Outbreak Break Report

What's New

Cumulative case numbers for COVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2, are as follows:

  • Cases worldwide: more than 3.78 million cases in more than 210 countries

  • Cases in Europe: more than 1.52 million cases

  • Cases in the U.S.: more than 1.24 million cases

  • Cases reported from China since March 3: more than 2,600 out of 82,800 cumulative cases

  • Deaths worldwide: more than 261,000 (Europe: more than 146,000; U.S.: more than 73,000; China: more than 4,600)

  • Transmission aboard large ships: more than 2,600 cases aboard at least 50 ships

Globally, the outbreak appears to have peaked on April 24 with more than 100,000 cases per day, and daily new cases have plateaued for the past 30 days at approximately 80,000 on average. Daily new deaths peaked on April 29 at more than 10,000 deaths per day and have plateaued, with some peaks and valleys over the past 12 days, at approximately 6,000. Of the 570,000 new cases reported from April 26 through May 3, sixty percent of cases were reported from the following 5 countries (total new cases; weekly cases per million): the U.S. (> 200,900 cases; 614 cases/million), Russia (> 53,700 cases; 371 cases/million), Brazil (> 38,200 cases; 182 cases/million), the U.K. (> 33,700 cases; 507 cases/million), and Peru (> 18,400 cases; 575 cases/million). Approximately 40% of cases reported outside the U.S. from April 26 through May 3 were reported in Russia, Brazil, Peru, India, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico; significant numbers of daily new cases continue to be reported in these countries. Globally, 58 countries have daily case counts that are increasing (although some may be past peak), 63 are declining, and 27 have plateaued. In the E.U./E.E.A. and the U.K., 28 of the 31 countries have daily case counts that are decreasing, with rates at least 10% lower than their most recent peak; 8 countries have reported no new deaths in the past 1 to 29 days, but deaths are increasing in the rest of the countries. In the U.S., daily cases have decreased for the past 5 days and deaths have plateaued over the past 2 days. No new locally acquired cases have been reported in Taiwan, Vietnam, or Hong Kong since April 12, 16, and 19, respectively; however, sporadic imported cases continue to be reported. In the past 24 hours, Australia has reported only 26 cases, South Korea and New Zealand have reported only 2 cases each, and Thailand has reported only 1 case. More than 90,000 cases have occurred in HCWs (likely an underestimation) in 30 countries since the outbreak began.

In a new, well-documented study, 642 PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients with mild disease in NYC and with sequential IgG and PCR testing (Mount Sinai IgG ELISA peer-reviewed assay with FDA EUA and Roche cobas PCR) were examined. The maximum duration of positive nasopharyngeal PCR testing was 43 days from symptom onset and 28 days from symptom resolution; 19% of patients were PCR positive 2 weeks after symptom resolution. The U.S. CDC test-based criteria for return to work or release from isolation (2 negative PCR tests on consecutive days) should be avoided as a definition of SARS-CoV-2 clearance if testing begins 3 days after symptom resolution; current symptom-based criteria seem reliable. All but 3 of 642 confirmed COVID-19 patients seroconverted to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. IgG antibodies developed over 7 to 50 days from symptom onset and 5 to 49 days from symptom resolution; the medians to higher antibody titers were 24 days from symptom onset and 15 days from symptom resolution. Conclusions are that the optimal timeframe for widespread antibody testing is at least 3 to 4 weeks after symptom onset and at least 2 weeks after symptom resolution.

More than 88,000 additional cases have been reported since May 5, 2020 (through May 6 at 2 p.m. EDT) in the U.S. (> 21,200 cases; > 1,900 deaths), Russia (> 10,500 cases; > 85 deaths), Brazil (> 7,600 cases; > 590 deaths), the U.K. (> 6,200 cases; > 640 deaths), India (> 5,800 cases; > 190 deaths), and in 148 other countries. In examining trends, daily new case numbers appear to have peaked in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iran, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, the U.K., and the U.S., although the daily new case numbers remain high in most of the aforementioned countries. In the U.S., daily new cases have overall plateaued at 28,000 per day over the past 30 days; a peak of more than 36,000 cases was reported on April 24, and cases have decreased to approximately 25,000 per day over the past 5 days. Since April 28, thirty-seven percent of states had the highest daily case numbers since the outbreak began, and 3 states had their highest daily cases in the past 3 days. Only 6 states have had consistent downward trends for the past 2 weeks. As of May 5, twenty-two states have reported more than 10,000 cases. In New York, daily new case numbers, which peaked at more than 11,000, have decreased to approximately 4,200 per day from April 29 through May 5. In NYC, daily new case numbers increased to approximately 4,400 on April 29 and decreased to approximately 2,000 per day from April 30 through May 5. Nationally, daily new deaths in the U.S. have had multiple peaks over the course of the outbreak; a peak of approximately 2,800 deaths was reported on April 22, and following a 5-day consecutive decrease, deaths have increased and plateaued at approximately 2,000 per day over the past 2 days. Among the top 10 most affected states, daily new cases have peaked in Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Texas.

In Africa, more than 46,000 cases and more than 1,800 deaths have been reported in 56 countries from February 25 through May 4, mainly in South Africa (> 7,200 cases; > 130 deaths), Egypt (> 6,800 cases; > 430 deaths), and Morocco (> 5,000 cases; > 170 deaths); since April 22, total cases have increased by more than 50% and deaths by more than 25%. Eritrea, Namibia, and the Seychelles have not reported any new cases since April 22. Only Lesotho has not reported any cases, but locally acquired cases are likely occurring undetected. In Latin America, more than 262,700 cases and more than 13,800 deaths have been reported in all 27 countries from February 26 through May 4, mainly in Brazil (> 102,700 cases; > 7,100 deaths), Peru (> 45,900 cases; > 1,200 deaths), and Ecuador (> 31,800 cases; > 1,500 deaths); total cases increased by more than 50% and deaths by more than 65% from April 27 through May 4.

In the U.S., approximately 40% of the 21,000 cases reported since May 5 have been reported in the top 5 states: California (> 2,400 cases; > 80 deaths), Illinois (> 2,100 cases; > 170 deaths), New Jersey (> 1,400 cases; > 280 deaths), Massachusetts (> 1,100 cases; 120 deaths), and Texas (> 1,100 cases; > 50 deaths). Cumulatively, since January 21, more than 1.24 million cases and more than 73,100 deaths have been reported in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., mainly in New York (> 330,100 cases; > 25,400 deaths), New Jersey (> 133,000 cases; > 8,500 deaths), Massachusetts (> 70,200 cases; > 4,200 deaths), Illinois (> 65,900 cases; > 2,800 deaths), and California (> 58,700 cases; >2,300 deaths). More than 20,600 of these cases (2.3% of the total) have been among children younger than 18 years (through May 5). Disease is exceptionally mild in children and no more severe in immunocompromised children. More than 182,200 total cases have been reported in NYC.