10th June 2020
Coronavirus: more than a dozen US states see record high of new cases
By The Guardian
THE GUARDIAN - A total of 14 states and the US territory of Puerto Rico have recorded their worst week yet for new coronavirus infections, with Texas hitting a record high in Covid-19 hospitalizations, all while restrictions to curb the pandemic are being relaxed across America.
A resurgence in new infections has been detected in states including Florida, Texas and California, as authorities allow certain businesses and public places to reopen.
According to data tracked by the Washington Post, since the start of June, 14 states and Puerto Rico have experienced their highest seven-day average of new coronavirus cases since the pandemic began. The states are Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Kentucky, New Mexico, North Carolina, Mississippi, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah.
The surge in cases, which public health experts have described as worrying, and had warned about repeatedly, shows that while Covid-19 is now in retreat in New York City and other major urban centres, it is sweeping across rural areas, infecting smaller towns.
Figures from the Texas department of state health services showed that 1,935 people were hospitalized for coronavirus-related reasons on Monday, up from a previous record of 1,888 on 5 May. Officials in Dallas said the city hit its highest ever one-day total for new infections on Thursday, at 285, while Houston has also recorded climbing numbers.
On Sunday, Florida recorded more than 1,000 newly diagnosed Covid-19 cases for the fifth day of the previous week, with Thursday’s total of 1,413 the highest since the state started providing daily updates in March.
California saw a 40% rise in cases last week, with large cities including Los Angeles, which has the highest number of cases in the state, and San Francisco lifting restrictions on travelling and access to beaches.
Arizona, meanwhile, has seen one of the largest jumps in the country, with the daily total in new cases breaking the state record on four separate occasions over the past week.
Doug Ducey, the Arizona governor, who relaxed restrictions two weeks ago, has put the increase down to an increase in testing and insisted that his approach on reopening has been prudent.
The overall number of new cases recorded each day across the US is hovering around 20,000, down from a peak of 30,000 in April, but this decrease is mainly due to the improving situation in the worst-hit states, such as New York and New Jersey.
As states in the north-east experience drops in new cases, states across the south and California are seeing increases even as they loosen social distancing rules designed to prevent person-to-person transmission of the virus.
Donald Trump has mostly left pandemic response to individual states and has not addressed the crisis in a major way even as the death rate passed 100,000 Americans.
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