Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Spring Wave Of Covid Cases Recedes; 'Herd Immunity' May Be Out Of Reach
The Washington Post: U.S. Coronavirus Cases Drop As Spring Wave Of Infections Ebbs
The spring wave of coronavirus infections that began in March is subsiding in most of the country, with 42 states and D.C. reporting lower caseloads for the past two weeks. Hospitals in hard-hit Michigan and other Upper Midwest states that were flooded with patients in mid-April are discharging more than they’re admitting. The daily average of new infections nationwide has dropped to the lowest level since mid-October. Many cities are rapidly reopening after 14 months of restrictions. The mayor of virus-ravaged New York City, Bill de Blasio (D), said he plans to have the city fully open by July 1. (Achenbach, Keating and Dupree, 4/30)
The New York Times: Reaching ‘Herd Immunity’ Is Unlikely In The U.S., Experts Now Believe
Now, more than half of adults in the United States have been inoculated with at least one dose of a vaccine. But daily vaccination rates are slipping, and there is widespread consensus among scientists and public health experts that the herd immunity threshold is not attainable — at least not in the foreseeable future, and perhaps not ever. Instead, they are coming to the conclusion that rather than making a long-promised exit, the virus will most likely become a manageable threat that will continue to circulate in the United States for years to come, still causing hospitalizations and deaths but in much smaller numbers. (Mandavilli, 5/3)
In the states —
Bay Area News Group: California's Coronavirus Hospitalizations Hit All-Time Low
Coronavirus hospitalizations in California have dropped to their lowest levels since the start of the pandemic more than a year ago, fueled by a surge in vaccinations and one of the lowest case rates in the country. Across the Golden State, the scenes of crowded emergency rooms and cadres of traveling nurses have given way to quieter hallways and, finally, hope. “Things are shockingly positive in ways that we expected,” said Kristina Kramer, medical director of critical care for John Muir Health in Contra Costa County. “But to be living and seeing it in real time is so incredibly gratifying.” (DeRuy, 5/1)
Los Angeles Times: Los Angeles County Reports No New COVID-19 Deaths
Los Angeles County public health authorities on Sunday reported no new deaths related to COVID-19. Although officials cautioned that the figure was probably an undercount because of reporting delays on weekends, it still marked a bright spot, capping several months of progress in the fight against the coronavirus. The county also reported 313 new cases of the virus. There were 390 COVID-19 patients in county hospitals as of Saturday, a drop of about 16% from two weeks before. (Wigglesworth, 5/2)
Salt Lake Tribune: COVID-19 Case Counts Flatten After Rising In Utah Last Week
Coronavirus cases were on the rise in Utah last week. On Wednesday, the Utah Department of Health reported 518 new cases, marking the second day in a row that the number of cases eclipsed 500. On the same day, the state reported four deaths, the most in a single day in roughly a month. Those four deaths helped the statewide toll top 2,200 since the pandemic started, now sitting at 2,204 through Sunday. But by the end of the seven-day period beginning April 26 and ending Sunday, things had started to flatten. (Newman, 5/2)
The Baltimore Sun: Fewer Than 1,000 Marylanders Hospitalized With COVID As Key Metrics Continue To Decline
Fewer than 1,000 people are hospitalized Sunday with the coronavirus for the first time in more than a month, and the Maryland Department of Health reported a continued decline in other key metrics. Here’s how the state’s key pandemic metrics broke down Sunday. (Davis, 5/2)
Fox News: Louisiana Identifies First Brazilian Coronavirus Variant Cases In 2 Residents
Health officials in Louisiana this week identified the state’s first cases of a coronavirus variant first identified in Brazil. The so-called P.1. variant, which has been dubbed as a "variant of concern" by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), was found in one resident from the Greater New Orleans area and another from Southwest Louisiana. Neither resident reported having a recent history of travel, indicating the variant was acquired locally, officials said in a news release. (Farber, 5/1)
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Active Cases Of Virus Rise 6 Days In A Row
Arkansas saw 137 new cases of covid-19 on Sunday, outpacing the number of Arkansans who have recovered from the coronavirus, according to the state Department of Health. The number of active cases increased by 19 to 2,055. The Health Department has not reported that many active cases since March 26. (Eley, 5/3)
NPR: Younger People Make Up Growing Share Of Serious COVID Cases
After spending much of the past year tending to elderly patients, doctors are seeing a clear demographic shift: young and middle-aged adults make up a growing share of the patients in COVID-19 hospital wards. It's both a sign of the country's success in protecting the elderly through vaccination and an urgent reminder that younger generations will pay a heavy price if the outbreak is allowed to simmer in communities across the country. "We're now seeing people in their 30s, 40s and 50s — young people who are really sick," says Dr. Vishnu Chundi, an infectious disease physician and chair of the Chicago Medical Society's COVID-19 task force. "Most of them make it, but some do not. ... I just lost a 32-year-old with two children, so it's heartbreaking." (Stone, 5/1)
