Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Covid Death Toll Is Double What Has Been Reported, Analysis Finds
Axios: True COVID-19 Death Toll Is Double The Official Numbers, Study Finds
There have been twice as many deaths from COVID-19 around the world as have been reported, according to the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), which analyzed excess mortality and other factors. The U.S. has undercounted by over 300,000 deaths, while the death tolls in India and Mexico — second and third on the list, respectively — are nearly three times the official numbers, according to the analysis. (Lawler, 5/6)
CNN: Forecast Predicts 185 Million People Vaccinated By September. But It Warns About A Winter Surge
The US will likely reach its Covid-19 vaccination goals for the summer, but vaccine hesitancy and variants could still cause a surge in the winter, according to an influential model forecast released Thursday. President Joe Biden announced a plan Tuesday for the administration of at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine to 70% of the nation's adult population by July 4. (Holcombe, 5/7)
In other updates on the spread of the coronavirus —
Fox News: Over Quarter Of New Coronavirus Cases In Colorado Involve Kids, Data Shows
Over a quarter of new coronavirus cases in Colorado at the end of last month occurred in kids and teens through age 19. The 0-19 age bracket accounted for more cases than the 40-59 group, but it was the 20-39 bracket that saw the majority of cases 38.09%. The 26.36% of new cases that occurred in the 0-19 population is the greatest amount seen since September 2020, when the bracket accounted for 26.92% of new cases. The trend of new cases in younger age groups is not unlike those seen in other parts of the country as greater numbers of older age brackets become fully vaccinated. (Hein, 5/6)
The Baltimore Sun: Young Adults Are The Biggest Source Of Maryland COVID Cases. Officials Say It’s Critical That More Of Them Get Vaccinated.
They had Zoom calls all winter, moved outdoors when it got warmer and now, occasionally, go to public places so long as there is outside seating and there aren’t big crowds. But Monica Duro, a 24-year-old Odenton woman, and her friends know other young adults no longer take so many COVID-19 precautions. Lifting restrictions on bars and restaurants likely sent a message about “normalcy,” she said. (Cohn and Miller, 5/7)
AP: Kentucky Governor Relaxing Virus-Related Capacity Limits
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on Thursday laid out the next phase for relaxing pandemic-related restrictions and said he hopes to lift any remaining capacity limits on gatherings this summer. “We’re very close to the end of this,” the Democratic governor said. (Schreiner, 5/6)
The New York Times: Covid Pandemic Forces Families To Rethink Nursing Home Care
The pandemic’s toll on nursing homes drove occupancy down significantly — not just from the 132,000 deaths but also because of a decline in admissions. The 14,000 skilled nursing facilities in the United States now have on average a vacancy rate of slightly more than 25 percent, according to figures from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care. But as immunization campaigns inside them began taking priority in the winter this year, with nearly three million residents and staff members fully vaccinated, the outlook improved somewhat. Nursing homes point to the steep decrease in Covid-related deaths, saying they have dropped by 91 percent since December. (Abelson, 5/6)
