Coronavirus updates: Over 7,000 Americans died in past week

The increase comes less than two weeks after Halloween.

ByMorgan Winsor, Emily Shapiro, Ivan Pereira, and Meredith Deliso
Video byJessie DiMartino
Last Updated: November 18, 2020, 4:38 AM EST

A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1.3 million people worldwide.

Over 53.2 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some national governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their outbreaks. The criteria for diagnosis -- through clinical means or a lab test -- has also varied from country to country.

Since the first cases were detected in China in December, the virus has rapidly spread to every continent except Antarctica. The United States is the worst-affected nation, with more than 10.7 million diagnosed cases and at least 244,283 deaths.

Nearly 200 vaccine candidates for COVID-19 are being tracked by the World Health Organization, at least 10 of which are in crucial phase three studies. Of those 10 potential vaccines in late-stage trials, there are currently five that will be available in the United States if approved.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Nov 10, 2020, 11:05 PM EST

Nevada announces 'Stay at Home 2.0'

For the next two weeks, Nevadans need to live under the "Stay at Home 2.0" mentality to help relieve the strain on the health care and give time for contact tracing to catch up, Gov. Steve Sisolak said at a press conference Tuesday.

The governor is asking residents to avoid large and small gatherings and not leave the home unless necessary. He also said masks must be worn in public settings.

Gov. Steve Sisolak gives an update on the state's COVID-19 response, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2020, in Las Vegas.
Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP, Pool, File

The state announced more than 1,300 new cases on Tuesday, and highest number of hospitalizations since mid-August on Monday.

Sisolak did not announce any new business closures on Tuesday, but said he would if the trends continued to get worse.

"Again, if we don't come together at this moment, I will be forced to take stronger action in 14 days," Sisolak said. "To be clear, I don't want to take stronger action. I do not want to implement more restrictions. I want this to improve and we can make it improve If everyone helps."

Nov 10, 2020, 8:43 PM EST

US sets record number of new cases, hospitalizations

The U.S. recorded nearly 131,000 new coronavirus cases Tuesday, the highest single-day total since the pandemic started, according to The COVID Tracking Project.

The seven-day average of new cases is over 118,000, the health data showed.

The number of Americans hospitalized is over 62,000, another record, according to the data. Seventeen states, including Indiana, Ohio and Missouri, reported single-day hospitalization records.

The country's death toll was 1,347 Tuesday, the highest recorded since Aug. 19, according to The COVID Tracking Project. The seven-day average for new deaths has been on the rise over the last couple of days and is now at 991, according to the data.

Nov 10, 2020, 7:41 PM EST

Massive increase in new cases, deaths across country: HHS

Fifty states and territories are in an upward trajectory of new cases, as deaths rise and hospital space continues to dry up, according to an internal memo from United States Department of Health and Human Services that was obtained by ABC News.

During the period of Nov. 3 to Nov. 9, the country recorded 767,645 new cases, a nearly 31% increase from the previous seven-day period, according to the memo. There were 6,838 deaths during that period, which was a nearly 18% jump from the previous week, the memo said.

PHOTO: Medical workers are seen in one of three refrigerated trailers, sent by the Federal Emergency Management Administration to help with the rising number of COVID-19 fatalities, in El Paso, Texas, Nov. 9, 2020.
Medical workers are seen in one of three refrigerated trailers, sent by the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) to help with the rising number of COVID-19 fatalities, at the rear of the El Paso County Office of the Medical Examiner in El Paso, Texas, Nov. 9, 2020.
Jorge Salgado/Reuters

The national test-positivity rate increased to 9% from 7.4% in week-to-week comparisons, according to the memo.

About 24% of hospitals across the country have more than 80% of their ICU beds filled, HHS said.

Several state leaders have warned that the situation is getting dire, according to the memo.

In Arizona, officials warned of an escalating death toll, citing COVID-19 fatigue and crowded holiday gatherings as potential dangers, HHS said. In Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker noted that hospital admissions doubled or tripled in every region of Chicago, according to the memo.

Nov 10, 2020, 6:47 PM EST

Texas sets new COVID daily case record

Texas health officials announced the most daily COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began Tuesday.

There were 10,865 new cases reported and 94 new deaths, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas hospitals have 6,170 confirmed COVID-19 patients, according to the Health Department.

The state has recorded 974,230 total cases since the pandemic began, health department data shows. Over the last month, 184,170 new cases were confirmed, according to the data.

There have been a total of 18,863 coronavirus-related deaths in Texas, according to the state. Over 1,500 deaths were recorded in the state over the last 30 days, according to the data.

ABC News' Gina Sunseri contributed to this report.

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