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The United States has recorded 600,185 deaths from Covid-19, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University on Tuesday. Thanks to their vaccination campaign, the states of New York and California have lifted the last restrictions.
More than 600,000 people have died of Covid-19 in the United States since the start of the pandemic: a sad threshold crossed as the country gradually completes its reopening, with the lifting of restrictions in two of the most populous states. .
The virus has killed more than 600,185 people in the country, according to figures Tuesday, June 15 afternoon from Johns Hopkins University, which refer. A “sad milestone”, lamented President Joe Biden, calling on Americans to get vaccinated “as soon as possible”.
Restrictions lifted in California and New York
Thanks to the vaccination campaign, the number of daily deaths has indeed dropped considerably, and allowed a virtual return to normal in the majority of the country.
Almost all restrictions were lifted in California on Tuesday. Exit the masks for those vaccinated in most public places, as well as the capacity limitations for restaurants and other establishments, rejoiced Governor Gavin Newsom during a ceremony organized to mark “the complete reopening of the California economy.
Good morning California.
It’s reopening day.
We’ve administered over 40 million vaccines.
Now…
No more social distancing.
No more capacity limits.
No more colors or county tiers.
And if you’re vaccinated—no more masks.
It’s a good day.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) June 15, 2021
Ditto in New York, which has reached 70% of adults having received at least one dose of vaccine, allowing the governor to announce there also the lifting of the last restrictions. A symbol, knowing that New York had been, for long weeks, the epicenter of the epidemic last year, before California in turn became one of the main centers of coronavirus during the winter .
The heaviest toll linked to the coronavirus
The 500,000 death mark had been exceeded at the end of February, a little less than four months ago. For comparison, only a month had passed between the milestone of 400,000 and 500,000 deaths. The number of daily deaths now stands at just over 300 a day on average, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the nation’s main federal public health agency.
“There are still too many lives lost,” Joe Biden said on Monday, referring to a “real tragedy”. “My thoughts are with all those who have lost a loved one,” he said from Brussels, where he was then for the NATO summit.
The United States is by far the country with the heaviest toll linked to the coronavirus, according to official data communicated by authorities around the world, ahead of Brazil and India.
The campaign has been driven vigorously by the authorities since the authorization of the first vaccines in December. But its rate has since slowed considerably and unvaccinated people are still vulnerable to the disease.
Just over 53% of the US population, or 174 million people, have already received at least one dose of one of the three vaccines authorized in the country, according to health authorities. Joe Biden has set a goal that 70% of adults have received at least one dose by July 4, the national holiday.
The number of new daily cases has recently stagnated, settling on a plateau of around 13,000 cases recorded each day.
Vaccination to combat the Delta variant
In this context, experts are concerned about the arrival of the Delta variant, which initially appeared in India, is more transmissible and which “could be associated with more severe cases”, warned last week Dr Anthony Fauci adviser to the House. White.
This variant currently accounts for about 10% of cases in the country. But it could gradually replace the Alpha variant, which appeared in England, as the dominant variant.
The vaccines “thankfully” remain effective against Delta, Dr. Fauci added.
“A high vaccination rate is the best way to fight the Delta variant,” Ashish Jha, a researcher at Brown University’s School of Public Health, tweeted on Monday, while expressing “concern” about its “rapid” spread. “. However, about a third of the American population has not planned to be vaccinated for the moment, according to a poll at the end of May by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
With AFP
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