NEW YORK -- January has already become the worst month for US COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic. As of Tuesday, there have been more than 79,000 coronavirus fatalities, topping the previous record set in December by more than a thousand, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The grim milestone underpins the growing demand from state officials for more vaccines so that Americans can be inoculated more quickly. On Tuesday, President Joe Biden's COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients told governors that allocations would increase by around 16% starting next week, according to a source with knowledge of the call. Biden has pushed for 100 million vaccination shots in the first 100 days of his presidency, but with a long road ahead for vaccinations, he also called for 100 days of mask-wearing.