Category: Covid-19

Most U.S. adults have heard or seen falsehoods about COVID-19, but their chances of believing the misinformation depends a lot on their news diet.

Some 78% of U.S. adults said they either believe at least one myth about COVID-19, or are unsure whether its true or false, according to the latest study tracking public opinions about COVID-19 from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Belief in COVID-19 falsehoods tracked with political persuasion and vaccination status, with Republicans who are not vaccinated much more likely to believe or be unsure about false statements compared with Democrats who are vaccinated, KFF found. KFF is a nonpartisan San Francisco-based nonprofit that provides information on health policy.

Researchers also found a correlation between the news outlets that people trusted for COVID-19 information and their tendency to believe untruths about the pandemic, which currently kills an estimated 1,200 Americans each day.

Among people who said they trust COVID-19 information from network news, local TV news, CNN, MSNBC, and NPR, a relatively small share (11% to 16%) either believe or arent sure about at least four COVID-19 myths. That share increased to nearly four in 10 among people who trust COVID-19 information from the more conservative-leaning One America News (37%) and Fox News (36%), and to nearly half (46%) among those who trust information from Newsmax.

Critically, the study did not explore whether falsehoods were expressed on those networks it merely tried to measure the susceptibility or, indeed, vulnerability of their audiences to believe debunked myths surrounding COVID-19. In other words, its not necessarily the case that the outlets whose audiences are more likely to believe falsehoods are more likely to broadcast misinformation, the researchers noted.

One thing this study cannot disentangle is whether this is because people are exposed to misinformation from those news sources, or whether the types of people who choose those news sources are the same ones who are pre-disposed to believe certain types of misinformation for other reasons, the study authors wrote.

Its not necessarily the case that the news outlets whose audiences are more likely to believe COVID-19 myths are more likely to broadcast misinformation, the researchers noted.

While nearly half the public trusts the information about COVID-19 they see on local TV and network news, there is no single news outlet that garners the trust of a majority of the public when it comes to COVID-19 information, KFF found.

Media representatives for ABC DIS, +0.76%, CBS VIACA, +3.41%, CNN T, +1.52%, MSNBC CMCSA, +1.06%, One America News, NBC, Newsmax and NPR did not respond immediately to requests for comment.

A Fox News spokesperson pointed to previous research, including a University of California, Davis study that concluded that while people who rely on Fox News for COVID-19 information were less likely to get vaccinated than CNN and MSNBC viewers, the networks audiences did not differ in their overall knowledge about the vaccine. There was also no significant difference in acceptance of vaccine conspiracy beliefs between Fox News and CNN/MSNBC viewers, the study found.

The Fox News spokesperson also noted Fox host Neil Cavuto recently urged viewers to get their shots after he contracted COVID-19, despite being fully vaccinated.

MarketWatch publisher Dow Jones is a division of News Corp NWSA, +0.15%, which shares ownership with Fox News parent Fox Corp FOXA, +1.99%.

The most prevalent myth about COVID-19 among KFF survey respondents was that the government is exaggerating the number of deaths from the pandemic because it has counted deaths from other causes as COVID-19 deaths.

KFF also asked people whether they believed the following falsehoods: Pregnant women should not get the COVID-19 vaccine; deaths due to the COVID-19 vaccine are being intentionally hidden by the government; the COVID-19 vaccines have been shown to cause infertility; ivermectin is a safe and effective treatment for COVID-19; you can get COVID-19 from the vaccine; COVID-19 vaccines contain a microchip; COVID-19 vaccines can change your DNA.

The KFF findings come as an estimated 58.4% of the U.S. population has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some 16% of U.S. adults say they will definitely not get vaccinated against COVID-19, according to a separate survey by KFF.

Parents are split on whether theyll get their children vaccinated, with about one third saying theyll do it as soon as possible, another third saying they dont plan to ever get their children vaccinated, and a third taking a wait and see approach, according to a separate KFF survey. That survey was conducted in October, before the FDA and CDC authorized the Pfizer PFE, +3.57% and BioNTech BNTX, +6.36% vaccine for 5 to 11-year-olds.

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Viewers of these news outlets are most likely to believe COVID-19 falsehoods - MarketWatch

A child reacts while receiving a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine at Smoketown Family Wellness Center in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S., November 8, 2021. REUTERS/Jon Cherry/File Photo

WASHINGTON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Over 900,000 U.S. children aged 5-11 are expected to have received their first COVID-19 vaccine shot by the end of Wednesday, White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients said, as the governmentramped up vaccinations of younger children.

The United States on Wednesday began administering Pfizer/BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine to children ages 5 to 11, the latest group to become eligible for the shots that provide protection against the illness to recipients and those around them.

"While our program is just fully up and running this week, by the end of the day today, we estimate that over 900,000 kids aged five through 11 will have already gotten their first shot," Zients said during a briefing with reporters.

The figure comes from a White House analysis of available data from pharmaceutical partners, some states, and localities, Zients said, adding the CDC has not yet collected the full tally.

COVID-19 is the largest vaccine-preventable killer of children in that age group, with 66 children dying from it over the past year, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said at the same briefing.

The seven-day average of total COVID-19 cases in the U.S. was flat at about 73,300 over the past week, she said, with the hospitalization rate also flat at 5,000 a day. The seven-day average of daily deaths fell 11% to around 1,000 per day.

Reporting by Susan Heavey, Alexandra Alper, and Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Nick Zieminski and David Gregorio

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Over 900000 U.S. kids to get first COVID-19 shot by end of Wed -White House - Reuters

As a federal appeals court debates the constitutionality of the Biden administration'svaccine requirement for businesses with at least 100 employees, Ohio businesses are preparing to enforce it.

"Ifyou are a company with more than 100 employees, you need to preparelike this is going into effect," said Kevin Shimp, general counselfor the Ohio Chamber of Commerce.

The requirementcomes from the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration and states that workers atqualifying companies must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19by Jan. 4 or submit to weekly tests.And all unvaccinated employees must wear masks to work starting Dec. 5.

The penalty if it passes legal scrutiny would be $14,000 per violation.

Here's what you need to know:

Ohio law wouldn't matter:Two bills introduced by Republicans in the Ohio House that would prevent businesses from requiring vaccinations have stalled. But even if they were part of Ohio's code, the Emergency Temporary Standardwould supersede them.

If the OSHA rule gets defeated in court, thenbusinesses would have to follow Ohio law which currently allows employers to require vaccination.

You can seek an exemption:Workers can ask for medical or religious exemptions, but employers can requireverification.

You can be asked about your faith: Employerscan't directly question the sincerity of your religious beliefs, Shimp said,"But they are able to ask questions about your past behavior related to those beliefs."

For example, if an employee objects on the ground that fetal cells were used in the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, the employer can ask him or her to sign a document swearing that they don't use other medications that relied on fetal cell testing like Tylenol, aspirin, Tums or Claritin.

It's worth noting that the COVID-19 vaccines do not contain aborted fetal cells. Fetal cell lines grown fromaborted fetal cells collected decades ago were used in testing during research and development.

When in doubt, use this form: Businesses that plan to investigate the religious claims of their employees can use theEqual Employment Opportunity Commission's ownreligious accommodation request form, Shimp said. It's the federal agency that handles disputes between workers and their employers, so "that's probably best practices."

You might get paid time off: The OSHA rules would require employers to give people up to four hours of paid time off to get vaccinated.

But Shimp said it's possible the appeals court strikes down this particular provision because OSHA doesn't normally mandate paid leave.

Employers could be on the hook for fake vaccine cards: The Ohio Chamber asked theWhite House and the Department of Labor to hold businesses harmless for employee misconduct.

"We felt thatemployers shouldn't be in the position of having to verify whether an employee handed them a fake vaccination card," Shimp said.But it wasn't part of the Emergency Temporary Standard OSHA issued earlier this month. So it's unclear whether OSHA would fine the employer in cases where the worker used a fake card.

Likewise, workers who misrepresent their vaccination status can face criminal charges under the OSHA rules.

Ohio's small businesses aren't participating: The Ohio chapter of the National Federation of Independent Businesses said 99% of its members don't have 100 employees.

"On the more individualized business level, in our last survey of NFIB members in Ohio, over 80% of the respondents said they are not even asking if employees are vaccinated," NFIB Ohio spokesman Andy Patterson said.

The Ohio Chamber is providing support: The advocacy group has a free "Business Academy webinar" on the federal mandate scheduled for Nov. 16. Attendees are not required to be chamber members.

"We are looking at the possibility of creating a testing program with Quest Diagnostics to help companies comply, in case the mandate is not overturned by the courts," spokespersonCourtney Whetstone said.

More companies are mandating vaccination: Nationally speaking, a Gallup poll from Septemberfound that 19% of U.S. said their employer already had a policy. That number was 9% in August and 6% in July.

Anna Staver is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

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Thinking of requesting a COVID-19 vaccine exemption? Here's what you need to know - The Columbus Dispatch

BALTIMORE (WJZ) Maryland reported 844 new COVID-19 cases and 15 new deaths, according to state health department data released Wednesday morning.

The percentage of people testing positive increased by .02% to 3.12%.

Hospitalizations decreased by 3 to 529. Of those hospitalized, 392 adults are in acute care and 133 adults are in intensive care. Two children are in acute care and two children are in intensive care.

Doctors say the new cases are fueled by dangerous strains targeting the unvaccinated. During an August press conference, Gov. Larry Hogan said the Delta variant, a strain that is reportedly two to four times more contagious than the original virus strain, accounts for nearly every new confirmed case in Maryland.

The vaccines are without a doubt our single most effective tool to mitigate the threat of COVID-19 and the surging Delta variant, and Marylands vaccination rate continues to outpace the nation, Hogan said.

More than 4 million Maryland adults are fully vaccinated as of Tuesday, October 26.

Since the pandemic began, there have been 567,929 total confirmed cases and 10,783 deaths.

There are 4,060,552 Marylanders fully vaccinated. The state has administered 8,738,114 doses. Of those, 4,122,672 are first doses with 14,826 administered in the past 24 hours. They have given out 3,746,168 second doses, 6,837 in the last day.

Thanks to the millions of people who have rolled up their sleeves, Maryland continues to be one of the most vaccinated states in America, said Governor Hogan of the eight million milestone mark. We have achieved these numbers with strong public health outreach, innovative lottery and scholarship promotions, and a relentless focus on equity.

The state began to administer the Johnson & Johnson vaccine again in April after the CDC and FDA lifted their pause on the vaccine due to a rare blood clot found in some women.

A total of 314,384 Marylanders have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, 242 in the last day.

On September 24, after the CDC granted final approval for Pfizers booster, Gov. Hogan announced the immediate authorization of the booster shot for Marylanders who have received their second Pfizer shot at least six months ago. Hogan had already approved use for vulnerable populations in early September.

The state has administered 554,890 additional or booster vaccine doses, 22,943 in the last day.

The state reported 87% of all adults in Maryland have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

In August, the state launched a post-vaccination infections dashboard that is updated every Wednesday. There have been 32,500 total cases among fully vaccinated Marylanders as of Nov. 7.

Less than 0.89% of fully vaccinated Marylanders have later tested positive.

Of those cases, 2,348 vaccinated Marylanders were hospitalized, representing 12.61% of all COVID cases hospitalized in the state. 332 fully vaccinated Marylanders have died, representing 13.56% of lab-confirmed COVID deaths in the state.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES:

Heres a breakdown of the numbers:

By County

By Age Range and Gender

By Race and Ethnicity

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COVID-19 In Maryland: 87% Of Residents 18 And Older Have At Least One Dose Of A COVID-19 Vaccine - CBS Baltimore

One in five residents in Dallas has no intention of getting the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a new study published this month in Scientific Reports.

More than half of these people say that nothing will convince them. Even assurance from family members or their doctors was unlikely to be persuasive.

Researchers conducted an extensive survey of more than 6,000 people nationwide in mid-April of this year, along with the same survey in four major U.S. cities: Dallas, New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago.

An estimated 19.7% of Dallas residents were opposed to COVID-19 vaccination, close to the national average of 21.4%. Unwillingness to get vaccinated was significantly lower in New York (10.1%), Los Angeles (11.5%) and Chicago (11.2%).

Vaccine refusal by such a large segment of the population is one of the problems were going to have in ending this pandemic, said Jeffrey Lazarus, a professor at the Barcelona Institute of Global Health at University of Barcelona in Spain and co-author of the study.

As Thanksgiving approaches, I think were going to see a spike in cases, and it will be particularly among the unvaccinated, he said.

While people of all stripes oppose getting vaccinated, those unwilling tend to be lower-income and lean conservative.

The findings are largely consistent with other public polling data, with one exception. The latest study found that race wasnt a consistent predictor of vaccine hesitancy, in contrast with previous findings that Black communities may be less willing to vaccinate.

These findings caution against demographic generalizations regarding vaccine acceptance, the study reported. Stereotyping racial attitudes could even lead to disenfranchisement of communities of color that are increasingly well-motivated to participate in vaccination programs.

The study was interesting because it compared major metropolitan areas with each other and the national average, but there wasnt anything here that I thought was remarkably surprising, said Austin Baldwin, associate professor and chair of SMUs department of psychology. Baldwin was not involved in the study.

Folks who are more politically conservative are more likely to be hesitant, he said, pointing to the recurring polling data published by Kaiser Family Foundation, or KFF, a nonprofit organization in the U.S.

KFF reported in late October that nearly 40% of Republicans in the U.S. still havent gotten a single shot. As a potential result, conservative-leaning states are now seeing a higher share of COVID-19 deaths.

Theres certainly political effects here, said Baldwin. This likely has to do with other messaging and sources of information and trust in different sources of information.

Lazarus, the studys co-author, points to mixed messaging were getting, including in Texas by political leaders as a potential problem. If all the political leaders came out and said they support the vaccine, that would certainly help.

Dr. Jerome Adams, who served as U.S. surgeon general during the Trump administration, spoke at SMU recently and addressed vaccine hesitancy. Many hesitant patients would move forward if their questions were answered by someone with compassion and trust, he told The News. But theyll shut down if approached too aggressively, especially with a political slant.

We need Trump people and Biden people to get vaccinated, he said. We need to engage them all.

In an emailed statement, Matt Rinaldi, chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, said: The Republican Party of Texas believes neither the government nor employers should force individuals to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. After weighing the risks and benefits specific to them, which vary widely by age and health status, the acceptance of any vaccine should always be left to the individual. Some Texans choose not to get the COVID-19 vaccine because of the potential side effects. That choice should be respected. Other Texans believe the benefits outweigh the risks. That choice should also be respected.

The Texas Medical Association has endorsed current COVID-19 vaccines as safe and effective. The organization is running an effort called Vaccines Defend What Matters that aims to address vaccine hesitancy and increase vaccination rates in Texas. According to the associations COVID-19 Vaccine Fact Sheet, out of the billions of vaccines already given, few instances of serious side effects have emerged.

At the same time, the survey indicates that the average U.S. citizen doesnt especially trust his or her government, said Lazarus. Many ignore statements by political or medical institutions, opting to instead trust misinformation they spot online that sows doubt about the vaccines safety and effectiveness.

For example, the study found that conservatives both nationwide and in Dallas are more likely to believe that the vaccines do not protect against COVID-19, a largely false notion, said Lazarus.

No one ever said the vaccine was 100%, he said. Airbags and seatbelts dont stop every injury. This is about harm reduction. The vast majority of cases are prevented, and symptoms are reduced.

Social media also likely exacerbates how political divides lead to different perceptions of the vaccines. There are almost different realities, said Baldwin, and certainly different ecosystems of information that people look at.

Though 63% of vaccine-resistant Dallas residents said that nothing will change their mind, that may not quite be true. The most likely thing to change their mind, though, is if they or one of their loved ones gets severely sick with COVID-19, said Lazarus.

There are also less tragic turns of events that may prove effective.

If I know of people I trust who have been vaccinated, and I see that behavior as more normative, that can change someones opinion, said Baldwin. Humans are very social. Were very responsive to that type of normative information. Someone frigid to the idea of getting vaccinated may warm up if those they trust begin to voice support or start emphasizing the vaccine as a remedy to the current public health crisis.

This is arguably one advantage of vaccine mandates. Not only does it obligate you to get it in one way or another, said Baldwin. It can also reinforce that this is OK. People I work with and trust are getting it.

If everybody masked and vaccinated in the U.S. over the next two weeks, the pandemic would largely be over in the U.S. Were vaccinated down now to age 5. There would be no one getting infected anymore, Lazarus said.

Vaccinating children, however, presents another barrier to widespread vaccination that the study didnt explore: hesitancy among parents on behalf of their children. That becomes a completely different kind of decision, said Baldwin.

Jordan Wilkerson is a science writer with a Ph.D. in chemistry from Harvard University. He was an American Association for the Advancement of Science fellow at The Dallas Morning News.

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Study: One in five Dallas residents is opposed to getting COVID-19 vaccine - The Dallas Morning News

Early on, as this whole thing got politicized the mask, (right) instead of before, the mask word. I thought that should have been a quick and easy mandate. Its a mask. Its not the vaccine its a mask. No harm proven, and we only prove that it can be healthy. Its a small inconvenience for a possible long term freedom, everybody, lets pay the tithe, put one on. So were trying to figure this out as we go. The science is changing as we go. Now youve got vaccine mandates. Well, look here. Were going to, one day, were going to see who was exaggerating because as this thing got politicized, both sides, both sides, you could feel them both start to exaggerate. One side of the left was trying to raise up every number and anyone that died with the common cold, they said, blame it on Covid, raise the numbers. The other side saying no, none of this would have happened. COVID is not getting anybody. Now, were nine weeks into college football in America. We just had Wimbledon. We just had the English Premier Cup over in England. Well, I was sitting there going, these are super spreader events. I cant believe were doing it. Doomsday is coming. So far? (Right) 12 weeks later. Those dont seem to be super spreader events. So now the question really does not even seem as much are you vaccinated? Because I think were living in a pandemic world for the rest of time now. Ill make it more complicated. Kids. Senator Ted Cruz, your own state was giving Big Bird a hard time on this issue. I know, I know, I know, I know. So, so you see that. And you think what? Oh, look, Andrew. Here I am. I see that to his look. He just said. We can vaccinate kids. Are we going to? Do we need to trust? I want to trust in the science, Do I think that theres any kind of scam or conspiracy theory? Hell, no, I dont. No, I dont think theres any kind of we all got to get off that narrative. Theres not a conspiracy theory on the vaccines. These are scientists trying to do the right thing and then people say, yeah, but the big pharma is making the money they can. Fine, thats, thats as well, if thats true. OK? Its scary. Right now, Im not vaccinating mine, Ill tell you that. (Youre not?) Im not vaccinating mine, I want to get, Ive been vaccinated, my wife has been vaccinated. We have a high risk person in our household, my mother, whos 90, and shes immune compromised. So why? Why dont you want your kids to be vaccinated? We run, we go slow on vaccinations anyway, even before COVID. Now, mind you, Ive chosen, weve quarantined harder than any of our friends have and still are two years later. I dont want to. Maybe Im trying to keep it from my mom. OK, so weve been doing just a heavy amount of testing, when and everywhere we can. We even take the ones that take the ones with us out of the box where we can do them in our house, everywhere we can with anybody we come in contact with. Try to do things outdoors. Im in a position, though, where I can do that, and I understand that not everyone can do that. (Right.) I dont I cant I couldnt mandate having to vaccinate the younger kids, I still want to find out, I still want to find out more information, but I couldnt mandate it for kids just yet. No.

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Matthew McConaughey on Covid-19, Masks and Vaccines for Children - The New York Times

An experimental COVID-19 treatment pill called molnupiravir being developed by Merck & Co Inc and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics LP, is seen in this undated handout photo released by Merck & Co Inc and obtained by Reuters May 17, 2021. Merck & Co Inc/Handout via REUTERS

Nov 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. government will buy another $1 billion worth of the COVID-19 pill made by Merck & Co Inc (MRK.N) and partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, the companies said on Tuesday.

The government in June agreed to buy 1.7 million courses of molnupiravir for $1.2 billion and is now exercising options to buy 1.4 million more.

That brings the total secured courses to 3.1 million and worth $2.2 billion. Merck said the government has the right to buy 2 million more courses as part of the contract. read more

The drug has been closely watched since data last month showed that when given early in the illness it could halve the chances of dying or being hospitalized for those most at risk of developing severe COVID-19. read more

"Molnupiravir, if authorized, will be among the vaccines and medicines available to fight COVID-19 as part of our collective efforts to bring this pandemic to an end," said Frank Clyburn, president of Merck's human health business.

President Joe Biden said on Friday that the United States had also secured millions of doses of Pfizer Inc's (PFE.N) rival antiviral drug, which was shown to cut by 89% the chance of hospitalization or death for adults at risk of severe disease.

The Pfizer negotiations were for a deal similar to the one with Merck - 1.7 million courses of the treatment upfront with an additional option for 3.3 million, a senior U.S. health official said on Tuesday, confirming a New York Times report.

Pfizer Chief Executive Officer Alfred Bourla said on Friday that the company plans to sell its treatment for around the same price for high-income countries as Merck, at roughly $700 for a course of therapy. read more

Merck expects to produce 10 million courses of the treatment by the end of this year, with at least 20 million set to be manufactured in 2022.

Reporting by Manas Mishra and Leroy Leo in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Jeff Mason in Washington; Editing by Anil D'Silva, Arun Koyyur and Sriraj Kalluvila

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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U.S. government to buy $1 billion more worth of Merck's COVID-19 pill - Reuters

Evaluation of the BNT162b2 Covid-19 Vaccine in Children 5 to 11 Years of Age | NEJM  nejm.org

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Evaluation of the BNT162b2 Covid-19 Vaccine in Children 5 to 11 Years of Age | NEJM - nejm.org

COVID-19 hospitalizations have risen significantly in the Inland Empire and Central Valley, bringing new concerns about whether the shift represents a precursor to a wider spike in COVID-19 in California as the winter holidays approach.

Across the state, both cases and hospitalizations hit a plateau after months of decline. Hospitalizations have remained fairly flat in some areas with relatively high vaccination rates, including the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles County.

But in some areas with lower vaccination rates, such as Riverside, San Bernardino and Fresno counties, conditions are deteriorating, with hospitalizations up by more than 20% in recent weeks. And even some places with relatively high vaccination rates are seeing COVID-19 hospitalizations tick upward; in Orange County, COVID-19 hospitalizations are up by 16% since Halloween.

Health officials have been warning about a potential new rise in COVID-19 in California as seniors who got their shots last winter and havent received a booster shot may start to see their immunity wane, leaving them exposed to greater risk for infection and hospitalization, and as people gather indoors more as the weather cools and the holidays approach.

Demand for booster shots has fallen below expectation in California. And each infected Californian is increasingly spreading the coronavirus to more people; as of Saturday, computer models estimated that every infected Californian was spreading the virus on average to 0.96 other people; if that number rises above 1, that will set the stage for further growth of the pandemic.

COVID cases are beginning to rise. Winter months [mean] people indoors and more possibilities for spread, Gov. Gavin Newsom tweeted Tuesday morning.

Keep your immunity up, he added. Get your booster.

Officials are hopeful that strict vaccination requirements in some of Californias most populated areas will help slow the spread of cases in the winter. In Los Angeles, a new city rule generally requiring patrons to show proof of full vaccination to enter venues like indoor restaurants, gyms, movie theaters, and hair and nail salons went into effect Monday, but wont be enforced until after Thanksgiving.

Only weeks ago, officials in the San Joaquin Valley were optimistic that trends were headed in the right direction. But now, officials say hospitals in Fresno County, the most populous county in the region, really have never left the crisis, said Dan Lynch, director of the Central California Emergency Medical Services Agency.

The bigger hospitals are probably between 110% to 130% of normal capacity. And they are all holding ICU patients, again, back in their emergency departments, Lynch said. Were seeing the hospital emergency departments overwhelmed.

Most hospitals have been forced to postpone scheduled surgeries, and some patients needing specialty care may need to be referred to other parts of California, officials said.

Many of the COVID-19 patients needing hospitalization are unvaccinated people in their 30s, 40s and 50s, said Fresno County interim health officer Dr. Rais Vohra. Fresno County on Wednesday was forced to reimplement a measure to no longer automatically transport all 911 patients to emergency rooms, a policy it had ended on Oct. 22 because officials thought the regions surge of the Delta variant was fading.

If you asked me two weeks ago what I thought would happen, I really thought that we were going to have a nice, relaxing November, Vohra said. Now, its been very humbling just because this pandemic keeps throwing us curveballs and this November plateau is really keeping us very busy.

Of Californias five regions as defined by the state Department of Public Health, the San Joaquin Valley has the worst COVID-19 hospitalization rate, with 25 COVID-19 hospitalizations for every 100,000 residents; followed by rural Northern California, which has a rate of 16 and the Greater Sacramento area, with a rate of 14.

The statewide rate is 10, and the two most populous regions have rates below that: Southern Californias rate is 8, while the Bay Areas is 4. Some experts believe its a sign of concern when COVID-19 hospitalization rates are 5 or greater for every 100,000 residents.

Within Southern Californias most populated areas, the Inland Empire has the worst COVID-19 hospitalization rates, with San Bernardino and Riverside counties reporting respective rates of 14 and 11. San Diego County is reporting 8; Orange County, 7; L.A. County, 6 and Ventura County, 4.

Since mid-October, COVID-19 hospitalizations have risen by more than 27% in both San Bernardino and Fresno counties; while in Riverside County, numbers are up by 21% over the last two weeks.

While health officials have largely been optimistic that the states relatively high level of vaccine coverage will keep conditions from deteriorating to the devastating extent seen last fall and winter, the turning of the calendar carries a host of additional risks.

Colder weather, even in normally balmy parts of California, will increasingly push people to gather indoors where the risk of coronavirus transmission is higher. Theres also an apparent seasonality to the coronavirus itself, which makes it easier to spread when temperatures fall.

A packed slate of holidays will also entice people to travel and gather, possibly to an extent not seen since the pandemic began.

Add it all up, and you have a recipe for another potential coronavirus resurgence.

Its already happening in other parts of the nation.

Even in highly vaccinated places like New Hampshire and Vermont, you can see how these northernmost tiers of counties are starting to develop outbreaks and more transmission, as is Alaska, Dr. George Rutherford, a UC San Francisco epidemiologist and infectious diseases expert, said recently at a campus forum.

The biggest concentration of coronavirus cases has expanded from Montana, Idaho, North Dakota and Wyoming, and is spreading farther south, through Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona.

States with both low vaccination rates, like Wyoming, where only 44.4% of residents are fully vaccinated, are seeing among the nations highest case rates, as are several states with vaccination rates similar to Californias 61.8%, such as Colorado (62.1%), New Mexico (62.5%) and Minnesota (61.6%), Rutherford said.

Thats why Colorado, New Mexico and Minnesota could be warning signs of Californias future, Rutherford said. Those three states have weekly coronavirus case rates that are triple what California is reporting now; Wyomings is more than 3 times worse than Californias.

Rutherford said, relatively speaking, L.A., Orange and Ventura counties are doing well, but warned that San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino counties have a fairly high level of cases.

These factors all suggest that it is urgent that unvaccinated people get their shots, including children age 5 to 11 who just became eligible last week, Rutherford said. People who have recovered from COVID-19 still need to get immunized, too; a study published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said COVID-19 survivors who remained unvaccinated were five times more likely to get a new coronavirus infection compared with fully vaccinated people who had never been infected.

And people who are immunocompromised or are seniors need to get additional vaccinations to improve their immunity, Rutherford said. The CDC says that less than 33% of fully vaccinated California seniors age 65 and over have received a booster dose, which is a big problem that needs to be addressed, Rutherford said.

That means theres a race to get more seniors boosted before their immunity wanes too much, Rutherford said. A study published in the journal Science recently showed that all three COVID-19 vaccines available to Americans have lost some of their protective power, with vaccine efficacy among a large group of veterans dropping between 35% and 85%.

Some experts have already expressed hope that the worst of the pandemic is over and another surge is unlikely. Other experts, including Rutherford, are not so sure. While Rutherford said he expected that California should be out of this by spring, November will probably be decisive in giving us a clue in how the rest of the fall and winter will unfold.

If we get out on the other side of it and have high levels of people vaccinated, a lot of vaccine coverage, then I think we might be able to really kind of throw the masks away, return to normal, Rutherford said. Its not inconceivable that the Bay Area and urban Southern California could really walk away with high levels of vaccination especially if we can get it into these younger kids that will really create something that looks like herd immunity.

Rutherford added: If not, then were gonna have to string this out longer.

Part of the pandemics future in California, too, will depend on getting more people around the world vaccinated, reducing the risk of an even more problematic variant emerging, Rutherford said.

L.A. Countys months-old mandate to wear masks in indoor public places will likely be in place through the end of the calendar year. Special state rules for so-called mega-events, which were initially set to expire this month, have instead been extended indefinitely.

Were worried about the winter, Ill just be honest, L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said during a recent briefing. We dont like what were seeing in Europe. We know theres seasonality to this virus, we cant escape that reality. We know that people go indoors more, even here in L.A. County, when the weather gets colder. And we know the holidays are coming.

According to a recent survey commissioned by the American Hotel and Lodging Assn., 29% of Americans said they were likely to travel for Thanksgiving up from 21% last year. The share of people who said they were likely to do so for Christmas, 33%, was also up from last years 24%.

Of those surveyed, 58% said they were planning to vacation somewhere within driving distance on account of the pandemic.

Unlike last year, health officials arent directly recommending residents avoid traveling for the holidays. Instead, theyre reiterating the importance of taking precautions.

This is where people, vaccinated or not, should really continue to practice the preventive measures weve been talking about from the beginning of this pandemic, which includes washing your hands frequently, wearing a mask, trying to keep your distance, being in well-ventilated areas, said Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong, a deputy health officer for Orange County.

Times staff writer Melissa Healy contributed to this report.

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COVID-19 hospitalizations rising in parts of California - Los Angeles Times

Nov. 10, 2021Updated: Nov. 10, 2021 11:32a.m.

Children age 5-11 are now eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

The hot topic in text message threads, on social media and among parents on the sidelines at kids' sporting events is the COVID-19 vaccine now being available for elementary-age children.

Will your child get the shots?

Reach Kristi Gustafson on

Kristi Gustafson Barlette is a features writer who writes about what is trending in your life and in hers. You can reach her at kbarlette@timesunion.com.

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Poll: Parents, will you have your young children vaccinated against COVID-19? - Albany Times Union