Researchers at the University of Washington project the U.S. coronavirus death toll could reach nearly 540,000 by April.
The same researchers recently projected that if 95% of Americans wore masks consistently, over 68,000 lives would be saved by March first.
The United States has set yet another world record for daily coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and fatalities, with over 216,000 infections confirmed Thursday and more than 2,800 deaths.
Nearly 101,000 people are hospitalized with COVID-19 across the U.S. In California, Governor Gavin Newsom has imposed sweeping remain-at-home orders covering the vast majority of California’s population.
President-elect Joe Biden has nominated Vivek Murthy to serve as U.S. surgeon general to help lead the response to the coronavirus crisis.
Murthy previously served as surgeon general for over two years under President Obama.
On Thursday, Biden told CNN he will order new public health measures as soon as he takes office.
President-elect Joe Biden: “My first day I’m inaugurated to say I’m going to ask the public for 100 days to mask. Just 100 days to mask, not forever. One hundred days. And I think we’ll see a significant reduction if we occur that — if that occurs, with vaccinations and masking, to drive down the numbers considerably.”
Once a vaccine is ready and approved, @KamalaHarris and I are going to ensure it’s distributed equitably, efficiently, and free of charge to every American.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) December 3, 2020
Will you accept President-elect Biden's offer to serve as his chief medical adviser? –@SavannahGuthrie
Absolutely, I said yes right on the spot. -Dr. Anthony Fauci pic.twitter.com/lHr3z1v3vo
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) December 4, 2020
