Coronavirus latest: University reports 90% jump in cases on campus
The University of Mississippi confirmed 223 new cases over the past seven days.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 857,000 people worldwide.
Over 25.7 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The criteria for diagnosis -- through clinical means or a lab test -- has varied from country-to-country. Still, the actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some national governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their outbreaks.
Since the first cases were detected in China in December, the virus has rapidly spread to every continent except Antarctica.
The United States is the worst-affected country, with more than 6 million diagnosed cases and at least 184,689 deaths.
California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 715,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 637,000 cases and over 631,000 cases respectively.
Nearly 170 vaccine candidates for COVID-19 are being tracked by the World Health Organization, six of which are in crucial phase three trials.
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Former Italian prime minister tests positive for COVID-19
Silvio Berlusconi, the former prime minister of Italy, has tested positive for the coronavirus.
Berlusconi, 83, is quarantining in his residence, according to his political party, Forza Italia
ABC News' Phoebe Natanson contributed to this report.
NY with 26 straight days of positivity rate below 1%
The state of New York, once the U.S. epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, has now had 26 straight days where the number of people who tested positive was below 1%, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Wednesday.
The state reported a 0.8% positivity rate on Tuesday.
"Defeating COVID-19 requires a shared commitment among all New Yorkers to wear masks, socially distance and wash hands, and I thank them for listening to state guidance and taking social action to get us to this point today. 26 straight days with an infection rate below 1 percent is no mean feat," Cuomo said.
The Empire State reported five additional deaths on Tuesday, bringing the total to 25,336 since the pandemic began. There are now 436,218 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state.
Hong Kong to further ease coronavirus restrictions
Hong Kong will continue to ease coronavirus-related restrictions this week, as the daily number of new infections gets down to the single digits.
The semi-autonomous Chinese city reported just eight new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, its lowest number since five new cases were identified on July 3, down from a peak of more than 100.
Officials began relaxing restrictions last week, allowing beauty salons and movie theaters to reopen with social distancing measures in place. Starting Friday, gyms and massage parlors can operate while dining-in hours at restaurants will be extended. However, gym-goers must wear masks while exercising and classes will be restricted to four people, officials said Wednesday.
Bars, karaoke lounges and swimming pools will remain shuttered.
Since the start of the pandemic, Hong Kong’s Department of Health has reported at least 4,831 confirmed cases with 93 deaths.
Greece reports 1st case in overcrowded migrant camp
Greece announced Wednesday it is imposing a two-week lockdown on the Moria migrant camp on the island of Lesbos, after a refugee there tested positive for COVID-19.
The 40-year-old Somali man had left the camp on July 17 after being granted refugee status and a residence permit to live in Greece. However, for unknown reasons, he had returned in recent days and had been living in a tent outside the camp fence. He has since tested positive for the virus and remains hospitalized on the island, according to a press release from the Greek Ministry of Migration and Asylum.
It’s the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the overcrowded camp, a space designed for 2,200 people but now, according to the United Nations, houses over 18,000.
The ministry said entry and exit would be prohibited at the camp until Sept. 15, while the presence of security forces has been increased around the structure to enforce the 14-day quarantine. Meanwhile, authorities are working to trace the man’s contacts and a new health unit will be put in place at the camp to isolate and monitor suspected cases, according to the ministry.
16 US states and territories are in an upward trajectory, FEMA memo shows
An internal memo from the Federal Emergency Management Agency obtained by ABC News on Tuesday evening shows that 16 U.S. states and territories are in an upward trajectory of new COVID-19 cases, while 10 jurisdictions are at a plateau and 30 are going down.
Nationwide, the numbers of new COVID-19 cases and new deaths have both decreased in week-over-week comparisons. There were 288,876 new cases confirmed during the period of Aug. 25-31, a 1.9% decrease from the previous seven-day period. There were also 6,433 new fatalities recorded, marking a 5.1% decrease compared with the previous week, according to the memo.
Meanwhile, the national positivity rate for COVID-19 tests ticked downward slightly to 5.2%, compared with 5.5% for the prior seven-day period, the memo shows.
Indiana has the ninth-highest case rate in the country, with more than 100 new cases per 100,000 population last week. The state’s positivity rate for COVID-19 tests is nearing 10% amid a rapid case rise linked to university towns. More than half of all counties in Indiana have ongoing community transmission, of which 8% have high levels of community transmission, according to the memo.
South Dakota has the highest positivity rate for COVID-19 tests of any U.S. state, at greater than 15%, according to the memo, which noted that “testing across the state is broadly insufficient.” Approximately 30% of all counties in South Dakota have ongoing community transmission and 21% have high levels of community transmission, the memo shows.
In Ohio, the majority of new cases are among Miami University student-athletes and the people they have come in contact with since Aug. 17. As of Aug. 27, there have been 215 reported cases among students and two reported cases among employees at the public research university in Oxford, Ohio, according to the memo.
ABC News’ Josh Margolin contributed to this report.
