Feb. 17 (UPI) -- After days of declines, new coronavirus cases and deaths across the United States increased slightly on Tuesday, according to updated data from Johns Hopkins University.
The data Wednesday shows there was an addition of about 62,400 COVID-19 cases nationwide on Tuesday, an increase of about 8,000 cases from the previous day.
Before the new figure, national cases had declined for four straight days. Despite the rise in new cases, the figure remains well below the average for November, December and January.
The relative increase was slightly more pronounced for coronavirus-related deaths in the United States on Tuesday. The data show almost 1,800 new deaths on Tuesday, about 900 more than the previous day.
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Since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 27.8 million COVID-19 cases in the United States and about 488,200 related deaths, according to Johns Hopkins.
The slight uptick in cases and deaths came on the same day the Biden administration promised to increase vaccine distribution to states and pharmacies -- and President Joe Biden promised during a town hall event in Milwaukee Tuesday night that the vaccine will be widely available in July.
Biden noted that the vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna -- and the possible addition of another more stable single-dose vaccine from Johnson & Johnson -- should diminish the virus "considerably" and allow Americans to move toward normalcy by the end of the year.
Since December, about 55.2 million vaccine doses have been administered in the United States and 71.7 million doses have been distributed, according to the latest figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Other COVID-19 updates on Wednesday:
- The Commerce Department will release its retail sales report for January, which is expected to show an increase of about 1.2%, after a surprise dip in December.
- New research shows a correlation between the pandemic and a rise in gun violence in Philadelphia.
- Pope Francis led Roman Catholics into Lent on Ash Wednesday and scaled back a centuries-old ritual for sprinkling ashes, to tamp down on the spread of the virus.
