July 29, 2021

President Biden orders that federal workers either get vaccinated or face regular testing, masking, and distancing, and he asks states to pay people $100 to take the shot. STAT points out that he has little actual power to compel either step, leaving the plan resting largely on pressure and persuasion. In remarks he embraces the month’s defining slogan, calling the outbreak “a pandemic of the unvaccinated.”

Disney reimposes indoor mask rules at its U.S. parks, and governors and school boards resume fighting over whether to follow the CDC’s reversal. At the Tokyo Olympics, organizers report a steady climb in Games-related infections while Japan’s prime minister insists the record case counts in the city have nothing to do with the event.

American swimmer Michael Andrew, the most prominent unvaccinated U.S. Olympian, declines to wear a mask while speaking to reporters, and the U.S. Olympic committee says he broke no rule. Revised figures show the U.S. economy had shrunk 19.2% at the depth of the pandemic recession, the steepest contraction on record.

Biden orders tough new vaccination rules for federal workers

AP News

Study shows masks offer protection as COVID-19 infections tick up

Mayo Clinic News Network

Everything You'd Want To Know About The Unusual Masks Worn By Team USA Athletes

It's a bold look that has been compared to the masked Batman villain Bane — even by the Japanese organizers of the Tokyo Games. The mask is voluminous and is a nod to the host country, Japan.

NPR

Coronavirus Cases At The Tokyo Olympics Continue To Increase

Olympic organizers say another 24 Games-related personnel have tested positive for the coronavirus in the past day. Since July 1, 193 people linked to the Games have received positive test results.

NPR

Tokyo's Coronavirus Cases Are Soaring, But Japan's PM Says The Games Are Not To Blame

Daily coronavirus cases in Tokyo have set records for three days straight, but Japan's prime minister denies that the Olympic Games are causing the spike.

NPR

Pandemic Will ‘Take Our Women 10 Years Back’ in the Workplace (Published 2020)

The New York Times

The F.D.A. tells Johnson & Johnson that about 60 million doses made at a troubled plant cannot be used.

The New York Times

Pandemic Aid Programs Spur a Record Drop in Poverty (Published 2021)

The New York Times

U.S. economy contracted 19.2% during COVID-19 pandemic recession

Reuters

Biden wants $100 rewards for those who get vaccinated against Covid-19 — but there’s little he can do to make it happen

Biden wants states to give $100 to people who get vaccinated against Covid-19. He wants to require federal workers and the military to get immunized, too. But it’s entirely unclear whether he has the power to achieve those goals.

STAT

A double vaccine crisis is endangering millions of children

With the world undertaking the largest global vaccine rollout in history to fight Covid-19, countries mustn't ignore vaccination against diseases like measles and polio, which are more deadly for children than Covid-19.

STAT

A look into the future of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe: an expert consultation

The Lancet

Hospital presentations for self-poisoning during COVID-19 in Sri Lanka: an interrupted time-series analysis

The Lancet

What Fiji's COVID-19 response tells us about integrity in emergencies…

Transparency.org

Olympic swimmer Michael Andrew refused to wear his mask, but USOPC says he didn't violate rules

Michael Andrew, the highest profile unvaccinated American Olympian, didn't wear a mask while talking to reporters after finishing fifth in the 200 IM.

USA Today

Following CDC Guidance Reversal, Will Mask Mandates Make a Comeback?

U.S. News & World Report

Analysis | The central question, looking ahead: Will the pandemic be less deadly?

The Washington Post

Beta coronavirus variant: What is the risk?

There are fears that this version of coronavirus, first identified in South Africa, is

BBC

Covid and a coup: The double crisis pushing Myanmar to the brink

A surge in virus cases has dealt a fresh blow to a country already dealing with military coup.

BBC

Australia Falls Down Ranking of Best Places to Be During Pandemic

Bloomberg

COVID-19 is crushing red states. Why isn’t Trump turning his rallies into mass vaccination sites?

Why pushing for vaccination is smart politics.

Brookings

Immune responses to a single dose of the AZD1222/Covishield vaccine in health care workers - Nature Communications

Here the authors show in a large cohort of healthcare workers that one dose of the AZD1222 vaccine seroconverts 92.9% of vaccinees, irrespective of age and gender, and results in high antibody titers to wild-type SARS-CoV-2 but only low titers to the B.1.351 variant.

Nature

Mathematical model of the feedback between global supply chain disruption and COVID-19 dynamics - Scientific Reports

Nature

Harnessing testing strategies and public health measures to avert COVID-19 outbreaks during ocean cruises - Scientific Reports

Nature

Biden Hopes To Boost COVID Vaccination Rates By Focusing On Federal Workers

The federal workforce is one group President Biden can more directly influence. Under new rules, workers will need to get vaccinated or wear a mask and get tested regularly.

NPR

Disney Will Begin Requiring Masks Again Indoors At Its Theme Parks In The U.S.

With cases of the coronavirus back on the rise in Florida and California, guests two years of age and older at Disney World and Disneyland will again be required to don masks starting on Friday.

NPR

Tariffs are delaying the COVID response. The WTO must act

The World Economic Forum

Governors and local school boards reignite the mask mandate fight in wake of CDC’s newest guidance | CNN

CNN

Microsoft CEO shares leadership lessons he’s learned during the pandemic | CNN Business

CNN

Delta variant sparks current COVID-19 surge in the Eastern Mediterranean Region amid low vaccination coverage

World Health Organization (WHO)

Council Post: How To Prepare Your Business For Another Pandemic

These steps will help protect your business and, more importantly, your employees and customers.

Forbes

Native Americans And COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: Pathways Toward Increasing Vaccination Rates For Native Communities

Health Affairs

U.S. pole vaulter out of Olympics after positive coronavirus test

Axios

Response to mRNA vaccination for COVID-19 among patients with multiple myeloma - Leukemia

Nature

Differential immune responses in pregnant patients recovered from COVID-19 - Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy

Nature

SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell responses are lower in children and increase with age and time after infection - Nature Communications

Why children are generally less susceptible than adults to COVID-19 is unclear and has not extensively been examined longitudinally. Here the authors compare antibodies, cytokines and immune cell responses in adults and children over 6 months post-infection showing, among other things, a reduced CD4+ and CD8+ T cell response in children.

Nature

Biden: Coronavirus is 'a pandemic of the unvaccinated'

The Washington Post

July 29, 2021

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