COVID-19 Deaths Near 1 Million As Outbreaks Worsen In US, Europe: Live Updates

Summary:

• COVID-19 deaths near 1 million
• Global cases hit 32.8 million
• France, Italy oppose new lockdowns
• Deaths climb in Iran
• Moscow cases hit 4 month high
• Dr. Fauci says therapeutics could be “bridge” to COVID-19 vaccine

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US cases continued to accelerate over the weekend, with cases climbing 0.7% on Saturday, in line with the recent increase in the 7-day average. The pace of deaths slowed, however, with the US seeing only 740 new deaths yesterday, snapping a 4-day streak of 900+ deaths.

However, global numbers are more important right now.  Countries around the world reported just 277,937 new cases on Saturday, down from a peak a few days ago.

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This brought the total to 32.8 million. Another 5,279 deaths were reported, bringing the death toll to 994,000, within striking distance of the 1 million-death milestone.

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As local authorities placed more than 1 million people in and around Madrid on lockdown this week, at least one local official felt this wasn’t a strong enough response, and demanded that local officials review their efforts.

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As thousands continue to rally in London over the weekend, the sheer unpopularity of lockdowns was reflected in an announcement across the English Channel, where French Health Minister Olivier Veran rejected the possibility of another lockdown.

“We don’t want to bring the economic, social, cultural, sports and family life of the French people to a complete standstill,” he said on LCI television. “That’s why we take decisions that are adapted to the seriousness of the moment, region by region.”

Elsewhere, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte also spoke out against the possibility of another lockdown, saying the country is “in a completely different situation” compared with the beginning of the year.

said there won’t be a new national lockdown as the country is “in a completely different situation” compared with the beginning of the year. Saying that the government has strengthened the health system, he added that there may be more stringent measures in specific clusters or areas “but in a limited, circumscribed way.”

In the US, Silicon Valley VC Bill Gurley tweeted a chart noting the hospitalization rates for students infected with COVID-19 on America’s college campuses.

This deserves discussion. pic.twitter.com/HAdLY7oANr

— Bill Gurley (@bgurley) September 27, 2020

The notion that colleges should keep students on campus for as long as possible to prevent a massive pre-holiday outbreak as students return home isn’t exactly controversial, yet colleges seem dead set against this (possibly for financial reasons).

Here’s other news on COVID-19 from overnight:

Iran’s death count from the virus reached 25,589 on Sunday, with 195 more fatalities overnight, up from 172 during the prior day. New cases increased by 3,362  – compared with 3,204 the day prior – bringing the total to 446,448, according to the latest Health Ministry figures. Over 374,000 patients have recovered from the virus in Iran while 4,059 people are in critical condition (Source: Bloomberg).

Czech Health Minister Roman Prymula said the country will limit gatherings of people in public next week, with the government discussing whether a 10- or 20-person limit is most appropriate. The nation of 10.7 million recorded 2,946 cases on Friday, the second highest since the beginning of the pandemic in March. Prymula said his country is currently among the four European nations being hit hardest by Covid-19’s spread (Source: Bloomberg).

As the number of cases in Moscow reached its highest level in almost four months, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin admitted on his blog on Sunday that heating, which is centrally controlled, would be switched on earlier than usual so that people isolating at home or in country houses would be more comfortable. He also cautioned that those over 65 or with high-risk illnesses should remain at home as much as possible during the coming weeks. He also advised companies to switch as many employees as possible back to working from home. There were 99  deaths counted yesterday, bringing Russia’s total to 20,324 (Source: Bloomberg).

And finally, Dr. Fauci says in a recent interview that antibody-based medications potentially even the convalescent plasma approach could act as a “bridge” to help society endure until a vaccine can be found.

“We are focusing very heavily now on treatment of early infection and, or prevention of infection,” Dr. Fauci told the Journal of the American Medical Association in an interview Friday. “And that’s the bridge to the vaccine.”