Those Pandemic Plastic Barriers Seen At Checkout Counters May Be Helping Spread COVID.
Written by Steven Hansen
The U.S. new cases 7-day rolling average are 13.4 % HIGHER than the 7-day rolling average one week ago and U.S. deaths due to coronavirus are now 46.6 % HIGHER than the rolling average one week ago. Today’s posts include:
- U.S. Coronavirus New Cases are 144,297
- U.S. Coronavirus deaths are at 993
- Delayed Wuhan Report Adds Crucial Detail to Covid Origin Puzzle
- Is the Regeneron Treatment the Same As Getting a COVID Vaccine?
- The Science Supporting the U.S. Case for COVID Boosters
- Scientists blast U.S. push for Covid vaccine booster shots as premature, say data isn’t compelling
- Small study suggests a mix-and-match COVID-19 booster produces robust antibody levels
- Convalescent Plasma Flops in High-Risk COVID Outpatients
- Costco shoppers say some stores are out of toilet paper and water, as evidence mounts that consumers may stockpile items amid the spread of the Delta variant
- How the pandemic changed abortion access
- Google, Apple and Samsung Gearing Up For Digital Vaccine Passport
- President Joe Biden revealed there may be about 15,000 Americans stuck in Afghanistan
- Plus Many More Headlines …
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Hospitalizations Are The Only Accurate Gauge
Hospitalizations historically appear to be little affected by weekends or holidays. The hospitalization growth rate trend continues to improve.
source: https://gis.cdc.gov/grasp/covidnet/COVID19_3.html
Historically, hospitalization growth follows new case growth by one to two weeks.
As an analyst, I use the rate of growth to determine the trend. But, the size of the pandemic is growing in terms of real numbers – and if the rate of growth does not become negative – the pandemic will overwhelm all resources.
The graph below shows the rate of growth relative to the growth a week earlier updated through today [note that negative numbers mean the rolling averages are LOWER than the rolling averages one week ago]. As one can see, the rate of growth for new cases peaked in early December 2020 for Thanksgiving, and early January 2021 for end-of-year holidays – and it now shows that the coronavirus effect is improving.
In the scheme of things, new cases decline first, followed by hospitalizations, and then deaths. The potential fourth wave did not materialize likely due to immunizations.
Coronavirus and Recovery News You May Have Missed
The Science Supporting the U.S. Case for COVID Boosters – MedPage
U.S. health officials laid out the scientific rationale for a third dose of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines for all U.S. adults on Wednesday, relying on published and unpublished CDC data, as well as a preprint study.
Overall, they said that there is evidence that vaccine effectiveness against infection — both symptomatic and asymptomatic — has been decreasing over time, but that protection against severe disease, hospitalization, and death remains relatively high.
In anticipation of further waning of immunity amid the ongoing Delta variant-fueled surge — which is posing additional challenges — pulling the trigger on booster shots could help the U.S. stay ahead of the virus, they said.
During a White House COVID-19 task force briefing, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, MD, offered five pieces of evidence to support the move: three new studies that were published Wednesday in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), one previously published on medRxiv, and unpublished CDC data on the Delta variant.
Protection Against Infection
Walensky cited new MMWR data from New York that showed a decline in vaccine effectiveness against infection, from 91.7% to 79.8% during the period of May 3 to July 25.
Eli Rosenberg, PhD, of the New York State Department of Health, and colleagues linked data from several New York surveillance systems on immunization, lab testing, and hospitalization.
During that time period, they found that a total of 9,675 new cases of COVID-19 occurred among fully vaccinated adults compared with 38,505 cases among unvaccinated adults (1.31 vs 10.69 per 100,000 person-days).
In addition, data from the Mayo Clinic, published previously on medRxiv, similarly found a decrease in vaccine efficacy in preventing infection in Minnesota, Walensky said. For the Moderna vaccine, effectiveness against infection fell from 86% in January-July, down to 76% during the month of July, while it fell from 76% down to 42% for Pfizer during that time.
Finally, new data from MMWR from a national network of nursing homes showed a reduction in protection against infection, from 75% in March to 53% as of August 1, Walensky said.
Srinivas Nanduri, MD, of the CDC, and colleagues assessed weekly data on nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities reported by CMS to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network.
They found that the adjusted effectiveness against infection during the “pre-Delta” period (March 1 to May 9) was 74.7% (based on 17,407 weekly reports from 3,862 facilities), which fell to 67.5% in the “intermediate” period (May 10 to June 20; based on 33,160 weekly reports from 11,581 facilities), and ultimately to 53.1% during the Delta dominant period (June 21 to August 1; based on 85,593 weekly reports from 14,917 facilities).
Nanduri and colleagues noted that estimates of effectiveness were similar for both vaccines.
“Taken together, you can see that while the exact percentage of vaccine efficacy differs depending on the cohort and setting studied, the data consistently demonstrate a reduction in protection from infection over time,” Walensky said.
How the pandemic changed abortion access – New York Times
A growing number of people seeking abortions in the U.S. — almost 40 percent in 2017, according to the Guttmacher Institute — take F.D.A.-approved pills. The regimen includes one drug to stop the pregnancy, and another that causes cramping and bleeding, like a miscarriage. For years, research has shown that this method is safe and more than 95 percent effective.
The increasing use of abortion pills is raising an important question for people in places with a dearth of providers: Do women need to go to a clinic or a doctor to take them, or to get an ultrasound beforehand, as the U.S. has long required? Because of Covid, researchers now have a clearer answer.
A study, led by Dr. Abigail Aiken at the University of Texas at Austin, took advantage of a natural pandemic experiment. In spring 2020, Britain began allowing health care providers to administer medication abortions via telemedicine, with pills mailed to the patient’s home. Aiken and her colleagues compared thousands of medication abortions in Britain for two months before and after the new protocol went into effect. The groups had equally high success rates for completing their abortions (above 98 percent) and similarly low rates of significant complications (0.02 percent of the telemedicine-only abortions, and up to 0.04 percent for the ones with in-person visits). Other recent studies in the U.S. found similar results.
And yet telemedicine-only abortions are available only temporarily in the U.S. When the F.D.A. approved mifepristone, one abortion drug, in 2000, the agency imposed significant restrictions, requiring providers to obtain a special certification to stock the drug and to give it out only in a clinic, doctor’s office or hospital.
For the moment, Covid has changed these rules. In response to a lawsuit by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and other groups, the F.D.A. said in April that mifepristone could be mailed to patients for the duration of the pandemic.
A future before the court?
Abortion opponents called the F.D.A.’s decision “irresponsible,” arguing that in-person visits were needed to rule out medical risks and ensure the patient’s full consent.But those who want to expand abortion access are fighting to make the pandemic rules permanent. “We’re on the cusp of revolutionizing the provision of care,” Destiny Lopez, co-president of the activist group All* Above All, told me.
The F.D.A. has the power to lift the old restrictions for good, and it is reviewing them. But even if the agency does so, Lopez said, “we won’t be there yet.” Nineteen states effectively ban the use of telemedicine for abortion. If the F.D.A. says the medical evidence justifies making the pills more accessible, a plaintiff could challenge a state telemedicine ban as lacking a real basis in science.
But the current Supreme Court, with its conservative majority, is more likely to cut back abortion access than to increase it, no matter what the science says. (In its next term, which opens in October, the court will hear another abortion case, challenging Mississippi’s near-total ban on abortions after 15 weeks.)
Court rulings and state laws can’t stop people from taking abortion pills at home, because the medication is easily available online. So are consultations and information about how to use it. But where abortion by mail and telemedicine is illegal, it will remain underground. People could be prosecuted for aiding or participating in it, as a few have been.
A post-Roe America in which many more women take abortion pills in the legal shadows wouldn’t present the same dangers as the pre-Roe era. But it would pose its own risks.
Costco shoppers say some stores are out of toilet paper and water, as evidence mounts that consumers may stockpile items amid the spread of the Delta variant – Business Insider
Costco shoppers say some stores are out of toilet paper and water, as research indicates that US consumers are considering stocking up on essentials as the Delta variant spreads.
Dozens of Costco shoppers recently complained on Twitter about product shortages and restrictions on the number of products they can buy. Grocery stores imposed restrictions early in the pandemic to stop people from panic buying and depleting stock.
“Did we not learn from last year at all? I pulled up to Costco and they are out of toilet paper and water. These people never learn,” one person in Nevada said.
One customer in California said the shortages could be a “sign of the times to come.”
… There is some evidence that people are thinking about stockpiling again as COVID-19 infections climb in the US. At the start of the pandemic in March 2020, Costco stores were overrun with members buying goods in bulk.
In tweets dating back to July, people suggested they were planning to stockpile essentials such as toilet paper from Costco to prepare for the worst.
Delayed Wuhan Report Adds Crucial Detail to Covid Origin Puzzle – Bloomberg
The origin story of Covid-19 remains a mystery mired in contentious geopolitical debate. But a research paper that languished in publishing limbo for a year and a half contains meticulously collected data and photographic evidence supporting scientists’ initial hypothesis—that the outbreak stemmed from infected wild animals—which prevailed until speculation that SARS-CoV-2 escaped from a nearby lab gained traction.
According to the report, which was published in June in the online journal Scientific Reports, minks, civets, raccoon dogs, and other mammals known to harbor coronaviruses were sold in plain sight for years in shops across the city, including the now infamous Huanan wet market, to which many of the earliest Covid cases were traced. The data in the report was collected over 30 months by Xiao Xiao, a virologist whose roles straddled epidemiology and animal research at the government-funded Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation and at Hubei University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
In May 2017, Xiao began surveying 17 shops at four Wuhan markets selling live wild animals. He was trying to find the source of a tick-borne, Lyme-like disease that had spread in Hubei province years earlier. He kept up monthly visits until November 2019, when the discovery of mysterious pneumonia cases that heralded the start of the Covid pandemic brought his visits to an abrupt end.
As the virus started to explode, Xiao recognized the potential significance of his data. In January of 2020, he collaborated with Zhou Zhaomin, a researcher at a wildlife resources laboratory affiliated with China’s Ministry of Education, and three seasoned scientists from the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, on a manuscript that was submitted to a journal the following month. (They declined to name the publication). “We’d imagined that the journal we sent it to would say, ‘Fantastic! Of course we want these data out as quickly as we can. The World Health Organization would be absolutely thrilled to receive this information,'” says Chris Newman, a British ecologist who is one of the paper’s co-authors. But it was rejected. “They did not think it would have widespread appeal,” says Newman.
Had the study been made public right away, the search for the origins of the virus might have taken a very different course. Not only did the study contain conclusive evidence that live animals were being sold for human consumption at the epicenter of the outbreak, but Newman says he assumes Xiao collected blood-sucking ticks from the wild animals he studiously cataloged. The blood meals of frozen tick samples could be examined for traces of the coronavirus, which would be extremely helpful in identifying infected species prior to December 2019. Xiao didn’t respond to emails requesting comment.
In the first months of the epidemic, local researchers asserted that the new coronavirus resembled a spillover from animals, reminiscent of the emergence of the virus that caused severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in wet markets in Guangdong almost 20 years ago. They also readily acknowledged the presence of “a variety of live wild animals” at Wuhan markets.
[editor’s note: this post deserves a full read]
Landmark Study Proves COVID Vaccines Much Less Effective Than Advertised – ZeroHedge
The largest study yet to examine the efficacy of COVID vaccines in the wild has just been published by the University of Oxford and UK Office for National Statistics, and unsurprisingly it found that the efficacy rates for the Pfizer and Moderna are significantly lower than the 90%+ rates first advertised from the initial controlled trials.
According to the study, a preprint of which was published on Thursday, while the Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca jabs still offer “good” protection against new infections, their efficacy has been reduced compared with Alpha. While having two doses of either vaccine still provides “at least the same level of protection as having had COVID-19”, those who were vaccinated after already being infected demonstrated even higher levels of protection than those who either weren’t infected and only received the jabs, or were infected, but didn’t receive the jabs.
“We’re seeing here the real-world data of how two vaccines are performing, rather than clinical trial data, and the data sets all show how the delta variant has blunted the effectiveness of both the Pfizer and AstraZeneca jabs,” said Simon Clarke, an associate professor in cellular microbiology at the University of Reading.
Despite all this, even after receiving two doses of a jab, those infected with delta showed much higher peak levels of the virus than those infected with alpha, or some other variant.
The study also highlighted differences between vaccines: for example, the Moderna jab had “similar or greater effectiveness” against the delta variant as a single dose of the other vaccines. And while the Pfizer and Moderna jabs showed greater initial efficacy against infection than the AstraZeneca jab, this protection premium erodes after only 4-5 months.
Source: Bloomberg
The data also showed that delta increases transmissibility more than other COVID varients, even among the vaccinated, which backs up a recent assessment made by the American CDC.
The results raise more doubt about the possibility of ever achieving herd immunity via vaccination, said Sarah Walker, a professor of medical statistics and epidemiology at Oxford, who helped lead the study. That’s not exactly a surprise.
[editor’s note: I would assume the AstraZeneca would be similar to J&J]
Biden Reveals How Many American Citizens Might Still Be in Afghanistan – Epoch Times
President Joe Biden during a Wednesday ABC News interview revealed there may be about 15,000 Americans stuck in Afghanistan as U.S. forces hastily attempt to evacuate them at the Kabul airport.
Also trying to escape are tens of thousands of Afghans who either fought alongside or provided assistance to the United States but fear reprisal attacks from the Taliban, an extremist group that took over most of the country and its capital this week.
Biden told ABC News’ George Stephonopoulous that U.S. officials estimate there are between 10,000 to 15,000 Americans in Afghanistan and added that the “estimate we’re giving” is 50,000 to 65,000 Afghan allies, including family members.
A day later, on Thursday, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said he doesn’t know how many Americans are still inside Afghanistan.
“Americans should understand that we’re gonna try to get it done before Aug. 31st,” Biden said in the interview, his first one since the Taliban took over the country. The president said the U.S. military will attempt to evacuate all Americans out of the South Asian country by that date.
Earlier this week, a spokesman for the Taliban warned in a Sky News interview that U.S. forces need to withdraw from the country by Sept. 11, which is the date of the terrorist attacks that toppled the Twin Towers 20 years ago.
Proof of vaccination in a tap? Smartphone developers want to make it that easy – NBC
Smartphone developers are gearing up for a world where users can store their Covid vaccination proof in their phones’ digital wallets, making it easy to simply tap their phones when they enter new buildings.
The development, which concerns some privacy advocates, comes as the delta variant of the coronavirus surges through the U.S. and some cities plan to require people to prove they’ve been vaccinated to enter places like gyms, restaurants and bars.
Google, Apple and Samsung have all recently announced plans to offer a feature that readily calls up a QR code that can be scanned to quickly verify a user’s vaccination status.
Samsung, which manufactures Galaxy smartphones, announced Wednesday that it is partnering with the Commons Project, developers of one of a number of vaccine passport smartphone apps.
Like New York state’s Excelsior Pass, the CommonHealth app asks users to undergo a one-time process by sharing their names and their dates of birth and the dates and locations of their vaccinations. The app connects with vaccination providers to verify the information, and if it’s correct, it creates scannable QR codes embedded with that information.
Convalescent Plasma Flops in High-Risk COVID Outpatients – MedPage
Plasma transfusions from COVID-19-recovered patients didn’t prevent progression of the same infection in high-risk adults outside the hospital setting, the SIREN-C3PO trial showed, knocking yet another nail into the coffin for convalescent plasma.
Disease progression came to a similar 30.0% in the convalescent-plasma group and 31.9% in the placebo group, with a nonsignificant Bayesian posterior probability of superiority for the treatment (0.68), reported Clifton Callaway, MD, PhD, of the University of Pittsburgh, and colleagues in the New England Journal of Medicine.
“That was surprising to us,” Callaway said in a press release from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), which was one of the trial sponsors. “As physicians, we wanted this to make a big difference in reducing severe illness and it did not.”
No benefits emerged among secondary outcomes either, and the mortality risk actually went in the wrong direction (five deaths with plasma vs one with placebo).
While earlier or more geographically targeted administration might have made a difference, Callaway’s group noted, it’s also possible that “host factors and other aspects of the host response to the infection may be more important than humoral [antibody-mediated] immunity for determining the natural history of the illness.”
The FDA pushed convalescent plasma when it granted emergency use authorization (EUA) back in August 2020 for use in hospitalized patients based on small trials and observational data, with some suggestion of a big mortality benefit.
Small study suggests a mix-and-match COVID-19 booster produces robust antibody levels – News-Medical
The United States is gearing up to provide boosters to all Americans who received the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines after recent reports suggested immunity wanes after 8 months.
In a small study published in the medRxiv* preprint server, people given a booster Johnson & Johnson shot showed elevated and robust antibody levels.
The authors write:
While it remains to be seen whether a third booster dose is needed, we illustrate here that should it be required, such a strategy strongly bolsters antibody responses and could therefore be another instrument in the arsenal for full control of this pandemic.”
The results suggest a booster shot can augment immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) – and may increase protection against multiple variants, including the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant.
… The Johnson & Johnson booster shot increased antibody levels to a level higher than observed with two vaccines.
Except for one volunteer, antibodies after the third vaccination had strong neutralizing activity against all variant pseudoviruses, including the Delta variant. Only one volunteer did not have sufficient neutralizing antibodies against the Beta variant.
The highest antibody titers were against the non-variant strain and the Alpha (B.1.1.7) variant.
The increases in plasma neutralization titers (ID50) ranged from 10.9 to 21.1-fold in the pseudovirus neutralization assay and 14.8 to 32.4-fold in the authentic virus neutralization assay. One individual, Volunteer #1, even had heightened neutralizing titer against SARS-CoV.”
Is the Regeneron Treatment the Same As Getting a COVID Vaccine? – Newsweek
In a fact sheet about the Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment, Regeneron explicitly states that the treatment “is not a substitute for vaccination against COVID-19.”
The Regeneron COVID monoclonal antibody treatment consists of a cocktail of two separate monoclonal antibodies—casirivimab and imdevimab. It is called REGEN-COV.
Like the vaccines, this treatment has received emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
REGEN-COV is authorized for use in adults and patients aged 12 and over weighing at least 88 pounds to treat mild-to-moderate COVID infections.
According to the FDA, casirivimab and imdevimab administered together has been shown to reduce COVID-related hospitalization in high-risk patients based on a trial involving 799 people.
FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen M. Hahn has said the treatment “may help outpatients avoid hospitalization and alleviate the burden on our health care system.”
Monoclonal antibodies work by directly administering antibodies—molecules produced by the body’s immune system that target viruses and stop them from making us ill.
Those Anti-Covid Plastic Barriers Probably Don’t Help and May Make Things Worse – New York Times
Clear barriers have sprung up at restaurants, nail salons and school classrooms, but most of the time, they do little to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Intuition tells us a plastic shield would be protective against germs. But scientists who study aerosols, air flow and ventilation say that much of the time, the barriers don’t help and probably give people a false sense of security. And sometimes the barriers can make things worse.
Research suggests that in some instances, a barrier protecting a clerk behind a checkout counter may redirect the germs to another worker or customer. Rows of clear plastic shields, like those you might find in a nail salon or classroom, can also impede normal air flow and ventilation.
Under normal conditions in stores, classrooms and offices, exhaled breath particles disperse, carried by air currents and, depending on the ventilation system, are replaced by fresh air roughly every 15 to 30 minutes. But erecting plastic barriers can change air flow in a room, disrupt normal ventilation and create “dead zones,” where viral aerosol particles can build up and become highly concentrated.
“If you have a forest of barriers in a classroom, it’s going to interfere with proper ventilation of that room,” said Linsey Marr, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech and one of the world’s leading experts on viral transmission. “Everybody’s aerosols are going to be trapped and stuck there and building up, and they will end up spreading beyond your own desk.”
There are some situations in which the clear shields might be protective, but it depends on a number of variables. The barriers can stop big droplets ejected during coughs and sneezes from splattering on others, which is why buffets and salad bars often are equipped with transparent sneeze guards above the food.
… But Covid-19 spreads largely through unseen aerosol particles. While there isn’t much real-world research on the impact of transparent barriers and the risk of disease, scientists in the United States and Britain have begun to study the issue, and the findings are not reassuring.
A study published in June and led by researchers from Johns Hopkins, for example, showed that desk screens in classrooms were associated with an increased risk of coronavirus infection. In a Massachusetts school district, researchers found that plexiglass dividers with side walls in the main office were impeding air flow. A study looking at schools in Georgia found that desk barriers had little effect on the spread of the coronavirus compared with ventilation improvements and masking.
Scientists blast U.S. push for Covid vaccine booster shots as premature, say data isn’t compelling – CNBC
Scientists sharply criticized the Biden administration’s push to widely distribute Covid-19 vaccine booster shots in the U.S. next month, saying the data provided by federal health officials on Wednesday wasn’t compelling enough to recommend third shots to most of the American population right now.
U.S. health leaders say they are preparing to offer booster shots to all eligible Americans beginning the week of Sept. 20. The plan, outlined Wednesday by CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock, White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci and other health officials, calls for a third dose eight months after people get their second shot of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.
They cited three new studies, released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that showed their protection against Covid diminished over several months. One study in New York from May 3 through July 25 showed that vaccine protection against infection dropped from around 92% to 80%. Another study by the Mayo Clinic showed that Pfizer’s vaccine efficacy fell from around 76% to 42% while Moderna’s declined from 86% to 76%.
“Taken together, you can see that while the exact percentage of vaccine effectiveness over time differs depending on the cohort and settings study, the data consistently demonstrate a reduction of vaccine effectiveness against infection over time,” Walensky told reporters during a White House Covid press briefing.
But scientists and other health experts said the data they cited wasn’t compelling, characterizing the administration’s push for boosters as premature. While the data did suggest there was a reduction in protection against mild and moderate disease, the two-dose vaccines still held up well against severe disease and hospitalizations, scientists said.
For example, the New York study released by the CDC showed there were 9,675 infections among fully vaccinated adults, compared with 38,505 infections among unvaccinated adults during the period examined. Among the fully vaccinated people who were infected, 1,271 were hospitalized, accounting for roughly 15% of all Covid hospitalizations.
“People are still highly protected against severe disease, hospitalization, and death. This is what vaccines are supposed to do,” said Dr. Anna Durbin, a vaccine researcher at Johns Hopkins University. “If we start seeing significant upticks of more severe disease and hospitalizations in vaccinated people, that would be a signal to consider boosters.”
The body’s immune system is complex, Durbin said. While the presence of antibodies induced by the vaccine may decline, resulting in a rise in breakthrough infections, the body has other mechanisms, like T cells, that may protect someone from getting seriously sick, she said.
The following are foreign headlines with hyperlinks to the posts
The U.S. evacuated 2,000 people from Kabul in 24 hours, mostly Afghans and NATO personnel. Outside the airport, the Taliban let some Afghans with visas and tickets enter but turned others away.
President Biden said troops could stay past his Aug. 31 withdrawal date if needed to assist with evacuations.
Russia was ready for Taliban’s win due to longtime contacts
Taliban fighters are searching for former members of the Afghan military and police, according to the U.N.
‘First-Come, First-Serve’: US Embassy Says Military Can’t Ensure ‘Safe Passage’ to Kabul Airport
Misread warnings helped lead to chaotic Afghan evacuation
Afghanistan’s former first vice president challenged the insurgents’ legitimacy from a part of the country still outside Taliban control. Fighters dispersed protesters in two cities, an early sign of resistance, but protests continued on Thursday.
The U.S. blocked the Taliban from accessing billions of dollars belonging to the Afghan central bank.
Israel, despite its high vaccination rate, is nearing a peak in infections as the Delta variant spreads.
Israel Makes Children Over 3 Show Negative COVID Test. Israel has brought back its “Green Pass” system as it grapples with a fourth wave of coronavirus infections.
Tensions over aid grow in Haiti as quake’s deaths pass 2K
Highly-vaccinated Israel is besieged by another wave of SARS-CoV-2 infections after relaxing restrictions in June.
Australia’s two most populous states broke records for new SARS-CoV-2 infections
WHO Official Calls Countries Offering COVID Booster Shots ‘Unconscionable’
Cuba’s acclaimed health system reels as the virus surges.
Covid is just one of Afghanistan’s many health concerns.
Singapore conditionally lifting quarantine for travelers from Germany, Hong Kong
The following additional national and state headlines with hyperlinks to the posts
The Biden administration took steps to deter states from banning masks in schools and push nursing home workers to be vaccinated.
Federal officials said Covid vaccines’ protection against infection may wane over time, justifying booster shots. The vaccines remain highly effective at preventing hospitalizations and deaths.
A cyberattack on T-Mobile exposed the names and social security numbers of over 40 million people.
FTC refiles antitrust case against Facebook, argues no social network comes close to its scale
CDC is creating a new forecasting and outbreak analytics center in response to criticisms that the agency doesn’t share data quickly enough.
COVID vaccines are supposed to be free of charge to patients, but surprise bills are appearing nonetheless.
California is requiring proof of vaccination or negative COVID tests for attendance at large events until at least November.
Coronavirus hospitalizations among those under 50 hits new high
More than one million vaccine doses administered in past 24 hours
Nursing Home Union Says Biden’s Vaccine Mandate Could Cause Workforce Issue
Gulf Coast Tourism Continues as Normal, Hospitals Fill with COVID Patients
Masks Required in Court During Arguments That Mandates Are Unconstitutional. “It’s completely preposterous that someone who is suing to overturn a mask mandate…would be ordered to go into court wearing a mask,” Lucas Wall said.
Mark Zuckerberg Says Vaccine Hesitancy Is Not a Social Media Problem. “I don’t think pinning this on social media primarily is accurate,” Zuckerberg said about vaccine hesitancy among Facebook users.
Donald Trump Pushes COVID-19 Vaccine, Says He is ‘Very Proud’ of It. “I do believe people have to have their freedoms and all that but, you know, I’d love to see them take the vaccine,” Trump said on Wednesday.
Kan. COVID Patients Waiting 10 Hours to be Flown to Hospital With Open Beds. Overwhelmed hospitals are putting critically ill COVID-19 patients on planes, helicopters and ambulances and sending them hundreds of miles to other states.
Two more senators have tested positive for Covid-19; both are breakthrough cases.
Thousands more evacuated as California wildfire swells 24 times its size in 2 days
Alabama has no more I.C.U. beds available, the state authorities said.
Today’s Posts On Econintersect Showing Impact Of The Pandemic and Recovery With Hyperlinks
July 2021 Leading Economic Index Increased Again
14 August 2021 New York Fed Weekly Economic Index (WEI): Index Decline Continues
August 2021 Philly Fed Manufacturing Survey Index Declined Again
Infographic Of The Day: When Will Your Country Recover From The Pandemic?
14 August 2021 Initial Unemployment Claims Rolling Average Improves
Warning to Readers
The amount of politically biased articles on the internet continues. And studies and opinions of the experts continue to contradict other studies and expert opinions. Honestly, it is difficult to believe anything anymore.
I assemble this update daily – sifting through the posts on the internet. I try to avoid politically slanted posts. This daily blog is not an echo chamber for any party line – and will publish controversial topics unless there are clear reasons why the topic is false. And I usually publish conflicting topics. It is my job to provide information so that you have the facts necessary – and then it is up to readers to draw conclusions. It is not my job to sell any point of view.
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