Coronavirus updates: 'Close contact' definition updated by CDC
The CDC offered new, more strict guidance on Wednesday.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.
Over 41.1 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 8.3 million diagnosed cases and at least 221,987 deaths.
California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 886,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 868,000 cases and over 760,000 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:
- New CDC study finds multiple, brief exposures within 6 feet can heighten risk of transmission
- New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy self-isolating after close contact with someone who tested positive
- US surgeon general says herd immunity could 'lead to many complications/deaths'
- Analysis shows rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations in 42 US states
- US reports over 60,000 new cases, nearly 1,000 deaths
Chief adviser for Operation Warp Speed says all Americans could be immunized with vaccine by June
Dr. Moncef Slaoui, chief adviser for the Trump administration's Operation Warp Speed effort to accelerate a vaccine rollout, told ABC News Wednesday that every American could be immunized June 2021.
"It's a plan, it's not a certainty," Slaoui told ABC News' Bob Woodruff. "But the plan should make it such that by June everybody could have been immunized in the United States. We will have enough vaccine doses. I really hope most people will take the vaccines."
He added there are two vaccines in Phase 3 trials that are on hold, "and they are imminently going to have the hold lifted," referring to the fact that AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson have paused their trials. While this "does have an impact" on speed, Slaoui added, "that's fine, because the number one priority is safety of course."
"If that means the trial has to stop for a month ... that's what we'll do," he said.
Spain tops 1 million cases
Spain has become the first nation in the European Union to hit the 1 million mark for coronavirus cases.
The country has reported a total of 1,005,295 cases and 34,366 fatalities, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy self-isolating after close contact with someone who tested positive
New Jersey’s governor said Wednesday he will self-isolate after he was in close proximity to someone who just tested positive for coronavirus.
Murphy walked away from a news conference at Camden County Community College in Blackwood, New Jersey, on Wednesday shortly after learning he was close to someone Saturday who has since tested positive
Murphy tested negative Monday. His spokesperson later confirmed to The Associated Press that he also tested negative Wednesday.
ABC News’ Aaron Katersky contributed to this report.
Germany’s health minister tests positive
German Health Minister Jens Spahn has tested positive for the coronavirus and is currently self-isolating, the DPA News Agency reported Wednesday, citing a Health Ministry announcement.
Spahn has developed cold symptoms so far, the ministry said.
The Robert Koch Institute reported that Germany recorded 7,595 new cases on Wednesday, bringing the total to 380,762. The death toll increased by 39, now totaling 9,875.
ABC News’ Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.
Analysis shows rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations in 42 US states
An ABC News analysis of COVID-19 trends across all 50 U.S. states as well as Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico found there were increases in hospitalizations over the past two weeks in 42 states.
The analysis also found increases in newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 in 40 states plus Puerto Rico, increases in the daily positivity rate of COVID-19 tests in 27 states and increases in daily COVID-19 death tolls in 17 states.
Since Oct. 1, there have been 972,902 cases reported nationwide. More than 400,000 of those cases have been reported in just the last seven days. The country is on track this week to exceed 1 million cases for the month of October, making it the fourth month on record to surpass the grim milestone.
Cases are undoubtably surging nationally. The United States is currently averaging 57,000 new cases a day -- the highest it has been in 11 weeks. That average has increased by 67% since Sept. 12.
Two states -- Kansas and Tennessee -- hit a record number of new cases reported in a 24-hour reporting period, while five states -- Kentucky, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio and Wyoming -- saw a record number of current hospitalizations in a day.
The trends were all analyzed from data collected and published by the COVID Tracking Project over the past two weeks, using the linear regression trend line of the seven-day moving average to examine whether a state's key indicators were increasing, decreasing or remained flat.
ABC News' Benjamin Bell, Brian Hartman, Soorin Kim and Arielle Mitropolous contributed to this report.