(Reuters) – The United States last week reported a 12% drop in new cases of COVID-19, as vaccinations accelerated to a record 2.2 million shots per day, according to a Reuters analysis of state data. province and the CDC.
The number of new infections has declined for eight consecutive weeks, with an average of 60,000 new cases per day for the week ending March 7. Deaths related to COVID-19 fell 18% last week to 11,800, the lowest since late November and an average of 1,686 per day.
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Despite the positive trends, health officials have warned the country could see a resurgence in the number of cases, as more contagious variants of the virus have been found in nearly every state.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, America’s top infectious disease expert, has urged the nation to maintain most pandemic restrictions until the number of new cases falls below 10,000 per day.
Thirteen of the 50 states reported more new infections last week compared to the previous seven days, compared to 29 states in the previous week, according to Reuters analysis. New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island had the highest rates of new infections per 100,000 residents.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 18% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of a vaccine and 9% two doses as of Sunday.
The country carried out an average of 2.2 million shots a day last week, up from 1.6 million in the previous week.
The average number of COVID-19 patients in U.S. hospitals fell 16% to 44,000 last week, the lowest since the end of October, according to a Reuters count.
Cumulatively, more than 525,000 people have died of the virus in the United States, or one in 621 residents.
Graphic by Chris Canipe, written by Lisa Shumaker, edited by Tiffany Wu