Coronavirus Watch: Cases, deaths rise in most states as delta variant spreads

Cases and deaths from COVID-19 rose in more than half of U.S. states over the past week as vaccination rates slow and the highly transmissible delta variant spreads across the globe.

Forty-seven states reported more new COVID-19 cases last week than in the week before, and deaths rose in 30 states compared to a week earlier, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows.

It's Wednesday, and this is Coronavirus Watch from the USA TODAY Network. Here's more news you need to know:

• Pop star Olivia Rodrigovisited the White House Wednesday to meet with President Joe Biden and chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci as part of the Biden-Harris administration’s effort to get young people vaccinated.
• Seven Mississippi children are in the hospital due to coronavirus infections, with two of the young people on life support, a top health official said Tuesday.
• Overdose deaths soared to a record 93,000 last year during the pandemic, the CDC reported Wednesday.
• One of the world's largest cruise lines is fighting to end Florida's vaccine passport ban.
• Less than a quarter of the world's population has received at least one dose of a vaccine, and there are "vast inequities" in vaccine distribution and administration, with the majority of vaccines administered in a small number of high and upper-middle-income countries, the World Health Organization said this week.

Today's numbers: The U.S. has reported more than 33.9 million COVID-19 cases and nearly 607,800 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide, there have been more than 188 million cases and more than 4 million deaths. About 56% of people in the U.S. have received at least one vaccine shot, and about 48% are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Tracking the pandemic: See the numbers in your area here. See where cases are rising here. See vaccination rates here. And here, compare vaccinations rates worldwide and see which countries are using which vaccines.

– Grace Hauck, USA TODAY breaking news reporter, @grace_hauck