Tag: Covid

Health

5 U.S. states set new data for Covid circumstances as hospitalizations rise

Post author By
Post date August 17, 2021

Five states broke records for the average number of daily new Covid cases over the weekend as the delta variant strains hospital systems across the U.S. and forces many states to reinstate public health restrictions.

Florida, Louisiana, Hawaii, Oregon and Mississippi all reached new peaks in their seven-day average of new cases per day as of Sunday, according to a CNBC analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. On a per capita basis, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida are suffering from the three worst outbreaks in the country.

Daily new Covid cases per 100,000 residents

Note: Lines show seven-day average of daily new cases.

Source: Johns Hopkins University, CNBC analysis. As of August 15, 2021.

Daily new Covid cases per

100,000 residents

Note: Lines show seven-day average of daily

new cases.

Source: Johns Hopkins University, CNBC

analysis. As of August 15, 2021.

Daily new Covid cases per 100,000 residents

Note: Lines show seven-day average of daily new cases.

Source: Johns Hopkins University, CNBC analysis. As of August 15, 2021.

Louisiana recorded an average of 126 cases per 100,000 residents as of Sunday, more than three times the national average, while Mississippi and Florida averaged 110 and 101 cases per 100,000 residents, respectively, according to the data.

“We’re in the middle of the summer, people are gathering again with people, they’re in large groups, the vaccine has given a false sense of security in some ways to people, and they forget,” Dr. Perry Halkitis, dean of the Rutgers School of Public Health, told CNBC in an interview.

Louisiana

The surging delta variant has hit the Gulf Coast particularly hard, pushing hospitals to their limits. To try to curb the outbreak in Louisiana, officials in July recommended masks indoors for everyone, regardless of whether or not they were vaccinated. They reintroduced a statewide mask mandate on Aug. 2 after it was obvious that wasn’t working and cases kept climbing.

Everyone must now wear masks indoors regardless of their vaccination status, including all students from kindergarten through college.

Louisiana has the fifth-lowest vaccination rate of any state in the country, with 38.3% of its population fully immunized against the coronavirus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Louisiana reported a record-high seven-day average of more than 5,800 new Covid cases as of Sunday, an increase of nearly 27% from a week ago, according to Hopkins data.

Louisiana recorded a seven-day average of 44 Covid-related deaths as of Sunday, over 46% more than a week prior. Almost half of the state’s 882 reported intensive care unit beds were occupied by coronavirus patients as of Monday, compared with a nationwide average of 25%, according the Department of Health and Human Services.

Mississippi

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves, a Republican, pleaded Friday with residents to get vaccinated as the state scrambles to hire hundreds of temporary doctors, nurses and EMTs.

He’s also requested ventilators from the Strategic National Stockpile as the spread of the delta variant fills hospitals in the state with mostly unvaccinated patients. Almost 55% of Mississippi’s ICU beds were filled with Covid patients as of Monday, and the state’s seven-day average of nearly 3,300 new coronavirus cases as of Sunday jumped 57% from a week ago.

“When you look across the country, to a certain extent, this current wave is the pandemic of the unvaccinated,” Reeves said at a press conference. “We continue to see more and more data, and the data is becoming more and more clear. Those who received the vaccine are significantly less likely to contract the virus.”

Mississippi has the nation’s second-lowest coronavirus vaccination rate, with 35.8% of its population fully immunized as of Sunday. The state’s death toll also hit a seven-day average of 20, up almost 80% from a week ago.

Florida

Florida reported a record 151,764 new Covid cases for the week on Friday, reaching a new seven-day average of 21,681 cases per day — more than any other state. More than half of the ICU beds in the state are occupied by Covid patients, according to HHS data.

Florida’s surge in cases comes as Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis continues to resist calls from the Biden administration and state advocacy groups to enforce mask mandates and other pandemic-related measures to help contain the massive outbreak. He signed an executive order and law in May that lifted all Covid restrictions across the state and permanently blocked local officials from enacting new ones starting July 1.

In late July, DeSantis issued a controversial executive order that blocked mask mandates in the state’s schools, overruling two counties that required face coverings for their students.

Oregon

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, is deploying up to 1,500 National Guard members to assist the state’s health systems as Covid hospitalizations set a new record three days in a row, standing at 733 on Friday. The state recorded 1,765 new cases on Friday, bringing its seven-day average to 1,652, according to the most recent data available.

The state reimplemented an indoor mask mandate on Friday for everyone, including fully vaccinated people, in response to the surge in hospitalizations.

Hawaii

Though Hawaii’s outbreak is relatively small compared with most mainland states, cases there have repeatedly been reaching new records since mid-July, hitting a seven-day average of 671 new cases per day on Sunday, according to Hopkins data.

That’s a more-than-sevenfold jump from 89 cases per day a month ago. The recent surge in cases has caught health officials by surprise and is starting to strain the state’s hospital systems. The total number of hospitalizations on the islands is 3,030, with 552 deaths recorded since the beginning of the pandemic.

“We are on fire. When we have hospitals that are really worried about being able to take care of people, that’s a crisis,” Hawaii’s health director, Dr. Elizabeth Char, said at a press conference last week. “When we see this exponential growth in the amount of people that are getting infected with Covid-19 every day — 2,000 people in the last three days — that’s a crisis. And at the point at which we overwhelm our resources, that’s a disaster.”

Hospitalization rates in Hawaii and Oregon, however, aren’t as high as other states. Nationwide, less than 11% of all hospital beds are being used by Covid patients. In Oregon, it’s 11.4%, Hawaii is at 12.1%, followed by Louisiana at 20.4%, Mississippi at 18.7% and Florida at 28.2%, according to HHS data.

Hospital bed capacity correlates very closely with vaccination rates. The states with higher vaccination rates are seeing fewer Covid patients take up hospital beds. Oregon has fully vaccinated 56.8% of its residents, followed by Hawaii at 54.3%, Florida at 50.3%, Louisiana at 38.3% and Mississippi at 35.8%.

“That is why Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi are hurting with bed capacity and ascending death rates, while Oregon and Hawaii are hurting with explosive case rates, but with high vaccination and masking rates, may not ever be in the same precarious position,” said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease expert at University of California in San Francisco.

As of Sunday, the national seven-day average of new cases stands at 130,710, an increase of 20% from the previous seven-day average, according to Hopkins data. The seven-day average for Covid deaths nationwide rose to 687, up 36% from the previous average.

“We know what the tools are, and now this comes down to policy and political decisionmakers’ value judgment to determine which tools they want to implement,” Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious disease expert at University of Toronto, told CNBC.

Correction: This article has been updated to reflect the correct percentages of fully vaccinated people in Oregon, Hawaii, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Tags cases, Covid, hospitalizations, records, rise, set, states

Health

Can the Vaccinated Develop Lengthy Covid After a Breakthrough An infection?

Post author By
Post date August 16, 2021

While some breakthrough cases in people fully vaccinated against Covid-19 are inevitable, they are unlikely to result in hospitalization or death. But an important question about breakthrough infection remains unanswered: Can the vaccinated develop a so-called long covid?

Long Covid refers to a range of symptoms – such as severe fatigue, brain fog, headache, muscle aches, and trouble sleeping – that can last for weeks or months after the active infection has ended. The syndrome is little known, but studies suggest that between 10 and 30 percent of adults who contract the virus can have Covid for a long time, including those who had mild illness or no symptoms at all.

But the vast majority of the long-term data collected by Covid concerns the unvaccinated population. The risk of developing long-term Covid has not been studied in fully vaccinated people who become infected after vaccination.

While preliminary research suggests that it is indeed possible that a breakthrough case could lead to symptoms that could last weeks to months, there are still more questions than answers. What percentage of breakthrough cases result in persistent symptoms? How many of these people are recovering? Are the persistent symptoms after a breakthrough infection as severe as with the unvaccinated?

“I just don’t think there’s enough data,” said Dr. Zijian Chen, medical director of the Center for Post-Covid Care at Mount Sinai Health System in New York. “It’s too early to say that. The number of people who get sick after vaccination is not that high right now, and there is no good tracking mechanism for these patients. “

A study of Israeli health workers recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine offers insight into the risk of long-term Covid infection after a breakthrough infection. Of 1,497 fully vaccinated health care workers, 39 – approximately 2.6 percent – developed breakthrough infections. (All workers were thought to be infected after contact with an unvaccinated person, and the study was conducted before the delta variant became dominant.)

While most breakthrough cases were mild or asymptomatic, seven out of 36 workers observed after six weeks (19 percent) still had persistent symptoms. These long Covid symptoms included a mixture of persistent loss of smell, persistent cough, fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath, or muscle pain.

However, the study’s authors caution against drawing too many conclusions from the research. The sample size – only seven patients – is small. And the research is designed to look at antibody levels in those infected, said Dr. Gili Regev-Yochay, Director of the Department of Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases at Sheba Medical Center. It was not designed to study the risk of long-term Covid illness after a breakthrough infection.

“That was not the scope of this paper,” said Dr. Regev-Yochay. “I don’t think we have an answer to that.”

Still, the fact that one in five healthcare workers who had a breakthrough infection still had persistent symptoms after six weeks seems to be the first clue from a peer-reviewed study that long Covid is possible after a breakthrough infection.

Updated

Aug 16, 2021, 1:10 p.m. ET

“People said to me, ‘You are fully vaccinated. Why are you so careful? ‘”Said Dr. Robert M. Wachter, professor and chair of the medical school at the University of California at San Francisco. “I’m still in the camp that I don’t want to get Covid. I don’t want to get a breakthrough infection. “

Dr. Wachter said that despite the many limitations of the Israeli study, the data provides more evidence that those vaccinated should continue to take reasonable precautions to avoid the virus.

“I’ll take it at face value that one in five people continued to feel bad six weeks after a breakthrough,” said Dr. Guardian. “That’s enough to wear two masks when you go shopping in the supermarket, which isn’t that stressful anyway.”

Understand the state of vaccination and masking requirements in the United States

- Mask rules. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in July recommended that all Americans, regardless of vaccination status, wear masks in public places indoors in areas with outbreaks, reversing the guidelines offered in May. See where the CDC guidelines would apply and where states have implemented their own mask guidelines. The battle over masks is controversial in some states, with some local leaders defying state bans.
- Vaccination regulations. . . and B.Factories. Private companies are increasingly demanding coronavirus vaccines for employees with different approaches. Such mandates are legally permissible and have been confirmed in legal challenges.
- College and Universities. More than 400 colleges and universities require a vaccination against Covid-19. Almost all of them are in states that voted for President Biden.
- schools. On August 11, California announced that teachers and staff at both public and private schools would have to get vaccinated or have regular tests, the first state in the nation to do so. A survey published in August found that many American parents of school-age children are against mandatory vaccines for students but are more likely to support masking requirements for students, teachers and staff who are not vaccinated.
- Hospitals and medical centers. Many hospitals and large health systems require their employees to have a Covid-19 vaccine, due to rising case numbers due to the Delta variant and persistently low vaccination rates in their communities, even within their workforce.
- new York. On August 3, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that workers and customers would be required to provide proof of vaccination when dining indoors, gyms, performances, and other indoor situations. City hospital staff must also be vaccinated or have weekly tests. Similar rules apply to employees in New York State.
- At the federal level. The Pentagon announced that it would make coronavirus vaccinations compulsory for the country’s 1.3 million active soldiers “by mid-September at the latest. President Biden announced that all civil federal employees would need to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or undergo regular tests, social distancing, mask requirements and travel restrictions.

Making breakthrough infection research difficult is the fact that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only track post-vaccination infections that result in hospitalization or death. While the CDC continues to study breakthrough infections in several large cohorts, the lack of data on all breakthrough cases remains a source of frustration among scientists and patient organizations.

“It is very frustrating not to have data at this point in the pandemic to know what will happen to breakthrough cases,” said Akiko Iwasaki, an immunologist at Yale School of Medicine who conducts studies on long-term Covid. “When a mild breakthrough infection turns into a long Covid, we don’t have that number under control.”

Diana Berrent, founder of Survivor Corps, a Facebook group for people affected by Covid-19 with approximately 171,000 members, conducted an informal survey and found 24 people who said they had persistent symptoms after a breakthrough infection. It is not a scientific sample and the cases have not been validated, but the survey shows that more data is needed on breakthrough cases, Ms Berrent said.

“You can’t extrapolate it to the general population, but it sends a very strong signal that the CDC must mandate coverage of every breakthrough case,” Ms. Berrent said. “We can’t know what we’re not counting.”

However, some experts predict that the surge in new cases caused by the spread of the Delta variant will unfortunately lead to more groundbreaking cases in the coming months. Dr. Chen of Mount Sinai said it would take several months to enroll patients with long covid due to a breakthrough infection.

“We are waiting for these patients to show up at our door,” said Dr. Chen.

Despite the lack of data, one thing is clear: vaccination reduces the risk of getting infected and developing Covid, Athena Akrami, a neuroscientist at University College London, said the data from nearly 4,000 long-term Covid patients developed after long Covid collected and released after a battle with Covid-19 in March 2020.

“It’s simple math,” said Dr. Akrami. “If you reduce infections, the likelihood of long-term Covid illnesses automatically decreases.”

Tags Breakthrough, Covid, Develop, infection, Long, Vaccinated

Health

Can the Vaccinated Develop Lengthy Covid After a Breakthrough An infection?

Post author By
Post date August 16, 2021

“That was not the scope of this paper,” said Dr. Regev-Yochay. “I don’t think we have an answer to that.”

Updated

Aug 16, 2021, 5:01 p.m. ET

“People said to me, ‘You are fully vaccinated. Why are you so careful? ‘”Said Dr. Robert M. Wachter, Professor and Chair of the Medical School, University California San Francisco. “I’m still in the camp that I don’t want to get Covid. I don’t want to get a breakthrough infection. “

Dr. Wachter said that despite the many limitations of the Israeli study, the data provides more evidence that those vaccinated should continue to take reasonable precautions to avoid the virus.

Understand the state of vaccination and masking requirements in the United States

- Mask rules. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in July recommended that all Americans, regardless of vaccination status, wear masks in public places indoors in areas with outbreaks, reversing the guidelines offered in May. See where the CDC guidelines would apply and where states have implemented their own mask guidelines. The battle over masks is controversial in some states, with some local leaders defying state bans.
- Vaccination regulations. . . and B.Factories. Private companies are increasingly demanding coronavirus vaccines for employees with different approaches. Such mandates are legally permissible and have been confirmed in legal challenges.
- College and Universities. More than 400 colleges and universities require a vaccination against Covid-19. Almost all of them are in states that voted for President Biden.
- schools. On August 11, California announced that teachers and staff at both public and private schools would have to get vaccinated or have regular tests, the first state in the nation to do so. A survey published in August found that many American parents of school-age children are against mandatory vaccines for students but are more likely to support masking requirements for students, teachers and staff who are not vaccinated.
- Hospitals and medical centers. Many hospitals and large health systems require their employees to have a Covid-19 vaccine, due to rising case numbers due to the Delta variant and persistently low vaccination rates in their communities, even within their workforce.
- new York. On August 3, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that workers and customers would be required to provide proof of vaccination when dining indoors, gyms, performances, and other indoor situations. City hospital staff must also be vaccinated or have weekly tests. Similar rules apply to employees in New York State.
- At the federal level. The Pentagon announced that it would make coronavirus vaccinations compulsory for the country’s 1.3 million active soldiers “by mid-September at the latest. President Biden announced that all civil federal employees would need to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or undergo regular tests, social distancing, mask requirements and travel restrictions.

“We are waiting for these patients to show up at our door,” said Dr. Chen.

“It’s simple math,” said Dr. Akrami. “If you reduce infections, the likelihood of long-term Covid illnesses automatically decreases.”

Tags Breakthrough, Covid, Develop, infection, Long, Vaccinated

Health

CDC panel prepares to vote on Covid vaccine booster pictures for weak People

Post author By
Post date August 15, 2021

Marilyn Lurie, who suffers from frontotemporal dementia, is being monitored in the back yard of her home by elderly caregiver Olga Lopez after receiving her first dose of COVID-19 vaccine as part of a mobile vaccination program on July 16, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.

Mario Tama | Getty Images News | Getty Images

A key advisory group from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is preparing to vote on Friday on distributing Covid-19 vaccine booster shots to Americans with compromised immune systems.

The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is due to meet on Friday to consider Covid booster vaccinations for such people, including cancer and HIV patients. On Thursday, the CDC updated their website to indicate that a vote is scheduled for the meeting on Friday around 1 p.m. ET.

The Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve a third Covid vaccination for immunocompromised populations on Thursday, a highly anticipated move designed to protect some of the most vulnerable Americans from the highly contagious Delta variant.

However, the FDA’s OK is not the final go-ahead. The CDC Advisory Committee must then make a recommendation on how to distribute the booster shots. If the CDC accepts the advisory group’s recommendation as expected, third shots could begin immediately.

Immunocompromised populations would be the first group in the US to receive a booster vaccination. Federal health officials are not currently recommending additional doses for the general public.

People with compromised immune systems make up only about 2.7% of the adult US population. Still, they account for around 44% of hospitalized breakthrough Covid cases, according to recent data from the CDC group. A breakthrough case is infection in a fully vaccinated person.

The Senior Medical Advisor to the White House, Dr. Anthony Fauci said last week that new data suggests that immunocompromised people are not generating an adequate immune response after receiving two doses of a Covid vaccine.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the FDA has worked closely with Pfizer and Moderna to give these vulnerable groups the opportunity to receive booster vaccinations.

“An extra dose could help increase protection for these people, which is especially important as the Delta variant is spreading,” she said during a Covid briefing at the White House. “This action is about ensuring that our most vulnerable, who may need an extra dose to improve their biological responses to the vaccines, are better protected from Covid-19.”

Tags Americans, booster, CDC, Covid, Panel, prepares, shots, Vaccine, Vote, vulnerable

Health

Covid breakthrough danger could also be a lot decrease with Moderna vaccine than Pfizer

Post author By
Post date August 15, 2021

On this illustration from 19.

Given Ruvic | Reuters

The risk of developing a breakthrough COVID-19 infection with the Delta variant after being fully vaccinated with the Moderna vaccine may be much lower than that, according to a new study from the Mayo Clinic awaiting a full review Risk to those who received the Pfizer vaccine.

The study found that in July in Florida, where COVID cases have hit an all-time high and the Delta variant is widespread, the risk of a breakthrough in Moderna recipients was 60% lower compared to Pfizer recipients.

Similarly, last month in Minnesota, the authors found that the Moderna vaccine (also known as mRNA-1273) was 76% effective in preventing infection, but the Pfizer vaccine (known as BNT162b2) was 42% effective.

“Comparing infection rates between matched individuals fully vaccinated with mRNA-1273 with BNT162b2 at Mayo Clinic Health System sites in several states (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Arizona, Florida, and Iowa) found one with mRNA-1273 Twice the risk reduction compared to a breakthrough infection compared to BNT162b2 “, write the authors in their abstract.

The authors found that both vaccines “strongly protect” against serious illnesses; the difference seems to be more whether people become infected at all. The CDC has said that the risk of infection in the unvaccinated is 8 times higher than that of the vaccinated and the risk of hospitalization or death is 25 times higher.

The so-called pre-print study, which was neither peer-reviewed nor published in a scientific journal, was first published on Sunday but received more attention on Wednesday when Axios reported that the Biden administration was using the data as a “wake-up call.” . “

Pfizer told Axios that it and its partner BioNTech “can develop and produce a bespoke vaccine against this variant in about 100 days of a decision, subject to regulatory approval.”

The company confirmed the effectiveness of its vaccines in a subsequent statement, saying it was also determined to develop boosters.

“Pfizer and BioNTech have put in place a robust refresher research program to ensure that our vaccine continues to offer the highest level of protection possible. Initial data from a third dose of the current vaccine shows that a booster dose at least 6 months after the second dose elicits high neutralization titers against the wild-type, beta and delta variants, “Pfizer said in a statement.

Just last week, Moderna warned that breakthrough infections were on the rise, saying those who received his vaccine would likely need a booster shot before winter. And at the end of last month, Pfizer also said that a booster that is already being tested would be effective against the Delta variant.

Data from New Jersey, where Delta now accounts for 90% of all positive COVID samples tested, underscores the key points: Breakthrough infections still make up a very small percentage of new COVID hospital admissions, but that percentage has been increasing significantly in weeks recently.

Fully vaccinated New Jerseyans accounted for 18.5% of all new COVID cases in the July 20-26, said Governor Phil Murphy. More importantly, these cases accounted for 3% of all new hospital admissions.

Murphy cited the data Monday as evidence that vaccines are working, but the fact that as many as 3% of hospitalized COVID patients have been vaccinated is a concern – and with it the direction in which the breakthrough cases are headed to develop.

The proportion of 3% of vaccinated people who were hospitalized with the virus in the period from July 20 to July 26 has increased significantly compared to the proportion of 0.004% in the period up to July 26.

Pfizer accounts for 30% of the more than 10.6 million vaccine doses given in New Jersey to date, while Moderna accounts for about 21%, state data shows.

Tags Breakthrough, Covid, Moderna, Pfizer, Risk, Vaccine

Health

CDC says over 90% of U.S. counties now meet its Covid tips for masks indoors

Post author By
Post date August 15, 2021

Mask requirements apply in Provincetown, MA on August 6, 2021.

Craig F. Walker | Boston Globe | Getty Images

The Delta-Covid variant has spread so quickly in the US that most counties in the country now meet CDC guidelines that recommend wearing masks indoors – whether they are vaccinated or not.

“We continue to see increases in cases, hospitalizations and deaths across the country. And now over 90% of counties in the United States are experiencing significant or high transmission,” said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters at a briefing Thursday. “As we said earlier, by far the most vulnerable people remain who have not yet been vaccinated.”

The CDC updated its mask guidelines on July 27 to recommend indoor masks in areas of the United States where community transmission was considered high or significant. Most of the counties with high transmission rates were in the southern United States, but in two weeks the proliferation of the highly transmittable delta variant expanded to most counties across the country.

The CDC recorded 132,384 new cases of Covid on Wednesday and hit a seven-day average of about 113,000 cases per day, up nearly 24% from the previous week, it said. Hospital admissions also rose about 31% in the previous week to about 9,700 per day.

Unvaccinated Americans make up the overwhelming majority of hospital admissions and deaths across the country, she said.

Several large institutions in the public and private sectors have mandated vaccines or require weekly Covid tests to prevent the virus from spreading further. President Joe Biden recently met with private sector leaders to promote vaccine or testing mandates.

“Immunization regulations are growing in importance across the country and already covering tens of millions of workers, educators, students and healthcare providers,” said Jeffrey Zients, White House coronavirus response coordinator, at the meeting. “You will help keep communities safe and stop the virus from spreading.”

Several cities with high vaccination rates have also mandated vaccinations for indoor activities in places like restaurants, bars, and gyms to prevent further spread of the Delta variant. New York City requires at least one dose of indoor activity vaccine, and San Francisco requires full vaccination with a two-dose vaccine or one dose of a single-dose vaccine. According to Zients, around 700 colleges and universities across the country have introduced vaccination mandates.

In the hardest hit states, vaccination rates are rising as residents take precautions against the spread of the Delta variant, he said. The average number of daily shots tripled in the past month in Arkansas and quadrupled in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi, Zients said.

The CDC on Wednesday also stepped up its vaccination recommendations for pregnant women, reiterating that the vaccine is safe for those who are pregnant or planning to conceive. Walensky cited new data that “found no safety concerns for pregnant people who are vaccinated late in pregnancy or for their babies,” she said.

“To end this pandemic, every American must do their part. So if you are not vaccinated, please get your vaccination … it has never been more important, ”said Zients.

Tags CDC, Counties, Covid, Guidelines, indoors, Masks, Meet

Health

Children and Covid: What to Know, a Instances Digital Occasion

Post author By
Post date August 15, 2021

With cases of the delta variant of coronavirus increasing across the country and children under 12 still needing to be approved for the vaccine, returning to school in September can feel unsafe at best and worrying at worst.

How will this new strain affect our children? Is it still certain that the school will take place in person? What preventive measures should we take to protect our children?

Hear important answers from Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, and then join an important question-and-answer session for parents, educators, and students everywhere with Times journalists (who are parents themselves), including Apoorva Mandavilli, a science reporter, and Lisa Damour, a contributing writer and psychologist, hosted by Andrew Ross Sorkin, founder and columnist of DealBook.

It’s all part of our latest subscription-only virtual series of events. We look forward to seeing you there.

Tags Covid, event, Kids, Times, Virtual

Health

Dr. Scott Gottlieb expects Covid to be ‘endemic’ in U.S. after delta surge

Post author By
Post date August 14, 2021

Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC on Friday that he expected the coronavirus to become an endemic virus in the US and other western countries after the recent surge in Delta variant infections settled.

“We are going from a pandemic to a more endemic virus, at least here in the United States and probably in other western markets,” said Gottlieb on “Squawk Box”. An endemic virus is one that remains relatively infrequent in the American population, such as seasonal flu.

Gottlieb – Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration from 2017 to 2019 during the Trump administration and now a board member at several companies, including vaccine maker Pfizer – has previously said that “true herd immunity” for Covid in new infections may indeed be impossible for years to come .

“It’s not a binary point in time, but I think after we get through this delta wave this becomes more of an endemic disease where you see some kind of persistent infection through winter … but not at the level” we certainly do experience right now, and it doesn’t necessarily depend on the booster shots, “added Gottlieb on Friday.

Gottlieb said he anticipates the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant will remain remarkable in the coming weeks.

“You will probably see the course of the delta wave between the end of September and October,” said Gottlieb. “Hopefully we’ll be on the other side, or come the other side, sometime in November, and we won’t see a big bout of infection on the other side of this delta wave after that.”

The tri-state region of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut will see a spike in delta cases as rates slow in the south, Gottlieb said.

“This is a big country and the delta wave will be regionalized to sweep across the whole country,” he said. “Hopefully by September you will see the other side of that curve very clearly in the south, but falls will increase in the northeast, in the Great Lakes region, maybe in the Pacific Northwest. … It will likely coincide with a restart at school, some companies are coming back if you look at last summer too. “

Gottlieb’s comments on Friday morning came before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave final approval to begin distributing Covid vaccine booster vaccines to recipients of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines who have weakened immune systems. The CDC’s approval followed a unanimous vote on Friday to recommend booster vaccinations for its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. It now enables the shots to reach vulnerable people such as organ transplant recipients, cancer and HIV patients.

The day before, the FDA approved booster injections for people with compromised immune systems. They make up about 2.7% of the US adult population, but account for about 44% of hospitalized breakthrough Covid cases among fully vaccinated people, according to recent data from the CDC.

Gottlieb said the ability to give these Americans booster vaccinations, which help strengthen their immunity levels, will push the US further into the “endemic phase”.

“I think this is both a political call and a public health call for US officials to continue trying to promote initial vaccinations before they move on to booster vaccinations,” Gottlieb said of the FDA’s announcement on Thursday.

Some of the people Gottlieb believes should get Covid booster vaccinations soon include nursing home residents, who tend to be older and have underlying medical conditions that make them more prone to Covid. That’s especially worrying as the Delta variant invades the northern states and continues to postpone its first round of vaccination in the rearview mirror, he said.

“I would be concerned about nursing homes entering these environments now, given that there is a patient population that is likely to have declining immunity and is more vulnerable than it was five months ago.”

Disclosure: Scott Gottlieb is a CNBC employee and a member of the board of directors of Pfizer, genetic testing startup Tempus, health technology company Aetion, and biotechnology company Illumina. He is also co-chair of the Healthy Sail Panel of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Royal Caribbean.

Tags Covid, Delta, endemic, expects, Gottlieb, Scott, surge

Health

All people will sometime ‘seemingly’ want a booster shot of the Covid vaccines, epidemiologist says

Post author By
Post date August 14, 2021

The epidemiologist Dr. Anne Rimoin told CNBC that she and Dr. Anthony Fauci, Senior Medical Advisor to the White House, agreed when he said that one day everyone will “likely” need a booster dose of Covid-19 vaccines.

“Well, I think Dr. Fauci is right,” said Rimoin, a professor of epidemiology at the UCLA School of Public Health.

“What will warrant a booster is when we see real, diminishing effectiveness of this vaccine in saving people from serious illness, hospitalization, or death. We’re not there yet, but if we are, then we go” a booster need.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday gave final approval to give Covid-19 booster vaccinations to recipients of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, hours after a key panel unanimously voted to allow third doses for immunocompromised Americans advocate. The CDC’s decision followed the approval of the booster vaccination for immunocompromised patients by the Food and Drug Administration late Thursday.

Rimoin told CNBC The News with Shepard Smith that both agencies have made a “really important” decision when it comes to the immunocompromised population.

“When they got the vaccine, they didn’t really develop an immune response enough to protect themselves against this virus,” said Rimoin. “Therefore, both the FDA and CDC are currently recommending an additional dose for these people, which studies have shown to improve the immune response in about 1/3 to 1/2 of the population.”

Immunocompromised patients make up approximately 2.7% of the US adult population and 44% of breakthrough hospital-treated infections that make someone infected even after being fully vaccinated.

Tags booster, Covid, Epidemiologist, shot, vaccines

World News

China partially shuts down port after one Covid case

Post author By
Post date August 14, 2021

Heavy cranes in the port of Ningbo in China.

Philippfotograf | iStock | Getty Images

China closed a key terminal in its port of Ningbo-Zhoushan, the world’s third largest port, after a worker was discovered to be infected with Covid – a move that is likely to put further pressure on already congested utility networks.

It was the second time this year that the country ceased operations at one of its major ports.

Analysts say China’s “zero tolerance” approach to Covid will tighten already stressed supply chains this year. Some warn that this may not be the last port closure as long as Beijing takes this stance.

Dawn Tiura, CEO of the Sourcing Industry Group – an association for the procurement and procurement industry, said China’s stance will lead to “serious” ramifications for the supply chain.

“China has zero tolerance for COVID. One person who tests positive is enough to close (the) port, ”she told CNBC in an email.

Ningbo-Zhoushan is the third largest container volume in the world. According to the World Shipping Council, 27.49 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEU) of container handling were handled in 2019. The container volume rose in 2020 by almost 5% to 28.72 million TEU.

As long as the authorities adhere to this “zero covid” stance, there is still a risk of sudden disruptions due to tests or bans …

Nick Marro

Economist Intelligence Unit

All incoming and outgoing services at the Meishan Terminal at the port of Zhoushan were suspended until further notice on Wednesday, according to Chinese state media. The terminal is the key to processing shipments to Europe and North America.

The supply chains have already been severely disrupted this year by crises such as the shortage of shipping containers and the incident in the Suez Canal. In June, Covid infections sparked disruption at shipping hubs in southern China, including major ports in Shenzhen and Guangzhou – the first time China has shut down ports due to Covid cases.

Effects of China’s “zero covid” stance

China’s zero tolerance for Covid suggests this latest port disruption may not be the last, said Nick Marro, head of global trade at the Economist Intelligence Unit.

“China’s ‘zero-covid’ approach means officials will prioritize containment of the pandemic above all else, especially given the highly contagious nature of the Delta tribe and the risks the current outbreak poses to future economic performance in the third quarter “He said in a note on Wednesday.

“As long as the authorities maintain this ‘zero covid’ stance, there is still a risk of sudden interference from tests or bans, which ties all hopes of normalcy closely to factors such as national vaccination deadlines,” he added.

China is experiencing a resurgence of Covid cases due to the highly transferable Delta variant. The daily cases exceeded the 140 mark on Monday – the highest number of daily infections since January, according to Reuters. The Chinese authorities have ordered mass tests in some areas and wide-ranging restrictions on movement in major cities such as Beijing.

The suspension of services at the Meishan Terminal comes as container shipping rates continue to rise this year. The container freight rates from China and East Asia to the west coast of North America have risen by over 270% to over 15,800 USD per TEU this year, according to the global container freight index from Freightos Baltic. Meanwhile, rates on the east coast have risen by over 220% to over USD 17,500 per TEU, according to the index.

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Effects of China’s “zero covid” stance

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