The US death toll from the coronavirus topped 500,000 on Sunday, according to an NBC News tally.
NBC News' tally showed that roughly 500,001 people had died of COVID-19 as of Sunday afternoon. The number of dead rivals the population of Atlanta or Sacramento, California.
More than 28,206,600 cases have been confirmed in the US, according to the NBC News tally. California, the most populous state, had 3,527,641 confirmed cases and 49,110 deaths as of Sunday.
The average number of daily new cases has declined in recent days, however, the numbers show. The number fell below 100,000 on February 12 for the first time in months.
The coronavirus has claimed the lives of more than 2,462,000 people worldwide, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The death toll in the US is the highest in the world.
Meanwhile, the vaccination campaign in the US continues. US President Joe Biden recently announced that the US had secured contractual commitments from Moderna and Pfizer to deliver 600 million doses of vaccine by the end of July.