COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are rising nationwide for the first time since January as the omicron subvariant BA.2 accounts for 85.9 percent of U.S. cases. Daily COVID-19 cases are projected to increase 93.6 percent nationwide in the next two weeks, according to modeling from Mayo Clinic. Forecasts suggest daily average cases will jump from 32,381 cases on April 16 to 62,693 by April 30. The nation’s case rate is also expected to increase from 11.4 cases per 100,000 population to 19.1 per 100,000 over the same period. Irrespective of whether these new cases turn into an increase in hospitalizations, hospitals across the country, are suffering from a critical shortage of staff.
CSSE is reporting 80,705,007 positive cases in the U.S. and 989,229 deaths.