Johns Hopkins University confirms at least 100,396 people died from COVID-19 in US

iStock/ninjaMonkeyStudio (NEW YORK) — While the COVID-19 pandemic has sickened over 5.6 million people and killed more than 354,000 worldwide, in the U.S. death toll surpassed 100,000 on Wednesday, confirms Johns Hopkins University.

According to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, it’s estimated that at least 100,396 people have died from COVID-19 in the United States.  That’s more than U.S. military deaths sustained in the Vietnam and Korean Wars combined. 

At least 1.6 million people in the U.S. have been sickened by the virus.

Back on March 27, the U.S. death toll surpassed 2,300.  A month later on April 27, deaths swelled to over 50,400.  A month later, U.S. deaths reached six digits on May 27.

America has suffered the most deaths out of any other country, with the United Kingdom reporting the second highest death toll — over 37,500.  Italy suffered the third highest amount of deaths, with 33,000.

Despite the growing U.S. death toll, states across the country continue to pursue their reopening plans, with Maryland resuming outdoor dining on Friday, May 29, now that the state has completed phase I of its reopening plan.  Outdoor activities like youth sports and drive in movie theaters may also resume on Friday.

The state suffered close to 50,000 COVID-19 cases and, according to the state’s health department, lost 2,270 lives to the virus.

With health officials cautioning that, if social distancing measures aren’t followed, a stronger second wave of the virus can hit in the fall — Doctor Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading expert on infectious diseases, told CNN in an interview Wednesday that there is a “good chance” a vaccine may “be deployable by the end of this year.”

However, that all depends on if “all the things fall in the right place.”

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.