The guardian
US coronavirus cases rise by 8% within two weeks as more states ease restrictions
Michigan, which had the strongest health regulations in the country, saw the second-highest one-day fall on Friday. Hospital workers test patients for Covid-19 outside the emergency entrance of Beaumont Hospital in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. Photo: Junfu Han / AP While the United States’ Covid-19 vaccination initiative has obscured that of many other countries, a significant number of U.S. cities and states remain hotspots where coronavirus continues to spread at record rates. The actions come as more states loosen public health restrictions that were in place to stem the spread of Covid-19. On April 16, the U.S. saw an average of 70,117 cases daily, up 8% from the average 14 days ago, with hospitalizations increasing by 9%, according to the New York Times. A minimum of 21 states have seen a 10% increase in daily positive cases of coronavirus, CNN reports on recent data from Johns Hopkins University. During this period, however, the deaths are 12% lower. The U.S. state of Michigan saw 8,955 new Covid-19 cases as of Friday, which was “the second highest one-day case in Michigan since the onset of the pandemic,” ClickOnDetroit reported. Michigan has now seen 779,777 confirmed Covid-19 cases, with 16,771 deaths, leading the U.S. into new infections. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer introduced some of the country’s strongest Covid-19 restrictions in March 2020, which apparently also work when the U.S. saw a second wave last fall. However, Whitmer does not take the same approach during this recent spate, relying mostly on the vaccination initiative and a voluntary break to eat in person. Coronavirus infections and hospitalizations are also on the rise in Maryland. While the global rise is less than mid-January, Baltimore City is now ‘becoming a Covid hotspot’, given fall levels that have not been recorded since the winter holiday-related records, the Baltimore Sun reports. And on the west coast, Washington’s governor Jay Inslee warned Thursday that the state is ready for a possible fourth-wave coronavirus – with new cases reaching more than 1,000 daily, compared to 700 a day in February, according to the Associated Press. Officials have decided to tighten restrictions in three hard-hit provinces, limiting the capacity for indoor, retail and gym gyms to 50% to 25%. According to Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. has had more Covid-19 cases and deaths than any other country: 31,575,640 confirmed infections and 566,224 deaths. At least 202,282,923 doses of coronavirus vaccine have been administered; 72,813,391 were fully vaccinated – 22% of the U.S. population, Johns Hopkins said.