Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Weary Health Workers Face Yet Another Wave Of Covid Hospitalizations
CNN: Americans Need To Make A Choice In Order To Avoid A Covid Surge, Expert Says
With Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations increasing in communities with low vaccination rates, an expert says Americans face a choice: get vaccinated or continue dealing with the impacts of the pandemic. "We can't have it both ways; we can't be both unmasked and non-socially distant and unvaccinated. That won't work," Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a CNN medical analyst and professor of medicine and surgery at George Washington University, said Monday. (Holcombe, 7/13)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Southwest Missouri Hospitals Begin To Surpass Winter COVID-19 Surge. St. Louis County Warns Of Rising Cases
Hospitals in southwest Missouri are beginning to surpass the level of COVID-19 patients seen in the winter of 2020, and St. Louis-area officials are bracing for infection rates to continue to rise here, too. On Monday, Mercy Hospital Springfield had more COVID-19 patients than at the peak in December, and Greene County’s infection rates showed no signs of retreat. “Not only are cases continuing to rise, but they’re rising faster,” said Aaron Schekorra, public health information administrator for the Springfield-Greene County Health Department. (Merrilees, 7/12)
The Hill: COVID-19 Case Count Spikes Hit Almost Every State
Most areas of the country are seeing a new surge in COVID-19 cases as variants of the virus serve as a painful reminder that the pandemic is not over despite eased restrictions. Forty-one states and the District of Columbia have documented an increase in average daily cases over the past two weeks. But nine in particular, including seven in the South, have seen cases at least double in that time period, according to data from The New York Times. (Coleman, 7/12)
CNN: States With Low Vaccination Numbers Have Covid-19 Case Rates That Are Significantly Higher Than Others
When you compare states with high vaccination rates to states that are lagging, the difference in the number of people getting Covid-19 is staggering. Over the past week, states that have fully vaccinated more than half of their residents have reported an average Covid-19 case rate that is about a third of that in states which have fully vaccinated less than half of their residents, according to a CNN analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (McPhillips, Almasy and Holcombe, 7/12)
The Baltimore Sun: FAQ: What To Know About The Delta Variant, Its Spread In Maryland And What It Might Mean For Vaccine Boosters
Cases of COVID-19 in Maryland and around the country are way down from their winter peak, as are hospitalizations and deaths. That’s all thanks to the vaccines, which have proved highly effective in preventing severe disease, public health officials say. But the pandemic isn’t over, and the level of threat depends on where you live, your vaccination status, and now, a much more transmissible version known as the delta variant. (Cohn, 7/12)
From the states —
Mississippi Free Press: Delta Variant Surge Prompts New Mississippi Mask Guidance
Mississippi public-health officials are urging some vaccinated residents to begin wearing masks again and to avoid large crowds as the more contagious COVID-19 Delta variant spreads across the state. “We’re kind of in a tough spot right now. We’re seeing a pretty nasty surge of the Delta variant. We’re seeing a marked increase in cases, hospitalizations. Deaths are sure to follow,” Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said during a livecast Mississippi State Medical Association discussion on Friday. (Pittman, 7/12)
AP: Summer Camps Hit With COVID Outbreaks — Are Schools Next?
The U.S. has seen a string of COVID-19 outbreaks tied to summer camps in recent weeks in places such as Texas, Illinois, Florida, Missouri and Kansas, in what some fear could be a preview of the upcoming school year. In some cases the outbreaks have spread from the camp to the broader community. The clusters have come as the number of newly confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the U.S. has reversed course, surging more than 60% over the past two weeks from an average of about 12,000 a day to around 19,500, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. (Hollingsworth, Franko and Tanner, 7/13)
AP: Kansas Sees COVID Surge As Delta Variant Cases Keep Rising
Kansas is seeing increasingly larger numbers of new COVID-19 cases and a surge in cases of the faster-spreading delta variant as one Kansas City-area county prepares to launch a new phase of its vaccine lottery. (7/12)
Los Angeles Times: L.A. County Sees New Significant Rise In COVID-19 Cases, 99% Involved The Unvaccinated
Los Angeles County officials reported the fourth straight day of more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, more troubling evidence that the disease is increasing its spread among the unvaccinated. The county Department of Public Health reported 1,059 new cases Monday. On Friday, 1,044 coronavirus cases were reported countywide, followed by 1,069 more on Saturday and an additional 1,113 Sunday, according to data compiled by The Times. (Money and Lin II, 7/12)
Axios: Ohio Church Retreat Sparks COVID Outbreak
A Baptist church retreat in Ohio attended by 800 people from June 27 to July 3 has resulted in 30 COVID-19 cases so far, Dayton & Montgomery County public health officials said Monday. This is the second COVID-19 outbreak triggered by a multi-day church event in the past week. Last week it was revealed that a Texas church summer camp had resulted in at least 125 coronavirus infections and left "hundreds more" exposed to the virus. (Saric, 7/12)
