It's easy to feel powerless during a global pandemic, especially when you add an economic crisis and political upheaval into the mix. But I'll be damned if I don't do everything I can to keep myself and my loved ones safe—and that includes wearing a face mask, which has helped me regain a sense of control in an uncertain time.
Still, I want to make sure my mask is actually preventing COVID-19 from spreading. Scientific understanding of how masks protect people who wear them, as well as those around them, has evolved considerably since the start of the outbreak, and it can be difficult to keep up with the latest research. That's why I was excited to talk to mask experts for my latest story, which lays out the latest best practices around facial coverings.
My biggest takeaways from those conversations?
For one, it's important to make sure your mask actually fits. From now on, I'll make sure to wear masks that provide a good seal around my face and include a clasp for a good seal around my nose, for instance.
Second, when I can't access medical-grade masks, I plan to wear cloth masks made of multiple layers. I'll also consider wearing two masks—a cloth mask on top of a medical-grade mask—in higher-risk situations where I'm around more people.
Finally, I'll try to remember that wearing a mask doesn't automatically guarantee I can’t catch or spread COVID-19—meaning, masks alone aren't an excuse to go back to life as normal. Instead, every time I feel my mask on my face, I'll think of it as a reminder to keep some space between myself and other people.
That brings me to the other big reason I choose to wear masks: to try to be a good member of my community. While I see myself as an individual, a friend and a family member, the virus sees me as just one more potential host that could keep the pandemic going. Although it can hardly measure up to working on the front lines of COVID-19, wearing a mask is also a way of serving the people around us—and a step we can all easily take.
43.4 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped to various U.S. states as of this morning, while about 32.3 million doses have been administered thus far, according to TIME's vaccine tracker—representing 9.7% of the overall U.S. population who have received at least one dose.
The Biden Administration will send vaccines directly to U.S. community health centers for distribution to underserved communities, including the homeless, migrant workers and public housing residents, White House representatives said during a COVID-19 briefing today. In the first phase, 1 million doses will be sent to 250 of the more than 1,300 federally supported community health centers nationwide; the first centers will be able to order vaccines as early as next week. At least one community health center will be chosen in each state, and the government will be assessing whether the centers have the capacity to handle vaccinations.
Facebook will remove posts spreading false claims about vaccines, the company said Monday. The effort is a major step for the company, which previously said it would only "downrank" posts promoting vaccine misinformation, making them harder to find but still accessible. Facebook, which has 1.84 billion active users worldwide, has faced criticism for permitting health misinformation to spread on the platform, which experts say has contributed to vaccine hesitancy.
The U.S. is considering establishing mobile vaccination centers amid concerns the vaccines are not reaching many low-income Americans and communities of color, White House senior COVID-19 advisor Andy Slavitt said on NPR's All Things Consideredyesterday, adding that people shouldn’t have to "chase vaccines." Slavitt also said that the White House has been working with vaccine makers to increase production, but said there are no "silver bullets" for speeding efforts.
TODAY'S CORONAVIRUS OUTLOOK
The Global Situation
Nearly 106.5 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 a.m. E.T. today, and more than 2.3 million people have died. On Feb. 8, there were 315,510 new cases and 8,311 new deaths confirmed globally.
Here's how the world as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
And here is every country with over 1.5 million confirmed cases:
It’s "extremely unlikely" that COVID-19 originated in a lab, World Health Organization scientists investigating the pandemic's origins in China said today. Instead, the virus probably jumped to humans from an animal. The findings are consistent with the WHO's past explanation of the pandemic's origin, but the team's research added "details to that story," said team leader Peter Ben Embarek, including evidence that the virus likely moved from a bat to another animal and then to people.
As Chinese couples were stuck at home last year amid pandemic-related lockdowns, authorities wondered if it would lead to a long hoped-for baby boom. Instead, data published this week showed that the number of births in China actually dropped from 2019, when the country recorded the fewest births since the 1960s, the Washington Post reports. Although China relaxed its one child policy in 2016, the pandemic exacerbated economic pressures and weighed heavily on would-be parents. "Who was in the mood to make babies?" one person wrote on Chinese social media platform Weibo.
The Situation in the U.S.
The U.S. had recorded more than 27 million coronavirus cases as of 1 a.m. E.T. today. More than 465,000 people have died. On Feb. 8, there were 89,727 new cases and 1,596 new deaths confirmed in the U.S.
Here's how the country as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
U.S. Rep. Ron Wright has died from COVID-19 at the age of 67, making the Texas Republican the first sitting member of Congress to succumb to the virus, according to the Houston Chronicle. Wright, who also had cancer, was hospitalized for COVID-19 in Dallas two weeks ago along with his wife.
B.1.1.7, a more contagious coronavirus variant first found in the United Kingdom and since detected in the U.S., is likely doubling every 10 days in the states, according to a preprint study released Sunday, which has not yet been peer reviewed. At this rate, B.1.1.7 will "almost certainly" become the predominant COVID-19 variant in many states by March, the authors write. Vaccines created by AstraZeneca,Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna appear to be effective against the variant.
Dementia patients are twice as likely to contract COVID-19 as other people, even when controlling for risk factors such as age, nursing home residency and comorbidities, according to a study published today in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia. The researchers, who reviewed nearly 62 million patient records, found that dementia patients were also more likely to be hospitalized and die from COVID-19, and that Black patients with dementia were more likely to be infected than white patients.
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of Feb. 9, 1 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
The Failure of a Government Phone Program
Internet access has been essential during the pandemic, as people rely on connectivity to access health care, apply for jobs and reach out to loved ones. However, a U.S. government program designed to provide smartphones and financial assistance to low-income Americans has been plagued by lousy service and mismanagement, the Washington Post reports, and only a quarter of those eligible have signed up. Read more here.
How Dentists Adapted
Many dentist's offices have rethought their practices to keep patients and staff safe during the pandemic, like switching from power equipment (which can spray aerosols) to traditional hand tools, layering on protective equipment and reducing the number of patients in the office at any one time, the New York Times reports. Read more here.
Reaching Missing Students
As school districts across the U.S. report major attendance drop-offs, some teachers have resorted to unorthodox ways of connecting with students who have disappeared, NPR reports. Read more here.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com. If you have specific questions you'd like us to answer, please send them to covidquestions@time.com.
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Today's newsletter was written by Tara Law and edited by Alex Fitzpatrick.
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