1,707 coronavirus deaths reported in 1 day in the United States

(CNN) – At this rate, the coronavirus is killing at least one American every minute of the day.

At least 1,707 new deaths from covid-19 were reported on Tuesday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. This is the highest daily death toll since May 14.

And it will only get worse, said Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a professor at George Washington University School of Medicine.

“The horrific death toll we saw in the US yesterday … reflects the number of people who were infected three weeks ago, two or three weeks ago, because that’s the delay,” Reiner said Wednesday.

“On average, two or three weeks ago, we saw between 70,000 and 80,000 (new) cases per day. About 155,000 (new) cases occurred yesterday. So, if you are alarmed by the 1,700 deaths today, in two or three weeks, we will see 3,000 deaths a day.

And while some hospitals are running out of health workers, the US has once again set a new record for hospitalized patients with covid-19: 76,830 on Tuesday, according to the Covid Tracking Project.

Virtually all states are going in the wrong direction

As of Wednesday, 47 states have had at least 10 percent more new cases daily than at this time last week, according to Johns Hopkins data.

Two states are relatively stable from last week, North Dakota and Iowa, but that doesn’t say much, as both states have recently experienced abysmal rates of new cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Hawaii alone saw a decrease of at least 10% in new cases.

This rise in infections across the country isn’t just due to further testing.

While new cases have increased by 29% in the past week, according to Johns Hopkins, testing across the country has only increased by about 11%, according to the Covid Tracking Project.

Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson said at his state’s current rate, “1,000 Arkansas residents could die of COVID-19 by Christmas.”

Texas officials have deployed two mobile refrigerated trucks to Amarillo to handle the wave of deaths.

In Illinois, “the occupation of ICU and non-ICU hospitals by COVID-19 patients could reach five times our previous spring highs,” Governor JB Pritzker said.

“We will continue to see an increase in both hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 in the coming weeks due to infections that have already occurred,” he said.

But we can change our outcome in the long run. We could potentially save thousands of lives over the next few months if we make changes right away to stop this.

A lockdown notice began this week in Chicago, where city officials also urged residents not to have guests in their homes, cancel traditional Thanksgiving celebrations, and avoid travel.

Similar measures have been announced in the United States in recent days.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced a statewide curfew starting Thursday from 10pm to 5am.

In Maryland, the governor issued an emergency order starting Friday calling for bars and restaurants to close between 10pm and 6am, with the exception of takeout and delivery services.

“We are at war right now,” Governor Larry Hogan said. And the virus is winning. Now, more than ever, I beg the people of our state to stay together a little longer. “

College students were told to stay home after the break

As cases rise in the United States, schools and universities are also exploring what their next steps should look like, especially after a holiday period that experts fear will further fuel the rampant spread of the virus.

In Boston, Mayor Marty Walsh said vacations are “a particularly high risk for college students who don’t live at home.”

“Typically, many students go to their hometown for Thanksgiving and then return to campus for the rest of the semester,” Walsh explained.

“We asked college students not to do it this year. If you’re going home for Thanksgiving, you shouldn’t go back to Boston this semester. You have to do the rest of your learning … remotely.

Earlier this week, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont also issued a guide for out-of-state college students planning to return to Connecticut for the holidays.

He said returning students should quarantine for 14 days before or after returning home, get tested for COVID-19 before leaving school and after returning home, not attend parties and not self-quarantine. . with any elderly or at risk family member.

There are still months and vaccines are available

While there is good news on the vaccine front, most Americans likely won’t be able to get vaccinated until mid-next year.

The Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine is 95 percent effective and has shown no serious safety concerns, Pfizer said Wednesday. BioNTech said Friday it plans to apply for an emergency use (US) permit from the US Food and Drug Administration.

Another vaccine, from Moderna, is 94.5 percent effective against the coronavirus, according to first data released this week. The company says its vaccine had no serious side effects.

But health experts say Americans need to double down on safety measures, as there will be far more illnesses and deaths before a vaccine is available to most people.

Dr Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, said several steps are still required before vaccines reach the public’s arms.

“They will look very carefully to make sure everything is in order safely and effectively, then they will judge whether these two vaccines, Pfizer and Moderna, qualify for an emergency use permit,” Collins said.

The two companies could receive the United States in early or mid-December, he added.

“If these two vaccines get approved, cleared for emergency use, there will be about 40 million doses ready to be delivered in December,” he said.

People will need two doses of both vaccines. “So there are 20 million people who can be immunized and we need to make sure it is used for the people most at risk,” he said.

More doses will be available each month after that, Collins noted, and there are other vaccine candidates that may be approved.

“The hope is that by April we will really start seeing a lot of people vaccinated,” Collins said.

“And certainly by the summer we hope to have most of America truly immune to this and we may start thinking about returning to normal life.”

Amanda Watts, Gregory Lemos, Carma Hassan, Gisela Crespo, Kelly Christ, Shelby Lin Erdman and Brad Parks of CNN contributed to this report.