US COVID-19 Cases Surpass 700,000... Spread Slows Down

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States surpassed 700,000 on the 18th (local time). As the spread showed clear signs of slowing down since last week, evaluations suggest that various parts of the U.S. have begun expanding testing capabilities and initiating moves to reopen the economy.

According to COVID-19 statistics from Johns Hopkins University, the number of confirmed cases in the U.S. reached 726,645 on this day, exceeding the 700,000 mark. The death toll was recorded at 37,938. Since surpassing 100,000 cases for the first time on March 19, the number of confirmed cases has increased nearly sevenfold in just one month. However, the daily increase in new cases has been limited to between 20,000 and 30,000 since reaching a peak of 35,100 new cases on the 10th.

There are assessments that the COVID-19 situation is gradually stabilizing across the U.S. In New York State, which suffered the greatest impact, there are diagnoses that the situation is improving. As the steep spread of COVID-19 shows signs of calming, state governments are preparing to expand testing capabilities and restart the economy.

According to CNN, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo stated the previous day, "The number of new hospitalizations or infections due to COVID-19 has dropped to 2,000, which is the level seen in late March," adding, "We have passed not only the peak but also the stabilization phase." He also noted that the lowest daily death toll this month was 540. Governor Cuomo pointed out that expanding the capacity to conduct large-scale COVID-19 testing is a challenge, citing the procurement of large quantities of test reagents as a difficulty. He said, "The more we test and the more information we gather, the more we can restart society," and added, "The issue with testing is not that we don't know how to test, but how to scale it up massively."

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said that they are aggressively expanding testing capabilities, stating, "At some point, whenever it may be, we will have to restart our state, and having strong testing capabilities is key to moving forward." Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo ordered all essential workers to wear cloth face coverings on the same day, estimating that the peak in the state would come at the end of this month or early next month.

Alaska announced plans to reopen the retail sector next week. Previously, Alaska had allowed hospital visits for regular check-ups or physical therapy starting on the 20th and announced that non-essential medical treatments would be permitted from May 4.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.