A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 75.5 million people worldwide and killed over 1.6 million of them, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Here's how the news is developing today. All times Eastern.
Dec 18, 2020, 3:10 AM EST
Former US President Jimmy Carter to get vaccine
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter plans to get vaccinated for COVID-19, his foundation announced Thursday night.
"After consulting with his doctors, President Carter is looking forward to receiving the COVID-19 vaccine when it is available to him," The Carter Center wrote in a statement on Twitter.
Carter has not said when he will receive the vaccine or whether it will be on camera like other former presidents have indicated they will do.
All living former U.S. presidents have now announced they will get the vaccine.
Dec 18, 2020, 1:02 AM EST
75 cases linked to church Christmas event in North Carolina
The Henderson County Department of Public Health said Thursday that it has identified 75 positive COVID-19 cases associated with the Hendersonville First Baptist Baptist Church in North Carolina.
The Henderson County Department of Public Health said the holiday event took place on the weekend of Dec. 5.
"To date, the Health Department has identified 75 individuals who have tested positive as a result of the event," they said in a statement. "The Health Department is working to identify any additional close contacts of these individuals. The CDC defines close contact as being within approximately six feet of an infected person with COVID-19 for a cumulative 15 minutes."
The news comes as Henderson County continues to see an increase in COVID-19 cases linked to parties, family gatherings and social events.
Dec 17, 2020, 10:38 PM EST
Congress to have access to vaccine starting now
All members of Congress can get vaccinated now, according to a letter from the Capitol Hill attending physician obtained by ABC News.
In the letter, sent Thursday night to all members of Congress and staff, Dr. Brian P. Monahan said he was notified by the National Security Council that Congress will be provided with a specific number of COVID-19 vaccine doses to meet "long-standing requirements for continuity of government operations."
"The small number of COVID19 vaccine doses we will be provided reflects a fraction of the first tranche of vaccines as it is distributed throughout the country," he said in the letter.
Monahan told members of Congress to call to schedule their vaccines in advance.
"My recommendation to you is absolutely unequivocal: there is no reason why you should defer receiving this vaccine. The benefit far exceeds any small risk," he said.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks during her weekly news conference on Capitol Hill Dec. 10, 2020, in Washington, D.C.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images, File
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi both already announced Thursday that they will be getting the vaccine soon based on Monahan's guidance.
Members will get vaccinated first, then "we will follow a process to identify the continuity-essential staff members in the various divisions of the Capitol community in the coming weeks," Monahan said in his letter.
After that, "the appointing process will then continue until the small vaccine supply is exhausted. A second dose scheduling process will then begin later."
-ABC News' Mariam Khan and Trish Turner contributed to this report
Dec 17, 2020, 10:10 PM EST
New cases, hospitalizations reach all-time highs in US
The U.S. reported a record number of new COVID-19 cases and current hospitalizations on Thursday, according to the COVID Tracking Project.
There were 241,620 new cases, 3,438 new deaths, and 114,237 people are currently hospitalized with COVID-19.
With over 42,000 deaths, December is already the second deadliest month of the pandemic, according to the project.
"For the second week in a row, more COVID-19 deaths were reported in the United States than at any other time in the pandemic," it said Thursday in its weekly analysis.
