U.S. Records 400,000 Coronavirus Deaths on Eve of Biden Inauguration

Yahoo! News reports that more than 400,000 Americans have died of COVID-19 as of Tuesday, one day before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration. The virus has killed almost as many Americans who died in World War II, with adults over 75 particularly vulnerable. Coronavirus spikes are highly concentrated in the Southwest United States in California and Arizona, and in Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. California reported a local mutation that appears to be driving infections in that state. Biden has urged the vaccination of at least 100 million Americans during his first 100 days in office, as vaccine distribution has proceeded more slowly than expected. "It will be a hefty lift, but we have enough to do that," declared Rochelle Walensky, Biden's nominee for director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She added that the nation could see 500,000 fatalities from COVID-19 by mid-February.