The United States has 1,800,000 COVID-19 cases and 105,000 deaths, according to the tracker maintained by Johns Hopkins University. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said it predicts 115,000 U.S. deaths by June 20. A new model produced by researchers at Emory University said the U.S. could see 200,000 deaths by Labor Day as social distancing measures are lifted during the summer.
"We are currently at a rate of about 1,500 deaths per day in the U.S. That means that by Labor Day, there will be another hundred thousand deaths in our country," said Carlos del Rio, MD, a professor of medicine and global health at Emory University, according to ABC News.
Models vary widely when predicting total numbers of deaths from COVID-19. The model put forth by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation of the University of Washington—the model most often cited by the White House—predicts 132,000 US deaths by Aug 4.
When looking at total cases reported daily in the U.S, case counts have dropped to about 21,000 new cases per day, down from a peak of 30,000 new cases per day in April. But hot spots and stubborn pockets of activity in the Midwest and the rural South are still seeing sharp case increases and unsteady transmission patterns, the New York Times said.
In treatment- and vaccine-related developments, Eli Lilly announced it was starting a human study of a potential COVID-19 antibody treatment. The experimental treatment is designed to neutralize the virus in human cells and was based on samples collected from lungs of one of the first US COVID-19 patients.
