US Coronavirus Cases Hits Record-High 100,000 Infections In One Day, Highest Ever

The U.S. on Wednesday hit a record-high 100,000 new infections reported in a single day for the first time since the pandemic began nine months ago.

Health officials reported more than 103,000 COVID-19 cases as the nation heads into winter. The number of hospitalizations has also seen an uptick, with 52,000 people currently confined due to the novel coronavirus, The Hill reported.

At least 19 states have experienced a surge in the number of coronavirus cases in the past week. Reported cases have continued to climb in Minnesota, Indiana and Maine. States across the Midwest, the Great Plains, the Mountain West, and the Northeast also have also seen an uptick.

In Minnesota, the average daily case tally increased by 79%, while data in Indiana showed a 71% climb. Coronavirus cases have also surged by 80% in Wyoming and tripled in Maine.

The country's seven-day average exceeded 88,000 on Wednesday, the highest health officials have recorded, The New York Times reported.

The rising numbers come as Americans await the results of the presidential election.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly downplayed the threat of the novel coronavirus and pushed for the reopening of businesses. Projections from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) predict that there may be 372,030 total deaths by the time Trump's current term ends on Jan. 20.

The model also predicted that the U.S. might reach 2,290 daily coronavirus deaths by the end of Trump's presidential term if all current preventive measures continue. Imposing a universal mask-wearing mandate could reduce daily deaths by the end of his term to 1,316 and total deaths to 321,801.

"Where we are is in an extremely dire place as a country. Every metric that we have is trending in the wrong direction. This is a virus that will continue to escalate at an accelerated speed and that is not going to stop on its own," public health expert Dr. Leana Wen said.

Dr. Susan Bailey, president of the American Medical Association, emphasized the need to "be more careful than ever," Kare11 reported.

"Regardless of the outcome of the election, everyone in America needs to buckle down,″ she said. A lot of us have gotten kind of relaxed about physically distancing, not washing our hands quite as often as we used to, maybe not wearing our masks quite as faithfully. We all need to realize that things are escalating and we've got to be more careful than ever."

As of Thursday, the U.S. has reported more than 9.4 million coronavirus cases and 233,651 total deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Dashboard.