Paramedics arrive with a Covid-19 patient at the Sharp Memorial Hospital Emergency Department in San Diego, California.
Bing Guan | Bloomberg | Getty Images
New cases of Covid-19 are on the rise again in more than half of the United States, as officials want to vaccinate more people before more contagious variants occur in the country.
According to Sunday, the seven-day average of new cases rose by 5% or more in 27 states, according to a CNBC analysis of the data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Across the U.S., the country recorded an average of 54,308 new cases per day over the past week – a 1% increase from the previous week after months of rapidly declining case numbers, according to the data.
Although the US is increasing the rate of vaccinations and giving about 2.5 million shots every day, some health officials have warned that the country remains in a precarious position. The lifting of restrictions in many states and the spread of more contagious variants in the US threaten to undo the country’s progress, which has resulted in cases, hospitalizations and deaths falling dramatically since the peak earlier this year.
‘Serious threat’
The lifting of restrictions is a ‘serious threat to the progress we have made’, said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters at a news conference Monday. She said she was concerned about an inevitable increase in business. “We are at a critical point in this pandemic, a fork in the road.”
Daily new deaths continue to decline, likely helped by prioritizing vaccination for the elderly and people with conditions that are likely to die from Covid-19. About 68.8% of those 65 and older received at least one shot of vaccine, according to Sunday. In total, more than 124.4 million doses have been administered, but most are for dual-dose vaccines.
As optimism surrounding the steady increase in vaccinations increases, many states have begun easing restrictions on enterprises and gatherings, despite warnings from the CDC not to do so. Although some states, such as New Jersey, are starting consider holding out further reopening as business begins to increase.
White House Chief Medical Officer Anthony Fauci last week urged states not to declare victory prematurely.
He said he was concerned about a number of states and cities withdrawing from public health measures and giving up mask mandates.
“So it’s a shame to me, but not surprising that you see an increase in cases per day in areas – cities, states or regions – even though vaccines are being distributed at a fairly good amount of 2 (million) to 3 million a day, ‘Fauci said on Friday. “It can be overcome if certain areas withdraw prematurely from the mitigation and public health measures we are all talking about.”
B.1.1.7 in Michigan
The urgent need for rapid vaccination contributes to the looming threat of new variants, which have apparently already caused severe congestion in large parts of Europe and other parts of the world. The CDC predicted that the more contagious and potentially deadly B.1.1.7 variant, discovered in the UK, could become the dominant strain in the US by the end of the month.
Some health officials have said the B.1.1.7 variant may be the cause of particularly worrying training seen in various states, including Michigan, where cases have risen dramatically in recent days. According to Hopkins data, Michigan reports an average of nearly 3,000 new cases per day, about 50% higher than a week ago.
The increase in business there comes after the state allowed restaurants to eat indoors again on February 1, insisting that schools offer personal learning by March 1 and easing the restrictions on restaurants and gatherings earlier this month. The recent boom there has recently even spurred Fauci to plead with Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to hold off a bit with the reopening.
Along with easing restrictions, Michigan also has the second highest number of B.1.1.7 cases of any state in the country, just behind Florida. According to the CDC, the state has 616 cases of the variant, although there are probably still many cases that have not been confirmed yet, meaning the strain could cause the outbreak there.