The global tally for the coronavirus-borne illness headed above 177.4 million on Friday, according to data aggregated by Johns Hopkins University, while deaths climbed above 3.8 million. The U.S. continues to lead the world in total cases at 33.5 million, while deaths total 600,934. The number of fully vaccinated Americans rose to 147.8 million, or 44.5% of the total population, up from 44% on Thursday, according to the latest data from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with the number of U.S. adults receiving at least one dose increasing to 65%. The U.S. is devoting $3.2 billion to speed development of antiviral pills to treat COVID-19 and other dangerous viruses that could turn into pandemics, the Associated Press reported.
The new program will invest in “accelerating things that are already in progress” for COVID-19 but also would work to come up with treatments for other viruses, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert. He announced the investment Thursday at a White House briefing.
On a global basis, India is second in total cases at 29.8 million and third by fatalities at 383,490, although those numbers are expected to be undercounted given a shortage of tests. Brazil has the third-highest caseload at 17.7 million, according to JHU data, and is second in deaths at 496,004. Mexico has fourth-highest death toll at 230,792 and 2.5 million cases. The U.K. has 128,209 fatalities and 4.6 million cases, the highest number of deaths in Europe and fifth-highest in the world.
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