The United States records an average of 700,000 new cases per day; Fauci says the nation could grow to 1 million

The U.S. is now averaging more than 700,000 new coronavirus cases per day, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows.

The country reported about 4.91 million cases in the week ending Saturday. That’s more cases in seven days than in April, May, June and July 2021 combined. At the latest pace, eight Americans are testing positive every second. Each of the last five days ranks in the top five of the entire pandemic for highest case counts.

“I would not be surprised at all if we go over a million cases per day,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the president’s chief medical adviser, told News 4 New York in an interview Saturday. For perspective, at one point in June the U.S. average daily caseload over a week was just above 11,000.

And while the prevalent omicron variant is milder on a per-case basis, fast-swelling numbers of new cases are burdening hospitals. A federal report released Saturday shows about 138,000 COVID-19 patients in hospital beds, up 32% from the previous week.

But Fauci told the TV station the dismal numbers could start to decline by month’s end.

“I can’t predict accurately, because no one can. But I would hope that by the time we get to the fourth week in January … that we will start to see this coming down,” Fauci said.

► The Chinese city of Tianjin began mass-testing its 14 million residents Sunday as it faced what might be China’s first outbreak of omicron. The Winter Olympics open in less than four weeks in nearby Beijing.

► The NHL has postponed two games scheduled for Monday night because of COVID-19 issues. The Tampa Bay Lightning’s game at the New Jersey Devils and the Ottawa Senators’ game at the Edmonton Oilers were postponed. The Devils and Oilers are the teams affected by COVID-19.

►Illinois Gov. Pritzker agreed to provide 350,000 coronavirus tests to the Chicago Public Schools, scrambling to get 330,000 students back in classrooms. Schools closed Wednesday, with no remote learning, after teachers voted to teach online only. Schools will not reopen Monday unless enough teachers return, schools CEO Pedro Martinez said. Negotiations resumed Sunday.

►With 15.9 million new cases worldwide in the week ending Saturday, or 26.2 infections per second, the global pace is up 64% from a week earlier.

📈Today’s numbers: The U.S. has recorded more than 60 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 837,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Global totals: More than 306.5 million cases and 5.48 million deaths. More than 207.6 million Americans – 62.5% – are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.