Coronavirus cases in the United States steadily near one million as the total number of deaths is just below the White House’s ‘best case scenario’ projection of 60,000.
On Sunday, the number of Americans infected with the deadly COVID-19 soared to 987,590 confirmed cases.
This is up 27,446 cases from Saturday in a continuous surge that has positioned the United States as the nation with the largest number of infections in the world.
Other front runners like Spain amassed some 220,000 cases and Italy recorded 198,000 on Sunday.
Deaths in the United States are set to pass a grime milestone as official numbers show 55,519 deaths.
The total number of deaths have jumped by 1,400 since Saturday.
In both confirmed cases and deaths, the numbers have begun to fall over the last few days.
The most recent dip in overall COVID-19 cases began on April 25 when officials counted 31,512 new infections. The day before saw 36,008 new cases.
Deaths have seen a more drastic decrease since April 23 when the daily total reached 2,425.
The daily total Sunday was just over 1,000 less with 1,344 deaths.
However, a projection put forward by the White House showing a ‘best-case scenario’ of 60,000 coronavirus deaths appears to have slipped out of reach.
Pictured: Health professionals transport a man using a mechanical respirator and oxygen cylinder from Harlem home to a New York fire ambulance during the pandemic
Modeling done by the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation predicted 60,415 COVID-19 deaths by August 4 and was recently cited by President Trump at a press conference.
However, that number is likely to be eclipsed within the next week.
The 60,000 projection was significantly lower than earlier modelings which anticipated between 100,000 and 240,000 American deaths.
Health officials initially feared up to 2.2 million people across the country could die if interventions such as stay-at-home orders and social distancing were not implemented.
A projection put forward by the White House showing a ‘best-case scenario’ of 60,000 coronavirus deaths will likely slip out of reach by next week
Modeling done by the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation predicted 60,415 COVID-19 deaths by August 4 and was recently cited by President Trump at a press conference
Trump referenced the 60,000 ‘best-case scenario’ deaths at a White House coronavirus press briefing on last week, stating: ‘I think, right now, we’re heading at probably around 60,000, maybe 65,000’.
On Monday, he again stated: ‘We did the right thing, because if we didn’t do it, you would have had a million people, a million and a half people, maybe two million people dead.
‘Now, we’re going toward 50, I’m hearing, or 60,000 people. One is too many. I always say it: One is too many. But we’re going toward 50- or 60,000 people.’
However, bar graphs showing the number of US daily deaths do not reveal a consistent decline, which suggests that the US may still be at its coronavirus peak.
And while many models referenced by the White House show the virus tapering off as the US heads into the warmer months, they do not include predictions for possible future waves of the virus.
Earlier this week, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, warned of a second wave of coronavirus that could hit this coming fall.
Redfield warned the wave could potentially be ‘even more difficult than the one we just went through’.
He told The Washington Post: ‘And when I’ve said this to others, they kind of put their head back, they don’t understand what I mean.’
Redfield said that the second wave of coronavirus could combine with the height of the regular flu season, putting a strain on hospitals and other medical resources.