USA hits 3 million coronavirus cases as spread of virus surges across states
The United States has passed 3 million confirmed cases of coronavirus, nearly double the next highest country and representing a quarter of all cases worldwide.Health experts said the rapid rise in case numbers could not solely be explained by an increase in testingThe case numbers have been driven by record daily increases in southern and western states, with newly confirmed infections per day in the US running at over 50,000.
The 3 million figure represents around 1 per cent of the US population, and 25 per cent of all cases, and was confirmed by Vice-President Mike Pence at a press conference.However, he defended US President Donald Trump's handling of the crisis. Despite the increase in cases, Mr Trump announced a plan to get America's public schools to re-open in September, threatening to hold back federal funding if school districts do not bring their students back into the classroom.
The recommendations will keep students safe, he said, but "the president said today we just don't want the guidance to be too tough".Increase not solely related to increased testing The percentage of tests coming back positive for the virus is on the rise across nearly the entire country, hitting almost 27 per cent in Arizona, 19 per cent in Florida and 17 per cent in South Carolina.
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