December 25th – According to the statistics of the website of Johns Hopkins University, as of 6:22 Beijing time on the 25th, the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States exceeded 18.61 million and more than 328,000 deaths.
Among them, the number of confirmed cases in California has exceeded 2 million. The United States has launched a coronavirus vaccine, but it is much faster than the target previously announced by U.S. officials.
In addition, U.S. media said that U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo had previously entered quarantine because his wife was positive for the novel coronavirus, and the two had previously been criticized for insisting on holding a holiday party.
Pompeo called the report “obviously wrong”, saying that he and his wife did not attend any holiday party at the U.S. State Department or the White House.
Vaccination is slower than expected
Christmas is still welcoming a crowd of travelers.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on the 23rd that the United States has injected people with 1 million doses of coronavirus vaccine.
“This achievement comes at a critical time when COVID-19 cases continue to soar across the country, and it will help protect health care providers who are treating COVID-19 patients on the front lines, as well as our most vulnerable populations: seniors living in nursing homes and assisted living facilities,” said CDC Director Redfield.
However, this figure is far below the previously announced target of 20 million doses by the end of the year by the year.
Slough, head of the COVID-19 vaccine Warp, said the vaccine was distributed at a slower rate than expected and that the goal of completing the end of the year was “unlikely to be achieved”.
On the 23rd, California became the first state in the United States to reach 2 million coronavirus cases, less than six weeks after 1 million people were infected.
California has a population of 39.5 million, meaning one in 20 people has tested positive for COVID-19.
Despite the severity of the epidemic, the CDC recommends that people stay at home to celebrate the festival and avoid traveling as much as possible, but on Christmas Eve, the United States still ushered in a crowd of travelers.
According to the Federal Transportation Safety Administration, a total of 1.191 million airports across the United States were under security checks on the 23rd, exceeding the record of 1.176 million travel during the Thanksgiving week Sunday.
However, the number of travelers on that day was 38% lower than the same period last year.
The American Automobile Association (AAA) report said that the number of travelers in the United States is expected to decrease by about 30% this Christmas holiday compared with last year, but about 85 million people will still travel.
May the death toll in the United States exceed 560,000 in April 2021?
The survey said that the number of infected doctors in the United States is much higher than the official data.
The CDC reports that the number of COVID-19 deaths in the United States will reach 378,000 to 419,000 by January 16, 2021, according to 36 national forecast models.
Meanwhile, the latest projection from the Institute of Health Metrics and Assessment (IHME) of the University of Washington said that the death toll in the United States will exceed 567,000 by April 1, 2021.
The model points out that if states relax epidemic prevention regulations, the number of deaths in the United States may further soar to 731,000 by April 1, 2021.
The vaccine can save thousands of lives, according to the IHME. According to the current timetable for vaccine distribution, 33,000 lives can be saved, and if distribution is accelerated, 45,000 lives can be saved.
The agency also said that the use of masks has increased to 74 percent nationwide, and if that number expands further to 95 percent, the number of deaths will be reduced by 49,000 by April 1, 2021.
On the other hand, a joint survey conducted by the Guardian and the United States West Ze Health News (KNH) shows that since March this year, more than 2,900 medical staff in the United States have died of COVID-19, far higher than the 955 people announced by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one third of which involve inadequate personal protective equipment.
Of the nearly 3,000 medical cases in the United States, about 680 cases came from New York and New Jersey, which were hit hard at the beginning of the epidemic.
A large number of U.S. medical staff have been infected with the epidemic or related to insufficient personal protective equipment. For example, some medical staff in California have complained to state government officials that they must reuse the same N95 mask for up to a week.
Pompeo criticizes the American media for its quarantine report
In addition, Bloomberg reported on the 25th that U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo entered quarantine on December 16 because his wife tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
On the same day as its declaration of quarantine, the State Department cancelled its last holiday party, an event for foreign ambassadors to the United States. Bloomberg said in the report that Pompeo’s insistence on holding parties for diplomats and their families has attracted a lot of criticism.
Pompeo said on his personal social networking website account that the report was “obviously wrong” and that he and his wife did not attend any holiday party at the State Department or the White House.
He accused the report of being “unethical and potentially illegal”.
