The new record is great news, but it comes at a complicated time during the US pandemic.
According to data from Johns Hopkins University, the US reported an average of more than 68,000 new Covid-19 cases per day in the past seven days. That’s up more than 20% since the 7-day average of March 10.
“On the one hand, we have so much cause for optimism and hope, and more Americans are getting vaccinated,” said CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky at a Covid-19 White House briefing on Friday. “On the other hand, there have been more cases and emergency room visits. And … we are seeing these increases in younger adults, most of whom have not yet been vaccinated.”
Americans ages 18 to 64 have seen more and more emergency room visits, she added.
And the trends are “magnifying” in one part of the country, she said: the Upper Midwest.
“CDC is working closely with public health officials in this region to understand what is driving these cases and how we can act.”
‘A race to life and death’
“This B.1.1.7 variant … is more contagious and I think there is just fatigue from this pandemic, so a lot of people don’t wear masks, no social distance, so we’ve basically taken a step back in Michigan,” told Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia, told CNN Saturday.
“It’s really frustrating because we’re almost there,” he said. “We have to hang there for the next two months and we won’t.”
Amid the rising numbers, some Michigan hospitals are delaying non-emergency procedures and rearranging them “on a case-by-case basis,” said a Michigan Health & Hospital Association spokesman.
“Hospitals want everyone to get the care they need and only reschedule procedures as a last resort,” said John Karasinski Saturday. “We want to emphasize that hospitals are safe for anyone in need of care and that anyone with an urgent medical need should seek immediate help.”
It’s not just Michigan reporting alarming trends.
In both Michigan and Minnesota, “there is concern about the carryover in youth sports – club sports as well as sports that are affiliated with schools,” Walensky said Friday.
In Ohio, Governor Mike DeWine said on Thursday that the number of Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations and ICU admissions are all on the rise.
“We’re going the wrong way now,” he said. “More than half of our counties, 53, have seen an increase.”
“We can still turn this around if more people keep getting vaccinated,” added the governor. “This is a race. We’re in a race. And it’s a race to the death.”
Health Officer: Do these two things
That means tens of millions of Americans still haven’t been vaccinated and remain vulnerable to the virus.
So as the country works to increase vaccination rates and reach the levels necessary to contain the spread, experts say Americans should remain vigilant and continue to take precautions.
“To end this pandemic, this is what we need to do,” said US surgeon general Dr. Vivek Murthy Friday at the White House briefing. “We have to go the extra mile and help protect each other. And so today I ask everyone to do two things: First, get vaccinated as soon as possible. And second, help the people you care about getting vaccinated like good.”
In an interview published last week, Dr. Anthony Fauci told Business Insider that although he’s fully vaccinated against Covid-19, he still won’t go to a restaurant or movie theater.
“I don’t think – even if I got vaccinated – I would go to a crowded, covered place where people don’t wear masks,” Fauci said.
CNN’s Amanda Sealy, Sarah Boxer, Ben Tinker, Polo Sandoval and Pamela Brown contributed to this report.