INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) COVID-19 infection in children has skyrocketed in a matter of weeks. This is according to the latest data from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The pediatrician group says the exponential rise amounts to 240% since early July. Health experts say this is both alarming and concerning. In the latest report released by the group, the number of infections spiked from 71,036 cases to 243,373 cases. Children now make up 29% of all infections nationwide.
News 8 reached out to Dr. Christopher Doehring, vice president of medical affairs at Franciscan Health, to explain why.
Back in July the numbers were relatively low amongst children in general, Doehring said. And it was really before the pandemic delta surge really hit us. Keep in mind school started back and most school-age children are not able to get vaccinated against COVID.
Given the combination of the three the delta surge, kids back in school and not yet eligible for the shot, Doehring says hes not surprised. In fact, he thought the percentage would be higher.
However, Doehring also says its important to keep these numbers in perspective. To date, children in Indiana make up just point one percent of hospitalization in the state.
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 have passed 225.27 million globally, according to Johns Hopkins University. The number of confirmed deaths stands at more than 4.63 million. More than 5.73 billion vaccination doses have been administered globally, according to Our World in Data.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has asked New Zealanders to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as possible.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has threatened fines for cities and counties in the state that mandate employees must be vaccinated against COVID-19.
All 12- to 15-year-olds in England will be offered a COVID-19 vaccine after medical advisors said that children would benefit from reduced disruption to their education.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have warned against travel to several destinations, including Afghanistan, Serbia, Slovenia and Mauritius.
New confirmed COVID-19 cases rose at the slowest pace in nearly two weeks in Sydney, but officials said they needed to see a steady drop in daily cases before deciding whether the infection curve had flattened.
Israeli data has shown that around 1-in-10 children had symptoms that remained after recovering from COVID-19. That number dropped by more than half as the months passed, though.
The number of patients with COVID-19 in French hospitals has fallen below 10,000 for the first time since mid-August.
The Philippines' capital region will move to a system of localized lockdowns and alert levels from Thursday, the president's spokesperson announced yesterday.
Merck said yesterday that it could see potential US emergency use authorization for its experimental COVID-19 antiviral treatment - molnupiravir - before the end of 2021.
Greece will make COVID-19 booster shots available to vulnerable groups from today, Health Ministry experts have said.
Indonesia has eased COVID-19 restrictions on the tourist island of Bali, although international travelers will face stricter protocols on arrivals to help curb the spread of new variants.
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in selected countries.
Image: Our World in Data
New confirmed local COVID-19 cases have more than doubled in China's southeastern province of Fujian, health authorities have said. It has prompted officials to quickly roll out measures, including travel restrictions, to halt the spread of the virus.
The National Health Commission said 59 new locally transmitted cases were reported for Sept. 13, up from 22 infections a day earlier - all of them in Fujian.
A total of 102 community infections have been reported in three Fujian cities in just four days, including the tourism and transport hub of Xiamen - home to 5 million people.
In the city of Putian, cinemas and gyms have been closed, some entries and exits to highways have been sealed and residents told not to leave as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Each of our Top 50 social enterprise last mile responders and multi-stakeholder initiatives is working across four priority areas of need: Prevention and protection; COVID-19 treatment and relief; inclusive vaccine access; and securing livelihoods. The list was curated jointly with regional hosts Catalyst 2030s NASE and Aavishkaar Group. Their profiles can be found on www.wef.ch/lastmiletop50india.
Top Last Mile Partnership Initiatives to collaborate with:
COVID-19 vaccine booster shots are not needed for the general populations, leading scientists have said in an article published in The Lancet medical journal.
The scientists, who include two departing senior US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials and several from the World Health Organization (WHO), said more evidence was needed to justify boosters.
"Any decisions about the need for boosting or timing of boosting should be based on careful analyses of adequately controlled clinical or epidemiological data, or both, indicating a persistent and meaningful reduction in severe disease," the scientists wrote.
"Current evidence does not, therefore, appear to show a need for boosting in the general population, in which efficacy against severe disease remains high."
But, they did say that some individuals - such as the immunocompromised - could benefit from an additional dose. They also said that broader use of boosters might be needed in the future if immunity starts to wane or new variants emerge.
Written by
Joe Myers, Writer, Formative Content
The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain announced a plan on Tuesday to offer all those age 50 and older a booster vaccine as part of a winter coronavirus strategy plunging Britain into a growing debate over whether lower-income countries should get shots first.
The prime minister is taking the step to try to prevent a new surge in cases from overwhelming the National Health Service, and to avoid another lockdown in a country wearied by the pandemic and earlier measures that included some of the strictest restrictions in the world.
The additional vaccine doses will start being offered next week to older members of that group, health workers and those with underlying health conditions across Britain, with the aim of giving all those over 50 a booster shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, regardless of which vaccine an individual received previously, by the end of the year. Most people in Britain have received the two-shot vaccines of either the AstraZeneca or Pfizer vaccines. The decision follows an announcement on Monday that one vaccine shot will be offered to healthy children aged 12 to 15.
Speaking at a Downing Street media conference, Mr. Johnson hailed the vaccination campaign for producing, he said, one of the most free societies and one of the most open economies in Europe.
However the decision puts Britain among a growing group of countries that are offering booster shots to their own citizens before many people in large parts of the world have received even one dose. The World Health Organization has warned that offering booster shots in wealthy countries could divert vaccines from poorer countries that need doses, and last week called on governments not to administer boosters for healthy patients until at least the end of the year.
Im a bit upset, frankly, to hear that Britain is going into boosters, when this is simply going to take really precious vaccine away from people in other parts of the world who cant get their basic two doses, and therefore going to be at risk of death, David Nabarro, a special envoy on Covid for the World Health Organization, told Times Radio.
Despite the flurry of booster programs in wealthier nations, the science of whether they are needed by most healthy people is not yet clear.
Some studies suggest that the protection that the vaccines provide against infection and mild disease may be waning. But they remain highly effective at preventing the worst outcomes, including severe disease and death, and scientists have said that a blanket recommendation for boosters is premature.
Experts generally agree, however, that a third shot is warranted for people with compromised immune systems, who may not have mounted a strong immune response to the initial doses. W.H.O. officials are not opposed to additional doses for the immunocompromised, and several countries, including the United States, are now offering additional shots to this vulnerable group. Britain has released official advice to offer extra shots to the group as well.
In the United States, there is a roiling debate over the use of boosters for most people. The Biden administration announced a proposal in August to begin administering vaccine boosters eight months after people had received second shots, but some scientists have opposed that, saying the vaccines already protect many people against severe illness and hospitalization.
Britain is now averaging about 30,000 new coronavirus cases and about 1,000 hospital admissions each day, according to government data. And while that is significantly fewer than the 100,000 cases predicted by some experts, government officials know that another surge is possible as children return to school and the weather worsens through the fall and winter.
Officials in Britain are looking to avoid the type of restrictions that for months blocked people from seeing family and friends even in most outdoor settings, while also preventing another catastrophic winter surge like the one that pummeled the country last year.
Although the government has not ruled out another lockdown completely, it presented that as a last resort that would be considered only if England faces a new and highly transmissible variant.
When youve got a large proportion of the country, as we have now, with immunity, then smaller changes can make a bigger difference and give us the confidence that we dont need to go back to the lockdowns of the past, Mr. Johnson said.
Mr. Johnson also said that the government was preparing a plan B as a contingency in the event that cases rise significantly, as some experts fear they will in the winter months. This includes reintroducing a requirement to wear face coverings in indoor spaces and on public transportation, and advising people to work from home when possible.
On Sunday the government said it would not proceed with a vaccine passport plan that would have forced nightclubs and some other venues in England to check the status of those trying to enter. But it has kept open the option of reviving the strategy should the situation deteriorate.
Following the death of a Chicago COVID patient at the center of a debate surrounding the use of the drug ivermectin, NBC 5 is looking into treatment methods currently being used in local hospitals.
At Northwestern Medicine, Dr. Benjamin Singer says treatment is decided between the treating physician, the patient and their family.
"At Northwestern, we have a very high bar for giving medications that may be harmful," said Singer, who is the attending physician in the medical and COVID ICU at Northwestern Memorial. "Ivermectin falls very much into the category where there is no evidence that it helps people with COVID-19. Simultaneously, there is insufficient evidence that the doses that might be required are safe to use, particularly in people who are sick in the ICU."
Ivermectin is FDA approved to treat some infections caused by parasites but has not been approved for use in preventing or treating COVID-19, which is a virus caused by SARS-CoV-2.
"Just because a drug works for one condition, and may be safe in one condition, is insufficient evidence for us to use it broadly in another condition in patients who are much, much sicker with a very different disease," said Singer.
Northwestern Medicine does offer the use of monoclonal antibodies, which are laboratory-made molecules that act as substitute antibodies, under the FDA's Emergency Use Authorization.
Chicago's commissioner of public health Dr. Allsion Arwady said monoclonal antibodies are one of the best treatments available to those who qualify.
"Monoclonal antibodies are a treatment that is available very early on if someone has been infected with COVID and theyre at really severe risk for getting very sick, getting hospitalized, or even dying from COVID," Arwady said.
Rush University Medical Center, Cook County Health, Advocate Aurora Health and UI Health also currently use monoclonal antibodies to treat early illness.
All five health systems, including Northwestern, also use Remdesivir, an anti-viral medication that has been fully approved by the FDA, for patients who are hospitalized but not on life support. Steroids like Dexamethasone are used on the most severely ill patients who require a ventilator or ECMO.
"A lot of this is determined by where they are in their course of illness," said Dr. Singer.
In response to an NBC 5 request regarding the use of ivermectin and other treatment for COVID-19, Rush said it has "been developing and updating treatment guidelines since March 2020."
"When we make changes, its based on new research, data and literature search. We also use the NIH guidelines which are updated regularly," Rush continued in a statement.
Cook County Health tells NBC 5, "Ivermectin is not part of, nor has it ever been within, Cook County Healths COVID-19 treatment guidelines. Currently, there is not enough data proving it as an effective treatment option, and it has not been approved for use by the Food and Drug Administration."
Advocate Aurora Health says in part, it has "issued a prescribing alert to all physicians that reinforced the FDA, CDC, National Institutes of Health and Infectious Diseases Society of Americas recommendation against the use of ivermectin in humans for the treatment of COVID-19 infection as well as our support for physicians in denying all patient requests for ivermectin for COVID-19 infection based on evidenced-based prescribing practices."
Dr. Singer acknowledges more treatment options are needed and says current drugs may be repurposed in the future but emphasizes the need for more testing.
"In order to use them we need evidence, we need strong data they are both safe and effective," said Singer.
Many health officials agree the best treatment is still prevention.
"The best way to reduce your risk of severe disease is by getting vaccinated," said Dr. Isaac Ghinai, the Medical Director of Testing at the Chicago Department of Public Health.
SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. The University of Rhode Island has canceled a rap concert scheduled for later this week as it reassesses school guidelines for large campus events in light of surging coronavirus numbers nationwide.
The general admission show by Polo G was scheduled to take place on Friday at URI's basketball arena.
When the concert was booked in June, the outlook was that normal activities such as this concert would resume," URI said in a statement Tuesday. Unfortunately, conditions have changed and we find ourselves needing to revisit guidelines for large campus events to reduce risks of infection in our community in light of current data about COVID-19 transmission."
Ticket holders will receive a refund and the school said whether the concert will be rescheduled is subject to the future availability of Polo G, whose real name is Taurus Tremani Bartlett.
The universitys COVID-19 tracker shows 22 confirmed positive cases on campus out of 2,652 tests administered between Sept. 8 and Sept. 14.
The Jersey City school district was hit with its first confirmed coronavirus cases of the new school year after returning to full days of in-person learning just a few days ago.
Deputy Superintendent of Schools Norma Fernandez said there were confirmed cases of COVID-19 at Schools 15, 28, 23 and the Anthony Infante Early Childhood Center. She said four students, two of whom are siblings, and a staff member had caught the virus.
Fernandez said all four schools are still operational for in-person learning.
It is a very scary situation for parents we are posting something on the (schools) website to explain how the process works, Fernandez said. What we would like for parents to know is to please, if they have questions, to reach out to their (school) nurses, who are the best people to explain it for them.
If their child was a direct contact, was in the class and could be a possible contact, the nurses will reach out to them specifically. If it is a child in the building, they will just get a letter.
Fernandez said in most cases, the individuals were not in school when they had symptoms, but when contact tracing is done, they go back two days before the onset.
She could not identify specifically how the individuals were diagnosed with COVID as it is handled by the school nurse and the district nurse.
I cant speak to how, in most instances, they either came down with the symptoms or they notified the school nurse that they were sick and tested positive, Fernandez said.
Fernandez said Jersey Citys schools will only close during an outbreak, which is determined by the city health department. She said for the school building to be considered for remote learning, at least three non-related students or staff must be confirmed by a lab to be positive for the coronavirus within 14 days.
A letter went out to parents at the four schools on Sunday to notify them of the confirmed case at their childrens school.
Parents of students at some of the schools voiced their frustration on the Jersey City Public School parents Facebook page.
My issue is that parents of students in the classroom were not notified it was a student in their childs class, one parent posted. This is completely unacceptable.
Kids in the same classroom are exposed and it should be shared with every parent in the classroom, not just those in close contact because there is no way some district nurse is going to know who that child came in close contact within the classroom.
Board of Education President Mussab Ali said he understands the situation is tough for parents, but there were expectations this could and likely would happen.
I would urge people just to be a little patient, Ali said. The reality is we have 30,000 students in our district (and) the numbers are on the side that there will be a couple of cases that end up happening in our district. That is just unavoidable. There is nowhere to go where there wont be cases.
Jersey City public schools 30,000 students returned for a full day of learning for the first time since schools closed at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 on Sept. 9.
The global tally for the coronavirus-borne illness climbed above 225.8 million on Wednesday, while the death toll rose to 4.65 million, according to data aggregated by Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. continues to lead the world with a total of 41.4 million cases and 663,936 deaths. Alaska has joined Idaho in announcing one major hospital is operating under "crisis standards of care," because it is overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, the New York Times reported. In Alabama, all ICU beds are occupied, and hospitals in other southern states are also dangerously low on space. The U.S. is still recording about 1,500 deaths from COVID every day, the most since winter, and cases are averaging more than 152,000. India is second by cases after the U.S. at 33.3 million and has suffered 443,497 deaths. Brazil has second highest death toll at 587,797 and 21 million cases. In Europe, Russia has most fatalities at 191,566, followed by the U.K. at 134,774.
A total of 332 students and staff at 69 schools have been infected by the coronavirus in new school-related outbreaks, according to data released Monday, Sept. 13, by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
Last week, the state reported 30 new outbreaks at K-12 school districts. This is a 130% increase, but school has only been in session for a few weeks. For most, classes began after Labor Day.
New coronavirus cases, however, continue to rise in the state and health officials worry about children, largely unvaccinated, returning to schools, where they remain for hours in close quarters and in some districts, are unmasked.
The biggest new outbreaks involve 25 students at Northwood University in Midland and 21 students at South Christian High School in Byron Center, near Grand Rapids.
Outbreaks were identified in 28 counties. Below are the outbreaks listed by county.
A cumulative total of 548 individuals have been sickened in 42 ongoing outbreaks, the Monday report says. Ongoing outbreaks include clusters identified earlier, but that had at least one additional case in the past 28 days.
Most of those ongoing outbreaks are associated with K-12 schools, but most of the cases are from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where 283 students and staff have been infected this fall. There are also ongoing cases at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, where 21 students and staff have tested positive, an outbreak affecting 12 students at Adrian College, and two outbreaks involving a total of eight people at Northern Michigan University in Marquette.
Among K-12 schools, there were 224 staff and students infected in ongoing outbreaks at 37 schools serving pre-K through high school.
The latest list includes buildings with at least one case in the past 28 days.
The largest ongoing outbreaks in K-12 schools are: 30 students and staff at Adams Elementary School in Midland; 16 students and staff at Gladwin Elementary School; 14 students at Renaissance High School in Detroit; 14 students and staff at Howell High School; and 13 students and staff at Ionia Middle School.
Outbreak data for K-12 schools includes only cases in which the student or staff was infected at school or at a school-related function. Those who caught the virus outside of school are not included.
A COVID-19 outbreak is defined as two or more cases with a link by place and time indicating a shared exposure outside of a household.
Below is an online database that allows readers to search outbreak data by school name or by city or county. The number of those infected is a cumulative total since the original outbreak. (Note: Washtenaw County only reports cumulative totals for the past 28 days.)
Cant see the database above? Click here.
Below is an interactive map showing both new and ongoing outbreaks listed in the Monday, April 26, report. It shows outbreaks reported as of April 15. You can put your cursor over a dot to see the underlying data.
Cant see the map? Click here.
The state includes this disclaimer with the data: This information does not provide a complete picture of school-related outbreaks in Michigan and the absence of identified outbreaks in an educational institution in no way provides evidence that, in fact, that school is not experiencing an outbreak.
For more statewide data, visit MLives coronavirus data page, here. To find a testing site near you, check out the states online test finder, here, send an email to COVID19@michigan.gov, or call 888-535-6136 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.
Tennessee has the most coronavirus infections of all U.S. states in the past sevendays and over the entire pandemic when adjusted for population, according to data compiled by The New York Times.
The grim milestone is one of many Tennessee has unfortunately been a part of since confirming its first COVID-19 case over 18months ago. This includes last December, when Tennessee was classified by some accounts as the epicenter ofCOVID-19 in the United States.
Tennesseeaveragedover 8,300 new infections each day over the last seven days and has seen a totalof 1.15 million cases since the pandemic began, as of Monday. When adjusting these numbers on a per population basis, Tennessee has surpassed states like North Dakota and Florida in total cases during the COVID-19 pandemic for the time being.
The coronavirus has killed 14,010 or about 1 out of every 500 Tennesseans and is averaging 41new deaths per day for the past seven days. At the current rate, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention forecast model predicts Tennessee will surpass 15,000 deaths in the next three or four weeks.
The state's average positivity rate for the past seven days fell on Friday below 20% for the first since Sept. 1. The rate of 19.2% still suggests many COVID-19 infections are going undetected.
Hospital data collected by the Tennessee Department of Health shows a slight drop in those hospitalized by the virus. Around 3,700 Tennesseans were hospitalized because of COVID-19, about 140less than a peak three days prior.
Nashville cases: About 56.5% of COVID-19 cases occurring in Metro Nashville middle and high schools
COVID in schools: Tennessee education advocates, clergy call for state leaders to do more to control spread of COVID-19 in schools
Around 51% of Tennesseans have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Over the past week, the number of shots given has decreased to about 8,100 new people receiving the vaccine each day. For most of August and September, over 10,000 Tennesseans were getting vaccinated eachday.
An executive order signed by President Joe Bidenmandatesbusinesses with more than 100 employees must require vaccination or weekly COVID-19 testing. ButGov. Bill Lee has vowed to fight the mandate, calling it unconstitutional.
The number of new vaccinations is still higher than the state's previous low of less than 4,000 new doses given each day in mid-July.
Brett Kelman contributed to this report.
Adam Friedman is The Tennesseans evening reportercoveringbreaking news, crime, cops and a little bit of everything else. If you have a news tip, he wants it. Email himat afriedman@tennessean.com or call him at 731-431-8517.
WASHINGTONPresident Biden met Wednesday with executives from companies including Walt Disney Co. , Microsoft Corp. and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. to advance his Covid-19 vaccination requirements for the private sector.
The White House meeting comes after a plan Mr. Biden announced last week designed to bring the coronavirus pandemic under control, which includes vaccine requirements affecting roughly 100 million workers.
