WHO warns COVID-19 cases have risen by 100,000 over the past 5 days

iStock/Moyo Studio (NEW YORK) — With over 383,000 dead and more than 6.39 million sickened due to COVID-19, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, the World Health Organization cautioned of a concerning new trend.  Positive cases worldwide have climbed by 100,000 in just five days.

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday that the organization noticed a swift uptick in cases in Central and South America, noting that cases are “accelerating.”

Brazil is now the second-hardest hit country in the world, with over 555,000 cases, says Johns Hopkins University.

As for Europe, Tedros said there’s been encouraging progress, “Yesterday saw the fewest cases reported in Europe since the 22nd of March.” 

When it comes to the U.S. — the hardest-hit nation in the world — a grim new report estimates that, by next spring, 400,000 Americans may die from the virus.

Dr. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, said Wednesday, “All of the best models suggest that another 100,000 will die over the next three to four months if we continue to have 1,000 deaths a day.”  

Jha added, “It is entirely possible that by next spring, by the time we might get a vaccine, 300,000 to 400,000 Americans will have died from this disease” — adding that the deaths are “wholly preventable.” 

However, as Jha notes, it will take “smart policy and accountability from the federal government.”

Currently, COVID-19 has sickened more than 1.8 million people and killed at least 107,093 — says Johns Hopkins University.

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