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The state no longer updates its coronavirus data dashboard over the weekend, and instead includes that data in Mondays report.
Alaskas average daily case counts are trending down statewide, with some pockets of higher case levels. A surge of coronavirus-related hospitalizations in the Fairbanks region continues to strain hospital capacity there.
Many regions in the state are still in the highest alert category based on their current per capita rate of infection, and health officials continue to encourage Alaskans to wear face coverings in public, avoid large gatherings, wash their hands frequently and get vaccinated against COVID-19 to prevent further spread.
By Monday, there were 43 people with confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19 in hospitals throughout the state, far below a peak in late 2020 but up compared to recent weeks.
Also by Monday, 337,630 people about 55% of all Alaskans eligible for a shot had received at least their first dose. At least 288,320 people about 48% of Alaskans 16 and older were considered fully vaccinated, according to the states vaccine monitoring dashboard, which hadnt been updated since Friday.
Alaska in January led the country in per capita vaccinations, but has now fallen to 28th place among all 50 states, territories, and Washington, D.C., according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Vaccination rates in the state have varied by region and by age. Over 80% of Alaskans 65 and older have received a shot, and 10 census areas or boroughs now have vaccination rates among their eligible population that are above 70%. Fairbanks, the North Slope and the Mat-Su have the lowest vaccination rates in the state.
You can visit covidvax.alaska.gov or call 907-646-3322 to sign up for a vaccine appointment; new appointments are added regularly. The phone line is staffed 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekends.
Of the 225 cases reported over the weekend in Alaska residents, there were 72 in Anchorage, 39 in Wasilla, 30 in Fairbanks, 16 in Ketchikan, 14 in Palmer, 13 in North Pole, 10 in Juneau, six in Eagle River, three in Chugiak, three in Sitka, three in Soldotna, two in Girdwood, two in Houston, two in Kenai, two in Kodiak, and one each in the Aleutians East Borough, Healy, Homer, the Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Nome, Seward, the Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, and Wrangell.
Seven new nonresident cases were identified: two in Anchorage: two in Prudhoe Bay, and three in unidentified regions of the state.
While people might get tested more than once, each case reported by the state health department represents only one person.
The states data doesnt specify whether people testing positive for COVID-19 have symptoms. More than half of the nations infections are transmitted from asymptomatic people, according to CDC estimates.
WASHINGTON Nearly a year ago, amid concerns about how to prevent transmission of the virus causing Covid-19, scientists were beginning to conclude that rigorous disinfection of surfaces say, fogging them or deep-cleaning with bleach was overkill.
Academics were warning that the risk of so-called fomite transmission was wildly overblown. In the fall, research from Israel and Italy found that the virus couldnt even be cultured from surfaces in hospital infectious disease units. By February of this year, the editorial board of Nature was openly urging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to update its guidelines.
The CDC did so last month.
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That so much time passed before the nations leading public health agency took a stand on an issue that seemed patently obvious to others was puzzling. But it was hardly an isolated incident.
After months of pleas from scientists, the CDC acknowledged last week that Covid-19 can be spread through small particles floating in the air an acknowledgment that came more than a year after some experts began warning that the virus is airborne. Separately, it took three months after Covid-19 vaccines began going into arms before the CDC issued its first attempt at outlining the activities vaccinated people could safely undertake.
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When the CDC issued new guidelines recently on when people still need to wear masks, the guidelines were seen as so conservative that they prompted a primetime rant on The Daily Show.
I know science is difficult but whos running messaging at the CDC? asked the shows host, Trevor Noah.
Some public health experts are asking the same question. Most experts interviewed for this story say the agency has struggled to take advantage of the latest scientific findings to communicate as rapidly as possible with the American public. And when the guidance is issued, it tends to be overly cautious.
The explanation does not seem to be, as it might have been under the Trump administration, political interference. Rather, there is a certain mentality when it comes to [caution] that I believe has been detrimental, said Leana Wen, an emergency physician and visiting professor of health policy at George Washington University.
Even defenders of the CDCs approach admitted that the agency has been conservative, and at times slow.
I admit it is a conservative approach, and they have historically always been very conservative, said Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, who largely defended the CDC and insisted that the agency has followed the science.
The CDC did not respond to a request for comment.
The issues facing the CDC arent altogether new. Two former CDC directors, Tom Frieden and Rich Besser, both acknowledged to STAT that the CDC has continually labored to quickly release guidance though, like Benjamin, defended the agency.
In every public health crisis the complaint is made that the CDC is too slow to make recommendations, said Besser, who served as the acting CDC director in 2009. Its an issue that the CDC has always grappled with and will continue to grapple with.
Still, public health officials say the conservative nature of the agencys approach to Covid is a marked departure from how it deals with other major public health issues, like HIV and opioid use disorder.
There, public health officials by and large embrace harm reduction: giving honest advice on how to make risky behaviors safer, rather than discouraging activities altogether. For injection drug use, that means supporting needle exchanges and providing advice on cleaning syringes; for STDs, it means making sure those at outsized risk, like sex workers, have easy access to condoms.
When it comes to Covid-19, the CDC has often stressed simply avoiding certain activities.
Theres still a lot of abstinence-only in their Covid guidances, said Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. People somehow kind of walled off what they know about HIV, opioid use, and hep C and we are the worse for it.
Nowhere is the CDCs abstinence-only approach clearer than in its advice on travel.
The evidence has been overwhelming for months: Americans, despite possible risks to themselves and their loved ones, are traveling during Covid-19.
Some 6.8 million Americans traveled via plane around Thanksgiving. The day before Christmas Eve was the busiest day at airports since the start of the pandemic. And by March, airports around the country were regularly serving 1 million travelers daily.
But the CDC repeatedly insisted Americans should not travel. It even discouraged vaccinated people from traveling in March guidance in which it laid out what vaccinated people can and cannot safely do.
It wasnt until April 2 that the CDC changed its stance sort of. The agency issued guidance that day saying fully vaccinated people can travel at low risk to themselves. But CDC Director Rochelle Walensky contradicted the guidelines almost immediately. During a press conference, Walensky said that she continues to advocate against general travel overall.
In every public health crisis the complaint is made that the CDC is too slow to make recommendations. Its an issue that the CDC has always grappled with and will continue to grapple with.
Rich Besser, former acting CDC director
Other CDC guidelines have been panned as unnecessarily restrictive.
The CDCs new guidance on reopening summer camps, for example, recommends that everyone at a camp, including children older than 2 and fully vaccinated adults, wear masks at all times even outdoors except when swimming or eating.
The guidance seemed disconnected from the science, which has continually shown that the risk of catching Covid-19 outdoors is low compared to the risk of indoor transmission. Its also thought that children particularly young children transmit the virus less efficiently than adults, though researchers are still studying Covid-19 dynamics in kids.
Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb called the guidance byzantine. Libertarian publications are equating it with the government recommending that summer camps treat kids like prisoners. Even Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, acknowledged last week that the guidelines certainly are conservative and a bit strict.
The CDC has faced similar criticism over its recent guidelines on when vaccinated and unvaccinated people need to wear masks.
That guidance recommends that vaccinated people continue to wear masks at crowded outdoor events, and at nearly all types of indoor gatherings. The unvaccinated are urged to wear a mask in nearly every situation, except when taking a walk outdoors or at a small gathering with fully vaccinated people.
Experts, like Emory Universitys Carlos del Rio, have criticized the guidance as too timid, and everyone from talk show hosts, like Noah of The Daily Show, to public health experts, like Virginia Techs Linsey Marr, have complained that the guidance, with a color-coded chart attempting to explain when to wear a mask, is too confusing. Even those who vociferously defended the CDC in interviews with STAT admitted that the CDCs masking guidelines could have been clearer.
They were going in the right direction, said Howard Koh, who served as assistant secretary for health during the Obama administration. I expect that future versions of those graphics and recommendations will be simplified and updated sooner rather than later.
Public health officials worry that the CDC is making it harder to beat back the Covid-19 pandemic by issuing guidance that is so timid, and doing it slowly.
Multiple experts told STAT that they fear the CDCs recommendations are becoming irrelevant for most Americans. They worry, too, that guidelines, like the CDCs advice on masking, so seriously underplay the benefits of getting vaccinated that they risk dissuading people from getting a shot in the first place.
It looks like theres still confusion, and what people are wanting from the CDC is more certainty, said Glen Nowak, a 14-year veteran of the CDCs communications department who now teaches at the University of Georgia. Nowak added that people want certainty from the CDC rather than what ifs, and that they want to know if you do believe in these vaccines, why do you show so much trepidation regarding these vaccines?
Even former CDC director Frieden told STAT he believes the CDC needs to be better at emphasizing with how sick and tired people are with restrictions, though he largely defended the CDCs guidelines.
I have sympathy for the CDC, said Frieden, who called making CDC guidance an art and a science that doing so requires an encyclopedic knowledge of the data as well as a sensible way of interpreting the data and applying it to everyday life.
We want simplicity when there isnt simplicity, Frieden added.
Besser, the former acting CDC director, also acknowledged that certain CDC guidelines, including advice on what vaccinated people can safely do, were released later than he would have liked. He attributed the CDCs slowness to a culture in which it gets challenged in settings where the science is incomplete, or settings where the science may not exist at all.
It was one of the biggest challenges that I felt we had, said Besser.
Its clear vaccines are cutting transmission dramatically. But some breakthrough infections still do occur, and researchers are still trying to determine the level of risk posed to others by someone who is infected after vaccination. Some experts, Frieden included, still also worry fomites are a possible mode of transmission, and studies were still being published in peer-reviewed journals late last year claiming fomite transmission is possible, even if its not the dominant mode of transmission.
I still dont like to touch the lobby button of elevators, Frieden said. I think we were too concerned about it last year and I think we may minimize it too much this year.
Defenders of the CDC insist its better for the agency to be cautious than it would be for it to get ahead of the science and then being forced to walk back recommendations.
The CDC wants to avoid making any sweeping new recommendations today that might have to be walked back tomorrow, said Koh. Theyre being extremely cautious and I respect them for that.
But those frustrated with the CDCs approach insist that waiting for more certainly just isnt an option.
If their advice is too disconnected from reality, and if they are too slow, then they make themselves irrelevant, Wen, the George Washington professor said. I understand that theyre in a difficult position. However caution and indecision also comes at a price.
Passengers, some wearing protective face coverings and some not, travel during rush hour on the London Underground last month. Tolga Akmen/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Passengers, some wearing protective face coverings and some not, travel during rush hour on the London Underground last month.
LONDON England, Scotland and Northern Ireland on Monday recorded no new COVID-19 deaths a milestone that health experts said represents an encouraging sign, but caution could be temporary.
Meanwhile, Wales recorded just four coronavirus-related deaths. Even so, it's a sharp contrast to a January peak across the U.K., when about 1,800 deaths were recorded in a single day.
Although it is likely that because of reporting delays, more deaths will be reported in the coming days, the number of confirmed infections in the U.K. is also down, suggesting the trend is heading in the right direction.
Dr. Michael Head, a senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton, told The Guardian that reported deaths often reflect "lag time in system."
"However, regardless of reporting idiosyncrasies, the daily numbers of COVID-19 deaths are much lower than even three months ago," he said.
Experts said the improving numbers were an indication that vaccinations now hovering around 600,000 people per day for both first and second doses were having a positive impact.
The latest numbers come as the U.K.'s coronavirus alert level has been lowered from four to three, meaning the virus is still in general circulation, but that transmission is no longer rising exponentially.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday also confirmed that restrictions put in place to contain the spread of coronavirus were set to be eased. He said people in England would be able to hug loved ones, dine and drink inside restaurants and pubs, and travel abroad on vacation from May 17.
As lockdown has gradually eased, the country is rumbling back to life. London tube trains, largely empty for months, are becoming packed again and traffic has returned to London's suburbs.
Many commuters on public transport continued to don masks as required, but fewer are wearing them while walking along the streets.
In Scotland, indoor seating in pubs and restaurants has already returned, but with an 8 p.m. close and no alcohol service indoors. Coronavirus restrictions are managed on a regional basis with the governments of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland making their own rules.
NPR's Scott Neuman reported from Washington.
People who need help getting to a vaccination site will be able to get free or discounted rides through Uber and Lyft, the White House says. Here, a woman receives her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at a mass vaccination site in Aberdeen, Md., after getting a ride to the site from her landlord. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption
People who need help getting to a vaccination site will be able to get free or discounted rides through Uber and Lyft, the White House says. Here, a woman receives her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at a mass vaccination site in Aberdeen, Md., after getting a ride to the site from her landlord.
Anyone needing a ride to get a COVID-19 vaccine shot will be able to get a free trip from the ride-sharing companies Lyft and Uber, the White House announced Tuesday, in the latest push to encourage Americans to get vaccinated.
"The feature will launch in the next two weeks and run until July 4," the White House said.
People who want to use the program would need to select a vaccination site near them and then redeem the companies' offer of a free ride. The two ride-sharing firms will promote the offer in their apps.
The initiative is a new facet of President Biden's push to ensure 70% of all U.S. adults get at least one vaccine shot by July 4. The two companies are "driving America closer" to reaching that goal, the White House said.
More than 58% of American adults have now received at least one vaccination shot, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday. More than 44% of adults are fully vaccinated.
Lyft says it will offer a "ride code" to cover up to $15 of each trip to or from a vaccination site, adding that it expects the code will erase "most, if not all, of riders' fares." The offer covers daytime rides on bikes and scooters, as well as in cars. People will be able to sign up for their ride code by May 24, the company said.
Uber did not immediately provide details about its plan, but both Uber and Lyft have previously pledged to offer millions of rides to people who need help getting to a vaccine appointment.
In Uber's earlier effort, the company promised to provide up to 10 million free or discounted rides to help people get vaccinated, particularly "communities of color that have been disproportionately hurt by the pandemic," as the company said in December.
In another part of the U.S. effort to make it easier for people to get vaccinated, the White House says the government will broker partnerships between retail pharmacies and community colleges, which will then host vaccination clinics for students, staff and local communities.
The U.S. has reported more than 32.7 million COVID-19 cases, including more than 582,000 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
The Oregon Health Authority on Tuesday reported 16 new COVID-19 deaths and 660 coronavirus cases.
Oregons case trajectory has been declining for two weeks and is now averaging less than 700 cases a day. Active hospitalizations have stabilized but climbed Tuesday, equaling the second highest level of the spring.
Gov. Kate Brown on Tuesday outlined her plan to reduce or lift various coronavirus restrictions by establishing new vaccination metrics.
Counties with at least 65% of residents 16 and older partially or fully vaccinated will be eligible to lift many restrictions May 21. Most restrictions will be lifted statewide when 70% of the states population 16 and older is at least partially vaccinated -- a threshold state officials anticipate reaching in June.
Vaccines: Oregon reported 34,415 newly administered doses, which includes 17,961 Monday and the remainder from previous days.
Where the new cases are by county: Benton (10), Clackamas (60), Clatsop (3), Columbia (2), Crook (10), Deschutes (64), Douglas (14), Grant (1), Harney (2), Hood River (1), Jackson (44), Jefferson (5), Josephine (12), Klamath (43), Lake (4), Lane (52), Linn (22), Malheur (4), Marion (57), Morrow (3), Multnomah (94), Polk (8), Tillamook (3), Umatilla (27), Union (3), Wallowa (1), Wasco (2), Washington (90), Wheeler (2) and Yamhill (17).
Who died: The Oregon Health Authority did not immediately release death details.
Hospitalizations: 345 people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 are hospitalized, up 19 from Monday. That includes 89 people in intensive care, up 11 from Monday.
Since it began: Oregon has reported 192,416 confirmed or presumed infections and 2,549 deaths, among the lowest per capita numbers in the nation. To date, the state has reported at least 3,376,669 vaccine doses administered, fully vaccinating 1,490,512 people and partially vaccinating 504,456 people.
To see more data and trends, visit https://projects.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/
-- Brad Schmidt; bschmidt@oregonian.com; 503-294-7628; @_brad_schmidt
by: MIKE CORDER, Associated Press
FILE In this Tuesday, April 27, 2021 file photo, people gather despite authorities urging people to stick to coronavirus social distancing regulations, as they celebrate Kings Day in the center of Amsterdam, Netherlands. Dutch zoos and theme parks will be allowed to re-open next week under strict conditions and bars and cafes can extend the opening hours of their outdoor terraces, if coronavirus infections and hospital admissions continue to fall, caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, file)
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) Dutch zoos and theme parks will be allowed to reopen next week under strict conditions and bars and cafes can extend the opening hours of their outdoor terraces, if hospital and intensive care admissions continue to fall, caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced Tuesday.
Rutte said the country will move to the second phase of its gradual reemergence from a lockdown that has lasted months on May 19 if the numbers have declined by 20% from peaks in late April.
If they dont, the relaxation wont go ahead. But Rutte said he expects the current downward trends to continue and the easing of the lockdown to go ahead.
It is, Step Two with a pause button, Rutte said in a nationally televised news conference.
The second step in the governments reopening road map also means that swimming pools, gyms and other indoor sports venues can reopen, with strict conditions on visitor numbers, and sex workers can resume their work. Open-air museums and theaters will be allowed to open.
Earlier Tuesday, the national public health institute reported that admissions to hospital intensive care units declined by 22% over the last seven days compared with the previous week.
In the same period, the number of positive coronavirus tests fell by 10% to 47,108, a decline caused in part by fewer people getting tests because of school holidays.
Neighboring Belgium announced earlier Tuesday that it too isrelaxing its lockdown as of next month.
Dutch bars and cafes reopened their outdoor terraces last month, under strict conditions, after a six-month lockdown.
Last month also saw huge crowds gather in Dutch cities, flouting social distancing rules, to celebrate the national Kings Day holiday.
Underscoring the need to stick to basic hygiene and social distancing rules, Rutte said that local health authorities have attributed 17 large new clusters of infections in Amsterdam to the Kings Day celebrations.
The government also said that from May 15 it is easing its general advice not to travel to foreign countries and will allow people to travel to countries designated as safe because of their low infection rates.
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The latest:
Ontariowill be pausing the rollout and administration of first doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine, effective Tuesday, due to concerns over rare but potentiallyfatalblood clots.
Dr. David Williams, Ontario's chief medical officer of health, made the announcement at a news conference on Tuesday. He said the decision was madeout of an abundance of caution because of increased instances ofvaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT).
In Canada, at least 12 cases of VITT have been confirmed out of more than two million doses given. Three women have died in connection with thecondition. Ontario said it has 49,280 doses of the shot remaining in the province out of more than 707,000 received.
Ontario is preparing guidance for people who already received a first dose of AstraZeneca on what to do next,Williams said. He stressed that AstraZeneca recipients made the right decision, based on the advice available at the time, to get that vaccine.
Williams also said Ontario made the decision, in part, because of an "increased and reliable" supply of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines and a continued downward trend in COVID-19 cases.
Dr. Jessica Hopkins, the chief health protection and emergency preparedness officer for Public Health Ontario, stressed that VITT remains very rare.
"This is really out of an abundance of precaution," she said. "And that's why we have a vaccine safety surveillance system, to identify these early signals that relate to safety and take action on them."
Earlier, the province reported 2,073 new cases of COVID-19 and 15 additional deaths. Hospitalizations in the province stood at 1,783, with 802 people in ICU due to COVID-related illness.
Ontario, along with other provinces, is awaiting results of a clinical trial in the United Kingdom looking at giving a different vaccine for the second dose.
That would allow people who got AstraZeneca first to be given vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech or Modernafor their second dose.
WATCH |What can people do with 1 COVID-19 vaccine dose?:
Ontario'smove comes hours after Alberta said it won't give out more first doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine for the time being because there aren't any confirmed shipments coming.Alberta's existing supply of AstraZeneca will be used as second doses, the provincial health department confirmed on Tuesday.
The province reported 1,449 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday and three related deaths. Premier Jason Kenney, meanwhile, told a news conference that Albertaexpects to administer its two-millionth vaccine dose tomorrow.
As of 7:15p.m. ET on Tuesday,Canada had reported 1,299,584confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 78,043considered active. A CBC News tally of deaths stood at 24,714.
As more questions emerge about when and how provinces will reopen, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau struck a cautious note at a briefing on Tuesday. Trudeau saidcases are still "too high" in many parts of the country, noting that hospitals in those areas are "under incredible pressure."
The prime minister said there is hope as more people get doses of COVID-19 vaccines but even with more vaccinations, restrictions are still needed.
"We can't ease public health restrictions until cases are way down," he said, noting that more screening, testing and contact tracing are critical.
"We need to successfully limit community transmission."
Trudeau also said that at least 75 per cent of eligible Canadians should have had their first vaccine dose, echoing a figure put forward previously by Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam.
"And we need to keep ramping up those second doses."
WATCH |Quebec warns Ontarians about border hopping :
InQuebec, there were 660 new cases of COVID-19reported on Tuesday and nine additional deaths. The update came as the province's health minister,Christian Dub, called on young adults to get vaccinated in an open letter published Tuesday, on the eve of appointments opening to those 25 and older.
The province is also lifting emergency measures in the Outaouaisregion on Monday, May 17.Premier Franois Legault says schools in that region located in the western part of the province near the border with Ontario will reopen,the curfew will be pushed back to 9:30 p.m. from 8 p.m. and non-essential businesses can reopen.
In Atlantic Canada,Nova Scotiareported 118 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday. Earlier,Newfoundland and Labradorreported 15 new cases and no additional deaths, whileNew Brunswickreportedtwo new cases of COVID-19 and no additional deaths.
Manitobareported 329 new COVID-19 cases and no related deaths on Tuesday. The province alsodropped the age of eligibility for a COVID-19 vaccine to 24 and older, the fifth time it has been lowered in the last week and one day after dropping it to 30.
WATCH |Growing concern about pandemic-disrupted schooling:
Saskatchewanreported 186 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday and four related deaths. Beginning Wednesday morning,the province is lowering the age eligibility for COVID-19 vaccines to 26 and older. This applies to all immunization clinics, including booked appointments;drive-thru, walk-in or mobile clinics; and pharmacies.
British Columbia, which reported 515 newcases and two related deaths,introduced a bill that wouldgive all workers up to three days of paid sick leave to support those affected by COVID-19.
Labour Minister Harry Bains introduced the legislation on Tuesday. The new program includes part- and full-time workers who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 or who need time off in order to self-isolate.
A statement said employers will be required to pay workers their full wages. The government will reimburse employers without an existing sick-leave program up to $200 per day for each worker absent.
WorkSafeBC will begin administering the program in June. It will be in effect until Dec. 31.
In the North, Nunavut was the first territory to provide updatedinformation on Tuesday, reporting 14 additional cases.
Yukon reported two new confirmed cases on Tuesday, according to Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Brendan Hanley. In theNorthwest Territories,the COVID-19 outbreak linked to N.J. Macpherson School in Yellowknife grew by 10 cases.
WATCH |COVID-19: How much protection is in the 1st dose of vaccine?
As of Tuesday afternoon, more than159million cases of COVID-19 had been reported worldwide, according a tracking tool from Johns Hopkins University that looks at the novel coronavirus around the world. The reported global death toll stood at more than 3.3 million.
India's coronaviruscrisis showed scant signs of easing on Tuesday, with a seven-day average of new cases at a new high and international health authorities warning that the country's variant of the virus poses a global concern.
India's daily COVID-19 cases rose by 329,942, while deaths from the disease rose by 3,876, according to the Health Ministry.
The World Health Organization said the coronavirus variant first identified in the country last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.
Nations around the globe have sent oxygen cylinders and other medical gear to support India's crisis, but many hospitals across the countryare struggling with a shortage of the life-saving equipment.
Canada on Tuesday sent a plane carrying additional ventilators to India. Canada, which has also contributed to funds aimed at supporting the COVID-ravaged nation,hasalready sent hundreds of ventilators, pharmaceuticals and other aid to the country.
In theAsia-Pacificregion,Malaysia imposed a new nationwide lockdownas the country grapples with a surge in coronavirus cases and highly infectious variants.
InAfrica,Sudan is struggling to provide hospital beds, drugs and medical oxygen to COVID-19 patients hit by a third wave of infections.
In the Americas,U.S. regulators authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for use in children as young as 12 and said they could begin receiving shots as soon as Thursday, widening the inoculation program as vaccination rates have slowed significantly.
InEurope, as strict lockdowns are loosened across the region and many EU citizens dream about holidays in the sun, the 27-nation bloc has yet to agree on how to quickly implement a virus certificate scheme to boost summer travel and tourism.
Belgium, for example,plans to ease nearly all lockdown measures beginningJune 9, provided the country's vaccination campaign keeps up its momentumand the number of people in intensive care units remains under 500, the government said on Tuesday.
In theMiddle East,the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain have established a travel corridor for tourists who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus.
The Gulf sheikhdoms jointly announced Monday that fully vaccinated travellers will be able to fly between the countries without having to undergo mandatory quarantines. The deal starts with Eid al-Fitr, one of Islam's biggest holidays, at the end of this week. Travellers must demonstrate their vaccine status with approved COVID-19 health pass apps.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) The U.S. Treasury Department is giving cities like Louisville and other local governments broad flexibility to spend their share of new coronavirus relief funds.
The federal guidance released Monday lays out the permitted uses for the American Rescue Plan funds, which will arrive in two installments starting this month and must be spent by the end of 2024.
Louisville Metro government had been expecting $434 million, but figures released by the Treasury Department lowered that amount to just over $388 million. The reason for the revision wasnt immediately clear.
Other Kentucky metropolitan cities will receive $156 million, while smaller cities will get $324.2 million, according to federal data. Kentucky's counties will get $867.7 million.
In all, more than $3.7 billion will go to state and local governments in Kentucky from legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Louisville, and signed into law by President Biden in March after clearing Congress on a nearly party line vote.
Yarmuth said in a statement Monday that the funds will "get government back in the business of helping the people who elect us. This is a massive step in the right direction."
According to the Treasury Department, the money can be spent on:
Public health response. The funds can be used for vaccination programs, COVID-19 testing, contact tracing and buying personal protective equipment, as well as monitoring for coronavirus variants. Public health agencies also could use the money to cover payroll and benefits for divisions dedicated to the pandemic response.
Negative economic impacts. Governments can use the money to aid people, businesses and government units affected by the pandemic, including loans to small businesses, direct aid to unemployed workers and benefits to families of COVID-19 victims.
Hardest hit communities. In some low-income and other areas, governments can invest the funds in childcare programs, tutoring, affordable housing developments, housing vouchers and violence prevention efforts.
Lost public revenue. Local governments can use money to replace revenue they believe they lost during the pandemic. There will be broad latitude to spend the funds.
Paying essential workers. Money can be spent to supplement the pay of essential workers, many of whom have not received compensation for the heightened risks they have faced and continue to face, the Treasury Departments guidance says. Those jobs include nursing home staff, truck drivers, childcare workers and grocery store workers, among others. The emphasis is on lower-income workers.
Infrastructure. Governments also can put funds into drinking water, sewer and broadband projects, with flexibility to choose those that are high priorities in their communities.
The Treasury Department also said how the money cant be used, barring it from broader infrastructure spending, deposits in pension funds, legal settlements and other uses, including to offset tax cuts. In Kentucky, Attorney General Daniel Cameron has joined a federal lawsuit seeking to have a judge block that provision.
This story may be updated.
WARSAW Two new COVID-19 related deaths were reported Tuesday in the GLOW region.
One of the deaths was reported in Wyoming County. It marks the countys first death since April 12.
The other death was reported in Genesee County.
Both deaths were reported by New York State.
The deaths came as a total of 237 active cases were reported throughout the GLOW region. Thats a significant decrease compared to the 310 active cases reported Friday.
Friday was the last time all four counties reported updated data comprehensively.
In the meantime, Genesee and Orleans counties reported a total of 69 new coronavirus cases since Friday. The number of recoveries was not available.
A total of 20 new cases and 21 recoveries was reported Tuesday in Wyoming and Livingston counties.
Heres a county-by-county look at the data:
Wyoming County reported six new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, bringing its overall total to 2,668 community cases since the pandemic began, according to the Wyoming County Health Department.
Four of the new cases are under the age of 20, one in their 20s, and one in their 40s.
As of Tuesday, the county had 33 active cases under mandatory isolation and 114 people in mandatory quarantine.
The number of recoveries increased by eight to 2,584.
In Wyoming County, 15,339 residents, or 38.3 percent of county residents, have received at least one vaccine dose; 12,910 residents have completed the vaccine series, according to the states COVID-19 vaccine tracker.
Wyoming Countys death total is being reported at 51 by county health officials, but the state Department of Health is reporting 52 an increase of one.
No new cases were reported at state correctional facilities in Wyoming County. The overall total remained at 533 cases since the pandemic arrived locally.
To date, there have been 78,144 total tests conducted for county residents, with 75,476 of them negative, for an infection rate of 3.41 percent among those tested.
The countys seven-day rolling average of positive cases was 2.5 percent.
The Livingston County Department of Public Health reported 14 new, confirmed COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, increasing its overall total to 4,479 as of Tuesday.
Livingston County also recorded 13 new recoveries, bringing its total to 4,361.
In Livingston County, 27,349 residents, or 43.3% of county residents, have received at least one vaccine dose; 23,529 residents have completed the vaccine series, according to the states COVID-19 vaccine tracker.
There are 74 active cases among Livingston County residents, according to the countys COVID-19 tracking map, an increase of one from Monday.
Of the current active cases, six are hospitalized, according to county health data.
Active cases include 13 in Dansville (up one), 10 each in Avon (up two) and Livonia (down two), seven each in Caledonia (up one) and Lima (up one), six in Mount Morris (up one), four each in Geneseo (up two) and Dalton (down two), three in Nunda, two each in Conesus (down two) and a Honeoye Falls zip code in Livingston County, and single cases in Hunt, Leicester, Linwood, Piffard, Springwater (down one) and a Wayland zip code in Livingston County and Leicester.
Livingston County is reporting 44 COVID-19-related deaths. New York State is reporting 58 deaths attributed to the virus.
Livingston County has administered 131,235 tests for COVID-19 among county residents. The results include 126,756 negative results, according to the countys COVID-19 tracking map. The infection rate among those tested is 3.41 percent.
The seven-day rolling average of positives is 2.5 percent.
SUNY Geneseo reported three active cases among its college community on Tuesday. There were five people in mandatory quarantine, and three people in isolation, including two off-campus and one on-campus, according to the SUNY COVID-19 dashboard.
Genesee County on Tuesday had an increase of 32 between Friday to Tuesday for a total of 5,193 cases since the pandemic arrived in the region in March 2020.
The new cases are under the age of 20 and 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s.
A total of 53 cases were active as of Tuesday, with five people hospitalized.
New York state continues to report a total of 123 COVID-19-related deaths in Genesee County an increase of one.
In Genesee County on Monday, 24,531 residents, or 42.5 percent of county residents, have received at least one vaccine dose; 20,291 residents have completed the vaccine series, according to the states COVID-19 vaccine tracker
The countys seven-day rolling average of positive cases was 2.3 percent on Monday.
Orleans County had an increase of 32 between Friday to Tuesday reported a total of 3,007 cases since the pandemic began.
The new cases are under age of 20 and 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s.
In Orleans County on Tuesday, 15,192 residents, or 37.4 percent of county residents, have received at least one vaccine dose; 12,442 residents have completed the vaccine series, according to the states COVID-19 vaccine tracker.
Among the 77 active cases in Orleans County, zero were hospitalized, according to county health officials as of Friday.
The state is reporting Orleans County has had 83 COVID-related deaths.
The countys seven-day rolling average of positive cases was 3.5 percent as of Monday.
