US COVID-19 Cumulative Deaths Reach 400,000... Highest Record Worldwide

The cumulative number of COVID-19 confirmed cases exceeds 23,545,000

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] The cumulative death toll from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the United States has been confirmed to be approaching 400,000.

On the 16th (local time), Johns Hopkins University announced that the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. was approximately 23,545,000, and the cumulative death toll was about 392,000.

The United States has recorded the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths worldwide. As of this date, 25% of the global confirmed cases (approximately 90,478,000) and 19.5% of the deaths (approximately 2,014,000) have occurred in the U.S.

On the 15th, an additional 3,409 people died from COVID-19, and 215,941 new infections were confirmed, marking the 11th consecutive day with daily cases exceeding 200,000.

In December last year, about 77,500 people died from COVID-19 in one month, making it the deadliest month recorded; however, the trend in January this year is expected to surpass that. By the 15th of this month alone, approximately 46,240 people had died, and if this continues, the death toll is projected to exceed 90,000.

The number of hospitalized patients, used as a leading indicator predicting death trends, reached about 127,200 on the 15th. This is a slight decrease from the pandemic peak of 132,476 on the 6th.

In this situation, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned that the UK-origin variant of the coronavirus, known to be more contagious, could become the dominant strain in the U.S. by March.

However, state governments responsible for administering COVID-19 vaccinations have expressed frustration and dissatisfaction as it became apparent that the federal government’s promised additional vaccine supplies are unlikely to be fulfilled.

On the 12th, Alex Azar, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, stated, "The federal government will release most of the reserved second-dose vaccines," but it turned out that there was no stockpile of reserved doses.

Jared Polis, Governor of Colorado, said, "I am extremely disappointed to learn that the vaccine stockpile was a lie," adding, "All or nearly all of the remaining 58,000 vaccine doses will be depleted by the 17th."

The governors of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota wrote a letter to Secretary Azar expressing their opinion that state governments should be allowed to purchase vaccines directly from pharmaceutical companies.

In the letter, they stated that if approval for additional vaccine supplies or direct purchases is not granted, they may have to cancel plans for large public vaccination clinics that would vaccinate tens of thousands, emphasizing, "It is time for the Trump administration to do the right thing and help us end this pandemic."