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More and more people are deciding to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in some pockets of the United States where vaccination rates are low and rates of COVID-19 cases are high.
White House Senior Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Friday this was the third week that states with the highest number of cases also had the highest rates of new vaccinations .
She said the average number of people receiving their first injection each day has increased by 30% in the past week alone.
Friday saw more than half a million new gunfire – the highest number since July 1, added Jean-Pierre.
Cyrus Shahpar, the COVID-19 data director for the White House, said more than 857,000 additional doses were given on Friday, up from 600,000 the previous Friday. It said 712,000 doses were administered on Saturday, against 403,000 last Saturday.
More and more residents of the country’s hardest-hit states are rushing to get vaccinated amid increases in cases in the Delta, pushing up national numbers.
On Friday, several media reported that Louisiana had seen a 114% increase in vaccinations. Arkansas saw a 96% increase while Alabama and Missouri saw increases of 65% and 49% respectively.
“It’s an encouraging sign, but we need everyone across the country to have a conversation with someone they know who isn’t vaccinated about the injection,” Jean said. Pierre. “This is how we will stop the spread of the Delta variant.”
Also in the news:
► Lollapalooza, Chicago’s biggest music festival, is underway with huge crowds and is expected to operate at full capacity with around 100,000 participants daily over four days. The festival requires attendees to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or test negative for the virus within the past 72 hours, but infectious disease experts at Northwestern University warn of potential spikes in COVID-19 infections as the number of cases already increases. in the city.
► Although all other US swimmers wear a mask in interviews with reporters, the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee has allowed unvaccinated swimmer Michael Andrew not to wear a mask. Citing Tokyo’s playbook on COVID-19 protocols released in June, the USOPC said athletes can remove their masks for interviews.
► Amid concerns that the summer vacation could lead to an increase in the relatively low case rate in Germany, the country will require incoming people who have not been vaccinated or who have recently recovered from COVID-19 to have a negative test result.
► New Orleans emergency medical responders have been hit so hard by a resurgence in COVID-19 cases that the city lacks the capacity to adequately handle 911 calls, the mayor of the city said on Friday. New Orleans, LaToya Cantrell, according to CNN. Cantrell announced new mask mandates and an increase in EMS resources.
► Spectators at Broadway shows will have to show proof of vaccination and wear masks in movie theaters, the producers said on Friday.
► Disney World and Disneyland require all employees to be vaccinated and visitors must once again wear masks.
► With many people complaining of brain fog, attention problems and confusion after COVID-19, researchers are exploring whether the infections could have long-term consequences for the brain. In several trials released on Thursday, scientists have discovered changes in the biology of the brain after hospitalization with COVID-19.
► The IRS has announced that it will extend tax credits to employers who give their employees paid time off to get vaccinated against COVID-19, encouraging them to allow people time to get vaccinated.
📈Today’s numbers: The United States has recorded more than 34.9 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 613,1006 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Global totals: Over 197.3 million cases and 4.2 million deaths. More than 164.1 million Americans – 49.5% of the population – have been fully immunized, according to the CDC.
📘What we read: Casinos from New York to Maryland are breaking new revenue records as gamblers return to slots and table games amid pent-up demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic, records show. Read more.
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COVID outbreak in national spotlight shows ‘vaccines work’
A COVID-19 outbreak in Massachusetts that was critical for health officials to decide to expand masking recommendations could have been much worse without vaccines, health experts say.
Fully vaccinated people accounted for nearly three-quarters of COVID-19 infections after the events of July 4 in Provincetown, the community that was examined in Massachusetts, according to a CDC study released Friday in the agency’s weekly report on mortality and morbidity. The seaside tourist site is located in the county with the highest vaccination rate in Massachusetts.
CDC director Dr Rochelle Walensky said in a statement the findings “raised concerns that unlike other variants, vaccinated people infected with the delta could transmit the virus.”
But the outbreak, fueled by the highly transmissible delta variant, could have been much worse without vaccines.
“The vaccines are working. Of the 900 cases linked to the Provincetown cluster, there have been no deaths, 7 hospitalizations and the symptoms are largely mild,” tweeted Alex Morse, the general manager of Provincetown.
“The outbreak is contained and Provincetown is safe.”
Dr Ashish K. Jha, Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, called these “very low rates” on Twitter, adding that the figures are “consistent with the theme that vaccines prevent serious illness.”
Jha said that “several thousand people (some unvaccinated) showed up to celebrate July 4th,” the “crowded bars, clubs and lots of mixtures of vaccinated and unvaccinated people in tight spaces” created ” ideal conditions for the spread of COVID ”.
“Summary? The P-town epidemic would have been a nightmare if no one had been vaccinated,” he said.
Eric Topol, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, called Provincetown “perhaps the worst case” on Twitter and the added vaccines are very effective in protecting against hospitalization and severe cases.
Peter Hotez, Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, said on twitter while some revolutionary infections occurred, “vaccines were still very effective and saved lives” in Provincetown.
New cases break local and state records
A deluge of cases in the delta results in a record number of weekly cases in parts of the United States, including a dozen parishes in Louisiana, 10 counties in Florida, three counties in Mississippi and three counties in Oregon. The outbreak is also setting all-time case records in two states: Louisiana and Hawaii, according to USA TODAY analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University.
Florida recorded a weekly number of cases of 110,447 on Friday, significantly exceeding last summer’s weekly count of 83,090. Friday’s tally puts the state in second place for the worst rate of new cases per person, behind only Louisiana.
While Louisiana has 4.6 million people, it represents more new cases of COVID-19 than New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Rhode Island and Delaware combined. These six states have a combined population of 43.3 million.
Following: DeSantis won’t declare emergency but some Florida mayors challenge him with mask and vaccine warrants
Congress fails to extend moratorium on evictions, despite last-minute efforts
After struggling for votes all day, the House of Representatives failed on Friday to pass a bill that would have extended the eviction freeze set to expire on Saturday.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Whip James Clyburn issued a joint statement on the failed bill and blamed Republicans.
“It is extremely disappointing that Republicans in the House and Senate have refused to work with us on this issue,” they wrote in the statement. “We urge them to reconsider their opposition to helping millions of Americans and to join us in helping tenants and landlords hardest hit by the pandemic and preventing a nationwide eviction crisis.”
-Chelsey Cox and Ella Lee
Six positive tests for COVID on the Royal Caribbean ship
Six passengers sailing on the Adventure of the Seas of Royal Caribbean International, which departed from Nassau on Saturday, tested positive for COVID-19, Lyan Sierra-Caro, spokesperson for Royal Caribbean, confirmed to USA TODAY on Friday. All are US citizens.
The tests came back as part of routine end-of-cruise testing, which is provided free of charge by the cruise line, as most passengers must show proof of a negative test to return home. Travelers traveling to the United States from international destinations are required to show proof of a negative COVID test or proof that they have recovered from the virus within the past three months.
“These guests were quarantined and then retested with a PCR test to confirm their diagnosis,” Sierra-Caro said. PCR and antigen tests were offered to passengers, depending on their destination. The tests that came back positive were rapid tests, and those passengers were retested Thursday or Friday with a PCR test, which is more reliable.
-Morgan Hines
Contributor: Mike Stucka, USA TODAY; Jeffrey Schweers, Democrat of Tallahassee; The Associated Press
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