COVID UPDATES. TIME TO DECIDE ABOUT SPREADING COVID

[Charon]

Criminals in Westchester are arriving at houses pretending to be sent from utility companies and/or The State to do covid research. Do not let strangers in. No matter where you live.

[Charon]

hxxps://www.newsbreakapp.com/n/0ZADsytf?share_id=eyJ1c2VyaWQiOjExMzU4Njg2MiwiZG9jX2lkIjoiMFpBRHN5dGYiLCJ0aW1lc3RhbXAiOjE2MTc3NDExNjQzMDR9&share_destination_id=MTEzNTg2ODYyLTE2MTc3NDExNzY2NDU=&s=a3&pd=07gb8AHF&hl=en_US

New double mutation of covid has hit. First confirmed US case of ‘double mutant’ COVID variant found in California

Los Angeles Times


A rendition of coronavirus particles. (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

A possibly worrisome variant of the coronavirus first identified in India — so new that it has no official name — has been found in California by scientists at Stanford University.

Shared from News Break

[Charon]

hxxps://dailyvoice.com/new-york/nassau/news/covid-19-doordash-will-soon-start-delivering-tests/805524/

COVID-19: DoorDash Will Soon Start Delivering Tests
Zak Failla
04/04/2021 12:30 p.m.


DoorDash has announced that they will be delivering same-day COVID-19 test kits that would allow a person to get test results within 24 to 48 hours. Photo Credit: DoorDash

DoorDash, the online food ordering, and delivery system, is expanding its on-demand health offerings with new rapid COVID-19 tests that can return results within 48 hours.

The company announced this week that it is partnering with Vault Health and Everlywell to allow customers access two COVID-19 home collection kits that received FDA Emergency Use Authorization.

Kits will be available on-demand from DoorDash’s DashMart locations across the nation



According to DoorDash, the kits will first be made available in 12 major cities, with more rolling out in the coming months.

Both kits contain polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which is a molecular test and considered the most accurate of the testing varieties on the market. The Vault Health test kits will cost $119, while Everlywell is selling for $109 each.




In a statement, Vault Founder and CEO Jason Feldman said that his company “makes diagnostic testing easy, comfortable, and very fast across the US.

“Our partnership with DoorDash unlocks same-day access to our easy to collect saliva COVID test, allowing a patient to spit into a tube and receive their results in 24 hours to get them back to travel, work, school, and family time.”

Officials said that COVID-19 testing will “continue to play a critical role as businesses and schools begin to re-open across the US."

“Tests that can be taken at home and mailed to a lab offer even more convenience to customers as they eliminate the need to make a trip to a testing facility, or wait in long lines at the pharmacy or grocery store.”

Dr. Marisa Cruz, Head of Clinical Affairs at Everlywell and former Senior Medical Advisor for Digital Health at the FDA made note that upwards of 30 percent of people skip doctor’s appointments because they have no reliable way to get there.

“The fact that you can now get a kit delivered to your door in hours, quickly collect a sample and drop your kit in the mail, and then receive an accurate COVID-19 diagnosis and speak to a physician about next steps in as little as 24 hours later is a significant step forward for public health.”

One spits in a vial it seems to me. The rapid tests in general have given horrifically incorrect results to date in NY. I don't know how they do the rapid results in regular NY testing areas. Cotton swab in mouth I believe.

Ooh they make it sound so easy and safe.

[Charon]

hxxps://dailyvoice.com/new-york/suffolk/obituaries/covid-19-lost-a-loved-to-virus-fema-will-reimburse-families-thousands-for-funeral-costs/806621/

For those who lost a loved one to COVID-19, the federal government is now offering up to $9,000 for funeral expenses.

FEMA announced the program on Thursday, April 8, which is aimed at easing the burden caused by the pandemic.

“At FEMA, our mission is to help people before, during, and after disasters,” Acting FEMA Administrator Bob Fenton said in a statement. “The COVID-19 pandemic has caused immense grief for so many people. Although we cannot change what has happened, we affirm our commitment to help with funeral and burial expenses that many families did not anticipate.”

Families that lost more than one member to COVID-19 are encouraged to submit one application with all of the expenses the family spent on funerals.


Shady Grove Manufactured Home Community

Those that lost more than one family member can seek up to a maximum reimbursement of $35,500.

FEMA said it will provide the monies for any funeral expenses related to a COVID-19 death after January 20, 2020.

To be eligible for assistance, FEMA lists the following conditions:

The death must have occurred in the United States, including the U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia.
The death certificate must indicate the death was attributed to COVID-19.
The applicant must be a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or a qualified alien who incurred funeral expenses after January 20, 2020.
FEMA will begin accepting applications for the program on Monday, April 12.

Families will need official death certificates and documents related to expenses to apply for the funds, FEMA said.

They will also need documentation of monies already received.

To learn more about the program, click here.

Click here to sign up for Daily Voice's free daily emails and news alerts.

Ah, now I understand why some were so upset that the death certificate did not state specifically Covid. It is my understanding the hospital whom issued Death certificate or MD can change same. Cuz way back at beginning of this plague, people were angry that it seemed covid was listed on all the death certificates cuz the hospital or facilities or insurance would collect more monies. Then esp in NY, numbers were messed up to keep King Cuomo to appear to be a Saint. So they stopped saying covid.

There is talk of those whom have received some sort of autoimmune disease, including the cognitive function problems and fatigue and shortness of breath, would be eligible for some form of disability. Still in talks.

Americans are travelling like nuts. A couple people allegedly developed covid after the vaccines. Just stay careful. Do your own research. Your governors and mayors are not your friends in this battle it does seem.

I see King Cuomo actually named his fancy dancy airplane the King. No, sir, the murderer of many in NY housing and nursing homes.

[Charon]

The FEMA hot line for Covid funeral reimbursement(s) opened today. They do not have a website you have to call here's the number 844-684-6333. They will reimburse up to $9,000. The death must be after January 2020 and it can be covid or covid related death on the death certificate.

[Charon]

Even as the authorities continue a historic effort to vaccinate people against COVID, New Yorkers may have to accept that the dreaded virus is here to stay, city health officials suggested Monday.

They were commenting on a new New York Times report noting “herd immunity” — in which the entire population is immune to the virus — may never become a reality in the United States. The article came as vaccination rates have been declining nationwide, prompting scientists to conclude herd immunity may never occur in the short term or beyond.





Mayor de Blasio likened COVID to the flu, that is, a seasonal malady that health officials have managed to contain.

“For a long time, we’ve all understood that COVID will become, if all continues at this pace ... like the flu or other diseases that we’re used to seasonally and we’ll have to deal with it — but we can deal with it,” he said at a press conference.



Last week, he set July 1 as a target for the city to completely reopen. At the time, he said the city was still working on health precautions that would remain in effect even after the “full reopening.”

People wearing protective masks exit the subway station in Kew Gardens in Queens, New York.
People wearing protective masks exit the subway station in Kew Gardens in Queens, New York. (Frank Franklin II/AP)
New variants of COVID that are considered more infectious than the original strain have complicated efforts to achieve herd immunity, noted Health Commissioner Dr. Dave Chokshi.


Those make it “significantly less likely that we will achieve the formal epidemiological definition of herd immunity,” he said.




“We shouldn’t let that terminology distract us from the big picture here, which is that higher levels of population immunity or what some people term ‘community immunity’ will still have major benefits,” Chokshi continued, adding that the vaccination effort to date has led to drastic reductions in hospitalizations and deaths due.

A Northwell Health registered nurse inoculates a patient with the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a pop up vaccinations site the Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, Thursday, April 8, in the Staten Island borough of New York.

More than 6.6 million COVID vaccine doses had been given out citywide as of Monday morning, according to de Blasio’s office. At the end of April, there was an average of 94 COVID hospitalizations per day — down from a recent peak of around 400 in February — according to the city Health Department. Daily COVID deaths were around 30, down from nearly 90 in February.

“Herd immunity” allows people who haven’t been vaccinated to live free of the virus. If the population never reaches that level of immunity, that makes it more important for individuals to get vaccinated themselves, said Dr. Mitchell Katz, head of the city-run hospital system.

“What herd immunity really means is that so many people are vaccinated that those people that are not vaccinated get a kind of free ride. They’re protected by the fact that everybody else is vaccinated and can’t spread the disease,” he said.

“If we’re not at herd immunity, that means that it’s everybody’s responsibility to get vaccinated,” Katz concluded. “They cannot depend on other people to protect them.”

AINT NO HERD IMMUNITY. TOTAL BS. SO GET YOUR VACCINES EVEN AS WE Are being evicted. Many many of us. One should not get a vaccine which can be so problematic to elders and those with underlying issues when one will then be sleeping in a car or such. Just saying. One cannot even rent at a trailer park round here. The realty agencies have taken down most rentals. Now, u gotta buy the damn rental.

And people are taking closets. putting fake toilets in them. The doors to "apt" don't close much less lock.

Even the nicest areas of music and culture such as Beacon NY were grabbed by the young and rich from the City. They have their visitors from NYC every weekend and people in Beacon are having break ins and thefts galore.

Giant towns that I looked into such as Yonkers, is now too dangerous for LE to live there. Daily trouble. Daily attacks on all.

I shall never forget good ole Obama being so angry that Westchester was mainly white. It just was. No prejudice per se. And Obama said if it is the last thing i do, I shall make westchester more equal which seems to have meant all blacks and no asians nor whites.

So he does it. Towns and cities are now hotbeds of corona and crime.

And Obama moved to a very wealthy white area. If racial equality is so impt to u dude, why are u in the most expensive white area u could find?



hxxps://www.nydailynews.com/coronavirus/ny-nyc-covid-vaccinations-no-herd-immunity-20210503-4lrgrbrbbja2jhngvp6p4km3ii-story.html?utm_source=onesignal&utm_medium=notification&utm_campaign=2021-05-03-No-herd-immunit

[Charon]

hxxps://hudsonvalleypost.com/new-york-residents-may-be-forced-to-start-wearing-masks-again/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm

Good ole Gov Cuomo may make NYers wear masks again.

The World Health Organization is urging fully vaccinated people to start wearing masks again and practice social distancing because a more contagious strain of COVID is rapidly spreading.



"People cannot feel safe just because they had the two doses. They still need to protect themselves," WHO official Dr. Mariangela Simao told reporters, according to CNBC. "People need to continue to use masks consistently, be in ventilated spaces, hand hygiene ... the physical distance, avoid crowding. This still continues to be extremely important, even if you're vaccinated when you have a community transmission ongoing."

STAY INFORMED: CDC WEBSITE ABOUT CORONAVIRUS
The Delta strain is 60 percent more contagious than the Alpha, which was more contagious than the first strain from Wuhan, China, according to CNBC.

The Delta strain was first found in India is considered to be the most dangerous strain of COVID. It has the potential to be more severe than any other strain of COVID and has been infecting many young people, according to health officials.


"When we take measures to prevent transmission, we take measures to prevent transmission against droplet and aerosol and airborne," WHO Infectious Disease Specialist Maria Van Kerkhove said, according to the Hill. "This is why I say know what you can do to keep yourself safe. Take those measures. Wearing that mask."

For all the news that the Hudson Valley is sharing make sure to follow Hudson Valley Post on Facebook, download the Hudson Valley Post Mobile App and sign up for the Hudson Valley Post Newsletter.

On Monday, we learned an Ulster County resident was infected with the Delta strain.

"The Delta variant is the most able, fastest and fittest of those (COVID) viruses, " Dr. Mike Ryan of the World Health Organization said. "(It) has the potential to be more lethal because it’s more efficient in the way it transmits between humans and it will eventually find those vulnerable individuals who will become severely ill, have to be hospitalized and potentially die."

It's unclear how or when the Ulster County resident got infected, but Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan confirmed the unnamed person has recovered. Ryan believes the resident being vaccinated really helped the person from getting seriously sick.

SIGN UP FOR THE HUDSON VALLEY POST NEWSLETTER

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Read More: New York Residents May Be Forced To Start Wearing Masks Again | hxxps://hudsonvalleypost.com/new-york-residents-may-be-forced-to-start-wearing-masks-again/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Hudson%20Valley%20Post%20%202021-06-29&utm_term=HudsonValleyPost&utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral

[Charon]

Another warning for those in NY and elsewhere: TICKS. this year, we are not showing up with lymes disease. alone. We have a weird unnamed variation which causes a large growth on your body. needs surgery to be removed. The young man works for con ed so God only knows where he got exposes. Hospital said it was a tick that burrowed into his skin.

And we have people walking dogs for a living for the elders and immune compromises. Or for teachers whom refuse the covid vaccine due to health issues. Dog walking. And quite a few are getting covered in ticks. as are the pets. ticks were seen on NY station gas pumps cuz of reasons unknown.

Another friend of the con ed guys, he got Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. He is still not better and I doubt his job will ever re instate him. And many of the LEOs whom got covid or FD whom got covid, they are now being deemed long haulers and may never be allowed to continue in their chosen professions any more.

Ah, u did so well with this disease you jackal, Cuomo. Stop playing mind games. You and Fauxci better stop lying and for the Love of God and your status, Tell us the truth.

[Charon]

SUPREME COURT
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on June 24 extended the nationwide ban on evictions from June 30 until July 31, but even with that added time, experts have voiced concern about the estimated 5.7 million to 7 million Americans who owe back rent.

Americans us stimulus checks rent debt pandemic
A banner against renters' eviction reading "No job, no rent" is displayed on a controlled-rent building in Washington, D.C., on August 9, 2020. Millions of Americans could soon face evictions when the federal moratorium ends July 31.
ERIC BARADAT / AFP/GETTY
Federal restrictions on evictions for nonpayment of rent took effect soon after the coronavirus pandemic hit in early 2020. The first moratorium, which came with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, ran from the end of March 2020 to the end of July 2020.


The CDC put its own evictions ban into place in September 2020. It was set to expire on June 31 before CDC Director Rochelle Walensky announced last week that the agency had extended it through July 31.

NEWSWEEK NEWSLETTER SIGN-UP >
A federal appellate court ruled on May 5, before the latest CDC extension, that the agency had overstepped its authority with its moratorium. President Joe Biden's administration appealed the decision the same day, and the appeal proved successful. However, that legal action shows the difficulty the CDC would face should it try to enact another extension.

Along with the need to curb the possibility of a sudden surge in homelessness throughout the nation, there is evidence showing that housing evictions increase the threat of coronavirus infections spreading, including one lengthy study published in the April issue of Nature.


Meanwhile, landlords across the country have argued against continuing the rent ban. On June 3, the Alabama Association of Realtors sent an emergency application to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.

A statement in the application read, "Landlords have been losing over $13 billion every month under the moratorium, and the total effect of the CDC's overreach may reach up to $200 billion if it remains in effect for a year."

NEWSWEEK SUBSCRIPTION OFFERS >
READ MORE
California Allocates $5.2 Billion to Pay Off All Owed Rent
CDC Extends Eviction Moratorium One Last Time, Protections Now End July 31
Concerns Mount Over Looming Surge in Bankruptcy as COVID Medical Debt Soars
Various states across the country have taken steps on their own to prevent evictions. California, for one, recently extended its statewide eviction moratorium. Governor Gavin Newsom announced on June 25 the state's plan to extend through September its evictions ban, which would also cover all missed rent payments to date for low-income individuals. In April, New York state extended its moratorium to August 31.

But different interpretations regarding eviction bans have occurred from county to county in some states. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that in Cobb County, Georgia, the magistrate court at first did not schedule proceedings for nonpayment of rent after the CDC announced its moratorium in 2020. But Cobb began hearing cases again earlier this year. Elsewhere in the same state, all eviction cases have proceeded since July in Fulton County.

One reason evictions have been carried out during the pandemic despite the CDC moratorium is that tenants neglected to properly fill out the paperwork necessary to prevent eviction for nonpayment.

Overall, eviction filings have been around 50 percent below average during the pandemic, according to detailed statistics from the Princeton University's Eviction Lab. The same data shows women and racial minorities are disproportionately more likely to face legal proceedings for nonpayment of rent.

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azsky

21 hours ago
Many landlords are not rich. Many depend on the rental income to take care of a parent that might have lived in house previously, or it is part of their retirement plan.
What will happen after July 31? How will the courts handle to volume? Where will those people go?

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bikenjoe

18 hours ago
I have one tenant with her adult daughter. Both are working. They have bought a new car, new furniture and several expensive dogs during the 12 months that she has not paid a thing on her rent. As soon as we can she will be the first one to be invited to leave.
But if something needs repair she wants it done immediately.

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3 replies


Steve

19 hours ago
Good luck to all those evicted trying to find another place to live. Landlords will be drastically tightening criteria. Bad credit or bad references is going to equal HOMELESS. With unemployment paying more than many made working there is no excuse for not paying bills.

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FED UP

18 hours ago
How dare the ultra rich, and our government, give regular hardworking people like us, who rent out one or two small apartments ( NOT "apartment BUILDINGS) for our income source, give us the "choice" (so-called) of either throwing helpless tenants out onto the street during a worldwide plague for no fault of their own (losing their jobs due to virus) , or else ourselves going under financially as we face huge New Jersey Property Taxes (highest in the entire 50 states), plumbers, electricians, carpenters, landscapers, roofers, WATER BILLS and the rest, to maintain our structure? WHY ISN'T THE GOVERNMENT HELPING US THROUGH THIS, the same as they have helped families with children, restaurant employees, and other working people?? WHY ISN'T THE GOVERNMENT HELPING PEOPLE IN THEIR 60s, 70s. 80s AND BEYOND, MANY OF WHOM ARE THESE SMALL LANDLORDS? WE ARE TRAPPED, AND IGNORED. AND I FOR ONE AM FED UP WITH IT.

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Mongoose
FED UP

6 hours ago
Why the tirade against those who you think are better off than you? It isn't the point, you know. As former landlords, my husband and I can understand your situation, but think there are ways to handle it. The Federal government has put in place rental assistance programs. Tenants should contact their state HUD office to find out if they qualify for aid. As a landlord, remember that your tenants' obligations to you are not erased, even if your tenants think the day of reckoning will never come.

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hitandrun

1 day ago
Decent tenants would try and work with the landlords by doing things around the property-paint, cut grass, maintain things, Stuff the landlord still has to pay for. I have tenants and we have worked out arrangements that suit both of us. I am not evicting anyone for something beyond their control. Some of my younger tenants are helping the older ones and I really like that. Please be kind to each other during these Chinese plague.

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Merrkat
hitandrun

16 hours ago
If you are such a landlord, I complement you for your concern, because most landlords couldn't care less, especially with the insane costs of rents, those guarantee very serious obstacles, and some of these landlords just don't care, and resort to economic discrimination based on how their units are treated, and deadbeat tenants, who make such things possible! If you welcome tenants who are willing to work for and with you, and who make an unmistakable effort to honor their business commitments, then that makes you a special kind of landlord, but it still has to depend on the tenants, and it sounds like you have that under control -and decent tenants do exist, which is why i commend your post!

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1 reply


LOSERGQP
hitandrun

22 hours ago
decent Americas would call out trump and the GOP for letting it get this bad but hey...just post drivel and hope no one notices the racist remark at the end, right?

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4 replies


Tired

1 day ago
Property owners have bills to pay just like tenants.

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xyzwriter

5 hours ago
I would feel worse about this if I didn't see virtually every business I enter begging for people to apply for a job. I understand if childcare is still unavailable, but so many are just not wanting to return to work. No, it's not fun to be working 2 jobs where you make $12/hour, but I've worked jobs that many would consider beneath them. I didn't like it, but at the time it was necessary.

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1 reply


Fedup

5 hours ago
The government dropped the ball. These people have squatted in someone else's home free, for a year! Enough is enough. Shots are now available, jobs are available. Go get both and pay your rent. As to the rental assistance program, it should allow for the landlords to apply for the assistance, which it does not. It only allows the renter to apply and in the majority of cases, they have not even received any money and if they did, some of them spent it elsewhere. I'm sorry that people maybe going into the street at no fault of their own, but it's also not okay for someone else to have to take care of you thru no fault of their own. We working citizens pay into the government for crisis such as these. Once again, the system has failed.

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1 reply


DFK1948

19 hours ago
What did the people who owe rent do with the “free” money they received?
I am on social security, and wash still able to stay current on my mortgage.

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3


AngelGirl
DFK1948

17 hours ago
Most likely tried to pay off debt, pay for things their kids/family need or pay/keep current on other bills. That's what most of my friends did.

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1 reply


Deb

14 hours ago
I think the CDC and the various governments throughout the country had no right to take income away from property owners. It's in the bill of rights. If the government wants to take someone's property which is basically what they're doing they need to pay them fair market value. So all this time the CDC and whatever government put in your moratorium in affect should have been making the monthly rental payments for the people.

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1

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The GOP's New Voting Laws Are Perfectly Reasonable
BY ARMSTRONG WILLIAMS
VS

The GOP Is Keeping People From Voting Instead of Giving Them a Reason To
BY ALLAN KATZ
OPINION

Black Democrats Save the Party Once Again
BY FROMA HARROP
I'm a Black Ex-Felon. I Have a Message About Cancel Culture

[Charon]

I do believe xenophobe put up a similar thread earlier.

Australia's top medical officer urges nation to follow through on vaccinations; mRNA shots don't decrease sperm count: Live updates
John Bacon
Elinor Aspegren
USA TODAY







Australia's top medical officer on Monday urged countrymen who have received an AstraZeneca COVID shot to "not delay" getting the second dose – even though the vaccine has been linked to more deaths than COVID in Australia this year.

Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly, after a National Cabinet meeting, reiterated the benefits of vaccination and encouraged Australians to stay vigilant for symptoms of COVID-19. He told Australia's ABC network that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine in combating COVID-19 "far outweighed" the risks of developing a very rare blood clotting syndrome.

Two women in Australia have died from the blood clots. The only COVID fatality this year was an 80-year-old traveler who died in April after being infected overseas and diagnosed in hotel quarantine. Last week authorities recommended that the AstraZeneca vaccine be given only to people 60 or over; people 50-59 were encouraged to get the Pfizer vaccine instead.

Since the start of the pandemic, Australia, a country of 25 million people, has recorded just over 30,000 infections and 910 deaths.


Also in the news:

►The Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, is hosting a free vaccine clinic Tuesday. Anyone who gets a first shot will get a free ticket to the Hall of Fame that can be used when they return for their second dose on July 13.

►Gov. Ralph Northam announced that Virginia has become the 16th state to vaccinate 70% of adults with at least one shot.

►Gov. Andrew Cuomo tweeted Monday that New York had 10 new deaths. At the height of the outbreak, nearly 800 New Yorkers a day were dying.

►Fully vaccinated Canadian citizens who test negative for COVID-19 will be exempt from two weeks of quarantine when returning to the country as of July 5, officials said Monday.

? Today's numbers: The U.S. has more than 33.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases and at least 601,800 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: More than 178.5 million cases and more than 3.86 million deaths. More than 149.6 million Americans have been fully vaccinated – nearly 45.1% of the population, according to the CDC.

? What we're reading: Companies such as Moderna and Pfizer's partner BioNTech, whose names are familiar from COVID-19 vaccines, are using mRNA to spur cancer patients' bodies to make vaccines that will – they hope – prevent recurrences and treatments designed to fight off advanced tumors. Read the full story.

Keep refreshing this page for the latest updates. Want more? Sign up for our Coronavirus Watch newsletter for updates to your inbox and join our Facebook group.

Study shows mRNA vaccines do not decrease sperm count
Seeking to dispel fears, researchers at the University of Miami conducted a study to assess men’s fertility after COVID-19 vaccination and found no negative effects on their sperm.

From Dec. 17, 2020, to Jan. 12, 2021, they recruited 45 healthy volunteers ages 18 to 50 who were scheduled to get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, according to the study published in JAMA Network.

The participants were prescreened to ensure they had no previous or underlying fertility issues. Semen samples were taken before the first vaccine dose and approximately 70 days after the second, which is about how long sperm takes to regenerate.

Scientists analyzed semen volume, sperm concentration, sperm motility and total sperm count and found no significant decrease in any of these parameters compared with the samples taken before the COVID-19 shots.

“It was an unknown area that was making guys nervous to get the vaccine,” said study co-author Jesse Ory, urology fellow in infertility/andrology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

– Adrianna Rodriguez

US deaths dip below 300 per day as pandemic's grip eases
COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. have dipped below 300 a day for the first time since the early days of the disaster in March 2020. The drive to put shots in arms also approached an encouraging milestone Monday: 150 million Americans fully vaccinated. The coronavirus was the third leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2020, behind heart disease and cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But CDC data suggests that more Americans now are dying every day from accidents, chronic lower respiratory diseases, strokes or Alzheimer’s disease than from COVID-19.

Biden administration unveils details for sending 55M vaccines overseas
The Biden administration announced plans Monday to send 55 million COVID-19 vaccine doses overseas, part of its pledge to donate 80 million shots to other countries by the end of June. The U.S. will distribute about 41 million – about 75% – through the U.N.-backed global sharing COVAX initiative, which includes sending 14 million doses to Latin America and the Caribbean, about 16 million to Asia and about 10 million to Africa to be shared in coordination with the African Union, according to a fact sheet provided by the White House.

The rest of the 55 million doses will be sent directly to specific countries struggling with a pandemic surge, including Colombia, Argentina, Haiti, other Caribbean community countries, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia, South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt, Iraq, Yemen, Tunisia, West Bank and Gaza and Ukraine.

The U.S. has already begun shipping 25 million doses of the 80 million President Joe Biden vowed to send abroad by the end of the month. The president joined G-7 leaders last week to announce a pledge to provide more than 1 billion additional COVID-19 vaccines globally, 500 million of which will come from the U.S.

– Courtney Subramanian

Blood shortage postpones surgeries at some New England hospitals
Some New England hospitals are rescheduling surgeries, citing a shortage of blood fueled by the pandemic. Periodic, localized blood shortages are not uncommon, but this shortage is “unprecedented in its scope,” said Dr. Claudia Cohn, chief medical officer for the American Association of Blood Banks. Officials point toward a number of factors including the typical summer drop in blood donations at a time when surgeries are increasing because of procedures that were postponed during the pandemic.

“We haven’t seen anything like this in about 30 or 40 years at least,” Dr. Vishesh Chhibber, director of transfusion medicine at UMass Memorial Health, told the Boston Globe.

Borders with Mexico, Canada to remain closed through July
U.S. borders with Mexico and Canada will remain closed "to reduce the spread" of COVID-19 through the end of July, the Department of Homeland Security announced on Twitter on Sunday. The agency, in conjunction with its Canadian and Mexican counterparts, originally closed the United States' northern and southern borders to leisure travelers in March 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The restrictions have been extended on a monthly basis ever since, and were previously extended to July 21.

"Access for essential trade & travel" is still allowed, according to the DHS.

Delta variant could fuel autumn surge across US
About 45% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and cases are declining in a majority of states. But the spread of the highly contagious delta variant among the unvaccinated could pose a new threat, public health officials warn. The delta variant, first identified in India, now accounts up to 10% of cases in the United States.

The delta variant could trigger a surge in the fall if only 75% of the country's population is vaccinated, former Food and Drug Administration chief Dr. Scott Gottlieb said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation."

Afghanistan battling deadly third surge
Afghanistan is racing to ramp up supplies of oxygen as a deadly third surge of COVID-19 worsens, a senior health official told The Associated Press. The government is installing oxygen supply plants in 10 provinces where up to 65% of those tested in some areas are positive, health ministry spokesman Ghulam Dastigir Nazari said. By World Health Organization recommendations, anything higher than 5% shows officials aren’t testing widely enough, allowing the virus to spread unchecked. Afghanistan carries out barely 4,000 tests a day and often much less.

Afghanistan’s 24-hour infection count has also continued its upward climb from 1,500 at the end of May when the health ministry was already calling the surge “a crisis,” to more than 2,300 this week.

A Barbados resort offers guests and locals onsite COVID-19 testing
A resort in Barbados created a first-ever COVID-19 lab within a hotel in the Caribbean. Paul Doyle, the owner of The Crane Resort, worked with Barbados Public Health Laboratory and the World Health Organization to receive guidance and acquire the equipment for onsite testing.

For some guests traveling internationally, returning home requires a negative COVID-19 test. There are some hotels and properties that offer testing at the location but rely on offsite lab processes, resulting in a longer wait to receive results. The resort's lab conducts tests onsite so tests can come back within hours.

The hotel currently has both PCR COVID testing and rapid antigen testing, which provides results within 15 minutes. Depending on what test is required, the lab can provide guests with fast and convenient COVID-19 testing required for traveling. The lab is also open to locals, ex-pats, and guests from other hotels.

“We know that visitors who have been in lockdown and have waited a long time for their vacations will appreciate a hassle-free airport experience and speedy test results,” Doyle told Forbes.

– Steven Vargas

Contributing: The Associated Press.

Vaccine clots more deadly than COVID in Australia this year hxxps://www.usatoday.com › news › health › 2021/06/21
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Have 1,000s of Americans died from COVID-19 vaccines? The ...https://www.oregonlive.com › coronavirus › 2021/05
May 26, 2021 — Search latest news ... Carlson added that there is much that VAERS doesn't tell us, then said: “But ... some 4,000 Americans have died after receiving COVID-19 vaccines. ... And some people, logically, are going to die not long after getting a ... vaccine was briefly paused after a rare blood-clotting problem, ...

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an another on same issue: Latest: FDA to add warning about rare heart inflammation to ...hxxps://www.nationalgeographic.com › science › article
More than 60 vaccines are still going through a three-stage clinical trial process ... that the odds of developing a clot after vaccination are extremely low, and that the ... Latest news: On June 23, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it plans to add ... On May 12, the CDC approved Pfizer's vaccine for emergency use in...

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The doctors and First responders in my original area, whom were not given protection. Whom were forbidden to speculate with family or healthcare professionals about the plague. Were forced to take a covid vaccine after spending 4 months recovering from first bout of it as an ER nurse, and whom died...Have still been forbidden to reveal anything they learned. Police and fire men and first responders are getting done with NY.

Science has not served me well when i first developed MS at age sixteen due to dental implant. And i got sicker and sicker. I also had a near death reaction to the small pox vaccine when newly born. Ran 106 fever but my brain is just fine!! Same with my family.

Helpey helpertons are going door to door in yonkers and asking if u want the vaccine. But then again so are criminals. Same things nowadays.

Ok. My good sis will tell me this stuff if I am too busy. She battled an autoimmune or three and stage iv cancer 19 yrs ago. Yeah, i just decided i did not need to wear a mask if i went out, and now this area is making people wear masks again. Oh, they won't be too happy i am guessing. A free spirited hippy group lives round here.

I still hope I can weasel my way outta this thing. I am ready for Heaven but am not sure I have achieved what the Lord has wanted.

But I do state: if u can safely get the vaccine, please do so.