Its data shows that more than a quarter of weekly reported coronavirus cases in the United States were among children for the week ending Sept. 2. And while most pediatric cases are not severe, nearly 2,400 children were hospitalized nationwide with covid-19 in the seven days ending Tuesday — more than ever before, according to data tracked by The Washington Post.
Covid cases in children dipped early in the summer but quickly rose again, both with the spread of the highly transmissible delta variant and because coronavirus vaccines are not authorized for children under 12. Half of children ages 12 to 15 have received at least one vaccine dose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, while that number climbs to 58 percent for 16- and 17-year-olds.
With the return to schools, experts fear the situation could worsen as battles over mask and vaccine mandates rage, although Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that is not inevitable. “We’ve got to get the school system masked in addition to surrounding the children with vaccinated people,” he told CNN on Tuesday. “That’s the solution.”
Here’s what to know
Fla. judge again rules against DeSantis, allows school districts to require masks
A Florida judge ruled against Gov. Ron DeSantis’s administration for a second time over school mask mandates Wednesday, allowing school boards to require that students wear face coverings.
Leon County Judge John C. Cooper again sided with parents who said an executive order from DeSantis (R) overstepped the state’s authority in restricting school districts from requiring masks.
“We have a variant that’s more infectious and more dangerous to children than the one we had last year,” Cooper said when issuing his ruling. “We’re in a non-disputed pandemic situation with threats to young children who, at least based on the evidence, have no way to avoid this unless to stay home and isolate themselves. I think everybody agrees that’s not good for them.”
Cooper pointed to the guidance by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that recommends masks for students and staff in schools, calling it the “the gold standard.”
School districts in Florida reopened for full in-person learning last month, just as a surge in the coronavirus delta variant hit the state, causing more cases, hospitalizations and deaths on a daily basis than during any other point in the pandemic. DeSantis signed an executive order July 30 that said that “masking children may lead to negative health and societal ramifications” and that parents should be able to decide whether their children wear them.
The order cited legislation DeSantis signed into law in June, the Parents’ Bill of Rights. A dozen counties defied the order and put mask mandates in place for students. DeSantis threatened to withhold the salaries of school board members who approved the mandates. That’s when a group of parents sued.
Cooper initially ruled in favor of the parents Aug. 27. The DeSantis administration appealed, which temporarily allowed his Department of Education to enforce the order disallowing mask mandates. But Cooper’s ruling Wednesday leaves school districts in Florida free to require students to wear masks. The state plans to file an emergency motion to reinstate the stay today, said Taryn Fenske, communications director for DeSantis’s office.
More Americans were infected in 2020 than first thought, researchers say
At the end of 2020, news reports shared that the United States had surpassed an unwanted figure: 20 million coronavirus infections.
But that was probably a significant undercount, researchers now say. They estimate that the true number of infections by the end of 2020 was more than 100 million, or a bit less than a third of the nation’s population.
The results of the Nature preprint study by Columbia University researchers were shared Tuesday by National Institutes of Health Director Francis S. Collins in a blog post highlighting the gaps in data. Scientists said cases went undetected because they were mild and testing was limited early in the year.
The researchers, who evaluated data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on people who tested positive for antibodies, calculated that only about 11 percent of all cases were confirmed by a positive test result at the start of the pandemic in March 2020. That number gradually rose to about 25 percent through improvements in testing and heightened public awareness.
Researchers were able to map the infections, which showed geographical disparities, as the susceptibility of getting infected was higher in major metropolitan areas.
In his post about the study, Collins stressed the importance of people taking steps to curb infections, including getting tested.
“These measures we take now will influence the infection rates and susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 in our communities going forward,” he wrote. “That will determine what the map of SARS-CoV-2 infections will look like in 2021 and beyond and, ultimately, how soon we can finally put this pandemic behind us.”
Democratic Rep. Darren Soto tests positive for covid-19
Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.), who is fully vaccinated, said Wednesday that he recently tested positive for the coronavirus and was experiencing mild symptoms.
“I recently tested positive for #COVID19, and am grateful to only have mild symptoms, which I credit to the vaccine,” he wrote on Twitter.
Soto is the 10th member of Congress to experience a breakthrough infection, which research has overwhelmingly shown tend to be mild or moderate. Six vaccinated members of the House have said that they tested positive.
Soto said he was self-isolating and working remotely, as the House is not in session again until Sept. 20.
He also shared that he received monoclonal antibody treatment, which is free and has been effective with people who are infected with the virus. But Soto stressed that the treatment is “not a substitute for the COVID-19 vaccine” and encouraged people to get immunized.
Global vaccine distribution program Covax falls short of target
An initiative to ensure equitable global access to coronavirus vaccines has slashed its projected supply for 2021 by more than a quarter.
Covax, a program backed by the World Health Organization that aims to immunize low- and middle-income countries against the virus, announced Wednesday that it expects to have about 1.4 billion doses by the end of the year, a decline from a June forecast of about 1.9 billion doses by the end of 2021.
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday voiced frustration with high-income countries that have overpromised and underdelivered doses. Of more than a billion vaccine doses promised, he said, less than 15 percent have materialized.
Tedros also condemned the unequal distribution of vaccines. He said that of the 5.5 billion shots administered globally, 80 percent were given in high- and upper-middle-income countries.
“There has been a lot of talk about vaccine equity but too little action,” he said.
Tedros called for an extension of a moratorium on vaccine booster shots through the end of 2021.
The WHO chief had previously sought a moratorium through September, but few nations with ample vaccine supply seem either to be imposing a moratorium or fully meeting their commitments to the vaccine donation program.
Tedros said that “not a single low-income country” had met the WHO’s vaccination targets.
“It’s not their fault,” he said. “We don’t need any more promises. We just need the vaccines.”
People who got the J&J shot feel left behind in push for boosters
Janice Higgins isn’t the type to ignore advice from health professionals, especially when it comes to protecting herself from the coronavirus. When officials recommended masks, she wore them. When the vaccines arrived, she got the first one available to her.
But the Biden administration’s plan for coronavirus booster shots is testing her faith in the process.
Higgins is one of 14 million Americans who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which is not covered under the booster plan announced Aug. 18. Officials’ decision to focus first on recipients of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna shots caused her to panic, she said. She already worried that she had received the weakest of the three vaccines and questioned how it would stand up against the ferocious delta variant.
“I feel like I’m being neglected,” said Higgins, 69, of Hadley, Mass. “I’m trying to do the right thing, and I’m being stymied by the health establishment.”
Pediatric cases surge in U.S. as students head back to school
It’s back-to-school week for many families in the United States — just as coronavirus cases surge among children and teenagers. Weekly pediatric coronavirus cases surpassed 250,000 for the first time since the start of the pandemic, according to the most recent data published by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Its data shows that for the week ending Sept. 2, more than a quarter of weekly reported coronavirus cases in the United States were among children. And although most pediatric cases are not severe, nearly 2,400 children were hospitalized nationwide with covid-19 in the seven days ending Tuesday — the most during the pandemic, according to data tracked by The Washington Post.
Covid cases in children dipped early in the summer but quickly rose again, both with the spread of the highly transmissible delta variant and because coronavirus vaccines are not authorized for children under 12. Half of children ages 12 to 15 have received at least one vaccine dose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the number climbs to 58 percent for 16- and 17-year-olds.
With the return to schools, experts fear the situation could worsen as battles over mask and vaccine mandates rage, although Anthony S. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that is not inevitable. “We’ve got to get the school system masked, in addition to surrounding the children with vaccinated people,” he told CNN on Tuesday. “That’s the solution.”
Vermont state troopers resign after allegedly creating fraudulent vaccination cards
Three Vermont state troopers have resigned after they were accused of being involved in a scheme to create fake coronavirus vaccination cards in the nation’s most vaccinated state, the state police announced Tuesday.
Shawn Sommers and Raymond Witkowski resigned on Aug. 10, a day after a colleague raised concerns about the alleged fraud to supervisors, while David Pfindel’s resignation took effect Friday after an investigation by Vermont’s Department of Public Safety, according to a police statement.
Authorities said the three men, who were reported to supervisors by their fellow troopers, “are suspected of having varying roles in the creation of fraudulent covid-19 vaccination cards, which may be a violation of federal law.”
The Vermont State Police said it was unable to announce the resignations before Tuesday, or provide any additional details about the case, because the FBI is now investigating the matter. It remains unclear why and for whom the troopers allegedly made the fake cards.
South Korea joins other countries planning how to live with covid
A South Korean official told reporters on Wednesday that his country is deciding how it will “live more normally” with the coronavirus once more of the population is vaccinated.
According to Reuters, Health Ministry spokesperson Son Young-rae said: “We’ll review measures that will allow us to live more normally, but any such switch will be implemented only when we achieve high vaccination rates and overall [covid-19] situations stabilize.”
Yet South Korea wants to ease out of covid restrictions carefully: The health official said plans to live with the virus would only kick in once 80 percent of adults have been vaccinated, and once the public health outlook improves. More than 60 percent of the population has received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine and roughly 37 percent are fully vaccinated, according to Our World in Data.
South Korea is not alone in debating how and when to reduce or phase out social restrictions. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison recently said, “Our goal [is] to live with this virus — not to live in fear of it.”
Sweden, which stood out from its neighbors for largely eschewing full lockdowns throughout the pandemic, said it would lift most remaining covid-related restrictions at the end of the month, including limits on public gatherings. “The important message is that we now take further steps in the return to normal everyday life,” Health and Social Affairs Minister Lena Hallengren said.
Vaccine makers take different stands on need for booster shots in Britain
Coronavirus vaccine makers are taking different stands on the need for booster shots in the United Kingdom.
Pascal Soriot, chief executive of AstraZeneca, which helped create the most widely used coronavirus vaccine in Britain, said in the Telegraph newspaper Tuesday that booster shots may not be necessary for everyone, and he warned against rushing “needlessly” into a booster drive that could put too much pressure on the country’s National Health Service.
“Mobilizing the NHS for a boosting program that is not needed would potentially add unnecessary burden on the NHS over the long winter months,” he wrote.
In an interview published Wednesday in the Financial Times, Philip Dormitzer, Pfizer’s chief scientific officer, encouraged booster shots and dismissed criticism that his company should have produced a more potent vaccine to stave off the need for boosters. Booster shots are expected to roll out in the United States later this month, and other nations have approved them.
British Health Minister Sajid Javid said Wednesday that a booster program in the country would get underway later this month — but he did not offer a timetable or any details on who would be prioritized for the shots. Javid told Sky News he was “waiting for final advice,” due in the next few days.
Javid also batted away any possibility of the country imposing a “firebreak” reintroduction of some social restrictions in October to combat climbing cases. “I don’t think that’s something we need to consider,” he said.
Separately, Javid said a child’s opinion about whether to get a vaccine will ultimately prevail in most cases when there is a disagreement between parent and child. Coronavirus vaccines are not currently authorized in Britain for 12- to 15-year-olds, but that may change in the coming weeks as the government awaits a decision on the matter from the country’s chief medical officers.
Key coronavirus updates from around the world
Here’s what to know about the top coronavirus stories around the globe from news service reports.
- Sweden says it will remove all remaining coronavirus restrictions in the country by the end of this month, with the majority of its population now vaccinated. Deaths in the Scandinavian country have remained relatively low, under 15,000.
- In the Philippines’ capital region, a planned relaxation of restrictions due Wednesday has been delayed as cases continue to climb, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said.
- In France, doctors and health workers are calling for better security protection, citing rising death threats and insults during the pandemic amid fears they are targets for anti-vaccination opposition groups.
- Tanzania is set to receive $567 million in emergency support to finance its coronavirus vaccine campaign. The International Monetary Fund’s executive board approved the funds on Tuesday, as the East African nation grapples with the health costs of the pandemic, the IMF said in a statement.
- Bulgaria is at the bottom of the vaccination league in the European Union, according to the Associated Press, with just 20 percent of adults fully vaccinated, compared to an average 69 percent across the bloc of European countries. People in the Eastern European nation remain hesitant about getting a vaccine because of mistrust of official institutions, misinformation about whether vaccines work and a national vaccination campaign that hasn’t had a big impact.
- Spanish schools reopened this week with a staggered return schedule and mask-wearing and social distancing encouraged for more than 8 million schoolchildren. Spain’s government also launched a social media campaign to persuade teens to get vaccine shots.
- The CDC added Sri Lanka, Jamaica and Brunei to the list of nations to which it’s warning against travel, because of rising coronavirus cases..
As experts debate boosters, vaccinated people are calling their own shots
Kavita Patel, a primary care physician at Mary’s Center in the Washington area, routinely throws away perfectly good doses of coronavirus vaccine. When she opens a new multidose vial, any shots that don’t go into arms that day have to be discarded.
In recent days, she was tempted to do something different: use one of those soon-to-be wasted doses to boost her own immunity.
It might seem a no-brainer, but nothing is simple when it comes to coronavirus vaccine boosters. The Biden administration’s coronavirus task force wants to roll out boosters the week of Sept. 20. Too soon, some experts have declared. Not soon enough, others say.
Former NBA star Cedric Ceballos asks for prayers from ICU as he battles covid-19
Former NBA player Cedric Ceballos asked for prayers on his behalf Tuesday as he endures a case of covid-19 that he said has led to a lengthy stay in an intensive care unit.
“My fight is not done,” Ceballos, 52, wrote on Twitter. He shared a photo that showed an oxygen mask strapped to his head, and he said he was spending a 10th day in the ICU as covid was “officially kicking” his rear.
On Aug. 27, Ceballos announced via Instagram that a golf event benefiting his charity foundation would be canceled because he had contracted covid. “I am out of the hospital and currently resting [at] home,” he wrote at the time.
Pandemic had ‘catastrophic’ impact on fight against TB, HIV and malaria, report says
The coronavirus pandemic significantly hampered efforts combating tuberculosis, HIV and malaria last year, according to a report released on Wednesday by the Global Fund, an organization that supports local programs to fight those diseases.
The Global Fund said that for the first time in its 20-year history, “key programmatic results” declined, calling the impact of the pandemic “catastrophic.”
The pandemic burdened health systems and created a “perfect storm of economic and social consequences,” the report said, and restrictions “too often cut the poorest and most vulnerable off from health care.” The virus also made people less likely to seek care for illnesses unrelated to the coronavirus, as they were afraid of becoming ill with covid-19, the report said.
The number of people treated in 2020 for drug-resistant tuberculosis in countries where the organization invests dropped by 19 percent; for “extensively drug-resistant” tuberculosis, the drop was 37 percent, the Global Fund said.
HIV testing in countries where the organization supports efforts dropped by 22 percent, the report said. Malaria tests fell by 4.3 percent, and “progress against the disease stalled.”
The pandemic has had other negative impacts in developing countries. Worldwide, 97 million more people were in poverty in 2020 because of the pandemic, the World Bank estimated in June, calling it a “historically unprecedented increase in global poverty.”
13 Miami-area school staffers have died of covid-19 this school year
Miami-Dade County Public Schools are reporting at least 13 employee deaths from covid-19 since mid-August, a tally that forecasts what could be a grim autumn for Florida educators.
Spokeswoman Jaquelyn Calzadilla told The Washington Post in an email that the district is aware of 13 deaths of employees since Aug. 16 but that the figure is based on what families report.
“When relatives of employees apply for death benefits, they are not asked to disclose cause of death, so we only know about employee covid deaths anecdotally,” Calzadilla said.
Among the dead was Abe Coleman, a longtime Miami math teacher and beloved mentor who died Sept. 1, days after telling colleagues he had covid-19 and was going to the hospital. Coleman taught third-grade math for 31 years, and colleagues say he elevated the stories of Black scientists and leaders in his classroom. In recent months, he kept his young students connected through remote learning.
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