Category: Covid-19

As deadlines loom for many health care workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19, health systems in Wisconsin are poring over exemption requests and trying to convince employees to get the shot before missed deadlines lead to dismissal.

At Bellin Health in Green Bay, there were protests this August shortly after vaccine mandates were announced around the state. Currently, about 83 percent of workers are vaccinated against COVID-19, administrators say, and the health system is trying to increase the number of vaccinated staff in the next month, before the Nov. 15 deadline.

Chris Woleske, president and CEO of Bellin Health, said they dont expect to have 100 percent of staff get the vaccine because of exemptions. Others will quit or be let go because the mandate.

"And thats unfortunate," Woleske said during an WisPolitics roundtable Wednesday. "I hope that people can find a way to come to terms with the requirement and stay with us."

Marshfield Clinic, which serves the northern two-thirds of the state, also expects some workers to leave over the COVID-19 vaccine requirement. Wisconsin law alreadyrequires hospital workers be vaccinated against other infectious diseases, including measles, and employer mandates of the COVID-19 vaccinehave been upheld in court.

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A "high percentage" of staff are already vaccinated said Marshfield Clinic Health System CEO Susan Turney. She said final staff vaccination rates wont be known until the Nov. 15 deadline, a time when flu season could stress hospitals already caring for COVID-19 patients.

"The prediction is that this is going to be severe flu season," Turney said during the roundtable discussion, noting they, like other health systems, honor exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine requirement.

In Milwaukee, at the Medical College of Wisconsin about 100 medical and religious exemptions have been granted to its vaccine mandate, said president and CEO, Dr. John Raymond. A dozen staff have submitted resignations, but 94 percent are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, he said.

COVID-19 vaccination for health care workers is supported by the Wisconsin Nurses Association, theWisconsin Medical Societyand a host of other organizations on the grounds that the vaccines protect both patients and health care workers from serious complications and death from the disease.

The Biden administration is currently developing a federal rule that all businesses with 100 or more employees have to ensure that every worker is either vaccinated for COVID-19 or submit to weekly testing for the coronavirus.

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Wisconsin hospitals urge COVID-19 vaccination for staff now required to have shot - Wisconsin Public Radio News

Texas lawmakers face a tight schedule as they consider a bill that would enshrine Gov. Greg Abbott's ban on vaccine mandates into state law. The legislature is currently in its third special session, which expires next week. Tamir Kalifa/Getty Images hide caption

Texas lawmakers face a tight schedule as they consider a bill that would enshrine Gov. Greg Abbott's ban on vaccine mandates into state law. The legislature is currently in its third special session, which expires next week.

Texas lawmakers are considering legislation that would give workers legal grounds to refuse COVID-19 vaccine mandates for "reasons of conscience" and to sue their employers if they don't agree. The measure would codify Gov. Greg Abbott's ban on vaccine mandates into state law.

"The bill would let employees opt out of vaccine requirements by their employers for medical reasons or on grounds of personal conscience," Andrew Schneider of Houston Public Media reports for the NPR Newscast.

"Opponents of the bill, including some business groups, fear it would unleash a torrent of lawsuits against private employers."

The measure would also apply to workers who have "acquired immunity against COVID-19" because they've previously been infected and recovered from the disease. It doesn't detail how those workers might prove their immune status.

As it currently reads, the bill would allow workers who are fired or otherwise sidelined to file suit against their employers "as if the establishment engaged in a discriminatory or unlawful employment practice."

Those workers could ask a court to prevent their firing, or to award compensatory or punitive damages.

The bill, HB 155, has 24 sponsors, all Republicans. It's currently in the House State Affairs Committee, which held more than four hours of testimony on it Wednesday.

State Rep. Tom Oliverson, the bill's main author, is a practicing anesthesiologist who has been vaccinated against COVID-19.

"I was one of the first to line up when it became available at my health care facility," he told the House committee.

But Oliverson also said he doesn't believe public health mandates are very effective. He also said HB 155 conforms to the concept of patient autonomy which he said is at the foundation of medical ethics in the U.S.

"That is the idea that a patient of sound mind and body has the right to accept or refuse medical advice and treatment" regardless of what medical expertise has to say on the matter, Oliverson said.

Oliverson discussed the bill just 48 hours after Abbott called on lawmakers to pass a version of his recent order that bans any entity, including private businesses, from enforcing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate in Texas.

Abbott's state order positions the governor as a highly visible challenger to President Biden's federal mandate that requires any business with 100 or more employees to impose either a mandate vaccine or weekly coronavirus testing. The competing positions have also forced companies to choose which order they will follow and several large employers in Texas have sided with the federal order.

Southwest Airlines, American Airlines and IBM and other companies have said they will abide by Biden's order, saying Biden's federal authority outweighs Abbott's powers.

Abbott's order also faces other hurdles. As Houston Public Media reports, Texas could be heading for a court battle with the federal government over the ban. And with a third special session of the legislature set to expire next week, lawmakers may not have enough time to enshrine a ban on vaccine mandates into state law.

By staking out a hard line against Biden, Abbott seems to be responding to political pressures within his own party, analysts tell HPM. The governor is contending with weak support in early polls ahead of next spring's Republican primary.

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Texas considers law that would ban COVID-19 mandates in the state - NPR

MADISON - Wisconsinites who attend or testify in public hearings in the state Capitol on legislation are unlikely to be notified if someone infected with COVID-19 was present.

During three recent hearings on Aug. 11 and Oct. 7 the Wisconsin State Legislature used a practice of alertingthe people who sit or stand closely to lawmakers or staff who tested positive for COVID-19 and notifiedthe Legislature's human resources office.

And it's unclear how often these notifications extend to members of the public who attend the hearings legislative officialshave not answered questions about how many members ofthe public have beenalerted when they have been potentially exposed to the virus in a legislative proceeding.

Five people told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel they weren't notified after testifying inhearings on Aug. 11 and Oct. 7 where COVID-19 was potentially exposed to them, including a woman who sat behind a lawmaker who testified without a face mask and soon aftertested positive.

"I found out through social media," said Angela Harris of Milwaukee, who testified at an Aug. 11 hearing on education-related bills, and sat behind Republican Sen. Andre Jacque during his testimony.

Jacque said he felt ill earlier that week, testified without a mask that day, and days later was hospitalized with COVID-19.

During the Oct. 7 hearing, a number of people who testified had Down syndrome, a condition that increases a person's chance of becoming hospitalized ordying of COVID-19 exponentially. One advocatesaid she was not notified.

Kristin Lyerly, an obstetrician from Green Bay and former Democratic candidate for the state Assembly,testified without a face mask during the same hearing and received apositive COVID-19 test result on Thursday. It's impossible to know when Lyerly became infected.

"Hard to know whether I picked it up there, but I don't have any other known exposures, only a 15 year old son with a cough and a negative COVID test," she said. Lyerly said legislative officials did not contact her about the possible exposure.

Assembly officials say they notify "close contacts" of those who report positive COVID-19 tests, defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as someone who was within six feet of a person who had COVID-19 for 15 minutes or longer.

"The Centers for Disease Control define a COVID exposure as close contact 6 feet or less for 15 minutes over a 24 hour period. The Legislative Human Resources follows these guidelines when conducting contact tracing suggested by CDC. In short, we follow the science," said Angela Joyce, spokeswoman for Assembly Speaker Robin Vos.

That means if a lawmakerwho attendsa committee hearing that lasts hours and later tests positive for COVID-19, only those who were determined to be in very close proximity to the lawmaker will be told about the possible exposure.

For example, Democratic Rep. Sara Rodriguez of Brookfieldwas notified she had been potentially been exposed during the Oct. 7 Assembly health committee hearing but Rep. Lisa Subeck, who was sitting threeseats away from her, was not.

Committee chairman Rep. Joe Sanfelippo also wasn't notified and said he didn't learn of the potential exposure until Subeck told him about it.

In an interview, Sanfelippo said he believes the Legislature's policy of contacting only close contacts is appropriate.

"I think it's appropriate to follow whatever the CDC guidelines are," he said. "I leave that up to HR theyre taking their direction from the CDC and we put our trust in the CDC. They are the ones making the guidelines."

Rodriguez, who is a registered nurse and once worked as an epidemic intelligence service officer for the CDC, said the Legislature's notifications to close contacts is a good first step but wants more transparency for the public.

"It'sconcerning to me that we are not being more transparent in committees where we are requiring people to testify in person," she said. Rodriguez said because those who testify must submit their names to committee leaders, the Legislature could at least notify those people when there is an exposure.

"I think that is the absolute minimum we should be doing," she said.

Patrick Remington, former epidemiologist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison's preventive medicine residency program, said contacting close contacts as defined by the CDC is the minimum action that couldbe taken but notifying broadly would ensure everyone who could have been exposed are aware of the possible risk and can change their plans or get tested if they wish.

"In the spirit of transparency isthat anytime theres been an exposure to public space everybody should be informed of that including people who have a low risk exposure to me thats good public health practice," Remington said.

Remington said notification of everyone in a hearing room would be optimal because of the possibility of COVID-19 being spread through the air.

"We know there have been outbreaks of people who have not been in close contact thats evidence of airborne transmission," Remington said. "We know its possible … its not the primary mode of transmission but it is possible."

Good government experts and advocates for government transparency say the Legislature's practices are lacking.

"If a case comes to light after a legislative hearing, session or other legislative function, the legislature has a moral obligation to expend all reasonable efforts to seek out and notify anyone who might have been exposed to COVID as a result of attending the legislative activity," said David Griesing, president and chief executive of the nonpartisanIllinois-based Better Government Association.

"We expect employers to do this; we expect our friends and family to do this. The legislature is no different, and in fact its obligation is higher because its sole function is to serve the public."

Bill Lueders, president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, said government officials should "demonstrate maximum transparency" when it comes to public business and notify everyone in a committee hearing where COVID-19 was possiblypresent.

"Itreally makes me mad that the leg would embrace secrecy over the protection of the public's health," he said. "Who the f***do these people think they work for?"

Contact Molly Beckat molly.beck@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @MollyBeck.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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Legislature doesn't notify everyone in hearing with COVID-19 exposures - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Body counts appear to support the common perception that Covid-19 does its worst damage among the old and vulnerable. But body counts mask another reality, and focusing on them is skewing policy decisions and individual choices.

Theres no question that deaths were most common among old and vulnerable individuals early in the pandemic. Some politicians and academics have used death rates to conclude that the pandemics toll has been largely confined to the elderly and sick, and that widespread mitigation measures such as mask and vaccine mandates are unjustified.

We looked at Covid-related deaths through a different lens years of life lost which revealed a very different picture about the burden of illness than deaths alone.

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In a recent study, we and our colleagues Hanke Heun-Johnson and Bryan Tysinger showed that the Covid-19 pandemic has stolen an enormous amount of life from young and old alike. Because of the pandemic, Americans will celebrate at least 9 million fewer birthdays in the years to come, and more than half of them were lost to people under age 65.

While every premature death brings tragedy to a family, deaths among younger and middle-aged adults steal more years of life. For example, 80-year-olds who died from the pandemic lost about 7.7 years of life on average, but 40-year-olds who died lost about 36 years on average. When we accounted for the number of years lived in good health, rather than simply the number of years lived, the gap between young and old widened even further: 40-year-olds who died lost more than five times the number of healthy years as did 80-year-olds.

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The focus on deaths affecting mainly the elderly is unfortunate because it likely created a false sense of security among the young. That has led to lower vaccination rates, resistance to preventive measures, and now, tragically, growing death rates. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of people in their 30s who died of the virus in August was about 50% higher than the number who died in January, the month with the highest number of deaths recorded in the U.S.

The notion that those killed by Covid-19 would have died soon anyway is also false. According to our study, the average Covid-19 death among those aged 45 to 54 years resulted in the loss of 29 years of life, slightly below life expectancy for that age group but still an enormous loss of life. In fact, we estimated that 40% of the 740,000 people who died prematurely in the first year of the pandemic would have had average or above-average life expectancies had the pandemic not occurred.

Part of the reason that the pandemic has stolen so much life is that Covid weaponizes chronic health conditions that would not otherwise shorten life expectancy by much. The case of obesity, a major risk factor for Covid-19 death, helps illustrate. Even living with obesity, a 40-year-old can expect to live for more than 30 years. Those years evaporate with a Covid-19 death.

Adding up years of lost life may seem like a soulless exercise. But these years reflect a very real human toll, of loved ones missing from millions of Thanksgiving dinner tables and family milestones. Years of life lost also have important policy implications, because those forgone years represent enormous losses to families, businesses, and society at large. While the economic value of one year spent in good health remains a source of debate, $150,000 is frequently used as a rule of thumb by policymakers. After adjusting for time spent in good health and doing the math, the total cost of life-years lost from the first year of the pandemic alone approaches $1 trillion, even before accounting for all the other non-fatal consequences of Covid-19, such as long-term symptoms, missed work, caregiver burden, and the like.

Policymakers ignore years of life lost by younger Americans at their peril. Focusing quarantine and mitigation efforts exclusively on those near the end of their lives as, for example, Florida did overlooked a substantial portion of those who suffered with and died from Covid-19.

As other studies have shown, our analysis found that Covid-19 hit minority communities especially hard, producing large racial and ethnic disparities in the loss of life. Across all ages, men and women from Black and Hispanic communities lost years of life at over twice the rate of white men and women. The disparity was largest among Black men ages 25 to 64, who lost life-years at three times the rate of their white peers.

Our study, which was performed at the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics, adds to the body of research about the burden of Covid-19 on American lives. It drew on data from the CDC and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to examine Covid deaths during the first full year of the pandemic in the U.S., from March 2020 to March 2021. The Schaeffer Centers Future Elderly Model and Future Adult Model were employed to account for a broad array of risk factors, including chronic illness, body weight, health behavior, age, sex, race, and ethnicity, to estimate the years lost by those who died.

The study ended before the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 struck. There is every reason to believe the new wave it helped generate has shifted the burden of the disease even more to younger Americans, who remain less enthusiastic about vaccination than older adults. The early campaigns to urge younger people to get vaccinated stressed how doing so would protect others, but our evidence makes clear that even for younger, healthier groups the life-years you save by getting vaccinated could be your own.

Darius Lakdawalla is director of research at the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics. He reports having received research support and consulting income from several biopharma companies and owns equity in Precision Medicine Group, which provides consulting and support services to life sciences firms. Julian Reif is associate professor of finance and economics at Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

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The hidden cost of Covid-19: years of life lost among the young - STAT - STAT

State leaders called upon WVUs School of Public Health to assist with vaccination communications targeting minority communities and other key demographics. (WVU Photo)

TheWest VirginiaUniversitySchool of Public Healthisprovidingcritical insightstohelp targetminority communitiesand other key demographicsas the state works to boost its vaccination rate amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Online surveys and focus groups conducted byLinda Alexander, senior associate dean for academic, student and faculty affairs for the School of Public Health,highlightedthe need for targeted messaging geared toward specific demographic groups, including a minority audience.

Her findings revealedthat minority communities often relied on personal faith to make their decisions, and they were eager for information from sources they could trust to help guide theirchoices. Her work alsoreiteratedlingering health disparities including poor health information and lack of access to health care that have reduced trust in medical providers within communities of color.

What I want people to know and take away from my work with minoritized communities is that these are resilient communities that are finding their way through this pandemic and through other things, like the opioid crisis and other issues, that often happen simultaneously,Alexander said. Understanding both the resilience of communities and that solutions are incommunities,I think that will go a long way.

Alexandernoted thatthe pandemic has informed students in a way that a textbook cannot,imparting lessons about gaps in healthcare infrastructure, policy inequities and cultural humility a process of reflection and discovery that involves self-awareness of personal and cultural biases.

Cultural humility is very difficult to teach, but I think, in our current crisis, our students and communities at large have learned that the pandemic knew no particular political affiliation, no particular race or ethnic group; it was an equal opportunity disease, Alexander said. And a huge takeaway, I think, in public health is that not everything can be summarized into a moral weakness. Some things are beyond an individuals control, and its important to have specific infrastructure and systems in place to ensure people can be adequately served in a crisis.

Alexander is among several School of Public Health faculty members who joined thestatesCOVID-19 Vaccine Medical Advisory Group others to share their uniqueexpertisein tackling public health challenges in West Virginia and the Appalachian region.

We needed to have a coordinated place where good information could be shared, information could be put in the right context for West Virginians, educational materials could be developed, and we could serve in a way that would benefit all West Virginians, School of Public Health DeanJeffrey Cobensaid. That work continues today as we work to really try to improve our vaccination efforts across the state.

Jill Upson, executive director ofthe statesHerbert Henderson Office of Minority Affairs, saidwork by Alexander and others at the School of Public Health has made a difference in West Virginias COVID-19 response.

Minority populations have borne a heavy burden throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Upson said. Working with the WVU School of Public Health to deliver accurate and culturallycompetent messages to minority citizens has led to increased access to testing, treatment and information for those who need it most.

The School of Public Health is building uponthelessons learned fromAlexanders work and other pandemic-related research asit works to train a growing number of future professionals and improve the states public health infrastructure.

Transcripts from Alexanders focus groups are now being used to create medical simulationsto helpstudents in all health sciences disciplineslearn how tobetterhandle patient encounters.TheSchoolis also incorporatingkey takeawaysfrom the vaccination effortinto new and existing programs not only for undergraduate and graduate students, but also for professionals working in the field.

Coben said the School of Public Health has seen a surge in applicationsover the past year and a half.As the School continues to grow and build upon the lessons of COVID-19,he noted thatprivate supportenhances educationalopportunities for students. Existing resources have enabled students to engage with local communities more than ever before during the pandemic,assisting with testing sites, vaccination clinics, mask studies, public education efforts and more.

West Virginia as a state is in desperate need of building up the infrastructure in public health; as the only accredited School of Public Health in the state of West Virginia, our mission is to helpmeetthat need, Coben said. We are training the next generation of public health leaders for our state. These individuals will move into the health departments, theyll move into the state Department of Health[and Human Resources]. And we desperately want to support those students in their journey by providing them with financial support that our donors can really help us with.

To explore opportunities to support the School of Public Health, contact Tiffany Walker-Samuels attsamuels@wvuf.orgor 304-293-8604. All gifts aremade throughtheWVU Foundation, the nonprofit organization that receives and administers private donations on behalf of the University.

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cr/10/14/21

CONTACT:NikkyLunaDirector of Marketing and CommunicationsSchool of Public Health304-293-1699;Nikky.Luna@hsc.wvu.edu

OR

Cassie RiceCommunications SpecialistWVU Foundation304.554.0217;crice@wvuf.org

Call 1-855-WVU-NEWS for the latest West Virginia University news and information fromWVUToday.

Follow @WVUToday on Twitter.

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WVU Today | WVU School of Public Health aids state efforts to boost COVID-19 vaccination among minority communities - WVU Today

BOSTON (SHNS) The states acting public health commissioner said Wednesday she sees a very good trend in COVID-19 metrics in Massachusetts, which have lately featured declining hospitalization and case numbers.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases recorded in Massachusetts since February 2020 stood at 772,932, or nearly 100,000 more than the population of Boston.

After dropping to double-digit levels in June, the seven-day average of newly reported cases of COVID-19 began climbing in July, as the Delta variant contributed to spread of the virus, and hit a late-summer peak of 1,895.6 on Sept. 13.

Three weeks later, on Oct. 4, the seven-day average case count was down to 1,304.7 and as of Oct. 11, it stood at 970.9.

Updating the Public Health Council on Wednesday, acting commissioner Margret Cooke said COVID-19 hospitalizations have also been dropping, from 707 on Sept. 13. As of Tuesday, that number was 541.

This is a very good trend, and given our last few weeks of data, our decreasing case counts and with our ever-increasing vaccination rates, we expect this trend to continue, Cooke said.

A total of 4,667,841 people in Massachusetts are fully vaccinated, according to the latest DPH data. Cooke said Centers for Disease Control and Prevention figures show more than 90 percent of all Massachusetts adults have received at least one dose, and more than 99.9 percent of the 65-plus population has at least one dose.

Public health officials on Tuesday also reported 4,034 new cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated individuals, bringing the cumulative count of breakthrough infections to 44,498 or 0.95 percent of the states fully vaccinated population.

There have been 1,428 hospitalizations among fully vaccinated people 0.03 percent of the total number of people fully vaccinated and 345 deaths, or 0.007 percent fully vaccinated individuals, according to the DPH.

I want to emphasize that breakthrough cases in Massachusetts are incredibly low, less than 1 percent of those who are fully vaccinated, Cooke said. Those who are hospitalized or who have died after being fully vaccinated are even lower. All available data continue to support that all three vaccines used in the United States are highly protective against severe disease and death from all known variants of COVID-19.

So far, of the three vaccines, only the Pfizer vaccine has been authorized by the federal government for booster shots in eligible populations.

Cooke said the states rapid response team has provided 3,488 booster doses to long-term care residents as of Oct. 8.

A state vaccine equity program focuses on 20 communities, and Cooke said efforts in those cities and towns to bolster vaccination access and address vaccine hesitancy have been working.

She said the statewide first-dose average vaccination rate increased by 5.1 percentage points over the last two months, and 18 of those 20 communities experienced larger gains.

Cooke also offered a particular shoutout to Chelsea, one of the cities targeted by the equity program.

At one time, you may remember, Chelsea had the highest rate of COVID cases in our commonwealth, and today over 99 percent of eligible residents in Chelsea have received at least one dose of the vaccine, she said.

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DPH chief sees very good trend on COVID-19 cases - WWLP.com

Hospitalman Christopher Ramirez, right, from Kimberly, Idaho, assigned to PCU John F. Kennedys (CVN 79) medical department, administers a COVID-19 vaccine to Lt. Cmdr. George Stegeman, Kennedys psychological officer, during USS Gerald R. Fords (CVN 78) joint vaccination evolution with Kennedy in Fords aft weapons handing area, Sept. 30, 2021. US Navy Photo

This story has been updated with additional information about the Navy vaccine mandate.

All active-duty Navy personnel must be vaccinated by Nov. 28 or face separation, according to a Navy administrative message released Wednesday.

Any active-duty Navy service members who do not get fully vaccinated or do not have an approved or pending exemption will be processed for an honorable separation without involuntary separation, according to NAVADMIN 225/21, released by Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. William Lescher and Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Adm. John Nowell.

Service members in the Ready Reserve Navy will need to be fully vaccinated by Dec. 28.

In order to meet the deadline, active duty members must receive their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, if receiving the two-shot Pfizer or Moderna version, by Nov. 14, according to a Thursday Navy news release. A person is not fully vaccinated until 14 days after receiving the second shot.

For members in the reserve, the deadline to receive the second shot is Dec. 14.

Those who are separated for refusing the vaccine will be discharged with no lower than a general discharge under honorable conditions, according to the Navy release.

Those refusing the vaccine cannot be promoted, advance, reenlist or execute orders outside of ones involving separation. Any officer who refuses to be vaccinated will have any promotions delayed.

Since the vaccination is mandatory, service members who refuse the vaccine can be temporarily reassigned depending on operational readiness or requirements of the mission, according to NAVADMIN 225/21.

Navy personnel can request an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Having COVID-19 in the past or having a positive serology test for the disease will not exempt a service member, the Navy said in an August administrative message.

Sailors must be prepared to execute their mission at all times, in places throughout the world, including where vaccination rates are low and disease transmission is high, according to the Navy news release issued today. Immunizations are of paramount importance to protecting the health of the force and the warfighting readiness of the Fleet.

As of Wednesday, 94 percent of active-duty sailors have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, with 99 percent having received the first dose, according to the Navy.

Of the total force, 89 percent is completely vaccinated, while 94 percent have received the first shot.

There have been a total of 83,648 COVID-19 cases within the Navy, including active-duty and civilians, according to the service. Of those cases, 164 resulted in deaths.

There have been 14 active-duty deaths out of 48,231 cases.

There have been more deaths due to COVID-19 than other health or mishap-related injuries and deaths over the same time period, according to NAVADMIN 225/21.

In 144 of the deaths, those who died were not vaccinated. Vaccination status is not known for the other 20.

In order to maximize readiness, it is the policy goal of the U.S. Navy to achieve a fully vaccinated force against the persistent and lethal threat of COVID-19, according to NAVADMIN 225/21.

The new guidance is not unexpected. A Navy administrative message from Aug. 31 mandated all active duty service members be fully vaccinated within 90 days of the message, which put the deadline at Nov. 28, USNI News previously reported.

Service members can receive a vaccine from a non-Department of Defense administrator as long as they provide documentation of the vaccine within the next duty day.

Although there are three versions of the COVID-19 vaccine the two-shot Moderna and Pfizer versions and the one-shot Johnson and Johnson only Pfizer has received full approval from the FDA.

Moderna has requested FDA licensure, according to an August release from the company.

At this time, the Navy can only mandate that service members and reservists receive the Pfizer vaccine, since it is the only one with FDA approval. The other vaccines are currently administered under an emergency use authorization.

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New Navy Guidance Will Discharge Sailors Refusing COVID-19 Vaccination Without Exemption - USNI News - USNI News

Below is the full COVID-19 report for Oct. 13.

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) Nevada reports 45 deaths, pushing the total over the seven days to more than 160 people, according to data released today. Clark County reported 29 deaths today.

COVID-19 cases were down slightly statewide, with 625 reported statewide and 411 in Clark County.

And test positivity dropped, falling from 8.1% to 7.9% statewide, and from 7.0% to 6.9% in Clark County.

Cases have shifted away from Clark County over the past month of the current COVID-19 spike, but the mask mandate has remained in place statewide. The state is following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance on the mask rule. The mandate will remain in place in each county until the following conditions are met:

Clark County is currently at 6.9% test positivity and the case rate is at 115.3,according to the Southern Nevada Health District.

Nevada continues to be labeled a place with high COVID-19 transmission and Clark County remains an area of concern,according to anupdated White House report. The county wasfirst labeled a sustained hot spot on July 5.

Almost all of Nevada is labeled as a high transmission area. The CDC is using cases per 100,000 over the past seven days to determine high transmission.

Nevadas case count grew by 615 in the past day, with 411 in Clark County in the past day. The states total cases are now at 430,170. Clark County has a total of 326,283.Its important to note thatthe state no longer updates the dashboard on the weekendor holidays, which may be why Monday and Tuesday reports show higher case and death totals.

Nevadas test positivity rate is at 7.9%, down from 8.1% yesterday. It fell below 5.0%, the World Health Organizations goal, on May 17 and climbed above it on June 28. Clark Countys rate is at 6.9%, down from 7.0% yesterday.

Of the 45 additional COVID-19-related deaths, 29 were from Clark County. Southern Nevada now accounts for 5,830 of the states 7,412 deaths. The 14-day rolling average is 12 deaths per day.

As of Sept. 30, the Southern Nevada Health District reports there are 158 breakthrough deaths, 482 breakthrough hospitalizations and 10,449 breakthrough cases. The county did not give an update last week.

As of yesterday, a total of 5,073,309 COVID-19 tests have been conducted in Nevada, with an increase of 17,232 since yesterday.

*NOTE: Daily lab data from DHHS and SNHD reports is updated every morning for theprevious day.

The test positivity rate in Clark County has dropped below 8%, which takes the county off the states watch list for elevated transmission risk. If the county can sustain levels for test positivity and testing, state restrictions including mask requirements could be relaxed. A separate measure of the countys case rate currently 115.3 cases per 100,000 population over the past seven days needs to drop below 50 for two straight weeks before the mask mandate can end.

In todays report, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Humboldt, Lander, Lyon, Mineral, Nye and Washoe counties are flagged.

Clark Countys case rate (521 per 100,000 over the past 30 days) is flagged in data reported today. Test positivity rate (6.9%) and testing (357 tests per day per 100,000) are within the states acceptable range.

Thestates health department reports3,186,931 dosesof the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Nevada,as of Oct. 13.

As of today, 55% of Nevadans currently eligible for the vaccine are fully vaccinated, and more than 63% of the eligible population has initiated vaccinations. Clark County reports that 54% of its eligible residents are fully vaccinated.

NOTE: The state is not updating hospitalization dataonweekendsor holidays.

According to the statesDepartment of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the number of hospitalized patients in Nevada was UNCHANGED in the past day.

The current number of hospitalizations is748 confirmed/suspected cases. Hospitals reported 172 of those patients were in intensive care units, and 106 were on ventilators.To give some perspective, the state set a record high for hospitalized patients on Dec. 13 with 2,025 cases.

The Nevada Hospital Association did not file a weekly COVID update last week. It was expected to return on Oct. 13, but no update has been provided.

The number of people who have recovered from the virus in Southern Nevada continues to increase. The latest county update estimates a total of 310,445 recovered cases; thats 95.1% of all reported cases in the county, according toSNHDs latest report.

The health district providesa daily map with the number of positive tests in each ZIPcodein Clark County.

Nevadareopened to 100% capacity on June 1and social distancing guidelines lifted, helping the state return to mostly pre-pandemic times, with some exceptions.

The CDC reversed course on July 27, saying fully vaccinated Americans in areas with substantial and high transmission should wear masks indoors when in public as COVID-19 cases rise. Most of Nevada falls into those two risk categories.

Nevada said it would adopt the CDCs guidance with the new mask guidelinethat went into effect at 12:01 a.m. on July 30. Thisoverrides Clark Countys employee mask mandate, which went into effect in mid-July.

On Aug. 16, Gov. Sisolak signed a new directivethat allows fully vaccinated attendees at large gatherings to remove their masks, but only if the venue chooses to require everyone in attendance to provide proof of vaccination. Those who have just one shot and are not fully vaccinated would still be allowed to attend, as would children under 12, but both would need to wear masks.

Masks still must be worn when required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules and regulations, including local businesses and workplace guidance.

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The corporate logo of the UnitedHealth Group appears on the side of one of their office buildings in Santa Ana, California, U.S., April 13, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Blake

Oct 14 (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group Inc (UNH.N) said it expected COVID-19 to have a smaller impact on its profit next year as infections decline and more people get vaccinated, sparking a rally in the shares of U.S. health insurers.

The company, the largest U.S. health insurer, on Thursday also put to rest concerns of an impact from the Delta variant in 2021 by raising its profit outlook.

A surge in infections in July and August caused by the more infectious variant had increased hospital costs, but cases have declined since then.

Chief Financial Officer John Rex said current market estimates were "beginning to calibrate" the company's 2022 outlook. Analysts expect UnitedHealth to post adjusted earnings per share of $21.60, according to Refinitiv data.

"Investors were waiting to get that visibility into the company's framework around 2022 and clearly the company provided a confident initial outlook for next year," Stephens analyst Scott Fidel said.

While not every health insurer has had the same momentum as UnitedHealth, its comments bode well for the rest of the sector, he added.

UnitedHealth shares surged 6%, while rivals Humana Inc (HUM.N), Cigna Corp (CI.N) and Centene Corp (CNC.N) were between 2% and 3% higher.

UnitedHealth said it expected 2021 adjusted earnings per share between $18.65 and $18.90, compared with $18.30 to $18.80 previously. It maintained its forecast for a COVID-related hit at $1.80 per share.

The insurer said the profit outlook accounted for a possible surge in high-cost procedures that had been delayed during the Delta surge and were slowly returning to normal levels.

The postponement of the procedures helped it beat earnings expectations for the quarter ended Sept. 30.

The company reiterated its long-term earnings per share growth outlook of 13% to 16%.

Reporting by Manojna Maddipatla in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Aditya Soni

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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UnitedHealth expects smaller hit from COVID-19 in 2022 - Reuters

Each Wisconsin school year comes with a series of drills that arerequired by lawto prepare teachers and students for the possibility of fire, tornadoes and active shooters or other safety threats.

The procedures that schools use to lock down against threats inside the school or to lock out threats inside are at odds with many of the best practices to stop another threat: COVID-19. Teachers close and lock windows and doors that, weather permitting, are used to circulate fresh air into classrooms. Classes gather together in a part of the classroom farthest from windows or doors, rather than spacing themselves as far apart as possible.

When schools go through their safety drills, though, they dont necessarily have to go through all of those steps. And with COVID-19 concerns, some are choosing not to.

"The guidance is that, 'Hey, we understand that you have a lot on your plate, we just want you to achieve the goals of the drill,'" said Kristen Devitt, director of the Office of School Safety at the Wisconsin Department of Justice. "Don't feel like you have to go through this huge drill that you might have done prior to COVID, that the law allows for these adjustments."

Under the statute, schools don't have to drill all students at the same time. They could do half a school at a time, for example, to allow for more social distancing. They also don't have to mimic everything students and teachers would do in the case of an actual threat. They can explain it, and walk through the procedures.

"Whatever's going to be easiest to achieve but still make sure that the message is getting out there to the students, is what we're in support of," said Devitt. "We certainly dont want to give schools additional stress, recognizing that the past couple of years have been incredibly stressful on teachers and administrators."

At the Stevens Point Area School District, it was a combination of COVID-19 concerns and growing evidence that active shooter drills can be traumatizing to students that prompted a shift.

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"What we have found previous to COVID as well, was some of those drills can feel really traumatic for students, especially our younger students," said Sarah O'Donnell, communications director at Point Schools. "We do have a response system that has a very loud alert thats used only in the most extreme cases, so hearing that sound puts you in that heightened state, and it can be very difficult to go back to learning after that."

This year, Point Schools are making those school safety drills, which usually take place in October or November, more about preparing kids without going through every motion that would be necessary with a real threat, O'Donnell said.

"Instead of trying to have those really close contacts, were looking to just kind of talk through that, walk through that," she said. "Weve really tried to make these more of a discussion, while still making sure that were meeting guidelines and we are drilling those proper responses."

Devitt said it's important to keep in mind that safety drills aren't always about active shooters despite the more headline-grabbing incidents of schools where drills incorporate fake gunfire and other elements that can be especially difficult for children with a previous history of trauma.

"School safety can be about a health hazard, a gas leak, it can be about a variety of different things, all of which can potentially be scary but don't have to be traumatic," she said.

A key part of preparing for safety concerns is also preparing families and parents. In Stevens Point, the district sends a flyer to families outlining the different terms, such as lockdowns versus lockouts, what an evacuation looks like versus sheltering in place, and trying to preemptively answer questions.

"We want families to talk through that," ODonnell said. "We want to really build that common language, so that if we need to utilize or move into one of those states, everyone understands what's happening in schools."

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Wisconsin students have to do safety drills every year. With COVID-19, some schools are approaching them differently - Wisconsin Public Radio News