Jesse Jackson, wife hospitalized with COVID-19

PHOTO: Civil Rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson addresses hundreds of fellow protesters on Capitol Hill to demand stronger voting rights, an end to the filibuster, immigration reform, a $15 minimum wage on Aug. 2, 2021, in Washington, D.C.

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, FILE

Several southern states' ICUs near capacity

The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge this summer as the more contagious delta variant spreads.

More than 628,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while over 4.4 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

Just 59.9% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Aug 23, 2021 8:39 AM

Over 880,000 Moderna vaccine doses donated by US arrive in Kenya

More than 880,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine donated by the United States arrived in Kenya on Monday morning.

The 880,460 doses were given to the East African nation by the U.S. government via the global vaccine-sharing scheme COVAX, according to a press release from the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), which is leading vaccine procurement and delivery efforts on behalf of COVAX. It is the first of two shipments, totaling 1.76 million donate doses.

PHOTO: A UNICEF worker checks boxes of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine after their arrival at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, on Aug. 23, 2021.

Brian Inganga/AP

A UNICEF worker checks boxes of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine after their arrival at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, on Aug. 23, 2021. The first time that the Moderna vaccine has been received in Kenya, 880,460 doses were delivered forming the first of two shipments totalling 1.76 million doses which were donated by the United States via the the global vaccine-sharing scheme COVAX, according to UNICEF, which transported the doses.

The donation marks the first time that Kenya has received the Moderna vaccine, widening the portfolio of COVID-19 vaccines available for the country's ongoing rollout of its national immunization campaign. All Kenyans over the age of 18 are now eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Kenya aims to vaccinate 10 million of its 53 million people by the end of the year.

So far, Kenya has reported more than 229,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including at least 4,497 deaths, according to the latest data from the Kenyan Ministry of Health.

Aug 22, 2021 7:15 PM

US surgeon general defends plan for booster shots

U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy defended the Biden administration's plans to for many Americans the week of Sept. 20, despite criticism from the World Health Organization and others that the U.S. should not offer booster shots to Americans while many countries lag in vaccine access.

"We have to protect American lives and we have to help vaccinate the world because that is the only way this pandemic ends," Murthy told ABC "This Week" co-anchor Martha Raddatz.

Read the full story here.

ABC News' Julia Cherner

Aug 21, 2021 11:55 PM

Jesse Jackson hospitalized with COVID

Civil rights pioneer Jesse Jackson Sr. and his wife have been hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19.

The 79-year-old and his wife, 77-year-old Jacqueline Jackson, are both being treated at Northwestern Hospital in Chicago, according to a statement from the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the nonprofit he founded in 1996. The statement said doctors were "monitoring the condition of both," but provided no further details.

Jackson was inoculated against the virus in January with the Pfizer vaccine. He also spent three weeks in a rehab center in February and March after gallbladder surgery.

The former Washington, D.C., shadow senator has been a prominent civil rights activist for 60 years, first joining forces with Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s and working with King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, FILE

Civil Rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson addresses hundreds of fellow protesters before they march on Capitol Hill to demand stronger voting rights, an end to the filibuster, immigration reform, a $15 minimum wage and other progressive policies at Columbus Circle on Aug. 2, 2021, in Washington, D.C.

Jackson also ran for president in 1984 and 1988.

The activist was arrested earlier this month as part of a group in Washington, D.C., protesting restrictive voting rights being implemented in many states, including Georgia and Texas. One week earlier, he'd been arrested as part of a large group during a sit-in at Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's office.

Aug 21, 2021 3:19 PM

US sees 3rd straight day of 1M doses

The U.S. reported over 1 million COVID-19 vaccine doses administered for the third straight day, according to a White House official.

Saturday just in: +1.05M doses reported administered over yesterday, including 526K newly vaccinated. Third consecutive 1M+ day in over two months. Now 60% of all eligible (12+) fully vaccinated. Keep adding to our protection against Delta, we can get through this together! 🇺🇸
— Cyrus Shahpar (@cyrusshahpar46) August 21, 2021

There were more than 1.05 million doses administered Friday, including 526,000 newly vaccinated, White House COVID-19 data director Cyrus Shahpar said on Twitter.

Nationwide, 60% of people ages 12 and up are now fully vaccinated, he said.