Covid-19: Pandemic Shatters More Records in U.S., as States and Cities Tighten Restrictions

9 min readNov 15, 2020

Eight days after the U.S. hit 100,000 cases in a day for the first time, the number topped 160,000 on Thursday. Dr. Anthony Fauci called on the country to “double down” on precautions.

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Here’s what you need to know:

The U.S. again broke records for new cases — more than 160,000 — and hospitalizations.
Fauci urges Americans to ‘double down’ on the basics as virus cases spike.
The Ivy League canceled winter sports and delayed spring sports over coronavirus concerns.
Thousands of Philadelphia area nurses plan to strike as virus cases surge and their working conditions worsen.
Children’s visits to the emergency room for mental health issues have risen sharply, the C.D.C. says.
California reached a new milestone: 1 million coronavirus cases.
Representative Don Young of Alaska, the oldest member of the House, says he has tested positive for the virus.
New York City schools are likely to close again soon, despite success in limiting transmission.

The U.S. again broke records for new cases — more than 160,000 — and hospitalizations.

Residents wait in line for COVID-19 tests at St. Benedict the African Catholic Church in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago on Thursday.Credit…Scott Olson/Getty Images

Public health officials in the United States announced more than 160,000 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, the first day over 150,000 since the pandemic began — an alarming record that came just over a week after the country first experienced 100,000 cases in a single day.

The pandemic has risen to crisis levels in much of the nation, especially the Midwest, as hospital executives warn of dwindling bed space and as coroners deploy mobile morgues. More than 100,000 coronavirus cases have been announced nationwide every day since Nov. 4, and six of the last nine days have broken the previous record.

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Hospitalizations for Covid-19 also set a record on Thursday, climbing to 67,096, according to the Covid Tracking Project. It was the third straight day of record numbers, and the figure has doubled in just five weeks.

Deaths are rising, too, with more than 1,000 on average each day.

In Illinois, where more than 75,000 cases have emerged in the last week, Gov. J.B. Pritzker suggested that he could soon impose a stay-at-home order.

“We’re running out of time and we’re running out of options,” said Mr. Pritzker, who scolded local officials in parts of his state for disregarding mask rules and restrictions on businesses.

Case numbers are trending upward in 46 states and holding relatively steady in four. No state is seeing cases decline. Thirty-one states — from Alaska and Idaho in the West to Connecticut and New Hampshire in the East — added more cases in the seven-day period ending Wednesday than in any previous week of the pandemic. Vermont, Utah and Oregon were among at least 10 states with single-day case records on Thursday.

But the outlook is especially dire in the Great Lakes region. Pennsylvania, Indiana and Minnesota all exceeded their previous single-day records on Thursday by more than 1,000 cases. Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio warned that hospitalizations had soared to record levels. Wisconsin surpassed 300,000 known cases this week, an increase of more than 130,000 in just a month.

“Covid-19 is everywhere in our state: It is bad everywhere, and it is getting worse everywhere,” said Julie Willems Van Dijk, the deputy secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot of Chicago announced new restrictions on gatherings on Thursday, limiting them to 10 people whether inside or outside, and issued a non-binding “stay-at-home advisory.” City leaders warned that, without immediate action, Chicago hospitals could soon be overwhelmed.

But patience with coronavirus restrictions has already worn thin in parts of Illinois, where a patchwork of rules and uneven enforcement has frustrated some business owners and politicians.

Mayor Richard C. Irvin of Aurora, the state’s second-largest city, this week questioned whether there was public buy-in for additional restrictions.

“I would say morale is extremely low,” said Mr. Irvin, who has urged residents to take the virus seriously. “I think people — many people, I wouldn’t say all — are to the point where they don’t necessarily care anymore.”

— Mitch Smith

Tracking the Coronavirus ›

United StatesOn Nov. 1314-day
changeTrendNew cases181,194+76%New deaths1,389+34%WorldOn Nov. 1314-day
changeTrend651,012+21%9,766+36%

Where cases per capita are highest

N.D.S.D.Iowa Wyo.Wis.Neb.Ill.Minn.Kan.Utah Mont.Ind.Colo.Mo.Alaska

U.S. hot spots ›

College cases ›

Worldwide ›

Fauci urges Americans to ‘double down’ on the basics as virus cases spike.

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TRANSCRIPT

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Governors Call for More Coronavirus Restrictions

More than a third of the governors across the U.S., including Gov. Tony Evers of Wisconsin and Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio, have issued public appeals for people to take coronavirus prevention measures seriously.

“Each day this virus goes unchecked, it’s a setback for our economic recovery. Our bars, restaurants, small businesses families and farmers will continue to suffer if we don’t take action right now. Our economy cannot bounce back until we contain this virus. So tonight I’ve signed Executive Order 94, advising Wisconsinites to stay home to save lives. We must get back to the basics of fighting this virus just like we did last spring. And it starts at home. It’s not safe to go out. It’s not safe to have others over. It’s just not safe. And it might not be safe for a while yet. So please, please cancel the happy hours, the dinner parties, sleepovers, play dates at your home.” “We know that masks work. They are the easiest, most cost-effective way to limit the spread of Covid-19. Every retail employee has the right to work in an environment that is as safe as can be. Which means all customers must wear masks. Our mask order was issued on July 23, and in fact, says just that.”

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1:22Governors Call for More Coronavirus Restrictions

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the United States, urged Americans on Thursday to “double down” on basic precautions as coronavirus cases soared across the country and more Covid-19 patients were hospitalized than ever before.

Appearing on “Good Morning America,” Dr. Fauci reiterated that a nationwide lockdown was unlikely, saying there was “no appetite for locking down in the American public.” But he expressed confidence that virus cases could be reduced without such drastic measures — if Americans “double down” on basic preventive steps, like social distancing and masks.

“I believe that we can do it without a lockdown, I really do,” he said.

Here are three key takeaways about the virus in the U.S. today.

The numbers are grim, and likely to worsen.

Dr. Fauci’s remarks were made just hours before California reported its millionth case on Thursday, the second state to do so (Texas was first). More cases are being recorded than ever before: The 142,000 reported on Wednesday set yet another record as much of the country enters a period of cold weather, indoor life, colds and flus that are expected to add fuel to the contagion.

Even more troubling than the infections are the hospitalization figures, as several parts of the nation report that their hospital facilities and personnel are being stretched beyond capacity. On Wednesday, 65,368 people were hospitalized with Covid-19, a figure that has doubled in little over a month, breaking the record set a day earlier by more than 3,400.

All told, the United States has reported more than 10.5 million cases so far, and more than 241,000 virus-related deaths, the most in the world: The pandemic is killing Americans at a pace of about 1,000 a day.

States and cities are taking more aggressive measures.

Since Election Day, more than a third of the governors across the United States, Republicans and Democrats, have issued public appeals for people to take coronavirus prevention measures seriously, as the latest surge — the biggest so far — washes across the nation. Many also imposed new limits on public and private gatherings.

In many places, the changes are affecting schools and youth activities, even as research is increasingly indicating that children younger than 10 are at less risk of contracting and transmitting the virus.

Detroit’s public school system announced on Thursday that it would shift to online, remote learning until January. New York City is weighing closing its system, the nation’s largest. The governors of seven Northeastern states agreed on Thursday to suspend interstate youth hockey competition for the rest of the year after outbreaks were linked to games.

“Help is on the way,” Fauci says about vaccines in general. “But it isn’t here yet.”

There are signs of hope in scientific developments. The drug maker Pfizer announced this week that its experimental coronavirus vaccine was highly effective, according to an early analysis. Dr. Fauci said on “Good Morning America” that officials hope that “ordinary citizens should be able” to get a vaccine in the spring. Pfizer is expected to submit its data for review to the Food and Drug Administration once it has the necessary safety data next week. No coronavirus vaccine has yet been authorized by the U.S. government.

Moderna, Pfizer’s close competitor, announced on Wednesday that it had also reached a point in its late-stage trial that would allow it to begin analyzing data on its vaccine’s effectiveness. Both companies’ vaccines use the same technology, involving genetic material called mRNA, and both went into large trials on the same date in late July. Pfizer’s study has 44,000 participants, and Moderna’s 30,000.

The accelerating pace of the pandemic has helped to speed up testing for both companies, because researchers have to wait less time to see how many volunteers become infected. While the two companies are the frontrunners at the moment, nine others are pushing ahead with vaccine candidates, including efforts in Britain, China, Russia and Australia, among others.

While companies and government health officials have offered hopeful projections, there is no guarantee that there will not be major delays or failures in the coming months. Pfizer’s vaccine results and other companies’ must still be evaluated for safety over a longer time period, data which aren’t expected to be available until next week. The F.D.A. could take longer than expected to evaluate Pfizer’s results. Complications could arise in what is a complex manufacturing and distribution effort. And supply could be further constrained if other experimental vaccines don’t work as hoped.

In another public appearance on Thursday, at an online forum hosted by the London think tank Chatham House, Dr. Fauci said that he believed that vaccines would soon end the pandemic — although that might not mean the end of the virus, which health experts say could continue to circulate at lower levels.

“Certainly, it is not going to be a pandemic for a lot longer because I believe the vaccines are going to turn that around,” Dr. Fauci said.

But he repeated that basic protective practices remain the most crucial weapon against the virus.

“Help is on the way,” he said, speaking about vaccines in general. “But it isn’t here yet.”