US coronavirus death toll hits 400,000: Johns Hopkins

The U.S. reported another grim milestone Tuesday, with the number of COVID-19 deaths surpassing 400,000, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The Maryland-based school noted 400,022 deaths and an excess of 24.1 million confirmed infections since last February.

The U.S. reached 200,000 deaths in September and 300,000 in December.

The new tally comes one day before President-elect Joe Biden is set to be inaugurated as America's 46th president and he has pledged to prioritize the coronavirus crisis during his early days in office.

The Biden administration aims to implement a federal mask mandate and administer 100 million COVID-19 vaccines in 100 days in office, among other measures.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) predicted that the death toll could surpass 400,000 before Inauguration Day on Wednesday.

Several states have administered vaccines since December after two drug companies – Pfizer/BionTech and Moderna – received Emergency Use Authorization from American officials.

So far, 12.2 million doses have been administered, according to the CDC. More than 31 million doses have been distributed.

When it comes to states, the virus has hit California the hardest with 3 million cases and 33,700 deaths.

Texas is second with 2.1 million cases, followed by Florida with 1.5 million, New York with 1.2 million and Illinois with 1 million.

Since December 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed more than 2 million lives in 191 countries and regions.

More than 95.9 million cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries now exceeding 52.8 million, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University.