NEW YORK, Aug 18 (NNN-Xinhua) — Five US states set new records for the average number of daily new COVID-19 cases over the weekend as infections caused by the Delta variant overwhelm hospital systems across the country and prompt many states to reinstate public health restrictions.
Florida, Louisiana, Hawaii, Oregon and Mississippi all reached new peaks in their seven-day average of new cases per day, according to the national broadcaster’s analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
On a per capita basis, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida are suffering from the three worst outbreaks in the country. Louisiana recorded an average of 126 cases per 100,000 residents, more than three times the national average, while Mississippi and Florida averaged 110 and 101 cases per 100,000 residents, respectively, according to the data.
“We’re in the middle of the summer, people are gathering again with people, they’re in large groups, the vaccine has given a false sense of security in some ways to people, and they forget,” Perry Halkitis, dean of the Rutgers School of Public Health, was quoted as giving the main reason of the surge.
Meanwhile, Governor Greg Abbott of Texas has tested positive for COVID-19 though he is fully vaccinated, the governor’s office announced in a statement on Tuesday.
“Governor Abbott is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, in good health, and currently experiencing no symptoms,” said the statement.
Abbott will isolate in the governor’s mansion and continue to test daily, said his office, adding that Abbott is receiving Regeneron’s monoclonal antibody treatment.
“Texas First Lady Cecilia Abbott tested negative,” the statement added.
Abbott, a Republican, tweeted photos of him addressing a maskless crowd in Collin County on Monday night, according to local media outlet the Texas Tribune. The governor also tweeted pictures of a meeting with guitarist Jimmie Vaughan just hours before his diagnosis was announced Tuesday afternoon.
Abbott issued an executive order late last month banning vaccination and mask mandates despite the rapid surge of COVID-19 cases across the state and fierce pushback from local officials and schools districts.
The state’s Supreme Court recently upheld the governor’s executive order. However, school districts in Harris and Tarrant counties, two of the most populous areas in the state, defied the order as students prepared to return to classrooms.
The rise in new infections has already pushed some health-care systems in Texas to capacity. Abbott earlier asked hospitals to stop non-emergency medical procedures to free up space for COVID-19 patients, and announced that out-of-state health-care workers would come to assist, according to local media reports. — NNN-XINHUA
