Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
California Areas Report Swelling Covid Cases
Los Angeles Times: L.A. Coronavirus Cases Up 40% In One Week; Hospitalizations Rising, Too
Coronavirus cases in Los Angeles County rose by 40% over the past week and hospitalizations have started to creep up as well, underscoring how important it is for people to be up-to-date on their vaccines and boosters, as well as wear masks in indoor public settings, officials said. Although neither the number of infections nor the patient census are setting off alarm bells just yet, the trendlines illustrate that the county is contending with reinvigorated coronavirus transmission. And for county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer, who called the increase in cases “pretty significant,” they reinforce the importance of taking individual actions to thwart the spread. (Money and Lin II, 4/28)
San Francisco Chronicle: As COVID Cases ‘Swell’ In The Bay Area, This Time It’s On You To Weigh The Risks
Coronavirus cases are ticking up again across the Bay Area as the region enters a fifth “swell” of the pandemic, but this wave will likely look very different from earlier surges, with far fewer people seriously ill and needing hospital care, health officials say. It also will play out differently in other remarkable ways: Though no one yet knows how high cases will climb before this wave crests, health officials don’t expect to have to put back in place mask mandates and other broad mitigation measures. That shifts the burden of responsible pandemic behavior squarely onto individuals’ shoulders. (Allday, 4/27)
On mandates —
SFGate: BART Brings Back Mask Mandate, Being Only SF Bay Area Transit Agency To Do So
Masks are required again on the San Francisco Bay Area’s largest transit system, and the mandate will be in effect on BART trains until July 18, unless it’s extended again. In a 7-0 vote, the BART Board of Directors voted Wednesday to bring back masks after a Florida federal court decision last week eliminated the mask mandate on public transportation and airplanes nationwide. (Graff 4/28)
Los Angeles Times: L.A. Schools Chief Seeks Delay Of Student COVID Vaccine Mandate
The Los Angeles Unified School District should delay its requirement that students be vaccinated against COVID-19 until next year, its superintendent recommended Thursday, given the system’s already high vaccination rates among older students as well as low transmission rates in schools. Supt. Alberto M. Carvalho said that, after consulting with experts, he will ask the district’s board to hold off on enforcing the mandate until July 1, 2023, at the earliest. Doing so would align California’s largest school district with the expected timeline of a statewide student vaccination requirement. (Gomez, Money and Lin II, 4/28)
In other covid news across the states —
Salt Lake Tribune: Utah Reports 7 More Deaths From COVID-19 As Virus Levels Rise In Sewers
Utah reported nearly 1,700 new coronavirus cases in the past seven days and seven more deaths, the Department of Health reported Thursday. The number of new cases reported this week — 1,695 — was hundreds higher than the 1,197 reported last Thursday. The state reported a 51.4% increase in the seven-day average of new cases, moving from 173.3 to 260.3. That was after reporting a more than 61% increase in cases last week. The weekly rate of positive tests also rose from 5.06%. to 6.62%. (Harkins, 4/28)
AP: Racial Split On COVID-19 Endures As Restrictions Ease In US
Black and Hispanic Americans remain far more cautious in their approach to COVID-19 than white Americans, recent polls show, reflecting diverging preferences on how to deal with the pandemic as federal, state and local restrictions fall by the wayside. Despite majority favorability among U.S. adults overall for measures like mask mandates, public health experts said divided opinions among racial groups reflect not only the unequal impact of the pandemic on people of color but also apathy among some white Americans. Black Americans (63%) and Hispanic Americans (68%) continue to be more likely than white Americans (45%) to say they are at least somewhat worried about themselves or a family member being infected with COVID-19, according to an April poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. (Ma and Fingerhut, 4/29)
The Washington Post: Gallaudet University Pivots To Virtual Classes As Covid Cases Rise
Gallaudet University moved classes and exams online for the remainder of the semester, an effort to reduce the spread of the coronavirus after a spike in cases, school officials announced. Classes switched to virtual format Thursday morning, and most students were encouraged to move out of dorms this weekend. Final exams, which will also be held remotely, end May 7. Because of the increased transmissibility of the BA.2 variant, N95 or KN95 masks are now required on campus and cloth or surgical masks will no longer be allowed, school leaders wrote in a message to the campus community. Weekly testing is still required. (Svrluga, 4/28)
People aren't using covid treatments —
Reuters: Awareness And Use Of COVID Treatments Is Low
Fewer than 2% of nonhospitalized high-risk patients with COVID-19 are receiving drugs that can limit the extent of their illness, survey results suggest. In March 2022, researchers recruited 1,159 people from 37 states who were positive for SARS-CoV-2 on PCR tests and asked whether they knew about or had taken effective treatments for the virus, such as monoclonal antibodies or oral antiviral drugs molnupiravir from Merck & Co (MRK.N) or Pfizer's (PFE.N) Paxlovid. Among the 241 individuals older than 65, whose age puts them at risk for severe COVID-19, 66% were aware of treatments and 36.3% had sought them, but only 1.7% reported use of such drugs, according to a report posted on Tuesday on medRxiv ahead of peer review. (Lapid, 4/29)
