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COVID-19 live updates: Judge rules Florida governor stop banning mask mandates in schools
Ten Florida school districts have adopted mask mandates for students this month.
The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge this summer as the more contagious delta variant spreads.
More than 634,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while over 4.4 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 60.8% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Latest headlines:
Oregon issues mask mandate for outdoor activities
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced a new mask requirement for outdoor activities.
The order, which goes into effect Friday, applies to all residents regardless of vaccine status during "outdoor settings in which individuals from different households are unable to consistently maintain physical distance."
"The rule does not apply to fleeting encounters, such as two individuals walking by one another on a trail or in a park," the governor's office said in a news release.
Outdoor gatherings in private residences are also exempt.
Brown cited the growing number of COVID-19 cases in the state fueled by the delta variant as the motive behind the rule.
Hospitalizations could double by mid-September: CDC
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed new COVID-19 forecast models Tuesday that showed daily hospitalizations could more than double by mid-September.
By Sept. 20 the U.S. could see hospitalizations as high as 27,000 a day, according to the agency's models. Currently the seven-day average of COVID-19 related hospitalizations is 12,190, according to the CDC.
The peak seven-day average was 16,492 in January, according to health data.
The low-end of the CDC's forecast's models is 7,800 hospitalizations a day.
Health officials stress that a change in behavior, including masking, vaccination and social distancing, will reduce severe illness and hospitalization.
-ABC News' Brian Hartman
ICU beds for COVID-19 patients in Arkansas full: Gov
There are currently no COVID-19 intensive care unit beds available in the state of Arkansas, a situation Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson referred to as a "cautionary note for everyone" Tuesday.
"It fluctuates day by day. But right now, because of the increased number of COVID patients that need that type of ICU care, those beds are full," Hutchinson told reporters.
There are still ICU beds available for non-COVID patients, Hutchinson noted.
Arkansas lags behind the national average in vaccinations. As of Monday, 52% of residents had received at least one dose, and 40% were fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By comparison, 61% of Americans have gotten at least one shot and 52% are fully vaccinated.
-ABC News' Libby Cathey
Kids under 12 could become eligible for vaccine 'late in 2021,' NIH director says
Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, said he expects children ages 5 to 11 in the United States to become eligible for COVID-19 vaccination toward the end of the year.
"Keep in mind, kids are not just scaled down adults -- they have different immune systems and metabolisms. You really have to do the careful trials to make sure you got the dose right and there aren't any surprises," Collins told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an interview Tuesday on "Good Morning America."
"Realistically," he added, "I don't think we're going to see approval for kids under 12 until late in 2021."
Collins also said there is “no reason to be too confident” that the country has hit its peak and that case numbers will start to come down.
"When I look at the data, it's still going up awfully steeply. More than 150,000 cases a day and that number keeps growing; hospitalizations [at] 95,000; deaths now averaging a 1,000 a day," he noted. "Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama -- there's just a world of hurt going on there with so many unvaccinated people and hospitals really struggling to try to manage all the really sick people who are coming to their emergency rooms."
Houston sees 5-fold increase in COVID-19 vaccinations
COVID-19 vaccinations in Houston increased more than five-fold on Thursday as the city launched a new incentive program.
The Houston Health Department is now providing up to $150 in gift cards to get vaccinated against COVID-19. A total of 740 vaccine doses were administered at the health department's eligible sites on Thursday, the first day of the program, marking a 51% increase over Wednesday's total of 121 doses.
Of the total shots administered Thursday, 658 were first doses and 82 were second dose, according to a press release from the health department.