(Bloomberg) -- The number of Americans hospitalized with Covid-19 climbed to a record Sunday, a sign that the virus is still raging, even as the Thanksgiving holiday distorted case and death data.
An all-time high of 93,238 people are hospitalized with the virus in the U.S., up 9,368 from a week earlier, according to Covid Tracking Project data.
Yet the seven-day average of new cases has fallen from Wednesday’s record high -- probably deceptively -- after reduced laboratory staffing led to an initial period of underreporting.
Reporting on deaths also has been muddled by the holiday effect, showing what’s likely to prove a temporary reversal of the upward trend. A model based on 40 forecasts tracked by the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Reich Lab indicates that, in the next month or so, the seven-day average deaths will probably near the record pace of about 2,200 a day from the period ended April 18.
Cumulatively, the Reich Lab’s Covid-19 Forecast Hub shows deaths may surpass 300,000 by mid-December. There have been nearly 267,000 coronavirus deaths reported through Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
According to Covid Tracking Project data:
- Hospitalizations in the Midwest, a region of concern recently, have shown early signs of retreating from highs.
- The number of current hospitalizations in New York state climbed by 184 on Friday, the biggest one-day increase since early April, according to the state. They increased by 85 on Saturday to 3,372. Hospitalizations statewide increased to 3,532 on Sunday, up 160 from the day prior.
- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Monday he’s more concerned about staffing shortages than hospital beds because the nationwide surge means the state can’t expect the 30,000 out-of-state volunteers it previously attracted. “They’re all busy,” he said. “In the spring, it was just us.”
©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
POPULAR