US Reports Highest Ever COVID-19 Cases... Sharp Increase in Child Infections as Well
[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] As the new COVID-19 variant Omicron rapidly spreads in the United States, the number of confirmed cases has reached an all-time high.
According to Johns Hopkins University, as of the 28th (local time), the 7-day average daily new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. reached 254,496, surpassing the previous record of 248,209 on January 12. This is the largest scale since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
The number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. has been soaring since the end of last month along with the spread of Omicron.
According to CNN analysis, in four states?Michigan, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire?COVID-19 hospitalizations have reached record highs this month. Washington D.C. is also near the peak level seen in January this year. In Ohio, Indiana, and Delaware, hospitalizations have increased to about 80% compared to the early-year peak when case numbers were highest.
The sharp surge is attributed to the impact of the new variant Omicron. Highly contagious Omicron has overtaken Delta as the dominant strain in the U.S. According to data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on this day, as of the 25th, Omicron accounted for 58.6% of confirmed cases over the past 7 days.
Notably, there has been a rapid increase in child cases recently. Local media, citing Department of Health and Human Services statistics, reported that hospitalizations of children due to COVID-19 increased by an average of 52% over the past four weeks. As of the previous day, the number of hospitalized children with COVID-19 in the U.S. reached 2,000. Regionally, child cases increased mainly in Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York. Mary Bassett, New York State Health Commissioner, said at a briefing that "the number of child COVID-19 patients has increased fivefold in less than two weeks."
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Since the pandemic began, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. exceeds 63 million, with over 810,000 deaths reported.
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