U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Selected Adverse Events Reported after COVID-19 Vaccination," July 21, 2021
The Associated Press, "Conservative media offers mixed messages on COVID-19 vaccine," July 21, 2021
The University of Pennsylvania Annenberg Public Policy Center, "Public Trust in CDC, FDA, and Fauci Holds Steady, Survey Shows," July 20, 2021
Media Matters for America, "Despite Facebook's COVID-19 promises, anti-vaccine groups are thriving," July 20, 2021
NewsGuard, "Report for Governments and the WHO," July 20, 2021
Brendan Nyhan on Twitter, July 20, 2021
Renee DiResta on Twitter, July 18, 2021
NewsGuard, "The Top COVID-19 Vaccine Myths Spreading Online," July 13, 2021
Business Insider, "99.5% of COVID-19 deaths in the US are now in unvaccinated people, CDC head says," July 9, 2021
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Myths and Facts about COVID-19 Vaccines," July 7, 2021
Center for Countering Digital Hate, "The Disinformation Dozen," March 24, 2021
PolitiFact, "Deaths of JetBlue pilots falsely connected to COVID-19 vaccine," July 21, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, saline injections are not part of a COVID-19 vaccine plot," July 20, 2021
PolitiFact, "Instagram post misleads on door-to-door COVID-19 vaccination efforts," July 25, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, vaccines do not cause sudden infant death syndrome," July 12, 2021
PolitiFact, "Social media post misrepresents preliminary data on miscarriages and COVID-19 vaccines," July 9, 2021
PolitiFact, "No evidence of graphene oxide thats toxic in Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine," July 8, 2021
PolitiFact, "Journal discredits study it published claiming a COVID-19 vaccine causes deaths," July 2, 2021
PolitiFact, "Video of a microchip reader finding a chip in a vaccinated womans arm was posted as a joke," July 1, 2021
PolitiFact, "CDC says more young people hospitalized from vaccine than COVID-19 itself? False," June 30, 2021
PolitiFact, "No evidence for post about funeral directors seeing deaths among vaccinated people," June 29, 2021
PolitiFact, "Social media posts falsely link British Airways pilot deaths to vaccine," June 28, 2021
PolitiFact, "Scientists developing mRNA vaccines before outbreak isnt evidence COVID-19 pandemic was created," June 25, 2021
PolitiFact, "mRNA COVID-19 vaccines were tested in humans, have proven to be safe, effective," June 25, 2021
PolitiFact, "Christian Eriksen, Danish soccer player who collapsed, didnt receive the Pfizer vaccine," June 14, 2021
PolitiFact, "No proof for speculation that COVID-19 vaccine deaths will rival COVID-19 deaths," June 11, 2021
PolitiFact, "Sherri Tenpenny makes false COVID-19 vaccine magnetism claim to Ohio lawmakers," June 9, 2021
PolitiFact, "Claim about 920 miscarriages caused by COVID-19 vaccination lacks evidence," June 8, 2021
PolitiFact, "No proof for researcher claim that COVID-19 vaccines spike protein is a toxin,'" June 7, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, vaccine shedding will not give unvaccinated people natural immunity," June 1, 2021
PolitiFact, "Claim from Giuliani on Covid-19 spread wrong on every level,'" May 31, 2021
PolitiFact, "Instagram post misleads on vaccine efficacy by conflating two different measures," May 18, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, a video doesnt prove the COVID-19 vaccines allow people to be tracked through a 5G network," May 28, 2021
PolitiFact, "Theres no proof that COVID-19 vaccine has injured or killed more than 900 children," May 26, 2021
PolitiFact, "COVID-19 vaccination status doesnt impact life insurance policies," May 26, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, an Ohio doctor didnt die from the COVID-19 vaccine," May 24, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, Faucis wife didnt issue emergency use authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines," May 21, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, video doesnt prove AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine contains Bluetooth chip," May 21, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, the Moderna vaccine does not contain an ingredient thats for 'research use only,'" May 21, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, video doesnt prove AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine contains Bluetooth chip," May 21, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, HIPAA doesnt prohibit businesses from asking about your vaccination status," May 21, 2021
PolitiFact, "University of Miami researchers looked at effects of COVID-19, not vaccines," May 19, 2021
PolitiFact, "Instagram post falsely claims COVID-19 vaccines skipped all animal trials,'" May 18, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, these magnet videos dont prove the COVID-19 vaccines contain microchips," May 17, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, The Death Rate For Vaccinated People Is Not Higher Than That Of Unvaccinated People," May 10, 2021
PolitiFact, "Tucker Carlsons misleading claim about deaths after COVID-19 vaccine," May 6, 2021
PolitiFact, "Debunking the anti-vaccine hoax about vaccine shedding,'" May 6, 2021
PolitiFact, "Report that teen died 2 days after a COVID shot was unverified, isnt confirmed," May 6, 2021
PolitiFact, "Tucker Carlsons misleading claim about deaths after COVID-19 vaccine," May 6, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, Red Cross isn't warning vaccinated people not to donate blood," May 4, 2021
PolitiFact, "Federal VAERS database is a critical tool for researchers, but a breeding ground for misinformation," May 3, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, there is no evidence that spending time around vaccinated people causes death or disease," April 30, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, its not illegal for a college or employer to require a COVID vaccine," April 29, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, Bill Gates isnt fighting to keep vaccine ingredients secret. Theyre already public," April 27, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, you dont need to avoid getting pregnant after getting a COVID-19 vaccine," April 26, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, womens cycles and fertility are not affected by being around vaccinated people," April 21, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, the government doesnt use a national ID to track you after receiving COVID-19 vaccine," April 16, 2021
PolitiFact, "Tucker Carlson falsely claims COVID-19 vaccines might not work," April 15, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, Modernas chief medical officer didnt say mRNA alters DNA," April 14, 2021
PolitiFact, "Fact-checking unproven claims that rapper DMX suffered heart attack after getting COVID-19 vaccine," April 12, 2021
PolitiFact, "COVID-19 vaccines have not led to 6,000% increase in patient deaths, as post suggests," April 6, 2021
PolitiFact, "COVID-19 vaccines did not cause a 366% increase in miscarriages, as article claims," April 2, 2021
PolitiFact, "The COVID-19 vaccine is not an operating system run by Bill Gates," April 1, 2021
PolitiFact, "Instagram post overlooks FDA sign-off on COVID-19 vaccines," March 31, 2021
PolitiFact, 'No, its not safer to skip the COVID-19 vaccine to avoid permanent side effects," March 31, 2021
PolitiFact, "Yes, data shows COVID-19 vaccines are safe despite quick timeline," March 26, 2021
PolitiFact, "The COVID-19 vaccines do not contain aluminum," March 22, 2021
PolitiFact, "Claim blaming COVID vaccine for Hank Aaron, Marvin Hagler deaths lacks evidence," March 16, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, COVID-19 vaccines do not contain nanoparticles that will allow you to be tracked via 5G networks," March 12, 2021
PolitiFact, "No, Biden didnt promote mandatory COVID-19 vaccines in primetime address," March 12, 2021
PolitiFact, "Misleading video suggests Dr. Anthony Fauci said vaccines dont protect people from COVID-19," March 8, 2021
PolitiFact, "COVID-19 vaccine does not cause death, autoimmune diseases," March 4, 2021
PolitiFact, "The coronavirus vaccine doesnt cause Alzheimers, ALS," Feb. 26, 2021
PolitiFact, "Receiving COVID-19 vaccine does not enroll you in a government tracking system or medical experiment," Feb. 26, 2021
PolitiFact, "Deaths after vaccination dont prove that COVID-19 vaccine is lethal," Feb. 16, 2021
PolitiFact, "No evidence that the COVID-19 vaccine caused Hank Aarons death," Jan. 26, 2021
PolitiFact, "Norway deaths after COVID-19 shot were among very frail elderly, not proved to be caused by vaccine," Jan. 19, 2021
PolitiFact, "COVID-19 vaccines dont use experimental technology, dont track humans," Jan. 4, 2021
PolitiFact, "Anti-vaccine video of fainting nurse lacks context," Dec. 21, 2020
PolitiFact, "No, the new coronavirus vaccines are not more dangerous than COVID-19," Dec. 18, 2020
PolitiFact, "No, chip on COVID-19 vaccine syringes would not be injected or track people," Dec. 25, 2021
PolitiFact, "Biden did not confirm or support an agenda to microchip Americans," Dec. 11, 2020
PolitiFact, "Social media post falsely claims a federal law would require vaccination against COVID-19," Dec. 11, 2020
PolitiFact, "Two vaccine trial participants died, but the FDA didnt connect their deaths to the vaccine," Dec. 11, 2020
PolitiFact, "No, Pfizers head of research didnt say the COVID-19 vaccine will make women infertile," Dec. 10, 2020
PolitiFact, "No, COVID-19 vaccines wont alter your DNA and control you," Nov. 18, 2020
PolitiFact, "The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine does not contain aborted fetal tissue," Nov. 18, 2020
PolitiFact, "Bill Gates didnt say this about COVID-19 vaccines," Aug. 4, 2020
PolitiFact, "Theres no plot to microchip people during COVID-19 tests," May 28, 2020
PolitiFact, "No, the Gates Foundation isnt pushing microchips with all medical procedures," May 20, 2020
PolitiFact, "Blog post wrong on what Bill Gates said about COVID-19 vaccine," May 20, 2020
PolitiFact, "Bill Gates did not say a COVID-19 vaccine could kill nearly 1 million people," May 19, 2020
PolitiFact, "No, Democrats arent pushing microchips to fight coronavirus," April 21, 2020
PolitiFact, "Facebook posts falsely claim Dr. Fauci has millions invested in a coronavirus vaccine," April 15, 2020
PolitiFact, "Post about Bill Gates work on vaccine tracking distorts research, timeline," April 9, 2020
PolitiFact, "No, the US isnt developing a vaccine or antivirus with a chip to track people," April 3, 2020
Email interview with Imran Ahmed, CEO of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, July 20, 2021
Email interview with Jennifer Granston, Chief Customer Officer and Head of Insights at Zignal Labs, July 20, 2021
Phone interview with John Gregory, senior analyst and deputy health editor for NewsGuard, July 20, 2021
Nashville radio talk show host Phil Valentine remains hospitalized in critical condition with COVID-19 more than two weeks after being admitted for the disease.
Valentine who broadcasts on SuperTalk 99.7 WTN was known for his COVID-19 vaccine skepticism.
"What are my odds of getting COVID? They're pretty low, he wrote on his blog. What are my odds of dying from COVID if I do get it? Probably way less than 1%."
He added: Im not an anti-vaxxer. Im just using common sense.
Now Phil Valentine wants people to know that he was wrong and that he should have taken the vaccine. He wants others to reconsider their thoughts on vaccines.
Because Phil Valentine is struggling to breathe, Mark Valentine has been speaking on his brothers behalf. Workers often reposition the radio host, who is still extremely sick, so fluid doesnt collect in his lungs, Mark Valentine says.
We're in for the long haul, it looks like. It's just a bad time, his brother says, and he wishes he could do it over.
The 61-year-old believed he was in a group that didnt need the vaccine. But the virus doesnt discriminate: Young and healthy people can still get sick and end up in the hospital from the disease.
The radio host believed he would be back at his job within a few days of first getting the virus. Instead, he was very close to death at several points when his oxygen levels dropped, his brother says. While Phil Valentine has been communicative, health care workers have encouraged him to sleep as much as possible to save strength, Mark Valentine says.
A lot of people didn't get the vaccine because I didn't get the vaccine, the radio talk show host told his brother. Now Mark Valentine is on a mission to spread Phil Valentines new view on COVID-19 vaccines.
That's my purpose for being here today, is to take the message that he's unable to take, and that is: Take politics out of it. It's time for us to get together and fight this thing collectively, he says. Just put all the conspiracies and microchips and all that business aside and go get vaccinated and don't put your family through what his wife and the rest of us are going through.
Mark Valentine understands theres a chance his brother could die. And while he cant change whats already happened to his loved one, he says Phil Valentines message has inspired others to get the shot.
Mark Valentine says hes heard from dozens of Phil Valentines listeners who say they received the vaccine because of his brothers dire situation including Mark Valentine himself. He went to Wal-Mart and got inoculated after seeing what his brother was going through.
Americans can disagree on a lot of issues, Mark Valentine says, but politics aside, his family firmly believes that vaccines can save lives. When Phil Valentine is back on air, Mark Valentine says his brother will double down on that message.
Phil will be the most pro-vaccine person you've ever seen as soon as he's able to be, he says.
Karyn Miller-Medzonproduced and edited this interview for broadcast withChris Bentley. Serena McMahonadapted it for the web.
"I think we will see this big, steep acceleration," Dr. Peter Hotez, co-director for the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Children's Hospital, said to CNN's Anderson Cooper on Friday. "As bad as things are right now in the South, they are about to get worse for lots of unvaccinated individuals." Officials in Southern states, where vaccination rates have generally lagged other parts of the country, are working to get the message out. In Florida, Covid-19 cases have jumped 50% over the last week, according to state health data.
In Georgia, the case rate has more than tripled over the last 14-day period, the state Department of Public Health announced Friday as it urged residents to get vaccinated since the Delta variant is more transmissible than earlier Covid-19 strains.
"Unfortunately, we can expect Covid numbers to keep growing. People who are unvaccinated or skip their second dose of vaccine are targets for infection," said Georgia health commissioner Dr. Kathleen E. Toomey.
Entering the weekend, 49.5% of Americans of all ages are fully vaccinated, according to CDC data. Nearly 33% of those eligible for vaccination -- those ages 12 and up -- have yet to receive at least one dose.
Mask mandates return for vaccinated and unvaccinated
Due to the increased transmissibility of the Delta variant, officials are preaching for all Americans -- regardless of vaccination status -- to be mindful of their surroundings.
Aerosols containing Covid-19 can travel as easily as the smoke from a cigarette, Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said Friday.
"If you want to understand what an aerosol is, just think of somebody smoking," Osterholm told CNN. "If you can smell a cigarette in the location you're at, then you're breathing someone else's air that may have the virus in it."
Osterholm noted that while indoor transmission of the virus is the main challenge, there are examples of Covid-19 being transmitted outdoors, when people were close together for extended periods of time.
Because of this, mask mandates are making a return in more cities.
"If we take the steps that are necessary to squash the amount of disease that is there now, we can do so in a matter of weeks, if we all get vaccinated, if we wear masks," CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told Fox News on Friday.
More than 80% of the US population about 274 million people live in a county considered to have "high" or "substantial" Covid-19 transmission, according to a CNN analysis of data published Friday by the CDC.
ICUs are filling up again
As the Delta variant spreads, hospitalizations are accumulating to levels of concern.
Mississippi, which has one of the lowest rates of vaccination among US states, is dealing with a skyrocketing level of Covid-19 patients needing hospitalization.
Data from the Mississippi Department of Health on Friday showed that out of 827 ICU beds statewide, only 107, or approximately 13%, are currently available. All 88 beds in the University of Mississippi Medical Center's intensive care unit, the state's largest, are full.
State Health Officer Thomas Dobbs said Thursday that hospitalizations are beginning to be seen in younger age groups. He pointed to data that shows 88% of hospitalizations are among unvaccinated people, and it is having a "significant spill-over effect to older, vaccinated Mississippians."
In Texas, Austin Public Health says the region is facing the lowest staffed ICU bed capacity since the beginning of the pandemic, with only 16 staffed beds available.
"Our ICU capacity is reaching a critical point where the level of risk to the entire community has significantly increased, and not just to those who are needing treatment for Covid," Austin-Travis County Health Authority Dr. Desmar Walkes said on Friday. "If we fail to come together as a community now, we jeopardize the lives of loved ones who might need critical care."
Florida healthcare facilities continue to prepare for the surge, as the AdventHealth Hospital System stopped all non-emergency surgeries and procedures due to high Covid-19 hospitalization.
AdventHealth Central Florida Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Neil Finkler said on Friday that over 90% of the Covid-19 patients currently hospitalized are unvaccinated.
"None of these patients thought they would get the virus, but the Delta variant has proven to be so highly contagious that even the young and the healthy, including pregnant patients, are now starting to fill up our hospitals," Finkler said.
CNN's Deanna Hackney, Lauren Mascarenhas, Deidre McPhillips, Jennifer Henderson, Raja Razek, Brandon Miller and Hollie Silverman contributed to this report.
Austin, TexasAs theCOVID-19viruscontinues to surge, especially areaswhere vaccination ratesare stagnating,Austin-Travis Countyyesterdaysurpassedthe grim milestone of900 COVID-19 deaths.
Just this monthin July, over 4,150 new, confirmed COVID-19 cases and 19COVID-19-relateddeaths have been reported to Austin Public Health(APH).Thedata andsciencecontinues to show thatvaccinations arethe most effectiveavailabletool toprevent severe illness, death, andtostop thecontinuedspreadand mutationof this deadly disease.
"We must work together to prevent more deaths from COVID-19,"said Dr. Desmar Walkes, Austin-Travis County Health Authority. OneCOVID-19 relateddeathistoo many;we are mourning 900loved ones.Iimploreour community togetvaccinated and follow the basic precautions we know work: wear a mask, socially distance, wash your hands regularly, and stay home if you are sick.
Local deaths rangein age from peopleas young as 20 to over80yearsofage,butareconcentrated among those who areover 60 years old. TheAPH surveillance dashboardprovides more information on the demographics of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths.AlthoughAustin-Travis Countyreachedits milestone ofvaccinating 70% of residents with one dose of the vaccineon July7,the rate of vaccination has stalled inrecent weeks.Hospitals haveseen a surge of new cases and admissions among the unvaccinated.
"One simple actcan help avert needlesstragedy.Get vaccinated," said InterimAustin Public Health Director Adrienne Sturrup."The resourcesare in your neighborhoodto protect you, your family, and your community.Whetherit bevaccinations,testing,ormasking -together, we canstop this pandemic now.
Austin-Travis County is inStage 4of theRisk-Based Guidelines
Austin-Travis County iscurrently in Stage4 butcould move to Stage 5as hospitalizationscontinuerise.
TheAPH Risk-Based Guidelines chartoutlines recommended behavior for individuals at different stages of community spread.The most recent guidelines recommend everyone, regardless of vaccination status, wear masks and follow the basic protocols of social distancing and handwashing.
These guidelines applyatgatherings, dining, shoppingand traveling. Thoseunvaccinated shouldtestfor COVID-19 and ifthetest results are negative,and it is medically feasible,get thevaccineas soon as possible.
Testing Information -Showingsymptoms? Exposed to apositivecase? Gettested andquarantine.
APH manages testing sitesand mobile clinicsacross Austin and Travis County.Appointments are not required for the two testing sites currently openhowever,individualsare encouraged toschedule a COVID-19 testing appointment.
Those whodo not have access to the internetcan call 3-1-1to complete theassessment. Testing is also available through localpharmacies. Thosewithhealthinsurance should call their doctor or insurance company to review their options.
Vaccinations are freeand at a location nearby. No identification is required.
COVID-19 vaccinations are free anddo not requireidentification nor insurance.Residents can locate providers in their area usingVaccines.govor they can text their zip code to 438829 (822862 in Spanish) tofind a nearby clinic.
For additional business guidance, visitwww.ATXrecovers.comfor recommendations to help prioritize thehealth and safetyof employees and customers.
Additional information regarding COVID-19, testing, and vaccinations can be found atAustinTexas.gov/COVID19.
NOTICE OF POTENTIAL COVID-19 EXPOSURE FOR PARTICIPANTS AND STAFF AT THE TABERNACLE YOUTH PROGRAM IN ORCHARD PARK
ERIE COUNTY, NY The Erie County Department of Health (ECDOH) is sharing the following notice for staff and families of participants at the Tabernacle Church Vacation Bible School summer program in Orchard Park.
A COVID-19 case investigation determined that there were potential COVID-19 exposures at the Tabernacle Church, 3210 Southwestern Blvd. in Orchard Park on July 23, 2021.
ECDOH is making this announcement out of an abundance of caution and to prevent additional COVID-19 transmission. Staff, volunteers and families who participated in youth program activities at the Tabernacle in Orchard Park on July 23 should seek a diagnostic COVID-19 test. Free diagnostic COVID-19 tests are available through ECDOH by calling (716) 858-2929 or (716) 858-7697. Other diagnostic testing sites in Erie County are listed at: https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/find-test-site-near-you. Diagnostic COVID-19 tests are strongly recommended 5-7 days past the last date of exposure.
COVID-19 symptoms include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, muscle aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea.
Case investigations identify close contacts, inform those contacts of their exposure, place those individuals in quarantine and advise them to seek a diagnostic test and watch for symptoms. ECDOH makes public notifications of potential COVID-19 exposures when efforts to obtain contact tracing information are unsuccessful.After multiple communications from ECDOH, the facility was unwilling to cooperate with contact tracing staff.
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Governor Laura Kelly announced a new, updated summary document created from recommendations in KSDEs Navigating Change: Kansas Guide to Learning and School Safety Operationsas a reference guide and tool for schools ahead of the start of classes. The document continues the states practice of mirroring guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In addition to the guidance, Governor Kelly and KSDE are encouraging school districts to submit requests forELC Grant Funds. The state of Kansas received $87 million to fund equipment, testing, and medical staff to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in schools.
We know our children belong in the classroom, but its critical that we provide Kansas school districts with support and tools they need to keep our kids safe,Governor Kelly said.This guidance is in line with what we have made available over the last year, but has been modified to incorporate the best information we have to fight the Delta variant. I encourage school districts to follow the science and use the available funds to keep their kids safe.
Many Kansas school districts have already made requests for ELC funds. Including for clinical and administrative staff as well as equipment with mobile technology to create and support the most flexible COVID-19 testing plans possible. In more rural areas requests include transportation to share staff between school buildings and to transport sick children. Others have opted to use ELC funds for vaccination events including incentives and communications in the community.
We are thankful for the leadership provided by Governor Kelly and Secretary Norman, Kansas Commissioner of Education Dr. Randy Watson said. We want every student to be in the classroom this fall. To ensure this happens, school districts should continue partnering with their local medical teams to implement safety protocols that protect all students and school personnel.
The Kelly Administration worked to develop guidance that would ensure that districts across Kansas would be equipped with the best possible information as they prepared to bring their students back for full-time, in-person learning in August. The Kelly Administration will continue to issue new guidance as information is provided from the CDC.
To ensure everyone remains safe as schools resume in August, it is key for schools and communities to work together,Dr. Lee Norman, Secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) said. We urge school districts to use the ELC resources for additional support. And, we encourage communities to continue taking precautions to mitigate the virus, including vaccination and testing. If individuals are not vaccinated, please wear a mask in public. If youre feeling sick, get tested, practice social distancing and stay home.
The State of Kansas began a robust, statewide PSA campaign to encourage Kansans to get vaccinated ahead of the July 4thholiday that will continue throughout year.
Watch the PSA here.
View the updated guidance document here.
All students, faculty and staff on all three campuses of the University of Michigan are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and must submit their vaccination information before the start of the fall term, university officials announced July 30.
The universitywide vaccine requirement, which also applies to Michigan Medicine, was announced July 30 in an email to the campus community signed by President Mark S. Schlissel; Susan M. Collins, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs; Marschall S. Runge, executive vice president for medical affairs; and Brian T. Smith, interim executive vice president and chief financial officer. UM-Dearborn Chancellor Domenico Grasso and UM-Flint Chancellor Debasish Dutta also signed the message.
The announcement comes as the rate of COVID-19 infections increases across the country, particularly in states and sub-populations with the lowest vaccination rates and as the predominant delta variant proves to be much more infectious.
Widespread vaccination is the primary and most effective tool that will bring the COVID-19 pandemic under control and it is the key to a vibrant and engaging academic year, officials wrote in the email.
The vaccine requirement also applies to those working or learning remotely.
Were making this announcement today to allow those who remain unvaccinated the time to begin their vaccination series in the month ahead, the message said. While we will provide limited exemptions for medical and religious reasons, it is imperative that all members of our community are protected from this devastating virus.
This step is consistent with the advice of our campus public health experts. It also is in line with recent announcements made on university and health care campuses and by companies across the nation, including the Veterans Health Administration, Google and the Mayo Clinic, though each has variations for its organization. More than 600 colleges and universities have announced vaccination requirements of various types.
There also is strong internal support for a vaccine mandate from Central Student Government, Rackham Student Government, deans of the schools and colleges, a Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs resolution and a survey of U-M faculty.
Michigan Medicine has dealt directly with the harmful toll of this virus, responding to surges of acutely ill patients while still providing important health care services using strict infection control protocols. Increased vaccination among health care personnel is crucial to Michigan Medicines commitment to the safety of patients, their families and staff.
The university will require all faculty, staff and students to do one of the following:
The exemption process for U-M campuses and Michigan Medicine is being developed and will be communicated by Aug. 4. Those individuals who request and are approved for a medical or religious exemption will be required to complete mandatory weekly COVID-19 testing and must continue to mask indoors while on campus.
Beginning Aug. 9, the university will make advisers available to students, faculty and staff who havequestions about the vaccine, its safety or the importance of being vaccinated. Details will be shared when available through the Record, unit human resourcesrepresentatives and the Division of Student Life.
Weekly COVID-19 testing and continued masking indoors will be required of these individuals as they work to become compliant. Ultimately, non-compliant students, faculty and staff will be subject to appropriate campus disciplinary procedures.
University officials will postpone making any further changes to U-Ms broader masking policy, which now requires masking indoors and in classrooms, in light of recent guidance from the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention. The policy was scheduled to be reviewed July 31.
As of July 30, roughly 81 percent of students and 65 percent of employees on the Ann Arbor campus, and 76 percent of Michigan Medicine employees already have reported their COVID-19 vaccinations. The vaccination rates are lower for some categories of employees including temporary employees and for employees on the Dearborn and Flint campuses.
Employee vaccination data has been added to the existing vaccination dashboard, which launched earlier this month. The university verifies self-reported information for accuracy and that it meets the additional requirement of being an authorized vaccine. Data is refreshed daily.
The latest national data shows the delta variant appears to cause more frequent breakthrough infections in vaccinated persons. While they rarely become severely ill or require hospitalization, these vaccinated individuals can spread the virus to unvaccinated individuals, including children, or immunocompromised people.
Vaccines are free and available at most retail pharmacies and health care providers, and appointments remain available through Michigan Medicine, as well as the University Health Service.
WASHINGTONA federal moratorium on the eviction of tenants who fell behind on rent during the Covid-19 pandemic is set to expire as scheduled this weekend after U.S. lawmakers were unable to advance a last-minute extension.
The Biden administration had called on lawmakers Thursday to extend the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions moratorium further, saying the CDC couldnt extend the moratorium itself because of a recent Supreme Court ruling.
House lawmakers adjourned late Friday for their August recess without action on the measure after Democratic leadership tried and failed to secure votes. The CDC moratorium ends at a time of heightened vulnerability for tenants as the Delta variant of the virus continues to spread in many parts of the country, the Biden administration warned.
State and local governments have struggled to distribute $47 billion in federal money aimed at helping tenants who cant pay rent because of the pandemic-triggered downturn, leaving many people at risk of being forced out of their homes when the moratorium expires.
Just $3 billion of the aid authorized by Congress in December and March had been delivered to landlords and tenants as of June 30, the Treasury Department said in a report last week. About 8.2 million adults were behind on their rent or mortgage as of July 5 and have low confidence they can pay on time next month, a Census Bureau survey showed.
The world has fought many battles against the novel coronavirus since January 2020, losing more than 4.2 million people and vanquishing some of its spread. But the war is still raging and will do so for a long time. I predicted early last year, in a best-case scenario, that we would face a 36-month battle before COVID-19 could be considered under human control. We are only now in month 19.
Sure enough, the United States is again awash in virus, with the incidence of new COVID-19 cases having soared 131 percent in the third week of July. To be clear, the vaccines available work wellespecially the Pfizer and Moderna products based on mRNA technology. But it is likely that waning vaccine efficacy, coupled with a stubborn one-fifth of the adult population refusing any immunization, has opened the door for the dangerous mutant delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 to wreak havoc among the vaccinated and unvaccinated alike.
Thats why the United States is going to need a third dose of mRNA vaccines; for the nations older population, the triple play is already overdue. I dont see the virus just disappearing, said Stanley Plotkin, considered the godfather of vaccinology. The University of Pennsylvania vaccine inventor and immunologist told me that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should comply with requests from Pfizer, following Israels example, and immediately approve third-dose immunization for adults over the age of 60, with general triple dosing for all Americans to follow. I agree.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has voiced opposition to third dosing in richer nations before making primary doses available to billions of people in middle-income and poorer countries. Its a completely reasonable point, both morally and strategically, in the war against COVID-19. But evidence now points in an alarming new direction, suggesting that fully vaccinated individuals can carry the delta variant in their noses and mouths, shedding in some cases just as much virus to infect others as do unvaccinated infected individuals.
Moreover, in the absence of fully effective vaccination of better than 75 percent of adults, a society may act as a herd of walking petri dishes, cultivating immune-escape mutant forms of SARS-CoV-2that is, mutants that evade existing vaccines. The vaccine that rolls out tomorrow in a poorer country may have already been rendered less effective by its prior inadequate, or incorrect, use in richer countries.
Urgent action is required from the FDA, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and their counterparts in Europe, Canada, and other parts of the world that have already widely administered vaccines. And recommending the usage of masks, while necessary, is no longer enough. The message must be that if youve had a second shot, its time to start planning to get a third.
The example of Israel clearly suggests as much. Because it was the first nation to mass vaccinate its population, scientists around the world are paying close heed to events unfolding there. The government began rolling out the first doses in January and by July had achieved two-dose immunization of 58 percent of its population over 12 years old. Though an estimated 1 million adults still refused vaccination, the government eased nearly all behavior-restricting regulations, including mask-wearing.
But by July the Israeli miracle sobered up, revealing that fully vaccinated people were protected against severe disease and death but not necessarily against infection. In early July, the Ministry of Health announced effective immunity among the fully vaccinated had dropped to 64 percent, from the 95 percent level measured two months previously. Then, on July 17, the ministry reported a surge in breakthrough cases involving the delta variant. Most cases occurred in people either who had been fully vaccinated more than four months previously, indicating the waning immunity problem, or who were just completing their shots in July, too recently to be completely effective.
The data from vaccinated Israeli medical staff shows that while breakthrough infections arent life-threatening, they are also not benign: 19 percent of cases led to so-called long-haul COVID-19, featuring months of difficult symptoms that can include acute fatigue, depression, loss of stamina and muscle strength, brain fog, and other challenging disabilities.
A multinational study of six months use of two-dose Pfizer vaccine also found that efficacy wanes with time, from about 97 percent to a low of 86 percentstill robust. But none of the work involved delta variant exposure. A recent study in Scotland showed that both the AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines were considerably less able to prevent delta infection, compared with the alpha strain or original 2020 forms of the coronavirus. (No similar data has been published for the nearly identical Moderna vaccine, but most vaccine experts assume that what holds for Pfizer is also true for Moderna.)
The biology behind all this matters and explains the global delta variant surge. Whether an individual is immunized against SARS-CoV-2 via natural infection or vaccination, there are four key elements necessary to guarantee defense against future reinfection and protection from hospitalization or death. The most important is a huge antibody response against the spike proteins that protrude from the surface of the SARS-CoV-2 viruses and attach themselves to ACE2 receptors located on the outside of hundreds of types of human (and all mammalian) cells. The antibodies must be capable of neutralizing the enemy.
The neutralizing antibodies are made in the second key element of defenseB cells, which are white blood cells and lymphocytes found inside bone marrow and in lymph nodes dispersed around the body and in the spleen. Those B cells must retain what immunologists call memorythe key to why, for example, a measles shot administered to a 2-year-old protects the same person as a 40-year-old when exposed to the virus. The B cell memory recognizes the measles and triggers manufacture of those fierce neutralizing antibodies.
The third component essential to protecting people against COVID-19 infection and illness is the antibodies that target other parts of the virus, especially the mechanism SARS-CoV-2 uses to poke itself into human cells and invade. And the final necessity is so-called CD8 and CD4 cells from the T cell side of the immune response, which are capable of calling to the battlefield a vast array of virus-eating cells and releasing chemicals that alert defenses in every organ of the body.
Amazingly, the mRNA vaccines and, to a lesser degree, other non-RNA types made by Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, Russia, and Chinese drugmakers all arm this full range of necessary weaponry against SARS-CoV-2. But they do so with widely varying degrees of efficacyespecially as applied to the delta variant.
When the first three variant forms of SARS-CoV-2 were discovered in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil, respectively, many immunologists and vaccine experts were quick to say the vaccines still workedjust somewhat less wellagainst them. Concern about the variants was labeled alarmist at the time. One prominent vaccine expert responded in March to my persistent queries about the first wave of variants by writing that I was obsessed by the variants to a deeply unhealthy extent that can badly influence public confidence.
The lions share of variant studies executed worldwide in the spring pivoted on the question of how well the vaccines stood up to the mutants. The studies generally concluded that neutralizing antibodies were less abundant in reaction to, say, alpha exposure but remained sufficient to stave off disease, if not infection. Deep sighs of relief were exhaled, albeit with the warning that it remained dangerous to have large percentages of societies unable, or unwilling, to obtain vaccination, as there might arise in the future from that unprotected population a worse mutant form of SARS-CoV-2.
And so it passed in mid-March that the mutant delta variant spread across India like a wildfire, the country recording 400,000 deaths officially by Julya toll widely believed to represent a tenfold undercount. Nearly every country in the world is now battling the delta variant, which threatens athletes in the Tokyo Olympic Village, has spawned a new outbreak in China, and is pushing Africas worst COVID-19 epidemic to date.
The delta variant has numerous mutations that give it special attributes. The spike protein that is vital to viral attachment to cells is altered so that its harder for the immune system to see it and generate slews of neutralizing antibodiesa case of immune-escape mutation. The proteins it uses to get inside human cells are also mutated so that they dodge the immune system and function efficiently. And the virus is able to generate copies of itself far more rapidly and efficiently. Within three to five days, the viral load of delta peaks at levels up to 1,000 times higher than seen with 2020 forms of SARS-CoV-2.
The implications in the real world of these biological findings are overwhelming. Because the virus surges so rapidly after infection, peaking its viral load two or three days faster than garden-variety COVID-19, individuals who are carrying all that virus in their bodies have no idea, exhibit no symptoms, and take no special precautions to protect others. Worse, even if they were immunized by either vaccines or prior COVID-19 illness, they may be vulnerable to reinfection. Thats for two reasons. First, the sheer volume of virus coming at their unmasked faces from a delta-infected individual is three orders of magnitude larger than anything their bodies were prepared forinstead of encountering a few puffs of particles in the air, they are gulping down microscopic hurricanes of the stuff. And secondly, it surges inside their bodies faster than their B cell memory component can mobilize to generate neutralizing antibodies and other weaponry.
According to Israel, and to Pfizer, vaccine-induced immune response shifts from a powerful form replete with neutralizing antibodies drifting in the bloodstream to the quieter B cell memory type within about four months time after the second dose. Neutralizing antibody production declines, Pfizer says, about 6 percent per month, hitting 84 percent vaccine efficacy by month six. By eight months, its all about memory, which leaves the individuals highly vulnerable to infection.
In other words, the two-dose vaccinated individuals may have primed immune systems that can make neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, but the enemy is coming at them in such massive numbers, and surging inside their bodies so rapidly, that some six to eight months after completing vaccinations, they may be unable to muster adequate defenses to prevent illness, even long-haul COVID-19.
Worse, from a public health point of view, these vaccinated individuals may have billions of virus in their noses and throats, passing them on to others. They can be transmitters. And if the unfortunate recipient is an unvaccinated person, the experience could easily be lethal.
All this is why Israel is starting a third round of national vaccination and why Pfizer wants the CDC and FDA to approve the same for the United States. According to data Pfizer presented to stock shareholders recently, the company estimated that a third booster shot had the potential to increase neutralization of the delta variant by up to a hundredfold, compared with before the third dose.
It also appears that the United States may have blundered by setting the time interval between the first two doses at 21 daysa decision made by the CDC and FDA under the Trump administration. For reasons having less to do with science than with the rush to get as many British at least partially protected as rapidly as possible, Boris Johnsons government chose a far longer time interval between dosesmonths. And that may explain why the delta variants dire impact seems to be reversing in the U.K., with daily incidence of new cases dropping rapidly. Plotkin, the vaccine inventor, says longer times between jabsperhaps six monthsgive the immune system time to settle into its lulled memory status before getting another jolt of fake infection (which, after all, is what a vaccine is), prompting the manufacture of neutralizing antibodies. That length-of-interval issue has arisen with other vaccines, he says, consistently showing months, not days, are required between doses.
Across the richer world, a grand experiment is playing out, as countries try to vaccinate their way out of the pandemic. And, of course, the experiment is being conducted against a mutable, evolving targeta shape-shifter, not an archers bulls-eye. The more people are in circulation, carrying and spreading SARS-CoV-2, the greater the likelihood that the delta variant, or some other form of the virus, will mutate into an even more canny, dangerous human pathogen.
Americans could feel more confident about the national effort to control the virus if they did a far better job of genomic surveillance, scouring the nation for new types of SARS-CoV-2. But despite provision of emergency funds to the CDC for this purpose, the nations ability to spot new variants is little improved over what it was back when alpha first showed up in the U.K. last September. Even the CDCs target of 20,000 samples sequenced and analyzed per week from collection sites all over the United States seems woeful, given some 60,000-80,000 new cases of COVID-19 are identified daily in the country. A super-virulent new variant could lurk in Arkansas right now, and we wouldnt have any way of spotting it with the meager system now in place. Moreover, the lag time from an individual walking into a clinic for a COVID-19 test to that sample getting sequenced in a separate lab to that lab then reporting its findings to the CDC for analysis is a matter of weeks in many parts of the country and several days even in the best-case scenario. So policymakers are scrambling to change mask rules, vaccine authorizations, school reopening plansall based on sparse information about last weeks epidemic situation or what it was two weeks ago.
Worse, the basic case numbershow many people develop COVID-19 symptoms in a given weekare grossly underreported in the United States. Its possible that as many as 60 percent of cases nationwide are never reported up the public health food chain to be added to the CDCs national tally. (Most of Europe isnt doing much better, according to WHO.)
In Atlanta, CDC scientists are scrambling to comprehend what havoc the variant strains are wreaking, how well the vaccines are working, and what forecast ought to end up on the presidents desk. For several months, the CDC has refereed a sort of artificial intelligence conference of modelers and forecasters from all over the United States, mostly academics. Each epidemic modeling team uses its own methodology to track the U.S. epidemic and forecast where its headed. Some of the teams are very cautious and consistently lowball the scale of future trends. Some routinely tend to the opposite extreme. The CDC grinds it all up to reach a sort of projection consensus. And so far, these forecasts have been scary correct.
In its latest modeling mashup, the CDC forecast predicts that the new delta-driven surge wont peak until October, possibly not until Thanksgiving. By late August, at least 2,500 Americans will die, every week, bringing the nations cumulative mortality to some 660,000.
With a forecast so grim, its time for a Hail Mary move. And that would be the mass third-dose vaccination of every American over 60 years of age, coupled with a return to mask-wearing and social distancing and a massive escalation in genomic surveillance nationwide. Anything less means ceding the battlefield to the virus.
Politicians almost always act in their own electoral interest. This sounds bad except that much of the time that means that they are acting in the self-interest of the people who voted for them, representing the views of the majority of their constituents. It is rare that a politician acts against his own self-interestbut then again, Donald Trump is a rare breed of politician. No politician has made it a habit of acting against his own electoral interest like Donald Trump.
Trump and many of his Republican colleagues have allowed a virulent anti-vaccine/anti-masking/anti-social distancing campaign to spread among their voters, reinforced by Fox News. The campaign gained strength just in time for the emergence of a new and more contagious COVID variant: the Delta variant. Polling has shown that the anti-vaccine message is especially popular among Republicans. Kaiser Family Foundation data indicate that Republicans are the group most likely to say they will definitely not get a vaccine:
A total of 17 of the 18 states that voted for Trump in the 2020 election have the lowest vaccination rates. The exception was Georgia which went for Biden by a very small margin.
But in recent weeks some Republican leaders have been changing their tune. Right-wing stalwarts like Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), the House Republican whip, just got vaccinated publicly. This move is in contrast to former President Trump and First Lady Melania who got vaccinated before leaving the White House without making a public appearance out of it and without urging their supporters to do the same. The very conservative governor of Alabama held a press conference to admonish her constituents to get vaccinated. Appearing every bit the irritated grandmother talking to teenagers she said:
Its the unvaccinated folks that are letting us down. Ive done all I know how to do. I can encourage you to do something but I cant make you take care of yourself.
And Fox News has taken some small steps towards sanity with several high-profile anchors disputing disinformation from the web and urging viewers to get vaccines.
Slowly but surely, in recent weeks, the number of vaccinations has been increasing. So why the change of heart among conservative leaders? Reality is probably the biggest reason. Grandmothers dying, hospitals overrun, and young people getting sick have a way of combatting the nonsense on the web. Eventually conservative leaders will not want to bear responsibility for the pain of so many. Now that the COVID casualties are piling up in deep red states rather than liberal cities on the coasts they are finding their pandemic humanity. And so politics may well be driving the Republican about-face as elected officials recognize that people are dying and many of those are potential Republican voters in 2022 and beyond.
Health statisticians use a metric called excess deaths. According to the CDC, Excess deaths are typically defined as the difference between the observed numbers of deaths in specific time periods and expected numbers of deaths in the same time periods. In other words, people die every day but during the pandemic many more people died than would ordinarily during the same period.
Belowis a table usingCDC data showing the estimated excess deaths thathave occurred since February 2020by state, as apercentage of the population. So, for instance, Mississippi has lost approximately 0.35% of its population in excess of what was expected. The table is arranged in order of the magnitude of the loss. Of the top fifteen states that have suffered excess deaths, New York, Washington, D.C., New Jersey and New Mexico are Democratic strongholds. Three states, Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania are swing states that went for Biden in 2020 and the remaining eight states are Republican strongholds.
Note: New York numbers combine New York City with the rest of New York State.
Its not too far out to assume that in some places the Republican quiescence in the face of anti-vax nonsense may be killing their own voters. As we know from this long pandemic, it hits the elderly the hardest. People 65 and older are most likely to die. And as we know from many surveys, Trumps support is highest in the oldest age cohort, those over 65 years old. In Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania there will be tough contests at the statewide and congressional levels and 2024 is likely to be as close as was 2020. Given these numbers, killing off your most reliable voters is perhaps not the best strategy.
These data do not, in themselves, show that COVID is killing Republican voters or disproportionately affect Republican families. For example, we know that because of healthcare disparities, Black Americans are more likely to die from COVID than white Americans. In Republican states, increases in COVID infections, hospitalizations, and deaths could be affecting Black residents, who overwhelmingly vote Democratic, even in Republican stronghold states. However, the sudden change in rhetoric from conservative, Republican politicians, and even among Republican leaders who were previously vaccine-skeptical or vaccine-silent, suggests that something else is happening. It suggests that Republican politicians are recognizing where the current COVID wave is hitting hardest, and they arent Democratic cities and counties.
Trump himself has often been immune to rational political calculationsjust look at his insistence on endorsing the weaker candidate, Susan Wright, who recently lost the Republican special election in Texas 6th congressional district. The winner dubbed himself a Reagan Republican, not a Trump Republican. And in a final irony, Congressman-elect Jake Ellzey will replace Rep. Ron Wright who died of COVID.
Historically, rational political calculus has been a bipartisan quality, but not in the Trumpified GOP. If Trump wants to preserve the lives of his best voters, he would turn his rallies into mass vaccination sites. There is still time, but it is running out for thousands of Americans.
