Coronavirus Updates: U.S. Reports Record 24-Hour Death Toll, How To Get Tested In Your State

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The U.S. now has the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in any country around the world, with the count nearing 400,000 at the time of writing (numbers are based on JHU CSSE). More than 1.4 Million confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported globally.

According to The Washington Post, the U.S. has reported a staggering 1,939 fatalities from coronavirus complications on Tuesday (April 7) alone – a record for any country in a single day. Almost 13,000 people have died from coronavirus complications in the country since the 58-year-old man near Seattle became the first announced U.S. death in Feb. 29.

New York remains the hardest hit, with over 140,000 cases and over 5,400 deaths since March 14, when Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo (D) announced the death of an 82-year-old woman.

These rising numbers are certainly alarming – the numbers have been going up since early March. However, Dr. Deborah Birx, White House coronavirus response coordinator, says there are encouraging signs that parts of the country appear to be flattening their curves.

On Wednesday (April 8), Dr. Brix appeared on TODAY where she praised the American people for following the social distancing guidelines. She notes that California and Washington, who began social distancing early, “their curves are persistently flat and that’s very encouraging.”

While both New York and New Jersey have experienced a “logarithmic rise” in the number of new cases, she says the numbers are stabilizing.

With each state having a different curve, she says that they are continuing to analyze data as they come in to pinpoint which areas have successfully flattened their curve, and those who have come out the other side.

But she warns that these “early signs of hope” should not be taken as a cue to break from the social distancing protocols put in place.

“We’re very hopeful because of the seriousness of what the American people have taken these guidelines. What’s really important is that people don’t turn these early signs of hope into releasing from the 30-days to stop the spread,” she says, adding, “It’s really critical and you can see the delay. If people start going out again and socially interacting, we could see a very huge second wave very early. So we are really encouraging every American to continue to follow all the guidelines for these 30-days.”

She also acknowledges the increasing numbers of mortality from COVID-19 cases, which could potentially continue until next week, but said those numbers reflect individuals who were infected two or three weeks ago.

According to the CDC, “decisions about testing are at the discretion of state and local health departments and/or individual clinicians.”

Individuals showing symptoms of COVID-19 should try calling their state or local health department or a medical provider to schedule for a test, but check out the CDC’s guidance on testing first. You may also contact your state health department regarding questions about testing.

There are currently 95 public health laboratories that have successfully completed verification and are currently using COVID-19 diagnostic tests across 50 states and 5 territories in the U.S.