Coronavirus US: 61,492 new cases recorded, second highest day on record – live updates

Kenya Evelyn has been in Washington for us reporting on the multiple factors that are putting Black and Latino Americans disproportionately at risk of contracting and dying of Covid-19.

Black and Latino people in America represent nearly a third of all cases and have been nearly twice as likely to die from the virus as their White counterparts. Many health experts contend the data underscores how racial bias shapes not just policy, but also public behavior during health crises. Not only are Black and Latino Americans more likely to lack health insurance or live in areas without quality facilities, unconscious racial bias among medical professionals can also contribute to unequal health outcomes, with patients of color more likely to have their symptoms overlooked or pain disbelieved. Some experts point to people of color who later died of Covid-19 who were previously turned away as evidence of bias playing out in the pandemic.

Read it here: ‘A slap in the face’: how racial bias dogs US coronavirus response at every level

One of the things about the spread of the coronavirus is that it has not been even across the country. Some states have been badly affected and are approaching their full ICU capacity – others seem relatively unscathed. The Washington Post has been tracking which states currently have the highest new daily incidences of Covid-19 cases per capita.

• Florida – 52 new daily cases per 100,000 residents
• Arizona – 48
• Louisiana – 42
• South Carolina – 34
• Texas – 33
• Georgia – 32
• Alabama – 30
• Idaho – 28
• Tennessee – 28
• Nevada – 27
• Mississippi – 26
• Arkansas – 23
• Utah – 21
• California – 21

The states least affected at the moment, with six or fewer new daily cases are Rhode Island, Puerto Rico, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wyoming, Hawaii, New Hampshire and Maine.

Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are also experiencing very low new daily case figures at the moment – three or fewer – though these states are coming down from very high peaks earlier in the year.

Bear in mind though that for once the Donald Trump argument about the more you test, the more you detect, is in play here. If there are two states with the same baseline incidence of Covid-19, the state with the more efficient testing regime will discover more of the cases. The numbers are still a useful guide though for the comparative impact on each state.

Hi, welcome to our live coverage of US politics and the coronavirus crisis for today. Here’s a quick run-through of the key points from yesterday and overnight, and a little bit of what we can expect today. There’s quite a bit on.

I’m Martin Belam and I’ll be with you for the next few hours. You can get in touch with me at martin.belam@theguardian.com