The number of COVID-19 deaths per day in the US fell to its lowest point in more than a year on Sunday, and the country recorded 222 deaths.
The United States saw the 676 deaths fall on Saturday, according to statistics from Johns Hopkins University. Data shows that the number of daily deaths reached its lowest point since the beginning of the pandemic on March 23, 2020, when 192 deaths were documented.
Sunday’s death toll is a decline from the seven-day average of deaths through Saturday of 804 deaths per day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That’s less than 968 the week before.
The low death total for Sunday could also reflect different reporting patterns of the state and county COVID-19 statistics on weekends, according to The New York Times. Johns Hopkins University data generally shows a drop in deaths on Saturdays and Sundays.
Only 222 COVID deaths were reported in the US yesterday, which is the fewest since March 23, 2020. https://t.co/WbBcN2canq pic.twitter.com/FAyvg7tp4Z
– Nate Silver (@ NateSilver538) April 5, 2021
CDC Director Rochelle Walenksy said the seven-day average of deaths had decreased compared to last week’s data during a White House COVID-19 response team briefing.
But he warned that the country was entering its fourth week of “increasing trends and cases,” including CDC data documenting a seven-day average of about 64,000 cases and 4,970 hospital admissions per day.
The news comes when Walensky has balanced warning of the risks still present in the pandemic and expressing encouragement for the progress of the vaccination effort in recent days.
“While we are watching this increase in cases with concern, the good news is that millions of Americans are stepping up every day to get vaccinated,” he said during Monday’s briefing.
Health officials celebrated Monday that nearly a quarter of American adults – nearly 60 million – are fully vaccinated, and that 40 percent of adults receive at least one dose.
Last week, Walensky warned of an “imminent fatality” as COVID-19 cases spiked if people did not follow health precautions.