COVID-19 hospitalizations reached record levels in seven states this week amid continued surges in many parts of the South and West.
Here are the latest updates:
1. The White House plans to end funding for 13 testing sites in five states this month, local health officials told Talking Points Memo. The government has been covering the cost of laboratory contracts and staffing for the sites through a program deployed in March. By June 30, testing sites in Texas, Illinois, New Jersey, Colorado and Pennsylvania will lose this funding. Dallas, which is facing a large surge in COVID-19 cases, asked for an extension but was denied. An HHS spokesperson said the program's goal was to "develop and bring initial testing capabilities to socially vulnerable locations" with the expectation that states would transition out of the program by the end of June.
2. Seven states reported a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations this week, according to data tracked by The Washington Post. The states are Arizona, Arkansas, California, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas. As of June 23, Arizona had 2,136 hospital beds filled by COVID-19 patients, up from 1,992 on June 21. Eighty-four percent of the state's intensive care unit beds were in use as of June 22, according to state data cited by NBC News.
3. Arizona, Texas and California all reported record high daily COVID-19 cases June 23. Arizona confirmed 3,591 new cases, California reported 5,019, and Texas reported 5,489 cases, the most since the pandemic began for each respective state, as reported by AZ Central and Bloomberg.
4. Citing a lack of federal enforcement, Virginia officials have proposed COVID-19 safety rules for employers across the state, according to The Washington Post. The first state to do so, the temporary emergency rules were drafted by the state's Department of Labor and Industry under the direction of Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam. The state health and safety board will vote on the proposal June 24.
5. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee issued a statewide mandate to wear masks in public June 23, reports The Seattle Times. The requirement takes effect June 26 and comes amid a statewide increase in cases. Washington reported 516 new infections June 23, bringing the state's total to 29,386.
Snapshot of COVID-19 in the U.S.
Cases: 2,347,102
Deaths: 121,225
Recovered: 647,548
Counts reflect data available as of 9 a.m. CDT June 24.