BREAKING: Over 2,000 people died from COVID19 in United states on Friday, even as infected skyrocketed above half a million

Yesterday was the deadliest day for COVID-19-related fatalities in America, with 1,997 deaths, including at least 779 in New York state, the epicenter of US virus activity. The United States now has 423,135 cases and 14,390 deaths due to the virus.

In New York, a slowing rate of hospitalizations has not yet translated into curbing deaths from the novel coronavirus. Governor Andrew Cuomo said during his daily briefing in Albany that the state has now seen 6,268 COVID-19 deaths, and it surpasses Italy and Spain in confirmed cases, with 149,316.

Cuomo also commented on a new report published by NYC Health, the health department in New York City, which showed that black and Hispanic residents were dying at higher rates than white New Yorkers. The rate of fatal COVID-19 infections in New York City is 22.8 per 100,000 for Hispanics and 19.8 per 100,000 for African-Americans, while the rates for whites and Asians were 10.2 per 100,000 and 8.4 per 100,000, respectively.

“It always seems the poorest people pay the highest price,” Cuomo said.

Illinois also reported its deadliest day yesterday, with 73 deaths tallied across the state. According to the Chicago Tribune, 380 people have now died from the disease in Illinois, which has 13,549 cases.

And the New York Times reported a jail in Cook County, Illinois, now has the most localized infections in the country, with 387 cases—more than the Life Care Center in Washington state, or the number of cases confirmed on the USS Theodore Roosevelt. Both staff and inmates are infected with the virus, and county officials warn that most of the 5,000 inmates have not yet been tested.