[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has publicly warned of a "Christmas nightmare" with a sharp increase in deaths from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during the Christmas holiday period.
According to the Washington Post and others, on the 3rd (local time), the CDC compiled COVID-19 status prediction models released by 37 institutions and predicted that up to 19,500 people could die during the Christmas week alone.
The CDC stated that the total number of deaths due to COVID-19 could reach at least 303,000 and up to 329,000 by the end of December.
This suggests the possibility of up to 52,000 more deaths than the approximately 273,000 cumulative COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. based on Johns Hopkins University data.
As COVID-19 spreads rapidly, daily deaths in the U.S. have surged to 2,800, reaching an all-time high.
Robert Redfield, CDC Director, also expressed concern the previous day that up to 450,000 Americans could contract and die from COVID-19 by February next year.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
