In the past week (December 6 through 12), the U.S. reported about 1.6 million new cases, according to the COVID Tracking Project. This amounts to:
- An average of 228,000 new cases each day (23% increase from the previous week)
- 487 total new cases for every 100,000 Americans
- 1 in 205 Americans getting diagnosed with COVID-19 in the past week
- 44% of the total cases reported across the globe this week, according to the World Health Organization
In the month of November, one in 74 Americans was diagnosed with COVID-19. This terrible rise in cases has already put enormous strain on the nation’s healthcare system, and the outbreak is not slowing down. One in 131 Americans was diagnosed with COVID-19 in the first 12 days of December alone.
Last week, America also saw:
- 108,500 people now hospitalized with COVID-19 (33.1 for every 100,000 people)
- 17,300 new COVID-19 deaths (5.3 for every 100,000 people)
In last Sunday’s issue, I reported that 15,000 deaths in one week marked a national record; this week, we saw 2,000 more. How do you think about numbers this big? You could compare the pandemic to 9/11, Pearl Harbor, and other American tragedies, but even this practice minimizes the fact that a day of 3,000 deaths is only one day in a year of mass suffering.
Stay safe out there, readers. Stay well. Stay kind.