Covid ‘Surge Teams’ May Be Coming To Your Town
The teams will distribute supplies and help at vaccination sites and with contact tracing, White House officials say, in an effort to help communities that experience a surge in coronavirus infections.
The Hill:
White House To Send 'Surge Teams' To Delta Variant Hot Spots
The White House is readying COVID-19 "surge teams" to send to communities with low vaccination rates to help combat the rapidly spreading delta variant of the coronavirus, officials announced Thursday. The teams will work with local public health authorities to conduct contact tracing, and will distribute supplies as needed or requested by states, such as therapeutics and additional tests. The teams will also help augment staffing at local vaccination sites. (Weixel, 7/1)
Reuters:
White House Prepares For COVID-19 Outbreaks Due To Highly Contagious Delta Variant
The White House on Thursday said it would send out special teams to hot spots around the United States to combat the highly contagious Delta coronavirus variant amid rising case counts in parts of the country where vaccination rates remain low. The speedy U.S. vaccination campaign has dramatically reduced COVID-19 cases among residents. The peak seven-day-average of more than 250,000 cases per day in January fell to around 11,000 in mid-June. (O'donnell and Shalal, 7/1)
The Washington Post:
‘Now We Are Trying To Figure Out How To Live With It’: Inside Biden’s Push To Crush Covid
Jeff Zients picked up a copy of the “National Strategy for the Covid-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness,” a bound document clocking in at around three pounds, and dropped it on the table with a loud thud. “That’s how we spent the transition, putting together that plan,” he said, chuckling at his own theatrics. To draft this playbook, Zients and his Covid-19 Response Team had considered how to rebuild trust in government, set up mass vaccination sites, reopen schools and deal with racial inequities exacerbated by a global pandemic. One thing Zients hadn’t considered: just how difficult it would be to print the thing. (Terris, 7/2)
In other news on the vaccine rollout —
The New York Times:
Military And V.A. Struggle With Vaccination Rates In Their Ranks
Denis McDonough, the secretary of veterans affairs, said this week that he was considering a move to compel workers at V.A. hospitals to get vaccinated, fearing that centers with low vaccination rates were risking the health of veterans seeking care. The military is also struggling to fully vaccinate more troops across all service branches. While the Army and Navy are outpacing the civilian population in vaccine uptake, the Air Force and the Marine Corps have faced greater challenges. About 68 percent of active-duty members have had at least one dose, officials said. (7/2)
WUSF Public Media:
Outreach Program, Health Dept. Team Up To Bring Vaccines To Pinellas Black Community
The Florida Department of Health in Pinellas County and local outreach program Not My Son (NMS) are teaming up to make it easier for Black families in St. Petersburg to receive COVID-19 vaccinations. NMS helps prevent criminal activity and gun violence among school-age children during the summer, according to the Rev. Kenneth Irby, director of Community Intervention at the St. Petersburg Police Department. (Manna-Rea, 7/1)
Philadelphia Inquirer:
1 Million Pennsylvanians Have Missed Their Second Shot. They’ll Need It Against The Delta Variant
More than one million Pennsylvanians have missed their second coronavirus shots, a no-show rate among the nation’s highest and a gap that could prove critical as the country braces for the spread of the newer, more transmissible Delta variant. By June’s end, 70% of Pennsylvania adults should have been fully vaccinated. Instead, the state had only reached 60%, meaning many who got their first doses in May skipped the second shots. (McDaniel, McCarthy and Williams, 7/2)
The CT Mirror:
CT Closes Mass Vaccination Sites, Efforts Shift To Vulnerable Populations
During the height of the pandemic, Hartford HealthCare’s vaccination site at the Connecticut Convention Center was administering 1,600 vaccines a day. On Wednesday — the last day of operation for state’s first mass vaccination center — that number had trickled to a mere 37 shots. (Altimari and Pananjady, 7/1)
The Baltimore Sun:
With Crowds Gone, Maryland’s Mass COVID Vaccination Sites Reach The End Of The Line
There were nurses, needles and all the other staff and equipment necessary to vaccinate thousands of people against COVID-19. At M&T Bank Stadium, one of the biggest of the state’s mass vaccination sites, the only things in short supply were arms. The drop in demand for shots has led Maryland officials to close this and another dozen or so mass vaccination sites. Friday is the end of the line for M&T. (Cohn, 7/2)
