U.S. Has Second Day of Record Rise in COVID-19 Cases; Young People Fueling Trend

FRIDAY, June 26, 2020 (HealthDay News) — As the United States reported yet another record-breaking number of COVID-19 cases on Thursday, public health officials warned that younger Americans now account for an ever-growing percentage of infections.

In Arizona, where drive-up testing sites were being overwhelmed, nearly half of all cases are being seen in those aged 20 to 44, The New York Times reported. In Florida, which has been routinely breaking records for new cases in the past week, the median age of residents testing positive for the virus has dropped to 35, down from 65 in March. In Texas, where cases are soaring and hospitals are nearing capacity, young people now make up the majority of new cases in several urban areas, the newspaper said.

COVID-19 infections in the United States had been slowing since the prior record of 36,739 cases back on April 24, but case counts have roared back in recent weeks, The Times reported. COVID-19 cases are surging the most in the South and West. On Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that he will not move his state to the next phase of reopening, while Texas Gov. Greg Abbott paused his state’s reopening and moved to free up precious hospital space for COVID-19 patients, The Times said.

But the actual number of coronavirus cases is probably much higher than recent totals suggest, Robert Redfield, M.D., director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Thursday. He estimated that the number of Americans who have been infected with the virus is most likely about 10 times the 2.4 million cases that have been reported, according to The Times.

The New York Times Article