Only three US states are reporting a decline in new COVID-19 cases compared to last week, as the country hit its highest daily rate of new cases in almost two months.
As of Saturday night, new cases were down in Texas, Missouri and South Carolina, while 21 states reported a rise in cases and a little more than half held steady compared with the week before.
Friday, there were 54,506 new reported cases, according to Johns Hopkins University, the highest single day case number since 64,601 cases were reported on August 14.
From September 29 to October 3, there were an average of 46,500 cases per day -- the most cases in a five-day period since August 14-18, JHU data showed.
The climbing coronavirus count comes as the President joined the more than 7.3 million people who have tested positive for COVID-19 in the US, a sobering reminder of the virus' reach as health experts urge continued vigilance during the fall and winter months.