Coronavirus news: New York reaches 1 month with infection rate below 1%
Cuomo said New York has now seen 31 days with an infection rate under 1%.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 890,000 people worldwide.
Over 27.2 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 6.2 million diagnosed cases and at least 189,122 deaths.
California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 740,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 658,000 cases and over 648,000 cases respectively.
Nearly 170 vaccine candidates for COVID-19 are being tracked by the World Health Organization, six of which are in crucial phase three trials.
Latest headlines:
New York reaches 1 month with infection rate below 1%
New York state -- once the U.S. epicenter of the pandemic -- has now seen 31 days with an infection rate under 1%, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday.
On Sunday, .88% of the tests reported to New York state were positive, Cuomo said.
"As we close out this Labor Day Weekend, I urge everyone to remain smart so we can continue to celebrate our progress in the weeks and months ahead," Cuomo said in a statement.
New York state has over 440,000 coronavirus cases. New York ranks No. 4 for the highest number of cases in the U.S., behind California, Texas and Florida.
UK health secretary says rise in cases among 'more affluent, younger people'
The recent rise in COVID-19 cases across the United Kingdom is primarily among "more affluent, younger people" who are not following social distancing rules, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Matt Hancock said Monday.
"The rise in the number of cases we've seen is concerning because we've seen a rise in cases in France, in Spain and in other countries across Europe," Hancock said during an interview on LBC, a London-based national phone-in and talk radio station. "Nobody wants to see a second wave here."
"We are seeing problems of social distancing in some cases," Hancock told LBC. "The rise in the number of cases we’ve seen over the last few days is largely amongst younger people … under-25s, especially between 17 and 21 (years old)."
"The problem is that spreading the disease amongst young people then leads to older people getting it," he added.
Northeastern dismisses 11 students for violating coronavirus restrictions
Northeastern University said it has "dismissed" 11 students after they were found defying the school’s coronavirus-related restrictions.
The students, who were enrolled in the N.U.in Program, a study-abroad experience for first-year students, were found together in a room at the Westin Hotel in Boston on Wednesday night, in violation of university and public health protocols that prohibit crowd gatherings. More than 800 students are staying in two-person rooms at the hotel, less than one mile from the school’s main campus in Boston, as part of the program which was modified due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a press release from Northeastern University.
The school said it has informed the 11 students "that they are no longer part of the Northeastern community for the fall semester." The school noted that the students "have the right to contest their dismissal at an expedited hearing."
The students and their parents were informed Friday that they must vacate the hotel within 24 hours and that they are required to undergo COVID-19 testing on campus before departing.
"Northeastern and its community of students, faculty, and staff take violations of health and safety protocols very seriously," Madeleine Estabrook, senior vice chancellor for student affairs at Northeastern University, said in a statement Friday. "Cooperation and compliance with public health guidelines is absolutely essential. Those people who do not follow the guidelines -- including wearing masks, avoiding parties and other gatherings, practicing healthy distancing, washing your hands, and getting tested -- are putting everyone else at risk."
"Testing negative for COVID-19 is not enough," she added.
US reports more than 31,000 new cases
There were 31,395 new cases of COVID-19 identified in the United States on Sunday, according to a real-time count kept by Johns Hopkins University.
Sunday’s tally is well below the country’s record set on July 16, when there were 77,255 new cases in a 24-hour-reporting period.
An additional 403 coronavirus-related fatalities were also recorded Sunday, the country’s lowest daily death toll since Aug. 2 and down from a peak of 2,666 new fatalities reported on April 17.
A total of 6,277,005 people in the United States have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, and at least 188,941 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.
An internal memo from the Federal Emergency Management Agency obtained by ABC News last week shows the number of new COVID-19 cases in the United States has ticked upward while new deaths has decreased in week-over-week comparisons.