The seven-day average of new Covid-19 infections daily exceeded 100,000 in the US, returning to levels never seen since winter.
Cases and hospitalizations have risen sharply in the past month, fueled by a wide range of highly contagious cases. The country averaged 11,000 cases a day by the end of June. Now the figure is 107,143.
The virus spreads rapidly to uninfected people, especially in the Deep South. Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi hospitals are overcrowded.
Americans began to skip the 100,000 average in November and reached nearly 250,000 in early January before heading out in late June.
The world’s death toll is estimated at 5.3 million in December
The world will see 5.3mn deaths reported and 12mn deaths in December as Delta’s variance drives an increase in cases, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) estimates.
The US-based center expects the death toll to rise sharply in early September and fall sharply after that, a report released Friday said. IHME predictions distinguish between officially reported Covid-19 deaths and overdose-related deaths including unreported deaths. At least 4.3mn have died worldwide since the outbreak.