Health News Roundup: Record jump in COVID-19 cases in US; 'second wave' concerns rise in other countries and more

U.S. coronavirus cases rise by record for third day in a row, up over 62,500 The United States reported at least 62,500 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, a record daily increase for a third day in a row, according to a Reuters tally.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Russia reports 6,611 new coronavirus infections

Russia on Saturday reported 6,611 new coronavirus cases, taking its nationwide tally of infections to 720,547. The country's coronavirus crisis response center said 188 people had died from the virus in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 11,205.

U.S. coronavirus cases rise by record for the third day in a row, up over 62,500

The United States reported at least 62,500 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, a record daily increase for the third day in a row, according to a Reuters tally. Seven states reported record increases in cases on Friday: Alaska, Georgia, Louisiana, Montana, Ohio, Utah and Wisconsin.

WHO says airborne COVID transmission a concern but droplets appear dominant

Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead on the COVID-19 pandemic at the WHO, said on Friday that airborne transmission of the new coronavirus had always been a concern but that droplets appeared to be the most common infection route. "Aerosol transmission is one of the modes of transmission that we have been concerned about since the beginning, particularly in healthcare settings ... where we know these droplets can be aerosolized - which means can stay in the air longer," she told an online briefing from Geneva.

Bill Gates calls for COVID-19 meds to go to people who need them, not 'highest bidder'

Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates called for COVID-19 drugs and an eventual vaccine to be made available to countries and people that need them most, not to the "highest bidder," saying relying on market forces would prolong the deadly pandemic. "If we just let drugs and vaccines go to the highest bidder, instead of to the people and the places where they are most needed, we'll have a longer, more unjust, deadlier pandemic," Gates, a founder of Microsoft, said in a video released on Saturday during a virtual COVID-19 conference organized by the International AIDS Society.

Tokyo confirms 206 new cases of coronavirus infections - NHK

Tokyo officials confirmed 206 new coronavirus infections on Saturday, public broadcaster NHK reported, as Japan's capital struggles with a resurgence in cases after the government lifted a state of emergency. The total marks the third straight day of more than 200 cases and follows a record high of 243 new cases reported on Friday. Coronavirus cases have surged particularly in Tokyo's Kabukicho red-light district.

Indonesia reports 1,671 new coronavirus cases - Health Ministry official

Indonesia reported 1,671 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, bringing the total count to 74,018, Health Ministry official Achmad Yurianto told a televised news briefing. Fatalities from the virus rose by 66 on Saturday, bringing the total tally to 3,535, he said, while 34,719 people have recovered.

As Disney World prepares to reopen, Florida posts another daily surge in COVID-19 cases

Florida confirmed its place as an emerging epicenter of the COVID pandemic in the United States on Friday by reporting its second sharpest daily rise in cases, while Walt Disney Co. prepared to reopen its flagship theme park in Orlando to the chagrin of some employees. Florida recorded 11,433 new coronavirus cases, the state health department said, more evidence that the virus is still spreading largely unchecked throughout parts of the country.

Australia's Victoria state logs another day of high coronavirus infections

Australia's second-most-populous state reported one of its highest daily increases in coronavirus infections on Saturday and warned the numbers would get worse before they got better as its capital city began its first weekend of a six-week lockdown. The state of Victoria logged 216 new cases, down from a record 288 the previous day but still one of the biggest daily increases of any part of the country.

Virus-free UK pilot, symbol of Vietnam's pandemic success, to return home

Vietnam's most seriously ill COVID-19 patient, a British pilot who at one point seemed close to death, left the hospital on Saturday on his way home after a dramatic recovery that attracted national attention. The case of Stephen Cameron, a pilot for national carrier Vietnam Airlines, became a sensation in Vietnam, where a combination of targeted testing and an aggressive quarantine program has kept its coronavirus tally to an impressively low 370 cases, and zero deaths.

Pandemic exposes scientific rift over proving when germs are airborne

The coronavirus pandemic has exposed a clash among medical experts over disease transmission that stretches back nearly a century - to the very origins of germ theory. The Geneva-based World Health Organization acknowledged this week that the novel coronavirus can spread through tiny droplets floating in the air, a nod to more than 200 experts in aerosol science who publicly complained that the U.N. agency had failed to warn the public about this risk.

(With inputs from agencies.)