The latest news on the novel coronavirus from the U.S. and around the world

1 of 19 2 of 19

For the most recent world updates, see this article.

June 8:

As the world passed the seven million mark for total cumulative COVID-19 cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the pandemic is worsening globally.

WHO reported on June 8 that over 136,000 cases were reported worldwide in one day, a record amount for a single day. About 75 percent of the cases came from the Americas and South Asia, as several African countries are beginning to see increases in cases.

There have been over 7,076,000 cases and approximately 404,400 deaths in the world thus far.

The U.S. continues to have the largest number of cases in the world and is approaching the two million mark.

As of today (June 8), the U.S. has confirmed approximately 1,955,000 cases and almost 111,000 deaths.

Unfortunately, 22 U.S. states (or almost half) have begun to see increases in case numbers, with notable surges or record highs occurring in Oregon, California, Arkansas, Arizona, Texas, North Carolina, and Florida.

Brazil, which shot up to second place for most cases, is closing in on 700,000 cases. It is currently at approximately 692,000 cases with almost 36,500 deaths.

Russia remains in third place with over 476,000 cases and about 6,000 deaths.

The U.K. has about 289,000 cases and almost 40,700 deaths, which is the second largest amount after the U.S.

Two studies published in a British scientific journal found that lockdown measures in the U.S. helped to prevent approximately 60 million infections in the U.S. and about 3.1 million deaths in Europe.

India, which has surpassed Spain and Italy, has had almost 266,000 cases and almost 7,500 deaths.

Meanwhile, New Zealand, which has had approximately 1,500 cases and 22 deaths, is lifting its all of its pandemic restrictions on June 9 as the country hasn’t had any new cases for 17 days.

Canada is approaching the 100,000 case mark, with approximately 97,500 cases and almost 8,000 deaths.

The federal government announced today that it will begin permitting immediate family members of Canadian citizens or permanent residents (spouses, partners, parents, step-parents, children, and guardians or tutors) to enter Canada if they do not have COVID-19 symptoms.

Although exempt from the travel ban, these individuals will have to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival in Canada.

Johns Hopkins University

COVID-19 world updates: Social unrest could spark spikes in coronavirus cases in U.S. and other locations

June 1:

While the worldwide total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has exceeded six million, the need to address injustice and social issues has raised concerns that unrest in various parts of the world could undermine efforts to stem the spread of the virus.

The U.S. has had approximately 1.8 million confirmed cases and 105,000 deaths. But those numbers could significantly jump within the coming weeks due to widespread mass gatherings.

As thousands of people took to streets in cities across America, government leaders and medical officials are concerned that these events, held for several days after the death of George Floyd, will lead to increases in coronavirus cases.

Many officials acknowledged the right to protest while simultaneously emphasizing the importance of doing so while taking precautions to prevent the spread of the virus.

Health experts fear that the current disproportionate impact of the virus upon specific racial groups will be further exacerbated by these mass gatherings.

As the coronavirus has an incubation period of up to 14 days before symptoms appear, the impact of these events upon infection rates won't be known until the next few weeks.

The lack of health measures during demonstrations amid the pandemic is an issue of concern around the world, due to protests and marches held in cities such as Paris and Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, Brazil follows the U.S. with approximately 515,000 cases and over 29,300 deaths.

Russia has the third most reported cases, with 415,000 cases but only approximately 5,000 deaths—a death toll that has been repeatedly questioned.

Russian hospitals will begin using the country's first approved drug for COVID-19 treatment, Avifavir which is based upon the Japanese medication Favipiravir, next week.

The U.K., with over 276,100 cases, has the second largest number of deaths in the world, with about 38,600 fatalities.

Canada, where several rallies in response to Floyd’s death were held in Canadian cities such as Vancouver and Toronto, has had approximately 93,000 cases and about 7,400 deaths.

Schools in B.C. reopened today (June 1), despite concerns from teachers, parents, and students. Fears have been heightened after 41 staff and students tested positive for COVID-19 after elementary schools reopened in Quebec outside the Montreal area.

Worldwide, there have been over 6.2 million confirmed cases and over 373,000 deaths.

Gilnature/Getty Images

COVID-19 world updates: World surpasses five million cases with U.S., Russia, and Brazil as hot spots

May 21:

As the world passed the five million mark for reported COVID-19 cases, the major epicentres of the pandemic has been shifting to the Americas and Russia.

The United States, which has been lifting pandemic restrictions, has passed the 1.5 million case mark, with approximately 1,560,000 cases and over 93,600 fatalities.

Trump—yet again—sparked concerns from health experts when he claimed that he was using the antimalarial drug hydroxycholoroquine even though medical experts have questioned its effectiveness and warned of its potentially harmful side effects, including heart problems.

Russia has risen to the second most cases in the world with approximately 318,000 cases. The number of reported fatalities, however, remains low at 3,100 deaths.

Despite repeated suspicions about and questioning of the accuracy of Russia’s reported death toll, the country insists that its data is accurate.

Moscow stated that its numbers are accurate as it conducts autopsies of all suspected COVID-19 deaths, and that over 60 percent of these cases were found to be caused by other health issues, such as heart attacks or leukemia.

Meanwhile, a new cluster of cases in China that appears to be linked to arrivals from Russia is raising the possibility that a new mutation of the coronavirus has appeared.

Doctors in northeastern Chinese provinces are reporting a cluster of cases in which the virus appears to be developing different from previous cases. In these new cases, patients took longer to develop symptoms, carried the virus for a longer period of time, and took longer to test negative. However, some of the differences may be due to doctors now being able to monitor patients from a much earlier stage than before.

Another country that has become a major focal point of concern is the largest in South America.

Brazil has skyrocketed to the third spot, closing in on 300,000 cases with approximately 291,600 cases and about 19,000 deaths.

The country hit an alarming record with 19,941 confirmed new cases on May 20, and Trump is considering a travel ban on Brazil.

Like Trump, however, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who has downplayed the threat of the coronavirus, is pushing for chloroquine as a potential drug to use against the coronavirus, even though its effectiveness remains unproven.

After Brazil lost its second health minister in a month, the mayor of São Paulo warned that its healthcare system could collapse as hospitals are close to reaching maximum capacities.

The United Kingdom has overtaken previous hot spots Spain and Italy with case numbers and death count. There have been over 252,200 cases and over 36,000 deaths in the U.K., a death toll second only to the U.S.

Canada has over 81,600 cases and over 6,150 deaths.

On May 19, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that the ban on non-essential travel across the Canada-U.S. border would be extended for another month. B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix stated that he expect the border will remain closed for a significant amount of time.

The world has now had over five million reported COVID-19 cases and approximately 330,000 deaths.

Johns Hopkins University

COVID-19 world updates: As states reopen, Obama calls U.S. response to pandemic an "absolute chaotic disaster"

May 11:

As various American states continue their reopening process, former U.S. president Barack Obama has called the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic an “absolute chaotic disaster”.

The United States is approaching 80,000 deaths (currently at 79,825 fatalities), and has had over 1,337,500 cases.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed China for not stopping the pandemic, calling it the “worst attack” ever on the U.S.

China has responded with a campaign refocusing the blame on the U.S.

Meanwhile, after the press secretary of U.S. Vice President Mike Pence tested positive for the coronavirus, Pence, who has tested negative, did not plan to go into self-quarantine and instead intended to be at the White House.

The number of deaths in the United Kingdom (over 32,100) has surpassed Spain (over 26,600) and Italy (over 30,700). The U.K. has the third largest number of confirmed cases (over 224,300) in the world, followed by Russia, with approximately 221,350 cases.

In contrast, Russia has reported just over 2,000 deaths.

Despite surpassing Italy’s case count, Russia announced today (May 11) that it will begin easing restrictions.

The South American country with the largest number of cases and fatalities is Brazil, which has risen to 163,510 cases with over 11,200 deaths.

Canada has confirmed almost 70,900 cases with almost 5,100 deaths.

Although the highest Canadian death toll has been in Quebec (over 3,000), children are returning to elementary school classrooms today in the province for voluntary attendance with a maximum of 15 students per class.

While India has confirmed almost the same number of cases as Canada (almost 70,800), it is reporting approximately 2,300 deaths.

The total number cases worldwide has surpassed four million and is approaching 300,000 deaths, with almost 4,153,000 cases and over 284,100 deaths.

Johns Hopkins University

May 4:

While world leaders launched an international fundraising campaign for a COVID-19 vaccine, the United States, which has begun to reopen in some parts of the country despite its high death count, did not participate.

World leaders held an online pledging campaign launch event to raise a minimum of $11.6 billion Cdn (7.5 billion euros) over the coming weeks and months to fund research for a coronavirus vaccine and treatments.

Among the organizing countries of the Coronavirus Global Response fundraising efforts are Canada, the European Union, Britain, Norway, Saudi Arabia, and Japan.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged $850 million to the fund.

The United States was not a part of the conference.

U.S President Donald Trump had previously announced that he would stop funding the World Health Organization because of how it handled the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Over the past week, some states have been lifting pandemic restrictions, crowds have been gathering in public spaces during sunny weather in New York and California, and demonstrations have been held to protest lockdowns.

However, CNBC reported on May 2 that the U.S. has one of its deadliest days during the pandemic on May 1 with just over 2,900 deaths in one day.

The United States has had 1.17 million cases and about 68,300 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

After the U.S.,the country with the next highest number of cases, Spain, has had about 217,500 cases and over 25,200 deaths.

Italy has had almost 212,000 cases and over 29,000 deaths.

The United Kingdom is poised to surpass Italy, and has had over 191,800 cases with over 28,800 deaths.

France has had approximately 169,000 cases and almost 25,000 deaths.

Canada has had over 61,400 cases and approximately 3,900 deaths.

Some Canadian provinces, including Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, and PEI have begun to loosen restrictions.

Ontario began reopening some businesses today (May 4) while Quebec has delayed the reopening of Montreal businesses until May 18.

There have been a cumulative total of 3.6 million cases reported worldwide and a total of approximately 250,000 deaths.

On May 1, over 1 million people had been reported to have recovered from the virus.

COVID-19 world updates: With one-third of world's cases and over 55,000 deaths, U.S. begins to reopen

April 27:

The worldwide total of reported COVID-19 cases has passed the three million mark.

As of today (April 27), there have been over 3,017,800 cases and over 209,600 deaths.

One-third of the world’s cases have been in the United States, which is approaching one million cases and has had over 55,500 deaths, far outpacing other countries.

The countries with the next largest numbers include Spain, with over 229,400 cases and over 23,500 deaths; Italy, with almost 200,000 cases and almost 27,000 deaths; and France with over 162,200 cases and over 23,300 deaths.

Yet despite the death toll and warnings from health experts, U.S. states began on April 24 to loosen pandemic restrictions on some personal services or restaurants, including Alaska, Georgia, Oklahoma, and South Carolina.

Colorado, Mississippi, Minnesota, Montana, and Tennessee are also beginning to reopen their economies without testing or contact-tracing measures in place that are recommended by health experts to prevent a resurgence of infections.

Conversely, New York and several other states have extended their restrictions into May.

The reopening coincided with President Donald Trump’s controversial and widely criticized comments about injecting toxic disinfectants to kill the coronavirus.

Meanwhile in Canada, Ontario and Quebec, which are the hardest hit provinces in the nation, are anticipated to reveal their reopening plans this week while PEI is working on plans to reopen.

While the World Health Organization stated on April 24 that there is “currently no evidence that people who have recovered from COVID-19 and have antibodies are protected from a second infection”, Canada’s medical health officer Dr. Theresa Tam said that the Canadian government has established a task force to determine how people’s immune systems are responding to the virus.

Canada is approaching 50,000 cases with approximately 2,800 deaths.

COVID-19 world updates: As worldwide cases exceed two million, Trump cuts World Health Organization funding

April 15:

As the worldwide number of COVID-19 cases passed the two million mark, with over 130,500 deaths, U.S. President Donald Trump has made a decision that could threaten the international state of the pandemic.

Politicians and leaders from around the world have criticized and expressed alarm at U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement about suspending U.S. funding of the World Health Organization (WHO) while a review is conducted of WHO’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

While Trump is facing criticism for his own handling of the pandemic, including a slow response and questions of whether he downplayed or ignored warnings about the virus, he has accused WHO of being biased towards China and covering up the spread of the coronavirus.

The U.S. is the biggest donor to WHO, with funding ranging from $400 to $500 million per year.

The United States has passed the 600,000 mark with total confirmed cases nearing 611,000 and almost 28,000 deaths.

Contrary to the situation in North America, New Zealand has been garnering worldwide praise for its response to the pandemic.

The island nation shut its borders to foreign visitors on March 19 and began a lockdown on March 23.

Today (April 15), Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that she and her cabinet will take a 20 percent pay cut for six months due to the pandemic in light of employment issues or job losses that citizens are facing.

The country has managed to keep its coronavirus numbers low, with approximately 1,400 cases and nine deaths.

Canada has had approximately 27,100 confirmed cases with over 1,000 deaths.

COVID-19 world updates: Italy and Spain ease restrictions but France, Germany, and India continue lockdowns

April 14:

As infection rates have begun to slow down in Europe, observers from around the world will be watching to see what happens as some European Union countries begin taking tentative steps towards emerging from coronavirus restrictions while others are continuing or extending their lockdowns.

While Europe was once considered the epicentre of the pandemic before it shifted to the United States, some of the hardest hit European countries

The EU country with the highest death toll, Italy with over 20,450 fatalities, is scheduled to end its lockdown on May 4.

So far, the country has permitted forest and IT factory workers to return to their jobs, and some businesses in Italy, such as laundries, book stores, and shops selling children’s clothes or stationery items, have been allowed to reopen.

Due to fears of a second wave arising, however, some Italian regions, particularly in the north, are using their powers to keep businesses closed.

Spain, with the second highest number of deaths (over 18,000), began allowing some factory and construction workers to return to their jobs. The move, however, has raised concerns about providing protection for workers.

Austria, which has had about 14,200 cases and almost 400 deaths (which is, like some Nordic countries, a significantly lower death toll than in some western European countries), has also begun reopening parks and small stores, with all stores scheduled to reopen on May 2.

In contrast, other European countries are taking the opposite approach.

For example, France is extending its lockdown, which began on March 17, until May 11.

Although the number of new cases in Germany has shown signs of slowing down, the country is waiting for further signs of the infection rate dropping to lower levels before lifting restrictions.

Meanwhile in Asia, India, is also extending its country-wide lockdown for its more than 1.35 billion citizens until May 3.

The restrictive measures began on March 24, with only essential services in operation, and had been originally scheduled to expire on April 14.

The Indian government may allow some exceptions in areas which have avoided outbreaks, but details have not yet been provided.

The world’s second most populous country and the largest democracy has had over 10,500 cases with approximately 360 deaths and has reached similar numbers as South Korea (over 10,500 cases and approximately 225 deaths).

Concerns have been raised about whether India’s healthcare system would be able to cope with large numbers of cases that could rival or exceed levels in Europe or the U.S. while being complicated by a number of issues, including poverty, hunger, and more.

Canada has had over 26,200 cases and over 800 deaths.

The worldwide case count is approaching 2 million (approximately 1,950,000) with over 123,300 deaths.

COVID-19 world updates: U.S. looks to reopen country while Sweden, China, and Russia's rising numbers raise concerns

April 13:

Although the United States now has the world’s highest death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation is considering possibilities of when it can reopen.

Meanwhile, concerns about a second wave in China are linked to arrivals from Russia, where numbers are sharply increasing, and Sweden’s controversial relaxed approach may be faltering.

The United States, which has had the most coronavirus cases in the world for some time, overtook Italy this past weekend for the highest death toll in the world.

After passing the 550,000 mark, the nation reached almost 561,000 cases today, with over 22,100 deaths.

Over 2.8 million Americans have been tested.

However, the U.S. is looking to gradually reopen parts of the country possibly by late May.

The U.S. continues to surge far ahead of the country with the next most cases—Spain, with almost 169,500 cases and 17,500 deaths.

While Italy follows with 156,000 cases, it has the second largest number of deaths: almost 20,000.

Although Germany has the fifth most cases in the world—with 127,900 cases—it has a significantly lower number of deaths than other European countries: over 3,000. (In comparison, for example, France has 133,700 cases and over 14,400 deaths).

Part of the reason for this lower fatality rate has been credited to the country’s high number of hospitals, beds, and intensive care units.

While China has been reporting for some time that its case number stabilized—now at over 83,200 reported cases and over 3,300 deaths—fears about a second wave are being sparked by a rise in new cases and its northern border has been a focus of concern.

On April 12, 108 new cases (up from 99 the day before) marked the first daily high since 143 cases were reported on March 5. Of those cases, 98 of them were among Chinese nationals returning from Russia—a record number of imported cases.

Case numbers in Russia jumped up significantly over the weekend. The country is over 18,300 reported cases with about 150 reported deaths. Hospitals in Moscow, which have shifted into emergency mode, are reportedly experiencing large influxes of patients.

Unlike other countries, Sweden has taken a much more relaxed and controversial approach to the pandemic, and its numbers are significantly higher than its Nordic neighbours.

Sweden has warned its citizens to take precautions while avoiding lockdowns and permitting life to generally continue on as normal, including allowing schools and personal-service businesses to operate as borders have remained open.

However, the country has almost 11,000 cases and over 900 deaths compared to Norway (over 6,500 cases and over 130 deaths), Denmark (over 6,500 cases with almost 300 deaths), and Finland (over 3,000 cases and about 60 deaths).

Canada is now at approximately 24,400 cases with over 700 deaths.

COVID-19 world updates: U.S. reaches 400,000 cases, Japan declares state of emergency, Ecuador becomes hard hit

April 8:

While the number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. continues to pass troubling new milestones, Japan has declared a state of emergency in several prefectures, and Ecuador has become a focal point of concern in South America.

The U.S. continues to have the largest number of cases in the world. The country is at approximately 400,000 cases with approximately 13,000 deaths and about 22,500 recoveries, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Its cumulative number of confirmed cases are far ahead of the next closest country, Spain with about 142,000 cases (with 43,000 recoveries) and over 14,000 deaths. Its total fatalities is second to Italy (which has had approximately 135,600 cases and about 24,400 recoveries) with over 17,100 deaths.

After being under lockdown since March 15, France (with over 110,000 cases and over 19,500 recoveries) has reported some improvements as the number of new cases have declined. However, the number of deaths have continued to increase and it became the fourth country to pass the 10,000 mark for fatalities, with over 10,300 deaths.

In an effort to reduce movement during the day, Paris authorities are banning daytime outdoor exercise, such as jogging.

While Japan was among of the first locations in Asia outside mainland China to confirm cases of the virus, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has long resisted calls to declare a state of emergency, despite public criticism and heightened concerns about spikes in infections.

Abe finally declared a state of emergency on April 7 for Tokyo, Osaka, and five other prefectures, that will last for a month, but it won’t entail lockdowns.

Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island, had previously declared a state of emergency on February 28 due to the nation’s first major cluster developing there.

Japan has risen to over 4,200 cases with 93 deaths and has had 622 recoveries.

Meanwhile in South America, while Brazil has the most reported cases (over 14,000 with almost 700 deaths and over 100 recoveries) amid apprehension about underreporting, Ecuador has become a particular focus of concern.

The country, which has been identified in several news reports as the emerging epicentre of the pandemic in Latin America, has about 4,000 confirmed cases, 220 deaths (with other deaths suspected of being connected to the virus), and 140 recoveries.

However, the country’s largest city Guayquil, where public and emergency services have been reportedly overwhelmed and hospitals have run out of beds, has been particularly hard hit. Photos of corpses lining streets have emerged online as the city rushes to build emergency cemeteries amid a coffin shortage.

Here in Canada, the nation is at approximately 18,000 confirmed cases with almost 400 deaths and over 4,000 recoveries.

Worldwide, there have been over 1.43 million cases with over 82,000 deaths and over 300,000 recoveries.

COVID-19 world updates: As U.S. exceeds 350,000 cases, Spain and Italy's new infections and deaths slowing down

April 6:

While the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the U.S. continue to mushroom, Europe has begun to show signs that the pandemic is slowing down in some countries there.

As the U.S. surpassed 350,500 cases, the nation hit another tragic milestone.

It’s currently at over 352,000 cases and almost 19,000 recoveries, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. However, it has surpassed the 10,000 mark for its death toll, with almost 10,400 fatalities.

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams warned that this will be the “saddest week” in the lives of most Americans.

While numbers continue to climb in Europe, some countries most affected by the coronavirus, have begun to show glimmers of hope.

On the one hand, Spain surpassed Italy, formerly regarded as the hardest hit country outside mainland China, with over 135,000 cases and almost 13,200 deaths with approximately 40,500 recoveries.

However, the number of new deaths and infections in Spain have been in decline over the weekend and the country has reported the lowest number of new cases in over two weeks.

Italy, which has been in a national lockdown since March 9, remains with the most COVID-19–related deaths in the world—over 16,500 deaths—is over 132,500 cases with over 22,800 recoveries.

Yet like Spain, while the overall death toll has continued to rise, the number of new cases has been dropping.

Germany is at approximately 102,000 cases with over 1,600 deaths and over 28,700 recoveries.

Like Germany, France has also surpassed China, now with approximately 93,800 cases, about 8,100 deaths, and over 16,300 recoveries.

China has reported approximately 82,700 cases with over 3,300 deaths and over 77,300 recoveries—the highest numbers of recoveries in the world.

Iran follows with 60,500 cases and over 3,700 deaths with over 24,200 recoveries.

While British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was admitted to a London hospital on April 5 for COVID-19 tests and who had previously tested positive for the virus, Ireland’s Taoiseach (prime minister) Leo Varadkar—who is the country’s youngest, first openly gay, and first visible-minority prime minister—will be personally contributing to the medical efforts.

Varadkar, who had worked as a doctor for several years before entering politics, announced he will work one day a week as a doctor during the pandemic.

Ireland has approximately 5,000 cases with 158 deaths and 25 recoveries.

At one time, Canada was on par with Australia. Canada has since risen to more than double the amount of Australia.

However, Canada is now over 15,800 cases with approximately 300 deaths and over 3,200 recoveries while Australia is at approximately 6,000 cases with 40 deaths and approximately 1,100 recoveries.

Worldwide, there are now approximately 1,325,000 cases with over 73,700 deaths and approximately 273,600 recoveries.

COVID-19 world updates: USA over 200,000 cases, Canada surpasses South Korea, and over 1 million cases worldwide

April 2:

The total number of COVID-19 cases worldwide now exceeds 1 million.

Currently at 1,002,159 reported cases, there have been a total of approximately 51,500 deaths with about 209,000 recoveries.

Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 cases in North America continues its vertical ascent.

While on March 30, the United States rose past the 150,000 case mark, it jumped up by 50,000 new cases within a span of only two days.

Yesterday (April 1), the United States passed the 200,000 mark and is now at over 234,400 cases with over 5,300 deaths and over 8,800 recoveries, according to statistics from Johns Hopkins University.

The White House had projected that there will be 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the U.S. due to the coronavirus, even with social-distancing measures in place.

The states with the most confirmed cases include New York (considered the epicentre of the pandemic in the U.S.), New Jersey, California, Michigan, Florida, Massachusetts, and Illinois.

Italy is over 115,200 cases with over 13,000 deaths and almost 19,000 recoveries.

However, the number of new cases and fatalities in the southern European country, which has been under lockdown since March, had been reported to be showing signs of levelling.

Spain is closely following Italy and has risen over 110,200 cases with over 10,000 deaths and almost 27,000 recoveries. But health officials are reported to have observed some indicators that the infection rate has begun to slow down.

Germany has surpassed China with over 84, 200 cases and almost 1,000 deaths (the lowest amount of deaths amongst the countries with the most cases), with 21,400 recoveries.

China, which has begun allowing movement restrictions to be lifted in Wuhan, is reporting that it has 82,400 cases with over 51,300 cases and over 204,600 recoveries.

Canada has now surpassed South Korea, with over 10,100 cases, 112 deaths, and almost 1,700 recoveries.

South Korea is at approximately 10,000 cases with 169 deaths and over 5,800 recoveries.

While the majority of cases experience mild illness (a reported over 80 percent in the U.S.), the virus remains a high risk for vulnerable populations, such as the elderly or those with underlying conditions.

Strategies around the world have been working not only to protect the vulnerable but also to ensure that cases requiring hospitalization do not overwhelm healthcare capacities and medical supply limitations.

Such a situation can result in doctors being forced to decide who to save, as has taken place in some parts of Italy such as the Lombardy region, as well as potential addition deaths from non-coronavirus patients with other urgent health issues (heart attack, injuries, and more) who may be unable to receive treatment if resources are overburdened or depleted.

March 31:

In only a matter of days, the United States has hit yet another troubling milestone in the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was on March 27 that the U.S. passed the 100,000 mark for coronavirus cases.

Late yesterday (March 30), the country rose past 150,000 cases, and appears to be on its way towards 200,000 cases.

It now stands at over 182,000 cases with over 3,600 deaths.

Meanwhile, Italy, which also passed the 100,000 mark, is now at approximately 107,800 cases, with over 12,400 deaths, which remains the most COVID-19 deaths in the world.

Spain eclipsed China and is heading towards the 100,000 mark with over 94,400 cases and over 8,200 deaths.

China is now at an approximate reported 82,300 cases with over 3,300 reported deaths.

Following after is Germany with approximately 68,200 cases and almost 700 deaths and France with over 52,800 cases and over 3,500 deaths.

All of these countries have surpassed Iran, which became a hotspot earlier in the pandemic. Iran now stands at over 44,600 cases with almost 3,000 deaths.

The U.K. follows, heading toward 25,500 cases with approximately 1,800 deaths.

South Korea, one of the hardest hit locations in Asia outside of mainland China, has been slowing down its increase rate and is at approximately 9,800 cases with 162 deaths.

Canada, as it is now at approximately 8,200 cases and 95 deaths, may soon pass South Korea's numbers.

Many Asian locations where the first cases were reported but many implemented emergency or strict measures immediately remain much lower with both case numbers and deaths in comparison.

Japan, which has been questioned for underreporting, is approximately at 2,000 cases with 56 cases.

Philippines is at about 2,100 cases, Thailand is over 1,600 cases, Indonesia is over 1,500 cases, India is approximately at 1,400 cases, Singapore is over 900 cases, Hong Kong is over 700 cases, Taiwan is over 300 cases, and Vietnam is over 200 cases.

March 30:

COVID-19 world updates: Italy and Spain surpass China with reported case numbers

Two European countries have now surpassed China with their numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases.

The first country to do so was the United States, which was also the first country to confirm over 100,000 cases late last week. Already, the U.S. is heading towards 150,000 cases, with current numbers over 148,000 and over 3,000 deaths, according to statistics from Johns Hopkins University.

Italy has also passed the 100,000 mark with over 101,700 confirmed cases and approximately 11,600 deaths.

Spain has risen to approximately 85,200 cases with over 7,300 deaths.

In comparison, China is reporting approximately 82,200 cases with over 3,300 deaths.

Meanwhile, Germany, with the fifth most cases, has about 64,000 confirmed cases with 560 deaths.

Canada is approaching 6,700 cases, with 65 deaths.

March 28:

COVID-19 world updates: USA is first country to report over 100,000 cases, U.K. PM tests positive

After the United States surged past both Italy and China to become the country in the world with the most COVID-19 cases, the nation also passed another major milestone during the pandemic.

Yesterday (March 27), the U.S. surpassed the 100,000 threshhold and is the first country to do so.

According to statistics from Johns Hopkins University, the U.S., which has a population of over 327 million, now has over 119,700 reported cases, with approximately 2,000 reported deaths.

Italy (with a population of over 60 million) has also risen past China (with a population of over 1.3 billion) to become the country with the second most cases. It now has approximately 92,500 reported cases with over 10,000 reported deaths, which remains the highest in the world.

China is now at 82,000 reported cases with 3,300 reported deaths.

Spain is fourth with over 72,300 cases and over 5,800 deaths.

Canada has approximately 5,550 cases with 61 deaths.

In other recent international news, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his health minister tested positive for the coronavirus while England's chief medical officer self-isolated after developing symptoms, as reported on March 27.

The U.K. has faced criticism for implementing restrictive measures later than other countries in Europe.

March 26:

COVID-19: USA surpasses China and Italy with most coronavirus pandemic cases in the world

It's a watershed moment in the coronavirus pandemic—the country that has the most COVID-19 cases in the world is no longer mainland China and the epicentre of the health crisis has shifted from Asia to Europe to North America.

Today (March 26), the United States has rocketed past both Italy—previously the hardest hit location outside mainland China—and China with over 85,500 cases and is approaching 1,300 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.

For the first time since the outbreak began, China has the second most cases with approximately 81,800 cases with approximately 3,300 deaths.

Italy is now third, with about 80,600 cases and over 8,200 deaths—the most in the world.

Spain is fourth with approximately 57,800 cases and about 4,400 deaths.

in comparison, previous hot spots are much lower, including Iran with over 29,400 cases, South Korea with over 9,200 cases, and Japan with approximately 1,400 cases.

Canada has now exceeded 4,000 cases with 38 deaths.