Category: Corona Virus Vaccine

TheWest Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) reportsas of 10:00 a.m., November 1, 2020, there have been 785,622 total confirmatory laboratory results receivedfor COVID-19, with 24,883total cases and 457 deaths.

CASESPER COUNTY: Barbour (187), Berkeley (1,692),Boone (408), Braxton (73), Brooke (249), Cabell (1,548), Calhoun (36), Clay(65), Doddridge (72), Fayette (796), Gilmer (65), Grant (199), Greenbrier(217), Hampshire (144), Hancock (242), Hardy (108), Harrison (682), Jackson(411), Jefferson (626), Kanawha (3,828), Lewis (110), Lincoln (263), Logan(801), Marion (419), Marshall (420), Mason (182), McDowell (131), Mercer (803),Mineral (244), Mingo (654), Monongalia (2,363), Monroe (266), Morgan (157),Nicholas (191), Ohio (638), Pendleton (79), Pleasants (34), Pocahontas (73),Preston (225), Putnam (981), Raleigh (866), Randolph (429), Ritchie (53), Roane(116), Summers (140), Taylor (172), Tucker (67), Tyler (55), Upshur (277),Wayne (626), Webster (36), Wetzel (229), Wirt (56), Wood (720), Wyoming (359).

Please note that delaysmay be experienced with the reporting of information from the local healthdepartment to DHHR. As case surveillance continues at the local healthdepartment level, it may reveal that those tested in a certain county may notbe a resident of that county, or even the state as an individual in questionmay have crossed the state border to be tested.

Please visit the dashboard located at http://www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more information.

Free COVID-19 testing isavailable today in Berkeley, Hampshire, Jackson, Jefferson,Marshall, Mingo, Monroe, Morgan, Putnam, Upshur, and Wyoming counties.

BerkeleyCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 8:00 PM, Musselman High School, 126 ExcellenceWay, Inwood, WV

HampshireCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 6:00 PM, Hampshire County High School, 157Trojan Way, Romney, WV

JacksonCounty, November 1, 1:00 PM 5:00 PM, Jackson County Health Department, 504Church Street South, Ripley, WV

JeffersonCounty, November 1, 3:00 PM 8:00 PM, Ranson Civic Center, 432 W. 2nd Avenue,Ranson, WV

MarshallCounty, November 1, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Marshall County Health Department, 5136th Street, Moundsville, WV

Mingo County,November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Williamson Health and Wellness Center, 173 East2nd Avenue, Williamson, WV (under the tent)

MonroeCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Monroe Health Center, 2869 Seneca TrailSouth, Peterstown, WV

MorganCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 8:00 PM, Warm Springs Middle School, 271 WarmSprings Way, Berkeley Springs, WV

PutnamCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Valley Park, 1 Valley Drive, Hurricane,WV

UpshurCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Buckhannon Upshur High School, 270 BUDrive, Buckhannon, WV

Wyoming County,November 1, 11:00 AM 3:00 PM, Old Board of Education, 19 Park Street,Pineville, WV

Testing is available toeveryone, including asymptomatic individuals.

Additional testing will beheld Monday, November 2 in Cabell, Doddridge, Fayette, Harrison, Lincoln,Mingo, Monroe, Ritchie, Roane, Taylor, Wayne, and Wyoming counties.

CabellCounty, November 2, 9:00 AM 2:00 PM, Cabell County Health Department, 703Seventh Avenue, Huntington, WV (flu shots offered)

DoddridgeCounty, November 2, 2:00 PM 4:00 PM, Ritchie Regional Health Center, WestUnion Location, 190 Marie Street, West Union, WV

FayetteCounty, November 2, 11:00 AM 3:00 PM, J.W. and Hazel Ruby WV Welcome Center,55 Hazel Ruby Lane, Mt. Hope, WV

HarrisonCounty, November 2, 9:00 AM 12:00 PM, Harrison County Health Department, 330West Main Street, Clarksburg, WV (by appointment; call 304-623-9308)

LincolnCounty, November 2, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Lincoln County Health Department, 8008Court Avenue, Hamlin, WV (Walk-in testing)

Mingo County,November 2, 9:00 AM 2:00 PM, Williamson Health & Wellness, 173 East 2ndAvenue, Williamson, WV (under the tent) AND 4:00 PM 7:00 PM, Delorme BibleChurch, 1876 Route 49, Edgarton, WV

MonroeCounty, November 2, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Monroe County Health Department, 200Health Center Drive, Union, WV

RitchieCounty, November 2, 2:00 PM 4:00 PM, Ritchie Regional Health Center, 135South Penn Avenue, Harrisville, WV

Roane County,November 2, 9:00 AM 1:00 PM, Roane County Family Health Care, 146 Williams Drive,Spencer, WV (flu shots offered)

TaylorCounty, November 2, 12:00 PM 2:00 PM, First Baptist Church of Grafton, 2034Webster Pike (US Rt. 119 South), Grafton, WV

Wayne County,November 2, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Wayne County Health Department, 217 KenovaAvenue, Wayne, WV, Pre-registration: wv.getmycovidresult.com

WyomingCounty, November 2, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Old Board of Education, 19 Park Street,Pineville, WV

Excerpt from:

COVID-19 Daily Update 11-1-2020 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources

TheWest Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) reportsas of 10:00 a.m., November 1, 2020, there have been 785,622 total confirmatory laboratory results receivedfor COVID-19, with 24,883total cases and 457 deaths.

CASESPER COUNTY: Barbour (187), Berkeley (1,692),Boone (408), Braxton (73), Brooke (249), Cabell (1,548), Calhoun (36), Clay(65), Doddridge (72), Fayette (796), Gilmer (65), Grant (199), Greenbrier(217), Hampshire (144), Hancock (242), Hardy (108), Harrison (682), Jackson(411), Jefferson (626), Kanawha (3,828), Lewis (110), Lincoln (263), Logan(801), Marion (419), Marshall (420), Mason (182), McDowell (131), Mercer (803),Mineral (244), Mingo (654), Monongalia (2,363), Monroe (266), Morgan (157),Nicholas (191), Ohio (638), Pendleton (79), Pleasants (34), Pocahontas (73),Preston (225), Putnam (981), Raleigh (866), Randolph (429), Ritchie (53), Roane(116), Summers (140), Taylor (172), Tucker (67), Tyler (55), Upshur (277),Wayne (626), Webster (36), Wetzel (229), Wirt (56), Wood (720), Wyoming (359).

Please note that delaysmay be experienced with the reporting of information from the local healthdepartment to DHHR. As case surveillance continues at the local healthdepartment level, it may reveal that those tested in a certain county may notbe a resident of that county, or even the state as an individual in questionmay have crossed the state border to be tested.

Please visit the dashboard located at http://www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more information.

Free COVID-19 testing isavailable today in Berkeley, Hampshire, Jackson, Jefferson,Marshall, Mingo, Monroe, Morgan, Putnam, Upshur, and Wyoming counties.

BerkeleyCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 8:00 PM, Musselman High School, 126 ExcellenceWay, Inwood, WV

HampshireCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 6:00 PM, Hampshire County High School, 157Trojan Way, Romney, WV

JacksonCounty, November 1, 1:00 PM 5:00 PM, Jackson County Health Department, 504Church Street South, Ripley, WV

JeffersonCounty, November 1, 3:00 PM 8:00 PM, Ranson Civic Center, 432 W. 2nd Avenue,Ranson, WV

MarshallCounty, November 1, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Marshall County Health Department, 5136th Street, Moundsville, WV

Mingo County,November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Williamson Health and Wellness Center, 173 East2nd Avenue, Williamson, WV (under the tent)

MonroeCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Monroe Health Center, 2869 Seneca TrailSouth, Peterstown, WV

MorganCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 8:00 PM, Warm Springs Middle School, 271 WarmSprings Way, Berkeley Springs, WV

PutnamCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Valley Park, 1 Valley Drive, Hurricane,WV

UpshurCounty, November 1, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Buckhannon Upshur High School, 270 BUDrive, Buckhannon, WV

Wyoming County,November 1, 11:00 AM 3:00 PM, Old Board of Education, 19 Park Street,Pineville, WV

Testing is available toeveryone, including asymptomatic individuals.

Additional testing will beheld Monday, November 2 in Cabell, Doddridge, Fayette, Harrison, Lincoln,Mingo, Monroe, Ritchie, Roane, Taylor, Wayne, and Wyoming counties.

CabellCounty, November 2, 9:00 AM 2:00 PM, Cabell County Health Department, 703Seventh Avenue, Huntington, WV (flu shots offered)

DoddridgeCounty, November 2, 2:00 PM 4:00 PM, Ritchie Regional Health Center, WestUnion Location, 190 Marie Street, West Union, WV

FayetteCounty, November 2, 11:00 AM 3:00 PM, J.W. and Hazel Ruby WV Welcome Center,55 Hazel Ruby Lane, Mt. Hope, WV

HarrisonCounty, November 2, 9:00 AM 12:00 PM, Harrison County Health Department, 330West Main Street, Clarksburg, WV (by appointment; call 304-623-9308)

LincolnCounty, November 2, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Lincoln County Health Department, 8008Court Avenue, Hamlin, WV (Walk-in testing)

Mingo County,November 2, 9:00 AM 2:00 PM, Williamson Health & Wellness, 173 East 2ndAvenue, Williamson, WV (under the tent) AND 4:00 PM 7:00 PM, Delorme BibleChurch, 1876 Route 49, Edgarton, WV

MonroeCounty, November 2, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Monroe County Health Department, 200Health Center Drive, Union, WV

RitchieCounty, November 2, 2:00 PM 4:00 PM, Ritchie Regional Health Center, 135South Penn Avenue, Harrisville, WV

Roane County,November 2, 9:00 AM 1:00 PM, Roane County Family Health Care, 146 Williams Drive,Spencer, WV (flu shots offered)

TaylorCounty, November 2, 12:00 PM 2:00 PM, First Baptist Church of Grafton, 2034Webster Pike (US Rt. 119 South), Grafton, WV

Wayne County,November 2, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Wayne County Health Department, 217 KenovaAvenue, Wayne, WV, Pre-registration: wv.getmycovidresult.com

WyomingCounty, November 2, 12:00 PM 4:00 PM, Old Board of Education, 19 Park Street,Pineville, WV

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COVID-19 Daily Update 11-1-2020 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources

As COVID-19 cases continue to surge in Illinois at an unprecedented rate, Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Sunday announced new restrictions for North-Central Illinois.

Pritzker will be imposing a ban on indoor service at bars and restaurants, among other restrictions, this week for Region 2 which covers 20 North-Central counties, including Rock Island, Kendall and Knox counties after the area saw an average positivity rate above the 8% positivity threshold for three consecutive days.

That means, starting Wednesday, all 11 of the states regions will be operating under the governors COVID-19 restrictions.

Pritzker, who hinted last week the peak of this outbreak is still nowhere in sight, said the mitigation measures are being put in place to help limit the spread of the virus.

As cases, hospitalizations and deaths are rising across our state, across the Midwest and across the nation, we have to act responsibly and collectively to protect the people we love, Pritzker said in a statement.

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike echoed Pritzker, adding the new restrictions are not meant to be a punishment for Illinoisans but rather a way to help all of us co-exist with COVID-19 more safely.

This comes as state health officials announced 6,980 new cases and an additional 35 coronavirus-related deaths, making Sunday the fifth consecutive day Illinois daily caseload has topped 6,000 a number that far exceeds anything seen in the states previous COVID-19 peak in May.

The new infections, which account for nearly 8.9% of the 78,458 tests that have been processed statewide in the last day, raised the seven-day average positivity rate from 7.5% Saturday to 8% Sunday up from 3.5% at the start of last month.

The rise in that number is worrisome to health experts who use that figure as a way to gauge how rapidly the virus is spreading.

More than 119,600 people tested positive for the virus in Illinois over the last 30 days, accounting for more than a quarter of the 417,280 cases that have been recorded over the last eight months. And the state has broken the daily caseload record five out of the last 12 days, including Saturday when state health officials announced 7,899 new cases.

Meanwhile, 15 of Sundays 35 fatalities were reported in Cook County, bringing the states death toll to 9,792.

Illinois hospitals are treating the most coronavirus patients theyve seen since the end of May. As of Saturday night, 3,294 people were hospitalized in Illinois with COVID-19, with 692 of those patients in intensive care units and 284 on ventilators, officials said.

Illinois boasts a recovery rate of 97% as most people who contract it show mild or no symptoms.

More here:

All 11 Illinois regions to be under COVID-19 restrictions starting Wednesday - Chicago Sun-Times

As COVID-19 cases continue to surge in Illinois at an unprecedented rate, Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Sunday announced new restrictions for North-Central Illinois.

Pritzker will be imposing a ban on indoor service at bars and restaurants, among other restrictions, this week for Region 2 which covers 20 North-Central counties, including Rock Island, Kendall and Knox counties after the area saw an average positivity rate above the 8% positivity threshold for three consecutive days.

That means, starting Wednesday, all 11 of the states regions will be operating under the governors COVID-19 restrictions.

Pritzker, who hinted last week the peak of this outbreak is still nowhere in sight, said the mitigation measures are being put in place to help limit the spread of the virus.

As cases, hospitalizations and deaths are rising across our state, across the Midwest and across the nation, we have to act responsibly and collectively to protect the people we love, Pritzker said in a statement.

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike echoed Pritzker, adding the new restrictions are not meant to be a punishment for Illinoisans but rather a way to help all of us co-exist with COVID-19 more safely.

This comes as state health officials announced 6,980 new cases and an additional 35 coronavirus-related deaths, making Sunday the fifth consecutive day Illinois daily caseload has topped 6,000 a number that far exceeds anything seen in the states previous COVID-19 peak in May.

The new infections, which account for nearly 8.9% of the 78,458 tests that have been processed statewide in the last day, raised the seven-day average positivity rate from 7.5% Saturday to 8% Sunday up from 3.5% at the start of last month.

The rise in that number is worrisome to health experts who use that figure as a way to gauge how rapidly the virus is spreading.

More than 119,600 people tested positive for the virus in Illinois over the last 30 days, accounting for more than a quarter of the 417,280 cases that have been recorded over the last eight months. And the state has broken the daily caseload record five out of the last 12 days, including Saturday when state health officials announced 7,899 new cases.

Meanwhile, 15 of Sundays 35 fatalities were reported in Cook County, bringing the states death toll to 9,792.

Illinois hospitals are treating the most coronavirus patients theyve seen since the end of May. As of Saturday night, 3,294 people were hospitalized in Illinois with COVID-19, with 692 of those patients in intensive care units and 284 on ventilators, officials said.

Illinois boasts a recovery rate of 97% as most people who contract it show mild or no symptoms.

Read the original:

All 11 Illinois regions to be under COVID-19 restrictions starting Wednesday - Chicago Sun-Times

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that when a COVID-19 vaccine in approved it will be free whether you have insurance or not.

With several COVID-19 vaccines under development around the world, many Americans have wondered how much it'll cost to get the immunization once one is approved.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services answered that question this week.

THE QUESTION

Will Americans have to pay a lot for a COVID-19 vaccine, once the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves one?

THE ANSWER

No, it will be free, CMS announced on Wednesday.

WHAT WE FOUND

On Wednesday, CMS said in a news release that Americans wont have to pay out of pocket for a coronavirus vaccine that gains full FDA approval or Emergency Use Authorization. That includes Medicare and Medicaid recipients, people with private insurance -- even those who havent met their deductibles for the year -- and those with no insurance at all.

As a condition of receiving free COVID-19 vaccines from the federal government, providers will be prohibited from charging consumers for administration of the vaccine, the release said.

In a document released Thursday, the World Health Organization showed several vaccines are in Phase 3 development, being given to thousands of people to test their effectiveness and safety.

Four vaccine candidates are currently in large scale Phase 3 trials in the U.S. Pfizer executives said they should have data in early November that shows whether its vaccine effectively prevents coronavirus infections.

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has previously emphasized that any vaccine approved this year would be in "very limited supply" at first. It wouldn't be available to most until summer or fall of 2021.

Have something you'd like VERIFIED? Click here to submit your story.

See the rest here:

COVID-19 vaccine will be free when approved, health officials say - KCENTV.com

The dreaded fall and winter COVID-19 wave has arrived and with a vengeance. Much of the nation is experiencing a viral load of infections unlike those previously seen since the start of the pandemic.

Any one metric by itself doesn't fully relay the significance of the threat, but coupling it with multiple metrics, like the number of daily new cases, percent positivity rate, infection rate, hospitalization rate and deaths, provide a more complete burden of the illness.

There are 50 epidemics playing out in the United States, each state with its own trajectory and prognosis. Only two states, Maine and Vermont, are trending in the right direction, having control on their epidemic, the remaining 48 states are all trending in the wrong direction.

To curb the spread of COVID-19, these are five measures that must be taken to prevent further amplification of cases, illnesses, hospitalizations and death.

The verdict is in, masks work. In a study published in Health Affairs, mask mandates in 15 states and the District of Columbia led to a slower daily COVID-19 growth rate that was seen over time.

Currently across the nation, 49% of Americans wear a mask in public, with only some states mandating wearing a face covering. If we increase this to 95%, we could save 129,000 lives, the study said.

A "masks required" sign is seen at Belmont University near the entrance of the 2020 U.S. presidential election debate hall on Oct. 21, 2020, in Nashville, Tenn.

Communication can make or break any medical response. Countries, like those in Asia, that have been able to curtail the spread of COVID-19 have showcased effective risk communication with the general public -- that is -- telling the public in layman's terms the good, the bad, the ugly and what we don't know yet.

Even more important is saying it with one voice, not mixed messages that erodes trust. During a time when many Americans are experiencing pandemic fatigue, are confused about the evolving science of COVID-19 and want to resume pre-pandemic activities, providing coherent, consistent and reliable guidance has never been more important.

Reliable guidance includes communicating what constitutes low-risk activities (outdoor events) versus high-risk activities (indoors, confined space and poor ventilation), as well as reminding people to stay home when sick, and continue physical distancing and hand-washing.

Early in this pandemic, the nation was blinded by the number of COVID-19 cases that were brewing in our communities. Fast forward 10 months, and we've learned a lot about this disease and the various indicators that can help track and trace where the virus is spreading.

A health care worker beckons incoming cars at a drive-thru COVID-19 testing site inside the Alliant Energy Center complex, as the outbreak continues in Madison, Wis., Oct. 31, 2020.

Each jurisdiction should have surveillance systems in place that track levels of SARS-CoV-2 virus circulation and associated illness before they reach alarming levels.

Consistent data should be collected on outpatient and emergency department visits for influenza-like illnesses and COVID-like illnesses, in addition to the number of new daily cases, tests performed, percent positivity rate, hospitalizations and deaths, among other indicators.

Data that's collected through surveillance systems can help inform local decisions and actions to prevent cases from becoming clusters, clusters from becoming outbreaks and outbreaks from becoming epidemics.

Through a hyper-local response model, pre-set benchmarks and associated actions can be established that prioritize curbing activities that pose the highest risk of transmission in order to contain a local outbreak. This includes looking at outdoors or curbside pickup versus indoor dining, limiting gatherings and closing high-risk nonessential businesses.

The mantra has always been "test, isolate, trace and quarantine."

In order to find cases, there must be an adequate testing infrastructure. States should aim for at least 150 new tests per 100,000 population with associated test positivity rate being below 5%.

In this July 8, 2020, file photo, Eric Antosh has a nasal swab taken by a nurse at a COVID-19 testing site in the Brooklyn borough of New York.

There must also be an adequate contact tracing workforce to track and trace additional cases and contacts. The aim should be at least 30 contact tracers per 100,000 people in each state and the ability to scale up if the epidemic expands.

Dr. Syra Madad is a pathogen preparedness expert and infectious disease epidemiologist. She is the senior director of the system-wide special pathogens program at NYC Health + Hospitals.

Here is the original post:

5 things states must do to curb the spread of COVID-19: ANALYSIS - ABC News

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that when a COVID-19 vaccine in approved it will be free whether you have insurance or not.

With several COVID-19 vaccines under development around the world, many Americans have wondered how much it'll cost to get the immunization once one is approved.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services answered that question this week.

THE QUESTION

Will Americans have to pay a lot for a COVID-19 vaccine, once the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves one?

THE ANSWER

No, it will be free, CMS announced on Wednesday.

WHAT WE FOUND

On Wednesday, CMS said in a news release that Americans wont have to pay out of pocket for a coronavirus vaccine that gains full FDA approval or Emergency Use Authorization. That includes Medicare and Medicaid recipients, people with private insurance -- even those who havent met their deductibles for the year -- and those with no insurance at all.

As a condition of receiving free COVID-19 vaccines from the federal government, providers will be prohibited from charging consumers for administration of the vaccine, the release said.

In a document released Thursday, the World Health Organization showed several vaccines are in Phase 3 development, being given to thousands of people to test their effectiveness and safety.

Four vaccine candidates are currently in large scale Phase 3 trials in the U.S. Pfizer executives said they should have data in early November that shows whether its vaccine effectively prevents coronavirus infections.

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has previously emphasized that any vaccine approved this year would be in "very limited supply" at first. It wouldn't be available to most until summer or fall of 2021.

Have something you'd like VERIFIED? Click here to submit your story.

View post:

COVID-19 vaccine will be free when approved, health officials say - KCENTV.com

1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 have now passed 46.5 million globally, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. The number of confirmed deaths stands at over 1.2 million.

Japan's largest airport has opened a COVID-19 testing facility for outbound passengers, who need proof they are virus-free when they arrive at their destination.

Oil prices have fallen more than 3%, as concerns grow about widening lockdowns in Europe.

Australia has reported no new COVID-19 cases in the community for the first time in 5 months.

UpLink is a digital platform to crowdsource innovations in an effort to address the worlds most pressing challenges.

It is an open platform designed to engage anyone who wants to offer a contribution for the global public good. The core objective is to link up the best innovators to networks of decision-makers, who can implement the change needed for the next decade. As a global platform, UpLink serves to aggregate and guide ideas and impactful activities, and make connections to scale-up impact.

Hosted by the World Economic Forum, UpLink is being designed and developed in collaboration with Salesforce, Deloitte and LinkedIn.

UpLink is now running the COVID Social Justice Challenge, which aims to tackle social inequalities and injustices within the COVID response and recovery.

Belgium has tightened restrictions on businesses and social life. From today, hairdressers and shops which provide non-essential services will be closed for six weeks. November's school holidays have also been extended by a week, while there are tighter rules for social contacts.

World Health Organization Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said yesterday that he'd been identified as a contact of someone who has tested positive for coronavirus.

The UK has passed the milestone of 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases.

People protesting against COVID-19 restrictions have clashed with police in some Spanish cities.

2. New lockdown in England

On Saturday evening, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a new lockdown in England, as cases continue to rise.

From midnight on Thursday morning, people will only be allowed to leave their houses for specific reasons - education, work, exercise, shopping for essentials and caring for the vulnerable.

Unless we act, we could see deaths in this country running at several thousand a day, said Johnson.

Cases have risen rapidly across the UK.

Image: Our World in Data

Pubs and restaurants will close except for takeaways, and outbound international travel is discouraged. Schools and universities will remain open, and elite sport will continue.

It brings England into line with France and Germany, who have also announced national lockdowns.

3. WHO warns against 'natural herd immunity'

World Health Organization Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has issued a warning about pursuing natural herd immunity, after speaking with patients struggling with long-term effects of COVID-19.

Their stories show people need time and care to recover, Tedros said.

"It also reinforces to me just how morally unconscionable and unfeasible the so-called natural herd immunity strategy is," he added.

"Not only would it lead to millions more unnecessary deaths, it would also lead to a significant number of people facing a long road to full recovery. Herd immunity is only possible with safe and effective vaccines that are distributed equitably around the world."

See the original post here:

COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 2 November - World Economic Forum

Bostons COVID-19 positive test rate is a wildfire that is close to becoming an inferno if officials fail to take more precautions, according to one expert.

The citys positive test rate has doubled in a month and a half to 7.8%, and shows no sign of dropping.

And Boston is not alone. Last week, 121 of the states cities and towns more than a third of the 351 total Massachusetts municipalities are in the high-risk red zone.

7.8 % is a wildfire. Were getting close to an inferno, said Dr. Todd Ellerin, director of infectious diseases at South Shore Health. The time is now to take our foot completely off the accelerator and onto the brakes; otherwise the governor, his leadership team and the state Department of Public Health will be forced to put their foot on the emergency brake. It may already be too late to avoid that.

Boston Health Chief Marty Martinez told reporters on Friday that the city is considering stopping indoor dining or rolling back other restrictions as coronavirus cases continue to mount.

The city shut down both indoor and outdoor dining, as well as a range of other businesses, at the start of the pandemic before gradually allowing them to reopen over the summer.

But stopping indoor dining will not be enough to reverse the infection rate, Ellerin said. Because 80% of the coronavirus clusters have been in peoples homes, he said, they should wear masks at home, as well as elsewhere, and everyone who can work from home should.

Because people need ventilation, they also should open windows about 6 inches when theyre in a room, Ellerin said, and they should think twice about having people with whom they dont live over for Thanksgiving.

Dr. Amesh Adalja, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said shutdowns or stay-at-home orders are not the solution.

What you have to do is look at whats driving the increase; is it restaurants, is it bars, is it sports activities? Adalja said. You can fix it. It always boils down to testing, tracing and isolating.

Dr. Jeffrey Singer, a Phoenix-based general surgeon and senior fellow at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, agreed that lockdowns are not the answer, nor, he added is micromanaging.

Its a fools errand to think that if you lock down long enough, the virus is going to disappear, Singer said. We should give people who run businesses the freedom to come up with their own solutions, based on CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines. One size does not fit all. The more flexibility you have, the more compliance youre going to get.

But Ellerin said its unclear if individual behaviors will be enough to reverse the positivity rate.

This virus can be unforgiving and relentless, he said. We have to act aggressively now because before we blink, the positive test rate could be 10 to 15%. Everything should be on the table because we are going in the wrong direction. We have to starve this virus of fuel.

Sean Cotter contributed to this report.

Continue reading here:

Infectious disease expert: Boston COVID-19 positive rate is a wildfire close to becoming an inferno - Boston Herald

Bostons COVID-19 positive test rate is a wildfire that is close to becoming an inferno if officials fail to take more precautions, according to one expert.

The citys positive test rate has doubled in a month and a half to 7.8%, and shows no sign of dropping.

And Boston is not alone. Last week, 121 of the states cities and towns more than a third of the 351 total Massachusetts municipalities are in the high-risk red zone.

7.8 % is a wildfire. Were getting close to an inferno, said Dr. Todd Ellerin, director of infectious diseases at South Shore Health. The time is now to take our foot completely off the accelerator and onto the brakes; otherwise the governor, his leadership team and the state Department of Public Health will be forced to put their foot on the emergency brake. It may already be too late to avoid that.

Boston Health Chief Marty Martinez told reporters on Friday that the city is considering stopping indoor dining or rolling back other restrictions as coronavirus cases continue to mount.

The city shut down both indoor and outdoor dining, as well as a range of other businesses, at the start of the pandemic before gradually allowing them to reopen over the summer.

But stopping indoor dining will not be enough to reverse the infection rate, Ellerin said. Because 80% of the coronavirus clusters have been in peoples homes, he said, they should wear masks at home, as well as elsewhere, and everyone who can work from home should.

Because people need ventilation, they also should open windows about 6 inches when theyre in a room, Ellerin said, and they should think twice about having people with whom they dont live over for Thanksgiving.

Dr. Amesh Adalja, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said shutdowns or stay-at-home orders are not the solution.

What you have to do is look at whats driving the increase; is it restaurants, is it bars, is it sports activities? Adalja said. You can fix it. It always boils down to testing, tracing and isolating.

Dr. Jeffrey Singer, a Phoenix-based general surgeon and senior fellow at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, agreed that lockdowns are not the answer, nor, he added is micromanaging.

Its a fools errand to think that if you lock down long enough, the virus is going to disappear, Singer said. We should give people who run businesses the freedom to come up with their own solutions, based on CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines. One size does not fit all. The more flexibility you have, the more compliance youre going to get.

But Ellerin said its unclear if individual behaviors will be enough to reverse the positivity rate.

This virus can be unforgiving and relentless, he said. We have to act aggressively now because before we blink, the positive test rate could be 10 to 15%. Everything should be on the table because we are going in the wrong direction. We have to starve this virus of fuel.

Sean Cotter contributed to this report.

Read the original here:

Infectious disease expert: Boston COVID-19 positive rate is a wildfire close to becoming an inferno - Boston Herald