What you need to know about coronavirus on Wednesday, January 27

What you need to know about coronavirus on Wednesday, January 27

by
Blacks and Latin Americans are receiving the Covid-19 vaccine at significantly lower rates than whites – a disparity that health advocates attribute to the failure of the US government and hospitals to prioritize equitable access.

A CNN analysis of data from 14 states revealed that vaccination coverage is on average twice as high among whites as between blacks and Latinos.

The numbers are even more worrying because blacks and Latin Americans are already dying from Covid-19 at a rate three times higher than whites and being hospitalized at a rate four times higher, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States. United States (CDC).

So far, almost 20 million people – about 6% of the US population – have received at least the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, according to CDC data. Almost 3.5 million are fully vaccinated. The numbers are a far cry from where some officials expected the United States to be now.

Yesterday, President Joe Biden announced measures aimed at increasing the allocation and distribution of vaccines, including the purchase of an additional 200 million doses and increasing distribution to states in millions of vaccines starting next week.

With those extra doses, Biden said that 300 million Americans – almost the entire population of the United States – can be vaccinated by the end of summer or early fall. Biden’s plan includes installing federally supported vaccination centers in high-risk neighborhoods, installing mobile vaccination sites in clinically underserved areas, administering the vaccine in independent pharmacies and partnering with community health centers. It will also ensure that high-risk facilities, such as chains and shelters for the homeless, have access to the vaccine.

“We are going to ensure that there are vaccination centers in communities most affected by the pandemic, in black and Latin communities and also in rural communities,” said Biden.

YOU ASKED. WE ANSWER.

Q: I already got my vaccine. Can I get rid of the face mask?

AN: Please do not. CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and visiting professor at George Washington University, explains why: “The vaccine will protect you from getting sick and ending up in the hospital, but it is possible that you may still have the virus and be contagious to others. Therefore, those who get the vaccine must still wear masks and practice physical detachment. “

Wen said that does not mean that we will need to wear masks forever. It is estimated that about 70% of the population should be vaccinated before we reach herd immunity. This is the point at which enough people have immunity so that the virus can no longer spread.

Submit your questions here. Are you a healthcare professional battling Covid-19? Send us a message on WhatsApp about the challenges you are facing: +1 347-322-0415.

WHAT’S IMPORTANT TODAY

AstraZeneca backs off amid ugly argument over vaccines

AstraZeneca’s chief executive, Pascal Soriot, dismissed criticism by senior European officials about delays in vaccine deliveries to the bloc. Speaking to the Italian newspaper la Repubblica yesterday, Soriot said that, as vaccine orders from the European Union came after those from some other countries, the pharmaceutical company was unable to give the bloc a firm commitment to its delivery schedule.

The EU said AstraZeneca surprisingly announced last week that it would deliver fewer than expected doses to the bloc. EU officials responded by threatening to restrict vaccine exports. Italy has warned that it may take legal action. The dire debate over vaccine supply questions previous – and noisy – EU statements of solidarity, cooperation and the need to guarantee access to vaccines in developing countries.

The world is watching. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa even accused rich countries of accumulating vaccines, while UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima called the situation “vaccine apartheid”. And in their annual letter released today, Bill and Melinda Gates warned against “immunity inequality”. They wrote: “Since the beginning of the pandemic, we ask rich nations to remember that Covid-19 anywhere is a threat everywhere. Until vaccines reach everyone, new groups of diseases will continue to emerge.”

Covid-19 killed 100,000 people in the UK. The government is still getting it wrong

The UK has the highest number of deaths confirmed by Covid-19 in the world, in proportion to the population. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly pointed out a new and more contagious variant of the virus, now infamously known worldwide as the “UK variant”, as one of the reasons.

But it is not so simple. As in the first wave, the government has been slow to respond to the increased number of cases and deaths with restrictions. He was unable to obtain an adequate contact trace and isolation system running. And it has again been slow at border controls, closing only “travel corridors” with more than 60 countries or territories in mid-January amid a record daily mortality. Experts say the government has not learned from its past mistakes and still lacks a coherent strategy, writes Angela Dewan.

Student suicides have led a school district to accelerate the return to personal learning

As Covid-19 cases increase in the United States, school districts face an impossible dilemma of protecting students’ mental health by returning to the classroom or their physical health by keeping them at home. The Clark County, Nevada school district, the fifth largest in the United States, is accelerating its plan to bring students back after an increase in student suicides. Meanwhile, major districts in Chicago and New Jersey shelved plans to return to the physical classroom at the last minute in the face of opposition from teachers.
A new study by the US CDC says that face-to-face learning is possible – but only with the right precautions. The Biden government said it wants schools to reopen, but believes that Congress should make the necessary investments to safely return to face-to-face education.

ON OUR RADAR

  • The world has already exceeded 100 million confirmed cases of coronavirus.
  • A gorilla named Winston at the San Diego Zoo received monoclonal antibody therapy after being infected with Covid-19.
  • A business executive and his wife were charged after flying to a remote Canadian city and posing as local workers to receive the coronavirus vaccine.
  • The World Health Organization team in Wuhan finally begins its long-delayed coronavirus investigation after clearing the quarantine.
  • About 31 London Metropolitan Police officers face fines after having their hair cut at a police station in East London – in violation of Covid-19 regulations – while on duty.
  • These high school students turned their difficult experiences during the pandemic into powerful memories.
  • A Taiwanese was fined $ 1 million in new Taiwanese dollars ($ 35,000) for repeatedly breaking the quarantine at his home.

BEST TIP

As public demand for limited supplies of Covid-19 vaccines grows, doubts remain as to whether older adults with various diseases should be inoculated. Among them are cancer patients receiving active treatment, patients with dementia near the end of their lives and people with autoimmune diseases. Here are some tips on how older adults with chronic illnesses can assess whether to get the Covid-19 vaccine.

TODAY’S PODCAST

“The real bottleneck in this system is having enough nurses and trained personnel on site to administer vaccines to as many people as possible on any given day.” – Ted Ross, PhD, director of the Vaccine and Immunology Center at the University of Georgia

The launch of vaccines proved to be a logistical challenge unlike anything before. CNN’s chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, examines some of the different vaccine delivery strategies employed in West Virginia and Georgia, and why one state is doing much better than the other. Listen now.

.Source