More than a year after the vaccine was rolled out, new cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. have soared to the highest level on record at over 265,000 per day on average.
CHICAGO — More than a year after the vaccine was rolled out, new cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. have soared to the highest level on record at over 265,000 per day on average, a surge driven largely by the highly contagious omicron variant.
The previous mark was 250,000 cases per day, set in mid-January, according to data kept by Johns Hopkins University.The fast-spreading mutant version of the virus has cast a pall over Christmas and New Year’s, forcing communities to scale back or call off their festivities just weeks after it seemed as if Americans were about to enjoy an almost normal holiday season. Thousands of flights have been canceled amid staffing shortages blamed on the virus.
The number of Americans now in the hospital with COVID-19 is running at around 60,000, or about half the figure seen in January, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. While hospitalizations sometimes lag behind case numbers, the figures may indicate omicron is not making people as severely ill as previous versions, as many experts suspect.
COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. have climbed over the past two weeks from an average of 1,200 per day to around 1,500.Several European countries, including France, Greece, Britain and Spain, also reported record case counts this week, prompting a ban on music at New Year’s celebrations in Greece and a renewed push to encourage vaccination by French authorities.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
NBA COVID-19 cases still rising as expanded testing beginsBy early Sunday evening, the number of players known to be in the protocols was up to 116 — and probably slightly higher, considering some teams had yet to update injury reports.
Read more »
English Premier League hit by record 103 Covid-19 cases between Dec 20-26The English Premier League has reported a record 103 Covid-19 cases in the week leading up to Boxing Day.
Read more »
Utah reports 4,645 new COVID-19 cases over the holiday weekend; 16 more deathsThe Utah Department of Health on Monday reported 4,607 new cases of COVID-19 over the holiday weekend and 16 more deaths.
Read more »
Allenwood penitentiary has more inmate COVID-19 cases than any other BOP facilityThe medium-security Allenwood prison is fourth on the Bureau of Prisons list of coronavirus cases.
Read more »
Alaska reports 794 new COVID-19 cases in residents, no deaths over 5-day holiday periodAlaska health officials on Monday reported 794 new COVID-19 infections in residents and no deaths over a five-day period that included the Christmas holiday
Read more »