Calif. surpasses N.Y. in confirmed virus cases

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California has surpassed New York for the most coronavirus cases in the country, reporting more than 409,000 infections after setting a record on Tuesday for the state’s most confirmed new cases in a single day since the start of the pandemic.

The surge of cases comes as California reopened much of its economy in May. Since then, Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered statewide shutdowns for bars and indoor dining while imposing tougher restrictions — including bans on indoor worship services and in-person instruction at schools — on virtually every large county and some small ones where the outbreak is most severe.

But New York still has by far the most coronavirus-related deaths in the country with more than 32,500. It’s four times more than California’s tally. Its rate of confirmed infections of about 2,100 per 100,000 is twice California’s rate.

California’s cases have steadily climbed, with the state confirming 12,807 new cases on Tuesday — its highest singleday total since the start of the pandemic.

California is by far the most populous U.S. state, with nearly 40 million people, while New York has about 19.5 million.

“We are a state, again, the size of 21 states combined, so it’s not surprising now in some respects as we begin to reopen key sectors of our economy … that our numbers would start to go up,” Newsom said Wednesday. “(It’s) a sober reminder of why we are taking things as seriously as we are.”

U.S. government data published Tuesday found that reported and confirmed coronavirus cases vastly underestimate the true number of infections, echoing results from a smaller study last month.

The U.S. also has had consistent testing failures that experts say contribute to an undercount of the actual virus rate.