New COVID-19 Data

The number of new COVID-19 cases reported daily in the U.S. is falling. That’s according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University, in Maryland. By the end of August, about 43,000 new cases were being reported daily in the U.S. That number was down 21% from the early part of the month.

“It’s profoundly hopeful news,” Dr. Monica Gandhi told the AP. She teaches medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Gandhi says the numbers have gone down because more people in the U.S. understand how the virus spreads and are wearing masks.

Still, the U.S. has reached 6 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, more than any other country. At press time, nearly 185,000 people had died in the U.S. from the disease. Worldwide, the coronavirus has infected more than 25 million people. The pandemic has closed businesses and schools. It has put people out of work.

Dr. Jonathan Quick told the AP that the drop in U.S. cases is a “good trend, but nowhere near what we need [it] to be.” Quick works for the Rockefeller Foundation. He and other experts say more testing is needed. This can help scientists trace the spread of the virus and prevent it from spreading further.

Stop and Think! Who are the people quoted in the article? What makes them reliable sources? What other sources might the author have included in this story, and why?