In other news, the Texas Supreme Court has blocked mask mandates in two counties that previously won their challenge against Governor Abbott's ban on mandates.
Meanwhile, some states are now setting new records for coronavirus hospitalizations; higher than at any point this year or last year.
Mississippi broke its Covid-19 hospitalization record Thursday, with more than 1,490 patients statewide, according to state data. Roughly 388 of those are in ICUs. A day earlier, state epidemiologist Dr. Paul Byers warned the minimal available ICU capacity meant dozens of patients are waiting in emergency rooms for an ICU bed. Mississippians should not be surprised if they get sick and end up in a hospital 200 miles away because it's the only facility with availability, state health officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs added.
Finally, National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins says spread of the Delta variant hasn't peaked and new cases could reach 200,000 again soon.
Covid-19 cases have been rising again due to the Delta variant’s highly contagious nature. The nation is seeing more than 129,000 new cases a day, which is up more than 700 percent from the beginning of July. Those numbers could leap up to over 200,000 new cases a day, which were levels unheard of since the deadliest months of January and February, Collins said.
“Here we are with [the] Delta variant, which is so contagious, and this heartbreaking situation where 90 million people are still unvaccinated, who are sitting ducks for this virus, and that's the mess we are in,” Collins said.
All people had to do was get a completely free shot in the arm.