Category: Covid-19

Members of the Ugandan boxing team tested positive for Covid-19 after landing in Tokyo back in June. In early July, a Serbian rower did too. The weekend before the Games began, the first people in the Tokyo Olympic Village tested positive for Covid-19; first, two South African soccer players, then a Czech volleyball player.

American tennis player Coco Gauff had to drop out of her first Olympics because of a positive test, and an alternate gymnast for Team USA though fully vaccinated tested positive for Covid-19, and is now spending the Games in her hotel room, under quarantine. A US mens beach volleyball player, testing positive, will likely be disqualified from a weekend match.

Since July 1, more than 75 people associated with the Olympics have gotten back positive Covid-19 results.

Then again, what do you expect when you host a mass sporting spectacle during a pandemic?

The International Olympic Committee postponed the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games last year as the coronavirus spread around the globe, shutting down international travel and leaving countries on strict lockdowns.

If the delay was intended to push the Olympics into a post-pandemic world, the opposite happened. The pandemic evolved, and is now in one of its most dangerous phases, fueled by variants specifically delta and global inequity around vaccinations.

But the Olympics are still trying to be, well, the Olympics. Yes, there is a pandemic playbook, and safety protocols, like frequent testing. Yes, the stadiums will be largely empty of fans. Yes, there are vaccines, but the International Olympic Committee did not mandate them, though it worked to help teams access shots, saying about 80 to 85 percent of those in the Olympic Village would be vaccinated.

The Olympics were always going to be extraordinarily difficult to pull off in a pandemic, but some of the mess was foreseeable, and maybe even avoidable though it might have meant pulling off a different sort of Olympics than the one were used to.

Its fingers crossed, hopeful, magical thinking without really thinking about the risks, and what could they have done to lower those risks for everyone involved, Lisa Brosseau, a public health expert and research consultant with the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) at the University of Minnesota, who has written, along with her colleagues, on how the Olympics could have mitigated some of these Covid-19 risks.

So much of the debate focused on whether to cancel the Olympics altogether, something that was supposedly still a possibility in recent days. The course of the pandemic is beyond the control of the Olympic officials, of course, but the question is whether the planning or protocols around the Games should have changed, too. And now, with the Games already on, it is nearly impossible to change course.

Covid-19 disruptions are likely to be a defining feature of this 2020 Olympiad. It will not be a moment, as some hoped, of a world showing solidarity amid the toll and tragedy of the pandemic. Instead, it will be a showcase for just how far the world still has to go to defeat Covid-19 and the very real risks of not facing up to that reality.

The pandemic is worse now than when the 2020 Games were first postponed. More than 191 million Covid-19 cases have been detected as of July 2021, and more than 4 million people have died, according to the World Health Organization. Japan, the Olympic host, is seeing another surge of Covid-19 cases, low compared to US levels but almost double the caseload around this time in 2020. Tokyo recorded more than 1,900 new cases on July 22 a 155 percent increase from the previous weeks average.

The burden of the pandemic is now largely on unvaccinated people, split into two groups. The first is people who are reluctant to or refuse to get a shot, though its generally easily available to them, as in the United States. Then theres the much larger group: the rest of the world, the majority of whom live in places were vaccines arent readily available. About 26 percent of the worlds population has received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, but just a little more than 1 percent of them are in low-income countries.

Still, even countries that sought to vaccinate their way out of the pandemic Israel and the United States, for example are seeing a troublesome uptick in cases. The delta variant is driving up cases everywhere; daily global coronavirus infections are up more than 40 percent compared to a month ago, according to the New York Times.

Though the vaccines largely protect against severe illness and death, the high numbers of still-unvaccinated people make it an imperfect firewall one that could grow weaker if the virus continues to spread and continues to change.

Olympic officials, back in 2020, couldnt have predicted these exact circumstances. Yet experts said that it became clear months ago that the existing protocols were going to be insufficient to fully prevent the spread of Covid-19 at the Olympics. And while the Olympic organizers made changes to their pandemic playbook on the margins, the commitment to a safe and secure Olympics wasnt as agile or flexible as it might have been.

This isnt a pandemic of 2020, and so the Olympics cant be, either, said Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease expert at the University of California San Francisco. The old rules dont count anymore.

For one, theres a lot of hygiene theater, as Chin-Hong called it. These are things like temperature checks for athletes returning to the Olympic Village, though these have serious limitations, and things like restricted seating and plexiglass barriers in the dining room, which arent going to do much and may even give people a false sense of security.

Chin-Hong even suggested handing out N95 masks, or something more protective, for athletes as they interact with people, rather than just surgical or cloth masks. Experts have also raised concerns about the ventilation systems in the hotels, venues, and the Olympic Village. Updating those could do a lot more to protect athletes than, say, spacing those cardboard beds.

And then theres the so-called Olympic bubble. Only athletes are permitted to stay in the Olympic Village, and theyre supposed to follow Covid-19 protocols, like wearing masks and social distancing. Theyre not supposed to leave for a reason other than attending a competition, and they can face penalties if they break those rules.

But athletes arent required to stay in the Olympic Village; they could stay at hotels, for example. Also staying at hotels are media and coaches and support staff. All those people will be traveling to and interacting with each other and with volunteers and staff at events. In other words, the bubble very quickly bursts.

Daily saliva tests will help catch infections, but once someone has a positive Covid-19 test, its already too late the call is coming from inside the house, so to speak.

The issue with surveillance systems like that is that you are detecting exposure that already happened. And from there, you try to [pick] out whoever got exposed, potentially, and isolate those folks, said Tomoko Udo, assistant professor in the department of health policy, management, and behavior at the School of Public Health at University at Albany. But once its in, and it starts to spread really fast, you cant really do much. Its catch-up.

Tracking down close contacts could also get complicated. Tokyo organizers are having Olympic participants download a contract tracing app for mobile devices, except athletes probably dont have their cellphones on them when they compete. And how those contacts are treated varies on a case-by-case basis, which is exactly the kind of thing that always goes well when youre trying to maintain fair standards of competition.

With the Olympics starting now, officials cant entirely change course. Olympic officials could try to tighten the bubble a little bit, they could hand out more effective masks, but these are improvements on the edges. As Chin-Hong said: You cant take the elephant out of the room.

The cracks in some of the Olympic Covid-19 protocols seem easy to spot now. The Games organizers, like everyone else, were betting on vaccines. That, as Brosseau said, is more Olympic magical thinking.

It has always its been about were going to get everybody vaccinated, its going to be fine, Brosseau said. And we dont need to really worry about these other things all these other things are more for show really, the Plexiglas barriers and people bringing their face masks.

Its not just the Olympics. Entire countries engaged in this magical thinking, hoping to rely on herd immunity brought about by vaccines. But that strategy wasnt ever really practical for the Olympics, either.

Most obviously, the IOC did not mandate vaccination to participate in the Olympics. The IOC made a deal with Pfizer/BioNTech to help countries get vaccines, and many countries prioritized the vaccination of athletes.

But experts said that even though the overall figure of 85 percent provided by the IOC seems quite high, its more complicated on closer inspection. Different countries might have different vaccines, which have different levels of effectiveness, and also have different guidelines on who can get the vaccine (say, people under 16, who can compete in the Olympics). The level of vaccination may vary for specific delegations or teams, and they may be coming from a place where, even if theyre vaccinated, Covid-19 cases are high. Some athletes were always going to refuse vaccination if it wasnt required.

And so far that seems to be the case. According to the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee medical chief, about 100 out of Americas 613 athletes are unvaccinated and there is no question that shots were available to them. On top of that, Japans rate of vaccination is only about 23 percent, and most of those shots have gone to elderly people and health care workers. Japan planned to vaccinate its Olympic volunteers, but what of taxi drivers or hotel workers or others whom Olympic participants may come in contact with? Among those who have tested positive in recent days (though their vaccination status is unclear) were a volunteer, six contractors, and one Games staffer, according to Reuters.

Vaccines seemed like a safety net in pulling off the Olympics, but its clear that safety net was not enough if the goal was to stop any spread of the virus. In a way, the Olympics are a reflection of a broader dilemma at this stage of the Covid-19 pandemic. Vaccinations are astonishingly effective at preventing severe illness and death, and they are helping places get back to a version of normal. People are also tired and fatigued of additional restrictions, even as the virus is roaring back, or surging in places it never left. You see this pressure and conflict and tension arise, Udo said.

That same tension exists in the Olympics. Tokyo faces restrictions on business and restaurants, but athletes are coming from all around the world to the city. Covid-19 is sidelining athletes, and the leaderboards and gold medal tallies will have a permanent caveat.

Then again, its the Olympics, were doing it! Well watch world records being broken, and witness these incredible feats of human speed and agility, and it will look and feel to many of us watching from afar like the Olympics weve always known.

But it maybe shouldnt have been the Olympics weve always known.

The protocols and vaccinations are important, and they will help create a barrier against Covid-19. But maybe the most effective way to minimize the risks at the Olympics might have turned the spectacle into something entirely different. Brosseau and her colleagues, for example, suggested potentially spacing out the Olympics over many weeks, with different sports competing at different times, to eliminate the number of people in Tokyo all at once.

Maybe different athletes or sports should have followed different protocols whether they play indoors or outdoors, whether people play on teams or compete solo rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.

Its not that perfect everyone-is-together-enjoying-this-amazing-event, Brosseau said. But its a pandemic, for goodness sake. Its still the Olympics. But no they really wanted to have the Olympics be as much as possible like it is.

And maybe Olympic fans do, too. Except, a year and change into the pandemic, the one constant of the pandemic has been that no amount of magical thinking can will it away.

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We have vaccines. Did the Covid-19 Olympics have to be a mess? - Vox.com

The bodys first encounter with SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind COVID-19, happens in the nose and throat, or nasopharynx. A new study in the journal Cell suggests that the first responses in this battleground help determine who will develop severe disease and who will get through with mild or no illness.

Building on work published last year identifying cells susceptible to the virus, a team of collaborators at Boston Childrens Hospital, MIT, and the University of Mississippi Medical Center comprehensively mapped SARS-CoV-2 infection in the nasopharynx. They obtained samples from the nasal swabs of 35 adults with COVID-19 from April to September 2020, ranging from mildly symptomatic to critically ill. They also got swabs from 17 control subjects and six patients who were intubated but did not have COVID-19.

Why some people get more sick than others has been one of the most puzzling aspects of this virus from the beginning, says Jos Ordovs-Montas, PhD, of Boston Childrens, co-senior investigator on the study with Bruce Horwitz, MD, PhD of Boston Childrens, Alex Shalek, PhD, of MIT and Sarah Glover, DO, of the University of Mississippi. Many studies looking for risk predictors have looked for signatures in the blood, but blood may not really be the right place to look.

To get a detailed picture of what happens in the nasopharynx, the researchers sequenced the RNA in each cell, one cell at a time. (For a sense of all the work this entailed, each patient swab yielded an average of 562 cells.) The RNA data enabled the team to pinpoint which cells were present, which contained RNA originating from the virus an indication of infection and which genes the cells were turning on and off in response.

It soon became clear that the epithelial cells lining the nose and throat undergo major changes in the presence of SARS-CoV-2. The cells diversified in type overall. There was an increase in mucus-producing secretory and goblet cells. At the same time, there was a striking loss of mature ciliated cells, which sweep the airways, together with an increase in immature ciliated cells (which were perhaps trying to compensate).

The team found SARS-CoV-2 RNA in a diverse range of cell types, including immature ciliated cells and specific subtypes of secretory cells, goblet cells, and squamous cells. The infected cells, as compared with uninfected bystander cells, had more genes turned on that are involved in a productive response to infection.

The key finding came when the team compared nasopharyngeal swabs from people with different severity of COVID-19 illness:

Everyone with severe COVID-19 had a blunted interferon response early on in their epithelial cells, and were never able to ramp up a defense, says Ordovs-Montas. Having the right amount of interferon at the right time could be at the crux of dealing with SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses.

As a next step, the researchers plan to investigate what is causing the muted interferon response in the nasopharynx, which evidence suggests may also occur with the new SARS-CoV-2 variants. They will also explore the possibility of augmenting the interferon response in people with early COVID-19 infections, perhaps with a nasal spray or drops.

Having the right amount of interferon at the right time could be at the crux of dealing with SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses.

Its likely that, regardless of the reason, people with a muted interferon response will be susceptible to future infections beyond COVID-19, Ordovs-Montas says. The question is, how do you make these cells more responsive?

Carly Ziegler, Vincent Miao, Andrew Navia, and Joshua Bromley of MIT and Harvard; Anna Owings of the University of Mississippi; and Ying Tang of Boston Childrens Hospital were co-first authors on the paper. Funders include the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative DAF, the National Institutes of Health, the New York Stem Cell Foundation, the Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation, the AGA Research Foundation, the Food Allergy Science Initiative, The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, the Crohns and Colitis Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard.

Explore COVID-19 research at Boston Childrens Hospital

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Early COVID-19 responses in the nose and throat predict disease severity - Boston Children's Answers - Boston Children's Discoveries

CDC: Delta variant accounts for 83% of US cases

Health officials say the delta variant of the coronavirus continues to surge and accounts for an estimated 83% of U.S. COVID-19 cases. (July 20)

AP

The delta variant, a more contagious and deadly strain of the COVID-19 virus, is spreading quickly throughout Indiana and is now the most dominant strain.

Heres what you need to know:

In general viruses mutate as they spread. Some of these mutations fizzle out and others become more prevalent for various reasons, according to the Indiana Department of Health.

The United States and Indiana have seen a number of variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 in the past 16 months. At first, the most common variant was the alpha variant, first identified in the United Kingdom, known as the B.1.1.7 variant.

More recently the delta variant, first identified in India and known as the B.1.617.2 variant, has become more dominant.

COVID-19 and travel:The delta variant is spreading. Should travelers be concerned?

Some are known as variants of interest, which means the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientists are monitoring them. Others are variants of concern, which means they may be more transmissible, cause more severe disease, or be less vulnerable to vaccines and therapeutics. Both the alpha and delta variants are considered to be variants of concern.

A variant could also be labeled a variant of high consequence, meaning it has increased capacity to cause severe disease and or is more impervious to drugs or vaccines. At this point the CDC has not deemed any COVID-19 strains a variant of high consequence.

The delta variant is thought to be far more transmissible than the original strain of coronavirus. The variant is about 60% more transmissible than the alpha variant, which was already more readily transmitted from person to person than the original variant, according to the American Medical Association.

Some studies have suggested that this variant may also cause more severe disease than other strains.

About 70% of the positive COVID-19 samples tested this month have been the delta variant, according to the states COVID-19 dashboard. This represents an increase of nearly 40% from the previous month.

Only about 15% of samples tested have been the alpha variant, a decrease of nearly 40% from the percentage one month ago.

State health officials declined in an email to provide county-level specifics about the delta variant. The variant has been found in samples sequenced from almost every county, state health officials said.

Because only a small percentage of samples are sent for sequencing, a breakdown by county level does not accurately reflect the prevalence of a variant in a given county, said spokeswoman Jeni OMalley in an email. For public health purposes, it is more useful to understand what percentage of samples is testing positive for a variant and that the variant is present.

Nationwide, the delta variant is responsible for nearly 62% of all COVID cases, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

COVID-19 in general can cause a variety of symptoms, ranging from respiratory to gastrointestinal distress.

A British app that encourages people who have COVID to report their symptoms online has seen a shift in the most common symptoms among those infected who are unvaccinated.

The ZOE COVID Symptom study now lists headache, sore throat, runny nose, and fever with persistent cough coming in fifth as the top symptoms now that the delta variant has become the dominant strain circulating. Loss of smell was ranked number nine and shortness of breath, once a very common symptom, number 30.

Studies suggest that three vaccines currently in the United States offer some protection against the delta variant, according to the CDC, but it is not yet known just how effective they are.

In addition, some of the studies have offered conflicting views. A study performed in Scotland suggested that the Pfizer vaccines effectiveness might decrease slightly when faced with the delta variant and be about 79% effective.

Another study performed in Israel found the Pfizer vaccine was about 64% effective when it came to preventing infection against the delta variant but 93% effective in preventing serious illness and hospitalization.

Earlier this week, a study appeared online, suggesting that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine may not be as effective against the delta variant as the other two. The author said that his study, which has not yet been peer reviewed, open the door for booster shots for those who received the J&J shot.

This is the population that has public health officials most worried. Because the delta variant is far more easily transmitted than other variants, those who are exposed and have no protection are more likely to contract the variant.

The majority of people currently hospitalized for COVID-19 in Indiana and the country as a whole are those who are unvaccinated.

There have been 152 people fully vaccinated people in Indiana hospitalized for whats known as breakthrough infections, about 0.005% of all fully vaccinated people, according to the states dashboard.

Recently the World Health Organization added the lambda variant, first identified in Peru, as a variant of interest. This variant is thought to be contributing to increased COVID spread in Latin America and has now been found in at least 29 countries, according to the World Health Organization.

In the United States, the lambda variant has been implicated in fewer than 700 cases.

It's unclear whether or how much that strain is infecting people in Indiana. Because the lambda variant is not yet a variant of concern in the United States, Indiana does not include a listing for it on the state dashboard.

Contact IndyStar reporter Shari Rudavsky atshari.rudavsky@indystar.com. Follow her on Facebook and on Twitter: @srudavsky.

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Delta variant in Indiana: What you need to know about COVID-19 variant - IndyStar

Pottstown-area school and health officials are working to inform parents what they should do to help make the return to in-person learning as safe as possible.

POTTSTOWN As COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and misinformation complicate planning for a return to in-person learning next month, an online town hall Thursday aimed to clear the air and let parents know what they need to know.

Hosted by former Pottstown schools superintendent Jeff Sparagana, who is also a board member of the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation, the informational session featured three experts to answer questions, outline health impacts and protocols in place for schools, child care and early learning centers.

The panelists were:

As most parents with children in school know, numerous vaccines, including chickenpox, meningitis, measles, mumps, rubella and polio are all required for children to register for school.

However, a COVID-19 vaccine is not required, although it is strongly recommended for children 12 and older. Only the Pfizer vaccine has been approved for children 12 to 18 and a parent or guardian must be present for it to be administered to that age group, said Spengler.

Sarah Spengler

A vaccine for children under 12 is not available yet but is being researched. It should be available once the study of kids ages 6 to 12 is completed, likely in early to mid-winter months, Spengler said.

Responding to a question about vaccine side-effects and long-term effects, Spengler said "the vast majority of vaccine side effects occur in the first 24 to 48 hours. This gives experts reassurance, if we were going to see side effects or complications, we would have seen it by now."

Spengler added, "a lot of experts are saying you have two choices. You get the vaccine or get the disease in the next couple of years." It's safer to get the vaccine, she said, given that the long-term impacts of having COVID-19 are not being documented.

Information on vaccines posted at the end of Thursday's Town Hall meeting.

Vaccines can be administered during a regular well-visit with your health care provider, at Community Health and Dental in the Coventry Mall, and, for those in seventh grade and older, at the CVS in Collegeville, Spengler said.

"This is most definitely the best time for parents to schedule an appointment for children to get the vaccine if they are 12 or older," because a second dose is required three weeks later, said Sparagana. "Then they'll be ready for school."

"The more things we do to mitigate the virus in the community, the better off the schools will be," Spengler said.

"How we choose to mitigate this virus has an impact in our schools," Spengler said. "So how we respond as adults will determine" if schools stay open.

That includes adults getting vaccinated, particularly now that the much more contagious "delta variant" of the virus is on the rise, she said.

"The delta variant in COVID-19 is in Montgomery County. It's here," said Spengler.

She could not yet say if any students have had it, "but we do know that schools mimic our community. If it's here, it's likely circulating among the kids as well."

It is too soon to say, Perry-Malloy said, if the rise of the delta variant will result in yet another shut-down of schools.

"As of now, everything is changing on a daily basis," she said.

Kathleen Seeley

"We need to do all that we can to make sure everyone's ready, and if children older than 12, that they get vaccinated," Sparagana said.

In daycare and early education centers, where all children are too young to be vaccinated, the focus has been on re-thinking how children are grouped together at meals, wearing masks and lots, and lots of hand-washing, said Seeley.

Experts are strongly urging that children 2 to 6 years old wear masks while in child care or at an early learning center. "Data from the CDC supports the use of masks," she said.

Hundreds of people lined up outside Pottstown Middle School in March to get COVID-19 vaccine shots.

"It's amazing to see how mask-wearing and all the things we've talked about has reduced illness at early childhood centers," Seeley said.

That said, Seeley also noted that most early childhood centers are trying to reduce mask-wearing requirements by taking other measures to ensure safety.

"We're really looking for ways for children not to be masked," she said, noting they don't wear masks outside. "We've found lots of ways to keep children at a safe distance so they do not have to wear masks."

As for older children, Sparagana said that the CDC has indicated that students who have been vaccinated do not need to wear a mask in school unless they are on a school bus.

However, Perry-Malloy added that the schools will follow the guidance issued by the Montgomery County Health Department regarding masks, so it may change if cases continue to rise.

Kimberly Perry-Malloy

And while teachers in the Pottstown School District are not required to be vaccinated, most of them already are, Perry-Malloy said.

Also, once school starts, parents can sign up to have "assurance testing" conducted once a week on their child, as a way to detect any spread of the virus.

If a child or teacher in a particular classroom is found to have COVID-19, that person must quarantine, but the entire classroom will not be quarantined, she said.

Only those who have been in close contact with the infected person will be required to quarantine. An email will be sent home to parents with children in that classroom, but not to the whole school, said Perry-Malloy.

Spengler said children who contract the disease, "usually get a mild form of the illness, but not the case for every child. Some get MISC complications, which is a multi-inflammatory condition.

Jeff Sparagana is the former superintendent in the Pottstown School District.

Some children, although extremely rare, get "long-haul" impacts, like memory loss, from COVID-19, she said.

And it's important to remember, Sparagana said, that prevention is about more than the individual, who may only have mild affects, but about preventing the spread, especially to those more vulnerable.

"We're all in this together," Sparagana said.

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COVID-19 town hall preps parents for return to school - The Mercury

(WASHINGTON, DC) Today, with end of the Districts public health emergency approaching on Sunday, July 25, Mayor Muriel Bowser and DC Health, led by Dr. LaQuandra Nesbitt, released the District of Columbia COVID-19 Pandemic Health and Healthcare Pandemic Recovery Report, a framework for the recovery and development of the Districts health ecosystem.

Since the earliest days of this pandemic, our community has worked together to protect each other and crush the virus. Now, we have the opportunity to build a new and better normal and attack longstanding disparities in health outcomes, said Mayor Bowser. As we recover strong, lets keep working together to build a healthier, more equitable DC.

With a focus on equity, the report provides an assessment of the Districts current and emerging health needs while offering solutions for improving DCs health system in five domains: workforce, healthcare facilities, health information technology, health planning, and community health services.

The challenges, experiences and disparate outcomes of the pandemic in the District, has, if nothing else, underscored the necessity to apply an equity informed, structural analysis to our work going forward, said Dr. LaQuandra S. Nesbitt, Director, DC Health. DC Health, as the citys chief health strategist, is utilizing this framework in an effort to not return to the pre-pandemic normal, but to apply lessons that we are continuing to learn and increase public health capacity to meet our vision of DC being the healthiest city in America.

District residents and families, like many across the nation, have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 public health emergency and continue to face long-lasting effects. The report addresses potential population health concerns as a result of the pandemic, including delayed and preventative and chronic disease care; long-term effects of COVID-19 infection; economic impact and job loss; mental health stress, social isolation, trauma, and grief; and loss of academic, social, and emotional growth in children.

Many policies, procedures, and operations of the healthcare system were altered and continue to be altered to address the rapid surge and magnitude of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, there was a necessary shift to the use of virtual environments for health systems planning and how people access care through telehealth, assisted telehealth, or home-based models. The plan emphasizes that the healthcare ecosystem should continue to embrace these changes to deliver care to District residents when, where, and how they want to receive it. Other recommendations include addressing health literacy among District residents in a more substantial way; engaging in strategic partnerships that accelerate public health priorities; and integrating disparate health data systems to keep a pulse on various public health indicators in the District.

Read the full report at dchealth.dc.gov/page/covid-19-pandemic-health-and-heathcare-recovery-report

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Mayor Bowser and DC Health Release the District of Columbia COVID-19 Pandemic Health and Healthcare Recovery Report | mayormb - Executive Office of...

STRUTHERS, Ohio (WKBN) Some vaccinated people are still contracting thecoronavirus.

Brandy Brabant-Eisenbraun, aStruthersresident, received the Pfizer vaccines in January and February through her employer.

Seven weeks after her second dose, she thought she had a sinus infection, but got a COVID-19 test to ensure she didnt have the virus.

Her positive test result came as a surprise.

People didnt believe me. Like, theres no way you tested positive. You know, youve had the vaccine, and youve had it for over a month now,' Eisenbraun said. They said, Why did you even get tested, like what was the point? and I said Well, I just didnt feel right.'

Eisenbraunsaid her symptoms were very mild, unlike the symptoms people had early on in the pandemic.

No shortness of breath, no cough, nothing like that. I felt like it wasnt the normal COVID symptoms, Eisenbraun said.

According to the CDC, nearly 6,000 patients with COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough infection were hospitalized or died.

Luckily,Eisenbraundidnt have that severe of a breakthrough case and she still encourages people to get the vaccine if they have not yet done so.

Adults for sure, especially if you have an underlying health condition. I think it would definitely benefit you, if not for anything else, for peace of mind, she said.

Continued here:

Breakthrough infection: Fully-vaccinated Struthers woman still contracted COVID-19 - WKBN.com

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) More than 1,000 cases of the coronavirus have been reported in Tennessee residents who are fully vaccinated, the state said Friday.

During a news briefing, Dr. Lisa Piercey, the Commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Health, discussed the breakthrough cases and revealed 195 of those fully vaccinated residents who tested positive for the virus had been hospitalized.

She added 27 of the patients had died.

The Tennessee Department of Healths website shows 2,642,285 people in the state are fully vaccinated.

Dr. Piercey said 25% of the breakthrough cases are asymptomatic with 50% in people 60 and older.

The state of Tennessee has experienced a more than 200% increase in overall COVID-19 cases since July 1, averaging more than 700 new cases per day over the last week, according to the health commissioner.

Dr. Piercey added the state, at one point recently, had less than 200 virus patients hospitalized, but the number is now well over 500.

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We havent seen an uptick yet in deaths. Unfortunately, that will probably come in the next few weeks, she said. It takes a few weeks after somebody gets sick and then in the hospital, if they are going to pass away, that would come a few weeks later.

The Delta variant of the virus is the predominant variant in Tennessee, making up a majority of the states infections, according to Dr. Piercey.

It is here in Tennessee and it is widespread, she explained.

The states health commissioner added that almost all of the hospitalizations and deaths among Tennesseans are still among the unvaccinated.

Dr. Piercey said 97% of all hospitalizations and more than 98% of deaths are residents who have not received the vaccine.

Link:

1,000+ breakthrough cases of COVID-19 reported in Tennessee - WKRN News 2

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. The Illinois Department of Public Health reported Friday 7,983 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in Illinois, including 47 additional deaths since last Friday.

According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 73% of Illinois adults have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose and more than 58% of Illinois adults are fully vaccinated.

IDPH is reporting a total of 1,407,929 cases, including 23,401 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois.

Since reporting on Friday, July 16, laboratories have reported 241,150 specimens for a total of 26,534,129.

As of Thursday night, 670 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19.Of those, 135 patients were in the ICU and 44 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.

The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from July 16-22, 2021 is 3.3%.The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity from July 16-22, 2021 is 3.5%.

A total of 13,056,857 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as of last midnight.

The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered daily is 19,928 doses. Since reporting on Friday, July 16, 2021, 139,495 doses were reported administered in Illinois.

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Illinois reports 7,983 new cases of COVID-19, 47 deaths over past week - WGN TV Chicago

NEW DELHIThe true tally of Covid-19 deaths in India following a devastating spring surge is likely close to 10 times higher than the countrys official count, marking the pandemic as one of the worst tragedies to ever hit the South Asian nation, according to a new study.

India has officially recorded more than 414,000 coronavirus deaths, but scientists and researchers have said that number undercounts the real toll. When Indias cases peaked in April and May, hospitals across the country were forced to turn away patients who later died at home, often untested.

The study pegged excess deathsor the number of people who died beyond what is normally expectedat between 3.4 million and 4.7 million from January 2020 to June 2021, according to the report released Tuesday from Arvind Subramanian, a former chief economic adviser for the Indian government, and researchers at the Center for Global Development and Harvard University.

One estimate in the study pegged Covid-19 deaths at about four million, roughly 10 times the official count. True deaths are likely to be in the several millions, not hundreds of thousands, making this arguably Indias worst human tragedy since partition and independence, the report said.

The study was based on three data sources: deaths from several states logged into the countrys civil registration system, blood tests that show antibodies for the virus in India along with fatality rates in other countries, and a nationwide household survey that is conducted three times a year.

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Indias Covid-19 Death Toll Is Likely in the Millions, Study Finds - The Wall Street Journal

When the opening ceremony gets underway on Friday, it will put an end to months of speculation over whether the Olympics would be even able to go ahead, as well as prompting further questions about how Covid-19 could shape the weeks to come.

Tokyo 2020 will host about 11,000 athletes -- representing more than 200 countries -- and they will be staying in 21 residential buildings.

However, not all of these athletes will be in Tokyo for the whole duration of the Games. Organizers say athletes will be expected to arrive in the Olympic Village five days prior to their competition and depart a maximum of two days after.

Even so that presents a significant logistical headache for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the local organizing committee.

Added to that is the longstanding resistance to staging the Olympics among the Japanese public.

"Their main concern is Covid-19, but there is also an increasing frustration and anger towards the attitudes and glaring disrespect to people's lives here by the IOC, the Japanese government, and the organizing committee."

When contacted by CNN Sport, the IOC referenced president Thomas Bach's comments at a press conference in Tokyo last Saturday: "Even in Japan, there was never 100% support of the Olympics Games ... this is part of democracy, you will always have different opinions," said Bach.

He later added that he wanted to give the public confidence in the organizers' "strict Covid measures."

The Tokyo 2020 organizing committee told CNN Sport that the Games will be "especially meaningful as a message of solidarity and coexistence."

"The world is facing unprecedented challenges including Covid-19," it said. "This is an opportunity to show the world the approaches that the city of Tokyo and the nation of Japan have taken to solving these problems."

'If you can't execute the plan, then the plan is no good'

Thursday saw Tokyo record 1,979 new Covid cases, the highest since January 15, and as of Thursday, there have so far been 91 positive cases linked to the Games as those arriving in Tokyo undergo a rigorous testing program.

"The frequent testing is going to mean that we're going to continue to see cases as they emerge, which is the way the system should work," Tara Kirk Sell, a former Olympic swimmer for the USA and now assistant at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, tells CNN Sport of organizers' plans to contain the virus.

"The real question that remains is: will these measures be put in place in a way that makes them work? It's all about implementation. If you can't execute the plan, then the plan is no good."

Earlier in July, a decision was made not to have spectators at venues in Tokyo and several other prefectures, while 85% of athletes participating have been vaccinated against Covid-19.

A whole host of countermeasures have been put in place, such as rules around mask wearing, personal hygiene, social distancing in and around venues and the Olympic Village -- where most of athletes are accommodated -- and an app to log the health status of attendees.

Athletes have strict arrival and departure dates around their events and can only leave the village to go to Games venues and other limited locations. Media commitments have also been reduced.

But public concerns remain.

Some athletes are also having to come to terms with the devastating news of a positive test, either before or after arriving for the Games.

"I am heartbroken ... my Olympic journey ends here," Dutch skateboarder Candy Jacobs wrote on Instagram this week after testing positive in Tokyo. "I am feeling healthy and have done everything in my power to prevent this scenario and took all the precautions."

'Virtual cheering'

For athletes competing, the Games will clearly have a very different complexion compared to others, most prominently because of the absence of fans.

Skateboarding, karate, sport climbing and surfing have all been newly added to the Olympic program in Tokyo, while baseball and softball are returning.

The absence of spectators, which will be the case at 97% of competitions, is an unprecedented occurrence at the Olympics, with "virtual cheering" and a screen for fans to send in selfies and messages being used instead.

Athletes will have grown used to Covid-19 countermeasures like repeated testing and venues without fans, both of which have been in place at sporting events throughout the pandemic. The circumstances are likely to affect all competitors differently.

"The thing for athletes is really to try to stick to your routine and stick to your process," says Sell, who won a silver in the women's 4x100-meter medley relay at the 2004 Olympics.

"I think that there will be things that may throw people off. Not having a crowd is going to be strange for a lot of people, but for others, it may just be a lack of distraction and being able to focus more closely on their event. We'll have to see how it works out."

Some sports, including baseball, softball, football and shooting, have taken place in advance of Friday, the day of the opening ceremony.

After that, events come thick and fast. For the next 16 days, it will be down to the athletes to try to bring light to what has been a troubled Olympics with a complicated and protracted buildup.

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With Tokyo 2020 overshadowed by Covid-19, athletes are left to bring light to troubled Olympics - CNN