Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
If Vaccinations Pick Up, US Could Reach Herd Immunity By Summer
Modern Healthcare: U.S. On Track For Herd Immunity By Summer
As COVID-19 immunization speeds up across the U.S., vaccine makers hope the country will reach mass immunization by the summer and be the first country of its size to meet that goal. In a panel at the virtual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Wednesday, Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said that if the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines' distribution continues to go smoothly, 400 million vaccines will have reached 70% of the U.S. population by the end of the second quarter of 2021. While smaller countries like Israel may reach herd immunity earlier, the timeline would still put the U.S. ahead of some of its peers. (Tepper, 1/13)
CNN: US Coronavirus: More Than 90,000 Americans Could Die Of Covid-19 In Next Three Weeks, CDC Forecast Shows
More than 38,000 Americans have died of Covid-19 in the first two weeks of the new year. Another 92,000 are projected to die from the virus over roughly the next three weeks, according to an ensemble forecast published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Maxouris, 1/14)
The Hill: US Sets New Record For Daily COVID Deaths With Over 4,300
Coronavirus deaths climbed to another record high on Tuesday in the United States, with a stunning 4,327 people dying in a single day, according to Johns Hopkins University. Deaths from COVID-19 are increasing at an alarming rate in the U.S. The seven-day average for daily deaths rose from about 2,600 per day to about 3,300 per day in the past week, a New York Times tracker shows. (Sullivan, 1/13)
Atlanta Journal Constitution: Georgia Climbs To 4th Nationally In COVID-19 Hospitalizations, White House Says
Georgia reported the fourth worst rate of new COVID-19 hospital admissions in the country last week, a federal report said, and the worst is likely still ahead for hospitals already overburdened by the fall and winter surge. “Georgia is in full pandemic resurgence and will experience continued increases in new COVID (hospital) admissions and fatalities,” the White House Coronavirus Task Force said. The report, dated Sunday, was obtained Wednesday by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. (Trubey, 1/13)
And a California hospital is fined after an outbreak linked to a Christmas costume —
CNN: California Hospital Fined Over $40,000 After Santa Clara County Says It Delayed Reporting Covid-19 Outbreak
A Northern California hospital was fined $43,000 after it delayed reporting a recent Covid-19 outbreak which resulted in the death of one employee. Santa Clara County said it issued a violation notice to Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center on January 5 "as a result of Kaiser's failure to timely report 43 cases involving personnel who tested positive between December 27, 2020 and January 1, 2021." That number has since grown, according to CNN affiliate KGO. (Smith, 1/13)
