A funeral assistant prepares for a funeral in Miami, Florida. Photo: Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images
Almost 66,000 new COVID-19 cases and more than 1,400 deaths from the virus were reported in the U.S. on Wednesday, per the COVID Tracking Project.
Why it matters: The toll marks the highest number of deaths from COVID-19 in a single day since May 15, according to the tracking project's data. The U.S. coronavirus death toll surpassed 150,000 earlier Wednesday. "The rise in deaths is largely driven by the southern states, which reported 962 deaths today," it noted.
Driving the news: A total of 773 deaths were reported by coronavirus hot-spot states Arizona, California, Florida and Texas, according to the tracking project.
- Florida reported on Wednesday a state record of 216 coronavirus-related deaths in 24 hours.
Of note: In Texas, a change in counting methods for deaths and Hurricane Hanna striking the state over the weekend may have caused some backlog and influenced the large number of deaths (313) reported on Wednesday, the tracking project notes.