Coronavirus updates: Birx warns of 'very different' spread of COVID-19

"What we did in the spring is not going to work in the fall," Birx said.

ByMorgan Winsor and Emily Shapiro
Video byJessie DiMartino
Last Updated: October 12, 2020, 5:39 AM EDT

A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1 million people worldwide.

Over 36.7 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 7.6 million diagnosed cases and at least 213,570 deaths.

California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 847,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 811,000 cases and over 728,000 cases, respectively.

More than 190 vaccine candidates for COVID-19 are being tracked by the World Health Organization, at least 10 of which are in crucial phase three studies. Of those 10 potential vaccines in late-stage trials, there are currently five that will be available in the United States if approved.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news developed today. All times Eastern.
Oct 09, 2020, 7:43 PM EDT

COVID-19 cases at school attended by Amy Coney Barrett's children

There have been positive tests for COVID-19 at the small private school in South Bend, Indiana, that some of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett’s children attend, Trinity School confirmed to ABC News.

The president of Trinity Schools, Jon Balsbaugh, declined to address specifics of the positive tests. A teacher and two students tested positive, according to The New York Times.

In a statement, Balsbaugh said that the school's coronavirus measures include a mix of remote and in-person learning, mask usage indoors and outdoors when social distancing cannot be maintained, daily health checks and temperature screenings, and "rigorous contract tracing protocols" in the event of a positive case.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump meet with Judge Amy Coney Barrett, the President's nominee for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, her husband Jesse and their children in the Oval Office of the White House, Sept. 26, 2020.
HANDOUT Andrea Hanks/White House

Barrett brought her family to the White House last month when President Donald Trump announced her nomination to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Over a dozen attendees of the Sept. 26 Rose Garden event have since tested positive for COVID-19 in what Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, called a "superspreader event" in an interview with CBS News Radio on Friday.

ABC News' Aaron Katersky contributed to this report.

Oct 09, 2020, 3:13 PM EDT

Free school meals extended through end of school year

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said Friday that it's extending waivers that allow school meals to be free for all students through the rest of the 2020-2021 school year.

Schools will be able to continue providing meals to students who are not physically in school, including allowing parents to pick up meals at no cost.

Students pick up individually wrapped meals during lunch period at Rippowam Middle School on Sept. 14, 2020 in Stamford, Connecticut.
John Moore/Getty Images

“As our nation recovers and reopens, we want to ensure that children continue to receive the nutritious breakfasts and lunches they count on during the school year wherever they are, and however they are learning,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said in a statement.

ABC News’ Stephanie Ebbs contributed to this report.

Oct 09, 2020, 2:53 PM EDT

New daily high number of cases worldwide, WHO says

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday announced a new record high of daily COVID-19 cases worldwide, according to The Associated Press.

WHO officials said 350,766 new cases were reported, which is a jump of almost 12,000 cases from the record set earlier in the week, according to the AP.

A patient infected with COVID-19 is treated in one of the intensive care units at the Severo Ochoa hospital near Madrid, Spain, Oct. 9, 2020.
Bernat Armangue/AP

Oct 09, 2020, 1:08 PM EDT

2 more members of White House residence staff tested positive few weeks ago

Two more members of the White House residence staff tested positive for COVID-19 nearly three weeks ago, according to Melania Trump's office and two other sources.

With these two additional staffers, the total number of residential staff who tested positive at that time is at least four. One is an assistant to White House chief usher Timothy Harleth, while the three others are members of the housekeeping staff and work on the residence’s third floor, according to the first lady’s office and sources.

The first lady’s office didn’t reply to a question about whether these two new people have had contact with the president or first lady. On Sunday, sources told ABC News the other two had not come into direct contact with the president or first lady.

ABC News’ Ben Gittleson and John Santucci contributed to this report.

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