The number of deaths from COVID-19 has reached more than 3 million worldwide, according to a count from Johns Hopkins University. More than 566,000 of those deaths were in the United States, where coronavirus cases are now on the rise despite attempts to get people vaccinated.
About 40% of Americans have received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine, and nearly a quarter of them have been fully vaccinated.
But as Tom Hanson reports for “CBS This Morning: Saturday,” new variants of the virus are the latest surge in cases.
“The good news is that vaccine roll-out is progressing at a rapid pace,” said Dr. David Ho of Columbia University. “The bad news is that the variants are emerging everywhere.”
Ho has envisioned yet another variant, identified in his Columbia University lab in New York City.
“It is concerning because it spreads at a rate comparable to the UK variant and we know that the UK variant is more transmissible and deadly,” he said.
More deaths have been reported in the United States than in any other country. Globally, the number of deaths since the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, has exceeded the population of Chicago more than a year ago and is equal to Dallas and Philadelphia combined. It is roughly equivalent to Kiev, the Ukrainian population, and the metropolis of Lisbon, the Associated Press reported.
Success in controlling the virus varies greatly depending on the country, and places like India and Brazil are seeing a worsening crisis.
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In the US, variants caused by mutations in the coronavirus are searched from coast to coast.
“We are clearly in the danger zone,” said Washington Governor Jay Inslee.
Vaccine manufacturers are preparing for booster shots to combat the variants – at least the well-known ones.
“Clinical studies are already underway on a boost from the original wow-type virus vaccine and a boost with a specific variant,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci.
The Biden administration is behind the push, announcing on Friday that $ 1.7 billion will be spent tracking down variants.
At the same time, The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which has only been available since March, remains on hold while a handful of cases of blood clots are examined to see if that vaccine caused the complications.
A CDC advisory committee will meet next week to report on continued use.