With the winter holidays just around the corner, I would love to tell you that COVID-19 cases are on the decline. Unfortunately, as my colleague Chris Wilson reported today, that doesn’t seem to be the truth.
Cases had been falling for weeks—a welcome relief after the Delta variant set off a wave of infections this past summer. But that trend seems to be reversing, with diagnoses once again ticking upward, even in highly vaccinated states like Vermont and New Hampshire, which both recently set new records for average daily diagnoses: 393 in Vermont and 983 in New Hampshire.
It’s possible, Chris writes, that this increase isn’t the start of a new wave, but rather the tail end of this summer’s Delta spike. But COVID-19 has followed a waxing and waning pattern since the pandemic began. Spikes give way to quiet periods, only for new hotspots to emerge. Given that pattern, it wouldn’t be surprising if the U.S. were in for another rough stretch ahead.
Many people hoped this cycle would have ended by now, given the remarkable effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines. But vaccine skepticism left many people vulnerable to the virus for too long, simultaneously risking lives and allowing new viral variants to emerge.
Vaccination rates are slowly inching upward, aided by the recent authorization of a shot for 5- to 11-year-old children. And for the millions of Americans who are vaccinated, a COVID-19 infection is likely to be much, much milder than it would have been at this time last year. Even still, a new spike in cases will inevitably lead to some severe illnesses, hospital admissions and deaths—which means it’s worth taking seriously.
More than 251.9 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 a.m. E.T. today, and more than 5 million people have died. On Nov. 11, there were 521,281 new cases and 7,546 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 5 million cases:
The U.S. had recorded more than 46.8 million coronavirus cases as of 1 a.m. E.T. today. More than 759,000 people have died. On Nov. 11, there were 63,245 new cases and 760 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 Nov. 12, 1:30 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
Almost a year into his term, President Joe Biden has finally nominated a permanent Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner: Dr. Robert Califf, a cardiologist who led the agency for 11 months under President Barack Obama. Given the FDA’s central role in pandemic response—most notably authorizing COVID-19 vaccines, treatments and tests—Biden has been criticized for leaving the agency’s top job empty for so long. Califf must be confirmed by the Senate before taking office, but he is seen as a “relatively safe choice,” a former FDA associate commissioner told the Associated Press.
Cases are on the rise even in highly vaccinated Western Europe, forcing several countries to consider lockdowns of some kind. While long-lasting, population-wide lockdowns are unlikely to return—largely thanks to vaccines keeping hospitalization rates at manageable levels—some European nations have suggested less dramatic solutions. The Dutch government may enact a limited two-week lockdown, for example, while Austrian officials have floated the idea of restrictions only for the unvaccinated. Across Europe, coronavirus-related deaths increased by 10% over the past week.
Moderna has offered to sell doses of its vaccine to the African Union for $7 a pop, about half the price it charged the U.S., Reuters reports. Vaccination rates in Africa have so far lagged significantly behind those in richer countries—only about 6% of the continent’s eligible population has been fully vaccinated. Access to affordable and effective vaccines may help push that number up.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will guarantee $150 million to help UNICEF procure vaccines and other health supplies for low- and middle-income countries, it announced today. The funding, given in collaboration with the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, will be effective through 2025 and help support COVID-19 vaccination campaigns as well as routine immunizations.
Some renters who fled major cities during the pandemic are finding it difficult to return, according to the Wall Street Journal. Rent prices cratered last year when many people (at least, those who could afford to do so) left their city homes in favor of wide open spaces. As pandemic restrictions loosen and the urban exodus reverses itself, however, rents are even higher than they were pre-pandemic in expensive markets like New York City and Los Angeles.
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.
If you were forwarded this and want to sign up to receive it daily, click here.
Today's newsletter was written by Jamie Ducharme and edited by Angela Haupt.
沒有留言:
張貼留言