Since the pandemic began, more than 8.49 million infections have been reported in the U.S. and more than 223,900 Americans have died, according to Johns Hopkins data. World-wide, more than 42.2 million cases have been reported, and more than 1.14 million people have died. “We are at a critical juncture in this pandemic, particularly in the northern hemisphere,” World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a news conference Friday. “The next few months are going to be very tough and some countries are on a dangerous track.” Dr. Tedros warned that “too many countries are seeing an exponential increase in cases,” bringing hospitals close to their operational capacity or even above it. “We urge leaders to take immediate action, to prevent further unnecessary deaths, essential health services from collapsing and schools shutting again,” he said. Epidemiologists and public-health researchers have said a number of factors , from […]