COVID-19 update: US death toll surpasses 40,000

766,212 Americans have tested positive and 40,905 have died, according to data from Johns Hopkins Hospital’s COVID-19 tracker.

Some states, like South Carolina and Florida, have started lifting orders that were in place to mandate social distancing in order to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Other governors, like New York’s Andrew Cuomo and California’s Gavin Newsom, are continuing restrictive stay-at-home orders as a protective measure against spreading the disease, which is already prevalent in their states.

Newsom signed a pact last Monday with Oregon and Washington, which outlined guidelines to reopening their states.

During his briefing last Monday, he said that the states who have signed the pact will be “driven by facts,” “by science,” and “by evidence,” along with advice from “public health advisers.”

“… We will be driven by the collaborative spirit that defines the best of us at this incredibly important moment,” he stated.

Though the number of positives is at 138,700 cases and the total death toll is at 14,451, Cuomo noted that the one-day death toll was at 478—which is the lowest daily total in two weeks.

The Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) reported 4,377 total positives in South Carolina last night, with 120 deaths attributed to COVID-19, while the Georgia Department of Public Health reported 18,947 cases and 733 deaths.

In South Carolina, Gov. Henry McMaster has relaxed social distancing regulations by opening public boat ramps last Friday and promising to open some nonessential stores, like department stores, florists, bookstores and flea markets.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp outlined several phases of reopening the state, but did not announce specific dates.