February 6 coronavirus news

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Dr. Fauci on what is needed for society to 'get back to normal'
02:15 - Source: CNN

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California reports more than 12,000 coronavirus cases and 600 deaths

Healthcare workers prepare to prone a patient in the Covid-19 Intensive Care Unit overflow area at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, California, on Friday, February 5.

California reported an additional 12,394 Covid-19 cases and 623 deaths on Saturday, according to the California Department of Public Health.

The seven-day positivity rate is 5.5% and the 14-day positivity rate is now at 6.3%. 

As of Feb. 6, providers have reportedly administered a total of 4,453,271 vaccine doses statewide. This figure does not represent true day-to-day change, as reporting may be delayed.

The CDC reported that 6,963,500 doses have been delivered within the state, and 7,167,500 vaccine doses, which includes the first and second dose, have been shipped.

On Friday: Health officials announced that Levi’s Stadium, the home of the San Francisco 49ers, will be converted into the “largest vaccination site in California,” with plans to vaccinate up to 15,000 people daily.

To note: These numbers were released by the California Department of Public Health and may not line up exactly in real-time with CNN’s database drawn from Johns Hopkins University and the Covid Tracking Project.

More than 39 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the US

A soldier fills syringes with the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine inside a trailer at a vaccination center in Londonderry, New Hampshire on February 4.

More than 39 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in the United States, according to data published Saturday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC reported that 39,037,964 total doses have been administered, about 66% of the 59,304,600 doses distributed.

To note: Data published by the CDC may be delayed, and doses may not have been given on the day reported. 

How the NFL tackled the Covid-19 pandemic

CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta says the NFL’s containment of Covid-19 was “impressive.”

The NFL was able to play its entire season without any major outbreaks and there was no virus transmission between teams on the field.

The NFL “had a .08% positivity rate, one of the lowest of any…organization in the country,” Gupta said. 

“They really did an incredible job of learning, testing, contact tracing, all that stuff, and then modifying as they went along,” Gupta added. 

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has committed to using each stadium as a mass vaccination site.

Best way to fight Covid-19 variants is with existing mitigation guidelines, LA health director says

Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County health director, on February 6.

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said the best way to combat coronavirus variants is to continue to practice Covid-19 guidelines. 

“The strategies that we have in place right now — keeping your face coverings on, keeping your distance from other people, washing your hands — those will protect you against the variant. You just have to do them all of the time. … We’ve got the tools. We just have to use them,” Ferrer told CNN while at a mass vaccination event in Los Angeles. 

The site can accommodate 4,000 cars but they were only able to release 1,100 appointments, Ferrer said. 

Ferrer also said that the next groups to receive the vaccine include education and child care workers, food and agricultural workers, first responders, and law enforcement. She hopes that rollout will occur in the next few weeks.

The county is “a ways away” from reopening indoor dining, she added. 

New York state has administered 91% of its vaccine doses, governor says

A health care worker administers a dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine in Garden City, New York, on January 30.

New York state has administered 111,316 doses of the coronavirus vaccine over the past 24 hours, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a statement Saturday afternoon.

Cuomo called for additional vaccines to be delivered, as the state has administered 91% of the doses received from the federal government and “is capable of reaching many more New Yorkers than the current supply allows,” he said.

“New York’s health care distribution sites have received 1,768,135 first doses and already administered 91% or 1,602,686 first-dose vaccinations and 78% of first and second doses,” Cuomo said, adding that the eighth week of allocation of vaccines from the federal government continues to be delivered this week.

Florida bill would allow parents to have kids repeat a school grade due to pandemic disruption

A classroom at Layer Elementary School in Winter Springs, Florida, is seen during a media preview on August 10, 2020.

A Florida lawmaker is looking to address the so-called “Covid slide” in education by introducing a bill that would allow parents to let their children repeat a grade. 

The bill would let parents for kids in grades kindergarten through eighth-grade file a request before June 30 to repeat the academic year, “without anyone asking any questions,” Florida state Sen. Lori Berman told CNN.

Studies show that students’ academic performance — particularly for Black, Hispanic and poor students — has suffered due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Berman called the bill “a method of last resort.”

“It’s a really serious decision, and we’re going to try to give parents information so that they can make this choice, that is a one-time choice based on the pandemic and will be pretty much irreversible once they make that decision,” she said. 

Watch:

Biden highlights the importance of his pandemic relief plan in new video

President Joe Biden speaks to Michele, a woman who lost her job due to the pandemic.

In his first “fireside chat” video, President Biden spoke to a woman who lost her job due to the pandemic, offering her solace but also using the interaction to highlight the importance of his Covid-19 relief plan. 

“Working is a part of who you are. Like my dad used to say, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It’s about your dignity. It’s about your respect. It’s about your place in the community,” Biden told the woman, who was identified in the video as Michele from California. “I’ve been saying a long time the idea that we think we can keep businesses open and moving and thriving without this pandemic is just a nonstarter. We’re putting together a plan that provides for emergency relief to people who are in desperate need now.”

In the video, Michele said she was laid off for the first time in her life this July and wrote a letter to Biden to tell him how she felt and shortly after she received the phone call from him. 

Biden also spoke about getting 100 million shots in his first 100 days to which Michele excitedly said she “finally” got her parents appointments.  

Some background: The White House announced Friday plans to bring back the tradition of weekly presidential addresses to the American people, continuing in the tradition of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s fireside chats.

“This is a time-honored tradition in the country of hearing from the President in this way, from FDR’s Fireside Chats to Ronald Reagan establishing the weekly presidential radio address,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Friday. “President (Joe) Biden will continue that tradition, and we expect it to take on a variety of forms.”

Netherlands surpasses 1 million Covid-19 cases

The Netherlands has passed the mark of a million confirmed Covid-19 since the pandemic began, according to numbers by the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) on Saturday.

RIVM reported 4,130 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday, bringing the total since the pandemic started almost a year ago to 1,001,826.

1 year after the first known US coronavirus death, over 450,000 families will never see a loved one again

When Patricia Dowd passed away last February, no one knew it was from Covid-19.

She was 57 and very active, her brother said. Dowd had come down with flu-like symptoms but didn’t qualify for a Covid-19 test because they were scarce and restricted at the time.

On February 6, Dowd died suddenly after her heart ruptured.

Months later, a tissue sample and testing helped confirm her death was caused by Covid-19 – marking the first known Covid-19 death in the US.

In the year since, more than 450,000 other families have suffered the shock and devastation of losing a loved one to coronavirus.

Here are some of their stories:

coronavirus victims tapper special 0531 SPLIT

Related article 1 year after the first known US coronavirus death, over 450,000 families will never see a loved one again

How Dubai is paying the price for letting in tourists

Take a passing glance at Dubai, and you may think life is back to normal. In recent weeks, the bustling city has been a sparkling attraction for tourists, especially from Europe, trying to escape the brutal winter and strict coronavirus lockdowns.

But as tens of thousands of visitors flocked there during its peak year-end season, the virus inevitably caught up with the city despite precautions aimed at limiting its spread. Cases began to rise, nearly quadrupling since November.
Even as Covid-19 gained a stronger foothold, the images out of Dubai – particularly from the Instagram feeds of influencers or celebrities – painted an image of a wide-open winter sun paradise.

For those back home in countries such as the UK, where most people are being told they cannot travel abroad because of the risk to health, these pictures caused consternation, drawing criticism of those enjoying themselves.

Read the full story:

Woman sunbathers sit along a beach in the Gulf emirate of Dubai on July 24, 2020, while behind is seen the Burj al-Arab hotel. - After a painful four-month tourism shutdown that ended earlier in the month, Dubai is billing itself as a safe destination with the resources to ward off coronavirus. The emirate, which had 16.7 million visitors last year, had opened its doors to tourists despite global travel restrictions and the onset of the scorching Gulf summer in the hopes the sector will reboot before high season begins in the last quarter of 2020. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Related article How Dubai is paying the price for letting in tourists

States are looking to help their vulnerable communities as vaccine distribution ramps up

A healthcare worker prepares a dose of the Pfizer BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at a vaccination site in the Bronx borough of New York, on February 5.

As officials make strides to improve accessibility to Covid-19 vaccines in the United States, some states are turning their focus to the underserved and vulnerable communities that have not yet been eligible for protection.

Though coronavirus vaccine administration is not at President Joe Biden’s hoped-for level of 1.5 million per day, the US has gotten closer with an average of 1.3 million new shots a day.
Until now, the sluggish pace of distribution had most states’ demand for vaccines exceeding their supply as they raced to protect their first-priority populations, usually healthcare workers and older Americans.

Now New York, with about 75% of hospital workers inoculated, may become the first state to offer vaccine access to people with the simultaneous presence of two or more medical conditions, no matter their age. The governor’s office listed cancer, chronic kidney disease, pulmonary disease and heart conditions as some of the comorbidities and underlying conditions that the state will use to determine eligibility for the Covid-19 vaccine.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo also said Friday that the state is now vaccinating those in the prison system along the same guidelines as the general public.

And in Texas, the Houston Health Department said Friday that it will prioritize “vulnerable populations” and “underserved communities” as it receives additional vaccine allotments.

When it comes to reaching the underserved, such as people who are homeless, those without insurance and migrant workers, local pharmacies and health centers are a better option than trying to “reinvent the wheel” with mass vaccination sites, Adm. Brett Giroir said in a radio interview aired Friday.

Read the full story:

FILE — In this Jan. 31, 2021, file photo, pharmacist Diana Swiga fills a dead volume syringe with the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine, at a pop-up COVID-19 vaccination site at the Bronx River Houses Community Center, in the Bronx borough of New York. States including New York are wrestling with the decision of whether to allow medically vulnerable residents below the age of 65 to receive the coronavirus vaccine. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

Related article States are looking to help their vulnerable communities as vaccine distribution ramps up

Reopening of schools emerges as complex flashpoint for Biden administration

A classroom sits empty on Emily Griffith campus in Denver, Colorado on December 15, 2020.

US President Joe Biden’s team is promising new guidance on school reopenings next week. But even as more Covid-19 vaccine shots go into arms two and half weeks into his administration, there is growing impatience and frustration among parents about the biggest question looming over their lives: when their children can get back in the classroom.

The issue of school reopenings emerged as a central flashpoint this week as the anger that many parents and teachers are feeling is spilling into courtroom battles and potentially headed toward the picket line in Chicago, home to the third-largest school district in the country. Biden has said he wants to open the majority of K-8 schools within his first 100 days, and Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the CDC will provide more advice on how they can safely do so next week.

But reopening policies and the readiness of campuses to usher children back through their doors currently vary wildly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction – a legacy of the Trump administration’s decentralized approach to managing Covid-19. And the ability of schools to reopen hinges on the coronavirus transmission rate in each locality – meaning that the CDC’s advice next week is unlikely to offer anxious parents any immediate, one-size-fits-all answers that bring clarity to when their lives will get back to normal.

Even after Biden set his 100-day goal for reopening, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said achieving that goal “may not happen because there may be mitigating circumstances.”

Read the full story here:

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 05: U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the national economy and the need for his administration's proposed $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief legislation in the State Dining Room at the White House on February 05, 2021 in Washington, DC. Biden hosted lawmakers from both parties at the White House this week in an effort to push his pandemic relief plan forward. (Photo by Stefani Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images)

Related article Analysis: Reopening of schools emerges as complex flashpoint for Biden administration

At least 26,808,328 cases in US and at least 459,403 deaths

According to Johns Hopkins University, there have been at least 26,808,328 cases of coronavirus and at least 459,403 deaths in the United States since the beginning of the pandemic.

On Friday, Johns Hopkins University reported 128,114 new cases and 3,522 new deaths.

At least 58,380,300 vaccine doses have been distributed and at least 36,819,212 doses of vaccine have been administered, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The totals include cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases. 

South Korea to maintain social distancing rules through Lunar New Year

People wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus walk through a park in Goyang, South Korea, on February 2.

South Korea will maintain its current social distancing levels until the end of February 14, health officials announced Saturday.

Some adjustments will be made to business opening hours due to economic hardships, South Korean Vice Health Minister Kang Do-tae said.

Last week, the ministry said it would review easing the restrictions for the coming holiday week. The measures in the Seoul Metropolitan Area are at the second highest level and third highest for the rest of the country.

Kang said previous social distancing rules, including the ban of gathering of 5 people or more, will remain in place during the Lunar New Year holiday.

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Saturday that restaurants, gyms, karaoke rooms and cafes outside of greater Seoul will be allowed to open for an extra hour until 10 p.m. local time, staring next week.

The decision was made because “small business owners have reached their limit”, and not because the Covid-19 situation is in submission. This measure would affect 580,000 businesses, he said.

South Korea reported 366 local and 27 imported cases Friday. Five patients died Friday, raising the national death toll to 1,464.

There has been 70,505 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the country.

Coronavirus surge in US from variants is possible, but not inevitable, Fauci says

By following public health guidelines and getting vaccinated as soon as possible, we can avoid a surge in dangerous Covid-19 variants, Dr. Anthony Fauci said.

Speaking on MSNBC’s “The Beat” about the likelihood of variants becoming dominant strains in the US, Fauci said the surge might be “a possibility, but not necessarily an inevitability.” 

The virus can only mutate, if it is able to replicate, Fauci explained. 

“When you have a lot of infection in your country, when you’re getting three to 400,000 new infections a day, the virus has an open playing field to replicate so much that it starts to mutate. That’s when you get the dangerous mutations.”

To prevent the variants from replicating and mutating, Fauci charged the public with continuing to follow evidence-based public health measures.

“One of the best ways to prevent that from happening in this country is to double down on public health measures to prevent the virus from going from one person to another: the masking, the distancing, the avoiding congregate settings,” Fauci said.  

 And, most importantly, Fauci urged the public to get vaccinated. 

“As soon as the vaccine becomes available, please go out and get vaccinated, because the combination of vaccination and public health measures will bring the level of virus down so low you won’t give it a chance to mutate. That’s what we need to do.”

WHO will release its recommendation for two AstraZeneca vaccines on Feb. 15 

The World Health Organization said it would release its recommendations for versions of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine made in India and South Korea on Feb. 15.

WHO Assistant Director-General Mariângela Simão said WHO received the information it needs from the Serum Institute of India on Jan. 15, and the last data from South Korea’s SK Bioscience on Jan. 29, for assessment under WHO’s Emergency Use Listing (EUL).

“This data only came to WHO a few weeks ago just to make this very clear. What we had was the AstraZeneca coordinator, because AstraZeneca has eight manufacturing sites,” Simão said Friday.

Simão also called on the vaccine manufactures that have more advanced vaccine candidates finalized in Phase 2b or Phase 3 trials to participate in WHO’s Emergency Use Listing, so that countries lacking experience in assessing vaccines can rely on WHO’s assessment to issue an emergency use authorization. 

“WHO can only progress if it receives the information it needs from the companies,” Simão said. “That’s the call that we have.” 

Madrid detects first case of Brazilian coronavirus variant

The first case of the Brazilian coronavirus variant has been detected in the Madrid region, Madrid’s health officials confirmed in a statement on Friday.

“This is a 44-year-old man from Brazil, who has entered Spain through the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport,” the statement said.

“The man had a negative PCR at origin, but upon arrival at the airport from Madrid, an antigen test was performed with a positive result. Subsequently, he was transferred to the Gregorio Marañón General University Hospital where he underwent a PCR with positive results,” the statement added.

The confirmed case comes two days after Spain introduced restrictions on flights from Brazil and South Africa, in an effort to control the spread of new variants of the virus.

Greece tightens Covid-19 restrictions in parts of the country following case increase

Greece will tighten Covid-19 lockdown restrictions in parts of the country, including the capital Athens and the country’s second largest city, Thessaloniki, the Deputy Civil Protection Minister Nikos Hardalias announced on Friday. 

The new measures will begin on Saturday and last until Feb. 15, following an increase in daily cases in both regions this week.

The new measures include a strict weekend curfew starting at 6 p.m. local time, and the closing of high schools, sending students back to e-learning, Hardalias said.

He added that only grocery stores, supermarkets, pharmacies and bakeries will remain open during the weekend.

Belgium extends lockdown to April 1

Belgium’s lockdown measures have been extended to April 1, but some restrictions will be relaxed from Feb. 13, the prime minister announced at a news conference today.

Hairdressers will be allowed to reopen on Feb. 13 under strict conditions, and other non-medical contact professions such as beauticians and tattoo artists can reopen from March 1. Bars and restaurants, which have been closed since last October, will remain closed, as well as other communal facilities.

“The coronavirus situation in our country has been fairly stable since the beginning of December, we have seen that hospital admissions are decreasing, and the number of deaths is decreasing, but on the other hand, we see that the number of confirmed infections remains approximately at the same level,” Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said.

De Croo attributed the stability in cases to people following the rules, and said they will have to be “particularly careful with the situation” if measures are relaxed.

“We have asked the experts to lay out a clear path, taking into account not only the number of infections, hospitalizations and deaths, but also the state of the vaccinations, in particular of vulnerable groups,” De Croo added. 

Belgian authorities clarified in a statement that while the extension could be in place until April 1, it “does not mean that no interim decisions or revisions are possible.”

South Dakota approves dentists to administer Covid-19 vaccine

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem signed an executive order Friday allowing dentists with experience giving injections to administer vaccines for Covid-19.

The order temporarily suspends state rules stipulating dentists can only prescribe or administer drugs for dental-related conditions and specifies dentists who wish to administer the Covid-19 vaccine can only do so as a volunteer at a Department of Health vaccination site.

A report released by the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy and National Governors Association in December cited 20 states that are considering recruiting non-traditional providers, including students, dentists, veterinarians, and paramedics.

The American Dental Association says dentists are cleared to give the vaccine in multiple states, including Oregon, where the first dentist in the US to administer a Covid-19 vaccine did so in December. Last month, California approved an emergency waiver allowing dentists to administer Covid-19 vaccines.

Here's the latest on the number of vaccines administered in the US

A total of 36,819,212 doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in the US, about 63% of the 58,380,300 doses distributed, according to data published Friday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The seven-day average of about 1.3 million doses per day. 

Nearly 29 million people have now received at least one dose of the vaccine and about 7.5 million people have been fully vaccinated, CDC data showed. 

To note: Data published by the CDC may be delayed, and doses may not have been given on the day reported. 

California surpasses 43,000 Covid-19 deaths

California surpassed 43,000 total Covid-19-related deaths Friday, becoming only the second state to reach the grim milestone since the start of the pandemic as it continues to see a wave of deaths following a catastrophic surge of infections over the holidays.

The somber new tally came on the same day the state announced it had administered its four millionth vaccine dose, ramping up efforts to administer the shots in a race against new coronavirus variants and jump-starting plans toward reopening.

California has administered vaccines “far more than any other state,” Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Friday. Nearly 1 million shots were given last week and over 1 million people were vaccinated in California this week alone, he said.

“Speed, equity, and safety continue to be our top priorities,” Newsom said in a statement.

This news comes after 558 more fatalities were reported in the Golden State Friday, putting it on track to potentially surpass hard-hit New York with the highest number of Covid-19-related deaths in the US as soon as next week.

To note: These numbers were released by the California Department of Public Health and may not line up exactly in real-time with CNN’s database drawn from Johns Hopkins University and the Covid Tracking Project.

Read more

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Read more

Here’s where to find vaccine information in your state
Here’s what it’ll be like to call a Super Bowl during a pandemic
Worrying new coronavirus variants aren’t just imported – they can be home grown