Body Bags, Herd Immunity And Still More Cases

AP: Hopeful Sign: Midwestern States See Drop In New Virus Cases
After a punishing fall that left hospitals struggling, some Midwestern states are seeing a decline in new coronavirus cases. But the signs of improvement are offset by the virus’s accelerating spread on both coasts: In California, officials scrambled to distribute body bags and deploy mobile morgues as infections rose at an alarming rate. States including Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Nebraska have seen decreases in the number of people testing positive for COVID-19 over the past couple of weeks. All, however, are still experiencing an alarming number of deaths and hospitalizations because of the earlier surge of cases. (Geller, 12/16)

Stat: Joy For Covid Vaccines Coincides With New Levels Of Death, Hospitalizations
The vaccines — the elixirs that will help drag this pandemic to a close — had finally arrived. There they were on Monday, being readied for health care workers in New York, Colorado, Ohio, Texas, and beyond, each rolled-up sleeve marking an initial step in curbing Covid-19. And yet, even as the images of trucks, planes and unpacked boxes offered a triumphant respite for a public desperate for hope, the bad news kept knocking. (Joseph, 12/15)

Philadelphia Inquirer: ‘It’s Not Over Yet’: Pa. Hospitalizations And Deaths Keep Climbing As Vaccines Arrive In N.J. And Delaware
New Jersey and Delaware joined the list of states to administer their first coronavirus vaccinations Tuesday, as Pennsylvania officials worked to ensure the coming winter storm wouldn’t significantly disrupt the delivery of tens of thousands of doses statewide. The excitement over the vaccine, however, couldn’t slow the surge: Pennsylvania reported its highest single-day death toll from COVID-19 since May and said nearly 6,300 virus patients were hospitalized across the commonwealth, twice the total from the same point last month. With the United States reaching a record number of hospitalizations, the state was ranking fourth-highest per capita among all states, according to the COVID Tracking Project. (McDaniel, Laughlin and Silverman, 12/16)

San Francisco Chronicle: California Orders 5,000 Body Bags As COVID Deaths Surge
The number of Californians dying of COVID-19 has increased so rapidly that the state ordered 5,000 additional body bags to help hospitals cope with the surge, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday. Newsom said the need to prepare for the possibility of thousands of additional deaths shows the severity of the worst surge of the pandemic. California has averaged 163 deaths a day over the past week, compared with 41 deaths a day a month ago. “That should be sobering,” Newsom said during a news conference in Sacramento County. “This is not the flu. This is not something to be trifled with. This is a deadly disease.” (Gardiner, 12/15)

The Wall Street Journal: Among Nursing Homes Hit By Covid-19, Veterans Homes Struggled The Most 
During the pandemic, one of the worst places to be was in a nursing home. Among nursing homes, one of the worst places to be was a state-run facility for retired servicemen and women. Of the nation’s 150 such homes, thousands of residents have caught the virus. Hundreds have died. Family and staff members tell of miscommunication and neglect. (Koh, 12/14)

And many ask: When will the USA achieve herd immunity? —

NPR: Fauci Predicts U.S. Could See Signs Of Herd Immunity By Late March Or Early April
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's senior official for infectious diseases, predicts the United States could begin to achieve early stages of herd immunity against the deadly coronavirus by late spring or summer. And if that happens, Fauci anticipates, "we could really turn this thing around" toward the end of 2021. In a wide-ranging interview Tuesday on Morning Edition, NPR's Rachel Martin asked Fauci how many Americans need to receive the vaccine to have an impact on the number of COVID-19 infections. "I would say 50% would have to get vaccinated before you start to see an impact," Fauci said. "But I would say 75 to 85% would have to get vaccinated if you want to have that blanket of herd immunity." (Booker, 12/15)

KHN: Trump’s Wrong. 15% ‘Herd Immunity’ Is Not On Par With Strength Of A Vaccine 
During a Dec. 8 press conference about Operation Warp Speed, President Donald Trump likened the spread of the coronavirus throughout the population — which experts agree bestows some immunity on the people who became ill — to having a COVID-19 vaccine. “You develop immunity over a period of time, and I hear we’re close to 15%. I’m hearing that, and that is terrific. That’s a very powerful vaccine in itself,” said Trump, who was responding to a reporter’s question about what his message to the American people was as the holidays approach and levels of COVID cases in the U.S. continue to rise. (Knight, 12/15)

Also —

KHN and PolitiFact: Lie Of The Year: The Downplay And Denial Of The Coronavirus 
A Florida taxi driver and his wife had seen enough conspiracy theories online to believe the virus was overblown, maybe even a hoax. So no masks for them. Then they got sick. She died. A college lecturer had trouble refilling her lupus drug after the president promoted it as a treatment for the new disease. A hospital nurse broke down when an ICU patient insisted his illness was nothing worse than the flu, oblivious to the silence in beds next door.   Lies infected America in 2020. The very worst were not just damaging, but deadly.  (Funke and Sanders, 12/16)