There are currently 18,563,065 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, around the world and 4,771,846 confirmed cases across the country. The global total number of deaths stands at 701,085 and the United States’ at 156,839. Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins University has been keeping up-to-date information through an interactive map.
As of Wednesday morning, Virginia had 94,251 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 8,085 people hospitalized, 2,244 deaths and 1,164,515 people tested. Fairfax has the highest total number of cases, with 15,987 to date, with 1,907 hospitalized and 528 deaths. Arlington has reported 2,973 cases with 436 hospitalized and 136 deaths. Alexandria has 2,827 cases with 273 hospitalized and 60 deaths. Loudoun County has 5,093 cases with 339 hospitalized and 113 deaths and Prince William County has 11,205 cases (including Manassas and Manassas City), with 956 hospitalized and 200 deaths. You can keep up with the commonwealth’s daily updates here. (Virginia Department of Health)
Regional
The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, tallied in at 198,503 in the DMV on Wednesday morning. Maryland reported 91,854 cases, Virginia reported 94,251 and Washington, DC reported 12,398. The death toll has reached a total of 6,227, with 3,396 in Maryland, 2,244 in Virginia and 587 in DC. (Virginia Department of Health; Maryland Department of Health; Stay Home DC!)
Regional
Famed amusement park Kings Dominion announced Tuesday evening it would remain closed for the rest of 2020, citing challenges related to the coronavirus as the cause. Park officials noted that the phase three restriction limiting the park to only 1,000 guests caused significant challenges, making it too complicated to reopen this season. (Inside NoVA)
Statewide
Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday that Virginia, along with Maryland, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan and Ohio, have joined together in a new effort to expand the use of rapid antigen testing for the coronavirus. The six states are entering discussions with Becton Dickinson and Quidel, the U.S. manufacturers of antigen tests that have already been authorized by the FDA, to purchase 500,000 rapid antigen tests per state. This way, there is significant demand to scale up the production of these tests, which deliver results within 15 to 20 minutes. (Inside Nova)
National
On the evening of Tuesday, Aug. 4, the Trump administration defended its view that schools must reopen in person and on time, right as the U.S. approached 5 million confirmed coronavirus cases. While U.N. Secretary General António Guterres called the coronavirus pandemic “the largest disruption of education ever” leading to a “generational catastrophe,” many schools across the country have started the school year virtually or via hybrid models. As of Wednesday, Aug. 5, the U.S. continues to outpace all other nations, with more than 4.7 million infections reported. (The Washington Post)
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