U.S. cases of the novel coronavirus are approaching 6,000,000 the same number of states in the Midwest report increasing infections, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota have as of late revealed record one-day increases in new cases, while Montana and Idaho are seeing record numbers of currently hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
Broadly, measurements on new cases, passings, hospitalizations and the energy paces of tests are generally declining, yet there are rising problem areas in the Midwest.
Many of the new cases in Iowa are in the counties that are home to the University of Iowa and Iowa State University, which are holding some in-person classes. Colleges and universities around the country have seen outbreaks after students returned to campus, forcing some to switch to online-only learning.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday said his state was sending a “SWAT team” to a State University of New York (SUNY) campus in Oneonta, in upstate New York, to contain a COVID-19 outbreak. Fall classes, which started last week at the college, were suspended for two weeks after more than 100 people tested positive for the virus, about three per cent of the total student and faculty population, SUNY chancellor Jim Malatras said.
“We have had reports of several large parties of our students at Oneonta last week, and unfortunately because of those larger gatherings, there were several students who were symptomatic of COVID,” Malatras said.
Across the Midwest, infections have also risen after an annual motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D., drew more than 365,000 people from across the country from Aug. 7 to 16. The South Dakota health department said 88 cases have been traced to the rally.
More than eight months into the pandemic, the United States continues to struggle with testing. The number of people tested has fallen in recent weeks.
Many health officials and at least 33 states have rejected the new COVID-19 testing guidance issued by the Trump administration last week that said those exposed to the virus and without symptoms may not need testing.
Public health officials believe the United States needs to test more frequently to find asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers to slow the spread of the disease.
The United States leads the world with the most recorded coronavirus infections at more than 5,997,000 cases, followed by Brazil at 3,862,000 and India at 3,621,000.
The U.S. also has the most coronavirus-related deaths in the world at more than 183,000, followed by Brazil at 120,000 and India at 64,000.
Photo credit: REUTERS
New source: Reuters
