Coronavirus updates: CDC now 'strongly recommends' masks on airplanes, buses

The goal is to "help safely reopen America’s economy," the CDC said.

ByMorgan Winsor, Ivan Pereira, and Marc Nathanson
Video byJessie DiMartino
Last Updated: October 21, 2020, 4:58 AM EDT

A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.

Over 40 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 8.1 million diagnosed cases and at least 219,674 deaths.

California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 875,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 854,000 cases and over 755,000 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 19, 2020, 4:04 PM EDT

NYC schools test thousands of students and staff, find few infections

Despite opening in person for classes amid rising COVID-19 cases, few infections have been tied to New York City public schools, according to early data from the city's department of education.

Mayor Bill de Blasio wearing a face mask, greets a student at Mosaic Pre-K Center in Queens, Sept. 21, 2020, as some students return to classrooms in the wake of the coronavirus.
Todd Heisler/The New York Times via Redux Pictures

Of the 16,298 tests the department has received results for, only 28, or 0.17%, are positive. Of those infections, 20 are among staff members and eight among students, a department spokesperson told ABC News on Monday.

Oct 19, 2020, 2:05 PM EDT

Independent watchdog to investigate political pressure on CDC, FDA

The Government Accountability Office, an independent arm of Congress, has agreed to investigate allegations that the Trump administration applied political pressure to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, undermining the agencies' credibility and independence.

Senate Democrats first appealed to the watchdog agency in a letter on Oct. 8.

Oct 19, 2020, 12:16 PM EDT

India records lowest daily death toll in 3 months

India registered another 579 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, its lowest daily tally in three months.

An additional 55,722 cases were also confirmed. The country's cumulative totals now stand at 7,550,273 confirmed cases and 114,610 deaths, according to the latest data from the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

People gather in a market to shop as a mist canon machine from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation sprays disinfectant ahead of the Hindu festival "Durga Puja" in Kolkata, India, on Oct. 19, 2020.
Dibyangshu Sarkar/AFP via Getty Images

India is only the second country in the world to surpass 7 million total cases, after the United States. Since hitting a peak of 97,894 new cases registered in a single day in September, India's average number of daily cases has steadily declined.

The vast country of nearly 1.4 billion people is still on track to become the pandemic's worst-hit nation within weeks, overtaking the United States, where more than 8.1 million people have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Oct 19, 2020, 11:56 AM EDT

Belgium faces 'tsunami' of new cases, health minister warns

A midnight curfew went into effect across Belgium on Monday while bars and restaurants have been ordered to close except for providing takeaway service, as the European nation faces a "tsunami" of new COVID-19 infections.

"We are really very close to a tsunami," Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke told broadcaster RTL. "We no longer control what is happening."

PHOTO: Casper Caluwe, manager of Japanese restaurant Umamido, cleans the restaurant as he gets ready to welcome customers for take-away service in downtown Brussels, Belgium, on Oct. 19, 2020.
Casper Caluwe, manager of Japanese restaurant Umamido, cleans the restaurant as he gets ready to welcome customers for take-away service in downtown Brussels, Belgium, on Oct. 19, 2020. Bars and restaurants across Belgium shut down for a month and a nighttime curfew went into effect on Oct. 19, as the country's health minister warned of a possible "tsunami" of new COVID-19 infections.
Francisco Seco/AP

Belgium, which is home to the European Union's headquarters, has the second-highest COVID-19 infection rate per capita in Europe, after the Czech Republic. Over the past two weeks, Belgium recorded 756.9 cases per 100,000 people, compared with Czech Republic's 858.6 cases per 100,000, according to data released Monday by the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Belgium has confirmed 222,253 cases and at least 10,413 deaths. The 14-day incidence of COVID-19 per 100,000 inhabitants was up 221% on Sunday, according to data from the country's public health agency.

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