The U.S. is now the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The U.S. is now the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Image credit: Anton Petrus via Getty Images)

The coronavirus outbreak reached a somber milestone in the U.S. on Thursday (March 26) — the nation now has more coronavirus cases than any other country in the world.

There are now at least 82,174 cases of the new coronavirus disease, COVID-19, in the United States, according to worldometer, a website that tracks coronavirus cases. That's higher than the case count in either Italy (which has  80,589 cases) or China (which has 81,285 cases).

Nearly half of all U.S. coronavirus cases are in New York, which has reported more than 37,700 cases.

Just a few days ago, the World Health Organization warned that the U.S. had the potential to become the new epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. coronavirus cases have soared in recent weeks — at the beginning of March, the county had reported only about 100 cases total, according to worldometer.

Coronavirus cases in China, where the outbreak began, initially increased rapidly, but leveled off after about Feb. 20.

Coronavirus science and news

Originally published on Live Science. 

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Rachael Rettner
Rachael Rettner
Contributor

Rachael is a Live Science contributor, and was a former channel editor and senior writer for Live Science between 2010 and 2022. She has a master's degree in journalism from New York University's Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program. She also holds a B.S. in molecular biology and an M.S. in biology from the University of California, San Diego. Her work has appeared in Scienceline, The Washington Post and Scientific American.

7 Comments Comment from the forums
  • rheathco
    The United States will also lead the world in testing. For this reason, we're destined to have more cases. We have more tests being developed by our universities--with 45-minute rapid testing soon to be made available to the public. The author seems to have omitted this pertinent information. It is important that we continue to comply with shelter in place orders, and care for our at-risk neighbors. Misinformation will only cause people to ignore these important recommendations and the needs of others. Make sure you normalize statistics per million and consider that there is always more than meets the eye!
    Reply
  • X13 looking
    This is what Canada is worry about. Trump moving the army to the northern border and most probably will use the military to send all their sick people in Canada. 70 million Americans with no insurance and no protection. Some have paid $1,300.00 for a test already, not including the stay in hospital. Americans are screwed. The poor will brink some common sense to that country.
    Reply
  • The vet
    X13 looking said:
    This is what Canada is worry about. Trump moving the army to the northern border and most probably will use the military to send all their sick people in Canada. 70 million Americans with no insurance and no protection. Some have paid $1,300.00 for a test already, not including the stay in hospital. Americans are screwed. The poor will brink some common sense to that country.
    This is the most ludicrous and asinine comment I have read this year. Are you deranged?
    Reply
  • The vet
    rheathco said:
    The United States will also lead the world in testing. For this reason, we're destined to have more cases. We have more tests being developed by our universities--with 45-minute rapid testing soon to be made available to the public. The author seems to have omitted this pertinent information. It is important that we continue to comply with shelter in place orders, and care for our at-risk neighbors. Misinformation will only cause people to ignore these important recommendations and the needs of others. Make sure you normalize statistics per million and consider that there is always more than meets the eye!
    THis article is a blatant lie using statistics. The USA, per capita, is SIXTH in the world. yes it has the most cases but it is also leading in testing treating, and most importantly, RECOVERY! The media following the lead of the Chinese communist party's propaganda is just nauseating. They are copying this crap word for word.
    Reply
  • The vet
    X13 looking said:
    This is what Canada is worry about. Trump moving the army to the northern border and most probably will use the military to send all their sick people in Canada. 70 million Americans with no insurance and no protection. Some have paid $1,300.00 for a test already, not including the stay in hospital. Americans are screwed. The poor will brink some common sense to that country.
    The test is FREE, your comment is not only a lie, it is ludicrous in the extreme. The Canadians can't even get tested, their system is overloaded and they are turning people away. where are you from, South of China, Guangzhou perhaps?
    Reply
  • wmgrimball
    New York and New Jersey are giving the rest of us a bad reputation. Shame on their governors and the mayor of NYC!
    Reply
  • Tommy Shenanigans
    We can thank the CDC for the initial faulty tests which allowed un-detected further transmission and a delay in ringing the alarm bell in the US.
    Reply