Authorities announced on Thursday that two people in South Carolina had been diagnosed with a more infectious coronavirus strain detected for the first time in South Africa. It is the first time that the variant has been reported in the U.S.
Also on Thursday, New York Attorney General Letitia James released a report that concluded that the state may have underestimated COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes by up to 50%. New York experienced the first major coronavirus outbreak last spring, and nursing homes were hit particularly hard.
More than 434,000 people have died and more than 25.7 million cases have been reported in the United States since the pandemic began, according to NBC News.
Here are the latest coronavirus updates from the United States and elsewhere:
Fauci warns of virus mutations as an ‘alert’, says children can start vaccinating in ‘early summer’
NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci explains why the results of a study on the efficacy of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine are encouraging, even when compared to Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which had a higher rate of effectiveness high.
Dr. Anthony Fauci says that the emergence and increasing spread of coronavirus mutations means that vaccine manufacturers must be ready to make new vaccines to stay ahead of the public health crisis.
The government’s leading infectious disease expert spoke on Friday during a coronavirus meeting at the White House.
“This is an alert for all of us,” says Fauci, noting that government scientists will be working to keep up with the virus’s mutations.
The nature of viruses is to change the ways that promote their spread, says Fauci. The evolution of mutant versions means that scientists need to be “agile” and ready to make adjustments to vaccines. So far, the mutants have not overcome the protective power of vaccines.
Fauci says it is important to vaccinate as many people as soon as possible to prevent new mutations from developing, adding that the Biden government hopes to start vaccinating younger children in late spring or early summer. Clinical studies to determine whether approved coronavirus vaccines are safe for younger children will begin in “the coming months,” says Fauci.
The results may influence the debate on how to safely reopen public schools.
Prime Minister of Japan says he is determined to host the Tokyo Olympics
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga says he is determined to host the postponed Tokyo Olympics this summer, despite growing uncertainty as coronavirus cases increase at home.
Suga, speaking at a virtual meeting of the World Economic Forum, said that the Olympics would be a symbol of human victory over the pandemic. He promised to control infections in Japan as soon as possible and to hold a “safe” Olympics.
Olympic officials have repeatedly said the games will be held in July, as planned, after a one-year postponement, although various scenarios, including events without spectators, are being considered.
Suga was criticized for delaying virus measures until daily cases rose to new highs in late December. He ended up declaring a partial state of emergency in early January, issuing non-binding orders until February 7 for people to avoid crowds or eat out in groups and for restaurants and bars to close early.
New coronavirus cases in Tokyo have declined, but experts say they have not decreased enough, indicating that emergency measures can be extended for several more weeks.
CDC Director: ‘There has been a spread of community’ of tension in South Africa
The new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that the South African variant of COVID-19 detected in two people in South Carolina who did not know or travel there means that the strain had already reached the point of spreading the disease. community in NOS
“The presumption is, at this point, that there has been a spread of that variety across the community,” Rochelle Walensky told NBC’s “TODAY” program, saying it was “worrying”.
The fact that the South African variant was detected on Thursday does not mean that it has just arrived, as the United States lagged far behind other countries in tracking changes in the virus by sequencing its genetic code.
Walensky said that the sequencing of the virus was “extended” under the new administration, meaning there is more chance of getting a new strain.
European Union regulators approve AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine for adults only
Regulators authorized the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine for use in adults across the European Union on Friday, amid criticism that the bloc is not moving fast enough to vaccinate its population.
The European Medicines Agency has licensed the vaccine to be used in people aged 18 and over, although there have been concerns this week that there is insufficient data to prove that it works in older people.
The vaccine is the third vaccine COVID-19 that receives the green light from the European Medicines Agency, after those made by Pfizer and Moderna. Both were allowed for all adults.
Many countries on the continent have struggled to vaccinate people as quickly as Britain, Israel, the United States and elsewhere, and the AstraZeneca injection was long expected to help speed things up.
Johnson & Johnson says its vaccine offers strong protection against COVID-19, but less effective than others
Johnson & Johnson says its vaccine appears to protect against COVID-19 with just one injection. It is not as strong as some two-shot rivals, but it is still potentially useful for a world that urgently needs more doses.
The results released on Friday show that the single-dose vaccine was 66% effective overall in preventing moderate to severe illnesses and far more protective against more severe symptoms.
The vaccine worked better in the United States than in South Africa, where it was against a more resistant mutant virus. The company says it will file an emergency use order soon in the United States and then abroad.
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‘COVID Tongue’ could be another symptom of viruses, suggests a British researcher
There may be another addition to the growing list of possible strange symptoms of the new coronavirus: “COVID language”.
A British researcher who is helping to track COVID-19’s warning signs is reporting more cases of infected people complaining of tongue discoloration, swelling and other mouth problems, reports NBC News.
“I see an increasing number of Covid tongues and strange mouth ulcers. If you have a strange symptom or even just a headache and fatigue, stay home! ”Tim Spector, professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London, tweeted this month.
He believes that more than a third of patients with COVID-19, 35 percent, have non-classic symptoms of the disease in the first three days, so it is important to draw attention to skin rashes, covered toes and other warning signs that “go ignored,” He wrote.
Spector did not respond to a request for comment, but other researchers also reported symptoms of tongue and mouth related to the new coronavirus.
Read the full story on NBCNews.com
NJ Hospital gave early COVID vaccines to donors and relatives of executives: report
Some of the first people to get the COVID-19 vaccination at a New Jersey medical center were relatives of senior hospital executives and some of its administrators and donors, according to a published report.
The injections were administered by Hunterdon Medical Center in December and early January, at a time when only frontline health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities were eligible, reports NBC New York.
A record of vaccine recipients, obtained by New Jersey 101.5 FM, indicated that the vaccines went to two longtime donors to the hospital and at least seven spouses and two adult children of medical directors, administrators or health care executives. The radio station said it received the registration by a whistleblower, which it did not identify.
Some of the recipients were in their 20s, an age group that would probably not qualify for the vaccine for many months.
A hospital spokesman said donors and board members had no preference over eligible employees or at-risk individuals who were available, but who received the vaccine when eligible recipients could not be located, rather than doses of the vaccine going To the garbage.
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