Yet again, the United States of America has broken multiple single-day coronavirus records. John Hopkins University reported that 3,600 people died from the coronavirus on December 16. Making matters worse, the COVID Tracking Project reported that 230,000 new COVID-19 cases emerged and nearly 115,000 people were hospitalized due to the virus. These record-breaking numbers arrive as the nation's death toll surpasses the 300,000 mark. By New Year's Day, researchers at John Hopkins University expect the country to have endured upwards of 330,000 deaths.
Coronavirus numbers continue to spike after millions traveled for the Thanksgiving holiday. As the country nears the December holiday season, many health experts expect numbers to continue to rise in the weeks to come.
"We are still at a dangerous and critical part of this pandemic and tens of thousands of American lives are at stake really every week," Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Adm. Brett P. Giroir.
Health officials are also rolling out the first round of vaccines for the deadly virus. Thus far, the first set of vaccines from Pfizer has made its way to California, Tennessee, New York, Alabama and several other states. As early as next week, Moderna could begin rolling out their vaccine. Together, Moderna and Pfizer could roll out nearly 25 million doses by the end of the month. However, many Americans will have to wait until 2021 to receive the vaccine. In the meantime, health officials ask that Americans follow COVID-19 protocols by wearing masks and remaining socially distant.
"If you do that, we're going to be in really good shape. But if you don't, we're going to have thousands of more casualties in this country that we can avoid," Giroir added.
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