26th July 2020
US tops 1,000 coronavirus deaths 4 days in a row as experts urge the country to shut down
By CNN
CNN - Coronavirus deaths in the US topped 1,000 four days in a row last week amid ongoing debates on the return of school and mask mandates.
The country recorded 900 new virus-related deaths Saturday, down from the 1,130 reported Friday. Since the beginning of the pandemic, at least 146,460 Americans have died from the virus, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
And models project that there will be up to 175,000 deaths linked to the virus by August 15, according to an ensemble forecast published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation projects there will be around 165,000 US deaths by that time.
The grim patterns come as several states have reported record-breaking numbers of new cases and deaths in the past weeks. Some local leaders, including Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, have mentioned the possibility of a second stay-at-home order as officials warn of strained testing labs and overwhelmed hospitals.
And on Thursday, more than 150 prominent medical experts, scientists, teachers, nurses and other experts signed a letter urging leaders to shut the country down and start over to contain the rampant spread of the virus.
"Right now, we are on a path to lose more than 200,000 American lives by November 1st. Yet, in many states people can drink in bars, get a haircut, eat inside a restaurant, get a tattoo, get a massage, and do myriad other normal, pleasant, but non-essential activities," the letter read, which was sent to the Trump administration, members of Congress and state governors.
Texas hospital could send patients home to die
In Texas, which broke a record for virus-related deaths last week, doctors inside one hospital along the US-Mexico border may decide to send patients home to "die by their loved ones" due to limited resources, officials said.
Officials in Starr County announced they're creating committees to review patients' cases at the Starr County Memorial Hospital -- where at least 50% of patients admitted to the hospital's emergency room have tested positive for coronavirus.
"Unfortunately, Starr County Memorial Hospital has limited resources and our doctors are going to have to decide who receives treatment, and who is sent home to die by their loved ones," Starr County Judge Eloy Vera wrote in a Facebook post on Thursday. "This is what we did not want our community to experience."
Earlier this month, the governor ordered a statewide mask mandate and urged residents to heed the precautions in order for businesses and the economy to remain open.
As the state grapples with controlling the spread of the virus, Gov. Greg Abbott also had to issue a disaster declaration for 32 counties after Hurricane Hanna made landfall Saturday evening.
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