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The virus has become the country's leading cause of death.
It's just the beginning of the effects of Thanksgiving travel and gatherings, one epidemiologist said. The rate of death probably won't slow anytime soon.
At some hospitals, staff can't keep up, and they say patients are falling through the cracks.
In August, Stacey Singer DeLoye was finally allowed to visit her mother, Marilyn, at her Minnesota nursing home — as long as they were outdoors, masked, and distant.
"She was totally cheerful," Stacey told Business Insider. "I was astonished at how happy she was in that place, and I was impressed with how well they did at keeping the pandemic out."