New U.S. Coronavirus Cases Fall Below 50,000 for First Time in Six Days

Date of peak daily cases*

Daily new case numbers tend to be lower at the beginning of the week, as fewer people are tested over the weekend. But data from the Covid Tracking Project showed testing ticking up nationwide, with more than 1.16 million tests conducted Saturday, the largest daily number since Oct. 10

The U.S. has now recorded more than 8.15 million cases and more than 219,600 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins’ data. World-wide, nearly 40 million people have been infected and more than 1.1 million people have died, the data show.

The seven-day moving average of daily new cases in the U.S., which smooths out irregularities in the data, was 55,493 as of Saturday, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of Johns Hopkins’ data. The 14-day moving average was 51,717. When the seven-day average is larger than the 14-day average, as it has been since Oct. 5, it suggests infections are accelerating.

The seven-day average was higher than the 14-day average for 42 states as of Saturday. On Friday, 10 states—including Idaho, Minnesota, New Mexico and North Carolina—marked records for new daily confirmed cases, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of Johns Hopkins data.

The South and the Midwest are being hit hardest, contributing 72% of the nation’s daily new cases, according to seven-day moving average data compiled by the Covid Tracking Project.

As of Sunday, five of the 10 states with the most new cases in the past seven days were in the Midwest, according the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—led by Illinois, which ranked second only to Texas.

But the number of people hospitalized because of the disease declined Sunday to 36,428 after four straight days above 37,000, according to the Covid Tracking Project. Saturday’s figure of 37,404 was the highest since late August.

Coronavirus aid: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) told the White House it had until Tuesday to reach a deal with Democrats or legislation to provide additional coronavirus relief to struggling households and businesses couldn’t be passed before the election. If Tuesday evening passes without an agreement, negotiations could continue, but would be unlikely to produce sweeping relief legislation within two weeks, an aide to Mrs. Pelosi said. And the election could create new political uncertainties that could make an agreement even harder to reach afterward.

Herd immunity: A group of scientists is pushing back on renewed calls for a herd-immunity approach to the virus. Eighty doctors and public-health and medical researchers called the approach a “dangerous fallacy” in a letter published Wednesday in the Lancet. The researchers noted that it is still unknown how long recovered patients might be immune from the virus. Since the letter was published, more than 2,000 others have signed it in a show of support.

Last week White House officials outlined a federal strategy in a call with journalists, pushing for a full reopening of society and citing a document written by three scientists that espouses immunity through natural infection.

World

Australia: The southeastern state of Victoria recorded four new cases and one death, a day after it lifted some restrictions in what has been one of the world’s longest and most stringent lockdowns. Business groups are calling for the state to move faster to reopen retail and other businesses, given that it represents a quarter of the national economy. Authorities in Victoria have said retail and hospitality outlets including restaurants, cafes and hair salons will be able to reopen at restricted capacity by Nov. 1.

Israel: Another of the world’s most stringent lockdowns is easing, as Israel’s daily infection rate has fallen to 1,500, from more than 8,000 when the deeply unpopular restrictions took effect in mid-September. Since Sunday, Israelis have been allowed to travel more than one kilometer from their homes and gatherings of up to 10 people indoors and 20 outdoors have been permitted. Preschools, day-care centers and business that don’t receive customers are allowed to reopen and restaurants to serve takeout. People are be allowed to visit beaches and parks.

India: The nation with the second-highest infection total after the U.S. reported its fewest fatalities in three months on Monday, saying 579 people had died the day before. A total of 114,610 people have now died in India. The country added 55,722 new infections in the past day, pushing its total to 7.55 million.

Japan: Short-term business travelers between Japan and Vietnam will be allowed to skip a two-week quarantine, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Monday in Vietnam, where he is in talks with his counterpart, Nguyen Xuan Phuc. Vietnam is the third country, after Singapore and South Korea, to reach such an agreement with Japan. Japan reported 465 new cases Monday, a typical dip in daily new cases after the weekend, bringing the nation’s total to more than 93,000. The death toll stands at 1,674.

South Korea: The country added 76 more cases, bringing its total to 25,275. Cluster infections continue across the country, and health officials warn clusters at high-risk facilities such as hospitals could lead to a mass outbreak. Starting Monday, 160,000 nursing home and psychiatric hospital workers in metropolitan Seoul will be tested for Covid-19.

Write to Adam Martin at [email protected]