Lorna Baldwin is an Emmy and Peabody award winning producer at the PBS NewsHour. In her two decades at the NewsHour, Baldwin has crisscrossed the US reporting on issues ranging from the water crisis in Flint, Michigan to tsunami preparedness in the Pacific Northwest to the politics of poverty on the campaign trail in North Carolina. Farther afield, Baldwin reported on the problem of sea turtle nest poaching in Costa Rica, the distinctive architecture of Rotterdam, the Netherlands and world renowned landscape artist, Piet Oudolf.
The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) reports as of March 26, 2021, there have been 2,405,746 total confirmatory laboratory results received for COVID-19, with 139,750 total cases and 2,628 total deaths.
DHHR has confirmed the deaths of a 66-year old male from Logan County, a 94-year old male from Cabell County, a 77-year old male from Berkeley County, and a 79-year old male from Monongalia County.
It is with great sadness that we announce more lives lost to this pandemic, said Bill J. Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary. Our sympathies and thoughts go out to these families.
CASES PER COUNTY: Barbour (1,312), Berkeley (10,445), Boone (1,723), Braxton (831), Brooke (2,051), Cabell (8,306), Calhoun (241), Clay (387), Doddridge (511), Fayette (2,929), Gilmer (728), Grant (1,161), Greenbrier (2,478), Hampshire (1,596), Hancock (2,622), Hardy (1,372), Harrison (5,089), Jackson (1,756), Jefferson (3,929), Kanawha (12,837), Lewis (1,089), Lincoln (1,347), Logan (2,922), Marion (3,883), Marshall (3,156), Mason (1,853), McDowell (1,406), Mercer (4,359), Mineral (2,626), Mingo (2,270), Monongalia (8,548), Monroe (1,009), Morgan (992), Nicholas (1,363), Ohio (3,792), Pendleton (651), Pleasants (818), Pocahontas (611), Preston (2,688), Putnam (4,476), Raleigh (5,316), Randolph (2,447), Ritchie (638), Roane (514), Summers (720), Taylor (1,142), Tucker (516), Tyler (655), Upshur (1,765), Wayne (2,723), Webster (436), Wetzel (1,148), Wirt (368), Wood (7,395), Wyoming (1,804).
Delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from the local health department to DHHR. As case surveillance continues at the local health department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certain county may not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individual in question may have crossed the state border to be tested. Such is the case of Doddridge County in this report.
Free COVID-19 testing is available today in Barbour, Berkeley, Boone, Doddridge, Grant, Jefferson, Lincoln, Logan, Marshall, Monongalia, Nicholas, Wayne, and Webster counties.
Barbour County
9:00 AM 11:00 AM, Barbour County Health Department, 109 Wabash Avenue, Philippi, WV
1:00 PM 5:00 PM, Junior Volunteer Fire Department, 331 Row Avenue, Junior, WV
Berkeley County
10:00 AM 6:00 PM, 891 Auto Parts Place, Martinsburg, WV
10:00 AM 6:00 PM, Ambrose Park, 25404 Mall Drive, Martinsburg, WV
Boone County
12:00 PM 6:00 PM, Boone County Health Department, 213 Kenmore Dr., Danville, WV
Doddridge County
10:00 AM 6:00 PM, Doddridge County Park, The Barn, 1252 Snowbird Road S., West Union, WV
Grant County
Jefferson County
10:00 AM 6:00 PM, Hollywood Casino, 750 Hollywood Drive, Charles Town, WV
10:00 AM 6:00 PM, Shepherd University Wellness Center Parking Lot, 164 University Drive, Shepherdstown, WV
Lincoln County
Logan County
Marshall County
11:00 AM 6:00 PM, Benwood City Building, 430 Main Street, Benwood, WV
Monongalia County
9:00 AM 11:00 AM, WVU Recreation Center, Lower Level, 2001 Rec Center Drive, Morgantown, WV
Nicholas County
Wayne County
10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Kenova Police Department, 1501 Pine Street, Kenova, WV
Webster County
COVID-19 infection was extremely rare among healthcare professionals in the U.S. and Israel following vaccination, researchers found.
Among healthcare workers in two University of California (UC) health systems who received their second vaccine dose at least 15 days previously, the overall positivity rate was 0.05%, reported Francesca Torriani, MD, of UC San Diego (UCSD), and colleagues.
The absolute risk for testing positive for COVID-19 ranged from 0.79% to 1.19% among the roughly 37,000 vaccinated healthcare workers in the two health systems, the authors wrote in an early edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. Those figures include all those testing positive irrespective of how long after vaccination the workers were tested or how many doses they'd received. Of 379 positive tests, 270 came within 2 weeks of the first dose.
"The rarity of positive test results 14 days after administration of the second dose of vaccine is encouraging and suggests that the efficacy of vaccines is maintained outside the trial setting," the team noted.
Torriani and colleagues examined data from healthcare workers at the UCLA and UCSD health systems. In December, both health systems implemented policies to allow testing of healthcare workers. UCSD mandated that asymptomatic healthcare workers undergo weekly testing by PCR assay of nasal swabs on December 2, while UCLA instituted an optional testing program for asymptomatic healthcare workers with PCR assay of nasal swabs.
From the start of vaccination on Dec. 16, 2020 to Feb. 9, 2021, about 36,700 healthcare workers received the first dose of vaccine, and 77% of those received a second dose. As of Feb. 9, 5,455 healthcare workers at UCSD and 9,535 at UCLA received the second dose 2 or more weeks previously, and seven tested positive 15 or more days after the second vaccination.
These findings corresponded with another NEJM study out of Texas. Daniel Podolsky, MD, of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, and colleagues found a 0.05% test positivity rate (95% CI 0.01-0.13), or a total of four of 8,121 fully vaccinated employees.
That team examined data from University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center employees from Dec. 15, 2020 to Jan. 28, 2021. Of the 23,234 employees, 59% received a first dose of either mRNA vaccine, and 30% of those received a second dose.
In addition to low test positivity, Podolsky and colleagues noted that the number of positive tests among employees was "consistently lower" than the projected number among patients presenting to the emergency department with samples on hand tested via PCR assay.
"The effect of vaccination on our workforce has been dramatic," the authors wrote. "We observed a greater than 90% decrease in the number of employees who are either in isolation or quarantine."
These effects could even be seen overseas, as a third NEJM study focusing on the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, by Ran Nir-Paz, MD, of Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center in Tel Aviv, Israel, and colleagues, found that the weekly incidence of COVID-19 declined after the second week, and remained low after the fourth week.
That team examined data from 5,297 healthcare workers at a two-campus medical center who had not previously had COVID-19 and were vaccinated within 8 weeks, noting that nearly all healthcare workers who received a first dose and were not infected by day 21 received a second dose. Vaccination began on Dec. 20, 2020. At week 4, seven healthcare workers tested positive for COVID-19, which dropped to zero to four workers in weeks 5-7.
Nir-Paz and colleagues noted that not only was the study conducted in an active hospital setting in a community with a high incidence of COVID-19, but it was during a time when the B.1.1.7 variant comprised 80% of cases in the community.
Molly Walker is an associate editor, who covers infectious diseases for MedPage Today. She has a passion for evidence, data and public health. Follow
Disclosures
Keehner disclosed no conflicts of interest.
Torriani disclosed no conflicts of interest.
Other co-authors disclosed various ties with industry.
One co-author disclosed a patent under development related to small molecular inhibitors of coronavirus replication.
Daniel and colleagues disclosed no conflicts of interest.
Benenson and colleagues disclosed no conflicts of interest.
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) Around 700 residents living on the Virginia Peninsula will get a free COVID-19 vaccine shot next week.
The Southeastern Virginia Health System, which says its the second-largest federally-qualified health system in the state, is working with Five Medicine and UnitedHealthcare to host the nearly weeklong event.
We have demonstrated today that when we put our heads together, we can do good things for the community, said Tameeka Smith, CEO of UnitedHealthcare Community Plan for Virginia.
Smith was joined by other healthcare provider representatives as well as Congressman Bobby Scott (D-Newport News).
Scott talked about the importance of funding that organizations, like the Southeastern Virginia Health System, received from the American Rescue Plan and why having local clinics is needed for vaccine distributions.
You can have all the vaccines you want, but if you dont have places like this providing vaccinations, you dont have anything, he said.
The clinic, which is free, will be held March 29 through April 1 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Scott says Congress worked to make sure there was a policy that allowed for people to receive the vaccine for free.
That people wouldnt have to worry about I cant get a vaccine because they have to get groceries tomorrow, rents due next week. No. Everyone can get the vaccine and we want to make sure its available to the community and thats why its here, he said.
Dr. Natasha Dwamena, who is the health district director for Hampton/Peninsula Healthcare, says that vaccination rates on their health district are seeing the same rates as Virginia, with about 25% getting a least one vaccine shot and 13% fully vaccinated.
Health officials expect the fully vaccinated number to increase as more people are administered the Johnson & Johnson shot.
We are aggressively pursuing the vaccine and making sure it comes into the health district. We welcome this collaboration, Dwamena said.
Although vaccination spots are booked for the clinic, health officials say people might be able to still get their vaccines because sometimes people do not show up for appointments and they dont want to waste shots.
If someone shows up and theres no vaccine available, they will be pre-registered on-site through the system, so no one leaves saying they came and got nothing, said Mohamed Ally, who is the chief medical officer for Unitedhealthcare.
Ally and other officials stressed the importance of getting the vaccination especially for those in Black and brown communities, which they say are five times more likely to be hospitalized by COVID-19.
The quicker we get everyone immunized, the quicker we eradicate the virus from just having a pool of us where its sitting and multiplying, infecting others, Ally said.
The event will be held at 48th Street Physicians at 4714 Marshall Avenue.
Health officials say once people get their vaccines, the data will be cross-referenced with the information on the statewide pre-registration list.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WREX) Illinois has not met the metrics to move to the bridge phase of reopening and the Stateline is part of the reason why.
Check out 13 WREX's coronavirus vaccine resources page
On Friday, the Illinois Department of Public Health announced the state has seen 10 days of increases in the seven-day rolling average for hospital admissions.
The COVID-19 test positivity on March 10 was 2.5%. Todays reported test positivity is 3.3%.
IDPH says while these rates are certainly significantly lower than the peak, they represent a potential early warning sign about a possible resurgence, according to IDPH.
READ MORE: Illinois deploying rapid response vaccination teams in Region 1
Region 1, the northern portion of the state including Rockford and surrounding communities, has seen eight days of increasing hospital bed usage and six days of increasing test positivity.
Meanwhile, Chicago has seen its daily case rate increase by nearly 50% since last week, along with six days of increases in test positivity.
Suburban Cook County has seen its daily case rate increase more than 40%, along with nine days of increasing hospital bed usage.
To advance into theBridge Phasethat is the final step before the full reopening, the entire state must achieve several metrics:
70% of residents 65 years and older must have received a first dose;Hospitals must maintain 20% or greater ICU bed availability;Hospitalizations for COVID-19, admissions for COVID-like illness and deaths must hold steady or decline over a 28-day monitoring period.
As outlined in the March 18 update to the Restore Illinois plan, IDPH will evaluate statewide performance against the metrics by looking back at the data from the preceding 28 days.
RELATED: Boone County residents 18+ can begin registering for the vaccine, heres how to sign up
While Illinois is on pace to reach 70% first doses for residents 65 years and older in the coming days, IDPH is monitoring an increase in new hospital admissions for COVID, which will need to be appropriately addressed and resolved before moving into the Bridge Phase.
IDPH epidemiologists will continue to focus on the most recent 10 days to monitor any acute trends that prevent the state from reaching the Bridge Phase.
Statewide reopening metrics can be found here.
IDPH also say they've seen vaccine demand slow in several counties throughout the state, with early signs of unfilled appointments and increased vaccine inventory.
IDPH is authorizing those communities to begin vaccinating all residents 16 and older at their immediate discretion, in order to use the vaccine doses they currently have available.
What it will take to vaccinate the world against COVID-19 Nature.com
COVID-19 Has Made It Harder To Slow The Rise In Sexually Transmitted Infections. Expedited Partner Treatment Can Help Health Affairs
Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association jointly announced today the latest COVID-19 testing results conducted under MLBs COVID-19 Health Monitoring & Testing Plan.The independent Utah laboratory has reported thefollowing results during the past week:
Weekly Monitoring Testing:
Total Monitoring Testing To Date:
Total Testing (Monitoring + Intake Testing):
In the largest study of its kind to date, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Brigham and Womens Hospital and the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard have found the new mRNA COVID-19 vaccines to be highly effective in producing antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus in pregnant and lactating women. The study also demonstrated the vaccines confer protective immunity to newborns through breast milk and the placenta.
The study, published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (AJOG), looked at 131 women of reproductive age (84 pregnant, 31 lactating and 16 non-pregnant), all of whom received one of the two new mRNA vaccines: Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna. The vaccine-induced titers or antibody levels were equivalent in all three groups. Reassuringly, side effects after vaccination were rare and comparable across the study participants.
This news of excellent vaccine efficacy is very encouraging for pregnant and breastfeeding women, who were left out of the initial COVID-19 vaccine trials, said Andrea Edlow, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at MGH, director of the Edlow Lab in the Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology and co-senior author of the new study. Filling in the information gaps with real data is key especially for our pregnant patients who are at greater risk for complications from COVID-19. This study also highlights how eager pregnant and lactating individuals are to participate in research.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, individuals who are pregnant are more likely to become severely ill with COVID-19, require hospitalization, intensive care or ventilation and may be at increased risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes. The team also compared vaccination-induced antibody levels to those induced by natural infection with COVID-19 in pregnancy, and found significantly higher levels of antibodies from vaccination.
Vaccine-generated antibodies were also present in all umbilical cord blood and breast milk samples taken from the study, showing the transfer of antibodies from mothers to newborns.
We now have clear evidence the COVID vaccines can induce immunity that will protect infants, said Galit Alter, core member of the Ragon Institute and co-senior author of the study. We hope this study will catalyze vaccine developers to recognize the importance of studying pregnant and lactating individuals, and include them in trials. The potential for rational vaccine design to drive improved outcomes for mothers and infants is limitless, but developers must realize that pregnancy is a distinct immunological state, where two lives can be saved simultaneously with a powerful vaccine. We look forward to studying all vaccine platforms in pregnancy as they become available.
The study was also able to provide insight into potential differences between the immune response elicited by the Pfizer vaccine compared to the Moderna vaccine, finding the levels of mucosal (IgA) antibodies were higher after the second dose of Moderna compared to the second dose of Pfizer.
This finding is important for all individuals, since SARS-CoV-2 is acquired through mucosal surfaces like the nose, mouth and eyes, said Kathryn Gray, an obstetrician at Brigham and Womens Hospital and a first author of the paper. But it also holds special importance for pregnant and lactating women because IgA is a key antibody present in breast milk.
Grays co-first authors on the study are Evan Bordt of MGH and Caroline Atyeo of the Ragon Institute.
Funding for the study included grants from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the Gates Foundation, the Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness (MassCPR) and the Musk Foundation.
