The U.S. set a record in coronavirus cases Thursday with more than 77,000, surpassing the previous one-day record set in July.
An NBC News tally found that 77,640 new cases were reported for the day, up from the July 29 record of 75,723.
Public health officials such as Dr. Jay Butler, deputy director for infectious diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Wednesday afternoon his agency has noted a “distressing trend” in which coronavirus cases numbers are “increasing in nearly 75 percent of the country,” NBC reported.
Midwestern states such as Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska and Wisconsin have recorded increases in cases in the past two weeks, partly due to the fall weather and dropping temperatures keeping people indoors, health officials said.
“Smaller, more intimate gatherings with family, friends and neighbors may be driving infections,” Butler said, while also acknowledging pandemic fatigue among the general public as a factor, NBC reported.