"This virus still has the upper hand"

Only two US states are reporting a decline in new coronavirus cases

Only two US states are reporting a decline in new coronavirus cases compared to last week: Connecticut and Rhode Island.

A rise was reported in a staggering 36 states, including Florida, which some experts have cautioned could be the next epicenter for infections. 

Officials there and across the US are also warning of an increase in cases among younger people.

Florida reported 9,585 new coronavirus cases Saturday, a single-day record since the start of the pandemic. 

The number rivals those of New York's peak in early April (New York's new case tally Saturday was about 6% of Florida's). 

On Sunday, Florida's Department of Health reported another 8,530 new cases.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state's surge in cases in the past week was the result of a "test dump," echoing an assertion from the White House that an increase in testing is resulting in the higher numbers.

The head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention contended the increase was actual, not an anomaly related to testing numbers, and warned more spread and deaths were in the country's future.

"As a doctor, a scientist, an epidemiologist, I can tell you with 100% certainty that in most states where you're seeing an increase, it is a real increase. It is not more tests; it is more spread of the virus," CDC Director Tom Frieden told Fox News on Sunday.

In the South, the numbers are rising as a result of hasty reopenings, he said, and it's "going to continue to get worse for weeks." 

Deaths are not yet spiking because deaths lag infections by about a month, he said, estimating the nation will see at least 15,000 more deaths in the next month.

"This virus still has the upper hand," Frieden told Fox News.