A 4th COVID-19 wave may look different than previous surges

Why a 4th COVID-19 wave may look different than previous surges As coronavirus cases and hospitalizations creep up across the country, health officials are continuing to urge caution, warning that despite the acceleration in the pace of vaccinations, the nation could face a potential fourth wave of COVID-19 infections, if Americans let their guards down too rapidly. “We’re seeing rising cases in several locations around the world, including in some U.S. states so a fourth wave seems possible,” Rachel Baker, an epidemiologist at Princeton University, told ABC News. At a White House briefing earlier this week, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said on that she is concerned the U.S. could see "another avoidable surge" in COVID cases if mitigation measures – such as testing, mask-wearing, social distancing, hand-washing and avoiding crowds – are not observed. YahooNews

As coronavirus cases and hospitalizations creep up across the country, health officials are continuing to urge caution, warning that despite the acceleration in the pace of vaccinations, the nation could face a potential fourth wave of COVID-19 infections, if Americans let their guards down too rapidly.

“We’re seeing rising cases in several locations around the world, including in some U.S. states so a fourth wave seems possible,” Rachel Baker, an epidemiologist at Princeton University, told ABC News.

At a White House briefing earlier this week, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said on that she is concerned the U.S. could see "another avoidable surge" in COVID cases if mitigation measures – such as testing, mask-wearing, social distancing, hand-washing and avoiding crowds – are not observed.

And on Saturday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, told ABC News' 'Good Morning America' that he is "quite concerned" that "we might start seeing a resurgence of cases."

The U.S. daily case average has continued to tick up. After two months of steady declines, in the last week the national case average has increased by 12.5%, now standing at just over 60,000 cases a day, akin to the case numbers experienced during the summer surge.

In the first wave, the U.S. saw a rapid rise in cases and deaths, concentrated in the Northeast, and more specifically, New York. During the summer, the country experienced a second wave with an influx of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths spreading out throughout the country. In early fall, the nation's COVID-19 metrics subsequently fell, only to be hit, however, by a third wave in the late fall and early winter months, with an unprecedented surge of cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

At least 22 states have seen their seven-day case average jump by at least 10% in the last week, according to an ABC analysis data collected by Health and Human Services, and the number of patients hospitalized appears to have also stopped falling, plateauing around 33,000, after falling by more than 70% since early January.