Jesse Jackson, wife hospitalized with COVID-19
The civil rights pioneer was vaccinated in January.
The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge this summer as the more contagious delta variant spreads.
More than 628,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while over 4.4 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 59.9% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Mass vaccine site for booster shots opens in Detroit
Detroit has opened a mass vaccine site for boosters at its convention center.
The TCF Center has played an integral role for Detroit residents during the pandemic, first acting as a mass testing site, a field hospital and eventually a mass vaccination site.
It is currently the only location in the city to get a third booster shot.
-ABC News’ Cherise Rudy
Medical troops headed to Louisiana for COVID-19 relief
About 20 medical troops, a group that includes doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists, are heading to an overburdened hospital in Lafayette, Louisiana, according to a statement from U.S. Army North, the military's lead organization for national COVID-19 response.
The troops are expected to arrive in the state on Wednesday, a U.S. official told ABC News.
"This is the second time Department of Defense medical assets have deployed to support Louisiana during the pandemic," said Lt. Gen. Laura J. Richardson, commander of U.S. Army North. "While COVID-19 continues to challenge the community here and elsewhere in the U.S., we remain steadfast in our support of our local, state and federal partners."
The military is sending the medical service members after receiving a request for assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which itself had received a request for help from Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards.
-ABC News' Matthew Seyler
2 Florida school districts found in violation of state’s ban on mask mandates
Two school districts in Florida were found to have violated state law by mandating masking-wearing in schools during an emergency hearing held by the Florida State Board of Education Tuesday.
Alachua County Public Schools and Broward County Public Schools were non-compliant with Florida Department of Health Emergency Rule 64DER21-12 and are now subject to punishment and the potential withholding of state funding.
More than 600 students in Alachua County have been quarantined since the start of the school year just six days ago, Dr. Carlee Simon, superintendent of Alachua County Public Schools, said during the meeting.
Superintendent of Broward County Public Schools Vickie Cartwright said school administrators were concerned about the number of cases that are happening in Broward County as the delta variant spreads, especially since there were only five pediatric ICU beds available in Broward County as of Tuesday morning.
“We argue that we are exercising our constitutional responsibilities to protect our students and staff,” Simon said. “We believe this is, in quote, reasonable and necessary to achieve a compelling state interest."
All Board of Education members present at the emergency meeting voted that both school districts were in violation of the law, which "protects parents' right to make decisions regarding masking of their children in relation to COVID-19."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has issued in an that the board has the right to withhold state funding to schools that they find are "unwilling or unable to comply with the law.”
No punishment was specified for the schools during the emergency meeting.
-ABC News’ Victoria Arancio
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott not experiencing symptoms after positive COVID-19 test, he tweeted Tuesday.
Frontline workers warn of increase in pediatric COVID-19 related hospitalizations
The average number of people being admitted to the hospital each day with COVID-19 in the U.S. has surged by more than 480% since the end of June, marking the highest number of patients seeking care in over six months.
Doctors are warning of the alarming rates of people entering the hospital with life-threatening conditions.
"What was more terrifying this time is that these people are drowning, they're drowning, and it is an awful thing to see,” Dr. Enrique Lopez, surgical tntensivist at Phoebe Health in Georgia said Monday in a new video message.”And you would look up on the monitor and their oxygen saturation would be near perfect and they would just sit there just starving for air just begging to breathe.”
Nationally, more than 83,000 Americans are currently hospitalized with COVID-19 nationwide. Several Southern states are experiencing their worst surge yet, with front line workers raising the alarm about overwhelmed ICUs, and patients waiting in hallways at some hospitals.
"They're just saying over and over again I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe, and it was so different than it was last time," said Lopez. "Now, it wants kids, and those ICUs for those pediatric patients are filling up."
Likewise, as cases have increased, so have pediatric hospital admissions, experts say.
"Even though it's uncommon, it can be very severe and even life threatening in some cases," said Dr. Zac Aldewereld, assistant professor of pediatric critical care medicine and pediatric infectious diseases at the University of Pittsburgh. "And yet we have a vaccine to prevent it."
-ABC News' Arielle Mitropoulos