PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) Eight new COVID-19 deaths were announced along with a new active case count record in the latest update from the South Dakota Department of Health.
The death toll in South Dakota rose to 315. The eight new deaths included four men and four women. One death was listed in the 50-59 age range, two in the 70-79 age range and five victims listed in the 80+ age range. The new deaths were listed in the following counties: Day, Douglas, Kingsbury, Lincoln (3) and Minnehaha County (2).
There have been 92 deaths in October, the deadliest month of the pandemic so far.
On Saturday, 806 new coronavirus cases were announced, bringing the states total case count to 32,611 up from Friday (31,805). Total recovered cases is now at 24,528, up 342 from Friday (24,186).
Active cases increased to 7,768 from Fridays 7,312.
Current hospitalizations are now at 295, down from Friday (299). Total hospitalizations are at 2,077, up from Friday (2,044).
Total persons tested negative is at 196,593, up from Friday (195,185).
There were 2,214 new persons tested reported on Saturday.
The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating a coronavirus outbreak at a Waldo County church, possibly linked to a fellowship rally that the congregation held between Oct. 2 and Oct. 4.
Brooks Pentecostal Church, in Brooks, has at least 17 cases of COVID-19 among its worshippers, the health agency said. The news of the church outbreak came as Maine reported 29 new cases of COVID-19 statewide on Sunday and no additional deaths.
Videos of services that the church posted to Facebook indicate that on more than one occasion worshippers have gathered closely together without masks. Contact tracing is underway, and the Maine CDC asked potential contacts of infected people to cooperate.
Close contacts can help limit potential spread of the virus that causes COVID-19 by answering calls, providing complete information, and quarantining when advised to do so, the agency said in a news release late Saturday.
Maines cumulative cases rose to 5,939 on Sunday, a net increase of 26 cases since Saturday. The official reported number of new cases, 29, is higher than the difference in daily totals because the Maine CDC revises its numbers of cumulative total cases based on how many probable cases later test negative, and on the results of contact tracing investigations.
One hundred forty-six people have died with COVID-19 in Maine, and 5,145 have recovered from the disease. Maine had 648 active cases on Sunday.
The CDC is advising anyone who spent time at Brooks Pentecostal Church or its affiliated school since Oct. 2 to monitor for symptoms of COVID-19, which include cough, fever, shortness of breath, fatigue and body aches, among others.
Anyone who attended a fellowship rally that the congregation hosted between Oct. 2 and Oct. 4 could have been exposed to the virus and should take precautions, the CDC said.
Some of the church cases were accounted for in new reported cases on Saturday, the agency said, but not all. The CDCs statewide case counts on Sunday may also include some from Brooks Pentecostal Waldo County saw 10 new cases in Sundays count.
The churchs website and social media pages didnt display information about the outbreak on Sunday morning. Videos of services posted to Facebook indicate that the church has been conducting in-person worship since at least September, when one video showed congregantsgathering close together in the pews, without masks.
The church posted multiple videos Oct. 4, some of which appear to show social distancing in the pews, while other videos from that date feature close, maskless gatherings.
The University of Maine System reported three new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, for a total of six active cases across its eight schools. All three cases were detected at the University of Maine at Augusta, which now has five active cases. The University of Maine in Orono has one active case.
County by county in Maine since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been 832 COVID-19 cases in Androscoggin, 56 in Aroostook, 2,425 in Cumberland, 73 in Franklin, 56 in Hancock, 289 in Kennebec, 59 in Knox, 53 in Lincoln, 157 in Oxford, 273 in Penobscot, 10 in Piscataquis, 77 in Sagadahoc, 127 in Somerset, 112 in Waldo, 20 in Washington, and 1,317 in York.
By age, 12.8 percent of patients were under 20, while 16.4 percent were in their 20s, 15.3 percent were in their 30s, 13.9 percent were in their 40s, 16.1 percent were in their 50s, 11.5 percent were in their 60s, 7.2 percent were in their 70s and 6.8 percent were in their 80s.
Women are still the majority of cases, at just over 51 percent.
Effective Oct. 1, the Maine CDC says it will no longer update hospital capacity data on weekends. On Friday, Maines hospitals had 11 patients with COVID-19, of whom five were in intensive care and one was on a ventilator. The state had 93 intensive care unit beds available of a total 382, and 252 ventilators available of 318. There were also 444 alternative ventilators.
Around the world on Sunday, there were 39.7 million known cases of COVID-19 and 1.1 million deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States had 8.1 million cases and more than 219,000 deaths.
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When The Conners returned to set in mid-August after a lengthy pandemic delay, John Goodman had no doubt that every safety precaution had been taken. But his heart still fluttered a bit when it came time to finally get to work.
That moment before the first mask came off, I held my breath, said the 68-year-old actor, who plays patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC sitcom.
Sara Gilbert, who stars as Dans daughter Darlene was also anxious, even though, as an executive producer, she was well aware of the measures the show takes to keep everyone safe. The Los Angeles set is patrolled by two Covid compliance supervisors and the actors are tested five times per week, with everyone else getting tests at least three times a week.
Even so, when they say Rolling, I wait until after the sound cue, Gilbert said. And then at the very last second my mask comes off.
When the coronavirus pandemic intensified in March, it forced Hollywood to shut down production for months. Most shows interrupted by the pandemic were back on set, with coronavirus protocols, by September, though some didnt survive the break series including ABCS Stumptown, Netflixs GLOW and Showtimes On Becoming a God in Central Florida, which all had new seasons planned or in the works, were canceled by their networks.
Those that did return to production had a choice to make: Should they pick up where they left off and resume pandemic-free storytelling? Or should they deal with the coronavirus and its disruptions within their narratives?
For The Conners, which from its earliest days as Roseanne has dealt with everyday difficulties like depression, divorce and job loss, it was never even a question.
Weve always tried to represent blue-collar, middle-class families, Gilbert said. To pretend this isnt happening seems out of touch.
Life and death stories are familiar territory for us, she added. (The shows original matriarch, Roseanne Conner, was killed off via an opioid overdose after Roseanne Barr was fired for comparing a former Obama adviser to an ape on Twitter. The show title was subsequently changed from Roseanne to The Conners.)
When the series returns on Wednesday for its third season, viewers will watch the family grapple with the same issues as the rest of the country: Dan is on the verge of losing the family home. His sister-in-law, Jackie (Laurie Metcalf), is trying to keep the family restaurant alive by making deliveries on her bike (complete with a blinding neon yellow helmet, gloves and face mask). Darlene and her boyfriend, Ben (Jay R. Ferguson), are wondering whether to shutter their start-up magazine. Dans oldest daughter, Becky (Lecy Goranson), is navigating the return of her undocumented husband, Emilio (Rene Rosado), who is caring for her baby while hiding from immigration authorities.
Of course, its hard to avoid incorporating the pandemic when it seeps into every aspect of life on set. Like every other returning series, The Conners, led by the showrunner, Bruce Helford, and executive producers Dave Caplan and Bruce Rasmussen, has had to radically reconfigure nearly every element of its production for pandemic safety.
Before the cast and crew set foot onstage, they have passed two temperature checks, filled out a symptoms questionnaire and passed a Covid test within, at minimum, the last two days. Hair and makeup are done with masks and visors Gilbert said she finishes the area around her mouth herself. Props are sanitized between each take., and the show is filmed without an audience and with a limited crew.
And enforcement, Gilbert said, is rigorous. You cant eat or drink onstage, she said. Not even water. You have to go up to your dressing room.
But processing the approximately 350 weekly tests and installing upgrades like sanitizer stations and HEPA filters does not come cheap, Helford said.
Its well into the six figures, additional, to do this, he said. We had to cut holes in the wall for better ventilation and refit all the AC systems, plus the constant cleaning. More than two months into shooting, the show has yet to see a positive test.
Gilbert said the most difficult on-set restriction to remember is the six-foot rule. The writers tend to just walk over and run an idea by one another, she said. But now we have to be reminded SIX FEET!
Helford said they try to set a good example for viewers watching at home. Characters can pull their masks down if its a scene with someone they live with, he said. But if theyre out in the workplace and around people, they keep their face shields on.
Goodman said not having spectators on set, while dispiriting, can actually be a benefit. We have to maintain the amount of energy the audience naturally provides, he said. But its quite frankly easier to time things when you dont have people to laugh at them.
Gilbert said the series will not dwell on the darkest parts of the pandemic People get that on the news every day, she said but that the show, which is set in the current moment, will reflect real-world events. The second episode of the season airs Oct. 28, six nights before Election Day and three nights before Halloween. She said the Conners will celebrate their favorite holiday with some in-home trick-or-treating and that politics may come up.
But its not through the lens of Im for this guy!, she said. Its How does whats going on affect my family economically?
The writers also drew on their personal experiences in penning the new season, Caplan said. He, Helford and Rasmussen all come from low to middle income working class families, Caplan said. So even if the stories arent exactly ours all the time, theyre emotional and honest.
Helford said they wanted to spotlight the struggles of small business owners through Jackies battle to save her restaurant, the Lanford Lunch Box, as well as address the increased anxiety the pandemic has created among kids. Mark, the youngest boy, is definitely bothered by this the worst, he said, referring to Darlenes son (Ames McNamara). Hes the one standing outside the door checking everyones temperatures, making everyone crazy.
Other pandemic-focused programs, like the Freeform series Love in the Time of Corona, starring Leslie Odom Jr. and his wife Nicolette Robinson as spouses navigating life during the pandemic, and HBOs Coastal Elites, a series of satirical monologues, have received mixed reviews.
The most notable thing about most of them is that they were done at all, James Poniewozik, the chief TV critic for The New York Times, wrote in a recent appraisal of pandemic shows. But none of them had to sustain the approach for a full season.
But Gilbert thinks The Conners can serve as counterprogramming to a news cycle that highlights rising case counts and political posturing. Theres so much fear and anxiety, she said. But were looking at how the pandemic is affecting this family, and humor is definitely a part of that.
Some of the moments that resonated with the actors were unexpected. Goranson, who has been living alone in Los Angeles since March, said a scene in the third episode proved surprisingly emotional.
Becky is quarantining with her family, and I was not able to, she said. But in the scene, she says something about being alone, and it was almost confessional because it was so true to what I had experienced.
Goransons mother died in January, and she said her family has not been able to hold a gathering for her. One thing my mom told me before she died was So little matters other than people, she said. And that seems like cruel irony right now, because I havent been around anyone I love since she said that.
It is unclear how long the pandemic will infect the Conners fictional town of Lanford, Ill., just as it is uncertain how long masks and social distancing will remain the norm in America. But Goodman said that, despite everything, he tries to remain upbeat.
Its just another damn thing we have to deal with, he said. Im thrilled were able to make a show at all.
A total 3.1 million mink were farmed in the United States in 2018, according to animal welfare charity Humane Society International (HSI). Current advice from the US Department of Agriculture does not recommend culls of mink herds.
The testing has led to the culling of an estimated 2.6 million mink in the Netherlands, according to HSI. While some mink died from coronavirus, most of the animals were culled due to concerns that they could spread the virus to humans.
Although fur farms are banned in many countries, millions of animals are killed every year for their pelts, which are used in clothing. HSI said that 60 million mink were farmed for fur around the world in 2018, with China accounting for 20.7 million of the total.
Studies have shown that ferrets are susceptible to coronavirus, so researchers in the Netherlands decided to look into the taxonomically similar mink during a routine animal testing program, said Koopmans.
"Researchers found that mink do transmit Covid-19 to each other more easily than other animals, Koopmans said. "It is amazing how easily this virus spreads in mink," she said.
Long-term animal welfare issues give way to human concerns
Mink, which are closely related to weasels, otters and ferrets, appear to suffer similar Covid-19 symptoms to humans.
Difficulty breathing and crusting around the eyes are usually seen, but the virus progresses rapidly, and most infected mink are dead by the day after symptoms appear, according to Dean Taylor, state veterinarian for the US state of Utah.
Conditions at the farms mean the virus is able to rip through captive populations, said Jo Swabe, senior director of public affairs at HSI Europe. "The animals are being kept in small wire cages, there's just rows and rows and rows of them," she said. "The animals can't escape each other."
Mink are naturally solitary and semi-aquatic, and it's impossible to provide for their welfare needs on farms, according to HSI, which campaigns for the closure of fur farms on ethical grounds.
In the Netherlands, there is now ongoing transmission between mink farms, as well as evidence that the virus has been circulating for some time at some facilities, said Koopmans.
There are a number of hypotheses as to how transmission occurs, including via workers, semi-wild cats or other wildlife. "We're not really sure what happens," said Koopmans. "There is a missing link."
Koopmans has recommended culling mink populations to reduce the chance that farms become a permanently infected viral reservoir. She emphasized that she is not normally an advocate for mass animal culls but it's the best approach to prevent sustained transmission among mink.
"That's a risk that I think we should not be taking," she said.
If this were allowed to happen, and human-human transmission were suppressed, the virus could be reseeded from mink farms, said Koopman, who added that it's unclear whether the virus would change, with unknown consequences, if it were allowed to circulate in another species.
What next for the industry?
The European Commission has ruled out an European Union wide ban on fur animal farming in connection with Covid-19. But various national authorities have stepped in to mandate the culling of mink populations to prevent farms becoming a source of infection.
In Denmark, mink herds with confirmed or suspected infections will be culled, as will all farms within five miles of those facilities. The culling process will be handled by the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration and the Danish Emergency Management Agency, and mink breeders will receive compensation for the loss of their herd along with compensation for their operation losses.
"It is a difficult decision that the government has made, but we fully support it," said Tage Pedersen, chairman of the Danish Mink Breeders Association. "In recent weeks, we have all experienced that more and more farms in North Jutland have been infected, and no one has been able to explain the increase. Human health must come first."
Mink farmers will receive considerable compensation, which has stoked public opposition at a time of economic hardship for many, but the decision has accelerated the end for mink farming in the country and saved millions of animal lives, said Swabe.
Fur farming has been banned for years in countries such as the UK, Austria and Croatia, with other European nations following suit.
France announced last month that it would ban farming mink for fur by 2025. Poland looks likely to ban the breeding of animals for fur after a bill introduced by the ruling Law and Justice party sailed through the lower house of parliament in mid-September.
However, in other fur-producing nations the compensation deals on offer may prove to be a good way out for those involved in the industry, while the effects of the coronavirus pandemic may drive farms out of business even before the recent spate of legislation comes into force.
"I really do hope that will put the final nail in the coffin," said Swabe.
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) Active cases of COVID-19 in South Dakota surpassed 8,000 on Sunday, as eight new deaths due to the virus were announced by the state department of health.
The death toll in South Dakota rose to 323. The eight new deaths included four men and four women. One death was listed in the 40-49 age range, four in the 50-59 age range, one in the 60-69 age range, one in the 70-79 age range and one listed as 80+. The deaths were listed in the following counties: Bennett (1), Meade (1), Minnehaha (2), Moody (1), Pennington (1) and Roberts County (2).
There have been 100 deaths in October, the deadliest month of the pandemic so far.
On Sunday, 658 new coronavirus cases were announced, bringing the states total case count to 33,269 up from Saturday (32,611). Total recovered cases is now at 24,934, up 406 from Saturday (24,528).
Active cases increased to 8,012 from Saturdays 7,768.
Current hospitalizations are now at 300, up from Saturday (295). Total hospitalizations are at 2,119, up from Saturday (2,077).
Total persons tested negative is at 197,778, up from Saturday (196,593).
There were 1,843 new persons tested reported on Sunday.
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Members of the Wisconsin National Guard place a test sample in a bag at a COVID-19 testing site located at the United Migrant Opportunity Services (UMOS) building at 2701 S. Chase Ave. in Milwaukee on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020. As the state's outbreak balloons to one of the nation's worst, the surge of cases and hospitalizationsin Northeast Wisconsin is unlike anything the region has experienced since the pandemic began. - Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Photo: Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services has suspended the reporting of new COVID-19 totals until early next week whileits computer system undergoes anupgrade.
The department announced Friday that it is upgrading its Wisconsin Electronic Disease Surveillance System in an effort to improve its response to the coronavirus pandemic. The system is used to collect and monitor data on testing, contact tracing and other metrics.
The reporting outage is expected to last until Tuesday, one day after the system goes live with the new updates, the department said in a news release.
Track COVID-19 in Wisconsin:See the latest numbers and trends
How to interpret COVID-19 data:What experts say about positive cases, deaths and hospitalizations
It said the upgrade is expected to improve tools for contact tracing, automatic data entry and security, the agency said.
For an accurate picture of the pandemic while the system is being tweaked, DHS officials suggested monitoring the seven-day averages on its website, instead of daily positivity rates.
RELATED: America had the world's best pandemic response plan. Why did it fail?
The pause in reportingcomes as coronavirus cases continued to soar across Wisconsin. On Friday, the state posted another record with3,861 new cases. The seven-day average cracked 3,000 for the first time, coming roughly three weeks after eclipsing 2,000.
The department also reported another 21 deaths Friday, totaling 1,574 forthe year. More all-time highs included 1,101 people hospitalized with the virus and 274 in intensive care units.
Contact Elliot Hughes at elliot.hughes@jrn.com or 414-704-8958. Follow him on Twitter@elliothughes12.
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PRAGUE -- At a"Farewell COVID" party in June, thousands of Prague residents dined outdoors at a 500-meter long table across the Charles Bridge to celebrate the end of the lockdown measures.
The Czech Republic was being hailed by the rest of Europe for successfully stopping the virus after closing its borders and putting in place the harshest lockdown on the continent. Now the country is in the midst of a strong outbreak, with case numbers rising above anything recorded in the spring -- and already there are signs renewed restrictions won't be greeted favorably.
The Czech Republic isn't alone. Little affected in the spring, many of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe are now experiencing a strong outbreak of the novel coronavirus and officials are scrambling to reverse course on restrictions.
Germany, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia all recorded their highest daily increases in cases on Friday.
"What we see here is what the other countries were facing over springtime and over the summer," Dr. Martin Balik, the head of the intensive care unit at the General University Hospital of Prague, told ABC News.
In the spring, Prague became the first European city to require face masks on public transportation and then all indoor public spaces, according to Prague Mayor Zdenk Hib. The country of 10 million had managed to avoid the full brunt of the first wave with fewer than 12,000 infections and 350 deaths.
Test positivity rates are on the rise in Eastern Europe the first two weeks of October after relatively light case counts in the spring and summer.
"Within a few weeks we were able to really decrease the number of cases to almost ground zero," Health Minister Roman Prymula told ABC News, reflecting on the first wave. "And all the people were respecting ... were wearing masks in their homes, it was great. But recently it's completely different."
Now the Czech Republic is registering new records for daily cases, including more than 11,000 cases in a 24-hour span reported on Oct. 16.
The government announced the reintroduction of restrictions on Oct. 13 to curb the spread of the coronavirus, closing all schools except for kindergartens until Nov. 1, and restaurants, bars and clubs until the end of the state of emergency scheduled for Nov. 3. It has limited indoor and outdoor gatherings to six people at a time and curbed sales of alcohol in public.
Although the initial lockdown measures were successful in Central and Eastern Europe, acceptance of renewed restrictions will likely be hard.
A man runs across an empty medieval Charles Bridge in Prague, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020. The Czech Republic has imposed a new series of restrictive measures in response to a record surge in coronavirus infections.
A health care worker puts on personal protective equipment in front of the room for COVID-19 patients in an intensive care unit at Thomayer Hospital on Oct. 14, 2020, in Prague.
"In the spring, everybody was supportive of the countermeasures -- everybody. But recently, it's a political fight," Czech Health Minister Roman Prymula told ABC News.
German authorities have also tried to institute new restrictions after a rise in the number of COVID-19 cases, with little success and lots of backlash. An order for bars and restaurants to close at 11 p.m. in Berlin was quickly overturned by local courts and regular protests against recently reintroduced COVID-19 measures have taken place since late August in the German capital.
Bulgaria's Health Ministry eased restrictive rules on nightclubs and certain gatherings, such as weddings, after meeting with representatives of the industries, according to local reports. The rollback was announced just three days after the health minister ordered the closure of indoor sections of nightclubs, bars and discos.
By comparison, in France, which suffered acutely under the first wave with over 28,000 deaths by the end of May, two-thirds of people approve of new curfew restrictions, according to a recent poll. The support comes despite a possible 1 billion euro hit to the economy, according to France's economy minister.
With economies on the brink, populations in Eastern Europe are less willing to cope with new measures. During the lockdown, the Czech economy lost 4 billion Czech koruna per day (about $171 million U.S.).
Restaurants that have been asked to close in Prague are looking to takeout to stay afloat. Olinka Budnik, a chef at the Black Madonna restaurant in Prague, said they have lost 30% of their income from last year. A hotel owner in the center of Prague told ABC News that they were expecting to close soon after the new restrictions. "We have no choice," she said.
Health care workers wear their personal protective equipment in front of the room for COVID-19 patients in an intensive care unit at Thomayer Hospital on Oct. 14, 2020, in Prague.
In the Czech Republic, even health care professionals doubt the necessity of the measures.
Balik, the doctor at General University Hospital of Prague, said reintroducing measures, such as closing schools, is not sound.
"The authorities' response is irrational," he told ABC News. "We had the hardest lockdown ever in Europe, which completely destroyed private enterprises. This country lost its financial reserve ... which led to the almost complete relief of the measures during springtime. ... This country swings between extremes."
A member of the medical staff treats a patient suffering from COVID-19 at the intensive care unit of the Slany Hospital in Slany, Czech Republic, Oct. 13, 2020.
Prime Minister Andrej Babi recently took the blame for lifting the restrictions over the summer. "Even I got carried away by the upcoming summer and the atmosphere in society. That was a mistake I do not want to repeat," the PM told a national audience on TV.
Prague residents "are not afraid of coronavirus, they are afraid of all those restrictions," local journalist Lenka Zlamalova told ABC News.
"We have recently a little bit more of mild course of the disease, so not so many people require treatment in ICU, ventilators, etc. ... [But] the rise is so steep that we may expect some trouble with the capacity, beds, ICUs and hospitals," Prymula said.
Editors note: The Salt Lake Tribune is providing free access to critical stories about the coronavirus. Sign up for our Top Stories newsletter, sent to your inbox every weekday morning. To support journalism like this, please donate or become a subscriber.
Utahs sustained spike in coronavirus cases continued on Saturday, as health officials reported that hospitalizations from the virus had again risen to record heights, with 298 patients receiving active care.
The previous high was recorded Friday, when 290 patients were hospitalized. Overall, 4,610 people have been hospitalized since the beginning of the pandemic.
In total, the state reported that there have been 93,297 positive cases of the virus in Utah, an increase of 1,340 from Friday. There have also been three new deaths, bringing the total number of people who have died from the virus to 540. The deaths included:
The spike in cases is unsustainable, Gov. Gary Herbert said in a statement released with Fridays coronavirus report. And he urged Utahns, again, to wear masks, socially distance and limit the size of social gatherings.
Unless we do these things, we can expect to see more sobering days, he said.
Dr. Russell Vinik, chief medical operations officer at the University of Utah Hospital, said Saturday that the hospital had a better night and saw its capacity ease up a bit, to 94% full. But he doesnt expect that trend to continue and said he anticipates capacity rates will rise and fall as cases trend upward.
If we had peaked in cases on Friday, which I hope we did, then we expect it to continue to rise for two to four weeks, he said. If [the daily case count] continues to go up through the winter, it could be a really terrible winter.
Vinik said health care workers are exhausted, both physically and mentally" as the coronavirus wears on in the state.
This is very hard on them and then the mental part of not seeing light at the end of the tunnel makes it so much harder, he said, calling on the public to take proper precautions to prevent the hospitals from overflowing. That includes keeping an appropriate distance from people not in your household, wear face masks and get tested if you have any symptoms.
Jess Gomez, a spokesperson with Intermountain Health Care, said Saturday that the hospital is also seeing high utilization of its intensive care unit beds, which are treating both COVID patients as well as a lot of non-COVID patients who are in intensive care for a variety of conditions.
Were getting close to capacity but were just not there yet. But its getting very close," he said.
As hospitalizations reach record highs, Gomez said the health care provider is asking for community to stand with us" and do their part to keep hospitals from becoming overrun with patients.
Now more than ever we really need people to step up and to do everything they can to reduce transmissions, he said. We continue to say the same things but theyre critically important and unfortunately theyre not being universally used.
If people follow public health guidance, he said, we can get a handle on it.
But at this point, Gomez said "the consequences are falling upon our health care community who are struggling to keep up with the people who need hospital care for COVID and other issues.
The state Health Department reported Saturday that of the 298 people who are currently hospitalized, 96 are confirmed to be using intensive care unit beds. Utahs ICU beds were 75% occupied.
There were 9,142 new test results reported on Saturday, as the statewide positive rate remained in the 13% to 14% range that state officials say indicates there are far more people sick than those getting tested. On Saturday, it was at 14%.
For the past week, the Utah Department of Health has tallied 1,236 new positive test results a day, on average, continuing a streak of new record highs.
Heres our recap of thepast week inthe coronaviruspandemicfrom our tracking, policy analysis, polling, and journalism.
This week a joint project between KFF and ESPNs The Undefeated explores the publics views and experiences on the topics of health care, racial discrimination, and the coronavirus pandemic, with a special focus on Black adults. Half of Black adults say they would definitely or probably get a coronavirus vaccine available for free and deemed safe by scientists, compared to 61% of Hispanic adults and 65% of White adults. KFF President Drew Altman discusses how systemic racism had led to striking levels of reluctance to get a COVID-19 vaccine among Black Americans in an Axios column.
The national survey also explored the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on people of color. Half of Black adults and 57% of Hispanic adults say someone in their household lost a job, was furloughed, or had their hours or income reduced due to the pandemic, compared to 42% of White adults. Two-thirds of Black adults think the federal government would be taking stronger action to fight the pandemic if White people were getting sick and dying from the coronavirus at higher rates than people of color.
Global Cases and Deaths:Totalcases worldwide reached36.3 millionthis week withan increase ofapproximately2.4 million new confirmed cases in the past seven days.There werenearly 39,000new confirmed deaths worldwide and the total confirmed deaths is over 1 million.
U.S. Cases and Deaths: Total confirmed cases in the U.S. surpassed 7.9 million this week. There was an approximate increase of 373,800 confirmed cases between October 9 and October 15. Approximately 4,900 confirmed deaths in the past week brought the total in the United States to approximately 217,700.
Race/Ethnicity Data: Hispanic individuals made up a higher share of cases compared to their share of the total population in 44 of 46 states reporting cases and 13 of 47 states reporting deaths. In 7 states (NH, NC, NE, OR, WA, VA, and PA), Hispanic peoples share of cases was more than 3 times their share of the population. COVID-19 continues to have a sharp, disproportionate impact on American Indian/Alaska Native as well as Asian people in some states. Black individuals made up a higher share of cases/deaths compared to their share of the population in 40 of 50 states reporting cases and 34 of 48 states reporting deaths. In 6 states (MI, MO, WI, KS, and ME) the share of COVID-19 related deaths among Black people was at least two times higher than their share of the total population.
Extensions: AR, CO, GA, HI, IN, MN, SC, VT, WY
New Restrictions: ND
Rollbacks: CA, ME, ND, TX, WI, WV
Enhanced Face Mask Order: ME
When it's cold outside, is it safe to bring a socially distanced gathering into your house if the windows are open for a short bit and then shut so indoor temperatures don't plummet? We answer this question below. Tessa Bunney/Corbis via Getty Images hide caption
When it's cold outside, is it safe to bring a socially distanced gathering into your house if the windows are open for a short bit and then shut so indoor temperatures don't plummet? We answer this question below.
Each week, we answer frequently asked questions about life during the coronavirus crisis. If you have a question you'd like us to consider for a future post, email us at goatsandsoda@npr.org with the subject line: "Weekly Coronavirus Questions."
I live in a cold (North Dakota) climate and will very soon have to give up outdoor socializing. If I want to try indoor socializing, it'll be too cold to keep windows wide open for a long stretch. Would it help to open a window or door for a minute or two every so often?
Brr! Around the U.S., as colder temperatures set in, outdoor social gatherings can be harder to swing. Even our dearest friends would find it hard to join us for a snowy, windy backyard picnic or around-the-block stroll.
So from a comfort perspective, it makes sense to consider moving social activities indoors. But you're definitely incurring more risk: The outdoor air can disrupt potentially infectious exhalations. Is there a way to use open windows, air filters and other strategies to make the indoors more like the outdoors?
Before you go down that road, Sonali Advani, an assistant professor of medicine at Duke University, warns that there are limitations to focusing on ventilation via open windows as a way to prevent viral transmission.
"Ventilation is one of the many interventions we recommend," she says. "All of these measures, from masks to social distancing, work together in symphony. Relying on one alone will inevitably cause gaps in protection."
Those latter two measures masks and distancing are probably more important than just ventilation alone, Advani explains. So the best way to minimize risk is to mask up and stay 6 feet apart.
If you do end up meeting friends indoors and Advani says you should seriously think about that decision because of the heightened risk of transmission associated with inside spaces she's not sure how meaningful opening the windows for a short spell every 15 to 20 minutes would be when it comes to reducing risk. The total effect, she says, would likely be marginal.
Ventilation itself is only really helpful, she argues, when it's highly robust: windows open on both sides of a room to allow for cross-ventilation and an open, airy space with very few people, for example. Most people can't guarantee that at home. "When we talk about ventilation, what we really care about is air exchanges," or the number of times that air gets replaced in each room every hour. That can be accomplished with a robust air-handling system think airplanes and properly outfitted buildings. But, she says, "there's no controlled way of doing that when opening a window."
Stephen Morse, an epidemiology professor at Columbia University, agrees but adds that some ventilation is probably "better than none." So if you feel inclined to blast open a window in the middle of your North Dakota weather, go for it. Just do so while understanding the severe limitations.
And those limitations? Well, as Morse explains, there are potentially lots of them. For instance: "You can't really tell if the virus is in the air just at the moment when the window is not open in which case, you haven't gotten much benefit."
Plus, since there's little to no data on this, Morse says it can be hard for experts to give a definitive answer on risk.
"Opening windows and doors intermittently may have some effect on helping with creating more airflow, but the specifics of each room and situation would be different," Harvard Medical School physician Abraar Karan says.
But one thing is clear, Morse says: "If people are willing to wear masks and commit to social distancing [inside], that will help quite a bit even [indoors with windows closed] in cold weather."
Does holding your breath while walking by an unmasked (or masked) person help reduce the odds of transmission?
It's every pandemic precautionist's worst nightmare. You've followed all the rules siloing yourself to your house or apartment and leaving only for a CDC-approved walk around the block.
But what if an unmasked person passes by? And stops to ask you a question?
What if that person is infected and expelling viral particles? Would holding your breath prevent you from inhaling any potentially infectious bits?
Chances are sorry to report probably not to a great extent.
To begin with, the chances of transmission from a mini-encounter like the one above are rather small, Advani, of Duke, explains especially if you're outdoors and you don't stop to speak with the person you're passing.
"Transmission is unlikely to happen in seconds, so [holding your breath] likely won't make a difference," Karan, of Harvard, says. "If someone just sneezed in front of you, I wouldn't recommend inhaling that, but generally we believe it takes several minutes at least for transmission to occur."
Advani recommends carrying a mask with you to pop on in case a situation like this occurs.
Would spraying some kind of oil like WD-40 or a silicone or lube-type spray on the outside of my mask help trap viral particles better?
When it comes to DIY upgrades on masks, our sources are skeptical.
For one, Advani worries about the impact that rubbing on such an oil would have on filtration efficiency the main purpose of a good mask. And there might even be added risks.
"Oil may cause bacteria to grow and affect the filtration process of the mask," she says. "That might possibly increase the risk of bacterial infection."
In general, our sources stress that people should stick to the basics of COVID-19 protection and try not to get too fancy with it.
"The virus itself largely travels within droplets or aerosol particles. Using an oil coating on a mask has not been studied in this manner to have any effect. Altering mask materials could negate efficacy," says Karan.
He concludes, "I wouldn't put an oil coating on a mask."
Pranav Baskar is a freelance journalist.
