As Covid-19 cases continue to rise in Italy, people are seen here in Rome wearing face masks. (Photo ... [+] by Riccardo De Luca/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Greenland is not that green during this time of the year. And its certainly not green on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)Covid-19 Travel Recommendations map. In fact, Greenland is now in the red, the dark red there. Thats because the CDC has just leveled up Greenland, Italy, and Mauritius when it comes to Covid-19 risk. On Monday, these three destinations all went from Level 3, which is marked in red on the map, to Level 4, which is marked in dark red.
So you may want to postpone your plans to hand-deliver that package to Santas mailbox in Nuuk, Greenland, take in Galileos middle finger in Florence, Italy, or take Santa underwater scootering in Mauritius. Level 4 means that the Covid-19 risk in those destinations is currently very high and that you should avoid all non-essential travel to such places, whether or not youve been fully vaccinated.
Now you may argue whether delivering pickles in person to Santa Claus is considered non-essential travel. Regardless, the Covid-19 situations for Greenland, Italy, and Mauritius have been getting worse. For example, the number of new reported Covid-19 cases per day has been steadily rising in Italy since mid-October. Its gone from 2,729 on October 15 to 19,212 on December 12, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Italy has become a bit of a green land itself. In August, Italy instituted a green pass system to track who has either been vaccinated against or recovered from Covid-19. In October, Italy made such green passes mandatory for workplaces. And December 6 brought the so-called super green pass, a green pass requirement for those wanting to enter theaters, gyms, clubs, stadiums, indoor bars and restaurants, and similar venues.
With close to 75% of its population fully vaccinated, Italy does have a higher vaccination coverage than the U.S., which so far has fully vaccinated 60.9% of its population. But beating the U.S. in vaccination coverage is like leading the Hulk in a pogo stick race. Neither 75% nor 60.9% are at the herd immunity thresholds necessary to really interrupt transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).
Recognizing that vaccination does not offer 100% protection like a full-body concrete condom, Italian authorities have been layering on other Covid-19 precautions as well. Many cities in Italy, such as Milan, Bologna, Padova, and Bergamo, now have face mask requirements for the public both indoors and outdoors. Social distancing measures have been in place in many places too, including on public transit.
Social distancing may be a bit easier in Greenland, which has only about 56,000 residents and by the way is not for sale. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Greenland has had 1,831 confirmed cases of Covid-19 with no deaths, based on data from the World Health Organization (WHO). Nevertheless, over the past month Greenland has been experiencing record highs in the number of Covid-19 cases, which prompted the shift from Level 3 to Level 4.
Greenland had very few reported Covid-19 cases until early July 2021. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty ... [+] Images)
As I have covered previously for Forbes, the CDC has four risk levels for Covid-19. These CDC levels are like golf scores and the number of times your cat punches you in the groin. The higher the number, the worse things are.
Level 4 is the worst, followed by Level 3, which corresponds to a high Covid-19 risk. For travel to Level 3 destinations, the CDC recommends that you first get fully vaccinated. If you are not yet vaccinated, then you should really avoid all nonessential travel to Level 3 destinations. A destination levels up from 3 to 4 when the number of reported Covid-19 cases per 100,000 residents over the past 28 days crosses the 500 threshold. A destination goes from Level 2 (moderate risk) to Level 3 when this number surpasses 100 and from Level 1 (low risk) to Level 2 when it goes over 50. Destinations at Level 2 appear in orange and those at Level 1 appear in yellow on the map.
Not all the CDC Covid-19 Travel Recommendations news on Monday was bad news. Malaysia moved down to Level 3 from Level 4 for the first time since June 2021. And three destination, Jamaica, the Philippines, and the Republic of Congo, are the new orange, going from Level 3 to Level 2.
Of course, the CDC Covid-19 Travel Recommendation lists can be like the casts of the reality TV shows The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, changing each and every week. The colder and drier weather in the Northern Hemisphere and spread of the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 could soon take more destinations to whole another level. This may not be the best time to travel internationally unless you have your own blimp and island. There are other things that you can do for fun over this Holiday Season. And you could always mail Santa a package.
INDIANAPOLIS The Indiana Department of Health reported 3,005 new positive coronavirus cases and three additional deaths in its latest update.
The agencys dashboard puts the states 7-day all-test positivity rate at 14.2% with a rate of 26.1% positive for unique individuals. The delta variant was responsible for 96.1% of samples tested this month, according to state data.
Dashboard data represents cases and deaths that occurred over a range of dates but were reported to the state in the last 24 hours, according to the Indiana Department of Health.
The agency said 13,004 additional Hoosiers are now fully vaccinated. To date, 3,548,714 first doses of the two-dose vaccine have been administered and 3,501,249 individuals are fully vaccinated.
The County Metric map shows 46 in Red, 45 in Orange, 1 in Yellow, and zero in Blue. The map is updated each Wednesday.
The weekly score is determined by each countys Weekly Cases Per 100,000 residents and its 7-Day All Test Positivity Rate.
Since the start of the pandemic, the state has reported 1,162,284 total positive cases and 17,471 total deaths. There are also 613 probable COVID-19 deaths.
The latest hospitalization numbers show 2,934 total COVID-19 patients: 2,672 confirmed and 262 under investigation.
The department says 18.8% of ICU beds and 67.9% of ventilators are available across the state.
To schedule an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine, visitOurshot.In.Govor call 211 if you do not have access to a computer or require assistance.
KINGSTON, N.Y. Free COVID-19 test kits will be distributed in Midtown on Tuesday, Dec. 14, an Ulster County official said this week.
Assistant Deputy County Executive Daniel Torres said Monday that 1,000 test kits will be given out between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. at the Andrey Murphy IIII Midtown Neighborhood Center, 467 Broadway.
The county has received 33,000 COVID-19 test kits as part of Ulster County Executive Pat Ryans state of emergency declaration. Further distribution information is expected to be announced Tuesday, Torres said.
Last week, Ryan said during a Facebook live stream event Thursday said that under the countys state of emergency, 33,000 rapid test kits were to be delivered this week.
The free kits contain two swabs each.
Here are local COVID-19 statistics:
Active cases
Ulster County: 1,283, up from 1,241 reported for Dec. 11; 1,154 for Dec. 10; and 1,047 for Dec. 9.
Dutchess County: 1467, down from 1,484 the previous day but up from 1,434 the day before that.
Pandemic History
Ulster County: 22,232 confirmed cases, 20,742 recoveries; and 307 deaths. (No new deaths reported Monday).
Dutchess County: 39,561 confirmed cases and 37,559 recoveries, 55 residents hospitalized, and two new death, making the total 519.
Latest positivity rates
Ulster County: 5.1%.
Dutchess County: 5.72%
Vaccination rates
Data as of Sunday from theNew York states online vaccine tracker:
Ulster County: 69.5% fully vaccinated, 77% with at least one dose of a two-dose regimen, 85.9% of 18+ population with at least one dose.
Dutchess County: 63.9% fully vaccinated, 71.8% with at least one dose of a two-dose regimen, 81.1% of 18+ population with at least one dose.
Appointments:vaccinateulster.com,bit.ly/dut-vax,bit.ly/ny-vaxme.
For online local coverage related to the coronavirus, go todailyfreeman.com/tag/coronavirus.
Florida added 12,984 new cases of coronavirus over the last week, with 2,576 of those in the greater Tampa Bay area.
The state's COVID-19 death toll now stands at 62,026, up 325 from a week earlier.
The health department reported 122,513 more Floridians were vaccinated in the week ending Thursday.
More than 185,000 Florida children about 11 percent of the almost 1.7 million 5-11 year old's in the state have received a shot since the Pfizer vaccine was approved for them in November.
The following is a summary from Dec.2 - Dec. 9, 2021.
Cases: 3,710,507 positive cases, an increase of 12,984 from the previous week.
Vaccinations: 14,540,602 Florida residents have been vaccinated, a weekly increase of 122,513. In all, 70% of Floridas population over the age of five has received at least one dose of vaccine.
Positivity Rate: The positivity rate for new cases was 2.6%, .1% higher than the previous week, but the same as the week before that.
Deaths: A total of 62,026 Florida residents have died from a primary diagnosis of COVID-19, an increase of 325 from the previous week.
(NOTE: Cases and deaths in the report may have happened days or weeks earlier, according to state officials. The state is also now only counting deaths involving Florida residents.)
County Breakdown:
(Dec.2-Dec. 9, 2021)
* - Vaccination rate now includes children ages 5-11 years old.
ABOUT THE DATA: As of June 4, 2021, the Florida Department of Healthno longer offers daily updateson coronavirus data, and instead issues a county-by-county and statewideweekly breakdownon about COVID-19 cases, deaths, and other information. Cases and deaths in the report may have happened days or weeks earlier, according to state officials. The state is also now only counting deaths involving Florida residents.
The success of the vaccination program in the fight against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is being hampered by the virus continually mutating.
Many of the changes have little impact on the virus, but some alter how it spreads and the severity of the resulting disease. The mutations may also alter the performance of vaccines.
The World Health Organization (WHO) tracks all SARS-CoV-2 variants. The organization adds them to its list of variants of concern if they do any of the following:
The current list includes the Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351), Gamma (P.1), Delta (B.1.617.2), and Omicron (B.1.1.529) variants.
A recent study conducted at the University of Nottingham, in the United Kingdom, looked at the infection performance of theAlpha, Beta, and Delta variants in cell cultures.
The researchers studied the variants individually and together to understand what happens if a person contracts two variants at the same time which is called coinfection.
The team also investigated the performance of thapsigargin, which the authors call a recently discovered, broad-spectrum antiviral.
The results appear in the journal Virulence.
The researchers found that the Delta variant replicated and spread between cells the quickest. It replicated four times faster than the Alpha variant and nine times faster than the Beta variant.
During coinfection, the Delta variant boosted the replication of both the Alpha and Beta variants. Replication was also quicker during coinfection with the Alpha and Delta or Alpha and Beta variants, compared with the sum of the individual replication rates.
Reports of breakthrough infections in fully vaccinated people highlight that vaccines cannot guarantee safety from a constantly changing target and that extra treatments are needed.
Antiviral drugs and similar medications can help the body fight off viruses, shorten the duration of viral infections, and reduce the symptoms of these illnesses.
According to the U.K.s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, certain antivirals are safe and effective at reducing the risk of severe COVID-19 in at-risk people.
Antivirals work in different ways, depending the specific drug. The most common ways involve:
Thapsigargin is a biologically active compound found in the roots and fruits of the Mediterranean plant Thapsia Garganica, which is commonly known as deadly carrot.
Practitioners of folk medicine have used the compound for centuries to treat rheumatic pain, lung diseases, and infertility in females.
In an earlier study, the authors of the recent paperdemonstrated that in very small concentrations, thapsigargin blocks the replication of an early variant of SARS-CoV-2, as well as common cold and influenza viruses.
The most recent study, which was led by Kin-Chow Chang, a professor of veterinary molecular medicine at the university, investigated whether TG could block the newer SARS-CoV-2 variants.
The study showed that each variant was sensitive to the compound: A dose of thapsigargin before infection with the Alpha, Beta, or Delta blocked all of the infections in human cells. It also showed a 95% reduction in coinfection studies. Similarly, thapsigargin inhibited the replication of the variants in cells with preexisting infection.
The antiviral state induced by a single priming dose of [thapsigargin] to cells lasts several days [] even without the ongoing presence of [the compound]. By contrast, Conventional antivirals, such as molnupiravir and oseltamivir, require continuous minimum concentration levels in the body to inhibit the target virus. Prof. Chang told Medical News Today.
He noted that Producing an antiviral drug is technically much harder than producing a vaccine. This is partly because current virus-centric antivirals, which target virus sites or stages of replication, can stop working over time as the virus mutates.
However, host-centric antivirals such as thapsigargin are less susceptible to the development of virus resistance.
The take-home message of this study is that thapsigargin may be a promising alternative way to combat COVID-19. The authors conclude:
The antiviral potency of [thapsigargin] has now been extended to contemporary SARS-CoV-2 variants, including the [Delta] variant, in all combinations of single- and coinfections. We therefore submit that [thapsigargin] is potentially a truly broad-spectrum antiviral that targets a growing list of viruses.
Prof. Chang says that All research signs so far are encouraging and point to preclinical and clinical trials in the foreseeable future. Although, he explains, it is difficult to predict a time frame at this stage.
For live updates on the latest developments regarding the novel coronavirus and COVID-19, click here.
The vaccines protect against serious illness and death, Baker said during the conference to announce a COVID-19 rapid test distribution program that first targets the states hardest-hit communities. If you look at the hospitalization rates of the vaccinated and the unvaccinated in Massachusetts, if the unvaccinated got vaccinated, we drop our hospitalization rates by 50 percent.
The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations nationwide is down this year compared to last year due to the widespread availability of vaccines, Baker added.
The main reason theres so far fewer people in the hospital this year than there were last year, with the presence of Delta and all that comes with it, is because of the vaccines, he said.
COVID-19 hospitalizations have been rising in Massachusetts since about mid-November. State data show that from September until mid-November, the number of COVID-19 patients in the hospital hovered around the 500 to 600 range. That number has been steadily rising since about Nov. 12, when the number of COVID-19 patients in Massachusetts hospitals stood at 539. According to data released Friday, 1,238 people were in Massachusetts hospitals for COVID-19.
The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations this year is still fewer than last year. On Dec. 9, 2020, 1,607 people were hospitalized.
The rise in hospitalizations has coincided with an increase in the number of vaccinated people hospitalized with COVID-19. The number of breakthrough hospitalizations began rising around the same time as total COVID-19 hospitalizations, according to state data, with 216 fully vaccinated people hospitalized with COVID on Nov. 12 and 411 people hospitalized as of Fridays report.
While the number of breakthrough hospitalizations has been rising, it has come amid a rise in total COVID-19 hospitalizations, meaning vaccinated people are not making up a larger share of hospitalizations. Data show the number of vaccinated people who are hospitalized with COVID-19 has hovered around 30 percent since the state began reporting that metric in August.
In a highly vaccinated state like Massachusetts, where 82.8 percent of adults are fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there comes a point where there is going to be an increase in the number of vaccinated people who are infected with the virus, said Dr. Shira Doron, an infectious disease physician and hospital epidemiologist at Tufts Medical Center.
If you had a population that was 100 percent vaccinated, 100 percent of your COVID hospitalizations would be vaccinated, Doron said. There is sort of a tipping point at which you are going to see even more vaccinated people in the hospital than unvaccinated.
But the level of COVID-19 circulating in Massachusetts now is extremely disappointing.
Here we are a year into our vaccination campaign. We thought that if we got to a high level of vaccination it would bring cases down, and it really hasnt, Doron said.
The state provides a weekly tally of COVID-19 breakthrough cases, hospitalizations, and deaths and calculates breakthrough rates from the total number of those in Massachusetts who are fully vaccinated.
By that metric, the hospitalization rate of fully vaccinated people in Massachusetts is 0.05 percent, because a total of 2,716 vaccinated people have been hospitalized in Massachusetts since shots began being administered, out of the more than 4.9 million people who were fully vaccinated as of the date the data was compiled.
Last week, the state reported its highest single-week total of breakthrough COVID-19 infections, with 11,321 new cases for a total of 88,968 since the start of the vaccination campaign, accounting for 1.8 percent of all fully vaccinated people. The state also reported 61 more deaths last week, raising the total of breakthrough deaths to 647, or 0.01 percent of those who are vaccinated.
At Tufts Medical Center Monday, 10 of the hospitals 30 total COVID-19 patients were vaccinated against the virus, a spokesman said. Of the 11 COVID-19 patients in the ICU, three were inoculated.
On Monday at UMass Memorial Health, the largest hospital system in Massachusetts, 25 percent of all COVID patients were vaccinated, and 14 percent of ICU patients were inoculated, a spokesman said.
Dr. Paul Biddinger, medical director for emergency preparedness at Mass General Brigham, the states largest hospital system that includes Mass. General and Brigham & Womens hospitals in Boston, said Monday that the number of COVID-19 patients in his system who are fully vaccinated has tended to change.
Our numbers do fluctuate a bit, but about two-thirds of all of our COVID inpatients are unvaccinated, and about one-third are partially or fully vaccinated, Biddinger said in a statement.
He said most patients who are fully vaccinated and admitted are older and often have medical comorbidities that put them at higher risk of severe illness. Very few of the patients who are admitted to our hospitals are fully vaccinated patients who have had boosters. The proportion of unvaccinated patients in the ICUs is slightly higher, closer to three-quarters.
We are strongly encouraging all of our patients to get vaccinated and to receive a booster when they are eligible as one of the most important ways that they can protect themselves, he added.
Martin Finucane of the Globe Staff contributed to this report.
Amanda Kaufman can be reached at amanda.kaufman@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandakauf1. Travis Andersen can be reached at travis.andersen@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TAGlobe.
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Pauls Pasta Shop in Groton is taking a step back as COVID case numbers increase in the state and region. The restaurant will not be offering indoor dining for the time being.
Which is the hardest thing to do because this is our bread-and-butter season, said Paul Fidrych, owner of Pauls Pasta Shop. This is when you make your money to get through the winter.
Fidrych said that his employees are contending with a small Covid-19 outbreak of their own, which is creating a staffing challenge. That, coupled with the statewide spike in cases, caused Fidrych to make the decision.
We are still letting people come in to buy things. They are still able to come into the building to buy pasta, gift certificates and takeout food. I hope it keeps people safe in general, said Fidrych.
Pauls Pasta Shop will reassess after Christmas. They hope to offer indoor dining again in about two weeks, depending on the situation.
Another restaurant in the area, Groton Pizza Palace, is also contending with coronavirus challenges.
Groton Pizza Palace is closed this week while 75% of staff are sidelined by COVID or contact tracing.
Owner Jim Lampos said when two employees tested positive for the virus, he had his entire staff tested. Several more people tested positive for the virus, despite being vaccinated and wearing masks at work, Lampos said.
Its a pretty big hit, but not much we can do about it, said Lampos. Its better to err on the side of caution, I think.
In addition to restaurants, Ledge Light Health District reports that COVID cases in the New London region are being traced to schools and day cares.
We are seeing day cares having to close for a period of time, learning disrupted for children, said Kris Magnussen, a public health nurse for Ledge Light Health District. Peoples livelihoods are at stake when that happens.
LLHD is urging people, again, to get vaccinated and boosted, if eligible. They also stress the importance of masking up.
Doctors at Lawrence and Memorial Hospital have the same message. Their COVID patient load hasnt been this high since the beginning of the year.
Most of the patients are unvaccinated or they are due for their boosters so one of the big things we are trying to get out there is boosters make a difference, said Dr. Oliver Mayorga.
Lampos said that at the Pizza Palace, he is the only one on his team who received a booster shot so far. He tested negative for the virus.
I would definitely encourage people to get the booster, said Lampos.
In three consecutive days, the Los Angeles Rams placed at least one starter on the COVID-19 list for a positive test. First it was Darrell Henderson Jr. on Saturday, then Rob Havenstein and Donte Deayon on Sunday. And just hours before kicking off against the Cardinals, the Rams placed Jalen Ramsey and Tyler Higbee on the list, as well.
The loss of Ramsey and Higbee was especially difficult to swallow because of how close to game time it was. The Rams had very little time to adjust, and its not as if those players are backups. Theyre critical parts of the offense and defense.
So when Sean McVay learned that the Rams wouldnt have either player, he had the same reaction as every fan in Los Angeles.
The Rams arent out of the woods yet for Week 15 because players can remain on the COVID-19 list if they continue to test positive. And McVay doesnt sound thrilled with how all of this happened, expressing concern moving forward.
To say that Im not concerned wouldnt be accurate, he said. I think you want to find out a little bit more because to my understanding, just looking at the landscape of the league, this was as bad as the outbreak has gotten. And the hard thing is for some of these guys and I dont want to get into the specifics just out of respect for the individuals but for some of them, theres no symptoms. They feel great and thats whats unfortunate. And you get some of these where theres false positives and so theres a lot of mental gymnastics that are going on, but all we can do is try to take safe precautionary measures.
Yeah, it was pretty hard to believe that even after losing three starters plus Brian Allen to a knee injury the Rams would go on to lose two more the day of the game. But they overcame the absences of those key players and secured a 30-23 victory on the road over the team with the best record in football.
It was a signature win not only for this season, but one of the best of the McVay era.
3:32 PM ET
Marcel Louis-JacquesESPN
MIAMI -- The Dolphins have all three of their running backs on the reserve/COVID-19 list this week after at least two positive tests within the position group.
Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed each tested positive for the virus, coach Brian Flores confirmed Monday, and were both placed on the reserve list this past weekend. While Flores said he didn't expect those positive results to not be isolated issues, Phillip Lindsay also tested positive Monday, and followed his backfield mates to the list.
The Dolphins were one of the more fortunate teams in the NFL in terms of dealing with COVID-19; they hadn't dealt with a positive result or close contact since Austin Jackson and Adam Shaheen went on the reserve list in Week 1.
"Per protocol, we test once a week. The guys tested today. We just follow the protocols as we normally do," Flores said shortly before Lindsay's positive result was reported. "But there's no feeling that this is that type of situation. But again, I also don't have a crystal ball here, and with everyone coming off of the bye week and kind of getting away, part of our discussion was being safe and understanding that there is still a pandemic out here. We'll follow the protocols and practice the guys who are here."
2 Related
Later Monday, the Dolphins also added rookie safety Jevon Holland to the list.
Gaskin is the team's leading rusher with 526 yards and three touchdowns on 154 attempts. He's received at least 15 touches in each of Miami's past seven games. Ahmed is the team's second-leading rusher, turning 54 attempts into 149 yards. The Dolphins recently claimed Lindsay off waivers before their Week 12 win over the Carolina Panthers, during which he ran for 42 yards on 12 carries. All three players are vaccinated and would need two negative tests 24 hours apart in order to be eligible to play in Week 15.
Miami currently sits at 6-7 and is on a five-game winning streak. It can bring its win percentage to .500 with a victory over the Jets this weekend, potentially leaving the Dolphins one game out of the AFC's final playoff spot -- a nearly inconceivable position after a seven-game losing streak left them at 1-7 in Week 9. The Dolphins were on a bye last week.
"We took the bye week to recharge the battery. I think guys were excited to be back in here today. I definitely felt that in our meetings this morning," Flores said. "The schedule is the schedule and whatever it is, it is. I don't put too much -- 'I wish it was here or I wish it was there.' It was where it was. We kind of use the bye week to heal up, to do some self-evaluation and we treated this one no differently. It's a little later in the year, but I think we come out of it trying to recharge the battery and we're anxious to get back out there."
But as the Dolphins fight for a playoff position, they may have to do so without Gaskin, Ahmed or Lindsay. Flores said they're hopeful running back Malcolm Brown returns from injured reserve this week. Flores also confirmed the team worked out running back Lamar Miller, who played for the University of Miami and was drafted by the Dolphins in 2012.
