Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC Says Covid Could Be Under Control By July — But It Comes With A Big 'If'
CBS News: CDC Projects Sharp Decline In COVID-19 Cases By July
There is new hope in the battle to beat COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is projecting the number of new cases could fall sharply by July. But it comes with a warning: Any drop could be delayed by a continued decline in vaccinations. "Although we are seeing progress in terms of decreased cases, hospitalizations and deaths, variants are a wild card that could reverse this progress that we have made and could set us back," said CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky. (Lenghi, 5/5)
The Washington Post: CDC Says Coronavirus Could Be Under Control This Summer In U.S. If People Get Vaccinated And Are Careful
The CDC report is not a prediction or forecast. Rather, it is a set of four scenarios based on modeling of the pandemic, using different assumptions about vaccination rates, vaccine efficacy and precautions against transmission. ... Under the most optimistic scenario, deaths from covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, could drop into the low 100s per week in August and into the “tens” per week in September, according to Justin Lessler, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and one of the paper’s senior authors. (Achenbach and Sun, 5/5)
In related news about herd immunity —
CNN: Herd Immunity Is A Difficult Target, Experts Warn, But Vaccinating This Age Group Could Be Key To Protect Us This Fall Could Be Key To Protect Us This Fall
Vaccinations could soon open up for children 12 to 15 years old, a development that could be key to protecting the United States against Covid-19 as overall vaccination rates slow. "High school kids, in particular, are known to be just about as susceptible and just about as good at passing along this virus as other young adults," Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, said on ABC's Good Morning America Wednesday. "It will be really great to be able then to get that immunization schedule going well in advance of September." (Holcombe, 5/6)
NBC News: Herd Immunity In The U.S.? San Francisco Offers Reasons For Optimism
San Francisco and its suburbs have been cautious, maintaining various restrictions while other parts of the country reopened businesses and eased mask mandates. Meanwhile, its vaccination rate is among the highest of any major U.S. city, with two-thirds of all adults having received at least one dose. And as parts of the city open up — some San Francisco bars have waitlists to get a table again — experts are offering a cautious optimism. The city may be seeing signs of herd immunity. (Chow and Ingram, 5/5)
The Boston Globe: Will Mass. Achieve Herd Immunity Against The Coronavirus Pandemic? Maybe, Experts Say, But It Could Be Difficult
Massachusetts’ coronavirus vaccination campaign has been among the most successful in the country, with 57.3 percent of residents — 3.9 million people — having received at least a first shot of the vaccines as of earlier this week, according to federal data. That progress has people wondering if the state can vaccinate enough people to reach herd immunity. Here’s what some experts think about that prospect. (Finucane and Freyer, 5/5)
