One in 500 Americans has died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began even as the fourth wave continues to show signs of ebbing.
As of Wednesday morning, 663,963 U.S. residents have died from the coronavirus, according to figures complied by Johns Hopkins University - and the country's population sits at 331,449,281, the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows.
When the death toll is divided by the population total, it shows that 0.2 percent of Americans have died from virus-related causes.
The grim milestone comes as the overall number of average COVID-19 infections continues to rise but the growth rate significantly slows.
On Tuesday, officials recorded 143,895 new cases of Covid with a seven-day rolling average of 154,449, according to Johns Hopkins.
This is a 12 percent increase from the 137,058 average reported one month ago, a dramatic decline from the 150 percent increase reported over a four-week period last month.
Nearly half of U.S. states have seen Covid infections either decline or hold steady over the last week, a DailyMail.com analysis of the data shows.
Deaths have risen with 1,823 virus-related fatalities recorded on Tuesday with a seven-day rolling average of 1,873, which is a 163 jump from the average of 644 reported four weeks ago.
However, experts say that fatalities are a lagging indicator and often don't start to decline until two or three weeks after cases do.
While one-time hot spots such as Florida and Louisiana are improving, infection rates are still soaring in some states, such as Ohio and West Virginia, fueled by few restrictions and low vaccination levels.
One in 500 Americans has died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began and 1,823 virus-related fatalities were recorded on Tuesday with a seven-day rolling average of 1,873
On Wednesday, the U.S. recorded 143,895 new cases of Covid with a seven-day rolling average of 154,449, a a 12% rise from the 137,058 average reported one month ago, a decline from 150 % increase reported over a four-week period last month
Nearly half of U.S. states have seen Covid infections either decline or hold steady over the last week
The country is well below the terrifying peaks reached in January 202, when it was averaging about 3,400 deaths and a quarter-million cases per day.
The U.S. is dispensing about 900,000 vaccinations per day, down from a high of 3.4 million a day in mid-April.
On Friday, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel will meet to discuss whether the U.S. should begin giving booster shots of the Pfizer vaccine.
On another positive note, the number of people now in the hospital with COVID-19 appears to be leveling off or even declining at around 90,000, or about where things stood in February.
Last week, President Joe Bien ordered all employers with more than 100 workers to require vaccinations or weekly tests, a measure affecting about 80 million Americans.
And the roughly 17 million workers at health facilities that receive federal Medicare or
