epicentre of the crisis. Disease trackers there say the
state has "lost control of the epidemic", the Washington Post
reports. Governor Doug Ducey, who had been giving businesses a "green
light" to reopen, now says Arizona residents are "safer at
home".
The light is
at "yellow", Gov Ducey said on Thursday. "I'm asking for
Arizonans to proceed with caution, to go slower, to look both ways."
Other
states, including Alabama, California, Idaho, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada,
Oklahoma, South Carolina and Wyoming, have all seen record daily increases in
the number of confirmed cases this week.
"It is
clear that the rise in cases is largely driven by certain types of activities,
including Texans congregating in bars," he said in a statement.
Texas
confirmed a record 5,996 new cases on Thursday, while there were also 47 more
deaths reported, the highest daily toll for a month.
On Friday,
Florida broke its own daily record for new infections, reporting 8,942 new
cases. The previous record was 5,508, reported on Wednesday. The state now has
a total of 122,960 recorded cases and 3,366 deaths.
State
officials announced that alcohol consumption was being suspended at bars across
the state. However, it was not clear how the new measures would affect restaurants
that served alcohol, the Miami Herald reported.
Earlier,
Florida's governor said there was no plan to continue reopening step-by-step.
"We are where we are. I didn't say we were going to go on to the next
phase," Ron DeSantis told reporters.
Arizona has emerged as another epicentre of the crisis. Disease trackers there say the state has "lost control of the epidemic", the Washington Post reports.
Governor
Doug Ducey, who had been giving businesses a "green light" to reopen,
now says Arizona residents are "safer at home".
The light is
at "yellow", Gov Ducey said on Thursday. "I'm asking for
Arizonans to proceed with caution, to go slower, to look both ways."
Other
states, including Alabama, California, Idaho, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada,
Oklahoma, South Carolina and Wyoming, have all seen record daily increases in
the number of confirmed cases this week.
New York,
New Jersey and Connecticut have said they will ask people travelling from eight
states - Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Texas and Utah - to go into self-isolation for 14 days.
In
California, which reported a record 7,149 new confirmed cases on Wednesday,
Disney said it was delaying reopening of its Disneyland Park and Disney
California Adventure Park originally set for 17 July. The company said it first
needed to receive approval from government officials.
Governor
Gavin Newsom said the state had carried out more than a million tests over the
past two weeks, with about 5% coming back positive. Mr Newsom has made wearing
a face mask mandatory in public.
The
University of Washington predicts 180,000 US deaths by October - or 146,000 if
95% of Americans wear masks.
The European
Union is reportedly considering banning US citizens from entering the bloc
as it considers how to reopen its external borders.
The US
federal system of government allows states freedom to devise their own
solutions and policies to pressing concerns - even a national health crisis.
Governors
have therefore been responsible for the varying degrees of lockdown put in
place to curtail the spread of Covid-19.
That
patchwork response has also been marked by contention between the Trump administration
and some governors.
Back in
March, President Trump made it clear he wanted to see America reopen for
business "soon".
Faced with
rising unemployment and an economic crisis just months ahead of November's
election, he tweeted at the time: "We cannot let the cure be worse than
the problem itself."
The
president even went so far as to endorse street protests against stringent
lockdown measures in several states.
Then, in
April, President Trump unveiled guidance to governors on reopening state
economies.
The
guidelines for "Opening up America Again" outlined three phases for
states to gradually ease their lockdowns.
Mr Trump
promised governors they would be handling the process themselves, with help
from the federal government.
FROM .bbc.com/news/world-us-canada
No comments