WASHINGTON, D.C. – At least 59,494 new coronavirus cases were reported in the United States on Wednesday, which is the highest daily count since August 14, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
The data shows there was also an increase in the number of deaths, with at least 985 reported Wednesday, up from 802 the day before.
The nation’s total coronavirus cases stand at about 7,917,300 and more than 216,900 deaths from COVID-19, John Hopkins says. Those cases include people in all 50 states, Washington D.C. and U.S. territories.
As has been the case throughout the pandemic, the U.S. leads the world in the number of reported COVID-19 cases and deaths, followed by India, Brazil and Russia.
The current rise in cases in several areas of the U.S. has many infectious disease experts worried about a large spike in the fall and winter months, a time when the country is using health care resources to battle the flu. To help combat the risk of a "twindemic," doctors are encouraging all Americans to get a flu vaccination.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the country’s top coronavirus experts, told ABC News on Thursday that the spike is “concerning” and that “you don’t want to be in that compromised position where your baseline daily infection is high and you are increasing as opposed to going in the other direction.”
Click here to learn more from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about how you can help protect yourself and others from contracting the coronavirus.