In the past week (January 10 through 16), the U.S. reported about 1.5 million new cases, according to the COVID Tracking Project. This amounts to:
- An average of 220,000 new cases each day
- 469 total new cases for every 100,000 Americans
- 1 in 213 Americans getting diagnosed with COVID-19 in the past week
Last week, America also saw:
- 126,000 people now hospitalized with COVID-19 (38 for every 100,000 people)
- 23,200 new COVID-19 deaths (7.1 for every 100,000 people)
Two weeks out from New Years (and the subsequent reporting weirdness), cases seem to be stabilizing, somewhat. But “stabilizing,” at this point in the pandemic, still means ridiculous numbers. 220,000 new cases each day! That’s like the population of Baton Rouge, Louisiana getting diagnosed with COVID-19 every day.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 deaths are at their highest point in the pandemic, averaging 3,300 deaths per day.
One positive note in this week’s numbers is that hospitalizations appear to be leveling off. But, as the COVID Tracking Project’s weekly update points out, the hospitalization picture is far different across different parts of the country. And with the more contagious B.1.1.7 variant getting detected in more and more states, the worst point of the pandemic for the U.S. may be still to come.