Coronavirus cases are rising. Will deaths follow?

Two weeks before Independence Day, the United States had a legitimate reason to celebrate. After more than a year of worry and restrictions that followed the emergence of the coronavirus, the number of new cases each day had fallen to a little over 11,000, the lowest level since the virus first emerged in March 2020. The rapid vaccination of millions of Americans had cut off potential hosts. Combined with warmer weather that pushed people outside, the virus was far less able to gain ground.

Over the past two weeks, though, the...