United States' COVID death toll crosses one million: White House
The new omicron subvariant known as BA.2 has become the latest threat in the fight against COVID-19. (Photo: Representational/Unsplash)
- US President Joe Biden said the people of his country should stay vigilant against the pandemic
- Last week, the Biden administration said that COVID-19 cases could surge to 100 million this winter
- The US is the worst-hit country with over 81 million COVID-19 cases
The death toll in the United States due to the COVID-19 pandemic has crossed one million, the White House said on Thursday.
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“Today, we mark a tragic milestone: one million American lives lost to COVID-19. One million empty chairs around the dinner table. Each an irreplaceable loss. Each leaving behind a family, a community, and a nation forever changed because of this pandemic. Jill and I pray for each of them,” US President Joe Biden said in a statement.
Last week the US government said that COVID-19 cases could surge to 100 million this winter and fall with the virus wave set to claim a significant number of deaths, reports claimed.
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The Biden administration claimed that omicron and its subvariants will continue to spread around the country. The US is the worst-hit country due to the virus with over one million deaths and 81 million COVID-19 cases since the pandemic took hold in the country over two years ago.
“We must remain vigilant against this pandemic and do everything we can to save as many lives as possible, as we have with more testing, vaccines, and treatments than ever before,” US President Joe Biden said in a statement.
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The pandemic continues to surge in China, where the virus first emerged in 2020 in Wuhan. In the latest wave, Shanghai has become the new epicentre of the virus in China with the financial hub in a lockdown for over a month.
In the US the COVID-19 cases crossed the one million mark after several states had discarded the mask mandate for public transportation imposed by the Biden administration.
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On Thursday after the White House said that the US crossed the one million mark, Biden said, “We must remain vigilant against this pandemic and do everything we can to save as many lives as possible, as we have with more testing, vaccines, and treatments than ever before. It’s critical that Congress sustain these resources in the coming months.”