US hits 4 million cases of COVID-19: A look at the milestones and setbacks – USA TODAY

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The U.S. hit the latest bleak milestone Thursday in the historic pandemic: 4 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus.

Experts agree the number of cases is actually much greater potentially 10 times higher than what's been reported,according to federal data.

More than 143,000peoplehave died from COVID-19 in the U.S., whichleads the world for most cases and deaths.

"We are still knee-deep in the first wave of this," Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, said in a Facebook Live interviewJuly 6. "And I would say, this would not be considered a wave. It was a surgeor a resurgence of infections superimposed upon a baseline."

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USA TODAY has tracked the nation's successes, setbacks and major news sincethe first case was confirmed in Januaryin Washington state. Below, we break down the milestones in case and death counts:

The U.S.surpassed 4 million infections Thursday, doubling its total case count in a little more than a month.The death toll approached 144,000.

Though there's more COVID-19 testing than ever, it's created a bottleneck for labs and states bidding against each other for limited supplies. Experts said many tests become irrelevant after delayed resultsand increase the chance of the virus's spread.

In early June, cases reached 2 million, 45 days after confirmed infections surpassed1 million.

More than a dozen states and Puerto Rico saw cases spike at a faster rate in summer months.Experts said the unexpected uptick in cases could be due to lifting restrictions, isolated outbreaks and the virus catching up to communities that had not been affected.

On May 13, data compiled by Johns Hopkins University showed the national curve flattening. Starting May 18, several states began to lift their restrictions,then Memorial Day saw more travel, busy beaches and pool parties.

The result: Deaths from the coronavirus surpassed 100,000.

According to polls, half of Americans said they were unsure they would get avaccine.

Over the course of four months, the U.S.reached 1 million cases and more than 50,000 deaths.Experts cautioned the number of cases was probably much higherbecause not all people infected by the coronavirus were tested.

"The million (cases) is clearly way under what the actual number will be because of all the issues of testing and all the people with mild symptoms that havent been tested," said Dr. Steven Corwin, president and CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.

John Hopkins University tracking found the U.S. had the 33rd-highest mortality rate out of the 134 countries.

For the first time, 1,000 people died in a single day, bringing the national death toll above 5,000, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Two days later,the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reversed its guidance advising Americans to not wear face masks tosave them for medical professionals. President Donald Trump said the new guidance to wear face masks was voluntary:"I don't think I'm going to be doing it," he said. The mask guidance came as research revealed that asymptotic people spread the disease without knowing they had it.

Unemployment rates hit record highs at the end of March and early April.

A day after the U.S. became the world's most-infected nation, the country passed 100,000 cases and had more than 1,000 deaths.

Trump signed the largest relief package in U.S. history, promising $1,200 checks to eligible Americans and additional amounts for families. The package includedhundreds of billions of dollars of support for companies to keep a payroll during the pandemic.

Trump announced a ban on travelers from Europe, and U.S. cases jumped from 100 to more than 1,000ineight days.

The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic."We cannot say this loudly enough, or clearly enough, or often enough: all countries can still change the course of this pandemic," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the WHO, said in a statement.

The first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was reportedJan. 21 soon after the CDC began implementing health screenings in airports. China had 548 confirmed cases, and South Korea had one. A few weeks later, two people died, on Feb. 6 and 17, and tests done in April determined they were positive for the coronavirus.

Contributing: Grace Hauck, Adrianna Rodriguez,Jayne O'Donnell and Ken Alltucker

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US hits 4 million cases of COVID-19: A look at the milestones and setbacks - USA TODAY