Coronavirus updates: 23-year-old college student dies from COVID-19
Jamesha Waddell, a senior at Livingstone College, died Thursday.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1.3 million people worldwide.
Over 58.7 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 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. The criteria for diagnosis -- through clinical means or a lab test -- has also varied from country to country.
The United States is the worst-affected nation, with more than 12.2 million diagnosed cases and at least 256,783 deaths.
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:
US deaths hit highest mark since May
The COVID Tracking Project said coronavirus-related deaths are on the rise in all four sections of the country and were higher today than on any day since May 14.
There were 155,201 cases and 1,565 deaths reported Tuesday, according to the data. Roughly 77,000 Americans are currently hospitalized with the virus and 20 states are at their record hospitalization rate, according to The COVID Tracking project.
Chuck Grassley tests positive
U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, announced Tuesday night he tested positive for the coronavirus. The 87-year-old said he went into isolation earlier in the day after he learning he was exposed to someone who had the virus.
"While I still feel fine, the test came back positive for the coronavirus. I am continuing to follow my doctors' orders and CDC guidelines," Grassley said in a statement.
Grassley, the second-oldest senator, said he will work from home, but his offices in Iowa and Washington, D.C., will remain open for constituents.
Six U.S. senators have contracted COVID-19.
New York reaches highest hospitalization numbers since June
New York state has 2,124 COVID-19 patients in hospitals, the most since June 9, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office.
"Our micro-cluster strategy and testing capacity will help us through this new season, but ensuring we don't go back to where we were in the spring is going to depend on our behavior," Cuomo warned.
The state’s positivity rate stands at 3.18%, with 5,088 people testing positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.
Ohio announces 3-week overnight curfew
In hard-hit Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine announced a three-week curfew that will begin Thursday and run from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. each night.
"The situation in Ohio is deteriorating," DeWine warned.
Every county has at least twice the high-incidence level set by the CDC, he said.
Ohio has over 312,000 COVID-19 cases and at least 5,772 fatalities.
"I'm also asking each Ohioan every day to do at least one thing that reduces your contact with others," DeWine tweeted. "If we can cut down contacts by 20-25 percent, this will make a difference. Paired with mask-wearing, this will go a long way from stopping our hospitals from being overrun."