Coronavirus infections, hospitalizations falling in US

The number of new COVID cases and hospitalizations is decreasing in the United States, said Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Report informs with reference to The Hill.

"We now appear to be in a consistent downward trajectory for both cases, and hospital admissions," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky told reporters during a White House COVID-19 briefing.

Cases have declined since hitting a peak on January 8, dropping 13.4 percent to an average of nearly 144,000 per day from January 26 to February 1, Walensky said.

Deaths are continuing to increase, but the pace is slowing. Fatalities are a lagging indicator, so it will take time before they reflect the lower infection and hospitalization rates.

"The recent decline in hospitalizations gives us hope that the number of deaths should start to decrease in the coming weeks," Walensky said.

In the United States, hospital admissions and deaths due to COVID-19 hit record highs in January: 120,100 people were hospitalized, 95,000 died.