Timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States


The following is a timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.

Timeline

January

Prior to January 19

On December 31, 2019, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention became aware of cases in China and began developing reports for the Department of Health and Human Services on January1.
On January 3, CDC Director Robert Redfield was notified by a counterpart in China that a "mysterious respiratory illness was spreading in Wuhan "; he notified HHS Secretary Alex Azar, who shared the report with the National Security Council. According to The Washington Post, warnings about the virus were included in the President's Daily Brief in early January, an indicator of the emphasis placed on the virus by the intelligence community.
On January 5, the World Health Organization reported a "pneumonia of unknown cause" in Wuhan, China. The WHO advised against travel or trade restrictions at the time.
On January 6, CDC Director offered in a letter to Chinese officials to send a team of CDC scientists to assist China. China did not accept the offer for several weeks, which delayed the U.S. access to the virus, important for developing diagnostic tests and a vaccine. China did release genetic data on the new coronavirus on January9.
During the week of January 6, officials of the Department of Health and Human Services convened an intra-agency task force including Redfield, Azar, and Anthony S. Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
On January 7, Ohio claims to have the first COVID-19 patient per the data download at https://coronavirus.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/covid-19/dashboards
On January 8, the CDC issued its first public alert about the coronavirus.
On January 9, the WHO issued a statement naming the disease as a new coronavirus in Wuhan.
On January 10, the WHO issued a comprehensive package of guidance to countries on how to test for potential cases. By this date, the WHO warned of the risk of human-to-human transmission.
On January 14, the WHO held a press briefing stating that their information suggested a possibility of limited, but not sustained, human-to-human transmission. The WHO recommended countries to take precautions due to the human-to-human transmission during earlier SARS and MERS outbreaks. The WHO also tweeted that "preliminary investigations conducted by the Chinese authorities have found no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission of the novel #coronavirus ". The head of China's National Health Commission, Ma Xiaowei, confidentially provided a "grim" situation assessment to key Chinese health officials. The related memo said "human-to-human transmission is possible." An investigation by AP News indicated that the reporting of a case in Thailand prompted the meeting, as well as the risk of spread with heightened travel during the Chinese New Year and various political considerations. However, the Chinese public is not warned until January 20.
Beginning January 17, the CDC dispatched public health experts to screen incoming airport passengers at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, adding monitors at Chicago and Atlanta in late January.
On January 18, HHS Secretary Azar discussed the coronavirus outbreak with President Donald Trump, who criticized Azar for being "alarmist".

January 20–28

On January 20, both the WHO and Chinese authorities announced the confirmation that human-to-human transmission of the coronavirus had already occurred.
The first recorded U.S. case of the new virus was also reported on January 20, in an American citizen traveling from Wuhan, China, to his home in Washington state.
By January 20, the CDC developed its own coronavirus test and used it to evaluate the first U.S. case. The CDC test was soon found to be defective, with the third probe giving inconclusive results. The CDC directed state health department labs to send all samples to the CDC lab in Atlanta for evaluation, significantly increasing testing turn-around times.
On January 20, Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping and State Council premier Li Keqiang issued the first public warning about the coronavirus to Chinese citizens.
A man who had returned from Wuhan was hospitalized for the virus in Washington state on January 21, 2020. He was released after two weeks of treatment. A few days later, another case was reported in Chicago, by a woman who had also just returned from Wuhan. A third case was confirmed a day later in Orange County, California.
On January 22, Trump received his first public question from a reporter regarding whether he was concerned about the coronavirus. Trump responded: "No, not at all. And we have it totally under control. It's one person coming in from China... It's going to be just fine."
On January 23, Chinese authorities shut down Wuhan, a city of 11 million, which heightened the urgency for the U.S. response team. The Washington Post reported that Secretary Azar instructed his team to establish a surveillance mechanism shortly thereafter, but the money and diagnostic tests "would elude U.S. officials for months". The entire Hubei province, which contains Wuhan, was locked-down January 30.
On January 23, the World Health Organization published a statement on the coronavirus, indicating that: "Human-to-human transmission is occurring and a preliminary R0 estimate of 1.4–2.5 was presented. Amplification has occurred in one health care facility. Of confirmed cases, 25% are reported to be severe. The source is still unknown and the extent of human-to-human transmission is still not clear." At the time, the fatality rate was 4%. The WHO recommended that: "ll countries should be prepared for containment, including active surveillance, early detection, isolation and case management, contact tracing and prevention of onward spread of 2019-nCoV infection, and to share full data with WHO."
On January 24, the U.S. Senate was briefed on the coronavirus by key health officials. U.S. Senators Richard M. Burr, Kelly Loeffler, Dianne Feinstein, and James Inhofe allegedly sold stock thereafter, prior to significant declines in the stock market. In Senator Loeffler's case, the sales began the same day as the briefing. All denied any wrongdoing, citing various reasons. Senator Burr faced calls for his resignation.
On January 24, President Trump praised China for its coronavirus efforts in a tweet.
Two more cases were confirmed on January 26, similarly by two people who had returned from Wuhan. All cases to this point were allowed to self-isolate at home for two weeks, whereafter they were assumed to be no longer infected or contagious.
On January 27, the WHO assessed the risk of the coronavirus to be "high at the global level".

January 29–31

On January 29, the U.S. formally announced a White House Coronavirus Task Force, including senior officials such as acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and others at HHS, CDC, and the U.S. State Department. President Trump attended the meeting on January 29, and tweeted related photos. However, the scope was limited initially to the logistics of keeping travelers out of the U.S. from China, and evacuating U.S. citizens. They did not initially focus on testing or supplies in the U.S.
On January 29, the U.S. government evacuated 195 State Department employees from Wuhan along with their families and other U.S. citizens to March Air Reserve Base near Riverside, California, where they were kept under quarantine for 14 days, although none had been infected.
The New York Times reported that President Trump was told "at the time" of a January 29 memo by trade adviser Peter Navarro that the coronavirus could cause as many as half a million deaths and trillions in economic damage. Further, on January 30, HHS Secretary Azar warned President Trump about the "possibility of a pandemic".
On January 29, WHO Health Emergencies program leader Dr. Mike Ryan said in a press briefing: "The whole world needs to be on alert now... and be ready for any cases that come from the epicenter..." At the time, 68 cases had been confirmed outside China, affecting persons in 15 countries.
On January 30, the first case of person-to-person transmission was confirmed in Chicago, between a married couple, after the wife returned from China.
On January 30, the WHO named the coronavirus outbreak that originated in Wuhan, China, a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, warning that "all countries should be prepared for containment, including active surveillance, early detection, isolation and case management, contact tracing and prevention of onward spread". The statement also praised the "impressive" Chinese response. The WHO also released a statement that included: "The Committee believes that it is still possible to interrupt virus spread, provided that countries put in place strong measures to detect disease early, isolate and treat cases, trace contacts, and promote social distancing measures commensurate with the risk." However, the federal government and individual states did not direct their populations to practice social distancing until March 19. Further, as late as April8, five states had no social distancing rules and three others had rules for only parts of the state.
at a briefing of the Coronavirus Task Force
On January 31, another case of a person who returned from Wuhan was confirmed in California, which marked the seventh known case in the U.S.
On January 31, the Trump Administration, through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, declared a public health emergency, and imposed a mandatory 14-day quarantine for any U.S. citizens who has visited Hubei Province in China within the preceding two weeks. It also began denying entry of non-U.S. nationals who had traveled to China within the preceding two weeks. This was the first such travel restriction by the U.S. in more than 50 years.
President Trump repeatedly claimed credit for acting early with the travel ban. However, The Washington Post reported that 300,000 people traveled to the U.S. from China during the month prior to the ban. The New York Times reported that more than 40,000 persons traveled from China to the U.S. after the January 31 partial ban, and around 430,000 total between the December 31 disclosure of the outbreak by China and April4. The Washington Post reported that six other countries had restricted travel from China before January 30, six did so on January 31, and by the time U.S. travel restrictions became effective on February2, 38 other countries had taken action before or at the same time as the U.S. restrictions. The earliest action was Singapore on January 23. Flights from Europe were not banned until March 11, with hundreds of thousands crossing the Atlantic into the U.S., due to disputes about the impact on the U.S. economy among Trump Administration officials.

February

February 1–15

New cases are being reported throughout the country nearly every day. Many are people who have recently returned from China, including a college student from Boston and a woman in California who returned from Wuhan. Two more cases of person-to-person transmission are reported in California.
The Washington Post reported that HHS Secretary Azar, responding to concerns about a "startling shortage" of essential medical supplies wrote letters in late January and early February asking for additional funding. Since China also needed such supplies, replenishing them could be difficult as much of the manufacturing was in China. He also made a formal request for $4billion on February5, which "OMB officials and others at the White House greeted as an outrage". Congress later increased the figure to $8billion, and Trump signed it into law on March6, but this delay meant that the U.S. would increasingly compete with other nations for such supplies.
On February 3, 49 members of Congress signed a letter to CDC Director Redfield highlighting the urgency of distributing a rapid diagnostic kit that could be processed locally, rather than centrally at the CDC in Atlanta, which they referred to as an "unsustainable bottleneck" as the number of suspected cases rise.
On February 3, Reuters reported that WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there was no need for measures that "unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade" to halt the coronavirus. He praised the Chinese response, and referred to the virus's spread as "minimal and slow".
On February 5, the twelfth case is discovered: another college student from Wisconsin. That day, the U.S. evacuates 345 citizens from Hubei Province and takes them to two air bases in California to be quarantined for 14 days. Another government evacuation flight takes place on February6, containing 300 passengers, most of who are taken to bases in Nebraska and Texas. By this time, more than 500 people are quarantined at three air bases.
On February 6, the Centers for Disease Control began sending 90 of its own viral detection tests to state-run labs which discovered the tests were inadequate and viral samples had to be shipped to the Atlanta CDC lab instead.
Also on February6, the WHO Director-General said: "We have shipped 250,000 tests to more than 70 laboratories around the world, and we're training lab workers to use them." Researchers at Stanford and other laboratories had developed tests following the WHO protocol, but "relatively tight" rules at the Food and Drug Administration discouraged them from using them. These rules were not relaxed until early March.
On February 6, 57-year-old Patricia Dowd of San Jose, California became the first Covid-19 death in the United States discovered by April 2020. She died at home without any known recent foreign travel, after being unusually sick from flu in late January, then recovering, working from home, and suddenly dying on February 6. A February7 autopsy was completed in April and attributed the death to Transmural Myocardial Ischemia with a Minor Component of Myocarditis due to COVID-19 Infection. Her case indicates that community transmission was happening undetected in the US, most likely since December.
On February 11, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a briefing: " virus is more powerful in creating political, economic and social upheaval than any terrorist attack... If the world doesn't want to wake up and consider this enemy virus and Public Enemy Number1, I don't think we will learn our lessons."
From February 12 to 15, three more cases are confirmed, all who travelled from Wuhan, and are similarly quarantined.

February 15–29

On February 15, the government evacuates 338 U.S. nationals stranded aboard the cruise ship Diamond Princess, which had been held in quarantine in Yokohama, Japan. Fourteen of those repatriated people are infected with the virus. Five more nationals who were also reported as being infected are evacuated from the ship the following week, and are quarantined at an airbase in California. Six more cases are subsequently confirmed among those who were evacuated from the cruise ship.
The New York Times reported that the Chief Medical Officer of the Department of Homeland Security, Dr. Duane C. Caneva, continued hosting a series of coronavirus e-mail chains begun in January among a group of infectious disease experts from academia and government. The group referred to these chains as the "Red Dawn" e-mails,. On February 17, an e-mail from one participant indicated that the type of social gathering on the Diamond Princess cruise ship wasn't that different from a mall, school, or work environment. Another February 17 e-mail indicated that non-pharmaceutical interventions such as school and business closures would be difficult for local officials to direct without federal action to provide political cover. By the third week of February, the group had "effectively concluded that the United States had already lost the fight to contain the virus, and that it needed to switch to mitigation" such as NPI's. This was based on the "realization that many people in the country were likely infected and capable of spreading the disease, but not showing any symptoms". For instance, by the time of the European travel ban on March 11, the group considered such containment steps ineffective. Trump still had not directed NPI's as of March 11. As late as March 13, the CDC was still questioning the benefit of closing schools. Governors began to implement NPI's thereafter, "largely without federal leadership".
On February 20 and 21, two more cases of people who had returned from China are confirmed in California. The first case of community transmission, because it had no known origin, is confirmed in Solano County, California, on February 26. A second case of unknown origin is confirmed two days later, also in California, followed by others in Oregon and Washington state.
By mid-February, the U.S. was testing about a hundred samples per day. Researchers concluded in late February that "the virus had probably been spreading for weeks" person-to-person. The CDC test initially used three genetic sequences or "probes", but sometime after February 24, directed states to use a workaround of using two of the three probes and evaluating them locally.
On February 24, President Trump tweeted: "The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA... CDC and World Health have been working hard and very smart."
On February 25, HHS Secretary Azar testified before the U.S. Senate. National Geographic summarized his testimony, reporting that "the Strategic National Stockpile has just 30million surgical masks and 12million respirators in reserve." An additional 300million of each could be required to protect health workers. HHS said it intended to purchase as many as half a billion respirators and surgical face masks over the next year and a half. National Geographic concluded that the "U.S. has only a fraction of the medical supplies it needs to combat coronavirus."
On February 25, Dr. Nancy Messonnier, Director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, delivered a briefing indicating that "disruption to everyday life might be severe." The New York Times reported that President Trump was "furious", and HHS Secretary Azar attempted downplay her comments in a news conference later that day.
On February 26 at a news conference, President Trump said: "When you have 15 people, and the 15 within a couple of days is going to be down close to zero, that's a pretty good job we've done."
On February 26, Vice-President Mike Pence was appointed to lead the Coronavirus Task Force, replacing HHS Secretary Azar as the group's leader. Pence was the first official from within Trump's White House to coordinate the planning and response, two months after the government became aware of the coronavirus.
On February 29, the first death from coronavirus in the U.S. was reported at EvergreenHealth Medical Center in Kirkland, Washington, followed by two other confirmed cases in a nursing home in the same city. New cases continued to show up in California and Illinois.

March

March 1–2

In New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo announces the state's first reported case of COVID-19: a woman in her late 30s, who apparently contracted the virus while traveling in Iran and is self-isolating at home, in New York City. Oregon confirmed its second case, a household contact of its first case. The Rhode Island Department of Health announces a presumptive case in a person in their 40s who had traveled to Italy in mid-February, and a second case, a teenager who had traveled with the first person.
On March 2, coronavirus cases in the U.S. reach 100, including repatriated citizens from Wuhan or the Diamond Princess. New Hampshire officials announce the state's first case, an employee with Dartmouth–Hitchcock Medical Center who had been to Italy.

March 3–4

On March 3, when the state has no confirmed cases, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine cancels the Arnold Classic due to coronavirus concerns, a move which the Washington Post said seemed radical at the time. On March3, Arizona's Department of Health Services reports a new confirmed case in Maricopa County, a man in his 20s who had made contact with a case outside of Arizona. The man was isolated in his home. In New Hampshire, public health officials confirm a second case of coronavirus in an individual who made contact with the first case after the first case defied quarantine orders and attended a private event organized by Dartmouth College's Tuck School of Business in White River Junction, Vermont. New York officials announce the state's second confirmed case: a man in his 50s in New Rochelle, Westchester County who had not recently traveled to any foreign countries affected by the outbreak. In North Carolina, Governor Roy Cooper announces the state's first confirmed case: a person who had traveled to Washington and was "exposed at a long term care facility". They are in stable condition and in isolation at their home.
On March 4, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirms that a "contract medical screener" for the CDC working at the Los Angeles International Airport tested positive for coronavirus. The individual is in self-isolation at home. New York officials confirm four new cases of coronavirus: the wife, son, and daughter of the second case, as well as the man's neighbor who drove him to the hospital. The new cases prompt the partial closure of the main campus of Yeshiva University, where the man's son is a student, as well as the high school in the Bronx borough of New York City where the daughter is a student. On the same day, another five confirmed cases are reported in a friend of the second case, as well as that friend's wife, two sons, and daughter.
HHS announced the intent to purchase approximately 500 million N95 respirators over the following 18 months to respond to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

March 5

Nevada, Colorado, Tennessee, and Maryland announce their first cases, New Jersey announces a second presumptive case, while Washington announces 31 new cases.
Ten states report their first case of coronavirus: Hawaii, Utah, Nebraska, Kentucky, Indiana, Minnesota, Connecticut, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma. Many cases are associated with passengers from the Grand Princess cruise ship, which is being held off the California coast near San Francisco. Testing on the ship reveals 21 positives. The day also sees 6deaths reported. Four are reported from Washington, by the hospital that treated patients from the LifeCare long-term care facility. Two are reported from Florida, and represent the third state with reported deaths. This brings the total deaths to 18, 15 in Washington, 1in California, and 2in Florida.
Virginia, Kansas, Missouri, and Washington, D.C. announces its first cases. A new death is reported for March7 in Washington. This brings the total confirmed U.S. deaths due to coronavirus to 19, 16 in Washington, 1in California, and 2in Florida. In Pennsylvania, Governor Tom Wolf announces two new positive cases in Montgomery County; both cases are related to travel within the United States.

March 8

Iowa and Vermont report their first cases of infection with the coronavirus. Three new deaths were reported in WA. This brought the total confirmed U.S. deaths due to coronavirus to 22: 19 in Washington, 1in California, and 2in Florida.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine declares a state of emergency after Ohio reports its first cases of COVID-19. As of March9, Alabama, Alaska, Idaho, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and West Virginia have no cases, while Montana, Delaware, Wyoming and Arkansas have suspected cases. Washington reports 3new deaths and California1, bringing the number of U.S. coronavirus deaths to 26.
It is reported that the Trump administration, without explanation, postponed the Director of National Intelligence's annual US World Wide Threat Assessment which warns that the U.S. remains unprepared for a global pandemic. The office of the DNI was scheduled to deliver the Assessment to the House Intelligence Committee on February 12.
South Dakota and Michigan report their first cases. Mitigation measures are expanded in New York, Massachusetts and Washington with a transition to online classes for universities and colleges. The first semi-containment zone is announced in New York. Two new deaths are reported in Washington and one death each in California, New Jersey, and South Dakota. This brings the total number of U.S. deaths to 31.
Confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States surpass 1,100. Arkansas, Delaware, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Dakota and Wyoming reported their first cases. More universities and colleges suspend classes or move to remote-access teaching. Washington Governor Jay Inslee orders a halt to all gatherings of greater than 250 in three counties, while Ohio Governor Mike DeWine orders all public gatherings of more than 1,000 people to be banned statewide. Five new deaths are reported in Washington and one death in California. This brings the total U.S. deaths to 37.
President Trump said in an Oval Office address: "The vast majority of Americans, the risk is very, very low."
WHO Director-General Tedros said the WHO "made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic".

March 12

Total U.S. cases passed 1,500. More universities and colleges transitioned to online attendance across the country. Public school closures are announced in Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico, Ohio, Utah, Virginia and Washington state. Georgia and Kansas report their first deaths and Washington state reports 2additional deaths. This brings the total U.S. deaths to 41.
Most major sports leagues, including MLS, the NHL, and the National Lacrosse League, announce the suspension of their seasons that are already in progress. The XFL terminates its inaugural season, while Major League Baseball announces the cancellation of all remaining spring training games and delays the start of their 2020 season. In addition, the NCAA cancels all postseason tournaments in their winter and spring sports, which includes the men's and women's basketball tournaments, as well as the baseball and softball tournaments. The cancellation of the basketball tournament marks the first time the tournament will not be held due to unforeseen circumstances.
On March 12, HHS placed its first order of N95 respirators for healthcare workers of $4.8million. However, the supplier contract required delivery to begin around the end of April. Former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius stated: "We basically wasted two months."

March 13

Total U.S. cases passed 2,100. Colorado reported its first death, Florida and California both reported an additional death, and Washington state reported 6additional deaths. This brought the total number of deaths in the U.S. to 50. The NHL asked players to self-quarantine for a week or more in an attempt to save the season.
Later that day, President Trump took a COVID-19 test after coming into contact with several people who had contracted the disease and found to be negative. On March 13 the House passed an for workers and individuals that was supported by President Trump.
In a March 13, 2020 report "not for public distribution", the United States Department of Health and Human Services used the working assumptions for their response plan, that the COVID-19 "pandemic will last 18 months or longer and could include multiple waves of illness", and that resultant "supply chain and transportation impacts" would "likely result in significant shortages".
On March 13, Reuters reported that Germany and Italy ordered 10,000 and 5,000 ventilators, respectively. The U.S. follows with a 10,000 ventilator order in late March, with many not expected to arrive until the summer or fall, too late for the expected peak impact.

March 14

The total U.S. cases passed 2,700. Five additional deaths were reported by state health departments: three in Washington, one in Florida, and one in Louisiana. In addition, New York's first death was reported in the news media and the governor of New Jersey announced the state's second death on Twitter. This brought reported deaths to 7for the day.
On March 15, the CDC issued guidance recommending against any gathering of 50 or more people for an eight-week period.
President Trump issued new guidelines urging people to avoid social gatherings of more than ten people and to restrict discretionary travel. He stopped short of ordering a quarantine or a curfew, but he said restrictions may last until July or August. He acknowledged that the country may be headed for a recession. Despite the fact that the Federal Reserve Bank lowered interest rates the day prior, the stock market fell once again.
5,145 people in the United States have been infected; at least 91 have died. The Peace Corps fires all 7,300 volunteers in 61 countries.
As of March 17, vessel manifests maintained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection showed a steady flow of the medical equipment needed to treat the coronavirus being shipped abroad. FEMA, meanwhile, said the agency "has not actively encouraged or discouraged U.S. companies from exporting overseas", and has asked USAID to send back its reserves of protective gear stored in warehouses for use in the U.S.
President Trump told reporters: "This is a pandemic... I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic."

March 18

Three thousand doctors and medical workers sign a letter asking ICE to release individuals and families detained for immigration violations, noting that overcrowded conditions are ripe for the propagation of a virus.
The U.S has 19,285 confirmed cases of COVID-19 resulting in 249 deaths.
President Trump tweeted about potential coronavirus treatments, specifying Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin.

March 22

Coronavirus deaths in the United States stand at 326.
WHO Director-General Tedros said, "Using untested medicines without the right evidence could raise false hope and do more harm than good." He also described the pandemic as "accelerating".

March 24

Senate Republicans and Democrats strike a deal on a version of the stimulus bill which includes: providing $1,200 to most adults, $600 a week unemployment benefits on top of state unemployment benefits and to last potentially for four months and including freelancers and other workers in the "gig economy", and $500billion for businesses and municipalities. This last part is to be overseen by an inspector general in the Treasury Department and a Congressional Oversight panel.
A survey of more than forty leading economists by the University of Chicago published on March 27 indicated that prematurely ending lockdowns would do more economic harm than good. Specifically, none of the economists surveyed disagreed with the statement that: "Abandoning severe lockdowns at a time when the likelihood of a resurgence in infections remains high will lead to greater total economic damage than sustaining the lockdowns to eliminate the resurgence risk."
President Trump signs the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act into law on March 27.

March 28

Admiral Brett Giroir of the United States Public Health Service reports, at the President's Sunday press conference, that total testing for the virus in the U.S. is 894,000.
As of March 31, Our World in Data reported there were 3,170 deaths, 164,620 confirmed cases, and 1.07million tests completed in the U.S.
The NYT reported on March 28 that despite significant improvement in testing capacity in the U.S., "hospitals and clinics across the country still must deny tests to those with milder symptoms, trying to save them for the most serious cases, and they often must wait a week for results." Mr. Trump asked the South Korean president for as many kits as possible from the 100,000 produced daily there. However, "having the ability to diagnose the disease three months after it was first disclosed by China does little to address why the United States was unable to do so sooner, when it might have helped reduce the toll of the pandemic." One expert indicated the delay of testing adversely impacted other aspects of the coronavirus response. Vox reported that during the week of March 25 to April1, the U.S. was "performing about 110,000 tests per day". Several experts estimated that between 500,000 and "millions" of tests per day are necessary. There are many challenges to ramping up capacity: "Complaints vary, but labs say they don't have enough swabs, test kits, reagents, personal protective equipment, staff, or machines to run the specific tests required." Money and regulations are also challenges.

April

April 1

President Trump alleges that the WHO mishandled the pandemic. He questioned why the WHO had recommended "keeping our borders open to China early on", advice he rejected. He mentioned the WHO was funded largely by the U.S., but was very "China-centric".

April 8

AP reported that: "Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious disease expert, said Tuesday that the U.S. does not yet have the critical testing and tracing procedures needed to begin reopening the nation's economy... Fauci said that a May1 target is 'a bit overly optimistic' for many areas of the country. Any easing off the strict social-distancing rules in place in much of the country would have to occur on a rolling basis, not all at once."
President Trump announced his decision to halt U.S. funding to the WHO, alleging the U.S. would review alleged mismanagement and cover-up efforts. WHO officials disputed his allegations the following day, saying that: a) the world was alerted January 5; b) countries globally began to respond January 6; and c) WHO provided updates throughout the period.
As of April 16, there were 639,664 confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S., with 30,985 confirmed deaths, a 4.8% mortality rate. An estimated 3.24million tests had been conducted, indicating about 20% of those tested had coronavirus.

April 17

As of April 30, Our World in Data reported that for the U.S. there were 60,966 total deaths, 1.04million confirmed cases, and 6.25million tests completed. The U.S. averaged about 145,200 tests per day between April1 and April 15 and 199,000 per day from April 16 to April 30.

May

May 1

The number of COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. tops 100,000.
As of May 31, Our World in Data reported that for the U.S. there were 103,781 total deaths, 1.77 million confirmed cases, and about 14 million tests completed.

June

June 1

The Pentagon reports biggest increase in the Department of Defense since mid- April on Covid-19 cases bringing the number up to 10,462. The DoD includes military members, their dependents, contractors and civilians. The United States Navy remains as the most affected Branch as of June 5.
As of June 30, Our World in Data reported that for the U.S. there were 126,140 total deaths, 2.59 million confirmed cases, and about 30 million tests completed.

July

July 2

August 1