WHO: Rate of new coronavirus cases is declining worldwide

A woman receives a coronavirus vaccine.
(Image credit: Michael Sohn - Pool/Getty Images)

In the last week, the number of new COVID-19 cases has declined by 16 percent worldwide, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, with North America, South America, and Europe seeing the biggest drops in new infections. Additionally, there has been a 10 percent drop in the number of global deaths.

The United States has seen its number of new infections fall by 23.7 percent over the last week, with experts saying there are a few reasons why this is happening, including the fact that more people are receiving the coronavirus vaccine and the adoption of social distancing measures.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.