Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Delta Covid 'Tsunami' Hits Mississippi; Florida Only Has 'So Many Beds'
AP: Doctor: Delta Variant Spread 'like A Tsunami' In Mississippi
Mississippi’s top health official said the delta coronavirus variant is “sweeping across Mississippi like a tsunami” as the state reported more than 3,000 new cases of the highly transmittable virus in a single day Thursday. “If we look at our trajectory, we see that it’s continuing to increase without any real demonstration of leveling off or decreasing,” State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said during a virtual briefing with news media. The state reported 3,164 new cases of coronavirus Thursday, marking 356,055 since the start of the pandemic. More than 7,600 people have died of coronavirus complications in the state of about 3 million. (Willingham, 8/5)
AP: 'There Are Only So Many Beds': COVID-19 Surge Hits Hospitals
Florida hospitals slammed with COVID-19 patients are suspending elective surgeries and putting beds in conference rooms, an auditorium and a cafeteria. As of midweek, Mississippi had just six open intensive care beds in the entire state. Georgia medical centers are turning people away. And in Louisiana, an organ transplant had to be postponed along with other procedures. “We are seeing a surge like we’ve not seen before in terms of the patients coming,” Dr. Marc Napp, chief medical officer for Memorial Healthcare System in Hollywood, Florida, said Wednesday. “It’s the sheer number coming in at the same time. There are only so many beds, so many doctors, only so many nurses.” (Kennedy and Marcelo, 8/5)
The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Reports 700 New Coronavirus Cases As Active Hospitalizations Have Risen For 11 Consecutive Days
Maryland reported more than 700 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Thursday for the first time since May. The number of patients currently hospitalized has roughly tripled in the past month to 337, the most Marylanders hospitalized with COVID since June 3. Experts say unvaccinated people are continuing to spread the virus and make up the bulk of cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Nearly 60% of Maryland residents are fully vaccinated with either both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the one-shot dose from Johnson & Johnson. (Campbell, 8/5)
Georgia Health News: South Georgia Hospitals Feel Strain As COVID Cases Skyrocket
To describe the current COVID surge, hospital leaders in South Georgia are using strong words, such as ‘‘scary,’’ ‘‘fear’’ and “overwhelmed.’’ The state’s COVID-19 map shows most of the hottest spots for the latest case surge are in the southern part of Georgia. And some hospital officials in the region say the impact is worse than the previous three COVID surges. (Miller, 8/5)
Bloomberg: Montana Says 89% Of Hospitalized Covid Patients Not Vaccinated
Montana health authorities report 89% of the rural state’s hospitalized Covid-19 patients in June and July were unvaccinated and that the number of admissions and positive tests are on the rise. The 358 patients ranged in age from 1 year to 97, with a median age of 64, state public health director Adam Meier said in a statement Thursday. More than 445,000 residents are fully vaccinated, 48% of Montana’s eligible population. (Del Giudice, 8/5)
NBC News: Nursing Home Covid Cases Are Rising As Staff Vaccination Rates Lag
The number of nursing home patients and staff infected with Covid-19 rose sharply last week, according to federal data released Thursday, as the highly contagious delta variant menaces the country. Cases among nursing home residents climbed by 38 percent – from 1,478 to 2,041 – between July 25 and Aug. 1, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Strickler, 8/5)
CNBC: Fauci Warns More Severe Covid Variant Could Emerge As U.S. Cases Near 100,000 Daily
White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that a more severe Covid variant could emerge as the U.S. daily new case average is now approaching 100,000 per day, exceeding the level of transmission last summer before vaccines were available. Fauci, in an interview with McClatchy published Wednesday evening, said the U.S. could be “in trouble” if a new variant overtakes delta, which already has a viral load 1,000 times higher than the original Covid strain. (Towey, 8/5)
In other news about the spread of the coronavirus —
USA Today: COVID ‘Delta Plus’ Variant: Why Experts Say You Shouldn’t Worry, Yet
The name itself – "delta plus" – suggests the variant underwent an upgrade to become more virulent. But while little is known about the sublineage and its mutations, health experts say it’s not spreading efficiently now in the U.S., and Americans shouldn’t add it to their pandemic worry list. “It’s a cool name that’s trending,” said Dr. Daniel Rhoads, section head of microbiology at the Cleveland Clinic. “When someone says 'delta plus' or any of these new names, it means the virus is continuing to evolve with us,” but there’s no evidence to suggest the new sublineage should be concerning. (Rodriguez, 8/5)
KHN: Clarity On Covid Count: Pandemic’s Toll On Seniors Extended Well Beyond Nursing Homes
As covid-19 resurges across the country, driven by the highly infectious delta variant, experts are extending our understanding of the pandemic’s toll on older adults — the age group hit hardest by the pandemic. New research offers unexpected insights. Older adults living in their own homes and apartments had a significantly heightened risk of dying from covid last year — more than previously understood, it shows. Though deaths in nursing homes received enormous attention, far more older adults who perished from covid lived outside of institutions. (Graham, 8/6)
KHN: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Delta Blues
The U.S. is experiencing another surge of covid-19, particularly in Southern states where vaccination rates are generally lower than in other regions. But partisan fights rage on over what role government should play in trying to tamp down the highly contagious delta variant. Meanwhile, Democrats spent the week fighting amongst themselves about how to extend a moratorium on evictions, after the Supreme Court said Congress would need to act. (8/6)
