The U.S. Is Having One of Its Worst Coronavirus Weeks Since the Pandemic Began

The U.S. is having one of its worst weeks since the COVID-19 pandemic began, but despite that, few states appear prepared to tighten restrictions to bring the spread of coronavirus under control.

By most metrics, Thursday was one of the worst days since the pandemic began. NBC News reported that there were 77,640 new cases, topping its previous record of more than 75,000 set in July, while the New York Times’ database said there were 75,049 new cases. Even this lower number would make Thursday the second-worst day of the pandemic. Over the past week, the country has averaged more than 62,000 new cases per day, a 32 percent increase over the past two weeks, according to the Times.

Dr. Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University, said that “at least a half dozen states” set single-day highs for new cases on Thursday.