Coronavirus Death Toll: US, Germany Dealing With Sharp Increase

The coronavirus continues to impact many countries around the world, with the U.S. and Germany experiencing severe outbreaks.

On Friday, the number of coronavirus cases in the United States topped 500,000. New York and New Jersey are believed to have already passed their high point of cases this week, while Texas and Florida could see peak infections by the end of the month, according to a model by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a shutdown order on March 19, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis implemented similar measures on April 3.

President Trump wants the U.S. to reopen the economy but has said that he would only ease restrictive measures with the approval of health experts.

“I’m going to have to make a decision, and I only hope to God that it’s the right decision,” Trump said Friday regarding easing shutdown measures. “Without question it’s the biggest decision I’ve ever had to make.”

If shutdown measures are lifted too soon, it could cause a resurgence in cases. The U.S. has the most cases of coronavirus in the world (501,680) and the death toll has risen to 18,860 as of Saturday at 12:35 p.m. ET.

In Germany, 266 people died Friday from the virus, the country’s single highest death toll in one day. Berlin has rolled out a widespread testing program and has banned gatherings of more than two people.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that “the coronavirus curve is flattening out slightly” but added that the virus will be "with us some time to come.”

Germany has 122,530 cases of coronavirus and 2,736 deaths.

The U.S. has the largest economy in the world while Germany has the largest economy in Europe. The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday reported that nearly 17 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits in the last three weeks. The Financial Times cited a senior economist at German insurer Allianz who said that Germany’s unemployment rate would likely rise briefly above 6% this year.