Coronavirus updates: New cases, deaths see double-digit increases in past week

White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx visited shops and restaurants in Bismark, North Dakota, on Monday, where she said she saw the lowest make use of anywhere she’s visited, local TV station KFYR-TV reported.

“There is not only evidence that masks work, there is evidence that masks used as a public health mitigation effort works,” Birx said, according to KFYR-TV.

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is against a statewide mask ruling, instead leaving it up to local governments, KFYR said. In Bismark, the city commission is expected to vote on a mask order Tuesday night, according to KFYR.

The number of new cases of COVID-19 recorded across the United States has increased substantially, as has the number of new deaths from the disease, according to an internal memo from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that was obtained by ABC News on Monday night.

The memo, which is circulated among the highest levels of the federal government and is used to determine daily priorities for the agencies working on a COVID-19 response, said 40 U.S. states and territories are in an upward trajectory of new infections, while nine jurisdictions are at a plateau and seven others are in a downward trend.

There were 488,498 new cases confirmed during the period of Oct. 19-25, a 26% increase from the previous week. There were also 5,615 fatalities from COVID-19 recorded during the same period, a 15.1% increase compared with the week prior, according to the memo.

The national positivity rate for COVID-19 tests increased from 5.6% to 6.1% in week-to-week comparisons. Meanwhile, 22% of hospitals across the country have intensive care units that are more than 80% occupied. That figure is up from the summertime peak, when 17-18% of U.S. hospitals had 80% of ICU beds full, the memo said.

Arizona reported 848 COVID-19 hospitalizations on Oct. 21, its highest count since Aug. 26, according to the memo.

In the U.S. territory of Guam, which continues to be classified as a "red zone" for COVID-19 infections, an average of 89.7% of inpatient beds and 80.2% of ICU beds were occupied in the week ending Oct. 20, the memo said.

North Dakota saw a record high of 1,036 new cases on Oct. 20, surpassing the 1,000 mark of daily incident cases for the first time, according to the memo.

New Jersey reported 852 daily COVID-19 hospitalizations on Oct. 22, its highest since late July, the memo said.

Oklahoma reached a record 956 COVID-19 hospitalizations on Oct. 22. The previous record was set just two days earlier, according to the memo.

Utah reported an all-time high of 314 COVID-19 hospitalizations on Oct. 21, as several hospitals in the state reached capacity, the memo said.

ABC News' Josh Margolin contributed to this report.

India's Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale said Tuesday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and, per doctors' recommendations, has been hospitalized for a few days.

"Those who have come in contact with me are advised to get COVID-19 tests done," Athawale wrote on his official Twitter account.

It's the latest Indian minister to contract the virus, as the country's cumulative case count nears 8 million. Only the United States has a higher tally of diagnosed cases.

The Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare confirmed 36,470 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, the lowest single-day tally since mid-July. The ministry also registered another 488 fatalities from COVID-19, bringing the country's death toll to 119,502.

Protesters took to the streets in Milan, Turin and several other Italian cities on Monday in anger over the latest COVID-19 restrictions, which have shuttered cinemas, gyms and other leisure venues and have forced cafes and restaurants to close early.

The protests, at times, turned violent as some people smashed storefront windows, looted shops, set fires and hurled objects at police, who used tear gas to clear the tumultuous crowds.

A number of people were detained overnight in connection to the violence and vandalism in various cities and towns. More than two dozen people were reportedly arrested in Milan alone.

Italy, once the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, has seen an increase in infections in recent weeks. Over the weekend, the country's civil protection agency confirmed a record 21,273 new cases of COVID-19. As of Monday night, the cumulative total was 542,789 cases with 37,479 deaths.

ABC News' Clark Bentson and Phoebe Natanson contributed to this report.