Coronavirus Watch: Congressman says he has COVID-19 hours after voting in Capitol

Amid chaos at the U.S. Capitol, COVID-19 deaths are surging to national records, and at least one lawmaker who participated in a failed effort to block Joe Biden's Electoral College win has tested positive for the coronavirus.

The U.S. reported 3,865 deaths Wednesday, blowing far past a record set just a day before, Johns Hopkins data shows. At that pace, an American is reported dead about every 22 seconds.

U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner, R-Kan., announced early Thursday he tested positive for COVID-19 overnight. According to a tweet, he’s not experiencing any symptoms and will not return to the House floor until he’s cleared. 

It's Thursday, and this is the Coronavirus Watch from the Paste BN Network. Here's more news that you need to know:

• U.S. Sen. Rick Scott is calling for a Congressional investigation into reports of improper vaccine distribution after a Washington Post investigation found a Florida assisted-living company may have been doling out scarce vaccines to board members and affluent friends who made generous donations to the West Palm Beach facility. 
• Amazon is now selling COVID-19 tests for customers to use at home. The DxTerity COVID-19 Saliva at-Home Collection Kit detects the presence of the virus but does not confirm immunity or detect antibodies. A single testing kit is listed for $110, and a 10-pack bundle is available for $1,000. 
• Both CVS and Walgreens said they expect to finish delivering the first round of the COVID-19 vaccine doses at nursing homes on schedule by Jan. 25. As of Tuesday, CVS has administered 351,231 vaccines in nursing homes, including nearly 30,000 in states like California and Florida. 
• The anger building up among some taxpayers who want to know when they'll receive their second stimulus payment drove the Internal Revenue Service to release more guidance. The bottom line: Some taxpayers won't see their second check soon and they could have to wait to fix the problem when they file their 2020 tax returns. 
• A late-stage Brazilian trial determined a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Chinese company Sinovac Biotech was 78% effective, according to Reuters, improving chances of regulator approval. Sinovac has sold more than 300 million doses of the vaccine, called CoronaVac, to mostly low-and middle-income countries, The New York Times reports. 
• The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell slightly to 787,000, evidence of a job market stumbling in the face of the viral pandemic and the damage it has inflicted on the economy for nearly 10 months.

Today's numbers: The U.S. has reported more than 21.3 million COVID-19 cases and 362,000 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide, there have been more than 87.5 million cases and more than 1.8 million deaths. See the numbers in your area here, and check out where cases are rising here.

– Grace Hauck, Paste BN breaking news reporter, @grace_hauck