U.S. coronavirus cases pass 5 million

The U.S. coronavirus case count topped 5 million on Sunday, as President Donald Trump and Congress remain at an impasse over the latest emergency relief package.

The country is seeing a dramatic spike in infections this summer, reaching the new milestone just over two weeks after the national case count hit 4 million, on July 23, according to a tracker maintained by John Hopkins University.

Some federal health officials have attributed the surge to states rolling back their social distancing measures and lockdowns too soon, even though some that followed CDC guidelines are also reporting significant rebounds.

Brazil and India, which have the second and third highest caseloads, combined have just over 5 million cases.

The U.S. continues to lead the world with more than 162,000 deaths. Brazil, with the second highest death toll, has reported roughly 100,000 fatalities.

The new U.S. milestone comes as negotiations on a rescue package collapsed over the weekend, with the White House and Democrats still trillions of dollars apart on a deal. Trump on Saturday signed an executive order that he said would provide relief to Americans struggling from the economic fallout of the pandemic.

The rising case counts also come as the Trump administration continues to push schools to reopen in the fall. One high school in Georgia that drew national attention for reopening on Monday with packed hallways, saw a half a dozen students and three teachers test positive for the coronavirus, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.