US daily death toll tops 3000 for first time – more deadly than 9/11 terror attacks
The daily US COVID-19 death toll has surpassed 3000 for the first time, prompting pleas for Americans to scale back Christmas plans even with vaccines on the cusp of winning regulatory approval.
The number of people in hospital receiving treatment in the US surpassed 106,000 on Wednesday.(Reuters: Callaghan O'Hare)
COVID-19 deaths reached 3253 on Wednesday, pushing up the US total since the start of the pandemic to 289,740.
A record 106,219 people were hospitalised with the highly infectious disease, threatening to overwhelm many healthcare systems.
Healthcare professionals and support staff, exhausted by demands of the pandemic, have been watching patients die alone as millions of Americans refuse to follow medical advice to wear masks and avoid crowds and smaller gatherings to contain the virus’ spread.
The one-day death toll exceeded the number of lives lost from the attacks of September 11, 2001, underscoring the human toll and the call for Americans to redouble efforts.
“No Christmas parties. There is not a safe Christmas party in this country right now,” Dr Michael Osterholm, a member of US President-elect Joe Biden’s COVID-19 advisory board, told CNN on Thursday.
“It won’t end after that but that is the period right now where we could have a surge upon a surge upon a surge,” Osterholm said.
More than half of US states have recently introduced or resumed restrictions to try to curtail the rampant spread of the virus.
Providing a ray of hope, a vaccine could start reaching healthcare workers, first responders and nursing home residents within days in what Hanse called “light at the end of the tunnel”.
A panel of independent medical experts was due to decide on Thursday whether to recommend the US Food and Drug Administration authorise emergency use of a vaccine from Pfizer and German partner BioNTech SE.
FDA consent could come as early as Friday or Saturday, followed by the first US injections on Sunday or Monday.
A second vaccine developed by Moderna will be reviewed by the advisory panel next week.
Biden, who succeeds President Donald Trump on January 20, has set a goal of vaccinating 100 million people within the first 100 days of his administration.
Congress, meanwhile, has struggled to end a months-long stalemate over economic assistance.
Disagreements remain over business liability protections demanded by Republicans and aid to state and local governments, whose budgets have blown up by the pandemic, sought by Democrats before a final deal is reached on pandemic assistance.
