Yesterday, a group of scientists told the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices that mRNA vaccines (those made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna) have a “likely association” with heart risks for younger people. Understandably, that’s still generating a lot of attention today. Here’s what you should know.
The heart issues in question are called myocarditis and pericarditis. Those refer, respectively, to inflammation of the heart and the lining around it. While they sound scary, both tend to clear up on their own or with minimal treatment, particularly if caught early. They can (but do not always) come with symptoms like chest pain, shortness of breath, fatigue and abnormal heart rhythms, and can be caused by viruses and bacteria.
They are a very rare vaccine side effect. Since April, about 1,000 cases have been reported among people who got vaccinated with mRNA-based shots, the CDC says. That might sound like a lot, but, for context, more than 300 million mRNA vaccine doses have been administered so far in the U.S. A statement signed by influential physicians including CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky notes that myocarditis and pericarditis are far more common among people who catch COVID-19 than among people who get the vaccine.
Certain groups seem to be at higher risk. Adolescent boys and young men seem to develop these side effects more often than other groups, according to the CDC, and it is more common after a second shot. In general—that is, separate from COVID-19 side effects—men are more likely than women to develop heart inflammation, and it is commonly diagnosed among younger adults.
Experts still recommend vaccination. Given the known benefits of COVID-19 vaccination, physicians still recommend the shots for people of all ages. “It is the best way to protect yourself, your loved ones, your community, and to return to a more normal lifestyle safely and quickly,” the group of physicians urged in their joint statement.
VACCINE TRACKER
About 379.2 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped to U.S. states as of this morning, of which some 320.7 million doses have been administered thus far, according to TIME's vaccine tracker. About 45.6% of Americans have been completely vaccinated.
TODAY'S CORONAVIRUS OUTLOOK
More than 179.5 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 a.m. E.T. today, and more than 3.8 million people have died. On June 23, there were 383,186 new cases and 8,200 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's every country that has reported over 3 million cases.
The U.S. had recorded more than 33.5 million coronavirus cases as of 1 a.m. E.T. today. More than 602,800 people have died. On June 23, there were 12,436 new cases and 375 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:
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of June 24, 1 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
A new variant, dubbed “Delta plus,” is causing international concern. Delta plus appears to be a slightly mutated version of the Delta strain, which first emerged in India before spreading around the globe. Some experts fear Delta plus may be extra contagious and may not respond well to monoclonal antibodies, one of the treatments used for COVID-19 patients. Still, many experts say there’s no reason for panic. COVID-19 prevention strategies should still work against the new variant, and there are treatments available other than monoclonal antibodies. Scientists are studying how effective current vaccines are against Delta plus.
A report posted on the pre-print research server BioRxiv earlier this week says Chinese researchers asked the U.S. National Institutes of Health to delete COVID-19-related genetic sequences from their databases early in the pandemic, and the agency complied. (The NIH confirmed the claim and said scientists who submit data can always request removal.) The paper was written by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center virologist Jesse Bloom, who says he recovered the deleted data from the cloud. The report raises new questions about China’s transparency and cooperation during investigations to uncover the origins of COVID-19.
The U.S. is set to send3 million doses of the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson vaccine to Brazil today, in an effort to slow an outbreak there that is sickening about 75,000 people per day. Less than a third of Brazil’s 211 million residents have received a vaccine dose so far.
Even though the U.S. is now in a position to donate vaccine doses, the outbreak isn’t over here, TIME’s Chris Wilson reminds in a new story. More than 10,000 people are still infected each day in the U.S.—not so different from last summer, a season followed by a massive surge in cases. Of course, this year we have the (huge) advantage of access to highly effective vaccines. But with more than half the U.S. population still not fully vaccinated, it’s too soon to let our guards down completely, Chris argues.
The U.S. eviction ban set to expire on June 30 will be extended another month. The CDC, which oversees the eviction policy, said in a statement that this is intended to be its last extension. But the Biden Administration is reportedly also working with local officials and legal aid groups to figure out additional ways to avoid a wave of evictions after July 31, and will soon hold a summit focused on affordable housing.
U.S. life expectancy dropped by about two years from 2018 to 2020—the largest decline since World War II—and the losses haven’t been shared equally, according to a new study. While life expectancy among white Americans declined by 1.36 years, it fell by 3.25 years among Black Americans and 3.88 years among Hispanic Americans, the research says. That’s in part due to the massive numbers of people who died from COVID-19, but it’s also intimately linked to economic insecurity, reports Liz Szabo for Kaiser Health News and TIME. Evictions, for example, can force people to live in substandard housing where they may be exposed to infectious diseases as well as health hazards like mold and lead paint; they may also cause or exacerbate substance abuse and mental health issues.
In a sad echo of India’s COVID-19 surge this past spring, oxygen supplies are now running short in Africa, NPR reports. While that poses a problem for the entire continent, the situation is especially dire in Uganda, where about 1,500 people are getting sick each day and ICU beds are running short. Uganda has the resources to fill about 3,000 oxygen canisters each day but may need up to 25,000 per day over the next month, according to NPR.
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 Jamie Ducharme and edited by Elijah Wolfson.
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