Covid Rises Across US Despite Abundant Vaccines, Treatments

The Hill: COVID-19 Cases Are On The Rise. Does It Matter Anymore?
COVID-19 cases have risen in the U.S. to around 100,000 per day, and the real number could be as much as five times that, given many go unreported.  But the situation is far different from the early months of the pandemic. There are now vaccines and booster shots, and new treatments that dramatically cut the risk of the virus. So how much do cases alone still matter? (Sullivan, 6/5)

USA Today: Another Summer COVID Wave? Experts Explain What's New This Time Around
Shortly before the start of the third summer of the pandemic, the USA is undergoing a sixth wave of COVID-19 cases.Compared with previous surges, this one looks more like a swell, health experts said. The rise in cases reported in the Northeast in recent weeks appears to have peaked, but upward trends continue in at least 21 states, according to a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data. Health experts said cases are likely higher because of underreported home tests. (Rodriguez, 6/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area COVID Cases Fall, Offering Hope The Surge Has Peaked
Coronavirus cases have fallen in the Bay Area over the past week — the first glimpse of the latest surge having hit its peak, though health experts cautioned Friday that the virus remains widespread in the region and it may be too soon to say the worst is over for all counties. State data released Friday shows cases leveling off or dropping in most of the region for the first time in more than two months. Daily average cases have declined every day for the past week, and are down about 20% from two weeks ago; in San Francisco, average daily cases have fallen under 500 as of Friday, from about 600 two weeks ago. (Allday, 6/3)

More about the spread of covid —

Anchorage Daily News: Indigenous Alaskans Died From COVID-19 At Nearly Three Times The Rate Of White Alaskans, CDC Report Says
A new report from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides the most comprehensive look so far at the disproportionate toll COVID-19 is taking on Alaska Native and American Indian people living in Alaska. Overall, Alaska Native and American Indian people have made up just about a fifth of the state’s population but nearly a third of all deaths, the report found. Between the start of the pandemic in March 2020 and last December, Indigenous Alaskans were hospitalized with the virus and died from it at rates three times that of white residents, according to the report released Thursday. (Berman, 6/4)

The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer: Stress Up At School For Students And Teachers Amid Lasting Pandemic, In Cleveland Area And Nationally
About 70% of public schools nationally have seen a rise in the percentage of students seeking mental health services since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new survey by the Institute of Education Sciences. But only 56% of public schools report they are able to effectively provide mental health services to all students in need, according to the institute’s latest School Pulse Panel survey. Schools in this region follow the national trend, according to data from the survey and anecdotal reports from educators in the Greater Cleveland/Akron area. “Both students and staff alike are experiencing a bit of a mental health crisis right now,” says Erich Merkle, central office school psychologist with the Akron Public Schools. (Washington, 6/6)

The Boston Globe: State Has A Lot More To Do To Keep Students And Educators Safe From COVID
Despite the tireless and persistent efforts of school superintendents, principals, nurses, and teachers, statewide data show that 27 percent of K-12 students and 41 percent of staff have reported positive test results during the 2021-22 school year alone. State leaders must grapple with the immensity of the impact of COVID-19 infections on students, staff, and educators. These figures certainly understate the true rate of infection. They are drawn from district-level data, which is taken from what local and school-based health officials are able to count and report. Because testing is inconsistent between districts, so is reporting. For example, some districts continued their pool testing program this year while others did not. Despite the provision of rapid tests to parents by DESE and districts, restrictive opt-in rules made universal access to tests more challenging. (Geller and Koczela, 6/6)

USA Today: Dogs May Detect COVID Better Than Nasal PCR Tests, Study Finds
Prefer an adorable dog licking your face over an invasive swab up the nose? That's a research-driven option now in testing for the coronavirus. Trained dogs have shown signs of being more effective at detecting COVID-19 than the nasal swab PCR tests, a new study discovered. The peer-reviewed study, published Wednesday in the journal, Plos One, determined that adequately trained canines are so equipped to detect COVID-19 that PCR tests come in second place behind them. That's largely as a result of dogs' ability to sense COVID-19 in symptomatic and asymptomatic people. (Gleeson, 6/3)

NPR: Bosses Wanting A Return To Office Face Off With Workers Who Want To Stay Home
To Jonathan Pruiett, it just didn't make sense. A geospatial analyst who updates Google maps for a living, Pruiett had been called back to his company's offices in Bothell, Washington, five days a week, starting June 6. Like many on his team, Pruiett had only worked remotely, having started the job in the pandemic. He'd adapted well to it, finding efficiencies such as multitasking during virtual meetings, using the time to process data. And yet, now he was being told to report to office. Anyone who failed to report within three days of the return date would be processed as having abandoned their job. (Hsu, 6/5)

On long covid —

New Hampshire Bulletin: Long COVID Patients Struggle With Insurance, Job Accommodations 
With so much still unknown about long COVID, Wendy Thomas has accepted that managing her myriad of debilitating symptoms will require trial and error. So, when her doctor prescribed Adderall for her struggle to focus, even to understand a paragraph, she agreed to give it a try. Thomas’ insurance company was less agreeable. She was told her prescription would be covered only if she had a diagnosis. That’s an impossible ask for those suffering with long COVID because there’s no way to confirm the illness. It cannot be diagnosed through a test, exam, x-ray or any other tool. Nor is it possible to make a diagnosis based on symptoms. (Timmins, 6/4)

San Francisco Chronicle: Long COVID In Kids: 10-Year-Old’s Case Shows What We Know — And Don't Know
Shyne Staples leaps up and executes a flawless forward roll across a gym mat. She flips into a cartwheel, stands on her hands, then climbs a rope before spinning around a high bar in her San Mateo gymnastics class. Like many 10-year-old girls, Shyne likes flying around the gym, Simone Biles-style. But unlike most of them, Shyne begins class already in pain, and the exertion puts her to sleep 90 minutes after it’s over. Shyne has long COVID. (Asimov, 6/4)