国际英语新闻:Spotlight: U.S. records all-time high single-day COVID-19 cases, deaths as FDA advisors reco

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The United States has reported more than 231,000 new COVID-19 cases and over 3,000 deaths in a single day on Wednesday, a gloomy new milestone since the pandemic hit the country.

A total of 221,267 new cases and 3,411 deaths were reported across the country on Wednesday, according to data updated on Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), setting new world records.

The death toll, highest one-day total yet, is more than Pearl Harbor or 9/11, according to U.S. media reports.

Wednesday's new data brought the seven-day average daily case increase to a record-high of more than 207,000 cases, and the seven-day average daily death increase to over 2,300, highest since mid-April.

Cases and hospitalizations have kept soaring in the country recently, pushing medical centers to breaking point and leaving health care staff burned out with extreme pressure.

There are 106,688 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19 in the United States, a new record since the onset of the pandemic, according to the COVID Tracking Project.

Cases in the Northeast and West are increasing rapidly. The 7-day average for COVID-19 deaths are at an all-time high as deaths are rising throughout the country, according to the tracking project.

COVID-19 continues to surge through the country's long-term-care facilities. Data from the tracking project suggest 51,574 new cases were reported from last week, the highest weekly number of the last 6 months.

An advisory group of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) met on Thursday and recommended the agency issue emergency use authorization to the COVID-19 vaccine of American drugmaker Pfizer in partnership with German company BioNTech.

This meeting is an important step in the review process, providing an opportunity for outside experts to provide valuable advice and input for the agency to consider as part of its review, said the FDA.

Importantly, the final decision about whether to authorize the vaccine for emergency use will be made by FDA's career officials, said the agency in a statement.