New York - The number of coronavirus
cases in New York state alone approached 150,000 on Wednesday,
surpassing Spain for the most infections anywhere in the world,
even as authorities warned the state's official death tally may
understate the true toll.
New York and neighbouring New Jersey on Wednesday again
reported new single-day highs for coronavirus deaths.
New York state has 149,316 reported cases compared to
Spain's 146,690, according to a Reuters tally. In total, the
United States has recorded more than 417,000 coronavirus cases
and 14,100 deaths.
New York officials said a recent surge in the number of
people dying at home suggests that the most populous U.S. city
may be undercounting how many people have died of Covid-19, the
respiratory illness caused by the new coronavirus.
"I think that's a very real possibility," New York Governor
Andrew Cuomo said in his daily news briefing.
Cuomo said 779 people died from the coronavirus in the past
day in his state and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said
another 275 had died there. Both totals exceeded one-day records
reported just a day earlier.
US military personnel wearing face masks arrive at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, as the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in the Manhattan borough of New York City. Picture: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
Despite the grim tally, Cuomo said overall trends still
appear positive, with the rate of hospitalizations down in the
state at the epicenter of the U.S. epidemic.
"Every number is a face, right," Cuomo said of the death
statistics. "This virus attacked the vulnerable and attacked the
weak and it's our job as a society to protect the vulnerable."
Murphy tightened New Jersey's social-distancing
requirements, ordering retailers including grocery stores still
allowed to operate to limit customers, ensure that customers and
employees wear face coverings and regularly sanitize the
premises.
"We need to continue to be absolutely vigilant and, if
anything tighten, as opposed to loosen," Murphy said of
coronavirus-related restrictions on residents. "And I don't say
that with any joy."
Louisiana announced 70 more deaths in the past day, matching
that state's single-day record announced a day earlier.
President Donald Trump's administration has called for 30
days of measures, including staying at least six feet (1.8
metres) away from other people, that have upended American life,
with most people staying isolated at home, schools and
businesses closed and millions losing their jobs. Some 94% of
the U.S. population has been ordered to stay at home.
"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 - it's really critical," said Deborah Birx, the
coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force.
"If people start going out again and socially interacting,
we could see a really acute second wave" of infections, Birx
added.
The University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics
and Evaluation model lowered its projected U.S. death toll by
26%, to 60,000 from 80,000 by August 4. The model is one of
several that the White House task force has cited.
The task force previously projected 100,000 to 240,000
Americans could die.
The institute also moved up its projected peak in the number
to U.S. deaths to this Sunday, when it predicted 2,212 people
will succumb to the disease. The revision moves forward the
projected peak by four days, suggesting the strain on the
country's healthcare system will lessen sooner than previously
expected.
New York Mayor Bill De Blasio estimated an undercount in the
death toll of 100 to 200 people per day who are dying at home
but excluded from the city's rapidly growing tally. So far the
city's announced death toll has reflected only COVID-19
diagnoses confirmed in a laboratory.
More than 200 people are dying at home in New York City each
day during the pandemic, up from 22 to 32 during the March 20 to
April 5 period a year ago, according to city fire officials.
The city will now try to quantify how many of those died
from coronavirus-related causes and add that to the its official
death toll, New York's health department said.
"People are dying outside the hospital, unfortunately. It
happens every day," Oren Barzilay, the president of a labor
union representing city paramedics, said. "I think those
numbers, those statistics in New York for deaths would
significantly go up if they tested everyone that expired."
Authorities in various states have disclosed data showing
the health crisis having a disproportionate impact on African
Americans, reflecting longstanding racial inequities in health
outcomes in the United States.
De Blasio said there were "clear inequalities" in how the
coronavirus is affecting his city's population, though the
disparities have been less pronounced than in some other
jurisdictions. Data released on Wednesday showed Hispanic
residents dying at more than twice the rate as non-Hispanic
white people and slightly outpacing the death rate of African
Americans in the city.