,
Rachel Aretakis
| USA TODAY
The US may soon give one million vaccines a day
The United States may soon be giving at least one million COVID-19 vaccines a day, despite the slow start, said Dr. Anthony Fauci on Tuesday, even when he warned of the coming dangerous weeks with the increase in coronavirus. (January 5)
AP
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 371,000 Americans since the first reported fatality in February. Keep updating this page to get the latest updates on the coronavirus, including who is receiving Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, as well as other important news from across the USA TODAY Network. Subscribe to our Coronavirus Watch newsletter for updates right in your inbox, join our Facebook group or go through our detailed answers to readers’ questions for everything you need to know about coronavirus.
In the headlines:
► Approximately 1 in 15 Americans tested positive for coronavirus on Saturday night, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The United States surpassed more than 22 million cases on Saturday. In California, health officials reported a record total of 695 deaths in one day, as many hospitals suffer from the unprecedented number of cases.
► The invasion of the United States Capitol on Wednesday is likely to be a “sudden event” for the coronavirus, said Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He told McClatchy in an interview that he is concerned that thousands of people don’t wear masks and have since left Washington for various parts of the country.
► New York now has four confirmed cases of a more contagious strain of COVID-19 that originated in the UK, with three new cases announced on Saturday, said Governor Andrew Cuomo. The new strain has been identified in at least eight states and 33 countries. Details here.
Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, received their COVID-19 vaccines, royal officials said on Saturday. They join about 1.5 million people in Britain who received the first dose of a vaccine.
► The current increase in cases in America has led to widespread deaths across America. During the past month, 31 states and nearly 1,200 counties reported their worst weekly death figures for the entire pandemic.
► The Biden government announced plans on Friday to release the available COVID-19 vaccines instead of withholding them for second doses, which the Trump administration has done to ensure that people can get a second injection.
► The nation’s third largest school district, the Chicago Public Schools, will host some students in classrooms on Monday for the first time since March. But this week, only about half of the school’s employees required to report to the buildings actually attended.
► A CDC study, published on Friday in the agency’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, found that U.S. counties with large colleges or universities that taught face-to-face classes saw a 56% increase in COVID-19 cases. The data supports an analysis by USA TODAY that found that college students fueled the 19 hottest outbreaks in the U.S. during the fall semester.
Today’s numbers: The United States has more than 22 million confirmed cases of coronavirus and 371,600 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Global totals: Over 89.3 million cases and 1.92 million deaths.
What happens if I miss the second dose of the vaccine?
Your questions about the COVID-19 vaccine, answered with health reporter Adrianna Rodriguez: what happens if I miss the second dose of the vaccine? “States of America”
Team video, USA TODAY
One of Tuskegee’s famous aviators – the first black pilots in the segregated U.S. military and among the most respected fighter pilots in World War II – died of coronavirus complications, it was announced Friday.
Theodore Lumpkin Jr. was only a few days away from his 101st birthday.
Lumpkin, a native of Los Angeles, died on December 26, according to a statement from Los Angeles City College, which he attended from 1938 to 1940.
Lumpkin was drafted in 1942 and assigned to the 100th Fighter Squadron in Tuskegee, Alabama. Tuskegee airmen escorted bombers in Europe. Lumpkin was not a pilot because his vision was not good enough, but he served as an intelligence officer who instructed pilots on missions, according to the Los Angeles Times, which confirmed his death through his son, Theodore Lumpkin III.
Two main variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 have emerged in the past few weeks, but none are more dangerous than the virus that circulated last year, experts say, and the vaccines available should remain effective.
Viral mutations are cause for concern because they can render tests, treatments and vaccines ineffective and alter the properties of a disease, making it more or less transmissible and dangerous.
The new variants appear to be pushing the older ones, raising concerns about whether the changes will affect the course of the disease or efforts to control it. So far, however, the new variants do not seem to be of much concern.
In more than a year of circulation, the virus has mutated several times, but only these two most recent variants – one that first appeared in the UK and the other in South Africa – appear to make a substantial difference in function.
Only the UK strain, known as B.1.1.7, has been detected in the U.S., currently in eight states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Although it can spread more easily and quickly than other variants, the agency says there is no evidence that it makes people sicker or increases the risk of death. Read more here.
– Karen Weintraub
Chicago Public Schools, the nation’s third-largest school district, will welcome some students to classrooms on Monday for the first time since March. What is not clear: how many teachers will appear.
The Chicago Teachers’ Union said it is not safe to return to work in person. This week, only about half of the school’s employees required to report to the buildings actually attended.
“We need to reopen our doors,” said CPS CEO Janice Jackson on Friday morning. “We saw attendance, enrollment and grades drop dramatically during remote learning.”
Jackson said the city had addressed ventilation issues of concern to teachers, and that teachers forced to work in person who did not show up next week would have their pay reduced.
About 6,000 pre-kindergarten students and students with special needs are expected to return on Monday. Another 70,000 students from kindergarten through eighth grade are due to return on February 1.
The rate of positive COVID-19 tests in the past seven days is 10.8%, up from the previous week, but a Chicago city health official said the infection rate was far from its peak in November.
– Erin Richards
The COVID-19 epidemic in America on Thursday reached a previously unthinkable rate, with more than 4,000 deaths reported in a single day, shows a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data.
Deaths in one week reached 20,879, breaking the record set the day before. At this rate, an American dies every 29 seconds.
The sudden increase in cases in America in the winter has led to widespread deaths across America. During the past month, 31 states and nearly 1,200 counties reported their worst weekly death figures for the entire pandemic.
Since Monday, the United States has reported 13,500 deaths – more than Pearl Harbor, D-Day, 9/11 and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake combined.
Overall, the scourge has left more than 368,000 dead in the United States and has caused almost 22 million confirmed infections. At least 5.9 million Americans received their first injection of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The goal is to vaccinate hundreds of millions.
– Mike Stucka
Contributing: The Associated Press