New infections on the rise in most states for first time in two months

New coronavirus infections are rising again in most states for the first time in two months, and deaths are rising in about half of U.S. states, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data reveals.

In the week ending Wednesday, case counts were higher in 29 states than they were the week before. A month ago, cases were rising in just 12 states.

The states now reporting rising cases are primarily in the North, which had fared far better in the late summer as the delta variant clobbered the South. Vermont, an early leader in vaccinations, is now seeing record case numbers. Florida, which has suffered the most deaths of any state since July 1 – 22,600 – now reports the lowest daily per-capita case count of any state. ...