Coronavirus updates: 1st vaccines now on the way to all 50 US states

Two main trucks left the Pfizer facility on Sunday morning, the company said.

A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 71.5 million people and killed over 1.6 million worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.


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Baltimore mayor shuts down indoor, outdoor dining 

Baltimore will shut down indoor and outdoor dining beginning Friday, said Mayor Brandon Scott, who was sworn in on Tuesday.

Restaurants can offer takeout and delivery.

Scott’s order also sets a 25% capacity limit at retail stores, religious institutions, gyms and malls.

The new rules come as Maryland reported a record number of hospitalizations during the pandemic -- 1,715 patients -- surpassing the previous peak in April.

ABC News' Dee Carden contributed to this report.


Rudy Giuliani says he'll be discharged from hospital today

President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, told WABC Radio that he'll be discharged from the hospital Wednesday afternoon following his COVID-19 diagnoses.

“I feel just about 100% right now," he said.

Giuliani said he will isolate for a few more days “because the way they calculate it, I probably got it [the virus] about seven, eight days ago.”

Seven days ago, Giuliani was in Michigan, testifying at the state's House Oversight Committee hearing for suspicion of voter fraud. The next day, he appeared at a hearing at the Georgia Senate Judiciary Committee to contest that state's results.

ABC News' Ben Gittleson contributed to this report.


Fauci: Speed of vaccine development 'was not compromising safety'

Dr. Anthony Fauci stressed Wednesday that the speed of vaccine development “was not compromising safety, nor was it compromising scientific integrity.”

"The speed is really a reflection of the extraordinary scientific advances that have been made that allowed us to do things in weeks to months that normally would have taken several years," Fauci explained at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Summit. "The process that went into deciding the safety and efficacy was both independent and transparent."

"We've got to be doing a lot of community engagement and community outreach to get people to understand," Fauci said.

ABC News' Sophie Tatum contributed to this report.


Passenger tests positive on Royal Caribbean cruise ship

An 83-year-old passenger on board Royal Caribbean International’s Quantum of the Seas tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, Singapore's Ministry of Health said in a statement.

The passenger had reported to the ship medical center with symptoms and was tested with PCR equipment on board. The 83-year-old was immediately isolated after getting the results.

Close contacts of the individual have tested negative and have been quarantined.

Singapore's National Public Health Laboratory will re-test that sample and a second sample will be taken to verify the results.

An epidemiological investigation has been initiated and contact tracing is in progress, the Ministry of Health said. All passengers will undergo mandatory COVID-19 testing before they are allowed to leave the terminal at Marina Bay Cruise Centre.

The ship will go through a "deep cleaning and disinfection," the cruise line said in a statement.

"The health and safety of our guests and crew are of utmost importance to us, and we have made the decision to cancel the 4-night cruise departing tomorrow, December 10," Royal Caribbean said.

ABC News' Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.


US averaging nearly 2,200 COVID-19 deaths per day for 1st time

For the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the United States is reporting an average of nearly 2,200 deaths from the disease per day, according to an ABC News analysis of data collected and published by The COVID Tracking Project.

The national seven-day average of COVID-19 deaths per day day is currently 2,171. That figure has increased by 139% in the past month.

Last week, there were nearly 15,000 fatalities from the disease recorded nationwide, including five days where the daily death toll surpassed the 2,000 mark. That's roughly equivalent to 88 COVID-19 deaths reported each hour.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has reported over 100,000 new cases of COVID-19 every day for more than a month straight, including three consecutive days where the daily count topped 200,000.

Just in the last month, the national seven-day average of daily new cases has doubled, now averaging 191,736 -- the highest it has been since the beginning of the pandemic.

There were 1,018,657 cases recorded nationwide in the first five days of December. To put that in perspective, it took nearly 100 days from the first recorded COVID-19 case in the U.S. for the country to surpass 1 million confirmed cases.

Hospitalizations continue to surge to unprecedented levels, with over 101,000 patients currently hopitalized with COVID-19 across the country -- a new national record.

In the past two months, current hospitalizations have more than tripled, increasing by 223%.

ABC News' Benjamin Bell, Brian Hartman, Kim Soorin and Arielle Mitropoulos contributed to this report.