Coronavirus updates: Herd immunity by fall 'ambitious,' says surgeon general nominee
In 44 states, the seven-day average of new cases dropped over 10%.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 98.7 million people worldwide and killed over 2.1 million of them, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
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Emirates, Etihad Airlines to test IATA COVID-19 travel pass
Emirates Airlines and Etihad Airways said they have partnered with the International Air Transport Association to trial IATA Travel Pass -- a mobile app that serves as a “digital passport” to verify pre-travel COVID-19 testing or vaccination status.
The app also helps passengers find information on travel and entry requirements at their destinations.
Emirates Airlines said it plans to roll out the first phase in April, during which passengers leaving Dubai can share their COVID-19 test status directly with the airline through the app before arriving at the airport. Etihad will first offer the travel pass on some flights out of Abu Dhabi in the first quarter of 2021.
ABC News’ Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.
COVID-19 fatality rate increases in UK
The United Kingdom reported a record 1,610 new fatalities from COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the country's weekly death toll to 8,267 -- a 19.8% increase over the previous week.
The U.K. -- an island nation of 66 million people made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland -- has the fifth-highest number of confirmed deaths from COVID-19 worldwide, behind the United States, Brazil, India and Mexico, according to a count kept by Johns Hopkins University.
Despite the record death toll, the daily number of new cases is on the decline in the U.K. amid national lockdowns. The U.K. reported 33,355 new cases on Tuesday, bringing the weekly total to 302,802 -- a 22.3% decrease from the last week.
ABC News’ Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.
U.S. death toll from COVID-19 surpasses 400,000
The U.S. death toll surpassed 400,000 on Tuesday and now stands at 400,022 fatalities.
The number of American lives lost to the coronavirus is more people than the number of U.S. soldiers who died in battle during World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War combined, according to a data estimate compiled by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The U.S. death toll is roughly equivalent to the population of Tampa, Florida, or Tulsa, Oklahoma.
By the middle of February, "we expect half a million deaths" in the U.S. from COVID-19, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, who’s nominated to serve as the next director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told CBS’ "Face the Nation" on Sunday.
ABC News’ Arielle Mitropolous contributed to this report.
US hospitalizations drop by 6%
In the last 10 days, the number of patients hospitalized nationally has declined by 6%, according to ABC News' analysis of data compiled by the COVID Tracking Project.
California has the most hospitalizations with more than 20,000 patients.
Texas has the second most with nearly 14,000 patients, followed by New York, Florida and Georgia.
ABC News’ Arielle Mitropolous contributed to this report.
'There is no plan B' for Tokyo Olympics, IOC chief says
Despite rising COVID-19 infections in Japan, International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said Thursday that there is "no reason whatsoever" to believe the Olympic Games in Tokyo will not open on July 23 as planned.
"This is why there is no plan B and this is why we are fully committed to make these games safe and successful," Back told Japanese news agency Kyodo in an interview Thursday.
However, Bach admitted he could not guarantee that the stands would be full or rule out the possibility that the Games would be held without spectators, according to Kyodo.
The 2020 Summer Olympics were supposed to kick off in Tokyo last year on July 24. But in late March, amid mounting calls to delay or cancel the upcoming Games, the International Olympic Committee and Japan's prime minister announced that the event would be held a year later due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Now, Japan is facing a resurgence of COVID-19. The country of 126 million people reported the highest number of new cases in the Western Pacific region last week. The infection rate -- currently at 32.8 cases per 100,000 people -- increased by 4% over the previous week, according to the World Health Organization's latest COVID-19 weekly epidemiological update.
The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare confirmed 5,662 new cases of COVID-19 as well as an additional 87 fatalities from the disease on Thursday, bringing the cumulative totals to 348,646 cases and 4,829 deaths.
Japanase Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has declared a state of emergency in Tokyo and 10 other prefectures due to climbing case counts and growing death tolls.