HealthDay -
June 16, 2021
More than 96% are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, with no significant difference in vaccination rates across regions, according to a new survey from the American Medical Association (AMA). Even among the 4% not yet vaccinated, 45% said they do plan to get their vaccine.
CNN -
June 16, 2021
With CDC data showing 64.6% of the adult population vaccinated with at least one dose and vaccines available to Americans 12 and older, pediatricians are now working to fill in some of the gaps in vaccine coverage. One month after Sandhills Pediatrics in Southern Pines, North Carolina started offering the Covid-19 vaccine, the practice administered 940 doses of the Pfizer vaccine -- 268 went not to patients, but adults over the age of 23.
NBC News -
June 16, 2021
The so-called delta variant of the coronavirus now accounts for nearly 10 percent of new cases in the United States, the CDC said Tuesday. The agency on Monday declared the variant, which was first detected in India, a "variant of concern," a designation given when there is increased evidence of factors such as transmissibility or severity or reduced effectiveness of vaccines or treatments.
Reuters -
June 16, 2021
New York is lifting all state-mandated coronavirus restrictions after reporting that 70% of the state's adults have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Tuesday. … Restrictions across commercial and social settings will be lifted immediately. Cuomo said some limitations based on guidelines from the CDC would remain in place, with mitigation measures still required in public transit and healthcare settings.
Wall Street Journal -
June 15, 2021
Separate studies from researchers in England and Scotland published Monday found that while protection against infection was somewhat diminished against Delta compared with more established variants, two doses of vaccine offered considerable protection against severe illness and hospitalization. … Public Health England says Pfizer shot 96% effective against hospitalization, and AstraZeneca shot 92% effective
AP -
June 15, 2021
A small study offers the first hint that an extra dose of COVID-19 vaccines just might give some organ transplant recipients a needed boost in protection … It didn’t help everybody. But of the 24 patients who appeared to have no protection after the routine two vaccinations, eight of them — a third — developed some virus-fighting antibodies after an extra shot … six others who’d had only minimal antibodies all got a big boost from the third dose.
Washington Post -
June 15, 2021
States with higher vaccination rates now have markedly fewer coronavirus cases, as infections are dropping in places where most residents have been immunized and are rising in many places people have not, a Washington Post analysis has found. States with lower vaccination also have significantly higher hospitalization rates, The Post found. Poorly vaccinated communities have not been reporting catastrophic conditions. Instead, they are usually seeing new infections holding steady or increasing without overwhelming local hospitals.
ABC News -
June 15, 2021
Vermont crossed a major vaccine milestone Monday as more than 80% of the state's eligible population has at least one shot, according to state health department data.
AP -
June 15, 2021
The approaching 600,000 mark, as tracked by Johns Hopkins University, is greater than the population of Baltimore or Milwaukee. … true toll is believed to be significantly higher. … In the first wave of fatalities, in April 2020, Black people were slammed, dying at rates higher than those of other ethnic or racial groups ... Last summer, during a second surge, Hispanics were hit the hardest … By winter, during the third and most lethal stage, the virus had gripped the entire nation, and racial gaps in weekly death rates had narrowed so much that whites were the worst off, followed closely by Hispanics.
AP -
June 15, 2021
At the stroke of midnight, California is lifting most of its COVID-19 restrictions and ushering in what has been billed as the state’s “Grand Reopening.” Starting Tuesday, there will be no more state rules on social distancing, and no more limits on capacity at restaurants, bars, supermarkets, gyms, stadiums or anywhere else. And masks — one of the most symbolic and fraught symbols of the pandemic — will no longer be mandated for vaccinated people in most settings, though businesses and counties can still require them.
AP -
June 15, 2021
The holiday will see the largest event yet of Biden’s presidency: He plans to host first responders, essential workers and military servicemembers and their families on the South Lawn for a cookout and to watch the fireworks over the National Mall. Well more than 1,000 guests are expected, officials said, with final arrangements still to be sorted out.
BBC -
June 15, 2021
A headache, sore throat and runny nose are now the most commonly reported symptoms linked to Covid infection in the UK, researchers say. Prof Tim Spector, who runs the Zoe Covid Symptom study, says catching the Delta variant can feel "more like a bad cold" for younger people. But although they may not feel very ill, they could be contagious and put others at risk. Anyone who thinks they may have Covid should take a test.
STAT -
June 14, 2021
Novavax’s Covid-19 vaccine was highly effective in preventing symptomatic infections, hospitalizations, and severe illnesses, long-awaited results from the company’s Phase 3 trial, released Monday, revealed. The vaccine was 90% protective against laboratory-confirmed symptomatic infection. The trial results put this vaccine in the same efficacy ballpark as the mRNA vaccines produced by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. But where those companies are currently producing and selling hundreds of millions of doses and are in the process of seeking full licensure from the FDA, Novavax still has steps it must take before it can apply for the regulatory authorizations it will need to start rolling out its vaccine.
AP -
June 14, 2021
New COVID-19 cases are declining across most of the country, even in some states with vaccine-hesitant populations. But almost all states bucking that trend have lower-than-average vaccination rates, and experts warn that relief from the pandemic could be fleeting in regions where few people get inoculated.
AP -
June 14, 2021
In Tennessee and North Carolina, demand for the COVID-19 vaccine has slowed down so much that they have given millions of doses back to the federal government, even though less than half of their total populations are vaccinated. Oklahoma has not asked for new doses from the government for more than a month, spurning its 200,000-a-week allotment. Around the country, states are rushing to use up doses before they expire this summer.
ABC News -
June 14, 2021
Seattle has become the first U.S. city to fully vaccinate 70% of eligible residents. … Meanwhile, Denver has crossed the milestone of administering at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to 70% of its population. … El Paso, Texas has also passed the milestone, with 72% of the county's eligible population aged 12 and up receiving at least one dose of the vaccine, according to the the state's vaccine dashboard. Some of the nation's largest cities, including San Francisco, San Jose and Boston, are also racing toward the threshold.