In the days before COVID-19, Id often get frustrated by the response that doctors would give when I turned up at their clinics with some infection or other: Its just a virus, theyd say.
As someone whos long been fascinated by the detective work that goes into tracing the origins and history of infections, the answer always seemed too perfunctory. Which virus was it? Where and when did this strain emerge? How many other people were getting infected with this same variant this year?
Those questions arent of much relevance to most general practitioners, because the majority of viruses simply burn themselves out as part of the teeming backdrop of endemic infections that roll around the globe each year. At some point, with rising immunity from vaccinations, infections and booster shots, COVID-19 will join that club.
Early last year, the world urgently needed to raise its sense of alarm around the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and see it as the imminent threat it was rather than a more routine infection on a par with influenza. Right now, though, the vaccinated parts of the planet need to mentally send themselves in the opposite direction. Its time to remind ourselves that, for those whove been inoculated, COVID-19 is no longer a horseman of the apocalypse but instead is gradually becoming just a virus.
Thats broadly the place that some of the countries that have advanced furthest in their vaccination programs are reaching. Israel is riding out a surge in new cases without returning to lockdowns for the vaccinated, since the vast majority of infections no longer result in serious illness.
The calls from some quarters to stop publishing daily case totals may be premature for a disease thats still killing thousands of people a day. At some point, though, when COVID-19 has passed from its current pandemic status to the endemic situation it will fade into the background.
Its hard to believe but viruses through history have flipped between endemic and pandemic status with remarkable frequency.
The Russian Flu pandemic that circled the world in the late 1970s appears to have been an unremarkable seasonal flu strain from the 1940s and 1950s, possibly released to the world anew via a laboratory accident. Yellow fever, which shaped the history of the Americas for four centuries through its devastating effects on expeditionary military forces who lacked immunity, has now largely vanished from urban areas of the western hemisphere, while remaining a devastating infection in sub-Saharan Africa.
A July study in the journal Microbial Biotechnology even presented an argument that a coronavirus strain called HCoV-OC43 might have been responsible for an 1889 outbreak also known as the Russian Flu, arguably the first true modern global pandemic. That particular strain now crops up as one of the main causes of the common cold.
Were not at that stage yet. Fully vaccinated, I feel relatively sanguine about the likelihood that at some point in the years ahead I, too, will be exposed to COVID-19.
This terrible scourge will always be with us, but in a milder, less troubling form. After the trauma of the past two years, its hard to believe that well ever look upon that prospect with a sense of equanimity but thats what must ultimately happen. The moment weve beaten COVID-19 wont be when we eradicate it from the human population, but when weve reached a level of vaccinated and natural immunity where we no longer have reason to fear it. That moment will come and when it does, even this dreadful infection will be just another virus.
David Fickling is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering commodities, as well as industrial and consumer companies. 2021 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com/opinion. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
It's a sobering toll that comes as hospitals in the US are struggling to keep up with the volume of patients and more children are grappling with the virus. In hopes of managing the spread and preventing more unnecessary deaths, officials are implementing mandates for vaccinations in workplaces and masking in schools.
The country averaged more than 152,300 new Covid-19 cases each day over the past week as of Tuesday -- more than 13 times than what it was on June 22, when the average was at its lowest of 2021 (11,303 daily), according to Johns Hopkins University data.
The US averaged 1,805 new Covid-19 deaths each day over a week as of Tuesday -- significantly higher than the low average of the year (218) reached July 5, according to Johns Hopkins.
With only 54% of the population fully vaccinated, the rate of people initiating vaccinations each day (more than 341,900) is a 4% drop from last week and 28% drop from a month earlier, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
Another layer of strong protection, experts say, is masking.
The CDC recommends people -- even those fully vaccinated -- wear masks indoors in areas with substantial or high community transmission. More than 99% of the population lives in a county with one of those designations.
In Ohio, where children's hospitals are overwhelmed with Covid-19 and respiratory cases, Gov. Mike DeWine is encouraging schools to issue mask mandates since the state legislature has told him it would overturn any mandate he issued.
"Reasonable people may disagree about a lot, but we can all agree that we must keep our children in the classroom so they don't fall behind and so their parents can go to work and not take time off to watch their kids at home," DeWine said.
The combination of masks and vaccinations is the way to keep children in school, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNN Tuesday.
"If you surround the kids with vaccinated people and you have everybody wear a mask, you can get a situation where the children will be relatively safe in school," Fauci told CNN's Jake Tapper.
Fight brewing over vaccine mandates
In the effort to manage the spread of the virus, many officials and experts have promoted vaccine mandates -- but others are opposing such measures.
Because the mandate does not require health care workers to receive their first dose of the vaccine until September 27, the judge's order states the temporary restraining order "does not, as a practical matter, go into effect until that date."
A hearing is scheduled for September 28.
After the ruling, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's press secretary, Hazel Crampton-Hays said in a statement that the governor is considering all legal options.
"Governor Hochul is doing everything in her power to protect New Yorkers and combat the Delta variant by increasing vaccine rates across the State," Crampton-Hays said.
In Los Angeles, despite a mandate that all city employees be inoculated against the virus, nearly a quarter of the police force is seeking an exemption, according to Mayor Eric Garcetti's office. Those who are not vaccinated will be required to show evidence of weekly testing and a negative Covid-19 result if regularly reporting to work.
By November 1, Nevada workers who serve "vulnerable populations" must show proof of vaccination under a new emergency regulation passed Tuesday.
New hires must have at least one dose by their start date and must follow through on the required vaccination schedule to remain employed. Workers are allowed to ask for a medical or religious exemption.
Booster meeting won't be a slam dunk
Unlike other meetings to discuss the vaccine, this one, with requests from Pfizer to authorize a third dose for most people, won't be a slam dunk.
"This will be much messier than in December," said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University. The FDA committee was quick to recommend authorization of vaccines made by Pfizer and rival Moderna last December.
When the FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee meets Friday, it will be presented with dueling data, some of it suggesting there's a need for boosters, but other pieces of data suggesting there is no such need.
Three separate articles published last week in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report suggest that we don't need boosters.
On the other hand, an Israeli study found that over time, the vaccines' power to keep people from getting very sick with Covid-19 diminished. Looking at illnesses in the second half of July, that study found that those who'd received their second dose of Pfizer's vaccine in March were 70% more protected against severe disease than those who received the second shot in January.
President Joe Biden announced plans last month to begin administering booster doses next week. While she wouldn't say directly if that date would be met, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said Tuesday she is hopeful about the timeline to get doses administered.
If the booster does get approved, experts will still have to wait and see how much protection is added by the third dose.
"I would hope that that would sustain us for an extended period of time, but I don't know that right now," Fauci said. "We're just going to have to do the boost, and then follow people long enough to determine what the durability of that protection is."
CNN's Ben Tinker and Deidre McPhillips, Liam Reilly, Kay Jones, Lauren Mascarenhas, Artemis Moshtaghian, Jenn Selva, Andy Rose, Elizabeth Cohen and Virginia Langmaid contributed to this report.
A positive Covid-19 test result within 72 hours of flying back to the U.S. means you're stuck in that country for a while longer.
Catching Covid-19 is not the number one worry for international travelers, according to Inmarsats Passenger Confidence Tracker 2021, the largest global survey of airline passengers since the pandemic began.
The biggest concern, held by 51% of travelers, is that they will need to quarantine in their destination. That topped the 43% of respondents who said they were anxious about catching the virus at the airport or on the plane. Other major concerns for travelers boil down to the unpredictability of travel right now, with 41% of travelers expressing worry over unpredictable border closures and more than a third (36%) citing confusing safety protocols.
Even fully vaccinated travelers are right to consider the possibility of an imposed quarantine. Since January, all travelers flying into the United States musttest negative for Covid-19 within 72 hours of enteringthe country. Inevitably, some travelers vaccinated or not test positive within the last three days of their trip.
For vaccinated travelers, the risk of getting seriously ill from Covid-19 is extremely low. But none of the Covid-19 vaccines are 100% efficacious, and a small percentage of vaccinated international travelers will inevitably become mildly infected and test positive for the illness while overseas.
To date, thousands of travelers on the tail end of a trip have received a positive test result via text or email, sometimes on the way to the airport for their flight back to the U.S..This completely upends their re-entry plans because it means delaying the return home.
A positive test result means that travelers must get retested until they receive a negative test result and, in the meantime, they must remain in their destination at their own expense, often under quarantine or isolation orders. Obviously this will add significantly to trip costs.
Rules about quarantining depends on your destination. You may be able to extend your hotel stay and self-isolate in your room, but some countries require travelers to stay in a designated quarantine hotel. Regardless of where you are, you will foot the bill for any extra days spent in your destination, including accommodations, food (likely restricted to room service) and any extra Covid tests or medical aid you may need.
Before any international trip, consult theU.S. State Departments Covid-related pagefor your destination. These pages are updated often and will cover entry and exit requirements in that country, as well as testing resources and information about potential quarantines.
Because your U.S.-based health insurance plan is unlikely to cover medical expenses abroad, it is important to buypandemic-specific travel insurancebefore leaving home. Some countries require foreign tourists to carry it.
To give themselves an extra insurance policy against becoming a breakthrough case, some fully vaccinated American travelers are finagling a third shot of the vaccine a few weeks before leaving on their trip even though theU.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has yet to green light booster shots for healthy adults and many scientists say booster shots are not necessary for most Americans.
TheCDC recommends avoiding international traveluntil you arefully vaccinated, given that the risk of getting seriously ill from Covid-19 is so much greater.
Since the March installment in this series, many countries, including the United States, Canada, and those in Western Europe, experienced a measure of relief from the COVID-19 pandemic when some locales embarked on the second-quarter transition toward normalcy that we previously discussed. This progress was enabled by rapid vaccine rollout, with most Western European countries and Canada overcoming their slower starts during the first quarter of 2021 and passing the United States in the share of the population that is fully immunized. However, even that share has been too small for them to achieve herd immunity, because of the emergence of the more transmissible and more lethal Delta variant and the persistence of vaccine hesitancy.
Among high-income countries, cases caused by the Delta variant reversed the transition toward normalcy first in the United Kingdom, where a summertime surge of cases led authorities to delay lifting public-health restrictions, and more recently in the United States and elsewhere. The Delta variant increases the short-term burden of disease, causing more cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. Deltas high transmissibility also makes herd immunity harder to achieve: a larger fraction of a given population must be immune to keep Delta from spreading within that population (see sidebar, Understanding the Delta variant). Our own analysis supports the view of others that the Delta variant has effectively moved herd immunity out of reach in most countries for now, although some regions may come close to it.
While the vaccines used in Western countries remain highly effective at preventing severe disease due to COVID-19, recent data from Israel, the United Kingdom, and the United States have raised new questions about the ability of these vaccines to prevent infection from the Delta variant. Serial blood tests suggest that immunity may wane relatively quickly. This has prompted some high-income countries to start offering booster doses to high-risk populations or planning for their rollout. Data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also suggest that vaccinated people who become infected with the Delta variant may transmit it efficiently.
These events and findings have raised new questions about when the pandemic will end. The United Kingdoms experience nevertheless suggests that once a country has weathered a Delta-driven wave of cases, it may be able to relax public-health measures and resume the transition toward normalcy. Beyond that, a more realistic epidemiological endpoint might arrive not when herd immunity is achieved but when countries are able to control the burden of COVID-19 enough that it can be managed as an endemic disease. The biggest risk to a countrys ability to do this would likely then be the emergence of a new variant that is more transmissible, more liable to cause hospitalizations and deaths, or more capable of infecting people who have been vaccinated.
Raising vaccination rates will be essential to achieving a transition toward normalcy. Vaccine hesitancy, however, has proven to be a persistent challenge, both to preventing the spread of the Delta variant and to reaching herd immunity. The US Food and Drug Administration has now fully approved Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine, and other full approvals may follow soon, which could help increase vaccination rates. Vaccines are also likely to be made available to children in the coming months, making it possible to protect a group that comprises a significant share of the population in some countries.
In this article, we review developments since our March update, offer a perspective on the situation and evidence as of this writing, and present our scenario-based analysis of when a transition toward normalcy could occur.
We have written previously about two endpoints for the COVID-19 pandemic: a transition toward normalcy, and herd immunity. The transition would gradually normalize aspects of social and economic life, with some public-health measures remaining in effect as people gradually resume prepandemic activities. Many high-income countries did begin such a transition toward normalcy during the second quarter of this year, only to be hit with a new wave of cases caused by the Delta variant and exacerbated by vaccine hesitancy.
Indeed, our scenario analysis suggests that the United States, Canada, and many European countries would likely have reached herd immunity by now if they had faced only the ancestral SARS-CoV-2 virus and if a high percentage of those eligible to receive the vaccine had chosen to take it. But as the more infectious Delta variant becomes more prevalent within a population, more people within that population must be vaccinated before herd immunity can be achieved (Exhibit 1).
The potential levels of herd immunity across the world.
Image: Mckinsey and Company
Vaccine hesitancy makes it all the more difficult to reach the population-wide vaccination level rates that confer herd immunity. Researchers are learning more about differences among individuals attitudes, which include both cautious and unlikely to be vaccinated. Meanwhile, social tolerance for vaccination incentives and mandates appears to be growing, with more European locations adopting vaccination passes and more large employers in the United States implementing vaccine mandates.
While it now appears unlikely that large countries will reach overall herd immunity (though some areas might), developments in the United Kingdom during the past few months may help illustrate the prospects for Western countries to transition back toward normalcy. Having suffered a wave of cases caused by the Delta variant during June and the first few weeks of July, the country delayed plans to ease many public-health restrictions and eventually did so on July 19, though expansive testing and genomic surveillance remain in place. UK case counts may fluctuate and targeted public-health measures may be reinstated, but our scenario analysis suggests that the countrys renewed transition toward normalcy is likely to continue unless a significant new variant emerges.
The United States, Canada, and much of the European Union are now in the throes of a Delta-driven wave of cases. While each countrys situation is different, most have again enacted public-health restrictions, thus reversing their transitions toward normalcy. The trajectory of the epidemic remains uncertain, but the United Kingdoms experience and estimates of total immunity suggest that many of these countries are likely to see new cases peak late in the third quarter or early in the fourth quarter of 2021. As cases decline, our analysis suggests that the United States, Canada, and the European Union could restart the transition toward normalcy as early as the fourth quarter of 2021, provided that the vaccines used in these countries continue to be effective at preventing severe cases of COVID-19. Allowing for the risk of another new variant and the compound societal risk of a high burden of influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, and other winter respiratory diseases, the question for these countries will be whether they manage to arrive at a different epidemiological endpoint, as we discuss next.
We have previously written about herd immunity as a likely epidemiological endpoint for some countries, but the Delta variant has put this out of reach in the short term. Instead, it is most likely as of now that countries will reach an alternative epidemiological endpoint, where COVID-19 becomes endemic and societies decidemuch as they have with respect to influenza and other diseasesthat the ongoing burden of disease is low enough that COVID-19 can be managed as a constant threat rather than an exceptional one requiring society-defining interventions. One step toward this endpoint could be shifting the focus of public-health efforts from managing case counts to managing severe illnesses and deaths. Singapores government has announced that it will make this shift, and more countries may follow its lead.
Other authors have compared the burden of COVID-19 with that of other diseases, such as influenza, as a way to understand when endemicity might occur. In the United States, COVID-19 hospitalization and mortality rates in June and July were nearing the ten-year average rates for influenza but have since risen. Today, the burden of disease caused by COVID-19 in vaccinated people in the United States is similar to or lower than the average burden of influenza over the last decade, while the risks from COVID-19 to unvaccinated people are significantly higher (Exhibit 2). This comparison should be qualified, insofar as the burden of COVID-19 is dynamic, currently increasing, and uneven geographically. It nevertheless helps illustrate the relative threat posed by the two diseases.
A look at the hospitalisations and deaths due to COVID-19.
Image: Mckinsey and Company
Countries experiencing a Delta-driven wave of cases may be more likely to begin managing COVID-19 as an endemic disease after cases go into decline. The United Kingdom appears to be making this shift now (though cases there were increasing as of this writing). For the United States and the European Union, scenario analysis suggests that the shift may begin in the fourth quarter of 2021 and continue into early 2022 (Exhibit 3). As it progresses, countries would likely achieve high levels of protection against hospitalization and death as a result of further vaccination efforts (which may be accelerated by fear of the Delta variant) and natural immunity from prior infection. In addition, boosters, full approval of vaccines (rather than emergency-use authorization), authorization of vaccines for children, and a continuation of the trend toward employer and government mandates and incentives for vaccination are all likely to increase immunity.
In 2000, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance was launched at the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, with an initial pledge of $750 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The aim of Gavi is to make vaccines more accessible and affordable for all - wherever people live in the world.
Along with saving an estimated 10 million lives worldwide in less than 20 years,through the vaccination of nearly 700 million children, - Gavi has most recently ensured a life-saving vaccine for Ebola.
At Davos 2016, we announced Gavi's partnership with Merck to make the life-saving Ebola vaccine a reality.
The Ebola vaccine is the result of years of energy and commitment from Merck; the generosity of Canadas federal government; leadership by WHO; strong support to test the vaccine from both NGOs such as MSF and the countries affected by the West Africa outbreak; and the rapid response and dedication of the DRC Minister of Health. Without these efforts, it is unlikely this vaccine would be available for several years, if at all.
Read more about the Vaccine Alliance, and how you can contribute to the improvement of access to vaccines globally - in our Impact Story.
The potential road to normalcy.
Image: Mckinsey and Company
The authors wish to thank Xavier Azcue, Marie-Rene B-Lajoie, Andrew Doy, Bruce Jia, and Roxana Pamfil for their contributions to this article. This article was edited by Josh Rosenfield, an executive editor in the New York office.
License and Republishing
World Economic Forum Type may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.
Written by
Sarun Charumilind, Partner, Mckinsey's Philadelphia office
Matt Craven, Partner, Mckinsey's Silicon Valley office
Jessica Lamb, Partner, Mckinsey's New Jersey office
Adam Sabow, Senior Partner, Mckinsey's Chicago office
Shubham Singhal, Senior Partner, Global Leader of Healthcare, Public & Social Sector practices, McKinsey & Company
Matt Wilson, Senior Partner, Mckinsey's New York office
This article is published in collaboration with McKinsey & Company.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.
"I took my parents to get that second jab, and we were all so excited," said their son, Marc Ayers. "We are a family that believes in science. We believe in masks, and we believe in vaccines. We were ready to get back to normal."
But his mother, Candace Ayers, died nearly six months later following a July trip with her husband to Mississippi. Her death certificate says she died of Covid-19.
"Candace Cay (Kruger) Ayers, 66, of Springfield, passed away on September 3, 2021, at St. John's Hospital in Springfield, IL. She was preceded in death by more than 4,531,799 others infected with Covid-19. She was vaccinated but was infected by others who chose not to be. The cost was her life."
The tally represents the total global coronavirus death toll.
"This all could have been avoided," Ayers said. "This could have been prevented by a few acts of kindness. They were in a state that had one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country. Getting a vaccine and wearing a mask for others ... had this been done, she would be here today."
Full vaccination gave relatives confidence
Because Candace had an underlying condition, her family was hesitant for her to leave town.
"My mother had severe rheumatoid arthritis. We were always the most concerned about her getting it because she was immunocompromised," Ayers said. "We were wrestling with whether they should have traveled.
"But things were looking so good, and with them being fully vaccinated, we just didn't have any thoughts of them going to Mississippi. The Delta variant was just hitting the radar. Breakthrough cases were rare at that point. Our worst nightmare came true."
The Ayers family is having a tough time processing Candace's death and wanted to try to inspire others to get a vaccine and wear a mask, Marc Ayers said. Sharing daily worldwide Covid-19 death numbers in her obituary aimed to make people take pause, he said.
"This was to illustrate that this isn't just an issue contained to the US, but it has a global impact," Ayers said. "My mom was a fighter. She kept fighting and fighting and fighting. We wanted to send a point."
The family has gotten positive and negative feedback to the obituary, he said.
"It's been really wonderful to hear from friends and strangers regarding the obituary. Because of our story," Ayers said, "people have told us they are getting vaccinated.
"Of course, there are negative comments as well, but the majority has been positive."
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the name of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It also mischaracterized breakthrough infections.
CNN's Deidre McPhillips and Aya Elamroussi contributed to this report.
The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) reports 14 new individuals in the Juneau community 13 residents and one nonresident identified with COVID-19 for September 14. DHSS also reports one nonresident death for Juneau a female in her 60s. The individual was initially diagnosed with COVID-19 in Juneau and later sought medical care outside Juneau where she eventually died. CBJ extends condolences to family members and friends of this individual.
The total number of deaths associated with Juneau is currently nine eight residents (two died out of state) and one nonresident. There arecurrentlyfour people with COVID-19 hospitalized at Bartlett Regional Hospital.
For September 13 14, The Juneau School District reports seven individuals whove tested positive for COVID-19 and were infectious while in school:
COVID-19 cases related to schools are posted on thedistrict website(click on the green COVID-19 Cases block). Find more district-related COVID-19 information atjuneauschools.org.
Juneau Public Health reports these generalized case trends for the past week:
Statewide, the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services reports691 new peopleidentified with COVID-19 676 are residents and 15 are nonresidents. The state also reports seven deaths six residents and one nonresident bringing the total number of resident deaths to 451 and nonresident deaths to 15. Alaska has had 93,039 cumulative resident cases of COVID-19 and a total of 4,287 nonresidents.
Juneau vaccine update:
For more information, read CBJs Emergency Operations Center Reportshere.
by: Russell Falcon, Nexstar Media Wire
FILE Person applying betadine on wounds of her daughters leg. (Photo: Getty Images)
(KXAN) Following the surge of and use of parasite treatment ivermectin as an unproven and non-FDA-approved COVID-19 treatment, another drug is reportedly being misused as a coronavirus therapeutic.
Its called Betadine. While its a common topical antiseptic, the iodine is not intended to be ingested. However, thats not stopping people from doing it, Forbes reports. Claims of its use are also surfacing on social media, despite, as with ivermectin, little-to-no evidence Betadine and its generic form treat COVID-19.
Betadine is approved for cleaning skin wounds and sometimes for douching. A drug store product with a 0.5% solution is intended as a sore throat gargle, and a 10% solution is also sold for skin cleaning. Neither product is intended to be swallowed.
Forbes explains that while some studies of Betadine for COVID-19 treatment exist, the findings come with some critical asterisks. One Rutgers University study tested generic povidone iodine for COVID-19 treatment and while some potential benefits exist, the results were found in an artificial environment and were found to have damaging effects on skin cells. Another 2020 study found some potential benefits, but researchers of both studies say more research is needed.
Avrio Health, Betadines manufacturer, released guidelines for Betadine use, saying its products have not been approved to treat coronavirus and should only be used to help prevent infection in minor cuts, scrapes and burns.
Betadine Antiseptic products have not been demonstrated to be effective for the treatment or prevention of COVID-19 or any other viruses, Avrio Health said.
Avrio says its warnings apply to both its topical and throat-gargle products. The company says those who ingest more than a small amount should call a Poison Control Center immediately. Infectious disease specialist Judy Stone says symptoms of Betadine or povidone iodine poisoning include vomiting, diarrhea, kidney failure, acidosis and even death.
The Centers for Disease Control urges Americans that the currently available COVID-19 vaccines Pfizer (now fully FDA-approved), Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson are safe and effective. While vaccines do not guarantee you wont become infected with COVID-19, they have significant real-world data confirming they prevent severe illness and hospitalization.
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) Studies show both hybrid immunity and superhuman immunity are ways in which our bodies may have extra fighting power against COVID-19.
Experts say theyve heard the terms used interchangeably, but theyre a little bit different.
Hybrid immunity, is when someone has had COVID-19 and the vaccine.
It provides people with antibodies from both.
Superhuman immunity starts off the same way, but that some people with particular genetics can develop even more immunity.
There are some of us that have this super ability to be able to recover from infections, COVID being one of them, a little better than the general population, said Archana Narayan, and Immunologist with North Texas Allergy & Asthma Associates.
Experts say its a rare phenomenon.
Its a descriptive term for an individual to generate very high amounts of neutralizing antibodies, Dr. Mohanakrishnan Sathyamoorthy, Chair of Internal Medicine, TCU and UNTHSC.
Studies show that some folks may have hit the genetic jackpot, meaning their bodies can develop very high levels antibodies that neutralize the virus.
They are also capable of fighting off present and future variants of COVID-19.
They say theres no specific clinical test you can take to determine if someone has super human immunity, other than a regular antibody test to assess ones general immunity, if recommended by a doctor.
Other than that, they say the best bet is to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
If youve been infected then you can take comfort in knowing on top of that infection, you can boost your immune response with a vaccine. You can create a level of immune response thats remarkable, Dr. Mohanakrishnan said.
Watch news conference livestream here beginning at 2 p.m.
by: Chris McKee
A new study from the CDC looking at more than half a million people has come to the conclusion that COVID vaccines remain effective. (Joel CarrettAAP Image viaAP)
NEW MEXICO(KRQE) One week after state health officials noted an apparent deceleration in the number of new COVID-19 cases in New Mexico, officials are expected to update the latest case trends during a news conference Tuesday afternoon. KRQE News 13 will live stream the briefing on this page, with coverage beginning around 2 p.m.
The latest weekly report on New Mexicos COVID-19 trends comes amid a summer where the state has seen a surge of new cases across July and August. Just last month, health officials expressed concern about the summer 2021 spike looking similar to the states worst COVID-19 spike in late 2020.
During an August 11 news conference, New Mexico Department of Healths Epidemiologist Christine Ross said the increase in cases at the time looked similar to what (the state) saw prior to (New Mexicos) worst surge to date in the winter. At the time, case counts were 10 times higher than they were the first week of July, according to state data.
However, since then, the state has seen a deceleration in the number of new COVID-19 cases. According to data posted on the states COVID-19 dashboard, as of September 10, the 7-day average of new COVID-19 cases in New Mexico had dropped to 382 new cases a day. On August 25, the states 7-day average appeared to spike at 862 new cases a day.
On Tuesday, Sept. 14, New Mexico announced 749 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the states total to 242,399 cases. Twelve additional deaths were announced.
New Mexicos Acting Department of Health Secretary and Department of Human Services Dr. David Scrase is expected to participate in Wednesdays news conference, alongside the states Public Education Secretary-designate Dr. Kurt Steinhaus. NMDOH Deputy Secretary Dr. Laura Parajon is also expected to join the conversation.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:Sept. 15, 2021
COLUMBIA, S.C. Today, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) is updating its online reporting of COVID-19 Associated with Students & Staff to help parents, caregivers and school officials have additional data about COVID-19s impact on schools.
DHEC has been working with the S.C. Department of Education to implement a new weekly reporting tool for schools and districts that captures how many students and staff were in quarantine and isolation the previous week due to COVID-19. Beginning today, DHECs school cases dashboard will be archived and replaced with a new weekly report for K-12 public, private, and charter schools that provides COVID-19 numbers as reported directly from our states schools. This updated reporting includes the number of students and school staff who are isolated meaning they are a positive COVID-19 case and the number who are quarantined meaning they are close contacts. The cumulative number of individuals quarantined and isolated since the start of the 2021-2022 school year will also be included.We appreciate the ongoing support and dedication of our school officials, teachers and school employees around the state during these challenging, stressful and emotional times, said Dr. Brannon Traxler, DHEC Public Health Director. We know that school officials consider many factors when they make decisions about classroom instruction, and we hope that including quarantine and isolation numbers in our statewide school reporting will provide an additional data set for informing school officials, as well as students, parents and caregivers, about the current status of COVID-19s effect on our schools.
While DHECs previous school cases dashboard was updated Tuesdays and Fridays, the webpage will now be updated once a week, on Wednesdays, with this expanded school reporting. DHEC sends this new quarantine and isolation survey to schools at 7 a.m. on Fridays, and schools need to report that information back to DHEC by noon on Tuesdays in order for it to be represented on the agencys webpage on Wednesdays. An NR in the reporting means a school did not report information to the agency on time.
As we work with all charter, public and private schools in the state to implement this new weekly reporting tool, the isolation and quarantine information may be incomplete initially, since the information is coming directly from our states schools, said Dr. Traxler. If your schools data isnt included in our DHEC reporting, please reach out and encourage your school to participate in this important public health effort.
While school officials, not DHEC, determine whether a school should operate in-person or virtually, DHEC's regional epidemiology teams provide the most current guidance and other information as requested so school officials can make the most informed decisions possible, in the best interest of the health and wellbeing of their students and staff.
DHEC public health officials continue to strongly urge all eligible South Carolinians to get vaccinated as soon as possible to not only protect themselves, but to protect children under the age of 12 who cant get vaccinated and are vulnerable to COVID-19 and its variants. Masks should also be worn by students, teachers, visitors, and everyone whos in a school setting or on a bus.
DHECs 2021-2022 interim school guidance is available for everyone here.
###
