For the third day in a row, the United States is updating the record for the number of new coronavirus diseases, breaking, according to the NBC channel, the mark of 70 thousand cases per day. A sharp increase in the incidence was recorded in the states of Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Ohio, Utah and Wisconsin.

But the main surge in disease, according to journalists, fell on the states of the "Sun belt" - California, Florida, Texas and Georgia.

For example, on July 10, in California, 7.8 thousand patients were diagnosed in one day. So, in one of the most famous prisons of San Quentin, as a result of verification, the coronavirus was detected in almost half of the 3.3 thousand prisoners.

In the hope of stopping the spread of the disease, state authorities said they intend to release up to 8 thousand prisoners ahead of schedule. 

In the state of Florida, more than two dozen medical institutions said that there were practically no places in hospitals, the number of beds in the intensive care units used increased by 88%. 

In Orlando, the largest inland city of the Florida Peninsula, more than 20,000 people signed a petition against the opening of the famous Disneyland amusement park because of fears that this would lead to an even higher incidence of disease.

According to Reuters, on July 9, in the state of Florida, 120 deaths were recorded in a day, to which another July added 93. As of July 10, 11.5 thousand new cases of infection were recorded. And, according to the head of the intensive care unit at the Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, the state continues to deteriorate.

At the same time, in another “hot spot” - Texas - Governor Greg Abbott said that if, after the introduction of the mask regime, the incidence dynamics did not change in the near future, the state would have to return to more stringent restrictions.

“If we do not take the most optimal measures, many enterprises may close,” the Republican Governor told the local KLBK-TV channel.

This statement was made by Abbott after 95 deaths due to coronavirus infection were recorded in the state per day.

In turn, the state of Georgia also broke the “record” - on July 10, 4.5 thousand new cases of the disease were recorded here in one day.

According to Johns Hopkins University, the total number of people infected in the United States reached 3.2 million people, 134 thousand people died.

According to Andrei Sidorov, Dean of the Faculty of World Politics at Moscow State University, the hasty removal of restrictive measures led to a new record growth in the number of cases in the United States.

“Summer is a period of outdoor activities and communication. A hasty easing of restrictive measures has led to an increase in the incidence rate in America now. US citizens perceive such measures very negatively and do not comply with them, ”the political scientist noted.

Sidorov added that the ongoing protests in the USA, as well as mass events related to the elections to both the federal authorities and local ones, also influence the increase in the incidence rate.

“Such meetings entail communication and, accordingly, create a favorable environment for the spread of the virus,” the expert explained.

Return to Quarantines

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of people infected with coronavirus infection in the world exceeded 12.1 million, more than 555 thousand people died.

In its July 10 report, WHO recorded a record increase in new cases of the disease per day, not only in the United States, but also in Brazil (67.9 thousand people), India (26.5 thousand people) and South Africa (13.6 thousand people).  

  • Los Angeles Hospital
  • Reuters
  • © Lucy Nicholson

Some countries, recording new outbreaks of the disease, are returning to a sanitary restriction regime. For example, quarantine measures for a period of six weeks were introduced in Australia - authorities closed the border between the states of Victoria, where the city of Melbourne, and the state of New South Wales are located.  

Restrictive measures have also been introduced in some regions of Spain and Italy. In Israel, the authorities decided to close the bars, clubs, gyms, swimming pools and cancel cultural events.   

Meanwhile, in Russia, the incidence of COVID-19 is slow, but is declining. As of July 11, 6,311 new cases of coronavirus infection were detected in 83 regions of Russia. The day before, 6653 cases were recorded.

In total, in Russia, the diagnosis of COVID-19 was confirmed in 720 547 people. From the beginning of the epidemic, 497,446 people (69.04%) recovered in Russia, while 11,205 patients (1.56%) died from complications that developed due to coronavirus infection and concomitant diseases.

Wrong opening

However, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated that he will not “close” the country again in the event of an increase in the incidence of disease. The first time he said this at the end of May, when some states began to abolish previously restrictive measures.

He reiterated his position on June 17, after a sharp increase in new infections was recorded in 14 states.

  • Dr. Anthony Fauci and US President Donald Trump
  • © MANDEL NGAN / AFP

In turn, the country's chief epidemiologist, director of the National Institute of Allergic and Infectious Diseases of the USA, Dr. Anthony Fauci, during a Senate hearing on June 30, said that the spread of coronavirus in America could reach 100 thousand cases per day.

In a conversation with The Hill on July 7, the country's chief epidemiologist said that the process of lifting restrictions should be stopped.

“I believe that instead of returning to full quarantine, states need to suspend the process of removing restrictions, evaluate what actions have yielded a bad result, and try to correct the situation,” said Anthony Fauci in an interview with The Hill editor Steve Clemons.

In addition, the scientist complained about the extreme attitude to the restrictive measures of many Americans who defiantly ignored them.

“Some governors and mayors did everything right. But many citizens said: “You know, either they will lock me up at home by force, or I will give myself free rein,” said Fauchi.

Yuri Rogulev, director of the F. Roosevelt Foundation for the Study of the United States at Moscow State University, noted that new outbreaks of the disease occur in states that have not previously been seriously affected by this epidemic.

“In states such as Texas, Florida, California previously introduced restrictive measures, but soon local authorities began to abolish them. If these measures were removed gradually and not so soon, then the epidemiological situation would be much better, ”the expert said.

Yuri Rogulev added that the distribution of coronavirus was also facilitated by a decentralized healthcare system in the USA, inside of which there is inconsistency and lack of coordination in decision-making.

“The entire health care system is overseen by local state governments. In such situations, the federal government can only allocate additional funds, benefits for the population and business. Trump previously used the defense law to quickly expand the production of medical equipment, ventilation devices, but these measures were not enough to improve the epidemiological situation in the country, ”the expert explained.

In turn, Andrei Sidorov believes that if the epidemiological explosion continues, then Trump opponents from the US Democratic Party will definitely take advantage of this situation, who will accuse the president of failure to take effective measures to combat the epidemic.

“Of course, Trump himself is now more interested in not the fight against coronavirus, but in the state of the American economy, the number of jobs, the return of small and medium-sized businesses to normal operating conditions,” said RT political analyst.

But it’s more important for the American president to maintain a trend towards increasing employment, especially in the context of a pandemic economy, Andrei Sidorov added.

“If Trump fails to do this, then all his other steps will be used by opponents against him and presented as ineffective,” the expert concluded.