Category: Corona Virus

COLUMBUS, Ohio Ohio in the last week reported fewer new coronavirus cases than during any seven-day period since July 3-9, with the totals to date rising Monday to 109,062 cases, 12,319 hospitalizations and 3,832 deaths.

This means that 1-in-107 Ohioans is now known to have contracted the virus at some point this year.

The seven-day average for newly reported cases in Ohio has dipped to 1,047, from a high of 1,373 on July 18. And the 613 and 775 new coronavirus cases reported by the Ohio Department of Health the last two days were the fewest single-day totals since June 30.

Both the seven-day and 21-day averages for newly reported coronavirus cases have been trending down.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

Separately, data from the Ohio Hospital Association showed the number of patients has continued to trend down, with the average patient count over the last week at 941 the lowest point since July 14.

The patient count ran as high as 1,122 on July 28. But before the July surge in cases, the patient count was as low as 516 on June 15.

This chart shows the number of COVID-19 patients on a given day, as reported by hospitals to the Ohio Hospital Association. Out-of-state patients are included. Totals for the most recent day or two may be revised later.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

There were 316 patients in ICU beds on Monday, though the total is subject to revision once more data is received from reporting hospitals across the state. The ICU patient count was over 500 on several days in April before dipping to near 200 in June.

Over the last week, the number of deaths increased by 159, or 4.3%, from the previous Mondays total of 3,673.

Deaths reported daily were 6, 2, 40, 29, 21, 26 and 35. The reports lag several days from the actual date of death and sometimes are reported by the state in clusters.

While Ohio COVID-19 case and hospitalization numbers increased to record levels over the summer, deaths remained below spring levels.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

Cases were up in the last week by 7,331, or 7.2%. This compares with increases the last five weeks of 7,768, 8,786, 9,009 and 9,315 and 8,897.

Ohio added 62.7 cases per 100,000 people in the last week. This rate exceeded 100 in a nine counties Madison (462.8), Mercer (167.6), Darke (144.8), Preble (134.5), Allen (125.1), Perry (121.8), Shelby (117.3), Sandusky (112.8) and Lawrence (112.7).

Cuyahoga County continues to improve, dropping to 63 new cases per 100,000, or right about the statewide average of 62.7

Gov. Mike DeWine has attributed the increase in cases during the summer to both increased testing and a new spread of the virus.

The state reported that 1,843,274 tests have been conducted to date. This includes 161,003 in the last week, in comparison to 151,694, 191,028 and 161,853 the previous three weeks. During the last week of May, about 60,000 tests were conducted.

Ohio estimates 87,764 people identified with coronavirus have recovered. This is not based on individual case information, but on the number of cases at least three weeks old that have not resulted in death.

The state is now reporting that the onset of symptoms was as early as January for 46 cases. The four earliest cases date to Jan. 2 in Erie, Licking Mahoning and Warren counties.

The 613 and 775 new coronavirus cases reported by the Ohio Department of Health the last two days were the fewest for any day since June 30.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

The age range for cases is from under 1 to 109, with a median age of 42. The median age for deaths is 80.

The cases trended younger during the summer, with the median age for all cases dropping from 50 in mid-May.

For all cases this year, more than three-fourths the deaths have been to people age 70 and up, with 943 (25%) in their 70s and 2,000 (52%) at least 80 years old. Those 80 and up accounted for 44% of deaths from all causes nationally in 2017.

Death totals for other age groups are 541 in their 60s, 237 in their 50s, 66 in their 40s, 30 in their 30s, 13 in their 20s, and two under 20.

But for hospitalizations, the cases are more spread out: 2,242 age 80 or above, 2,394 in their 70s, 2,620 their 60s, 2,150 in their 50s, 1,197 in their 40s, 855 in their 30s, 618 in their 20s and 238 younger.

This graphic illustrates the age breakdown for the Ohio coronavirus cases that have resulted in hospitalizations or deaths.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

The counties with the most deaths are Franklin (537), Cuyahoga (528), Lucas (329), Hamilton (270), Mahoning (260) and Summit (228).

For the deaths in which race was reported, 78% are white, and 19% are black. Yet for total cases, 59% are white and 27% black. Ohios population is 82% white and 13% black, census estimates say.

Among all cases reported to date, 12,319 have been hospitalized, including 2,786 in intensive care units. A week earlier, these totals were 11,629 and 2,680, meaning that in the last week the state learned of 690 new hospitalizations, with 106 new admissions to ICUs.

The counties with the most cases are Franklin (19,683), Cuyahoga (14,418) and Hamilton (10,184). They are the states three largest counties. Cases per capita are shown in the chart at the bottom of this story.

Ohio's first three coronavirus cases were confirmed on March 9, increasing to more than 100,000 this month.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

The first three cases were confirmed on March 9. The total topped 100 on March 19, 1,000 on March 27, 10,000 on April 18, 50,000 on June 28 and 100,000 on Aug. 9.

The state on April 10 began new reporting standards to include more types of testing and cases identified from non-testing evidence. This has resulted in 5,742 probable cases being included in the total cases reported for Ohio to date.

Corrections in the data are made from day to day by the state. Sometimes the state has reduced the number of cases in individual counties from one day to the next as corrected residency information is received.

The chart below is based on the most recent case data from the Ohio Department of Health. Cleveland.com calculated the cases per 100,000 rates based on 2019 census population estimates.

Rich Exner, data analysis editor for cleveland.com, writes about numbers on a variety of topics. Follow on Twitter @RichExner. See other data-related stories at cleveland.com/datacentral.

Some mobile users may need to use this link to see the county-by-county table above.

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Mapping Ohios 109,062 coronavirus cases, plus updates on slowing case, hospitalization trends - cleveland.com

A new survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found adults overall are feeling mental health impacts of COVID-19, and that young adults, racial and ethnic minorities, and essential workers reported disproportionately worse mental health and increased thoughts of suicide.

Dr. Ken Duckworth told Boston Public Radio on Monday that the transition from a "short-term mindset" to the "marathon" thinking around the effects of COVID-19 can be hard to contend with, but telehealth amid the pandemic may be able to reach more people.

Ken Duckworth is the Senior Medical Director for Behavioral Health at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, and the Medical Director for the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Read the rest here:

Dr. Ken Duckworth On Mental Health In The Time Of Coronavirus - wgbh.org

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo todayannounced 7 million diagnostic tests for COVID-19 have been conducted to date in New York State, and that the number of positive cases yesterday 0.78 percent was below 1 percent for the ninth day in a row.

"Our numbers reflect the hard work of New Yorkers, and as other states across the nation see surging cases, our numbers remain steadily low. For more than a week, we've seen our positivity rate stay below 1 percent, and to date New York has done 7 million teststhese are remarkable accomplishments that New Yorkers should be proud of,"Governor Cuomo said."New York State is demonstrating that a response guided by science and data - not politics or opinion - is the only effective way to deal with this virus. But, we must not become complacent and risk slipping backwards everyone must remember to wear their masks, socially distance, wash their hands regularly, and stay New York Tough."

Yesterday, the State Liquor Authority and State Police Task Force visited 1,170 establishments in New York City and Long Island and observed 33 establishments that were not in compliance with state requirements. A county breakdown of yesterday's observed violations is below:

Today's data is summarized briefly below:

Of the 77,692 test results reported toNew York State yesterday, 607, or 0.78 percent, were positive. Each region's percentage of positive test results reported over the last three days is as follows:

REGION

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

Capital Region

0.6%

0.5%

1.2%

CentralNew York

0.9%

0.9%

0.7%

Finger Lakes

0.8%

0.5%

0.5%

Long Island

0.8%

0.9%

0.8%

Mid-Hudson

0.9%

0.7%

0.8%

Mohawk Valley

0.6%

0.5%

0.3%

New York City

0.9%

1.0%

0.9%

North Country

0.3%

0.2%

0.3%

Southern Tier

0.6%

0.2%

0.1%

WesternNew York

0.7%

1.3%

0.9%

TheGovernor also confirmed 607 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 425,508 confirmed cases inNew York State. Of the 425,508 total individuals who tested positive for the virus, the geographic breakdown is as follows:

County

Total Positive

New Positive

Albany

2,654

11

Allegany

80

0

Broome

1,166

1

Cattaraugus

171

1

Cayuga

164

1

Chautauqua

263

0

Chemung

189

1

Chenango

218

0

Clinton

132

1

Columbia

552

1

Cortland

97

0

Delaware

107

0

Dutchess

4,686

Continued here:

Governor Cuomo Announces 7 Million COVID-19 Tests Conducted to Date in New York State - ny.gov

FORT MYERS

As of 2 p.m. Monday, there have been 576,094 positive cases of the coronavirus recorded in the state. The case count includes 570,024 Florida residents and 6,070 non-Florida residents. There are 9,539 Florida resident deaths reported, 135 non-resident deaths and 34,194 hospitalizations, according to the Florida Department of Health.

*Numbers are released by the DOH daily at approximately 11 a.m. but are occasionally delayed.

TESTING NUMBERS

Total tested (residents): 4,240,770Total tested (non-residents): 18,803Total positive (residents): 570,024Total positive (non-residents): 6,070Total negative (residents): 3,664,071Total negative (non-residents): 12,771Percent positive (residents): 13.46%Percent positive (non-residents): 32.32%

The remainder of the tests is still pending or inconclusive, according to the FDOH website.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS

Total number of recorded cases: 576,094 (up from 573,416)Florida resident deaths: 9,539 (up from 9,452)Non-resident deaths: 135 (unchanged)

SOUTHWEST FLORIDA NUMBERS

Total recorded cases in SWFL: 34,485 (up from 34,390)Deaths: 692 (up from 689)

Lee County: 17,451 (up from 17,401) 375 deathsCollier County: 10,918 (up from 10,891) 154 deathsCharlotte County: 2,388 (up from 2,378) 101 deathsDeSoto County: 1,422 (up from 1,420) 20 deathsGlades County: 422 (up from 421) 3 deathsHendry County: 1,884 (up from 1,879) 39 deaths

Click HERE for a SWFL case-by-case breakdown updated daily.

NOW HIRING: SWFL companies adding jobs

#GulfshoreStrong: Covering people making a difference in SWFL

FOOD PANTRIES: Harry Chapin mobile food pantry schedule, week of Aug. 17

REPORT COVID-19 DIAGNOSIS/TEST: International self-reporting system

The Florida Department of Health has opened a 24-hour COVID-19 Call Center at 1-866-779-6121. Questions may also be emailed to [emailprotected]. Email responses will be sent during call center hours.

LINK: Florida Department of Health COVID-19 updates

*The map is best viewed on a desktop computer. If you dont see the map above tap HERE for a fullscreen version.

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Monday's Coronavirus Updates: 2678 new cases, 87 new deaths reported in the state - Wink News

A Lutheran pastor speaks with parishioners before the start of online worship services conducted from the basement of her home. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

One-third of U.S. adults have watched religious services online or on television in the past month, and a little over half of them or 18% of all adults say they began doing this for the first time during the coronavirus pandemic. Of course, if youre worshipping remotely, you cant hug the other members of your congregation or shake hands with your minister, priest, rabbi or imam. But you can wear whatever clothes you want, turn up (or down) the volume, forget about traffic in the parking lot, and easily check out that service youve heard about in a congregation across town or even across the country.

Whatever the reasons, lots of people like virtual worship. Nine out of 10 Americans who have watched services online or on TV in the past month say they are either very satisfied (54%) or somewhat satisfied (37%) with the experience; just 8% say they are not too or not at all satisfied, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey conducted in mid-July.

So what does this bode for the future? By the time the COVID-19 pandemic has finally run its course, will Americans have lost the habit of going in person to a church, synagogue, temple or mosque? Some commentators have suggested that just as the pandemic has accelerated the trend toward shopping online and made Americans reliant on the internet for work, school, health and entertainment, so might many, if not all, varieties of religious experience move online in the 21st century.

But thats not what the people whove been worshipping online see in their future. On the contrary, most U.S. adults overall say that when the pandemic is over, they expect to go back to attending religious services in person as often as they did before the coronavirus outbreak.

Pew Research Center conducted this survey to help understand how the coronavirus outbreak has impacted the worship habits of Americans. For this report, we surveyed 10,211 U.S. adults from July 13 to 19, 2020. All respondents to the survey are part of Pew Research Centers American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other categories. For more, see theATPs methodologyand themethodology for this report.

The questions used in this analysis can be foundhere.

To be sure, a substantial share of Americans (43%) say they didnt attend religious services in person before the pandemic struck and they dont plan to start going to a church or other house of worship when its all over. But 42% of U.S. adults say they plan to resume going to religious services about as often as they did before the outbreak, while 10% say they will go more often than they used to, and just 5% anticipate going less often.

Similarly, a lot of Americans are not interested in virtual services: Two-thirds of U.S. adults say they have not watched religious services online or on TV in the past month. But of the one-third of U.S. adults who recently watched services online or on TV, relatively few (19% of this group, or 6% of all adults) say that once the pandemic is over, they intend to watch religious services more often than they did before it started.

Most online worshippers say that after COVID-19 has passed, they plan to revert to their pre-pandemic habits (18% of all adults) or watch online less often than they did before the outbreak (9%).

The forecast is even more striking if one looks just at regular attenders from pre-COVID times the respondents who told us in a 2019 survey that they went to services at least once or twice a month. Of those congregational stalwarts, 92% expect that when the pandemic is fully behind us, they will attend physical services at least as often as they did in the past. This includes 10% who say they will also watch online or on TV more than in the past.

Of course, it is impossible to predict how behavior will actually change after the pandemic, particularly if it extends further into the future than people expect. But, at the moment at least, very few U.S. adults anticipate substituting virtual participation for physical attendance at their church or other house of worship: Just 2% of the pre-pandemic regular attenders think that in the long run they will watch services online or on TV more often and attend in person less often than they used to.

Note: Here are the questions used in this analysis, along with responses, and itsmethodology.

Read more here:

Will the coronavirus permanently convert in-person worshippers to online streamers? They don't think so - Pew Research Center

The novel coronavirus pandemic has affected people differently.

Most patients fight and recover from COVID-19, even as the disease claims the lives of many others.

Furthermore, the coronavirus has affected our daily lives in the Rio Grande Valley in ways both small and large, changing how we work and how we interact with our friends and families.

Here are stories, the first part of a weekly series called the COVID Chronicles, which will share personal stories of how the pandemic is affecting our communities. If you would like to share your experience, email us at news@themonitor.com.

EXPRESSING THANKS

Day after day, traveler buses outside hospitals are becoming a common sight in the Rio Grande Valley.

In Brownsville, the buses have been seen for at least two weeks, and photos of them have been shared on Facebook.

They arent your ordinary metro buses, carrying people from bus stop to bus stop. These buses travel up and down the expressway and finish their trips at Valley hospitals.

They are transporting healthcare workers who have traveled to South Texas to help care of the sick during this COVID-19 pandemic.

Cora J. McWhorter said she learned that her sisters coworker had traveled to the Valley to work with coronavirus patients.

I found out which hospital and hotel shes at and decided to take her dinner, McWhorter said, explaining she wanted to express her thanks for these volunteers.

Laura B. Martinez

TESTS ARENT PERFECT

Irene Castorena first knew she had the virus when she started to develop a sore throat. As a 25-year-old with no pre-existing conditions, she developed shortness of breath, body aches, loss of taste and smell and fever.

The sore throat I developed felt very different, she said. It did not feel like the one we always get when we are getting sick of a cold. It was something that didnt hurt when you were swallowing, it would just hurt.

Irene took an antibody test, which came back negative because her body was still infected and had not developed a sufficient amount of antibodies yet. Eventually, she took another antibody test, which came positive, and three swap tests: a negative, a positive and another negative.

Even when I had the negative results, I still stayed home and did not go out anywhere, she said. It felt strange to us that I received the negative results because I had just tested positive in the antibody test, so I decided to schedule another swap test and this time it came back positive.

Irene said all of the days she was sick and showing symptoms her husband was with her all the time and never got infected or tested positive.

Even though her husband did not get sick, she still advises the community to take all the necessary precautions because the virus is very real.

We have to be careful and we all have to do our part, as a community, because we are all connected, she said. For only one person that is irresponsible and does not want to follow guidelines like wearing a face mask, a lot of people can be affected.

Irene said she did not leave her house or have contact with anyone for the six weeks that she was in quarantine. She said she was worried of putting others at risk who may be more vulnerable and may not have a strong immune system to fight the virus.

How sad would it be to know that just because you were irresponsible, someone died, she said.

Nubia Reyna

NEW ENTRIES AT COURT

The impacts of the coronavirus on those who work in the criminal justice system, and those being prosecuted by it, have steadily revealed itself as the pandemic continues.

In mid-March, the courts in Hidalgo County didnt shut down, but proceedings slowed to a crawl. As weeks changed to months, the courts adapted to video-conferencing and provided hearings to the parties and the public via YouTube or Zoom.

But the impacts are far beyond procedural.

Minute entries in multiple cases reveal defendants have been quarantined and attorneys have missed hearings because of hospitalizations. Court records dont always indicate why, but with the prevalence of coronavirus in Hidalgo County, one can guess.

Theres even a new entry seen in multiple court cases: COVID CASE.

Mark Reagan

A COUPLES LOVE, HEARTBREAK

In July, COVID-19 took the lives of Dora Garcia Jaime and her husband, A.C. Beto Jaime, leaving the Pharr couples family of six children reeling.

They were something of royalty to those who knew them: A.C., short for Adalberto Casares, was the mayor of the city during the 1970s and later pioneered racewalking opportunities for Rio Grande Valley youth;

Dora was considered a pillar of faith by her sons and daughters, whose laugh resonated and whose nurturing habits brought balance to a family filled with character.

But perhaps there was no more recognizable characteristic of A.C. and Dora than their love for each other.

They truly had a love affair that people dream of and people think is impossible, Doreen Morgan, one of the Jaimes six children, gushed about her parents.

Such was their love for each other that A.C. said hed never leave Doras side, and planned to be there during her final moments.

Then COVID-19 happened.

A.C. grew sick and, at one point, needed to be hospitalized.

An ambulance arrived one July day, placed A.C. inside and proceeded to head for a hospital, prompting Dora, who never wanted to be separated from her husband, to run after the ambulance, and fell and hit her head.

While in a local hospital fighting to breathe, A.C. used whatever breath he had left asking for his wife, concerned since she, too, had been diagnosed with the new coronavirus that has already killed nearly 1,500 in the Rio Grande Valley and 168,000 in the country.

He died on July 23. Dora died on July 25. They were both 84.

Though the circumstances are tragic, the legacy they left behind in their children keep A.C. and Dora together in spirit a bond that Doreen has said will live on forever.

Michael Rodriguez

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Big and small, coronavirus' impact is being felt in different ways - Monitor

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Big food brands like Impossible and Shake Shack really want you to keep eating their stuff while you're at home

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"This is going to be a knock-down, drag-out. And we're ready."

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5 things to know for August 17: USPS, coronavirus, DNC, Russia investigation, Belarus - CNN

PLANT CITY - One month after contracting COVID-19 and recovering in a hospital room, Pastor Carlos Pagans breathing is not the same as before.

Sometimes he tires quickly. Sometimes he needs a couple of seconds to catch his breath.

This is not easy, said Pagan, 36, who is from Puerto Rico.

Pagan is a husband, a father of four children and the principal pastor of The Nazarene, a Christian church in Brandon with a high concentration of Latino parishioners.

With Hispanics accounting for a disproportionately large number of the most severe cases of coronavirus, Pagan and other local Latino pastors, spiritual advisers and advocates are using their experiences -- which in some cases includes contracting the virus -- to keep their vulnerable congregations and communities safe.

They use social media, community virtual meetings and partnerships with other congregations to keep their members at a distance. Nationwide, Latinos are nearly three times more likely to have died from coronavirus compared to whites when age is taken into account, according to the non-partisan APM Research Lab.

Pagan said doctors gave him a 20 percent chance of surviving after he got sick in July, so he is well aware of the perils.

When I got sick I had thoughts of panic and fear, but in the end I understood that God had other plans for me, said Pagan. So it was and thats my message.

Pagan said he did not contract the disease at his church but from a friend who tested positive. By June, Pagan had stopped mass in person as a precaution and reinforced his recommendations through social media to keep his people safe.

During all this time I have been very responsible with the use of masks, gloves and disinfectants, said Pagan. But surprises are never lacking and my illness has been one of them.

Pagan believes the disease began on July 2 when he felt feverish and had a slight cough. Four days later he was treated at Lakeland Regional Hospital. He was sent home because doctors determined his condition did not require hospitalization. They told him to isolate but it was too late: His wife Karol, 36, and two of their children, Milianys, 14, and Isaiah, 12, had the disease, too, though they suffered only mild symptoms. The youngest, Kaylianys, 4, had a skin rash.

On July 8 Pagan was officially diagnosed with COVID-19. He came down with more fever and could hardly breathe on July 10. That night his wife called an ambulance.

"I was literally suffocating," Pagan said. "I couldn't speak."

Pagan was hospitalized for 10 days. His lungs were compromised with severe pneumonia. One doctor told him intubation was his last chance.

They told me that I had no other options and that my health was getting worse, Pagan said. It was a very strong blow because you think something like this will never happen to you.

Pagan considers his recovery a miracle because hours before his intubation, a nurse started to work with him to improve his breathing. The intubation was postponed while he continued under observation. A week later doctors removed the oxygen supplement that Pagan was receiving.

Now his life experience is helping him to communicate with his congregation about the coronavirus and staying safe and secure. One of his first Facebook videos, which has more than 80,000 views, was recorded in the hospital where he was admitted. Pagan said he does the same thing at his business, My Town Barber Shop, that he opened 13 years ago in Plant City.

"God is good, he protects us, but we have to do our part, too," said Pagan. "Faith and prudence go on the same hand."

Two Sundays ago, Pagan returned to his church to meet with a group of eight people. All precautions were in place, said Pagan. That included asking congregants to sit 6 feet apart, wear masks and to use disinfectant spray to wipe down the area around them.

The state Department of Health has urged places of worship to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Masks are extremely important when social distancing is difficult but are not required at Hillsborough churches, according to a county order passed June 29. The order only requires people to wear masks in businesses open to the public.

Nationwide more than 650 cases have been linked to at least 40 religious facilities and places of worship during the pandemic, according to tracking by the New York Times.

With schools and universities now poised to open, recommendations on how to minimize risk represents the new normal that people will likely need to follow for some time, said Dr. Marissa Levine, director of the Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice at the University of South Florida.

"That means that our most effective tools for combating this virus are physical distancing, using adequate cloth face coverings and practicing effective hygiene and disinfection," said Levine.

Many people have incorporated those practices into their day-to-day activities and, as a result, Levine said we have begun to see decreased community transmission.

This is not political, just practical and represents the efforts of a cohesive community working together against a common threat, said Levine.

Herbert Morataya, 51, also is a COVID-19 survivor. Like Pagan, he decided to share his experience to support his community in the fight against new infections.

It is important during and after the virus because you never know if it will come for us, he said.

Originally from Guatemala, Morataya is a pastor and spiritual adviser at Manantial de Vida, Fe y Esperanza ( Spring of Life, Faith and Hope) in Plant City. He was hospitalized on June 19 at St. Josephs Hospital. Morataya for 22 days was connected to an assisted breathing system. His wife Maira, 50, and his son Herbert Jr., 23, were diagnosed with COVID-19, too, but they only had a slight cough.

Morataya believes that he could have been infected when he was distributing vegetables and fruits in Orlando.

At some point I had contact with someone and maybe I touched my eyes with my fingers because I have cataracts, Morataya said. There is more than one possibility but it didnt happen in my church.

Morataya said he closed his church at the end of March but he brings his weekly mass to Facebook to help people feel connected. He said he emphasize the value of family and the importance to follow measures to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

Morataya said that when he was in the hospital he thought about his mission as a human being and pastor.

The days passed and my thought was: God, it is possible that I will die through this disease. But, what do you want to teach me?

With that in mind Morataya told himself that if he survived he would work hard to share his message.

Today I tell each person who is outside to take care of themselves, since the virus does not respect age or origin, said Morayata. It is real and I was affected.

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Tampa Bay pastors spread message of faith and prudence after surviving coronavirus - Tampa Bay Times

LONDON Barraged by protests from angry teachers, parents and students, the British government has abandoned the improvised college-entrance exam system it cobbled together for schools in England after the pandemic made traditional testing impossible.

Critics said the governments approach discriminated against economically disadvantaged students and pointed to the results as proof. When they were released, tens of thousands of students learned that their preliminary grades had been lowered.

On Monday, after insisting it would not make changes to the complex grading system, the government scrapped it completely.

I am sorry for the distress this has caused young people and their parents but hope this announcement will now provide the certainty and reassurance they deserve, the British education secretary, Gavin Williamson, said in a statement. He said it had been an extraordinarily difficult year for young people.

It was the latest policy reversal from a government already much criticized for its handling of the coronavirus. It was also a fresh setback for Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who bowed to overwhelming political pressure to retreat, agreeing to the shift during talks by phone from a vacation in Scotland and then leaving it to his education secretary to make the apologies.

The problem began after Britain went into lockdown and schools were closed to most pupils. That made it impossible to hold the standardized examinations, known as A-levels, that are the main factor in determining college entrance.

Instead, teachers provided predicted scores based on students previous work and practice A-levels. These estimates were then reviewed by an education regulator, Ofqual, which used an algorithm that took into account each schools past exam performance.

The architects of this system regarded teachers as generally too optimistic about the prospects of their students. Accepting teachers predictions at face value, regulators worried, could lead to grade inflation.

When the review was over, around 40 percent of the predicted grades around 280,000 in all were downgraded. Only about 2 percent of marks increased.

The main victims, said critics, were bright pupils from less affluent backgrounds whose schools had not previously performed well.

On Monday, Mr. Williamson agreed to accept teachers predictions, acknowledging that the process of allocating grades has resulted in more significant inconsistencies than can be resolved through an appeals process.

The same approach will also be adopted for another exam, the GCSE, which is taken by students around age 16. Those results are scheduled to be announced this week.

The decision is likely to be greeted with relief by those who argued that any other course of action would be a betrayal of the prime ministers promise to level up opportunities across Britain.

But the debacle cast a harsh light on the competence of a government widely criticized for its slowness to order a coronavirus lockdown, for delays in setting up its track-and-trace system, and for an erratic approach to quarantine rules for those arriving in the country.

Under Mr. Johnsons leadership, Britain has suffered one of the sharpest economic contractions in Europe, as well as one of its highest death tolls from the pandemic.

A previous plan to get most younger children back to school in England before the summer break was abandoned, and the furor over examinations bears many of the hallmarks of a government slow to identify looming problems or even to recognize the warning signs of a political crisis.

In this case, Mr. Johnson initially defended the algorithmic review system as robust and dependable, despite the immediate outcry, and even when Scotland reversed course after similar protests last week.

Over the weekend, Mr. Williamson insisted that there would be no U-turn, no change.

Guidance on how to appeal the downgraded examination results was withdrawn only hours after it was issued, compounding the confusion.

Incompetence has become this governments watchword, said Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labour Party, in a Twitter post.

Yet the pressure also came from Conservative lawmakers who believe that young people have suffered significantly from the lockdown and that downgrading so many results was simply unfair.

This group of young people have lost out on so much already, we must ensure that bright, capable students can progress on their next step, wrote one government minister, Penny Mordaunt, on Twitter.

The conservative-leaning Daily Telegraph newspaper was scathing in an editorial, declaring that the exams fiasco in England beggars belief, given the time authorities have had to prepare.

Even if they had failed to do so until recently, they were given a clear warning signal from Scotland that a storm was looming, the editorial said. Yet, rather than change tack, they sailed straight into it with calamitous consequences.

The crisis raises questions about the future of Mr. Williamson, who made his name as chief whip, responsible for party discipline, under former Prime Minister Theresa May. In that position Mr. Williamson reveled in his reputation as a Machiavellian political fixer and kept a pet tarantula named Cronus in his office.

But after being promoted to defense secretary he was fired by Mrs. May, accused of leaking details of discussions in the National Security Council. He was restored to the cabinet by Mr. Johnson when he became prime minister last summer.

Few observers would argue that things have gone well for Mr. Williamson in his latest job.

Before the government backed down on the exams Monday, one veteran Conservative politician and former education secretary, Kenneth Baker, warned that the crisis risked alienating not just those young people deprived of college places but also their parents, grandparents, friends and relatives.

The damage is absolutely enormous, Mr. Baker, now a member of the House of Lords, told Times Radio.

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U.K. Backs Down in A-Level Testing Debacle Tied to Coronavirus - The New York Times

Oregons count of coronavirus cases continue to climb with 412 new confirmed and presumptive cases, the Oregon Health Authority announced Saturday. The state has now eclipsed 23,000 total cases.

Where the new cases are by county: Baker (1), Benton (4), Clackamas (38), Clatsop (2), Columbia (3), Crook (1), Curry (2), Deschutes (10), Douglas (1), Hood River (1), Jackson (6), Jefferson (12), Josephine (2), Klamath (2), Lane (6), Lincoln (6), Linn (13), Malheur (25), Marion (75), Morrow (8), Multnomah (79), Polk (6), Umatilla (36), Union (1), Wallowa (1), Wasco (2), Washington (56), Yamhill (13).

New fatality: Oregons 386th COVID-19 death is a 71-year-old man in Jefferson County with underlying health conditions. He tested positive on August 6 and died on August 14, at St. Charles Bend Medical Center.

Whos in the hospital: The state Friday reported 167 Oregonians with confirmed coronavirus infections are currently in the hospital, up 11 from Thursday. Oregon remains well below its capacity, with hundreds of hospital beds and ventilators available. Updated hospitalization data was not released Saturday.

Since it began: Oregon has reported 23,018 confirmed or presumed infections and 386 deaths, among the lowest totals in the nation. To date, 461,861 Oregonians have been tested.

Brad Schmidt of The Oregonian/OregonLive contributed to this report.

-- K. Rambo

krambo@oregonian.com

@k_rambo_

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Coronavirus in Oregon: 412 new infections and 1 death - OregonLive