Covid Deaths Skew Higher Than Ever In Red States

The New York Times: U.S. Covid Deaths Get Even Redder
The brief version: The gap in Covid’s death toll between red and blue America has grown faster over the past month than at any previous point. In October, 25 out of every 100,000 residents of heavily Trump counties died from Covid, more than three times higher than the rate in heavily Biden counties (7.8 per 100,000). October was the fifth consecutive month that the percentage gap between the death rates in Trump counties and Biden counties widened. Some conservative writers have tried to claim that the gap may stem from regional differences in weather or age, but those arguments fall apart under scrutiny. (If weather or age were a major reason, the pattern would have begun to appear last year.) The true explanation is straightforward: The vaccines are remarkably effective at preventing severe Covid, and almost 40 percent of Republican adults remain unvaccinated, compared with about 10 percent of Democratic adults. (Leonhardt, 11/8)

The Guardian: New Vaccine Campaigns Target Rural Americans To Address Disparities 
In the United States, there is a renewed campaign to vaccinate rural Americans due to the stark difference in Covid-19 cases and deaths among those living in less-populated areas compared with towns and cities.Rural residents are now twice as likely to die from Covid-19 as Americans in metropolitan areas. Yet rural areas tend to lag at least 10% behind metropolitan areas when it comes to vaccination – and this hesitancy is exacerbating already existing health issues. (Schreiber, 11/9)

Groups still push for vaccine exemptions, resist getting shots —

AP: Railroads Fight With Unions In Court Over Vaccine Mandates
Another major railroad has gone to court to determine whether it has the authority to require all its employees to get vaccinated against the coronavirus. BNSF railroad filed a lawsuit Sunday against its major unions over its mandate. It joins Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific, which both filed similar lawsuits against the unions last month. The unions, which have filed some of their own lawsuits in response, argue that the railroads should have negotiated with them before imposing their mandates. (Funk, 11/8)

Reuters: EXCLUSIVE Boeing U.S. Worker Vaccine Exemption Requests Top 11,000 - Sources
The number of Boeing Co employees seeking a vaccine exemption on religious or medical grounds has reached more than 11,000 - or nearly 9% of its U.S. workforce - a level many times higher than executives initially estimated, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The widespread reluctance has left executives scrambling for a strategy that keeps employees safe and complies with President Joe Biden's vaccine mandate for federal contractors, but avoids an exodus of engineering and factory labor, the people said. (Johnson, 11/9)

CBS News: COVID-19 Is Nation's Biggest Cop Killer, Yet Many Officers Are Vaccine Resistant
A Homeland Security officer in Georgia and a deputy sheriff in Kentucky are among the nearly two dozen law enforcement officers who died last month of COVID-19, now the leading cause of job-related deaths among U.S. police professionals. Yet even as COVID-19 kills far more cops than gunfire, those whose duty it is to serve and protect the public are among the most resistant to getting vaccinated. From California to New York, unions representing law enforcement are fighting requirements that members get immunized against the coronavirus, which has killed more than 500 officers since the pandemic began. While law enforcement officers were among the first front-line workers to be offered coronavirus vaccines, their vaccination rates by most accounts remain at or below the public at large. (Gibson, 11/8)

San Francisco Chronicle: San Francisco Police Officer Dies Battling COVID-19 After Failing To Meet Deadline For Vaccination
A San Francisco police officer died battling COVID-19 after missing the city’s deadline to be inoculated and being placed on leave for failing to follow the health safety rules. Officer Jack Nyce, 46, a 17-year-veteran of the department, died Saturday after testing positive for the coronavirus last Tuesday, his wife Melissa Nyce said. By Saturday, his symptoms had become so severe that his wife called an ambulance to transport her husband to a Kaiser hospital in Manteca, where the couple lived. She was by his side when he died that day, she said. (Swan, 11/8)

Deaths are rising in some places, cases fall elsewhere —

AP: Kentucky Surpasses 10,000 Coronavirus-Related Deaths
Kentucky surpassed 10,000 coronavirus-related deaths Monday, the latest grim milestone in the ongoing fight against the global pandemic, Gov. Andy Beshear said. The state’s rising death toll from COVID-19 reached at least 10,019, the governor said, calling it “nothing short of tragic.” In another sign of the virus’ deadly impact, COVID-19 ranked as the Bluegrass State’s third-leading cause of death last year and again so far this year, he said. (Schreiner, 11/9)

AP: Oregon COVID Cases Fall To Lowest Levels Since Early August
Weekly COVID-19 cases in Oregon have fallen to the lowest levels since early August. The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the Oregon Health Authority recorded 6,643 cases in the past week, down 16% from a week earlier. That includes 2,125 cases announced Monday for the previous three days. Oregon averaged 949 cases per day in the past week, dipping below 1,000 daily cases for the first time since early August. (11/9)

With Thanksgiving approaching, parties, group meetings are in focus —

The New York Times: A Vermont College Blames Halloween Parties For A Covid Outbreak
Officials at a college in Colchester, Vt., are blaming Halloween parties for a Covid outbreak, which comes as the state of Vermont has reported a record number of coronavirus cases over the past week. The virus is surging in Vermont as more people gather inside to avoid the cold weather. Experts warn that holiday gatherings could lead to more cases this winter. (Lukpat, 11/9)

Dallas Morning News: Study: March Madness Played A Role In COVID-19 Transmission Upticks
After March Madness had to be canceled in 2020, fans were undoubtedly excited to see its return in 2021, just a few months after the first COVID-19 vaccines had become available. But the vaccines weren’t available to everyone by March 2021, so venues hosting the NCAA men’s basketball tournament games required masks, encouraged social distancing, and capped attendance at lower limits to reduce the risk of COVID transmission. (Haelle, 11/8)

The New York Times: Thanksgiving 2021: How To Host Holiday With Unvaccinated Friends, Family
In addition to the big, juicy turkey on the table, there’s also an elephant lurking in the room this Thanksgiving: the vaccination status of your guests. It’s a tricky thing to talk about. Do you ask your aunt if she received the COVID vaccine after she RSVPs? What if she says no? Do you endure another scaled-back celebration, like last year? Or should you serve up a bunch of precautions? (Caron, 11/8)