Virginia reports 6th highest increase in weekly unemployment claims in US since start of pandemic Storyblocks and last updated 2021-01-18 14:06:32-05 The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all aspects of life, but for many it has resulted in job loss. The U.S. has experienced more new unemployment claims last week than the previous week, according to Wallet Hub. Wallet Hub's data shows that some places didn't follow the national trend, though, with claims lower than in 2019, including Kentucky and the District of Columbia. There are currently 10.7 million Americans unemployed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in total, Wallet Hub says. Last week, there were 965,000 new unemployment claims nationwide, compared to 6.9 million during the peak of the pandemic (an 86% reduction).