Oct 20, 4:29 pm
Belgium sees 88% jump in deaths
Belgium has seen a 69% increase in COVID-19 cases and an 88% jump in fatalities in the last week, according to the Health Ministry.
The nation has reported a total of 10,443 fatalities, including 221 deaths in the last week. With a population of around 11 million, Belgium has one of the highest per capita fatality rates in the world.
Belgium’s test-positivity rate stands at 15%.
ABC News’ Aicha El Hammar and Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.
Oct 20, 4:01 pm
COVID-19 patients in hospitals 5 times more likely to die than those hospitalized with flu, CDC says
Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 are five times more likely to die compared to patients hospitalized with the flu, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study. They were also more likely to need more time in the hospital to recuperate, and to develop medical complications like blood clots.
Among patients with COVID-19, the risk for certain complications, including respiratory and kidney problems, was higher for Black and Hispanic patients compared to white patients.
The study, however, was only among hospitals from within the Veterans Health Administration, so it may not be directly applicable across other hospital settings.
ABC News’ Sony Salzman contributed to this report.
Oct 20, 2:56 pm
Ohio reports record high number of new hospitalizations
Ohio reported 216 new hospitalizations in the last 24 hours — a record high for the state, Gov. Mike DeWine said Tuesday.
Ohio now has a total of 17,388 patients with COVID-19 in hospitals, according to state data.
“In the past day, 2,015 new cases have been reported in Ohio, and our numbers continue to rise at a rate that should concern all of us,” the governor tweeted.
Ohio has over 185,000 people diagnosed with COVID-19. At least 5,083 have died.
Oct 20, 2:42 pm
Cuomo discourages New Yorkers from unnecessary travel to NJ, PA, CT
In New York, where the statewide positivity rate is 1.3%, neighboring states Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania now meet the criteria for New York’s growing list of states on its travel advisory, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.
Because “there is no practical way to quarantine New York from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut,” the states won’t be added to the list, Cuomo said in a statement. However, the governor said he’s discouraging nonessential travel between the states.
New York’s travel advisory requires people coming to the Empire State to quarantine for two weeks if they’re arriving from a state with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a one-week average or an area with a 10% or higher positivity rate over a one-week rolling average.
These are the states and territories currently on New York’s list: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Wyoming.
ABC News’ J. Gabriel Ware contributed to this report.
Oct 20, 1:39 pm
Over 299,000 excess deaths in US this year, two-thirds attributed to COVID-19, says CDC
The official COVID-19 death toll in the U.S. “might underestimate the total impact of the pandemic on mortality,” according to a new report from the CDC.
“Overall, an estimated 299,028 excess deaths have occurred in the United States from late January through October 3, 2020, with two thirds of these attributed to COVID-19,” the CDC said.
The largest percentage increase in excess deaths was seen in two groups: Hispanic/Latinos and young adults (ages 25-44).
ABC News’ Sony Salzman contributed to this report.
