As per the John Hopkins Univerisity Coronavirus Resource Center, as of this writing, the current number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the US stands at 1,622,670.
In addition, the nation has also been hit with 97,087 deaths as a result of COVID-19. Both of these statistics are the highest for any country in the world.
To mark the devastating milestone, The New York Times has dedicated today's front page (May 24, 2020) to listing the names of 1,000 people who have lost their lives to the virus.
The headline for the front page reads: "U.S. Deaths Near 100,000, An Incalculable Loss".
Per The Insider, Simone Landon, an editor for the newspaper, said she had realized that there had been "a little bit of a fatigue with the data" among both Times journalists and the general public. To rectify this, The Times vowed to visualize the true extent of the loss.
Staff at the publication combed through obituaries and death notices for those whose cause of death was listed as COVID-19. They then plastered their front page with their names, along with their ages and facts about their lives.
And despite the front page looking absolutely heartbreaking, it only accounts for just 1% of the nation's total death toll.
A subline on the front page read: "They were not simply names on a list. They were us."
For 85-year-old June Beverly Hill of Sacramento, The Times noted that "no one made creamed potatoes or fried sweet corn the way she did."
Orlando Moncada, a Bronxville man who died at 56, "left Peru and grabbed hold of the American dream."
And 25-year-old Michigan-native Bassey Offiong "saw friends at their worst but brought out their best".
Satff also included a New York Times veteran among the names; "Charles Constantino, 86, Menlo Park, N.J., worked 40 years for The New York Times."
Tom Bodkin, chief creative officer of The Times, said the front page was reminiscent to ones your would see in the mid-1800s.
Bodkins added that he could not remember any front pages without images during his 40 years at The Times, adding: "Though there have been some pages with only graphics, this is certainly a first in modern times."