U.S. surpasses 4 million COVID-19 cases

The U.S. reached another grim milestone Thursday as the number of coronavirus cases across the country surpassed 4 million, according to data compiled by NBC News.

There were 4,001,843 cases of COVID-19 as of 11 a.m. ET Thursday — including nearly 81,000 cases logged in the previous 24 hours and over 26,000 new cases reported on Thursday alone, NBC News' tally showed.

In all, COVID-19 has claimed the lives of 144,368 people in the U.S. since the coronavirus pandemic broke out, according to NBC News data. The South and Sun Belt are grappling with particularly alarming surges in the number of cases in recent weeks.

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United States passes 4 million coronavirus cases

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California, the largest state in terms of population, had recorded more than 422,000 cases as of Thursday morning. New York was not far behind that tally, with just over 415,000 cases.

The U.S. has the most coronavirus cases in the world, followed by Brazil (roughly 2.2 million) and India (1.2 million), according to statistics compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Meanwhile, three states set single-day records for COVID-19 deaths Thursday, according to NBC News data: Texas (197), Florida (173) and Idaho (9).

Here's a look at other coronavirus developments making headlines Thursday:

• Senate Republicans announced Wednesday evening that they have "reached a fundamental agreement" with White House negotiators on how to move forward with a coronavirus relief bill. Julie Tsirkin, Leigh Ann Caldwell and Sahil Kapur have more details here.
• Around 1.4 million people filed for first-time unemployment benefits last week, according to new data from the Department of Labor, marking the first week in almost four months that the number has risen. The resurgence in the number of coronavirus infections, including a record rise in California, has led many authorities to scale back the reopening of some businesses and restaurants, pushing more Americans out of work, NBC News' Lucy Bayly reports.
• Juan Soto of the Washington Nationals tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Associated Press. He was placed on the injured list Thursday, which means he will miss the start of the delayed Major League Baseball season.