A staggering 299,087 new cases were confirmed over the past 24 hours.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 84.6 million people worldwide and killed over 1.8 million of them, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff will receive the COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday morning in Washington D.C, the Biden transition team confirmed to ABC News on Monday.
President-elect Joe Biden received the first dose of the two-dose vaccine on live television last week.
-ABC News' Beatrice Peterson contributed to this report.
On Saturday, 96% of hospitals in Los Angeles County were "on diversion" at some point, meaning they temporarily stopped accepting new ambulances into their emergency rooms, according to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
On average, those hospitals were on diversion for 16 hours straight, the governor said Monday. While hospitalizations are plateauing in much of the state, they're still rapidly rising in Southern California, where ICU capacity is at 0%.
-ABC News' Matthew Fuhrman contributed to this report.
Life Care Center of Kirkland, the Washington State nursing facility where 39 residents died during a coronavirus outbreak in February and March, began vaccinating staff and residents against the virus on Monday.
The nursing home was the site of the the United States' first outbreak. Now, roughly 10 months after Kirkland showcased how vulnerable long-term care facilities were to COVID-19, CVS is distributing the vaccine there.
Ellie Schutt, executive director of Life Care Center of Kirkland, said everyone is thankful the vaccine is available and being administered.
"But it means a little more to see vaccinations happening at Kirkland," Schutt said in a statement.
In South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced new restrictions Monday in response to rising COVID-19 infections.
The new rules include an earlier curfew, in place between 9 p.m. and 4 a.m., with restaurants required to close at 8 p.m. Public beaches and riverbanks are closed and public gatherings are banned. Anyone not wearing a mask in public is subject to arrest, fines and six months of imprisonment. Alcohol sales and on-site consumption are prohibited, effective immediately. The new restrictions will be in effect until Jan. 15.
Instead of lighting fireworks for New Year's Eve, Ramaphosa suggested that South Africans light candles in memory of those who have died from the virus.
-ABC News' Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.
