A doctor in Alabama reprimands says she’s making “big progress” in encouraging people to get vaccinated — and she’s fighting to keep them alive.
Dr. Brittney Cobia, a hospital physician at Grandview Medical Center in Birmingham, wrote in Recent post on Facebook It treats a lot of young, healthy people from serious coronavirus infections.
“One of the last things they do before they are intubated is beg me for a vaccine,” she wrote. “I hold their hand and tell them I’m sorry, but it’s too late.”
Cobia wrote in her letter that when a patient dies, she hugs her family and urges them to get vaccinated. She said they cried and told her they thought the pandemic was a “hoax,” “political,” or targeted at another age group or skin tone.
“They wish they could go back. But they can’t,” Kobia wrote. “So they thank me and go get vaccinated. I go back to my desk, write their death note, and say a little prayer that this loss will save more lives.”
Cobia was pregnant when she battled COVID-19 last summer, and had a mild fever, sore throat, fatigue, congestion, and sneezing. She spent the weekend with other family members — eight of whom eventually tested positive for the virus, including her husband. She said most of them had more severe symptoms than she did.
“The fear I feel for myself and for my unborn child is bad enough, but the guilt I feel for exposing the people who trusted me is what I want to focus on,” He wrote in a Facebook post at the time. “Don’t be me. Don’t wear a mask anywhere else in the world except around you.”
Also in the news:
North Carolina children will need parental permission before they can receive COVID-19 vaccines authorized by federal regulators for emergency use in legislation introduced through a Senate committee on Wednesday.
► Dr. Anthony Fauci has recommended parents follow the American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines that call on everyone over two years of age to wear masks at school regardless of vaccination status. Fauci told CBS This Morning that the CDC is reviewing its guidance that only unvaccinated children and adults wear masks.
Public health researchers have described the surge in cases and hospitalizations in Arkansas as “raging wildfires,” and the state’s top health official has warned that he expects a major outbreak in schools. Only 35% of the entire population of Arkansas is fully vaccinated.
Las Vegas employees Masks are now required indoorsClark County commissioners decided, but the mandate would not extend to tourists who stroll the strip or congregate at casinos. The new authorization will remain in effect until at least August 17.
Today’s numbers: The United States has more than 34.1 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 609,600 deaths, According to data from Johns Hopkins University. Global totals: more than 191.7 million cases and 4.1 million deaths. Approximately 161.9 million Americans – 48.8% of the population – have been fully vaccinated, According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
📘 What we’re reading: Amid fears of COVID cases in Congress, the White House, and public health experts urge vaccinations.
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The United States will keep the Mexican and Canadian borders closed until August 21
The United States will continue to restrict non-essential travelers from Mexico and Canada via land and ferry At least until August 21, according to documents to be published in the Federal Register. Previous border restrictions were due to expire on Thursday. Travelers from Canada and Mexico can still come to the United States by air with evidence of a negative COVID test or recovery from COVID. The borders were first closed to leisure travelers in March 2020 due to the pandemic. The restrictions have been extended on a monthly basis since then.
Canada announced Monday that it will reopen its borders to fully vaccinate US citizens and permanent residents on August 9, with plans to allow fully-vaccinated travelers from any country on September 7.
– Billy Schulz and Morgan Haynes
Johnson & Johnson vaccine may be less effective against delta variant
A new study shows that the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine may not be as effective against the delta variant as those using mRNA technology. the study, Posted by bioRxiv, says the 13 million people who have received the J&J vaccine one shot may need to receive a second dose, ideally from the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
Although the study has not been peer-reviewed or published, the results are consistent with it AstraZeneca Vaccine Studies One dose of the vaccine is 33% effective against symptoms of the delta variant and 60% effective against the variant after the second dose. The findings contradict studies published by Johnson & Johnson that say a single dose of its vaccine is effective against the alternative.
“The message we wanted to get across was not that people shouldn’t get the J&J vaccine, but hopefully it will be boosted in the future with either another dose of J&J or a boost with Pfizer or Moderna,” Nathaniel Landau, a virologist at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine who led the study, He told the New York Times,.
Get your HIPAA rights: questions about vaccination status are okay
No matter what Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green says, You can be asked about the status of her vaccination against the Corona virus Companies can ask for proof of vaccination.
The Georgian republic, which was suspended from Twitter for 12 hours this week for spreading misinformation about COVID on the online platform, invoked “HIPAA Rights” on Tuesday in refusing to tell reporters whether it had received a vaccination.
But the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 protects patients from having their private health information shared by healthcare professionals without permission — and experts say it has no bearing on who can ask or answer questions about a health condition outside of health care settings. .
– Brett Molina and Kelly Tycho
The Lambda variant arrives in Texas, and may not be as transmissible as Delta
A Houston-area hospital reported its first case of a lambda variant of the coronavirus, but public health experts say it’s unlikely the variant will take hold in the United States in the same way that the delta variant did.
The variant does not appear to be as easily transmissible as the delta variant, said Dr. S. Wesley Long, medical director of diagnostic biology at Houston Methodist. Lambda first spread in Peru; In the United States, fewer than 700 serial cases have been identified. While it has some mutations similar to other variants that have raised concern, it is not spreading globally in a way that should raise the same alarm.
“I know there’s a lot of interest in lambda, but I think people really need to focus on Delta,” Long said. “Most importantly, regardless of the variable, our best defense against all of these variables is vaccination.”
– Ryan Miller
Life expectancy in the United States is experiencing the largest decline since World War II
United State Experienced the largest one-year decline in life expectancy since World War II during the COVID-19 pandemicHispanic and black residents saw the biggest declines, according to government data released Wednesday.
Life expectancy at birth declined by 1.5 years in 2020 to 77.3 — the lowest level since 2003, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics. Between 1942 and 1943, during World War II, life expectancy in the United States decreased by 2.9 years.
“The numbers are devastating,” said Chantel Martin, associate professor of epidemiology at the University of North Carolina’s Gillings School of Global Public Health at Chapel Hill. “The declines we’re seeing, particularly among the Hispanic and non-Hispanic black populations, are massive.”
Health experts said the life expectancy data is further evidence of the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on communities of color.
According to the data, COVID-19 deaths have contributed to about 74% of the decline in life expectancy among the general US population. Another 11% of the decrease can be attributed to an increase in deaths from accidents or unintentional injuries, including deaths from drug overdose. Read more here.
– Grace Hook
It is not easy to claim FEMA funeral aid money
Americans who have lost loved ones to COVID-19 can apply for funeral assistance of up to $9,000, but others do as well Finding it difficult to get money. So far, more than $710 million has been distributed to 107,000 people.
But some applicants said they struggled to prove to FEMA that their relative had died of COVID if another cause of death, such as underlying illnesses such as heart disease or diabetes, was listed on the death certificate — especially during the early days of the pandemic when testing was specified. FEMA says it is simplifying paperwork, but Kalpana Kabuto says she filed papers three times on the FEMA website after her mother died last year. Her documents were finally approved, but she did not see any money.
I’m still waiting, it’s a process,” Kpoto said.
– Desiree Williams
Contributing: The Associated Press
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