Coronavirus Pandemic in the USA

The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is part of the worldwide

pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). More than 22,400,000
confirmed cases have been reported since January 2020, resulting in more than
374,000 deaths, the most of any country and the thirteenth-highest on a per capita
basis. The U.S. has nearly a quarter of the world's cases and a fifth of all deaths.
COVID-19 became the third leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2020, behind
heart disease and cancer.
On December 31, 2019, China announced the discovery of a cluster
of pneumonia cases in Wuhan. The first American case was reported on January
20, and President Donald Trump declared the U.S. outbreak a public health
emergency on January 31. Restrictions were placed on flights arriving from China,
[11][12]
but the initial U.S. response to the pandemic was otherwise slow, in terms of
preparing the healthcare system, stopping other travel, and testing. Meanwhile,
Trump downplayed the threat posed by the virus and claimed the outbreak was
under control.
The first known American deaths occurred in February.[18][b] On March 6,
Trump signed the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental
Appropriations Act, which provided $8.3 billion in emergency funding for federal
agencies to respond to the outbreak. On March 13, President Trump declared
a national emergency. In mid-March, the Trump administration started to purchase
large quantities of medical equipment,[21] and in late March, it invoked the Defense
Production Act to direct industries to produce medical equipment. By April 17, the
federal government approved disaster declarations for all states and territories. By
mid-April, cases had been confirmed in all fifty U.S. states, and by November in
all inhabited U.S. territories. A second rise in infections began in June 2020,
following relaxed restrictions in several states.
State and local responses to the outbreak have included prohibitions and
cancellation of large-scale gatherings (including festivals and sporting
events), stay-at-home orders, and the closure of schools. Disproportionate numbers
of cases have been observed among Black and Latino populations, and there were
reported incidents of xenophobia and racism against Asian Americans. Clusters of
infections and deaths have occurred in many areas.