New cases of COVID-19 are on the rise across the United States, fueled by the more infectious Delta variant and a slowdown in vaccinations, fueling fears of a virus resurgence as President Biden urges unvaccinated Americans to get their hands dirty.
According to a Wall Street Journal analysis of Johns Hopkins data, an average of 32,387 new coronavirus cases were reported each day over the past week, more than doubling the seven-day average from ten days earlier.
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According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hospitalizations due to the virus increased 35.8 percent between July 7 and 13 compared to the previous seven days.
Deaths that can lag behind other indicators increased as well … rising 25% last week to an average of 250 per day, according to the current analysis.
However, according to Johns Hopkins University data, the virus’s fatalities have declined significantly since reaching a peak of around 4,400 in a single day in January.
As a result, Biden urged those who have yet to be vaccinated on Monday to do so as soon as possible.
Biden told reporters, “If you’re unvaccinated, you are not protected. So please, please get vaccinated now. It works. It’s safe, it’s free, it’s convenient. You know? This virus doesn’t have to hold you back any longer.”
Biden’s remarks come as vaccination rates have plummeted across the country and doctors warn of the highly contagious Delta variant. According to the CDC, the mutation, which first appeared in India last year, now accounts for the majority of cases of the virus in the United States.
Meanwhile, fewer than 400,000 Americans receive their first vaccine dose on a daily basis, down from a high of more than two million in April. According to the Associated Press, more than 90 million people who are eligible have not received a dose.
According to epidemiologists, the rise in cases and hospitalizations in the United States has been more severe in states with lower vaccination rates. According to state data, slightly more than 40% of the population aged 12 and up in Arkansas is fully vaccinated.
According to CDC data, only about half of the population (48 percent) is fully vaccinated, and only slightly more than half (56 percent) has received at least one shot.
According to a CDC report last month cited by the Wall Street Journal, only 38% of people aged 18 to 29 received at least one dose, the lowest rate of any age group. The elderly had the highest rate, at 80 percent, according to the report.
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“We’re in a hot mess,” said Ben Amick, an epidemiology professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health.
Meanwhile, concerns about the variant’s continued spread spooked Wall Street on Monday, sending the Dow down 725 points, or 2.1 percent, in its worst day since October. The S&P 500 fell 1.6 percent and the Nasdaq fell 1.1 percent, respectively.
