Nine months after the US government declared a state of emergency to fight the coronavirus pandemic, daily deaths and new infections are breaking records, hospital capacity is more stretched than ever, and debate over the economic response has devolved into a battle over who deserves help and who doesn't, report agencies.
The US is the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths with 14,750,316 and 282,236, respectively, according to the JHU.
Daily infections in the country set a new record high of nearly 228,000 cases on Friday, according to AP.
New cases per day have rocketed to an all-time high of more than 190,000 on average.
Deaths per day have surged to an average of more than 2,160, a level last seen during the dark days in April, when the outbreak was centered around New York. The number of Americans in the hospital with the coronavirus topped 100,000 for the first time over the past few days.
The number of global coronavirus cases has crossed the 67 million, according to Worldometers data.
According to the data, the total caseload globally reached 67,535,454 while the death toll climbed to 1,544,106 as of Monday.
After the US, India comes in second place in terms of cases at 9,644,222, while the country's death toll soared to 140,182. In Brazil, the country's total caseload reached at 6,603,540 while some 176,941 people have died so far.
Meanwhile, The UK is preparing to administer the first Covid-19 vaccines to the public on Tuesday, making it one of the first countries in the world to roll out a coronavirus vaccine.
The first doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech shots, which gained emergency approval from the U.K. drug regulator last week, will be given on Tuesday to frontline health workers, care home workers and those aged over 80.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson called the rollout "one of the biggest civilian logistical efforts" the U.K. has ever faced. It will be the U.K.'s biggest vaccination drive ever.
Another report adds: Indonesia received its first shipment of coronavirus vaccine from China on Sunday, President Joko Widodo said, as the government prepares a mass inoculation programme.
Jokowi, as the president is widely known, said in an online briefing that the Southeast Asian country received 1.2 million doses from China's Sinovac Biotech Ltd., a vaccine Indonesia has been testing since August.
He added that the government plans to receive another 1.8 million doses in early January.
Meanwhile, Airlines battered by COVID-19 are prepping for key roles in the mass vaccine rollout that promises to unlock an immediate boost for the sector - and beyond that, its own recovery and survival.
Big challenges await carriers leading the airlift, as well as the drugmakers, logistics firms, governments and international agencies planning the deployment across networks blighted by the pandemic.
Britain is about to become the first country to begin administering the Pfizer-BioNTech jab, which requires storage below minus 70 Celsius. Moderna's shot, stored at -20C, is close behind.
In line for major roles are freight specialists and airlines with large cargo arms - such as Germany's Lufthansa, Air France-KLM and Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific - often under contract for forwarders and integrators like UPS, Fedex and DHL.
Gulf carriers Qatar Airways and Emirates as well as Turkish Airlines, all slammed by the long-haul travel collapse, can leverage their vast connecting hubs. Turkish has begun flying China's Sinovac vaccine to Brazil and, like many peers, is increasing its cold chain capacity and storage.
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