Can COVID-19 trauma make us stronger?
Trauma survivors and experts are examining the chance for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTG) as a result of the trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jasper Colt, USA TODAY
President Joe Biden’s government said on Friday that additional vaccine doses would not be given to countries rising in COVID-19 cases, despite appeals from local leaders and some health experts.
The administration says its current deployment plan, based on the state’s adult population, is ‘fair and equitable’.
“We are not even halfway through our vaccination program, so this is not the time to change course on vaccinating,” said Jeff Zients, coordinator of the White House’s COVID-19 task force, during Friday’s briefing. .
“This pandemic has hit every state and every country hard,” he added.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said she had directly requested additional doses from Biden in a recent call. The state’s seven-day average new daily business reached 6,429 on Thursday, the highest point since mid-November and the highest in the country at present, according to a Detroit Free Press analysis of state data.
Whitmer argued that pushing shots at hotspots is not only a good plan for the state, but an important part of a national strategy to combat COVID-19 trends.
Experts also asked for shots, including Ashish Jha, dean of the School of Public Health at Brown University.
“This is very disturbing,” Jha said of the recent increase in business in a tweet. “Michigan is struggling. We need to do tests, do vaccinations for the state.”
A forecast model from the University of California, Berkeley, found that 1,200 deaths in Michigan could have been prevented in July if the state received dual vaccines for two weeks, NPR reports.
Also in the news:
►Iran started a ten-day lockout on Saturday amid a fourth wave of coronavirus infections. Shops are closed and offices are limited to a third capacity in the capital Tehran and 250 other cities and towns, which have been declared red zones or areas with the highest positivity rates.
► While Alabama’s mandate over the entire mask ended Friday after nearly nine months, Birmingham, the state’s largest city, is keeping mask requirements in place “because the pandemic still exists and is still a threat,” Mayor Randall said. L. Woodfin said. Montgomery, the state’s second largest city, will also still need face masks.
►The latest prediction of the University of Washington Institute for Health Statistics and Evaluation’s Coronavirus model projects nearly 620,000 U.S. deaths by August 1st. in which fully vaccinated people return to pre-pandemic mobility levels.
►Connecticut plans to provide full summer access to its outdoor recreation areas, including state parks, campsites, beaches, boat launches and inland swimming pools, after partial access was granted at the height of the pandemic last summer, government officials said Friday.
►Utah’s full-mask mandate expires on Saturday, though some businesses and government facilities will still need face-covering – including Salt Lake International Airport and the Utah Transit Authority.
The CDC reported nearly 3,400 new cases late Thursday, bringing the U.S. total to 20,412, a number that has nearly doubled since March 28.
📈 Today’s numbers: According to data from Johns Hopkins University, the US has more than 31 million cases of coronavirus and 560,900 deaths. The global total: More than 134.3 million cases and more than 2.9 million deaths. Over 233.5 million vaccine doses were distributed in the US and 178.8 according to the CDC, millions were administered.
📘 What we read: Clinics, pharmacies try to fill open vaccine slots as hesitation threatens. Read the full story.
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More colleges, universities say they need COVID-19 vaccinations
First it was Rutgers and Cornell. Toe Notre Dame. Now Duke.
The list of colleges and universities that need COVID-19 vaccinations for new and returning students to attend personal classes this fall grew again Friday, with the North Carolina School announcing a policy that all undergraduates, graduates and professional students will cover.
“We know that widespread vaccination will be the only way to return to a normal and robust campus life,” Duke President Vincent Price said in a statement on the university’s website.
Brown in Rhode Island, Northeast in Boston, Nova Southeastern University in Florida and Fort Lewis College in Colorado also set the precedent set by Rutgers in New Jersey and Cornell in New York.
“It not only makes us safer. Ultimately, it makes our entire community safer, “Antonio Calcado, chief operating officer of Rutgers, told the U.S. TODAY. Therefore, we think it is the best way to be encouraging. “
Colleges and universities have been particularly hard hit by coronavirus restrictions, and they are losing students who say they are tired of full prize money for virtual learning, and this generally means less money for universities that may already be struggling financially.
As Americans get COVID-19 in record numbers, music venues and comedy clubs have begun preparing to reopen. But even when things can get back to normal, this can not happen. Some parts of the closing life can linger, especially current.
A survey of Bandsintown among 1,000 artists found that 85% of them plan to hold live stream shows as part of their schedules, even after shows are personally doable.
The same survey, which also surveyed about 6,000 fans, also found that more than half of the fans (55%) say they will continue to stream live concerts after their own works reappear.
– Mike Snider
The Supreme Court on Friday overthrew a regulation in California that restricts religious worship at home in a 5-4 vote. This is the latest in a series of rulings in which the judges have found that the regulations of coronavirus pandemics violate the protection of the religion of the First Amendment.
California has banned home gatherings in provinces hard hit by the pandemic and has restricted those gatherings elsewhere to no more than three households. The restrictions were challenged by two Christian ministers who wanted to hold Bible studies, prayer meetings, and other services in their home.
The court said California will have to show that it is more dangerous for people to gather in homes for religious services than in hair salons, shops, movie theaters and restaurants, where the state allows people to gather from more than three households.
Prior to the ruling, California had already announced significant changes that would ease restrictions on events taking effect on April 15. The changes come after the infection rates in the state decreased.
– John Fritze
Reports of the side effects of the vaccine support COVID-19 which many have observed anecdotally: women carry the greater burden.
Among nearly 7,000 reports processed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) from December 14 to January 13, more than 79% came from them. The most commonly reported side effects were headache, fatigue, and dizziness.
Women are also more likely than men to experience unusual side effects from the vaccine, such as an itchy red rash that occurs at the injection site. With approximately 95% of the reactions that occurred with the Moderna vaccine, women are responsible for 77% of the side effects that the vaccine reported.
Health experts say it could be because women have a greater immune response to vaccines and men tend to report their side effects too little. Another possible explanation from experts is gender bias in clinical research – such as adult men and women receiving the same dose of a vaccine, regardless of size – which could mean that women receive a stronger dose than is needed to have an adequate immune response. to cause.
– Adrianna Rodriguez
A Florida woman gets 29 days in jail for coughing cancer patient
A Florida woman has been sentenced to 29 days in prison for assault after being caught on video last year at a mall in Jacksonville near another woman, a cancer patient with a compromised immune system.
Debra Jo Michele Hunter, of Fernandina Beach, also made an obscene gesture towards Heather Sprague, who was wearing a mask to further protect herself after recent brain tumor surgery, in a video that received widespread attention.
Judge James Ruth in Duval District Court heard evidence from Hunter’s husband, friends and family who said she had a ‘very big heart’ and was ‘heartbroken’ about the incident. Sprague, who told the judge she was afraid they would be attacked for wearing a mask, described Hunter’s actions as “rooted in privilege and claim.”
– Dan Scanlan, Florida Times-Union
Pfizer-BioNTech seeks FDA approval for vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds
Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech on Friday asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to allow their COVID-19 vaccine to be used on 12-15-year-olds. Their vaccine has already been approved for adults 16 years and older.
The companies also intend to seek similar authorization from regulatory agencies in other parts of the world. In recently released trial results, the companies have shown that their vaccine prevents all COVID-19 symptomatic diseases in 12-15 year olds, generates large amounts of protective antibodies in that age group and does not cause any safety issues.
The companies will follow all the more than 2,200 participants in the trial two years after their second dose to ensure safety and vaccine duration.
– Doyle Rice
COVID pandemic cuts 80% of Atlantic City casino profits in 2020
The coronavirus outbreak last year boosted profits at Atlantic City’s casinos by more than 80%, according to figures released Friday by New Jersey’s gambling regulators.
Still, seven of the nine casinos managed to make a profit, no matter how small, during what New Jersey Casino Control Commission chairman James Plousis called the ‘most challenging year in history’ for the city and its casinos. .
The state Department of Gambling Enforcement reported that the nine casinos posted $ 117.5 million in gross operating profit in 2020. That was down from nearly $ 594 million a year earlier, before the pandemic forced casinos to close for 3 1/2 months and restrict their operations. even after reopening.
Contributions: Chris Quintana, USA TODAY; The Associated Press