U.S. tops 13 million COVID-19 cases as experts fear holiday “surge upon surge upon surge”

4 min readNov 28, 2020

The United States reported more than 205,000 new COVID-19 cases and 1,400 deaths on Friday as the number of confirmed infections in the country soared past 13 million.

Over 30 states saw increases in new daily COVID-19 cases before the Thanksgiving holiday, leading experts to fear a post-holiday surge that could be compounded by the rest of the holiday season.

“We will not get a reprieve because then Christmas comes and then New Year comes,” Rush University Medical Center’s Dr. Meeta Shah said. “So, if we’re just stacking surge upon surge upon surge, I am significantly worried about that.”

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is due to hold an emergency meeting Tuesday in an attempt to fast track a potential coronavirus vaccine, while big cities like Los Angeles attempt to slow the spread of the virus with new lockdown orders.

Spiraling cases put more than 90,000 people in the hospital even before holiday shopping began. However, as CBS News’ Michael George reports, stories from people struggling to stay alive are still not deterring holiday shoppers and gatherings, or giving healthcare workers a break.

“It’s really frightening. I thought an asthma attack was frightening,” 66-year-old COVID-19 survivor Shelly Dunn recalled.

Dunn considers herself lucky she still has the ability to talk.

Meanwhile in Oklahoma, officials are getting pushback from the Nurses’ Association after it decided to allow nurses who test positive to work.

“It is a mixed message to the public to allow asymptomatic COVID-positive nurses, physicians, and other healthcare workers to work,” Jane Nelson of the Oklahoma Nurses Association said.

Nationwide, officials have urged caution. Vermont Governor Phil Scott told residents of his state that social gatherings have consequences.

“If you are going to have a gathering with households outside of your household… you shouldn’t send your kids to school next week and that you should quarantine your kids for at least seven days, get a test,” Scott warned his constituents in a press conference.

Los Angeles County banned public and private gatherings for anyone outside a household, though religious services and protests can take place because they are protected by the Constitution, thanks to a recent 5–4 Supreme Court ruling.

San Antonio, Texas’ attempt to slow the virus’ spread with a 10 p.m. curfew has been disparaged by some in the service industry.

Bar owner Greg Barrinau called the measure “nonsense.”

“It is not fair to the citizens of San Antonio,” he said. “They are grown adults. They can make their own decision on if they gather and how they gather.”

With nearly 265,000 Americans dead due to the coronavirus so far, experts fear a post-Thanksgiving surge is just the beginning.

U.S. hospitalizations top 90,000 for the first time

More Americans than ever are in the hospital with the coronavirus. On Thanksgiving Day, hospitalizations hit a record high of more than 90,000 people, according to the COVID Tracking Project, and about 50 Americans are now dying every hour.

More than 13 million Americans have now been infected with the virus — and it shows no signs of slowing down. Hospitals, already at the brink, are bracing for a new surge after 6.5 million people flew this holiday week.

Thirty-two states are seeing increases in new daily cases, with Pennsylvania, Arkansas and Massachusetts breaking records. And the true case count could be much higher, considering an expected dip in positivity rates linked to a surge in pre-holiday testing.

“A lot of people flooded into testing programs to get tested before they traveled for Thanksgiving,” said Dr. Emily Landon of the University of Chicago Medical Center, adding, “But they do bring the positivity rates down by flooding the testing market with a number of low risk individuals.”

Landon advised those who learn that someone from their Thanksgiving gathering tested positive to quarantine, and warned that “there are so many cases right now that you will probably not hear from a contact tracer.”

The CDC now says the real U.S. case count is likely eight times higher than previously thought, due to underreporting, false negatives and asymptomatic carriers who were never tested.

The NFL’s Baltimore Ravens are facing a serious outbreak that’s testing the NFL’s COVID-19 protocols. The team’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers was postponed twice after 12 Ravens, including star quarterback Lamar Jackson, were put on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

On the vaccine front, the CDC committee focused on distributing vaccines announced that a vote at an emergency meeting on Tuesday would recommend who gets the vaccine first if one is approved by the FDA.

U.S. tops 13 million COVID-19 cases as experts fear holiday “surge upon surge upon surge”

U.S. hospitalizations top 90,000 for the first time

Written by Aziztarik