US coronavirus infections surge for the FOURTH consecutive day, with more than 70,000 Americans testing positive to COVID-19 in just 24 hours

The US has once again set a record-high number of coronavirus cases for the fourth consecutive day. 

According to an NBC News Tally, more than 70,000 people tested positive to COVID-19 on Friday, fueled by soaring numbers in California, Arizona, Texas and Florida. 

In comparison, there were just above 63,900 new infections reported the previous day.  

There are now 3,215,861 Americans who have been diagnosed with the highly contagious virus, and 134,420 who have died.  

In Florida, the total number of cases has now surpassed a quarter of a million, with 11,433 new cases confirmed in the past 24 hours. 96 additional deaths were reported overnight. 

In recent weeks, Florida has ramped up its testing, but the percentage of people testing positive has also risen. A month ago, fewer than 5 percent of tests came up positive on a daily average. Over the past week, the daily average exceeded 19 percent. 

Meanwhile, the Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration reported that almost 85 percent of the state's ICU hospital beds are now full.

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The US has once again set a record-high number of coronavirus cases for the fourth consecutive day. NBC News reports that more than 70,000 Americans have tested positive to the virus within the past day 

At a press conference on Saturday, Gov. Ron DeSantis said medical staff and additional drugs may be flown into the Sunshine state to help with the crisis. 

'COVID is very labor intensive. There's a lot of procedures that go into place [to test and treat it] ... so the personnel is something that's very significant,' he stated, according to The Orlando Sentinel. 

He also revealed that a shipment of the experimental drug Remdesivir was arriving in the state today.  

In Texas, there were another 9,765 confirmed cases overnight, with 92 new recorded deaths. Meanwhile, Arizona has reported an additional 3,038 confirmed cases in the past day, bringing the total to 116,892 overall. 

Among those to succumb to the virus was a 30-year-old man, who reportedly became infected deliberately because he thought the virus was a 'hoax'. 

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has warned 'the worst is yet to come' and predicted an increase in cases in the next week.  

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A COVID-19 test site is pictured in Los Angeles on Friday. California is still recording a consistently high number of infections 

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In Florida, the total number of cases has now surpassed a quarter of a million, with 11,433 new cases confirmed in the past 24 hours

Meanwhile, California reported coronavirus deaths in the triple figures for the fourth day in a row. 

111 state residents succumbed to the virus Friday, down marginally from the 117  recorded deaths the day before. 

Across California, 312,404 people have now tested positive to the virus. 

However, New York still has the highest number of infections among  all 50 states, but the curve remains flat there. 

The state has reached its lowest level of hospitalizations and its lowest three-day average death toll since mid-March, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Saturday.

Hospitalizations in New York dropped below 800 to 799 on Friday for the first time since March 18 as Cuomo commended New Yorkers for their work in following coronavirus protocols.

Cuomo revealed Saturday morning that the three-day average death toll in the state has also dropped to seven people, the lowest it has been since March 16.