Category: Covid-19

The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) reports as of January 29, 2021, there have been 1,899,155 total confirmatory laboratory results received for COVID-19, with 119,467 total cases and 2,006 total deaths.

DHHR has confirmed the deaths of a 77-year old male from Taylor County, a 64-year old male from Tyler County, a 68-year old male from Wood County, a 78-year old female from Wood County, an 82-year old male from Kanawha County, an 89-year old female from Wood County, an 86-year old female from Harrison County, a 69-year old female from Mercer County, a 67-year old male from Cabell County, a 74-year old male from McDowell County, a 64-year old female from Wood County, an 84-year old female from Raleigh County, a 79-year old male from Kanawha County, a 67-year old male from Randolph County, a 71-year old male from Wood County, a 73-year old male from Logan County, a 71-year old male from Barbour County, a 76-year old male from Harrison County, a 57-year old female from Mercer County, a 67-year old male from Lincoln County, a 69-year old female from Monongalia County, a 49-year old male from Jefferson County, and a 78-year old female from Wayne County.

"It is difficult to report additional losses of West Virginians due to COVID-19, said Bill J. Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary. Our hearts go out to their family and friends, and we will continue to work toward a day where no one dies from this virus.

CASES PER COUNTY: Barbour (1,098), Berkeley (8,813), Boone (1,414), Braxton (740), Brooke (1,902), Cabell (6,999), Calhoun (211), Clay (349), Doddridge (402), Fayette (2,353), Gilmer (567), Grant (986), Greenbrier (2,221), Hampshire (1,365), Hancock (2,466), Hardy (1,201), Harrison (4,407), Jackson (1,579), Jefferson (3,299), Kanawha (10,992), Lewis (838), Lincoln (1,124), Logan (2,398), Marion (3,290), Marshall (2,771), Mason (1,528), McDowell (1,232), Mercer (3,887), Mineral (2,466), Mingo (1,906), Monongalia (7,029), Monroe (879), Morgan (863), Nicholas (1,041), Ohio (3,361), Pendleton (557), Pleasants (766), Pocahontas (555), Preston (2,408), Putnam (3,802), Raleigh (4,107), Randolph (2,196), Ritchie (556), Roane (462), Summers (663), Taylor (1,004), Tucker (451), Tyler (566), Upshur (1,471), Wayne (2,331), Webster (247), Wetzel (991), Wirt (325), Wood (6,470), Wyoming (1,562).

Delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from the local health department to DHHR. As case surveillance continues at the local health department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certain county may not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individual in question may have crossed the state border to be tested. Such is the case of Braxton and Jackson counties in this report.

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COVID-19 Daily Update 1-29-2021 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources

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King County is launching two COVID-19 community vaccination sites on Monday, February 1 at the accesso ShoWare Center in Kent and at the General Services Administration (GSA) Complex in Auburn. These sites in south King County will reach those who are at highest risk from COVID-19 and face barriers to accessing vaccine through traditional healthcare systems.

Public Health has received enough vaccine doses from the state to begin operating the two sites at 500 doses per day, six days a week. These sites will position King County to be able to quickly scale up vaccination efforts and serve the broader community when more vaccine becomes available.

People age 75 and older have endured much higher rates of hospitalization and death from COVID-19 than any other group and face more challenges to getting vaccinated, such as transportation barriers and more limited internet access. In King County, 66% of the deaths from COVID-19 have been among those 75 and older, compared to those ages 65 to 74, who account for 19% of total deaths.

While the vaccine supply remains very limited, the Kent and Auburn sites will focus on vaccinating highest-risk south King County residents ages 75 and older, individuals who are unable to live independently and their caregivers. Appointment availability will expand to individuals age 65-74 as vaccine supply increases. Older adults in south King County are at particularly high risk, as rates of COVID-19 in many parts of south King County have been nearly twice as high compared to the county average.

This is all-hands-on-deck, coordinating County government with partners across the region to stand up community vaccination sites, said Executive Constantine. I share the frustration of not having enough vaccine from manufacturers, but we are determined to build the distribution infrastructure to quickly and fairly get shots to eligible people as soon as those doses are available, and to expand capacity ahead of the increasing supply.

With a limited supply of vaccine, we need to make the best use of every dose that comes to King County, said Patty Hayes, Director of Public Health Seattle & King County. The new high-volume vaccine sites will help us get life-saving vaccine to the highest risk King County residents. Were taking an equitable approach by starting in the part of our county thats been hardest hit by COVID-19. Im grateful to Executive Constantine and King County Council for the Countys investment and to our community partners for making this effort possible.

The sites at Kent and Auburn are by appointment only and will be open Monday through Saturday, 8:30 5:30 pm:

Beginning Saturday, January 30 at 8:00 am, residents can register for an appointment at Public Healths vaccine website, Getting Vaccinated in King County.

Currently, both vaccine supply and appointments are limited. Residents may experience delays, or it may take time before appointments are available due to anticipated high demand. This will get easier as the vaccine supply increases.

To help ensure access for those most at risk, currently registration is open to residents of south King County who are:

Assistance registering by phone: Call Washington states COVID-19 Assistance Hotline at 1-800-525-0127, then press # for help with registration by phone. For language interpretation state your preferred language when you are connected.

More information is available at Public Healths vaccination website.

The number of people who have received at least one dose of vaccine continues to rise. In King County, as of January 28, 174,000 people have received at least one dose. King County along with medical system partners has made great progress in vaccinating healthcare workers and staff and residents in long-term care facilities, including 100% of King County nursing home residents.

Public Health is also coordinating mobile vaccination teams with local fire departments to reach highest risk adults who cannot get to vaccination sites, including staff and residents of Adult Family Homes and vulnerable older adults living in low-income senior housing and permanent supportive housing.

Current supplies are not enough to meet the need. Doses coming into Washington are insufficient to reach eligible adults. King County has approximately 300,000 people who are newly eligible for vaccine under phase 1B1, which includes people over 65 years of age. But in the week starting January 25, King County only received 22,000 first doses. Thats enough for 1 in 12 who are eligible.

While supply continues to be uncertain, King County is working closely with businesses and community partnerships to be ready to stand up several vaccine access points across King County.

This is all-hands-on-deck, coordinating County government with partners across the region to stand up community vaccination sites. I share the frustration of not having enough vaccine from manufacturers, but we are determined to build the distribution infrastructure to quickly and fairly get shots to eligible people as soon as those doses are available, and to expand capacity ahead of the increasing supply.

As a family caregiver for my elderly frail mother, I know we are one of many in BIPOC and refugee and immigrant communities who take care of our elders at home, and have been bearing a disproportionate toll of the impact of COVID as we forego outside help and livelihoods in order to keep our loved ones safe. Thank you to King County and Public Health-Seattle & King County for prioritizing access for South King County residents, and for expanding on state guidance to include family caregivers of elders in home care.

Neighborhood House is eager to connect our 2,500 low-income, mostly immigrant and refugee seniors and people with disabilities living at home to access vaccine. Weve been helping them allay vaccine fears and will help arrange transportation to vaccine appointments. Until the vaccine is readily available, communities with the least access need to be prioritized. We are grateful to community providers, volunteers and King County for working so hard to keep our most vulnerable community members safe.

Older adults have expressed frustration, confusion and anxiety about how and where to obtain a vaccine, With the opening of vaccination sites in Auburn and Kent, older adults in south King County will now have greater access to vaccine appointments, as well as a location that is closer to home.

I want to thank the County for taking Kent up on its offer to use the accesso ShoWare Center to provide vaccines to our community. The sooner we can get supply and administer the vaccine, the sooner we can put COVID-19 in our rear-view mirror and move toward recovery. This has truly been a team effort between the County, City of Kent, public health officials and providers. I am thrilled to have Kent and South King County help lead the way back to a healthy and vibrant community.

We are grateful to King County, Public Health Seattle & King County and all of our partners for once again pulling in much needed resources to south King County where the need is the greatest. Auburn is a resilient and caring community; we are ready and will continue to do our part to accelerate vaccinations and improved health in King County.

We need to do everything we can to remove barriers that prevent South King County community members from getting a vaccine once they become eligible. Delays in federal distribution have slowed the process, but by establishing these high-volume sites, King County stands prepared to move quickly once those vaccines become available.

As our region has struggled with COVID-19 infections, South King County has been particularly hard hit. By increasing the access to vaccines in the South end, we will be able protect some of our most vulnerable residents and help fight this virus.

These vaccination sites will ensure that we have the infrastructure in place to quickly and efficiently push out doses as soon as theyre made available by the federal government and private industry.

The General Services Administration is proud to continue its partnership with our regional and local government agencies to vaccinate members of our communities. This combined effort is vital to containing the virus, saving lives, and is an example of federal, state, and local governments working together for the benefit of its citizens.

With a limited supply of vaccine, we need to make the best use of every dose that comes to King County. The new high-volume vaccine sites will help us get life-saving vaccine to the highest risk King County residents. Were taking an equitable approach by starting in the part of our county thats been hardest hit by COVID-19. Im grateful to Executive Constantine for the Countys investment and to our community partners for making this effort possible.

Public Health Information Officer

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King County launches COVID-19 vaccination sites in Kent and Auburn to provide access for vulnerable older adults - King County

Scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reviewed reports of adverse reactions to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the United States shortly after the FDA authorized its use on December 11, 2020.

There were 21 confirmed cases of anaphylaxis among reports to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) between December 14 and 23, 2020.

Stay informed with live updates on the current COVID-19 outbreak and visit our coronavirus hub for more advice on prevention and treatment.

Over the same period, about 1,893,360 people in the U.S. received their first dose of this vaccine. This equates to 11.1 cases of anaphylaxis for every million doses.

Out of the 21 people who experienced anaphylaxis, four were hospitalized, with three needing intensive care. The treatment of the remaining 17 people took place in an emergency department.

At the time of reporting to VAERS, 20 of the patients had left the hospital or recovered. There were no reported deaths.

Of the 21 individuals, 17 (81%) had a documented history of allergies, and seven (33%) had experienced anaphylaxis in the past.

Over the same period, the researchers note, there were 83 cases of milder allergic reactions to the vaccine that did not meet the criteria for anaphylaxis.

Commonly described symptoms of these reactions included:

Tom Shimabukuro from the CDC and Narayan Nair from the FDA have published their findings in the journal JAMA.

In their report, they emphasize the benefits of vaccination against COVID-19:

Mortality from COVID-19 in populations at high risk is substantial, and treatment options are limited. Widespread vaccination against COVID-19 with highly effective vaccines represents an important tool in efforts to control the pandemic.

The Pfizer vaccine is an mRNA vaccine, which means that it contains genetic material that instructs the cells to make a harmless piece of the virus spike protein.

This fragment of protein cannot cause COVID-19, but it provokes an immune response that provides protection against the disease.

The CDC have issued general advice to healthcare professionals about mRNA COVID-19 vaccines and specific guidelines on the management of anaphylaxis after COVID-19 vaccination.

These recommendations include screening vaccine recipients to identify anyone with contraindications to its ingredients.

The CDC also advise a period of observation after administration. They recommend 15 minutes for most people but 30 minutes for anyone who has a history of anaphylaxis or has had a previous allergic reaction to any vaccine or injectable therapy.

In cases of suspected anaphylaxis, the CDC say, healthcare professionals should administer an immediate injection of epinephrine.

Epinephrine, also known as adrenaline, is a hormone that counters the effects of anaphylaxis. People who have experienced such a reaction in the past often carry an auto-injector that delivers a shot of the hormone in emergencies.

The authors of the new study conclude with this advice to healthcare professionals:

All patients should be instructed to seek immediate medical care if they develop signs or symptoms of an allergic reaction after their observation period ends and they have left the vaccination location.

In the United Kingdom, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) initially recommended that certain people individuals who have previously had a significant allergic reaction to a vaccine, medicine, or food and those who have received medical advice to carry an epinephrine auto-injector should not receive the Pfizer vaccine.

Following a thorough investigation of the potential of the vaccine to cause anaphylaxis, however, the MHRA withdrew this advice.

The agency still say that the vaccine is not suitable for individuals who have a history of allergic reactions to any of its ingredients or experience anaphylaxis after their first dose.

The agency also advise closely observing everyone who receives the vaccine for at least 15 minutes afterward.

For live updates on the latest developments regarding the novel coronavirus and COVID-19, click here.

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COVID-19: Allergic reactions to Pfizer vaccine are rare - Medical News Today

Paul George said he was "super relieved" that he and Kawhi Leonard are healthy after having to enter the NBA's health and safety protocols.

George and Leonard were cleared from protocol and returned to help the visiting LA Clippers cruise past the Orlando Magic 116-90 on Friday.

"We were playing so well, it was unfortunate that we had to take a hiatus, but safety's first," George said. "We acknowledge that first and foremost."

Because of contact tracing, George and Leonard were in protocol for only four days. They entered quarantine on Monday as the team departed Los Angeles for Atlanta to start a six-game road swing. The two stars missed two games before rejoining the team in Orlando, Florida.

"It was a bummer because we were on a good roll, and me and PG go out," Leonard said, referring to the Clippers being on a seven-game winning streak when he and George entered protocol. "That's my mindset around it. Just want to play basketball and wanting to keep building on our chemistry and get better, but understand what the protocols are, and it was a chance for guys to step up and play a bigger role."

With their two best players back, the Clippers won their second straight game after losing in Atlanta on Tuesday. George scored 26 points in 28 minutes and became the first player in franchise history with at least 26 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals in under 30 minutes played.

Leonard scored 24 points in 29 minutes and said he spent the time away from the team maintaining his conditioning at home and staying in touch with coaches to go over the game plans even for the games he missed.

"Still trying to follow game plans with the Hawks and the last game, Miami," Leonard said of what he did during quarantine. "Just talking to the coaches, trying to see just what our coverages are, just keeping my mind in the game."

Coach Ty Lue said he had both players on a minutes restriction to be cautious with his stars coming out of quarantine. But George and Leonard both showed how fresh their legs were early, each throwing down a big dunk in the first half against Orlando.

"I think on a night when guys were a little tired, just having their presence was big for us," Lue said. "It was huge. Just making plays for everybody else, making the game easy. When teams double-team Kawhi or PG on the post-ups or pick-and-roll, it just makes it easier because our guys are getting open shots, so we need those guys tonight."

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Paul George 'super relieved' he and Kawhi Leonard healthy after COVID-19 protocol - ESPN

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law on Friday that extends eviction protections through the end of June.

Last year, Newsom signed a law that banned evictions for unpaid rent for tenants who paid at least 25% of their rent owed after Sept. 1. That law was set to expire on Monday. But the law Newsom signed on Thursday extends those protections through June 30.

Tenants who qualify for the protections will still owe their rent, they just cant be evicted for not paying all of it.

The law would use federal stimulus dollars to pay off 80% of some tenants unpaid rent, but only if landlords agree to forgive the remaining 20%. If landlords refuse the deal, the law would pay off 25% of tenants unpaid rent to make sure they qualify for eviction protections.

People who earn more than 80% of the area median income are not eligible for the money.

Some housing advocacy groups worry the law gives too much power to landlords. During a virtual bill signing ceremony on Friday, Newsom, Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon all pledged to pass a law offering more assistance later this year.

Were not done, Newsom said. None of us are naive that we have a lot more work to do.

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Gov. Gavin Newsom signs bill to extend COVID-19 eviction protections through June - KTLA Los Angeles

Too long to wait: the impact of COVID-19 on elective surgery  The Lancet

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Too long to wait: the impact of COVID-19 on elective surgery - The Lancet

Seventy-three more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the Northland and one more person has died from the illness.

The person was a St. Louis County resident in their early 70s. The county has now lost 253 people to COVID-19 and its complications.

New cases and seven-day averages in Northland counties:

As of Jan. 27, nearly 29,000 residents in the seven-county region, or 8.7% of the population, have received at least one shot and about 8,200 of those people have had both doses. The state of Minnesota updates its vaccine numbers every day with data from two days ago.

About 9,500 residents ages 65 and older in the region have received a COVID-19 vaccine. That's about 15% of that demographic.

On Friday, the region logged its highest number of new vaccinations in a single day. Another 3,800 shots were administered to Northeastern Minnesota residents. About 770 of those shots went to people receiving their second and final dose.

The number of intensive care patients with COVID-19 in the region continues to decline. At one point in time Thursday, three COVID-19 patients were occupying ICU beds in Northeastern Minnesota. At the same time, 20 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized outside the ICU.

This story was updated at 4:21 p.m. Jan. 29 with additional information from Wisconsin Department of Health Services and to correct the seven-day average for Lake County. It was originally posted at 12:15 p.m. Jan. 29.

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73 more Northland residents test positive for COVID-19; 1 new death reported - Duluth News Tribune

FARGO Starting Tuesday morning, Feb. 2, the city of Fargo will move to "Green Operations" for city facilities, acknowledging the "Low Risk" level designation for COVID-19 in Cass County.

The change, which is authorized by order of Mayor Tim Mahoney, is being done with the approval of Fargo Cass Public Health, according to a statement the city released on Friday.

Fargo has been working under Yellow Operations to correspond with Cass Countys previous "Moderate Risk" level since January 11.

Under Green Operations, facilities will adhere to NDSmart Restart guidance provided by the State of North Dakota and the North Dakota Department of Health for the "Low Risk" level.

Green Operations will remain in effect until further notice.

Changes resulting from the transition from Yellow Operations to Green Operations include:

Modifications to regular operations that will continue despite the transition from Yellow Operations to Green Operations include, but are not limited to:

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Fargo going to 'Green Operations' as COVID-19 risk drops - INFORUM

Meyer began to feel as if he knew the people personally the ones who described smells in terms of tea and fruit, or meat and gasoline, or blue Powerade and lollipops. The way they described their senses felt so intimate, he said later, you could almost see the type of person they are. He was becoming convinced that people believe they are bad at describing smells simply because they so often are asked to do so in labs, sniffing single, isolated molecules (when the more familiar odor of coffee is a blend of many hundreds of them), cloistered away from the context of their real lives and the smells that actually mattered to them. Given the right opportunity, he said, people become very, very verbal.

For Meyer, an IBM researcher who specializes in using algorithms to analyze biological data, and who was one of the people who insisted that the G.C.C.R. surveys should include open text boxes, this was exciting news. For years, scientists studying smell have been working off just a few, deeply deficient data sets that link different chemicals and the way humans perceive them. There was, for example, a record created in the late 1960s by a single perfumer, who described thousands of smells, and study after study relied on a single Atlas of Odor Character Profiles, published in 1985. It drew on the observations of volunteers who had been asked to smell various single molecules and chemical mixtures, rating and naming them according to a supplied list of descriptors that many scientists felt was flawed and dated.

More recently, Meyer and many others had been using a new data set, painstakingly created by scientists at the Rockefeller University in New York and published in 2016. (I visited the lab in 2014, while Leslie Vosshall and her colleagues were building their data, and was surprised to find I could smell one of the vials, though it probably just triggered my trigeminal system. When I told Vosshall that it seemed minty, she replied: Really? Most people say, Dirty socks.) But while the new data set was a significant improvement 55 people smelled 480 different molecules, rating them by intensity, pleasantness, familiarity and how well they matched a list of 20 descriptions, including garlic, spices, flower, bakery, musky, urinous and so on it was still a sign of how limited the field was.

This was why Meyer, along with his colleague Guillermo Cecchi, pushed for those open text boxes in the G.C.C.R. survey. They were interested in the possibilities of natural language processing, a branch of machine learning that uses algorithms to analyze the patterns of human expression; Cecchi was already using the technology to predict the early onset of Alzheimers, when it is most treatable, by analyzing details of the way people speak. Many researchers had written about the possibilities of using artificial intelligence to finally make a predictive olfactory map, as well as to look at links between changes in olfaction and all the diseases to which those changes are connected, but sufficient data was never available.

Now Covid had provided researchers with a big, complicated data set linking olfactory experience and the progression of a specific disease. It wasnt constrained by numerical rankings, monomolecules or a few proffered adjectives, but instead allowed people to speak freely about real smells, in the real world, in all their complex and subjective glory.

When Meyer and Cecchis colleague Raquel Norel finished analyzing the open-ended answers from English-speaking respondents, they found, with surprise and delight, that their textual analysis was just as predictive of a Covid diagnosis as peoples numerical ratings of smell losses. The algorithms worked because people with Covid used very different words to talk about smell than those without it; even those who hadnt fully lost their olfaction still tended to describe their sensations in the same ways, repeating words like metallic, decayed, chemical, acid, sour, burnt and urine. It was an encouraging finding, a proof of concept that they couldnt wait to explore in a lot more depth first in the G.C.C.R. responses in other languages and then, in the future, in other data sets related to other diseases. Meyer got excited when he talked about it. Anything where smell changes, he told me. Depression, schizophrenia, Alzheimers, Parkinsons, neurodegeneration, cognitive and neuropsychiatric disease. The whole enchilada, as they say.

I had a hard time imagining the olfactory map that scientists have dreamed of for so long. Would it, I asked Mainland, look something like a periodic table? He suggested I think, instead, of the maps that scientists have made of color space, which arrange colors to show their mathematical relationships and mixtures. We didnt know how useful color space was until people started inventing things like color television and Photoshop, he explained, adding that the map itself isnt the goal, but rather the ability to use it to understand why we smell what we do. After that, what will be really interesting are the applications we cant yet imagine. Its hard to understand the utility of the map, he said, until you have the map.

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What Can Covid-19 Teach Us About the Mysteries of Smell? - The New York Times

Boise, Idaho Governor Brad Little announced today the State of Idaho launched a new COVID-19 vaccination information web page to help Idahoans more easily find information on when and where to get vaccinated and what to expect when they get to their appointment.

The new web page is https://healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/covid-19-vaccination.

The rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine in Idaho is my number one priority, and we are doing everything we can to get people vaccinated as safely, quickly, fairly, and transparently as possible, Governor Little said.

Local public health districts are responsible for implementing vaccination plans, and enrolled COVID-19 vaccine provider information is on each public health district website, but the new resource offers just one place where all Idahoans can find out when they are eligible to receive the vaccine and where to access enrolled COVID-19 vaccine providers in their area.

The page also tells Idahoans which priority groups, by occupation and age, are next in line for the vaccine.

The new web page can also be accessed at https://coronavirus.idaho.gov/covid-19-vaccine/, which will continue to be a source of information about the COVID-19 vaccine as well.

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New online tool helps Idahoans learn when, where to receive COVID-19 vaccine | Office of the Governor - coronavirus.idaho.gov