December 16, 2020 • No Comments • National News

narvikk/iStockBy MORGAN WINSOR, IVAN PEREIRA, ERIN SCHUMAKER and EMILY SHAPIRO, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 73.2 million people and killed over 1.6 million worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

Here’s how the news is developing Wednesday. All times Eastern:

Dec 16, 9:31 am
WHO warns of ‘high risk of further resurgence’ across Europe early next year

The World Health Organization has warned that “there is a high risk of further resurgence” in COVID-19 infections across Europe at the start of the new year.

“Despite some fragile progress, COVID-19 transmission across the European Region remains widespread and intense,” the WHO Regional Office for Europe said in a statement Wednesday. “There is a high risk of further resurgence in the first weeks and months of 2021, and we will need to work together if we are to succeed in preventing it.”

The warning comes amid the festive season when families are anxious to gather together for the winter holidays.

“Annually across Europe, we see a massive increase in gatherings that bring together people of all ages, including families, religious groups and friends,” the regional office said. “This brings a significant risk of increased COVID-19 transmission during the upcoming holiday season.”

The regional office is urging everyone in Europe to “play our part to prevent yet another resurgence” by postponing or reducing the size of gatherings and holding them outside if possible, wearing masks, maintaining physical distancing and avoiding any transportation that might be crowded.

The regions of the Americas and Europe continue to shoulder the burden of the coronavirus pandemic, accounting for 85% of new cases and 86% of new deaths globally, according to the WHO’s weekly epidemiological update published Tuesday.

Dec 16, 7:55 am
China will ban inbound international flights if five or more people on board test positive

China’s aviation authority announced Wednesday it will suspend inbound international flight routes if five or more passengers on board test positive for COVID-19 upon arrival.

The airline will be banned from operating that flight route for up to two weeks if five or more passengers are found to be infected with the virus after landing in China. The suspension period extends to four weeks if 10 or more passengers test positive, according to a statement from China’s Civil Aviation Administration.

Airlines will be allowed to resume one flight per week on that route once the suspension ends.

The previous rule was a one-week ban if five or more passengers on an inbound international flight tested positive for COVID-19.

The move comes one day after China’s Civil Aviation Administration issued one-week suspensions to inbound flights operated by Ethiopian Airlines, Russia’s Pegas Fly and Swiss International Air Lines after five or more passengers on each of those flights tested positive for COVID-19.

The first known human cases of COVID-19 were identified in Wuhan, China, last December. The virus soon spread to every single continent around the world, except Antartica. Since the start of the pandemic, the Chinese mainland has reported more than 86,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including at least 4,634 deaths, according to the latest data from China’s National Health Commission.

Dec 16, 6:32 am
COVID-19 vaccine to be authorized in Europe ‘within a week,’ EU chief says

A COVID-19 vaccine will be authorized in the European Union “within a week,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced Wednesday.

“Finally, within a week, the first vaccine will be authorized so that vaccinations can start immediately, and more will follow in the new year,” von der Leyen said in an address to lawmakers at the European Parliament in Brussels. “In total, we have bought more than enough doses for everyone in Europe.”

The EU’s 27 member states will all be able to launch mass immunization programs on “the same day” that the vaccine is approved, according to von der Leyen.

“To get to the end of the pandemic, we will need up to 70% of the population vaccinated,” she said. “This is a huge task, a big task. So let’s start as soon as possible with the vaccination together, as 27, with a start at the same day.”

The European Medicines Agency, the drug regulator for the European Union, announced Tuesday that a special meeting to discuss conditional authorization for a COVID-19 vaccine developed by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech will be moved up to Dec. 21. The meeting was originally scheduled for Dec. 29. The move comes amid mounting pressure on the agency after the United States and the United Kingdom both granted emergency-use authorization of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and began immunization campaigns.

Dec 16, 5:50 am
UK vaccinates over 137,000 people against COVID-19 in seven days

There were 137,897 people who were vaccinated against COVID-19 across the United Kingdom in the first seven days of the country’s mass immunization program, according to Nadhim Zahawi, the U.K. minister in charge of the vaccine rollout.

Zahawi said 108,000 people were administered the vaccine in England, 7,897 in Wales, 4,000 in Northern Ireland and 18,000 in Scotland.

“A really good start to the vaccination program,” Zahawi wrote on his official Twitter account Tuesday morning. “That number will increase as we have operationalised hundreds of PCN (primary care networks).”

On Dec. 2, the United Kingdom became the first Western country to approve a COVID-19 vaccine, granting emergency-use authorization to one developed by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech. The U.K. government launched a mass immunization program just six days later, administering the shot to people over the age of 80 and front-line health workers.

Dec 16, 4:18 am
US reports over 198,000 new cases

There were 198,357 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in the United States on Tuesday, according to a real-time count kept by Johns Hopkins University.

It’s the 43rd straight day that the U.S. has reported over 100,000 newly diagnosed infections. Tuesday’s tally is down from the country’s all-time high of 231,775 new cases confirmed on Dec. 11, according to Johns Hopkins data.

An additional 3,019 deaths from the disease were also registered nationwide on Tuesday, just under a peak of 3,300 fatalities on Dec. 11, according to Johns Hopkins data.

A total of 16,724,772 people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, and at least 303,849 of them have died, according to Johns Hopkins data. The cases include people from all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., and other U.S. territories as well as repatriated citizens.

Much of the country was under lockdown by the end of March as the first wave of pandemic hit. By May 20, all U.S. states had begun lifting stay-at-home orders and other restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. The day-to-day increase in the country’s cases then hovered around 20,000 for a couple of weeks before shooting back up over the summer.

The numbers lingered around 40,000 to 50,000 from mid-August through early October before surging again to record levels, crossing 100,000 for the first time on Nov. 4 and reaching 200,000 for the first time on Nov. 27.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 15, 2020 • No Comments • National News

Tiktok/milankabeeBy NICOLE PELLETIERE, GMA

(PHILADELPHIA) — A Pennsylvania woman’s viral video describing experiences she’s had on construction job sites has millions responding with empowering comments on social media.

“I was waiting for the concrete trucks to show up and made a lighthearted video about guys on site who still subscribe to a pretty antiquated view of women in construction,” said Milanka, a 25-year-old geologist from Philadelphia, who declined to give her last name due to privacy reasons. “It became a place for women to vent about the experiences they had in the workplace.”

Milanka told “Good Morning America” she studied geology in college. She now works in a firm’s geotechnical division, which often brings her to construction sites. There, Milanka will assist with inspections.

While working with subcontractors has been pretty positive, Milanka said there’s still occasional comments made to her, which she recently shared on TikTok.

“At every site I go to, I always get the comment, ‘So, what did a pretty girl like you do to end up in construction?'” Milanka said in her video. “I studied geology, bro.”

The Instagram account Girlboss, which celebrates women in the workforce, shared a snippet of Milanka’s video with its 1.7 million followers. There, it garnered thousands of comments.

“I’m a foreman in concrete work..I felt this!” one woman wrote.

“I walked into a project, and a subcontractor yelled out to the entire crew ‘somebody’s girlfriend is here,'” said another.

Others said they didn’t share the same experiences and were treated equally in what one would consider male-dominated fields.

“I used to be a supervisor for a landscaping crew, and they were actually the nicest and the least sexist men I’ve worked with,” a commenter wrote.

Milanka agreed that not all of her run-ins or comments heard from male workers were frustrating.

“A lot of people I work with have a lot of respect for me and my female coworkers,” she said.

Milanka said the best part of her video going viral is the flood of direct messages from young women asking how they can go after a career in geology.

“It hasn’t discouraged women, but otherwise inspired them,” she added.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 15, 2020 • No Comments • National News

Ovidiu Dugulan/iStockBy MORGAN WINSOR, IVAN PERERIA and ERIN SCHUMAKER, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 72.8 million people and killed over 1.6 million worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

Here’s how the news is developing Tuesday. All times Eastern:

Dec 15, 8:55 am
Nurse and single mom becomes first in New Jersey to get vaccine

Maritza Beniquez celebrated her birthday Tuesday by becoming the first person in New Jersey to receive a COVID-19 vaccine outside of a clinical trial.

Beniquez, a nurse at University Hospital in Newark who is a single mother and first-generation Puerto Rican, clasped her hands in prayer as she was administered the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine on live television.

“Thank you, God!” she said. “I’m very excited. This moment means everything.”

Dec 15, 8:19 am
Fauci calls vaccine rollout ‘bittersweet,’ saying, ‘we still have a struggle ahead’

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said the rollout of COVID-19 vaccine doses across the country is “bittersweet” because “we still have a struggle ahead of us.”

“We are still in a terrible situation with the numbers … the deaths, the hospitalizations, the number of cases,” Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told ABC News chief anchor George Stephanopoulos in an interview Tuesday on Good Morning America.

“And yet, we’re really now starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel that is going to ultimately get us through this. We know we’re going to be able to put this behind us,” he added. “But in the meantime, we still have a struggle ahead of us. So we’ve got to get people vaccinated as quickly and as expeditiously as we possibly can.”

Fauci said he believes 75% to 80% of the U.S. population will need to be vaccinated in order to achieve a “herd immunity” against the novel coronavirus. Until then, he said, “we have to adhere to the public health measures in order to blunt the acceleration of these terrible numbers that we hear everyday.”

Fauci, who is a key member of the current White House coronavirus task force, said the speed with which the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was developed and authorized “was not at all at the sacrifice of safety,” but rather is “the reflection of extraordinary advances in the science of vaccine platform technology.”

“People are understandably skeptical about the speed,” he added, “but we have to keep emphasizing, speed means the science was extraordinary that got us here.”

Fauci, who will stay on in his role and be a chief medical adviser on the coronavirus pandemic in President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming administration, said he believes both Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris should get vaccinated as soon as possible.

“For security reasons, I really feel strongly that we should get them vaccinated as soon as we possibly can,” he said. “You want him fully protected as he enters into the presidency in January, so that would be my strong recommendation.”

When asked about whether he thinks President Donald Trump should be vaccinated, Fauci said he would recommend that Trump as well as Vice President Mike Pence get the shot.

“You still want to protect people who are, you know, very important to our country right now,” he said. “Even though the president himself was infected and he has likely antibodies that likely would be protective, we’re not sure how long that protection lasts. So to be doubly sure, I would recommend that he get vaccinated as well as the Vice President.”

Dec 15, 7:39 am
‘No side effects for me,’ says nurse who was among first Americans to get vaccine

The New York nurse who was among the first in the nation to receive a COVID-19 vaccine outside of a clinical trial said she feels “great” so far and has “no side effects.”

“I feel great,” Sandra Lindsay told ABC News’ Robin Roberts in an interview Tuesday on Good Morning America.

“No pain, no feeling of tiredness, no malaise,” she added. “No muscle aches. No side effects for me.”

Lindsay, a critical care nurse at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York City, was administered the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine on live television Monday. She was the first person in the state of New York to get the shot outside of a clinical trial.

“I volunteered,” she said. “I am a leader in the organization, and so I think it as incredibly important for me to lead by example like I do everyday.”

Lindsay said she wanted “to send a message to people who might be on the fence that they should trust the science.” She said people who were initially hesitant about getting the vaccine, including some coworkers, have since reached out to tell her how much she inspired them.

“The vaccine is safe. What is not safe is contracting COVID-19,” she said. “So that was my reason, and I hope that just continues to resonate with people.”

Dec 15, 6:45 am
South Africa tightens restrictions further

Sweeping new restrictions came into force across South Africa on Tuesday morning, as the country looks to curb a sharp rise in COVID-19 infections ahead of the holidays.

All post-funeral gatherings are now prohibited nationwide. All other gatherings, including for religious purposes, are limited to a maximum of 100 people for indoor events and 250 people for outdoor events. The total number of people in a venue must not exceed 50% capacity.

A national curfew has been extended and will now be from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. The curfew will remain in full effect over the holidays. Bars and restaurants across the country must close by 10 p.m. so their employees can return home before curfew.

Beaches along the country’s eastern coast and public parks in areas with the highest number of infections have been shuttered. Live music and performances have also been banned. Meanwhile, alcohol sales are now permitted only between Monday and Thursday at retail stores.

South Africa, which has so far confirmed more than 866,000 total cases of COVID-19, has seen a spike in infections since the beginning of December. The number of reported cases has been recently hovering around 8,000 per day, up from from around 3,000 per day in November.

“Given the rate at which new cases have grown over the last two weeks, there is every possibility that if we do not act urgently … the second wave will be more severe than the first wave,” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a televised address Monday, while announcing the new rules.

Dec 15, 5:51 am
London to move to tightest COVID-19 restrictions

London and other parts of England will move into the country’s highest tier of COVID-19 restrictions amid rising infections, U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced Monday.

The British capital, along with most of Essex and parts of Hertfordshire, will be moved from England’s “high alert” Tier 2 to the “very high” Tier 3 on Wednesday morning at 12 a.m.

“Over the last three weeks we’ve seen very sharp exponential rises in the virus across London, Kent, parts of Essex and Hertfordshire,” Hancock said while announcing the decision in Parliament.

Under the Tier 3 level of local restrictions, all hospitality venues including bars, cafes, pubs and restaurants must close except for takeout and delivery services. Sports fans also can’t attend events in stadiums. Indoor entertainment venues, such as bowling alleys, cinemas and theaters, must also remain shut. However, retail shops, gyms and hair salons can stay open.

Londoners, who are already unable to mix indoors with people from other households under Tier 2, will now not be able to meet in private gardens or at most outdoor venues except with those within their household or bubble. They may meet up to six people in other outdoor spaces such as beaches, parks, public gardens and sports facilities.

Hancock said a new variant of the novel coronavirus has been identified and “may be associated” with the rapid spread in southern England. London’s weekly case rate at 225 cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 people is currently the highest regional rate in the country.

“We do not know the extent to which this is because of the new variant, but no matter its cause, we have to take swift and decisive action, which unfortunately is absolutely essential to control this deadly disease while the vaccines roll out,” he said.

Although London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the decision was “incredibly disappointing for businesses who have suffered so much already,” he also acknowledged that “the virus is accelerating.”

“It would be such a tragedy to lose even more people to this disease when the vaccine is now being rolled out across our city,” Khan said in a statement Monday evening. “We know from bitter experience that when cases start to rise quickly, it’s much better to act early, rather than too late. This is how we can avoid even tougher restrictions, for longer, further down the road.”

Dec 15, 4:13 am
US reports over 193,000 new cases

There were 193,454 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in the United States on Monday, according to a real-time count kept by Johns Hopkins University.

It’s the 42nd straight day that the U.S. has reported over 100,000 newly diagnosed infections. Monday’s tally is less than the country’s all-time high of 231,775 new cases confirmed on Dec. 11, according to Johns Hopkins data.

An additional 1,441 deaths from the disease were also registered nationwide on Monday, bringing the cumulative count past the 300,000 mark. Monday’s death toll is down from a peak of 3,300 fatalities on Dec. 11, according to Johns Hopkins data.

A total of 16,519,628 people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, and at least 300,482 of them have died, according to Johns Hopkins data. The cases include people from all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., and other U.S. territories as well as repatriated citizens.

Much of the country was under lockdown by the end of March as the first wave of pandemic hit. By May 20, all U.S. states had begun lifting stay-at-home orders and other restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. The day-to-day increase in the country’s cases then hovered around 20,000 for a couple of weeks before shooting back up over the summer.

The numbers lingered around 40,000 to 50,000 from mid-August through early October before surging again to record levels, crossing 100,000 for the first time on Nov. 4 and reaching 200,000 for the first time on Nov. 27.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 14, 2020 • No Comments • National News

Myriam Borzee/iStockBy MORGAN WINSOR, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 72.2 million people and killed over 1.6 million worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

Here’s how the news is developing Monday. All times Eastern:

Dec 14, 8:28 pm

US sets new record for hospitalizations

The U.S. set a new record for hospitalizations Monday, the COVID Tracking Project reported.

At least 110,549 Americans are currently hospitalized for COVID-19, according to the health data.

“AZ and NV have the highest hospitalizations per million people in the country. Current hospitalizations in AZ have surpassed the state’s peak in the summer,” the tracking project tweeted.

The seven-day averages for key health data points also reached new records Monday, the tracking project reported.

The seven-day average of newly recorded cases was 213,293, the seven-day average for newly reported hospitalizations was 107,856 and the seven-day average for newly recorded fatalities was 2,435, according to the health data.

Dec 14, 6:43 pm

National Guard to help distribute vaccine

Members of the National Guard will help distribute the coronavirus vaccine in 26 states and territories, a National Guard official said during a press briefing Monday.

National Guard commanders from Ohio, West Virginia and Oklahoma detailed the limited role their members will play in their respective states.

It will work with state departments of health to break down the large 975-batch Pfizer packages into smaller packages as needed, and use rented vehicles and equipment to transfer packages from main hubs to satellite sites for further distribution.

-ABC News’ Matt Seyler contributed to this report

Dec 14, 4:14 pm

COVID-19 has now killed 300,267 Americans

The number of Americans killed by COVID-19 rose to 300,267 confirmed deaths on Monday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The grim milestone comes after the United States logged 3,124 deaths in a single day last week, the highest one-day death toll reported since the outbreak began.

Dec 14, 3:18 pm

Still unclear how long COVID-19 vaccine protection lasts: FDA

One of the biggest unanswered questions scientists have about the COVID-19 vaccine is how long virus protection will last after people get two doses. While more research needs to be done before any official guidance is released, Dr. Peter Marks, director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research at the Food and Drug Administration, said early vaccine trials may provide clues.

At the very least, a two-shot vaccination should offer at least several months of protection, Marks explained during an interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association on Monday.

“It’s at least probably on the order of four to six months,” Marks said. “The question is, will it reach out to a year? Hopefully, yes. But I think we’ll have those data in the not so different future.”

-ABC News’ Anne Flaherty contributed to this report.

Dec 14, 2:19 pm

20 million Americans to get 1st vaccine dose by end of December: HHS secretary

Twenty million Americans should be able to get the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of December, and another 30 million by the end of January, Alex Azar, secretary of Health and Human Services, said during a Monday news briefing. By the end of March, 100 million people are projected to receive a first dose.

Gen. Gustave Perna, chief operating officer for Operation Warp Speed, said that long-term care facilities in four states would work in tandem with CVS and Walgreens to start vaccinating patients and staff this weekend. An estimated 1,100 long-term care and nursing home facilities will begin vaccination next Monday.

-ABC News’ Luis Martinez contributed to this report.

Dec 14, 12:49 pm
Texas hospital gives its 1st COVID-19 vaccine to worker who cleans emergency room

A hospital in Texas gave its first COVID-19 vaccine Monday morning to an environmental services worker who cleans the emergency room.

Methodist Dallas Medical Center is one of four Texas hospitals receiving vaccine shipments Monday. The initial shipment will allow the hospital to give the first dose of the two-part vaccine to 5,000 of its front-line employees.

-ABC News’ Jim Scholz contributed to this report.

Dec 14, 11:41 am
2nd health worker vaccinated in NY lost family member to COVID-19

Dr. Yves Duroseau, head of emergency medicine at Lenox Hill Hospital, became the second health care worker to receive the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine Monday in New York.

“I’m very thankful for this moment,” Duroseau told reporters. “This is a hopeful day.”

Duroseau encouraged Americans, especially those in high-risk communities, to get the vaccine when it’s available to them.

“I saw a lot of devastation. I saw it personally in my family,” he said. In addition to a family member who is currently hospitalized, Duroseau had a “dear uncle” die of COVID-19.

“It is very important to not fear the vaccination,” he added. “We cannot continue to have 3,000 people die a day.”

Until the vaccine is more widely available, it’s crucial for Americans to continue social distancing, especially over the holidays. “We have to resist the temptations to gather,” Duroseau said.

Dec 14, 9:58 am
Critical care nurse becomes 1st New Yorker, possibly 1st American, to receive vaccine

Sandra Lindsay, a critical care nurse at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York City, became the first person in the state of New York to be vaccinated against COVID-19 outside of a clinical trial.

Lindsay was administered the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine on live television. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said she is also likely the first to receive the shot in the United States since the vaccine was approved for emergency use.

Watch LIVE as the first person in New York gets vaccinated: https://t.co/a3p8QOtK6w

— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) December 14, 2020

Dec 14, 8:21 am
‘I will be getting it,’ US surgeon general says of COVID-19 vaccine

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said he plans to get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as he’s allowed to.

“I will be getting it when they tell me I can get it — that’s how confident I am in its safety,” Adams told ABC News chief anchor George Stephanopoulos in an interview Monday on Good Morning America.

Adams said the priority is administering the vaccine to nursing home residents and health care workers.

“I still practice medicine. I also travel around the country and deploy as part of my job as surgeon general,” he noted. “So I imagine I’ll be in that first tier. But again, we want to make sure we’re getting the people who are most likely to be impacted vaccinated first.”

“We also recognize that there’s a symbolic part of someone like me getting vaccinated, giving people confidence that they can get vaccinated,” he added.

Adams advised those who aren’t in the priority group to get vaccinated against the flu in the meantime and to discuss any concerns they have regarding the COVID-19 vaccine with a health care professional.

“You should be going right now to get your flu shot if you haven’t already and talk to your doctor about vaccinations,” he said. “Get your questions answered because it is ok, it is normal to have questions. What’s not normal is to let misinformation rule you. Vaccines will sometimes give you a sore arm. They can give you a little bit of a mild fever or you can feel a little bit bad, but that’s normal — that means the vaccine is actually working.”

The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was authorized for emergency use in the United States on Friday. A final analysis of a massive Phase 3 clinical trial showed the vaccine is roughly 95% effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19, which Adams said “means we can put this pandemic away if we get enough people vaccinated.”

“We still need to be careful into the at least second quarter of next year because these vaccines were tested with an outcome of severe disease, not a prevention of infection,” he added. “So we don’t know yet whether they will prevent infection, but they could prevent you from being in the hospital and ultimately passing from this virus. Still incredibly important to get vaccinated, but we’re going to need to continue to wear our masks, wash our hands and watch our distance as we slowly start to reopen with the assistance of these great vaccines.”

Dec 14, 7:34 am
FedEx says it has completed 1st deliveries of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in US

FedEx announced Monday morning that it has “safely” completed its first deliveries of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine doses across the United States.

“We’re honoured to be able to use our network to transport these critical vaccines in the U.S., and eventually the world,” the Memphis-based shipping giant posted on its official Twitter account.

The vaccine was authorized for emergency use in the United States on Friday.

Dec 14, 5:09 am
US reports over 190,000 new cases

There were 190,920 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in the United States on Sunday, according to a real-time count kept by Johns Hopkins University.

It’s the 41st straight day that the U.S. has reported over 100,000 newly diagnosed infections. Sunday’s tally is less than the country’s all-time high of 231,775 new cases confirmed on Dec. 11, according to Johns Hopkins data.

An additional 1,389 deaths from the disease were also registered nationwide on Sunday, down from a peak of 3,300 fatalities on Dec. 11, according to Johns Hopkins data.

A total of 16,256,754 people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, and at least 299,177 of them have died, according to Johns Hopkins data. The cases include people from all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., and other U.S. territories as well as repatriated citizens.

Much of the country was under lockdown by the end of March as the first wave of pandemic hit. By May 20, all U.S. states had begun lifting stay-at-home orders and other restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. The day-to-day increase in the country’s cases then hovered around 20,000 for a couple of weeks before shooting back up over the summer.

The numbers lingered around 40,000 to 50,000 from mid-August through early October before surging again to record levels, crossing 100,000 for the first time on Nov. 4 and reaching 200,000 for the first time on Nov. 27.

Dec 14, 4:28 am
Los Angeles receives its first batch of COVID-19 vaccine doses

A first batch of COVID-19 vaccine doses has arrived in Los Angeles.

The precious cargo touched down at Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday night.

“This is a major milestone for science, our country and our community,” the airport posted on its official Twitter account, alongside photos of a FedEx plane. “Thank you to all those who made this delivery possible, and are part of the incredible effort to distribute vaccines around the world.”

Last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized a COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use that was developed by American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech. Pfizer had said it expects to have vaccine doses shipping out of its facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Sunday morning.

U.S. Army Gen. Gustave Perna, the chief operating officer of Operation Warp Speed, the federal government’s vaccine program, said the first shipments are expected to arrive at 145 sites across the country by Monday, 425 sites on Tuesday and another 66 sites on Wednesday.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 14, 2020 • No Comments • National News

MarsBars/iStockBy IVAN PEREIRA, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — The rollout of the first coronavirus vaccine began Monday morning as the first doses of the Pfizer medication was administered to health care workers and nursing home staffers.

A doctor from Northwell LIJ Medical Center on Long Island was vaccinated at 9:23 a.m. during a livestreamed event with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. “

You didn’t flinch,” Cuomo said.

The University of Louisville Hospital in Kentucky will receive its first delivery of the vaccine at 9:30 a.m. and at 10:30 a.m. Three doctors and two nurses will receive the vaccine.

Other locations in Connecticut, New York, Iowa, Washington, D.C., and Michigan are also expected to administer vaccine doses on Monday.

The rollout comes less than a week after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the vaccine for emergency use for Americans over 16. The order from the FDA led to the pharmaceutical company shipping 2.9 million doses to 636 sites across the country.

Pfizer, which produced the vaccine alongside German company BioNTech, began shipping the doses from its Michigan warehouse Sunday directly to those sites, which were pre-selected by governors and local health officials.

Pfizer said it would roll out a second batch of 2.9 million doses shortly after the first batch. The U.S. government is opting to keep 500,000 doses in reserve to address any shipping or distribution mishaps.

The vaccine, which requires two doses for full inoculation, began distribution in the United Kingdom last week.

The vaccine is the first in the country to use the genetic technology mRNA instead of viral components. Pfizer claimed its trials showed the vaccine was 95% effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19.

The FDA will hold a hearing on Dec. 17 with Moderna, which also developed an mRNA-based vaccine, before possibly giving emergency authorization for its deployment.

Moderna said its clinical trials showed the vaccine was 94% effective at preventing the coronavirus and trial patients who had the vaccine had elevated antibodies in their system three months after the vaccines were administered.

According to the World Health Organization, there are 52 COVID-19 vaccines in human trials, and 162 vaccines in preclinical development.

The vaccine developments come as the U.S. is in the midst of the deadliest period of the pandemic, according to health data. America leads the world with over 16 million cases and close to 300,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center.

The seven-day averages of new daily cases, 211,494, hospitalizations, 106,656, and deaths, 2,427, were at record highs on Dec. 13, according to health data from the COVID Tracking Project.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.