Last week, the US averaged more than 3,300 deaths every day, a jump of more than 217% since mid-November.
Arizona reported a record of 5,082 patients hospitalized with Covid-19 on Tuesday and, on the same day, broke a second record: more than 1,180 patients with the virus in ICU beds. In Louisiana, Governor John Bel Edwards extended an order that keeps Covid-19 mitigation measures in place for almost another month, saying the state was experiencing a “big spike” in cases and hospitalizations.
These numbers are also increasing in university cities, as students return to the first semester of 2021.
Full-time enrollment in higher education institutions represents more than a quarter of the population in 30 U.S. counties, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Infections increased in 26 of the counties over the course of a week, an average of 50%. In Williamsburg, Virginia – where William & Mary live – cases almost tripled in seven days. The cases more than doubled in Whitman County, Washington, home to Washington State University and Albany County, Wyoming, home to the University of Wyoming.
And at least 90% of staffed ICU beds are occupied in 10 of the counties, including Mississippi State University’s Oktibbeha County, where almost all ICU beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients.
Government announces changes in vaccine launch
Also on Tuesday, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Alex Azar, announced that the federal government will no longer retain the doses of the Covid-19 vaccine it kept in reserve and encouraged states to open vaccination for more people.
“We are telling states that they should open vaccination for all people … 65 and over and all people under 65 with a comorbidity with some kind of medical documentation,” said Azar.
In many cases, it has been strict adherence to guidance on who should receive the vaccines first that has delayed the vaccine’s release, said Dr. Anthony Fauci on Tuesday.
Azar added on Tuesday that second doses will still be available to those who need them, saying “based on the science and evidence we have, it is imperative that people receive their second doses in time.”
Doses of the Pfizer vaccine should be spaced 21 days apart, and doses of Moderna should be 28 days apart.
And more changes are on the way: starting two weeks from now, vaccines will be distributed to states based on which jurisdictions are putting most doses on guns and where the majority of the elderly reside.
“We will allocate them based on the pace of administration reported by the states and the size of the population aged 65 and over in each state,” said Azar. “We are advising states two weeks in advance of this change to give them the time to plan and improve their reports if they think their data is defective.”
Almost 2.3 million children tested positive for Covid-19
More than 171,000 of these cases were reported between December 31 and January 7, while in two weeks – between December 24 and January 7 – there was a 15% increase in cases of Covid-19 children, the report said.
The findings mean that children now account for 12.5% of all Covid-19 infections in the United States.
“At this point, it appears that serious illnesses caused by Covid-19 are rare among children,” said the report.
“However, there is an urgent need to collect more data on the long-term impacts of the pandemic on children, including the ways in which the virus can harm the long-term physical health of infected children, as well as its emotional and mental effects.”
CNN’s Amanda Watts, Joe Sutton, Jacqueline Howard, Naomi Thomas, Jacqueline Howard, Nick Neville, Maggie Fox, Deidre McPhillips, Jessica Firger and Jamiel Lynch contributed to this report.