July 21, 2021

The Associated Press runs a fact-check finding that President Biden goes too far in his assurances about the vaccines, overstating how completely they prevent infection and spread. It is an early crack in the tidy story officials have been telling. Texas health data, meanwhile, supplies the story’s other half: of nearly 9,000 COVID deaths in the state since February, all but 43 were among the unvaccinated, a figure that hardens the “pandemic of the unvaccinated” framing even as the AP warns the shots are not the shield they were sold as.

A study out of China, reported in Nature, claims people infected with Delta carry roughly 1,000 times more virus than those with the original strain, a striking number that circulates widely before independent confirmation. The CDC reports U.S. life expectancy fell 1.5 years in 2020, the steepest drop since World War II, with lockdown-era overdoses, homicides, and untreated illness sitting alongside the virus in the count.

Tokyo posts its highest case numbers since January just as the Olympics begin, and local officials warn of an urgent strain on hospitals. Newspapers lean into deathbed dispatches, including an Alabama physician describing regretful unvaccinated patients, while the country’s largest hospital chain announces it will require shots for its workers and YouTube pulls videos of Brazil’s president for vaccine misinformation.

AP FACT CHECK: Biden goes too far in assurances on vaccines

AP News

Antibodies offer clues about severe COVID-19 cases in children, adults | NIH MedlinePlus Magazine

NIH-funded study finds that both kids and adults with a severe COVID-19 infection may depend on the antibodies they have.

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine (.gov)

COVID-19 pandemic has triggered a rise in hunger in South Africa

Hunger is not the cause of the current social upheaval. But, taken along with other deep-rooted structural inequalities, it provides additional fuel for socio-political conflagration.

The Conversation

How the Delta variant achieves its ultrafast spread

Viral load is roughly 1,000 times higher in people infected with the Delta variant than those infected with the original coronavirus strain, according to a study in China.

Nature

Intranasal plus subcutaneous prime vaccination with a dual antigen COVID-19 vaccine elicits T-cell and antibody responses in mice - Scientific Reports

Nature

Eating disorders: The terrible impact of the pandemic on the young

Admissions soared during the pandemic, and NHS bosses warn they are running out of beds.

BBC

Home or office? Survey shows opinions about work after COVID-19

The World Economic Forum

Texas has seen nearly 9,000 COVID-19 deaths since February. All but 43 were unvaccinated people.

Preliminary data shows 99.5% of COVID-related deaths in Texas were among unvaccinated people, according to the Department of State Health Services.

The Texas Tribune

SARS-CoV-2 damages ciliated cells and inhibits mucociliary clearance in the airways

COVID-19 is a viral disease with respiratory symptoms that can induce fatal pneumonia. Understanding how SARS-CoV-2 spreads in the respiratory tract can help scientists identify the parameters controlling the severity of infection. Scientists from the Institut Pasteur, the CNRS and Inserm found that SARS-CoV-2 multiplies efficiently in the respiratory tract, and that it primarily targets ciliated cells in the epithelium and destroys their motile cilia.

Institut Pasteur

Minority Mental Health Worsened During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Nearly half of all Black, Hispanic, Asian, Native American and LGBTQ+ individuals say they have personally experienced increased mental health challenges over the past 12 months, but few received treatment, according to a new survey by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing.

National Council for Mental Wellbeing

Do I need to wear a mask indoors in my community? Rules vary across California

One-third of California counties are now urging even fully vaccinated people to wear masks indoors as coronavirus cases continue to rise.

Los Angeles Times

‘I’m sorry, but it’s too late’: Alabama doctor on treating unvaccinated, dying COVID patients

“And now all you really see is their fear and their regret. And even though I may walk into the room thinking, ‘Okay, this is your fault, you did this to yourself,’ when I leave the room, I just see a person that's really suffering, and that is so regretful for the choice that they made.”

AL.com

Nation’s largest hospital group supports mandatory coronavirus vaccines for health workers

Washington Post

You got a coronavirus vaccine. But you still became infected. How did that happen?

Washington Post

What happens when an athlete tests positive for the coronavirus at the Olympics?

Washington Post

The Elderly vs. Essential Workers: Who Should Get the Coronavirus Vaccine First? (Published 2020)

The New York Times

Officially, the pandemic recession lasted only two months. (Published 2021)

The New York Times

Is N.Y.C. Doing Enough to Slow 3rd Virus Wave? Experts Raise Doubts. (Published 2021)

The New York Times

Time to Escalate U.S. Leadership on Covid-19 and Beyond

CSIS | Center for Strategic and International Studies

Why the Delta variant is spreading so much faster than other coronavirus strains | CNN

CNN

Tracking Global COVID-19 Vaccine Equity | KFF

This analysis looks at global COVID-19 vaccination efforts by income-level and region to assess the equity gap in both vaccination coverage and rates of administration. Overall, we find that low-income countries and countries are lagging behind, and based on current rates, are unlikely to meet global vaccination targets.

KFF

Coronavirus: Worst affected care homes revealed by watchdog

Figures from Care Quality Commission lay out the pandemic's 'devastating impact' on care homes in England.

BBC

Future unclear for Italy’s COVID-19 vaccine

ReiThera has released encouraging data on its vaccine candidate, but with competitors forging ahead, uncertainty about public funding, and limitations to the use of adenovirus-based vaccines, it’s been a difficult start.

Nature

Kentucky lawmaker tweets meme comparing Anthony Fauci to cult leader Jim Jones

The lawmaker said the tweet was to criticize recommendations that students wear masks in school.

NBC News

Effectiveness of Covid-19 Vaccines against the B.1.617.2 (Delta) Variant

The New England Journal of Medicine

SARS-CoV-2 Human Challenge Studies — Establishing the Model during an Evolving Pandemic

The New England Journal of Medicine

Coexisting with the Coronavirus

COVID-19 is likely to become an endemic disease. How will our immune systems resist it?

The New Yorker

U.S. Life Expectancy Fell By 1.5 Years In 2020, The Biggest Drop Since WWII

The CDC says COVID-19 was the largest factor, along with drug overdoses, homicides, diabetes and chronic liver disease. The decline was even greater for Hispanic men.

NPR

Tokyo Reports Its Highest COVID-19 Numbers Since January As First Olympic Games Start

"There is an urgent need to prepare crisis management systems for hospital care," the the Tokyo Metropolitan Government says.

NPR

1st U.S. Athlete Set To Compete In Olympics Tests Positive For Coronavirus In Japan

USA Volleyball says Taylor Crabb — part of a duo that is ranked No. 1 in the U.S. and No. 4 in the world — will be replaced by another player due to his positive test.

NPR

YouTube removes Bolsonaro videos for Covid misinformation

The tech giant says its decision was based on its content policies, not on ideology or politics.

BBC

Here are the Republicans in Congress still pushing vaccine misinformation

"Don't come knocking on my door with your 'Fauci ouchie,'" Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado said. "You leave us the hell alone."

Business Insider

Which pandemic food trends are here to stay?

The pandemic reshaped what and how we eat in many ways beyond the boom in online supermarket shopping. Now, as most of the legal restrictions due to Covid-19 come to an end, could these trends become part of the new ‘new normal’?

BBC

July 21, 2021

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