Updated data from researchers at John Hopkins University showed 143,200 cases were added on Wednesday, topping the record set the day before by almost 3,000 cases. Wednesday was the fifth single-day case record in nine days.
Wednesday also marked a major spike in deaths about 2,000 nationwide, according to the data. It’s the first time since early May that at least 2,000 deaths were added in a single day.
The seven-day national average climbed to 125,000 new cases per day, a 40% increase over last week.
There was a record number of hospitalizations Wednesday, as well — 65,000, including 12,500 in intensive care, according to the COVID Tracking Project.
“I fear that we’re going to have multiple epicenters,” says Dr. Mahshid Abir, an emergency physician at the University of Michigan and researcher at the Rand Corp. who has developed a model that helps hospitals manage surge capacity said in an interview with NPR.
If that happens, Abir warns that there won’t be flexibility to shuffle around resources to the places in need because everywhere will be overwhelmed.
