Category: Corona Virus

State health data shows there have been 459 new cases of the coronavirus in Oregon since Friday and one COVID-19 death.

The state is no longer reporting new coronavirus cases on weekends and holidays. Moving forward, The Oregonian/OregonLive will publish case, death and vaccination updates once a week as opposed to every day. The updates typically will be published Mondays, except following holidays.

For up-to-date case numbers, vaccination rates and other coronavirus in Oregon information, see these state and county COVID-19 trend graphics.

Vaccines: Oregon reported 20,701 newly administered doses since Friday.

Where the new cases are by county: Baker (3), Benton (5), Clackamas (63), Clatsop (4), Columbia (7), Coos (5), Crook (2), Deschutes (23), Douglas (26), Hood River (1), Jackson (32), Jefferson (4), Josephine (16), Klamath (1), Lake (1), Lane (44), Lincoln (1), Linn (38), Malheur (2), Marion (36), Multnomah (68), Polk (20), Sherman (1), Tillamook (2), Umatilla (13), Union (5), Wasco (7), Washington (19) and Yamhill (10).

Who died: Oregons 2,782th death connected to the coronavirus is a 63-year-old Douglas County man who tested positive May 23 and died June 10 at Asante Three Rivers Medical Center. The state is still determining whether the man had underlying medical conditions.

Hospitalizations: 125 people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 are hospitalized, down seven from Friday. That includes 29 people in intensive care, down one from Friday.

Since it began: Oregon has reported 209,494 confirmed or presumed infections and 2,782 deaths, among the lowest per capita numbers in the nation. To date, the state has reported 4,474,997 vaccine doses administered, fully vaccinating 2,205,984 people and partially vaccinating 207,197 people.

SEE STATE AND COUNTY COVID-19 TRENDS

-- Fedor Zarkhin

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Coronavirus in Oregon: 459 cases and 1 death over holiday weekend - OregonLive

The delta variant, first detected in India, is spreading across the globe and is now the dominant variant in the U.S., according to estimates by the CDC. Boris Roessler/DPA/Picture Alliance via Getty hide caption

The delta variant, first detected in India, is spreading across the globe and is now the dominant variant in the U.S., according to estimates by the CDC.

The highly contagious delta variant now accounts for more than 51% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., according to new estimates released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The variant, also known as B.1.617.2, was first detected in India and is spreading quickly across the globe.

And in parts of the U.S., the delta strain accounts for more than 80% of new infections, including some Midwestern states like Missouri, Kansas and Iowa.

The delta variant is already causing 74.3% of infections in Western states, including Utah and Colorado, and 58.8% of infections in Southern states like Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma, according to CDC estimates.

The good news is the vaccines being used in the U.S. all appear to be highly effective at protecting against serious disease, hospitalization and death. And public health officials are urging the roughly 140 to 150 million people who remain unvaccinated to get vaccinated.

"Right now we have two Americas: the vaccinated and the unvaccinated America," says Dr. Paul Offit, an infectious disease specialist at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

"We're feeling pretty good right now because it's the summer. But come winter, if we still have a significant percentage of the population that is unvaccinated, we're going to see this virus surge again," Offit says.

And it's crucial to increase vaccinations in other countries, says Saad Omer, a vaccine researcher at Yale. "The world has to get its act together," Omer says. "Otherwise yet another, potentially more dangerous, variant could emerge."

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Delta Is Now The Dominant Coronavirus Variant In The U.S. - NPR

Dont get too cocky, Colorado, but we have some eagerly awaited news for you: Parts of the state are slowly, but steadily, inching closer to herd immunity from coronavirus one way or another.

The latest from the coronavirus outbreak in Colorado:

>> FULL COVERAGE

More than 50% of the states total population has now been fully immunized against the virus, according to figures from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. (The state was one of only 20 to reach President Joe Bidens goal of having 70% of its adult population receive at least one dose of vaccine by July 4.)

But, when you add in immunity that comes from having been infected by the virus, there are regions of the state where likely more than 60% of the population is currently immune, according to modeling estimates. Herd immunity the level at which enough people are immune that the virus is forced into decline has often been pegged at around 70% for coronavirus, though that number may be changing as more transmissible variants take over.

Where the most-immune regions are and how they achieved their immunity, though, says a lot about the state of the pandemic in Colorado right now. Heres what you need to know.

Theres more than one way to get to herd immunity. Both vaccination and infection get the job done though, of course, the latter route is rougher.

Every few weeks, the Colorado COVID-19 Modeling Group, which is made up of university researchers around the state, releases a region-by-region report on the state of the pandemic. Among the figures it produces is an estimate for coronavirus immunity, which takes into account the vaccination rate in the region and the estimated infection rate.

In its latest report, the modeling team estimated that two regions in Colorado have overall immunity percentages above 55%: The East Central region, which includes Cheyenne, Elbert, Kit Carson and Lincoln counties; and the metro area, including Gilpin and Clear Creek counties.

Two more regions the Northeast region and the South Central region were above 50%. And, because the reports estimates only considered data through the middle of June, those numbers are all higher now likely above 60% in the most-immune places.

(The team produces estimates by region because it helps smooth over data blips from small population sizes in some counties and because the regions better encapsulate how people actually move around in the state the bubbles where people live and shop and mingle.)

Interestingly, the East Central and the metro area came about their immunity differently. The modeling teams report estimated that the metro area had one of the highest vaccination rates in the state around 55% of the population was fully vaccinated, as of late June. The East Central region, meanwhile, had the lowest vaccination rate only about 26% were fully vaccinated. Instead, the East Central regions estimated immunity comes largely through infection, according to the report.

This insight into the differences among highly immune regions of the state underlines a bigger issue: Vaccinations rates are extraordinarily uneven across Colorado.

As of Tuesday, CDPHE reported that more than 70% of the eligible population has been fully vaccinated against coronavirus in six counties. Another 24 counties have at least 50% of their eligible population fully vaccinated.

Meanwhile, fewer than 40% of the eligible population has been fully vaccinated in 18 counties, including four counties where less than 30% of the population has been fully vaccinated.

Where large pockets of unvaccinated people exist, the virus has the chance to thrive. That will lead to an increasing unevenness in how the pandemic is experienced across the state.

Were going to see a lot of patchiness in whos affected in where there are problems, said Dr. Jonathan Samet, the dean of the Colorado School of Public Health.

A good example of this right now is in Mesa County, where the vaccination rate is low. Coronavirus cases, driven by the highly transmissible Delta variant of the virus, have swamped local hospitals. Entering the Fourth of July weekend, 96% of the regions hospital beds were occupied. In the Denver metro area, where vaccination rates are higher, about 80% of hospital beds were occupied.

Samet said this shows how the coronavirus pandemic is no longer a single thing in Colorado. It will take different paths in different communities based on vaccination rates.

We really have a series of epidemics now, Samet said.

Despite these hot spots across the state, infections overall are in decline across the state.

Between 300 and 350 new cases are being reported per day, on average. Thats down from more than 1,500 cases per day in late April.

The decline in cases has leveled off, though. The total number of new cases per week has been increasing slightly for the past two weeks.

Around 280 people are currently hospitalized in Colorado with confirmed coronavirus infections down from nearly 700 in early May. But hospitalization numbers have also flattened out in recent weeks.

About four or five people with coronavirus are dying per day in Colorado.

Overall things are moving in the right direction, albeit slower than I think we all wish as a consequence of the Delta variant, Samet said.

He added: What you might say is we could have declined faster if we had not had this more transmissible strain.

This improvement shouldnt mask the fact that the coronavirus is more prevalent in Colorado now than it was last summer.

At this time last year, the state was seeing about 280 new coronavirus cases per day, and about 170 people were in the hospital with confirmed coronavirus infections.

Nationally, Colorado is ranked eighth among U.S. states for the highest new coronavirus case rates an improvement from May, when the state was ranked No. 1, but still nothing to celebrate.

This is partly due to the Delta variant, which has hit Colorado harder so far than it has hit most other states. The variant is estimated to account for 80% of all new coronavirus cases in the state, compared with about 20% of new cases nationally.

But Samet said the lower case rates at this time last year were also due to the prolonged statewide shutdown last spring. And, he said, people were likely more cautious last year, too.

People are behaving like its 2019 all over again, he said. Its not.

One advantage we have this year over last: Samet said it is unlikely we will see the same kind of post-Fourth of July case wave that we saw in 2020.

Why? Because last years wave the states second of what have now been four distinct waves of the virus was caused by people breaking their isolation and gathering around the July 4 holiday. But Samet noted that in 2021 weve been gathering with abandon for months now.

Bars and restaurants are operating at full indoor capacity. The Rockies can host full-capacity games. Mask orders have gone away. And cases continue to decline overall.

Were sustaining all of that, Samet said.

Just as Colorado starts creeping up toward herd immunity, though, the goal posts have moved.

Blame the Delta variant as well as the Alpha variant, which is also more transmissible than the original form of the coronavirus and accounts for an estimated 14% of new cases in the state. These more-transmissible forms mean that the herd immunity threshold has risen perhaps to around 80%, Samet said.

Thats because herd immunity comes from a relatively simple calculation, one where the only variable is how transmissible the virus is. The more transmissible the virus, the higher the percentage needed for herd immunity.

And, to Samet, the best way to continue boosting those immunity numbers in Colorado is through vaccination.

The more people who are vaccinated, he said, the better off we are as a society.

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When will Colorado reach coronavirus herd immunity? - The Colorado Sun

HONOLULU (KHON2) Folks who are fully vaccinated in the United States may enter Hawaii without pre-travel testing or quarantine starting Thursday, July 8. Lt. Gov. Josh Green is hopeful this will streamline the process at the airports.

They anticipate a lot of front-end clearance. The airlines have been doing a good job by clearing people with wristbands. We anticipate shorter lines once people start using their vaccination cards because otherwise, it will be a little clunky, said Green.

Greg Maples of the Hawaii Restaurant Association (HRA) told KHON2 they think this means there is going to be more people who come to Hawaii because it is easier to get here.

And thats just going to cause even more trouble for restaurants, because right now, and let me be very clear, we have three big problems for the restaurants right now: capacity, staffing, supply chain, said Maples.

The state says the size of social gatherings will be expanded to 25 people indoors and 75 outdoors. Restaurants will also be able to increase capacity to 75% all of which will begin on Thursday.

The 75% capacity, really without a change in the 6-feet social distancing wont do much for restaurants, said Maples. For example at our restaurant, were still at 50% capacity because we have to maintain six feet.

Capacity restrictions and staffing issues have plagued Scratch Kitchen and Meatery.

Theyre asking for minimum plus bonus plus tips and all that kind of stuff, said General Manager Richard Wong. They want more and whoever is going to give them the best deal is who is going to get to be able to hire people.

Retailers are also affected by the 6-foot social distancing guideline.

So you have long lines outside. Nobody likes to stand out in the hot sun, said Tina Yamaki of Retail Merchants of Hawaii. So we are seeing, you know, businesses, transactions being lost that way too. So if the distance is shorter, we can have more people in our stores.

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Coronavirus restrictions relaxing in Hawaii for travel, gatherings. Are things about to get even busier? - KHON2

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 have passed 184.6 million globally, according to Johns Hopkins University. The number of confirmed deaths stands at more than 3.99 million. More than 3.25 billion vaccination doses have been administered globally, according to Our World in Data.

A mass rapid-testing scheme in Liverpool, England, reduced COVID-19 cases by more than a fifth, researchers announced.

South Korea has reported its second-highest number of daily new COVID-19 cases ever, prompting officials to consider reintroducing restrictions.

European Union countries have ordered nearly 40 million additional doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

From 16 August, fully vaccinated adults and all children in England will not need to self-isolate after close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID-19.

New Zealand's health regulator has given provisional approval for the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine.

Mexico has reported its highest jump in new COVID-19 cases since late February.

Indonesia has prepared backup medical facilities should the current surge in cases worsen further, an official said. It comes as the country reported a record number of fatalities.

Greece has reported a jump in new COVID-19 infections after several weeks of declines.

As part of work identifying promising technology use cases to combat COVID, The Boston Consulting Group recently used contextual AI to analyze more than 150 million English language media articles from 30 countries published between December 2019 to May 2020.

The result is a compendium of hundreds of technology use cases. It more than triples the number of solutions, providing better visibility into the diverse uses of technology for the COVID-19 response.

To see a full list of 200+ exciting technology use cases during COVID please follow this link.

New South Wales state Premier Gladys Berejiklian has extended a lockdown in Sydney for at least another week. Strict stay-at-home measures had been due to end on Friday, but will now stay in place until at least 16 July.

Berejiklian warned that Australia's biggest city was bound to see a rise in new cases as a result of the highly infectious Delta variant.

"This Delta strain is a game-changer, it is extremely transmissible and more contagious than any other form of the virus that we've seen," she told reporters.

Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in Australia

Image: Our World in Data

The World Health Organization has recommended using arthritis drugs from Roche and Sanofi with corticosteroids for COVID-19 patients.

The move comes after data from 11,000 patients suggested they cut the risk of death and the need for mechanical ventilation.

"We have updated our clinical care treatment guidance to reflect this latest development," WHO Health Emergencies official Janet Diaz said.

The WHO analysis showed the risk of dying within 28 days for patients getting one of the arthritis drugs with corticosteroids such as dexamethasone is 21%, compared with an assumed 25% risk among those who got standard care. For every 100 such patients, four more will survive, the WHO said.

Written by

Joe Myers, Writer, Formative Content

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

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COVID-19: What you need to know about the pandemic on 7 July - World Economic Forum

After administering fewer than 800,000 doses since vaccinations began in March - enough for a single dose for just 3% of the population - Ivorian health authorities are now aiming to inoculate a million people in Abidjan over the next 10 days.

While acknowledging that will be a tall order, they hope to pick up the pace by targeting some of Abidjans most frequented places, especially its vast open-air markets where most of its 5 million residents shop for food and clothing.

At the market in the district of Adjame, which municipal officials say is visited by more than one million people a day, mostly female vendors and customers lined up to be vaccinated in an air-conditioned truck.

We are very happy about the convenience of the vaccines. It suits everyone, said Minigna Keita, who promotes cosmetic products at the market.

In the Treichville district, health workers roamed the market with megaphones, encouraging people to get vaccinated.

This morning it was a little slow, but people have started to show up in large numbers after seeing that the first people vaccinated did not have any problems, said Sylvie Sie, who coordinates vaccinations in the district.

See the article here:

Record number of cases recorded across Africa as it happened - The Guardian

Coronavirus latest: Covid infections will rise in England after reopening, says minister  Financial Times

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Coronavirus latest: Covid infections will rise in England after reopening, says minister - Financial Times

The highly infectious Delta has become Californias most identified variant of the coronavirus, a troubling development that underscores its danger to unvaccinated populations.

New data released by the California Department of Public Health say 35.6% of coronavirus variants analyzed in June have been identified as Delta, which was first identified in India. Thats a dramatic increase from May, when Delta accounted for just 5.6% of analyzed coronavirus cases in California and was the states fourth most identified variant.

Delta is now more widespread than the previous dominant strain, Alpha, which was first identified in the United Kingdom and accounted for 34.3% of analyzed coronavirus cases in June. Alpha was the states most dominant strain in April and May, outpacing the California variant, now known as Epsilon, which currently occurs in less than 2% of analyzed cases.

The rapid rise of Delta is prompting some public health officials to issue new warnings, urging more caution at a time when vaccinated people are putting away masks and getting back to normal life. Although those who have been fully vaccinated are believed to have high levels of protection, there is growing concern about the virus spreading among people who have not been inoculated.

Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations have been ticking up in Los Angeles County, where some 4 million people, including 1.3 million who are not yet eligible, have not had a single dose of vaccine.

Delta might be twice as contagious as the initial variants of the coronavirus that spread rapidly around the globe last year.

The rapid increase in the Delta variant suggests that this strain is more easily transmitted between people than other strains circulating in California, the state Department of Public Health said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times.

Nevertheless, there is evidence that vaccines available in the U.S. are effective against the Delta variant, state officials added.

Delta is also spreading rapidly nationwide. The director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, said recent data show that 25% of analyzed coronavirus cases nationwide are of the Delta variant. In some areas of the country, nearly half of analyzed cases are Delta.

By contrast, from May 9 to May 22, Delta made up less than 3% of analyzed coronavirus samples nationwide.

There are reports of rapidly increasing Delta cases confirmed in Los Angeles County too. The county started seeing upticks in early April. In May, the county had fewer than 20 identified Delta cases a week, but by June, there were 60 to 80.

For the week that ended June 19, Delta made up nearly 50% of all cases analyzed in L.A. County; four weeks earlier, it accounted for less than 5%.

Delta has been identified in 245 coronavirus cases so far in L.A. County, with early clusters identified in Palmdale and Lancaster. Fourteen cases of Delta occurred among residents of a single household.

The increase in the proportion of identified Delta cases comes as COVID-19 hospitalizations have started to rise again in L.A. County and across the state.

The number of Californians hospitalized for COVID-19 fell to 915 on June 12 the lowest it has been since the state began tracking cases. By Saturday, there were 1,097 COVID-19 patients in hospitals statewide, a 20% increase.

COVID-19 hospitalizations in L.A. County hit a record low of 212 on June 12. But on Saturday, there were 284 hospitalized patients a 34% increase, though far below the peak of 8,098 during the worst days of the pandemic.

State officials say they dont expect Californias hospitals to once again be overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients there are simply too many vaccinated people around to imagine such a scenario.

But officials noted that it remains crucial that more Californians get vaccinated.

We know our hospitalizations are creeping up and most of the patients are unvaccinated. We also know the science is clear getting vaccinated protects you AND those around you. Get vaccinated, Gov. Gavin Newsom tweeted.

His comments echoed those by Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. governments top infectious-diseases expert. He pointed to recent studies showing that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was 88% effective against symptomatic disease from the Delta variant and 96% effective against hospitalization after two doses were administered. The AstraZeneca vaccine, which is not approved for use in the U.S. but uses similar technology to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, was found to be 92% effective against hospitalization.

The best way to protect yourself against the virus and its variants is to be fully vaccinated. It works, Fauci said.

Some officials, however, have said the science isnt settled on whether some vaccinated people could be at higher risk of contracting the Delta variant and passing it to other people, while not getting severely sick themselves.

That was the reasoning behind the L.A. County Department of Public Healths latest recommendation that even fully vaccinated people return to wearing masks in indoor public settings until more definitive information emerges about Delta.

L.A. County officials expressed worry over a recent doubling of new coronavirus cases of all variants. From June 25 to July 1, the county reported about 2,600 new cases; the previous weeks sum was about 1,100.

Whenever you see a doubling of cases over a very short time, we all need to pay attention to that, and we all need to think about what else we could be doing that may help us get back to reducing the spread, said L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.

She too noted that fully vaccinated people are highly protected against serious illness and death from COVID-19, including from the Delta variant. But, she added, the big unknown is: Can you become infected have mild illness and go ahead and spread that infection to others?

Until more information comes out about that, Ferrer requested that L.A. County residents mask up in indoor settings where vaccination statuses may be unknown. If mask wearing indoors provides that extra layer of protection, I think its worth it, while we get more questions answered about the variant, and we get more people vaccinated.

Others who have suggested that even vaccinated people wear masks include Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, the government of Israel, the World Health Organization and health officials in the St. Louis area.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has continued to say that fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks because of the high levels of protection offered by the vaccines authorized in the U.S.

If you are vaccinated, you have a high degree of protection, so you need not wear a mask either indoor or outdoor, Fauci said.

He added that local authorities are free to make their own recommendations or requirements based on regional conditions.

California officials and local health agencies throughout the state have continued to align with the CDC guidance on masking recommendations.

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Delta variant is Californias most dominant coronavirus strain - Los Angeles Times

A once in a lifetime pandemic. Portland protests that stretched from late May 2020 to November, and beyond. The unprecedented Oregon wildfire season. A run of extreme heat we hope will never be repeated (but fear will be).

The Oregonian/OregonLives newsroom has spent the past 16 months covering all of that and more. It has been a sometimes exhilarating and often exhausting experience. To those journalists who ventured out last week in 100-plus degree weather to cover the news, the hardy band of photographers and reporters who turned out night after night for protests, the ones who headed toward the fire lines, I salute you.

On Friday, Feb. 28, 2020, reporter Fedor Zarkhin published the news of Oregons first reported coronavirus case. Shortly thereafter, The Oregonian/OregonLives newsroom reorganized around virus coverage to ensure as many angles as possible were covered. As we were soon to find out, the COVID-19 outbreak would touch nearly every aspect of our lives.

Now, as vaccinations abound and coronavirus cases drop, I wanted to let readers know about some changes in our pandemic coverage. One of the mainstays has been a daily post listing new cases, deaths and hospitalizations.

As of this coming week, we will post the numbers weekly instead of daily. Thats in recognition that the case numbers have dropped significantly in the past few months, as vaccines rolled out, and it allows us to free our journalists to do deeper reporting.

The editor who organized and led much of our COVID-19 coverage, Brad Schmidt, says, This past week marked a clear turning point in the pandemic across several fronts.

First, he said, Oregon saw average new cases drop below 200 a day, the lowest point since September.

Second, Schmidt says, Gov. Kate Brown has lifted nearly all coronavirus restrictions. And third, the Oregon Health Authority announced it would discontinue holiday and weekend reporting of several key data points. The state instead will release that information on the next business day.

Going forward, our weekly update will include new cases, deaths, and other key statistics. That weekly story will publish online Mondays or, in the event of holidays, the following business day.

For readers who want to stay up on the latest numbers, The Oregonian/OregonLive will continue to update data online every day the Oregon Health Authority releases new stats.

That means you can continue visiting https://projects.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/ to see up-to-date figures on cases, deaths, hospitalizations, vaccinations and more. Data analysts Mark Friesen and Dave Cansler have worked behind the scenes to add features to that page, including a section devoted to county-level data.

Our coronavirus newsletter, which has been delivered five days a week, will move to twice weekly.

What wont change: Our commitment to delivering thorough, accurate news about COVID-19 and its many effects.

Zarkhin and reporter Aimee Green will continue to look for in-depth stories related to the pandemic. Schmidt says that will include examining virus variants, efforts to improve vaccination rates among Black, Indigenous and people of color populations, and progress on vaccinations for children younger than 12.

Education reporter Eder Campuzano will track plans to reopen schools safely and issues that arise there for parents, students and teachers.

Business reporter Mike Rogoway will keep an eye on Oregons Employment Department. The department generated lots of news over the months as it struggled with antiquated computer systems, COVID-10 outbreaks in call centers and unprecedented demand due to layoffs.

In fact, The Oregonian/OregonLive is currently pressing the state to release how much taxpayer money was lost to unemployment fraud in Oregon during the pandemic.

The amount could be significant. The Associated Press reported earlier this year that California alone estimated it sent out $11 billion in fraudulent payments. Washington state was also hard hit, estimating $650 million in losses in 2020, though it has worked to recover $370 million.

Oregon has released limited information on its losses, arguing that releasing more would make the system vulnerable to additional fraud.

The Oregonian/OregonLive also remains committed to other pandemic-related business news. Jamie Goldberg has spent months reporting on workplace issues, payroll help for businesses large and small and landlord-tenant relief. She will continue on these subjects, while also assuming some editing duties.

Goldberg and Rogoway also are following the recovery of downtown Portland. Read our work on that project at oregonlive.com/downtown.

Thanks to our subscribers for supporting all of this important public service journalism.

The Mutts comic is going on sabbatical starting July 5, 2021.

Comics fans: Mutts will be replaced temporarily by Curtis on the comics pages. The creator of Mutts, Patrick McDonnell, is taking a six-month sabbatical to work on another project. That gives us the opportunity to give readers a glimpse at a fresh strip. Let me know what you think of Curtis, which starts Monday. The creator of the strip, Ray Billingsley, bases the comic on his own childhood. Its described as humorous, thought-provoking (with) bursts of pure zany fantasy.

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Letter from the Editor: Were changing the cadence of our coronavirus coverage - OregonLive

For months, the prime minister has repeated the mantra that further easing of Covid-19 restrictions would be about data and not dates. Yet, as coronavirus cases in the UK continue to surge, and scientists warn that fully reopening society risks building variant factories in our own back yard, the government appears poised to put one date 19 July ahead of everything else. Once again, politics has trumped science.

Since Sajid Javids appointment as health secretary on 26 June, the UK has confirmed a further 188,538 coronavirus cases, with approximately 25,000 extra people testing positive each day. On Sunday, Javid said that the best way to protect the nations health was by lifting the main Covid-19 restrictions, even though this would result in a further significant increase in cases. We are going to have to learn to accept the existence of Covid and find ways to cope with it just as we already do with flu, he said.

Another mantra beloved both of politicians and scientists is that well need to learn to live with the virus, though they often disagree on the timing of when this recalibration should take place. Until now, the government has also avoided specifying the meaning of this slippery phrase. Now that it is poised to set a date, we are about to learn what the health secretarys vision of living with the virus actually means.

For Javid, a thriving economy is at odds with continuing Covid-19 restrictions. Theres no doubt that measures such as shutting down businesses and events, or instructing individuals and entire school bubbles to self-isolate if they come into contact with an infected person, are economically damaging and may be harmful to peoples mental, or even physical health. Other measures, however, such as the wearing of masks, are a mere inconvenience for most people, but they do reduce transmission particularly indoors, when coronavirus cases are high. Doing away with them has nothing to do with the economy or peoples mental health; it is motivated by ideology.

No scientist is arguing that Covid restrictions should remain in place forever. The frustrating thing is that we know double-vaccines work: they protect the vast majority of people, even from variants, even from Delta, so there is an endpoint to this, said Stephen Griffin, professor of virology at the University of Leeds.

The real worry is that that theyre basically saying its not going to be so bad, and weve got most people vaccinated so lets just carry on. If you want to actually stop new outbreaks, and the tremendous damage done by this variant, you need to build your vaccine coverage up, to include, in my view, children aged 12 years and above, because thats where many of the infections are at the moment, but also because theres lots of socialising going on and it is about to increase.

Yes, we may eventually have to live with outbreaks and with some infections, but were nowhere near a herd immunity threshold, and its not a magic barrier that you go through it is literally the more the merrier. You need to build that wall of double-vaccinated people, and if you do that you might not need boosters, because if everyone has that level of immunity then there will be no cases.

Another frustration, among the governments own advisers, is that ministers have repeatedly ignored their calls to make public spaces safer by improving ventilation.

It is no good telling people to open windows if windows dont open, as is the case in many public and private buildings hence the need for ventilation grants for existing properties and ventilation standards for new builds, wrote Prof Stephen Reicher and Prof Susan Michie - two members of the Sage subcommittee advising on behavioural science in a recent blog for the British Medical Journal. Neither is it any good telling people to avoid stuffy spaces if they dont know which ones are well-aired, they wrote, or telling the owners of public and private buildings to improve ventilation without regular inspections and enforcement.

To most scientists, living with the virus means doing everything you can to reduce the risks, before taking the brakes off. It doesnt mean taking the brakes off and just seeing what happens.

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Politics trumps Covid science in Javids push to live with the virus - The Guardian