Coronavirus updates: One-day death toll surpasses 3,000; CDC director warns of 450K deaths by February; 48 NBA players test positive - USA TODAY

Latest COVID-19 news.

Experts say side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine range from soreness to fatigue.

The nation's one-day toll of coronavirus deaths surpassed 3,000 for the first time Wednesday, a number perhaps inflated by fatalities reported days late because of the Thanksgiving holiday but still reflective of a pandemic racing out of control.

"The reality is, December and January and February are going to be rough times, and I actually believe they’re going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of our nation, largely because of the stress it’s going to put on our public health system," Dr?

Delta Air Lines is partnering with the CDC to begin coronavirus contact tracing efforts for travelers arriving in the U.S. The airline said in a news release Thursday that the effort is aimed at keeping "international customers informed of potential COVID-19 exposure.".

from an international location to voluntarily provide information for contact tracing and public health follow-up efforts.

In the NBA, 48 of 546 players tested positive for COVID-19 in the first batch of testing for players who returned to their home market the week of Nov.

24-30, the league and the National Basketball Players Association said Wednesday. That’s an 8.7% positivity rate, slightly less than the 10.2% seven-day average for the U.S., per John Hopkins COVID-19 data tracking web site.

"Anyone who has returned a confirmed positive test during this initial phase of testing in their team’s market is isolated until they are cleared for leaving isolation under the rules established by the NBA and the Players Association in accordance with CDC guidance," the NBA and NBPA said in a news release.

Vice President Mike Pence was bound for Memphis, Tennessee, on Thursday to hold a roundtable discussion on distributing a COVID-19 vaccine.

Though a vaccine has not yet been authorized in the U.S., officials are preparing for mass distribution of doses. Pence will be meeting with executives of FedEx, the Memphis-based shipping giant that will be among key transportation players in distributing a COVID-19 vaccine once approved. Operation Warp Speed, the White House-led initiative to develop and distribute vaccines, plans to begin the first vaccine deliveries within 24 hours of FDA authorization.

Masks should be worn outdoors and in well ventilated indoor spaces where physical distancing of at least three feet can't be maintained, the guidelines say. In areas of COVID-19 spread, WHO also advised “universal” wearing of medical masks in health care facilities, including when caring for other patients.

IBM analysts have detected a global phishing campaign targeting organizations associated with an overseas supply chain used for vaccine distribution. Spoofed emails impersonating a Chinese biomedical executive targeted organizations that help meet "transportation needs within the COVID-19 cold chain,” analysts wrote.

The purpose of the phishing campaign "may have been to harvest credentials, possibly to gain future unauthorized access to corporate networks and sensitive information relating to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution,” analysts Melissa Frydrych and Claire Zaboeva wrote.

Without masks and a vaccine, we could reach Herd Immunity from COVID-19, but deaths would skyrocket.

“Unfortunately, for children, the impact of this pandemic will be felt for years,” said Dimitri Christakis, a pediatrician who directs the Seattle Children’s Hospital Center for Child Health, Behavior and Development. 8

Bush and Bill Clinton are volunteering to get inoculated on camera once COVID-19 vaccines win FDA approval. The three most recent former presidents hope an awareness campaign would be a powerful message as American public health officials try to persuade the public to take the vaccine, CNN reports. .

The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients nationwide passed the 100,000 mark for the first time Wednesday, an alarming statistic fueling enormous strain on the health care system and its brave but beleaguered workers. 

Some experts said the total, compiled by the COVID Tracking Project and at 100,226 Wednesday night, could soon double

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge on Wednesday ordered public health officials in the nation's largest county to provide evidence of high-risk COVID-19 transmission that justifies the outdoor dining ban imposed last week as cases surge statewide

A Hawaiian couple that boarded a flight from San Francisco to Lihue, Hawaii, after knowingly testing positive for COVID-19 have been arrested. 

Doug Ducey on Wednesday unveiled a series of new mitigation measures designed to curb spiking caseloads and hospitalizations. Saying Arizona's numbers were "heading in the wrong direction," he announced expanded health and safety requirements for public events approved by cities and counties