COVID-19 Cases Falling After Deadliest Month Since Outbreak

FILE – In this Jan. 21, 2021 file photo a medical staff member prepares the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at Tudor Ranch in Mecca, Calif. Democratic lawmakers are urging federal health officials to address racial disparity in vaccine access nationwide, as data from some states show hard-hit nonwhite Americans who are eligible to receive it are not getting COVID-19 vaccinations in proportion to their share of the population. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

The deadliest month of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. has drawn to a close with certain signs of progress: COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are plummeting, while vaccinations are picking up speed. The question is whether the the nation can stay ahead of the fast-spreading mutations of the virus.

The U.S. death toll has climbed past 440,000, with over 95,000 lives lost in January alone.

Deaths are running at about 3,150 per day on average, down slightly, by about 200, from their peak in mid-January.

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