Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Nearly Every One Of The Recent Covid Dead Were Unvaccinated
AP: Nearly All COVID Deaths In US Are Now Among Unvaccinated
Nearly all COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. now are in people who weren’t vaccinated, a staggering demonstration of how effective the shots have been and an indication that deaths per day — now down to under 300 — could be practically zero if everyone eligible got the vaccine. An Associated Press analysis of available government data from May shows that “breakthrough” infections in fully vaccinated people accounted for fewer than 1,200 of more than 853,000 COVID-19 hospitalizations. That’s about 0.1%. (Johnson and Stobbe, 6/24)
USA Today: Nearly All COVID Deaths In The US Are Among Unvaccinated, Data Shows
“Breakthrough” infections, or COVID cases in those fully vaccinated, accounted for 1,200 of more than 853,000 hospitalizations in the U.S., making it 0.1% of hospitalizations. Data also showed that 150 of more than 18,000 COVID-19 related deaths were fully vaccinated people, which means they accounted for 0.8% of deaths. Although the data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only gathers data on breakthrough infections from 45 states that are reporting such cases, it demonstrates how effective the vaccine is at preventing deaths and hospitalizations due to COVID-19. (Aspegren, Yancey-Bragg and Vargas, 6/24)
CNBC: Covid Is Deadlier This Year Than All Of 2020. Why Do Americans Think It's Over?
As the U.S. pushes ahead with its reopening, easing mask mandates and lifting public health restrictions, much of the rest of the world is seeing an alarming surge in the number of Covid-19 infections and deaths. The stark contrast underscores how unevenly the coronavirus pandemic has spread, now hitting low-income nations harder as they struggle with access to vaccines, the rapid spread of new variants and heavily burdened health-care systems. (Meredith, 6/24)
And more about the spread of the coronavirus —
Fox13 News: Florida Leads Nation In New Daily Cases Of COVID-19, Doctors Say
Things may be feeling more normal in the community, but the COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, especially in the Sunshine State. Florida leads the nation for new daily cases of COVID-19 and Bay Area hospitals say the patients landing in their beds tend to be younger and unvaccinated. "We are still averaging around 1,500 cases a day, and that's pretty much flattened out over the last week or so, which is the highest level in the country right now," said University of South Florida College of Public Health Distinguished Professor Dr. Thomas Unnasch. "People who haven't been vaccinated are the ones that are getting still getting sick and getting hospitalized, and in many cases, dying from the infection." (Hawley, 6/24)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Missouri Reports Jump In Coronavirus Cases, Reaching Numbers Seen In Early February
The Missouri health department on Thursday reported a huge jump in coronavirus cases — 1,232 — a number not seen regularly since early February. The average daily number of new cases has been on the rise since the start of June, going from about 400 to nearly 700 a day, driven by the presence of the more infectious and dangerous Delta variant and dismal vaccination rates. Thursday’s jump moves the daily average to 759. Neighboring Illinois, with a higher vaccination rate and twice the population, is averaging 222 cases a day. (Munz, 6/24)
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Spike In New Cases Persists A 3rd Day
An upswing in new coronavirus infections continued in Arkansas for a third day Thursday as the state's count of cases rose by 383. After falling a day earlier, the number of people hospitalized in the state with covid-19 rose by three, to 282, just short of the recent high of 285 it reached Tuesday. The state death toll from the virus, as tracked by the Department of Health, rose by three, to 5,890. "Today is the third day with a report of greater than 380 new COVID-19 cases in Arkansas," Gov. Asa Hutchinson said in a tweet. (Davis, 6/25)
Los Angeles Times: With Delta Variant On The Rise In L.A. County, Vaccinations Urged
Confirmed cases of the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus are on the rise in Los Angeles County, prompting renewed calls for residents to take advantage of the available vaccines. While COVID-19 case, hospitalization and death rates remain low countywide, this particular variant — which could be two times as transmissible as the conventional strain — presents particular risk of prolonging the pandemic, which would primarily affect those who have yet to get their shots. “This is a pandemic of unvaccinated people,” L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said during a briefing Thursday. (Money and Lin II, 6/24)
The Oregonian: Coronavirus In Oregon: 232 New Cases And 1 Death As Oregon Health Officials Anticipate ‘Rapid Growth’ Of Delta Variant
Oregon health officials announced 232 new coronavirus and one COVID-19 death Thursday. The Oregon Health Authority said it expects the Delta variant of the coronavirus to spread rapidly in coming weeks as evidence shows it is more transmissible than other forms of the virus. So far, officials have identified only 10 cases of the Delta variant in Oregon, compared to 3,091 cases of other concerning variants. (Zarkhin, 6/24)
The Boston Globe: Nursing Homes Struggle To Reduce A Serious COVID Risk: Many Employees Resist Vaccination
If any nursing home had a reason to ensure everyone was fully vaccinated against COVID-19, it would be the Leavitt Family Jewish Home in Longmeadow. Sixty-three residents died last year from the disease. Yet, six months after staffers there became eligible for shots, more than 30 percent have yet to be fully vaccinated. Now, the Leavitt is pairing up with behavioral psychologists from the University of California, Berkeley to test the effectiveness of making the shots super convenient by reserving one for each unvaccinated employee and then asking them to either get their jab in the home during one of their shifts or decline the shot specifically reserved for them. (Lazar, 6/24)
