'No Christmas parties': COVID-19-related hospitalizations in US at critical stage amid FDA's vaccine authorisation
Christmas party in Arlington, Virginia
As the US Food and Drugs Association(FDA) approved Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, Americans were told "no Christmas parties" by Dr. Michael Osterholm who is the member of president-elect Joe Biden's coronavirus advisory board.
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On Wednesday, the daily death toll reached over 3,000 for the first time as the total fatalities reached over 292,192 which is the highest death toll in the world.
President Trump had earlier signed an executive order "to ensure that American citizens have first priority to receive American vaccines" even as Biden promised to carry out at least 100 million vaccinations in his first 100 days in office.
The deteriorating virus situation comes as reports say at least 200 hospitals across the country are running in full capacity with COVID-19 patients and nearly one third ICU space is full in medical centres across the United States.
According to US COVID tracking project, the seven-day average for COVID-19 deaths is at an all-time high as deaths have been rising in throughout the country. The previous single-day record was on May 7 at 2,769 deaths.
The new single-dayinfections reached 30,851 which is the second-highest case count since June.
There are a record 106,688 COVID-19 patients in US hospitals, the COVID tracker informed. The United States is the worst-hit country with the virus with over 15.6 million cases with the virus having spread to new areas over the past two months especially during Thanksgiving last month when Americans travelled across the country leading to super spread.
The virus has not just ravaged lives, it has sent the economy on a tailspin with new applications for unemployment benefits in the US surged last week by 137,000 even as the US House of Representatives passed a federal spending extension aimed at avoiding a government shutdown.