December 28 (UPI) – The United States on Sunday saw significant reductions in cases and deaths from COVID-19 – marks that were two of the lowest in weeks, according to updated data from Johns Hopkins University.
The data shows 150,100 new cases of coronavirus and about 1,200 related deaths across the country. The case count, in addition to Christmas Day, is the lowest since late November and the death toll this month is only the second at 1,200 or less.
Cases and deaths are usually lower on Sundays and Mondays, due to the slow reporting on weekends.
Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 19.14 million cases of coronavirus and about 333,200 deaths in the United States, according to Johns Hopkins.
The United States now averages about 2,200 deaths a day, a 15% decline compared to the previous week, according to Stat. The country has an average of 184,000 new cases per day, also a decline of almost 15% compared to last week.
After moving up to records for nearly three weeks, the number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized across the country (about 119,000) has stabilized and decreased slightly, according to the COVID Screening Project.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention adjusted the vaccine’s safety guidelines for people with underlying diseases.
The updated guidance says that those with underlying diseases can receive messenger RNA or “mRNA” vaccines if they have not had a severe allergic reaction to any of its ingredients. The available mRNA vaccines are made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
People with HIV or weakened immune systems, added the CDC, can also get the vaccine, but concrete data on the potential side effects for these groups are lacking.
“People living with HIV have been included in clinical trials, although specific safety data for this group is not yet available at this time,” wrote the CDC.
The CDC has given similar advice to people with autoimmune diseases – who may receive an mRNA vaccine, but should be aware that specific safety data is not available for them. Potential volunteers with autoimmune diseases were excluded from clinical trials due to uncertainty.
Texas, Tennessee and California are experiencing the country’s fastest COVID-19 transmission rates, according to data updated on Monday.
Texas had the highest rate last week, about 133 cases per 100,000 people, followed by Tennessee (111) and California (104), according to the Brown School of Public Health.
Other news from COVID-19 on Monday: Scientists say the pandemic helped and hindered medical research in 2020 – delaying some tests and making the process easier for others. The lessons can help streamline medical studies in the future, experts say. Home Democrats will again try to increase the amount of direct stimulus payments for Americans from $ 600 to $ 2,000. President Donald Trump signed the relief bill late Sunday, but lawmakers can still increase the amount of the payment. House Republicans blocked an attempt last week to increase the amount.