The Johns Hopkins COVID-19 Dashboard for Thursday morning, July 23, at 7:36 a.m.:

Worldwide cases:   15,301,530    Worldwide deaths:  625,005

U.S. cases:  3,998,259    U.S. deaths: 143,701  

According to the Dashboard, the reported worldwide cases increased by 285,090 in the last 24 hours, and 7,004 deaths due to COVID-19 were reported.  These numbers are higher than the recent counts.

According to the Johns Hopkins Dashboard, the United States has added 73,234 cases in the last 24 hours, and deaths attributed to COVID-19 have increased by 1,300.  The daily case increase and the daily increase in people dying from COVID-19 are much higher today than in recent weeks.

Several states are experience a growth in COVID-19 cases.  California now has the most cases in the nation.

About 59,600 people were hospitalized with Covid-19 in the US on Wednesday — roughly 300 short of the country’s peak recorded in mid-April, according to the Covid Tracking Project.

There are bright spots.  In New York, a man named Larry Kelly left the hospital after 128 days hospitalized with COVID-19–he’s been dubbed “Miracle Larry”.  His message in several interviews with CBS News, CNN, and other outlets has been for people to take the disease seriously and to wear their masks.

Cases in the United States have been growing at such a rate that several countries are banning American tourists from visiting, including the Bahamas, Japan, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico and all 27 countries of the European Union.

In Hawaii, the case count remains low, a cumulative  1,435, with 1,113 people with COVID-19 released from isolation as of noon on Wednesday.  The state has lost 25 people to COVID-19, with the latest announced yesterday–an O’ahu man between 40 and 59.  State Department of Health said that was the fourth death in that age group.  In addition, although not a Hawaii resident, Hawaiian Airlines announced that flight attendant Jeff Kurtzman, a Los Angeles resident, died of COVID-19 after taking part in an O’ahu training session.  That session has resulted in 24 cases of COVID-19.