Coronavirus updates: Delta puts 460 people on 'no-fly list' over mask violations
"A mask is among the simplest and most effective actions," Delta's CEO said.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.
Over 42 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 8.4 million diagnosed cases and at least 223,730 deaths.
California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 894,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 871,000 cases and over 771,000 cases, respectively.
Nearly 200 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:
Researchers say wearing masks could save over 100,000 lives through February
Researchers at the University of Washington "find that achieving universal mask use (95% mask use in public) could be sufficient to ameliorate the worst effects of epidemic resurgences in many states,"according to a paper published in Nature.
Universal mask use could save 129,574 (85,284–170,867) lives from Sept. 22 through the end of February 2021, the researchers said.
Assuming just 85% of people wear masks, 95,814 (60,731–133,077) lives could be saved, the researchers said.
ABC News' Brian Hartman contributed to this report.
Delta puts 460 passengers on 'no-fly list' due to mask violations
Delta has added 460 people to its "no-fly list for refusing to comply with our mask requirement," Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in an internal memo to employees.
"Wearing a mask is among the simplest and most effective actions we can take to reduce transmission, which is why Delta has long required them for our customers and our people," Bastian wrote Thursday.
United said it has banned 335 customers from traveling on the airline due to noncompliance with the company's policy.
ABC News' Gio Benitez contributed to this report.
Washington Football Team to allow 3,000 fans at stadium
The Washington Football Team will allow about 3,000 season ticket holders to attend its Nov. 8 game against the New York Giants, the team said Friday.
Everyone must wear a mask, use mobile ticketing, follow social distancing rules and pay without cash. Tailgating won't be allowed, the team said.
The decision was made with "the state of Maryland's approval and under the supervision of Prince George's County," the team said, adding that it'll continue to re-evaluate fan numbers for future games.
ABC News' Leonardo Mayorga contributed to this report.
Santa’s visit to Macy’s will be virtual this year
Despite a tradition started in 1861, Santa won’t be making his yearly trip to Macy’s New York City store this year due to the pandemic. Instead, his visit will be virtual.
From Nov. 27 to Dec. 24, families can take part in an “interactive, virtual experience” on the Macy’s website, Macy’s said in a statement Thursday.
"A special greeting from Santaland elves at the North Pole-bound train station kicks off the interaction," Macy’s said. "From there, the Elves will lead the way through Santa’s Village and Workshop, stopping to see the sights and play interactive games. At the finale of the journey, kids will meet Santa through a whimsical interactive video where they will be able to share their holiday wish list followed by snapping a selfie with Santa."
"Santa will also drop by @macys handles on a number of social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to engage with fans in his uniquely whimsical way," Macy’s added.
US reports over 70,000 new cases for 1st time since July
There were 71,671 new cases of COVID-19 identified in the United States on Thursday, according to a real-time count kept by Johns Hopkins University.
It's the highest daily tally the country has reported since mid-July, almost surpassing the national record of more than 77,000 new cases in a single day. The latest case count was also nearly 9,000 more than the previous day.
An additional 856 fatalities from COVID-19 were also registered nationwide Thursday, down by from a peak of 2,666 new deaths in mid-April.
A total of 8,409,312 people in the United States have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, and at least 223,051 of them have died, according to Johns Hopkins. The cases include people from all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C. and other U.S. territories as well as repatriated citizens.
By May 20, all U.S. states had begun lifting stay-at-home orders and other restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. The day-to-day increase in the country's cases then hovered around 20,000 for a couple of weeks before shooting back up and crossing 70,000 for the first time in mid-July.
The daily tally of new cases has gradually come down since then but has started to climb again in recent weeks and is now averaging around 60,000 per day.
