Still, the country’s prognosis remains better than at previous points in the pandemic. The vaccines are widely available, cases and hospitalizations remain at a tiny fraction of their peaks and deaths are occurring at some of the lowest levels since the early days of the pandemic. Yet daily case numbers have increased in all 50 states, including 19 states that are reporting at least twice as many new cases a day. Mayor Quinton Lucas of Kansas City, Mo., where cases are increasing but remain far below levels in other parts of the state, said he worried that the outbreak in southwestern Missouri would keep spreading, given low vaccination rates there. He said strong recommendations for mask wearing — or even new mandates — may become necessary if his city’s outlook continued to worsen.

Source: New York Times July 15, 2021 22:18 UTC