USA TODAY is following the news around COVID-19 when a pair of vaccines joins the U.S. fight against a virus that has killed more than 330,000 Americans since the first reported fatality in February. Keep updating this page to get the latest updates on vaccine distribution, including who is receiving the vaccines and where, as well as other COVID-19 news from the USA TODAY Network. Subscribe to our Coronavirus Watch newsletter for updates right in your inbox, join our Facebook group or scroll our detailed answers to readers’ questions for everything you need to know about coronavirus.
In the headlines:
►On the same day that the world exceeded 80 million cases, the death toll in the United States exceeded 330,000. This means that about 1 in 1,000 Americans died of COVID-19.
►Unemployment benefits for millions of Americans struggling to survive are due to expire at midnight on Saturday – unless President Donald Trump signs a COVID relief and spending bill later this year. This legislation was considered a closed deal before its sudden objections.
► Pope Francis on Saturday was avoiding a usual post-Christmas public appearance in a Vatican palace overlooking St. Peter’s Square to do his part in social detachment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, he is offering a blessing and commentary on television at the Apostolic Palace library.
►Countries across the European Union received their first shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Pfizer and BioNTech. Authorities plan to administer the first shots at the most vulnerable people in a coordinated effort on Sunday. But the Hungarian authorities disregarded the campaign and began administering vaccines on Saturday.
► California Governor Gavin Newsom said in a video posted on Facebook and Twitter that the number of Californians hospitalized because of the coronavirus could double in 30 days if current trends continue.
►South Korea, which was once a success story in the treatment of the coronavirus pandemic, is fighting a serious increase in cases during Christmas week: 1,241 on Christmas day alone. This is the biggest daily increase the country has ever seen.
►The Duke women’s basketball team is ending its 2020-21 season after just four games because of concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, the school announced Friday night.
►CNN reports that cases of the new coronavirus strain originating in the United Kingdom were announced in France and Spain on Christmas Day.
📈 Today’s numbers: The United States has more than 18.8 million confirmed cases of coronavirus and 331,000 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Global totals: Over 80 million cases and 1.7 million deaths.
Here is a more detailed look at today’s top stories:
President-elect Biden to Trump: COVID relief project ‘needs to be signed into law now’
Days after President Donald Trump suggested he probably would not sign a $ 900 billion COVID-19 aid package, unless he raised individual direct payments to $ 2,000, President-elect Joe Biden issued a stern statement condemning his future predecessor for his “abdication of responsibility.”
“It is the day after Christmas, and millions of families do not know whether they will be able to pay the bills because of President Donald Trump’s refusal to sign a Congressionally approved economic relief bill with an overwhelming, bipartisan majority,” he said in an announcement.
Listing the ramifications of not signing the bill, including ending an eviction moratorium, shortage of small businesses and individual relief and funding for vaccine distribution, Biden said the bill is “critical” and “needs to be signed into law. now”.
He acknowledged that this package is just “a first step and an initial payment” for future help.
Hit hard by COVID, some indigenous people hesitate to get a vaccine
For many, the promise of a vaccine offers hope and relief. But Josie Passes, a member of the Crow Tribe in Montana, is wary of its long-term consequences.
Although tribal communities have been disproportionately devastated by COVID-19 across the country, Passes is not alone in his reluctance. As tribes begin to receive and distribute COVID-19 vaccines, many members of the tribe are hesitant to be immunized.
Some people fear that indigenous populations will be used as “guinea pigs”, while others are reluctant to trust the Indigenous Health Service. Some feel invincible, as tribes have survived devastating diseases like smallpox and violent massacres. Many prefer to wait and observe the effects of the vaccine as more people receive it.
Experts say this skepticism is justified. The tribes suffered disinvestment, incompetence and brutality at the hands of the federal government. The consequences of this neglect span generations and are manifested today as systemic inequalities, many of which were later exposed by the pandemic COVID-19. Read more here.
– Nora Mabie, Great Falls Tribune
Black doctor dies of COVID-19 after reporting racist treatment at hospital
A black doctor who died of COVID-19 after weeks of fighting the virus said she was abused and delayed proper care at an Indiana hospital because of her race. Dr. Susan Moore, 52, died on December 20 after multiple hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications, first at IU Health North and then at Ascencion-St. Vincent in Carmel, Indiana.
His frustrations with the care provided at IU Health were recorded on Facebook in several updates. The first happened on December 4, when she said that delays in treatment and diagnosis were motivated by the color of her skin.
Citing patient privacy, an IU Health spokesman declined to speak specifically about the case, but shared a written statement on behalf of IU Health North:
“As an organization committed to equity and the reduction of racial disparities in healthcare, we take allegations of discrimination very seriously and investigate all allegations,” says the statement. “The treatment options are often agreed and reviewed by medical specialists from various specialties and we defend the commitment and experience of our caregivers and the quality of the care provided to our patients every day. “
– Justin L. Mack and Holly V. Hays, Indianapolis Star
Will small cinemas survive a slow holiday season?
The COVID-19 crisis has devastated movie theater owners of all sizes, but small independent owners are feeling it more deeply. Across the country, a handful have permanently darkened and 70% of small to medium-sized cinemas are in danger of closing without federal aid, according to the National Association of Theater Owners (NATO).
Many are struggling to survive with private and special popcorn displays, among other strategies. Its loss would be a major blow to America’s cultural life. They represent an important source of more serious and independently produced art films. And in a time dominated by elegant multiplexes, its large and old theaters adorned with marquees are often the only entertainment in the small rural towns of the United States.
Fortunately, salvation appears on the horizon. An underreported provision in the $ 900 billion COVID relief bill passed by Congress this week would provide $ 15 billion for struggling small cinemas, live entertainment and performing arts venues and museums. A last-minute NATO lobbying campaign added cinemas and $ 5 billion to, in theory, cover their financial needs.
– Paul Davidson
Her father developed the polio vaccine. That’s what he thinks about COVID-19.
Dr. Peter Salk vaguely remembers the day he was vaccinated against polio in 1953. His father, Dr. Jonas Salk, made history by creating the polio vaccine at the University of Pittsburgh and inoculated his family as soon as he felt it was safe it is efficient .
Polio cases peaked in the early 1950s, but came each summer crippling an average of more than 35,000 people a year for decades, sometimes causing paralysis and death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Public authorities closed swimming pools, cinemas, amusement parks and other pastimes that happened naturally with summer holidays.
Jonas Salk’s vaccine helped eliminate polio from most of the world, something that many people hope will happen with the coronavirus vaccine. However, Salk cautions that eradicating polio from the United States has been a long and difficult journey, and he does not expect that eliminating COVID-19 will be easier.
“It will be a long way, just distributing enough vaccines to people around the world … this virus doesn’t respect borders,” said Salk, a part-time doctor and professor of infectious diseases at the University of Pittsburgh, where his father developed the polio vaccine. “He travels by plane to all parts of the world and, unless this virus can be contained everywhere, it will continue to spread and will be a problem.”
– Adrianna Rodriguez
Contributing: Mike Stucka; The Associated Press
This article was originally published in USA TODAY: COVID News: Biden tells Trump to sign the aid package; 80 million boxes