Coronavirus updates: Los Angeles County to prohibit gatherings, close playgrounds
Cases are on the rise in Southern California.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 61 million people and killed over 1.4 million worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Latest headlines:
US tops 13 million cases
More than 13 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the U.S., according to Johns Hopkins University.
The U.S. crossed 12 million cases six days ago.
Experts have cautioned against reading too much into data reported before next week, as some state updates may be spotty due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
Vermont officials urge residents to quarantine after Thanksgiving
Vermont officials are urging people who had Thanksgiving gatherings with those outside their household to now quarantine.
“My request to Vermonters who may have participated in travel and/or multi-household gatherings is simply this: Please quarantine yourselves at home, and please get tested now and in seven days,” state Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said during a press briefing Friday.
Gov. Phil Scott echoed the health commissioner’s request.
“If you have had one of those gatherings yesterday, then you shouldn't send your kids to school next week," he said. "You should quarantine your kids for at least seven days, get a test, and then we'll move forward."
Scott said earlier in the week that school officials will ask returning students if they attended a Thanksgiving gathering with people outside their household to determine quarantine requirements.
"We did all of this to try and protect Vermont, to try and prevent the rise in the number of cases," Scott said Friday.
ABC News' Joshua Hoyos contributed to this report
Ravens-Steelers game postponed again
The Baltimore Ravens-Pittsburgh Steelers Thanksgiving Day game, which was moved to Sunday due to a COVID-19 outbreak, has been postponed again -- to Tuesday.
"These decisions were made out of an abundance of caution to ensure the health and safety of players, coaches and game day personnel and in consultation with medical experts," the NFL said in a statement.
The move comes after eight Baltimore players were publicly put on the reserve/COVID-19 list this week, including defensive end Jihad Ward as of Thursday.
The list means either a player tested positive for COVID-19 or has been identified as a close contact of someone who did.
Though according to ESPN, at least 12 Ravens players have tested positive for COVID-19, including NFL MVP Lamar Jackson.
Brazil's president says he won't take a COVID-19 vaccine
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro insisted he will not take a COVID-19 vaccine.
"I'm telling you, I'm not going to take it. It's my right," Bolsonaro said Thursday in a live broadcast streamed on various social media platforms.
The right-wing leader also said that Brazil's National Congress is unlikely to require citizens to get vaccinated for COVID-19, and he expressed skepticism over the effectiveness of face masks in curbing the spread of the virus.
Bolsonaro, an avid supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, has downplayed the seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic despite getting infected himself over the summer.
Brazil has the second-highest number of COVID-19 deaths in the world, behind only the United States, and the third-highest number of confirmed cases, after India and the United States, according to a real-time tally kept by Johns Hopkins University.
1,319 US deaths on Thanksgiving
The Covid Tracking Project reported 1,319 deaths, below the seven-day average of 1,549, on Thanksgiving, but experts caution against reading too much into data reported before next week as the holiday could prove a catalyst for the virus that's killed at least 263,196 Americans.
On Thursday, total global deaths reached at least 1,428,671.