Deaths taking a turn for the worse
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A long-expected upturn in U.S. coronavirus deaths has begun, driven by fatalities in states in the South and West, according to data on the pandemic.
The number of deaths per day from the virus had been falling for months, and even remained down as states like Florida and Texas saw explosions in cases and hospitalizations — and reported daily U.S. infections broke records several times in recent days.
Scientists warned it wouldn’t last.
A coronavirus death, when it occurs, typically comes several weeks after a person is first infected.
And experts predicted states that saw increases in cases and hospitalizations would, at some point, see sey’s recent jump is thought to be the U.S. in March. About two dozen deaths rise too. Now that’s happenpartially attributable to its less fredeaths were being reported daily in ing. quent reporting of probable deaths. the middle of that month. By late in
“It’s consistently picking up. And The impact has already been felt the month, hundreds were being reit’s picking up at the time you’d exby families who lost kin — and by the ported each day, and in April thoupect it to,” said William Hanage, a health care workers who tried to sands. Most happened in New York, Harvard University infectious dissave them. New Jersey and elsewhere in the eases researcher. Rublas Ruiz, a Miami intensive Northeast.
According to an Associated Press care unit nurse, recently broke down Deaths were so high there because analysis of data from Johns Hopkins in tears during a birthday dinner it was a new virus tearing through a University, the seven-day rolling avwith his wife and daughter. He said densely populated area, and it quickerage for daily reported deaths in the he was overcome by the number of ly swept through vulnerable groups U.S. has increased from 578 two patients who have died in his care. of people in nursing homes and othweeks ago to 664 on July 10 — still “I counted like 10 patients in less er places, said Perry Halkitis, the well below the heights hit in April. than four days in our ICU and then I dean of the Rutgers University Daily reported deaths increased in stopped doing that because there School of Public Health in New Jersey.27statesoverthattimeperiod,butweresomany,”saidthe41-year-old the majority of those states are avernurse at Kendall Regional Medical Many of the infections occurred aging under 15 new deaths per day. A Center who lost another patient before government officials imposed smaller group of states has been Monday. stay-at-home orders and other sodriving the nationwide increase in The virus has killed more than cial-distancing measures. The daily deaths. 130,000 people in the U.S. and more death toll started falling in mid
California is averaging 91 reported than a half-million worldwide, acApril — and continued to fall until deaths per day while Texas is close cording to Johns Hopkins University, about a week ago. behind with 66, but Florida, Arizona, though the true numbers are beResearchers now expect deaths to Illinois, New Jersey and South Carolieved to be higher. rise for at least some weeks, but maylina also saw sizable rises. New Jer- Deaths first began mounting in be not as dramatically as the spring.
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