As the world welcomes the New Year, the coronavirus pandemic continues to escalate, and authorities are announcing that a variant of the virus first discovered in the UK has appeared in various areas of the United States.
On the last day of 2020, the U.S. surpassed 20 million confirmed cases of coronavirus. The country has also recorded more than 345,000 virus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to an NBC News count.
Here are the latest coronavirus updates from the United States and elsewhere:
California reaches a record 585 virus deaths in one day
California began the new year by reporting a record 585 coronavirus deaths in a single day.
The state Department of Public Health said Friday that more than 47,000 new confirmed cases were reported, bringing the total to more than 2.29 million.
State hospitals ended the year “on the brink of catastrophe,” a health official said as the pandemic brought deaths and illnesses to staggering levels and some medical centers rushed to provide oxygen to patients. critics.
Getty Images The sign with COVID-19 safety guidelines is displayed at Newport Dunes Waterfront Resort in Newport Beach, California, on Thursday, December 17, 2020. (Photo by Paul Bersebach / MediaNews Group / Orange County Register via Getty Images)
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office announced Friday that California would begin collaborating with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to evaluate and upgrade obsolete oxygen supply systems at six hospitals in the Los Angeles area. .
The collaboration comes as older hospitals have difficulty maintaining oxygen pressure on aging infrastructure and some were struggling to locate additional oxygen tanks so that discharged patients could take them home.
This week, California became the third state to exceed 25,000 deaths from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.
December was the deadliest and most infectious month since the start of the pandemic in the US
The United States closed 2020 with the deadliest and most infectious month since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, while it also surpassed the 20 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, NBC News reported.
More than 77,000 people lost their lives in December against COVID-19, while 6.4 million contracted the virus in the emergence of a new virus variant and delayed efforts to vaccinate people. The second deadliest month was April 2020, with more than 58,000 dead.
Funeral set for the U.S.-elected deputy who hired COVID-19
Funeral services will be held Saturday for an elected Louisiana congressman who died of complications from COVID-19. Republican Luke Letlow died Tuesday. He was 41 years old and his oath was scheduled for Sunday.
His funeral will be at North Monroe Baptist Church, The News-Star reported.
The family said all COVID-19 restrictions will be followed and masks will be needed. North Monroe Baptist will stream the 14-hour service live on its social media platforms.
Letlow is survived by his wife, Julia Letlow, and their children, Jeremiah, 3, and Jacqueline, 1.
Gov. John Bel Edwards has said he will order flags to fly flags at half-staff on Saturday.
Elected Congressman Luke Letlow, R-La., Has died of coronavirus complications at the age of 41.
West Virginia Health officials mistakenly gave 42 people Regeneron IV CVPID treatment instead of the vaccine
Dozens of people in West Virginia mistakenly received Regeneron COVID-19 antibody treatment instead of the Modern vaccine, the West Virginia National Guard announced Thursday.
The state National Guard said 42 people received the treatment, which is given intravenously, at a vaccination clinic staffed by the Boone County Department of Health, CNBC reports. The National Guard said it learned of the error Wednesday.
All people who received antibody treatment instead of the vaccine, which is given by a shot in the arm, have been contacted, Julie Miller, administrator of the Boone County Department of Health, told CNBC. . He added that “we do not believe there is any risk of harm.”
Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment, which should be administered by intravenous drip, is seen as a promising treatment for COVID-19, especially when administered early in the course of infection. But the confusion in West Virginia is just one example of confusion in the rush to distribute the vaccine to tens of millions of people. The launch has been slower than expected and marked by logistical challenges.
“It has been determined that this was an isolated incident,” Miller said. “Today the COVID-19 vaccine will be offered to all affected people.”
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More cases of virus variant were reported in Southern California
San Diego County reported three more cases of a new and more infectious strain of coronavirus, the county announced Thursday. The news comes a day after the county reported its first case, and the second U.S., of the variant, NBC San Diego reports.
New cases of the UK strain were found in men, two in their forties and one in their fifties. The location of contacts shows that two men did not travel outside the county, while the third case has not yet been fully interviewed. None of the men had any known interaction between them.
The four people who tested positive for B.1.1.7. vine lives in La Mesa, Mission Beach, Otay Mesa and the Carmel Mountain / Rancho Bernardo area, the county said.
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