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Coronavirus updates: Trump says 'not much' he'd change about COVID response

Thirty-one states are considered in the red zone for new cases in the last week.

ByMorgan Winsor, Emily Shapiro, and Ivan Pereira
Video byJessie DiMartino
Last Updated: October 21, 2020, 8:09 AM EDT

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

Over 40.7 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 8.2 million diagnosed cases and at least 220,955 deaths.

California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 883,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 862,000 cases and over 760,000 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.

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Here's how the news is developing today. All times Eastern.
Oct 20, 2020, 1:43 PM EDT

Over 299,000 excess deaths in US this year, two-thirds attributed to COVID-19, says CDC

The official COVID-19 death toll in the U.S. "might underestimate the total impact of the pandemic on mortality," according to a new report from the CDC.

"Overall, an estimated 299,028 excess deaths have occurred in the United States from late January through October 3, 2020, with two thirds of these attributed to COVID-19," the CDC said.

Nurses and healthcare workers mourn and remember their colleagues who died during the COVID-19 pandemic during a demonstration outside Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, on April 10, 2020, in New York City.
Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images

A woman walks past a memorial dedicated to those who lost their lives to COVID-19 at Greenwood Cemetary on May 28, 2020, in New York City.
Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

The largest percentage increase in excess deaths was seen in two groups: Hispanic/Latinos and young adults (ages 25-44).

ABC News' Sony Salzman contributed to this report.

Oct 20, 2020, 11:53 AM EDT

Greece reports record rise in cases

Greece is reporting 667 new COVID-19 cases -- the nation's highest one-day rise.

PHOTO: Medical personnel wearing collect Rapid test swab samples for COVID-19 in a metro station in Athens, Oct. 20, 2020.
Medical personnel wearing collect Rapid test swab samples for COVID-19 in a metro station in Athens, Oct. 20, 2020.
Orestis Panagiotou/EPA via Shutterstock

Greece's daily increases may appear to be a fraction compared to its European Union neighbors, but the small Mediterranean nation was widely praised in the beginning of the outbreak for containing the spread through strict lockdowns.

Health Minister Vasilis Kikilias has acknowledged pressure is increasing, and according to local media, there's a fear that a surge in hospitalizations will quickly overwhelm health services.

Greece now has a total of 25,802 COVID-19 cases and at least 520 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins.

ABC News' Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.

Oct 20, 2020, 11:18 AM EDT

Heathrow Airport now offering rapid tests to some passengers

London's Heathrow Airport announced Tuesday that it will now offer a rapid COVID-19 test service for passengers flying to Hong Kong, as a growing list of countries and territories around the world require travelers from the United Kingdom and other "high-risk" places to provide evidence of a negative test result prior to their departure.

PHOTO: People are seen in a doorway at the departure area of the new "Terminal 2: The Queen's Terminal" during a media event in Heathrow Airport in west London, United Kingdom, on April 23, 2014.
Toby Melville/Reuters

The new pre-departure diagnostic tests, a U.K. first, cost 80 pounds (about $104) and aim to provide departing passengers at Heathrow with their results in around 60 minutes. These tests, which include LAMP and Antigen tests, can be processed quickly and without being sent to a laboratory, but aren't as sensitive or reliable as RT-PCR tests.

"Ultimately, we need a common international standard for pre-departure testing, and we welcome the U.K. government's recent announcement that it wants to take a global lead in establishing this," Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye said in a statement Tuesday.

Oct 20, 2020, 10:34 AM EDT

India reports lowest daily case count in 3 months

India confirmed another 46,790 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, its lowest daily tally in three months.

An additional 587 deaths from the disease were also registered. The country's cumulative totals now stand at 7,597,063 confirmed cases and 115,197 deaths, according to the latest data from the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

PHOTO: Motorcyclists ride on their motobikes during a "Fight COVID-19 Awareness Building Motorcycle Rally" in Amritsar, northwestern India, on Oct. 20, 2020.
Motorcyclists ride on their motobikes during a "Fight COVID-19 Awareness Building Motorcycle Rally" to raise awareness about the use of wearing face masks and social distancing norms against the spread of the novel coronavirus, in Amritsar, northwestern India, on Oct. 20, 2020.
Narinder Nanu/AFP via Getty Images

India is only the second country in the world to surpass 7 million total cases, after the United States.

The vast country of nearly 1.4 billion people was on track to become the pandemic's worst-hit nation within weeks and overtake the United States, where more than 8.2 million people have been diagnosed with COVID-19. But 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.

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