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The United States faces a wave of COVID-19 this summer as the most contagious delta variant spreads.
More than 631,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while more than 4.4 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns University Hopkins.
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 60.4% of Americans aged 12 and older are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Latest developments
Pediatrician emphasizes importance of getting vaccinated during pregnancy
Columbia University pediatrician Dr. Edith Bracho Sanchez spoke with Linsey Davis of ABC News about the importance of getting vaccinated against COVID-19 during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Recent health data from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has shown that three in four pregnant women in the United States are not vaccinated, and the numbers are lower for black pregnant women, with nine in 10 not. vaccinated.
Sanchez, who is eight months pregnant and vaccinated, told ABC News that expectant mothers are more vulnerable to disease and that current data shows vaccines are safe for them.
“We now know, thanks to nearly 40,000 women, that there is no increased risk of miscarriage during premature labor, which worries many pregnant women,” she said.
Sanchez said she didn’t hesitate to get the shot once she became eligible.
“I really, really hope that pregnant women will hear this call and go ahead and get this vaccine and protect themselves, their babies and their pregnancy,” she said.
High school football dies from COVID
A high school football player in Louisiana who contracted the coronavirus died on Wednesday, ABC affiliate WBRZ reported.
Patrick Sanders, 14, was a freshman at Baker High School.
Baker, Louisiana Mayor Darnell Waites, told the station the teenager’s death underscored the importance of vaccinations.
“If we want to save lives, we have to make the choice to save lives,” Waites told the station. “It wasn’t his fault.”
The rest of the football team are currently in quarantine, WBRZ reported.
Texas Hospitals Hit Record High
The Texas Health Department reported on Wednesday that 13,928 COVID-19 patients are currently in hospitals in Texas.
This is close to the record of 14,218 patients recorded during the January peak.
© John Moore / Getty Images
A man reaches out to his COVID-19 positive family member as EMS paramedics prepare to transport them to a hospital on August 25, 2021 in Houston.
There are 306 intensive care beds available in the state, according to the health department.
Governor Abbott issues executive order maintaining ban on vaccination warrants
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday issued an executive order maintaining the ban on vaccination warrants.
Abbott also said he added the issue of the vaccine mandate to the Texas special session’s agenda.
Abbott tested positive for COVID-19 last week and has since tested negative.
© Cooper Neill / Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Texas Governor Greg Abbott attends UFC 265 at the Toyota Center in Houston on August 7, 2021.
Pfizer asks FDA for full booster approval
Pfizer on Wednesday asked the Food and Drug Administration for full approval of a booster dose. The company said its Phase 3 data showed that people who received a third dose between five and eight months after the second injection had antibody levels three times higher than the levels seen after the second dose.
Because Pfizer’s injections were approved by the FDA on Monday, Pfizer is now asking the agency to consider an “additional” request for recalls for people 16 years of age and older. This is a “continuous submission” with Pfizer intending to complete the submission by the end of the week.
The Biden administration said its goal was to have boosters available from September 20, with the recommendation to get one eight months after the second shot from Pfizer or Moderna.
-Sony Salzman of ABC News
Baby dies in Louisiana, marking state’s first pediatric death in 6 months
A baby under one year of age has died from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours in Louisiana, the state Department of Health said on Wednesday.
It was the first COVID-19 pediatric death in Louisiana in six months, the department said. The baby was one of 110 people in Louisiana to die from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.
Eleven children in Louisiana have died from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, the department said.
Hospitalizations at the highest in 7 months
There are now more than 100,000 COVID-19 patients in U.S. hospitals, the most in seven months, according to federal data.
© Patrick Dove / TCPALM via USA Today Network
Medical staff attend to a COVID-19 patient on August 20, 2021, in the surgical intensive care unit at the Indian River Hospital at the Cleveland Clinic in Vero Beach, Florida.
© Bloomberg via Getty Images
A nurse prepares to enter a room to treat a patient in the COVID-19 intensive care unit at NEA Baptist Memorial Hospital in Jonesboro, Ark., August 4, 2021.
The per capita hospital admissions rate for Americans 29 and under is at the peak of the pandemic, federal data shows.
Six times as many children are admitted to hospitals compared to July 4, and daily deaths have increased 281% in the past six weeks to 775, according to federal data.
Eight states have ICUs over 90% full: Alabama (100%), Arkansas (89.58%), Florida (93.52%), Georgia (92.74%), Kentucky (89.33%), Mississippi (92.93%), Oklahoma (88.93%) and Texas (93.12%).
-Arielle Mitropoulos from ABC News
Highest hospitalizations in NJ since May
The number of New Jersey residents hospitalized with COVID-10 rose to more than 1,000 for the first time since May 11, Gov. Phil Murphy said on Wednesday.
© Kena Betancur / AFP via Getty Images, FILE
A healthcare worker visits the emergency room at Hudson Regional Hospital in Secaucus, NJ, December 11, 2020.
“We have gone too far to turn back the clock,” the governor tweeted. “Get vaccinated and let’s be done.”
Pentagon announces mandatory Pfizer vaccinations
The Pentagon announced the mandatory vaccination of Pfizer on Wednesday, calling it “necessary to protect the safety of our military and our force.”
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said 68% of the active duty force is fully vaccinated and just over 76% have received at least one dose.
Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine received full FDA approval on Monday.
© Brandon Woods / US Navy via Reuters, FILE
A U.S. Navy officer from the amphibious ship USS San Diego receives a vaccine against COVID-19 in the Navy port of Manama, Bahrain, in this photo taken on February 26, 2021.
-Luis Martinez from ABC News
Delta Air Lines increases health insurance premiums for unvaccinated employees
Delta is increasing health insurance premiums for unvaccinated employees by $ 200 per month to cover costs related to COVID-19 such as possible hospitalization, which the airline says cost it $ 40,000 per person on average.
In recent weeks, not all Delta employees hospitalized with COVID-19 were fully immunized, Delta CEO Ed Bastian wrote in a note to employees.
Currently, 75% of Delta employees are vaccinated, according to the airline.
The health insurance premium begins on November 1.
Unvaccinated employees will also be required to wear masks indoors and will be required to take a weekly COVID test starting September 12.
-Mina Kaji from ABC News
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