Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on the day's biggest business stories
Subscribe to Axios Closer for insights into the day’s business news and trends and why they matter
Stay on top of the latest market trends
Subscribe to Axios Markets for the latest market trends and economic insights. Sign up for free.
Sports news worthy of your time
Binge on the stats and stories that drive the sports world with Axios Sports. Sign up for free.
Tech news worthy of your time
Get our smart take on technology from the Valley and D.C. with Axios Login. Sign up for free.
Get the inside stories
Get an insider's guide to the new White House with Axios Sneak Peek. Sign up for free.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Want a daily digest of the top Denver news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Want a daily digest of the top Des Moines news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Want a daily digest of the top Twin Cities news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Want a daily digest of the top Tampa Bay news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Want a daily digest of the top Charlotte news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Sign up for Axios NW Arkansas
Stay up-to-date on the most important and interesting stories affecting NW Arkansas, authored by local reporters
The coronavirus pandemic keeps getting worse, all across the country. Thirty-three states saw their caseloads increase this week, continuing a scary nationwide trend that’s been getting worse since mid-June.
Why it matters: The U.S. is right back in the situation we were afraid of earlier this year, with a rapidly spreading outbreak, strained hospitals, and projections of more than 200,000 deaths by the end of the year.
What we’re watching: New coronavirus cases surged over the past week in places that were already heading quickly in the wrong direction.
- That includes Arizona (a 23% jump over the past week), California (38%), Florida (25%) and Texas (28%). All of those states have experienced dramatic increases for several weeks in a row, and those cases are now threatening to overwhelm some local hospitals.
- Deaths are also beginning to tick up in these hotspots.
Those worsening conditions across the board make clear that these numbers largely are not a product of increased testing, but rather a worsening outbreak.
- Nationwide, testing increased by 7% over the past week. Cases rose by 24%.
Between the lines: Each week, Axios tracks the change in confirmed coronavirus cases in each state. We use a rolling seven-day average to minimize the effects of any abnormalities in how and when new cases are reported.
- Only a tiny sliver of the Northeast — Maine, New Hampshire and Connecticut — had fewer new cases this week than the week before.
- New York, which has seen a steady trend of improvement, held steady. New Jersey, which had been following New York’s trend, saw a 14% increase.
The bottom line: The only way to safely resume even some small semblance of pre-COVID life — whether that’s sports or schools or going out to eat — is to get the virus itself under control. And the U.S. is failing to do that.