Myriam Borzee/iStockBy MATT GUTMAN, EMILY SHAPIRO, BRIAN HARTMAN and MARK OSBORNE, ABC News
(LOS ANGELES) — As coronavirus cases continue to climb across the country, a new forecast from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the U.S. could soon see 150,000 fatalities.
The number of confirmed cases in the U.S. currently stands at 121,969 with 2.38 million confirmed cases, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
There have been over 482,000 deaths globally.
Below is the latest coronavirus news as of Wednesday:
Dozens of Secret Service agents self-quarantine: Report
Dozens of U.S. Secret Service agents are now in self-quarantine after President Donald Trump’s rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma over the weekend, according to a report in The Washington Post.
A source familiar with the matter told ABC News that the number of Secret Service personnel who are self-quarantining for 14 days is in the “low dozens.”
To put that number in context, the Secret Service employs approximately 3,200 special agents, 1,300 uniformed division officers and 2,000 support personnel.
ABC News previously reported two Secret Service members were among the six Trump staffers to test positive before the rally. Two other staffers later tested positive in conjunction with the president’s return to the campaign trail.
The USSS said the self-quarantined members would not affect operational capacity.
“The U.S. Secret Service remains prepared and staffed to fulfill all of the various duties as required,” USSS Director of Communications Catherine Milhoan said in a statement. “Any implication that the agency is in some way unprepared or incapable of executing our mission would be inaccurate.”
“To protect the privacy of our employees’ health information and for operational security, the Secret Service is not releasing how many of its employees have tested positive for COVID-19, nor how many of its employees were, or currently are, quarantined,” the statement added.
Many health officials, including coronavirus task force member Dr. Anthony Fauci, had warned Trump against holding the rally due to COVID-19 fears.
In response to questions about the sick agents, White House deputy press secretary Judd Deere said in a statement, “The President takes the health and safety of everyone traveling in support of himself and all White House operations very seriously. When preparing for and carrying out any travel, White House Operations collaborates with the Physician to the President and the White House Military Office, to ensure plans incorporate current CDC guidance and best practices for limiting COVID-19 exposure to the greatest extent possible.”
Disneyland delays reopening
As Southern California deals with a concerning increase in coronavirus cases, Disneyland is delaying its planned reopening.
Disneyland had previously announced it would reopen on July 17, pending government approval. But the state now says it will not offer guidelines for theme parks to reopen until July 4.
“Given the time required for us to bring thousands of cast members back to work and restart our business, we have no choice but to delay the reopening of our theme parks and resort hotels until we receive approval from government officials,” the park said in a statement. “Once we have a clearer understanding of when guidelines will be released, we expect to be able to communicate a reopening date.”
The Downtown Disney District will still reopen on July 9 as previously planned.
Orange County, which includes Anaheim, has seen over 11,000 confirmed cases, while nearby Los Angeles County has more cases than any other county in the nation.
Nevada mandates masks for everyone
Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak issued a mandate for everyone in the state to wear masks or facial coverings in order to stop the spread of COVID-19.
“I know Nevadans are worried not only about their health but also about their jobs and commerce,” Sisolak tweeted. “They keep asking, ‘What can I do to help?’ You can do this. Everyone can. This simple act is this is not only a way for us to save lives, but a way for us to save the Nevada economy.”
After test positivity rates dropped steadily through May and early June, rates are now creeping up again. The number reached a low of 5.2%, but has been up seven of the last eight days and now sits at 5.7% of tests coming back positive, according to the state Department of Health and Human Services.
“I don’t want to have to take steps backward by imposing stronger restrictions on those identified as high risk if I don’t have to — and the best way to prevent that is to not let a business type or industry become high risk in the first place. It’s on all of us, Nevada,” Sisolak wrote.
“That’s why, today, I signed a directive with a new requirement for Nevadans and visitors to wear a cover their nose and mouth with a mask or face covering, when in public space, whether publicly or privately owned,” he added.
The directive goes into effect on Friday.
So far, there have been 14,362 confirmed cases and 494 deaths in Nevada, according to the state.
Texas COVID cases cross 5,500
The number of cases reported the previous day in Texas was 5,551, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. The total is a new one-day record for the state.
The previous one-day high was 5,489 — recorded Tuesday.
The state also recorded its highest number of tests — both viral and antibody tests — at over 40,000. However, the percentage of positive tests hit a high of 10.42%, a steady climb from one week ago (6.94%).
There have been over 125,000 cases in the state so far, and at least 2,249 deaths.
CDC offers frightening death toll prediction
In the CDC’s weekly “ensemble forecast,” an average of predictions from 20 different models, the organization said that the U.S. death toll will likely be between 130,000 and 150,000 by July 18.
The U.S. death toll currently stands at 121,746.
Forecasts indicate that the number of new deaths will likely surpass the number of deaths reported over the last several weeks in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Hawaii, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah.
In all other states, the number of new fatalities is expected to stay steady or slightly decrease.
California cases see stunning jump
In California, COVID-19 cases saw a stunning 69% jump in just two days, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday.
On Sunday, California reported 4,230 new cases, on Monday there were 5,019 new cases and on Tuesday cases increased by 7,149, Newsom said.
And as the state increases testing, residents should anticipate more of an increase in the positivity rate, the governor warned.
Hospitalization numbers have increased and 30% of ICU capacity statewide is being used, he said.
Newsom urged Californians to wear masks and practice social distancing, stressing that the state is still in the first wave of the virus.
LA County has more cases than any other county
Los Angeles County has more cases of coronavirus than any other county in the U.S.
LA has over 88,500 residents diagnosed with COVID-19, followed by 87,700 cases in Cook County, Illinois, and 64,000 cases in Queens in New York City.
Florida sees major increase
In comparison, the entire state of Florida had 109,000 cases as of Wednesday.
LA County has about 10 million residents while Florida’s population stands at roughly 21.4 million.
But Florida is also seeing a major increase. The state’s Department of Health reported 5,511 news cases Wednesday, representing a 15.91% positivity rate out of 36,300 tests conducted Tuesday — the highest percentage positive in the last calendar month and almost one-third higher than one day earlier.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday blamed rapid transmission in the 18-35 age group for the new rise in daily cases.
“Granted, they’re weren’t being tested at this level a couple months ago,” he said. “But I also think they are testing positive at a higher and higher rate. So clearly you have community spread there.”
LA County public health director reveals death threats
On Monday, the director of LA County’s Department of Public Health, Dr. Barbara Ferrer, revealed that she’s received death threats due to the pandemic.
Ferrer said she was holding a COVID-19 briefing on Facebook Live in May “when someone very casually suggested that I should be shot.”
“I didn’t immediately see the message, but my husband did, my children did, and so did my colleagues,” Ferrer said in a statement.
“One reason I handle these briefings myself is to shield the extraordinary team at L.A. County Public Health from these attacks which have been going on, via emails, public postings, and letters — since March,” she continued. “It is deeply worrisome to imagine that our hardworking infectious disease physicians, nurses, epidemiologists and environmental health specialists or any of our other team members would have to face this level of hatred.”
“Our job and our calling is to keep as many people as safe as possible during this pandemic,” Ferrer said. “While frustration boils over in our communities as people are done with this virus, this virus is not done with us.”
In Los Angeles’ fight against the virus, Los Angeles International Airport is implementing thermal camera technology and city officials are bringing mobile testing to about 25,000 people at 15 Los Angeles public housing developments.
LA County is continuing to reopen in phases. Among the open facilities are bars, wineries, public pools, beaches and piers, day camps, gyms and museums.
Concert venues, nightclubs, youth sports leagues and movie theaters are among the businesses still closed.
ABC News’ Scott Withers and Bonnie Mclean contributed to this report.
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