Coronavirus pandemic
The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Delta variant takes hold in U.S. as coronavirus cases rise nearly 70 percent

‘This is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated,’ CDC director says

By
and 
July 16, 2021 at 7:45 p.m. EDT
The delta variant has become the dominant strain of coronavirus in the United States, resulting in a rise in infections and hospitalizations. (Video: John Farrell/The Washington Post)

Federal health officials sounded an alarm Friday about a surge in U.S. coronavirus infections fueled by the twin threats posed by the highly transmissible delta variant and a stagnation in efforts to vaccinate as many Americans as possible.

During a White House briefing, Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the seven-day average of coronavirus infections soared nearly 70 percent in just one week, to about 26,300 cases a day. The seven-day average for hospitalizations has increased, too, climbing about 36 percent from the previous seven-day period, she said.