U-S and state flags are flying at half-staff through sundown Friday in memory of the victims of COVID-19.
President Joe Biden and the nation’s governors issued the orders Monday as the US surpassed 500,000 coronavirus-related deaths.
The rate of coronavirus deaths has increased in recent months with half of the 500,000 deaths occurring in the last 3 months, but new cases have seen a steep decline in the 5 weeks since Biden took office.
As of Monday, 44 million Americans, representing 13% of the US population, have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine.