ATLANTA (CNN) – First, the good news: the United States reported a record high of 4.6 million doses of vaccines in one day, according to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Saturday.
“Incredible Saturday! + 4.63 million doses administered yesterday in total, a new record,” tweeted Dr. Cyrus Shahpar, Data Director of the White House COVID-19. “More than 500K higher than the previous record last Saturday. Incredible number of doses administered.”
According to CDC data on Saturday, more than 75% of the U.S. population was not fully vaccinated.
Now the bad news: according to the CDC director, dr. Rochelle Walenky, increases the new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations for the third consecutive week.
“Cases and emergency visits are up,” Walensky said Friday. “We are seeing this increase in younger adults, most of whom have not yet been vaccinated.”
The B.1.1.7 variant is not only more contagious than the original strain of the coronavirus – it is now the dominant strain in the USA.
Experts believe that the B.1.1.7 variant can cause serious diseases and can also be more deadly.
Johns Hopkins University data averaged more than 68,000 new COVID-19 cases per day over the past week.
This is more than 20% higher than the average of seven days on 10 March.
Nationwide, more Americans aged 18 to 64 have gone to emergency departments due to COVID-19 complications, Walensky said.
She said the trends are ‘magnified’ in one part of the country: the Upper Midwest.
“CDC is working closely with public health officials in this region to understand what drives these issues and how we can intervene,” Walensky said.
A race for life and death ‘
According to the CDC, Florida reported the most B.1.1.7 cases, followed by Michigan, which reports thousands of new COVID-19 cases daily.
Health officials in Michigan say they are in the middle of another COVID-19 boom.
“This B.1.1.7 variant … is more contagious, and I think there’s just fatigue from this pandemic out there, so a lot of people are not wearing masks, not having social distance, so we basically have a step back in Michigan, “said Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Center for Vaccine Education at Philadelphia Children’s Hospital, said.
“It’s really frustrating because we’re almost there,” he said. “We have to sit there for the next two months and not do it.”
Some Michigan hospitals delay and reschedule non-emergency procedures on a case-by-case basis, a Michigan Health & Hospital Association spokesman said.
“Hospitals want everyone to receive the necessary care and only rearrange procedures as a last resort,” John Karasinski said. “We want to emphasize that hospitals are safe for anyone in need of care and that any person with a medical emergency needs immediate care.”
In both Michigan and Minnesota, there are concerns about the transfer of youth sports – both club sports as well as sports associated with schools, Walensky said Friday.
Minnesota health officials have warned the state that a “sharp increase” in COVID-19 casesand said it was “more important than ever before” to continue wearing a mask and physically removing it.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said the number of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and ICU surveys in his country is rising.
“We’re moving in the wrong direction now,” DeWine said Thursday. “More than half of our counties, 53, have seen increases.”
“We can still turn it around if more people continue to be vaccinated,” he said. “It’s a race. We’re in a race. And it’s a life-and-death race.”
New York loosens physical distance rules for some students
In contrast, New York is seeing a decline in hospitalizations and the lowest 7-day average positive percentage since early December, according to the government of Andrew Cuomo.
Hospitalizations are the lowest since December 2 at 4,083, while the positive percentage of New York has fallen just under 3%. New York City’s positive 7-day rate also fell to its lowest level since Dec. 1, reaching 3.58%, the governors’ office said.
These figures, combined with recent CDC guidance, prompted the New York Department of Health to update its 6-foot-to-3-foot physical distance rules for low- and moderate-risk primary, middle, and high schools for COVID-19. transmission.
Schools with a significant risk of transmission can also maintain a distance of 3 feet, but should also apply cohortation if possible. According to the CDC, groups of students are kept together and the same staff kept during the day to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
Middle and high schools with a high risk of transfer should keep 6 feet apart if co-ordination is not possible, the state said.
However, high-risk elementary schools can still meet the 3-foot requirement.
“Evidence suggests that there is a lower susceptibility and prevalence of COVID-19 among younger children than compared to adolescents; therefore, personal education presents less risk of on-site transfer in primary schools compared to middle and high schools,” the Department of Health said. said.
There are still a few times that 6 feet have to be maintained, the state said, also between students and teachers, between students when they eat, and when students are in common areas outside classrooms, such as in gyms, cafeterias and hallways, according to the new rules.
These new guidelines for social distancing come after the CDC made similar recommendations in March.
CNN released the New York Department of Education and the New York City Department of Education for comment.
More evidence that vaccines are safe and effective
While more young, unvaccinated adults are hospitalized with COVID-19, the number of elderly Americans who are hospitalized or die from COVID-19 is increasing.
Health experts say this is because older people are more likely to be vaccinated than younger adults.
More than 78% of people aged 65 and older received at least one dose of vaccination, and 60% were completely vaccinated according to CDC data.
And there is growing evidence to show how safe the vaccines are for adults of all ages.
Less than 1 in 28,000 people who received a COVID-19 vaccine – or less than 0.004% – reported severe adverse reactions, according to data from the Department of Health and Human Services’ vaccination systems, or VAERS.
“Vaccination providers are encouraged to report any clinically significant health problem after vaccination to VAERS, regardless of whether they believe the vaccine was the cause,” the website VAERS said.
The good news is that even when serious reactions do occur, ‘it usually happens in the first 30 minutes’, said Dr. Peter Hotez of Baylor College of Medicine said.
“That’s why the vaccine staff stays there 15 to 30 minutes afterwards,” he said.
The CDC recommends that people with a history of severe allergic reactions stay 30 minutes after vaccination. Others can leave after 15 minutes.
The CDC said that all sites that administer vaccines should be epinephrine to combat any cases of anaphylaxis quickly.
The surgeon-general said there are simple steps to end this pandemic:
“One: be vaccinated as soon as possible,” said Dr. Vivek Murthy said. “And two: also help the people you care about be vaccinated.”
The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner company. All rights reserved.