US deaths from the coronavirus were approaching 150,000 on Wednesday, the highest level in the world and increased by around 10,000 in just 11 days, as 21 states enter what the federal government considers the “red zone” of increasing infection rates.
The nation recorded the deadliest day of summer in the past 24 hours, with more than 1,200 confirmed deaths from coronavirus, the highest daily number reported by the country since May, according to a Reuters count.
Covid-19 deaths have increased in the US for three weeks in a row, while the number of new cases week after week recently declined for the first time since June.
Coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force, Deborah Birx, said Tuesday that hot spots threaten regions where cases are controlled.
Birx warned: “We can see the virus moving north. What we are seeing throughout the South at the moment are rural infections, as well as small and large meters, simultaneously. ”
An increase in infections in Arizona, California, Florida and Texas this month has overwhelmed hospitals.
Texas has recorded nearly 4,000 deaths so far this month, followed by Florida at 2,690 and California, the most populous state, at 2,500. The Texas figure includes an accumulation of hundreds of deaths after the state changed the way it counted Covid-19 deaths.
Donald Trump plans to travel to Odessa in West Texas on Wednesday, but not to visit hospitals, beef up health workers or discuss the virus with local leaders, but to meet with donors and visit an oil production facility.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced Tuesday that the McAllen Convention Center on the southeast border with Mexico was to become a temporary medical center for coronavirus patients.
Abbott visited the Rio Grande Valley, a virus access point, to see the damage caused by Hurricane Hanna over the weekend. Local officials are dealing with the damage from hurricanes and the threat of tropical storms and hurricanes that the season could bring, while simultaneously facing the coronavirus pandemic.
“If there is one thing I want to emphasize to everyone in the Rio Grande Valley it is this: this hurricane has not eliminated Covid-19,” said Abbott.
New York and New Jersey lead the US in total deaths and deaths per capita, according to Reuters.
In Illinois, 73 people are among a Covid-19 outbreak in Lake Zurich that dates back to several July 4 meetings.
“We have identified multiple smaller meetings where Covid-19 infections occurred,” said Hannah Goering of the Lake County Health Department.
Of the 20 countries with the largest outbreak, the United States ranks sixth for deaths per capita, with 4.5 deaths per 10,000 people. It is surpassed by the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Peru and Chile.
An internal memo from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) obtained by ABC News reports that new cases across the country are on the decline but deaths are on the rise.
In the seven days that ended Monday, new cases across the country have decreased 0.6% from the previous week, but that time period also saw a 30% increase in deaths from the disease, and deaths They have steadily increased in recent days, the television network reported. Wednesday.
States in the “red zone”: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee , Texas, Utah and Wisconsin: Each had more than 100 new cases per 100,000 people last week, the New York Times reported, according to internal federal figures.
Meanwhile, Republicans in the White House and Congress were in disarray over their own plan to provide $ 1 trillion in new coronavirus aid on Tuesday, as negotiations aimed at reaching a compromise bill with Democrats were also seized. sharpened.
Democratic Party House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she would meet with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday to “convey our differences,” after Democrats called the latest bailout plan Monday. Republican caught up in conservative negotiations and infighting “totally inadequate” on Monday. .
In a useful economic indicator, Detroit automakers will report financial results this week, highlighting the damage caused by the second-quarter coronavirus pandemic. But investors will focus on what they say about current demand as infection rates rise in key truck markets like Texas and Covid-19’s impact on the U.S. economy, where the unemployment rate is higher than 11% compared to a record low of 3.5% in February before the pandemic spread.
To stem the outbreak, North American production closed for much of the second quarter at General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler and only restarted in mid-May.
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