Headlines for August 10, 2020

Confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States have topped 5 million — by far the highest caseload in the world, though the true number of cases is likely much higher. As the new school year starts or approaches for kids around the country, a new report by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that nearly 100,000 children contracted COVID-19 in the last two weeks of July.

In Georgia, a high school that recently suspended two students for posting images of classmates ignoring social distancing guidelines and not wearing masks announced it is implementing remote learning for part of the week, after at least nine students and staffers tested positive for COVID-19. Additionally, sophomore Hannah Watters, who posted the photos, had her suspension reversed.

In South Dakota, tens of thousands of motorcyclists rolled into the town of Sturgis Friday for the annual 10-day motorcycle rally, in spite of the concerns of local residents. Health experts warn it could turn out to be a superspreader event, as images emerged of attendees without masks and not social distancing. The Cheyenne River Sioux set up checkpoints to block the motorcyclists from entering their land, to prevent a possible outbreak.

In California, the director of the Department of Public Health abruptly resigned Sunday, following the discovery of a computer system failure that led to an undercounting of California’s COVID-19 cases.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus continues to ravage prisons across the country. Over 800 prisoners and 60 prison staff have now died, according to The Marshall Project. In Northern California, San Quentin has now reported 24 deaths. The Orlando Sentinel found that many of the prisoners who have died from COVID-19 in Florida prisons were eligible for parole. Over 60 prisoners have died in Florida, according to the report.