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Getty Images Trump rallies GOP in Valdosta, slams ‘rigged’ election UK gears up for huge vaccination plan watched by the world LONDON (AP) — Shipments of the coronavirus vaccine developed by American drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech were delivered Sunday in the U.K. in super-cold containers, two days before it goes public in an immunization program that is being closely watched around the world. Around 800,000 doses of the vaccine were expected to be in place for the start of the immunization program on Tuesday, a day that Health Secretary Matt Hancock has reportedly dubbed as “V-Day,” a nod to triumphs in World War II. “To know that they are here, and we are amongst the first in the country to actually receive the vaccine and therefore the first in the world, is just amazing,” said Louise Coughlan, joint chief pharmacist at Croydon Health Services NHS Trust, just south of London. “I'm so proud," she said after the trust, which runs Croydon University Hospital, took delivery of the vaccine. Last week, the U.K. became the first country to authorize the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine for emergency use. In trials, the vaccine was shown to have around 95% efficacy. Vaccinations will be administered starting Tuesday at around 50 hospital hubs in England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will also begin their vaccination rollouts the same day. Governments and health agencies around the world will be monitoring the British vaccination program, which will take months, to note its successes and failures and adjust their own plans accordingly. The U.S. hopes to start vaccinations later this month. British regulatory authorities are also examining data on the vaccines from American biotechnology company Moderna and AstraZeneca-Oxford University. Russia on Saturday began vaccinating thousands of doctors, teachers and others at dozens of centers in Moscow with its Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine, which was approved over the summer after being tested in only a few dozen people. The excitement in Britain, which has Europe's highest virus-related death toll at more than 61,000, was palpable. “Despite the huge complexities, hospitals will kickstart the first phase of the largest scale vaccination campaign in our country’s history from Tuesday,” said Professor Stephen Powis, NHS England’s national medical director. Patients aged 80 and above who are already attending hospitals as outpatients and those being discharged after a stay in the hospital will be among the first to receive the jab. Hospitals will also start inviting over 80s in for a vaccine shot and will work with nursing homes to book staff into vaccination clinics. Any appointments not taken up will be offered to those health workers deemed to be at the highest risk of COVID-19. Everyone who is vaccinated will need a booster jab 21 days later. Buckingham Palace refused to comment on speculation that Queen Elizabeth II, 94, and her 99-year-old husband, Prince Philip, will soon be vaccinated and then make it public, a move that could reassure anyone nervous about getting a vaccination. “Our goal is totally to protect every member of the population, Her Majesty, of course, as well,” Dr. June Raine, chief executive of Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which authorized the vaccine, told the BBC. The U.K. has secured 40 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine, which can cover 20 million people. Since the British government will only immunize people over 16, around 55 million people in the U.K. will be eligible. In total, Britain has procured 357 million doses of seven vaccine candidates, including 100 million of the much cheaper Oxford vaccine, which has a lower efficacy rate than the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. Now that the first tranche of the vaccine has arrived from Pfizer's manufacturing plant in Belgium, checks are being conducted by a specialist medical logistics company to ensure there was no damage in transit. This could take up to a day. Each box containing the vaccines, which includes five packs of 975 doses, will need to be opened and unpacked manually at specially licensed sites. After that, the vaccines will then be made available to hospitals. Delivering the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is complicated because it needs to be stored at super-chilled temperatures: about minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit). Fortunately, the vaccine is stable at normal refrigerator temperatures, between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius (35.6 to 46.4 F), for a few days, meaning it can be stored locally. After defrosting the vaccine, which takes a few hours, additional time is required to prepare it to be given in a shot. Public Health England has secured 58 special Twin Guard ultra-low temperature freezers that provide sufficient storage for approximately five million doses. The fridges, which are not portable, each hold around 86,000 doses. The vaccine won't just be provided by hospitals. Local doctors' offices and other local health care centers are being put on standby to start delivering the vaccine, with a small number expected to do so the week of Dec. 14. More medical practices in more parts of the country will be phased in during December and in the coming months. There are plans for vaccination centers treating large numbers of patients in sports areas and conference centers and for local pharmacies to be able to offer the jabs as they do with annual influenza shots. Although nursing home residents top the prioritization list given to the British government by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization, they won't be getting the vaccinations straight away, as the vaccine packs of 975 doses cannot yet be divided, making it very difficult to deliver vaccines to individual care homes. The NHS hopes authorities will soon approve a safe way of splitting up the dose packs so the shots can get to nursing homes during December. During the first phase of the immunization program, Britain has created nine separate groups in its prioritization list down to those aged 50 and above. Overall, it hopes that up to 99% of people most at risk of dying from COVID 19 will have been immunized during the first phase. ___ Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak December 06, 2020 Most of California to enter sweeping new virus lockdown SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The vast region of Southern California, much of the San Francisco Bay area and a large swath of the Central Valley are about to be placed under a sweeping new lockdown in an urgent attempt to slow the rapid rise of coronavirus cases. The California Department of Public Health said Saturday the intensive care unit capacity in Southern California and Central Valley hospitals had fallen below a 15% threshold that triggers the new measures, which include strict closures for businesses and a ban on gathering with anyone outside of your own household. The new measures will take effect Sunday evening and remain in place for at least three weeks, meaning the lockdown will cover the Christmas holiday. Much of the state is on the brink of the same restrictions. Some counties have opted to impose them even before the mandate kicks in, including five San Francisco Bay Area counties where the measures also take effect starting Sunday. With a new lockdown looming, many rushed out to supermarkets Saturday and lined up outside salons to squeeze in a haircut before the orders kicked in. San Francisco resident Michael Duranceau rushed to a market to load up on supplies. “I’m just stocking up before Sunday — the basics, bread, eggs,” he told KGO-TV, clutching a heavy grocery bag and a baguette. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the new plan Thursday. It is the most restrictive order since he imposed the country’s first statewide stay-at-home rule in March. But the situation is bleaker than in March. “The risk of contracting COVID in the community now is higher now than it has ever been," Dr. Eric McDonald, the medical director for San Diego County, told reporters Saturday. He and other officials urged the public to bear down, heed the rules and help the state get through the latest and worst wave of cases the state has seen. California has tallied a staggering total of 1.3 million COVID-19 cases since the pandemic started, setting a new daily record on Friday when 25,068 confirmed cases were recorded. The new order divides the state into five regions and uses ICU capacity as the trigger for closures. The measures bar all on-site restaurant dining and close hair and nail salons, movie theaters and many other businesses, as well as museums and playgrounds. It says people may not congregate with anyone outside their household and must always wear masks when they go outside. Under the new order, schools that are currently open can continue to provide in-person instruction; retailers including supermarkets and shopping centers can operate with just 20% customer capacity. The 11-county Southern California region, which includes the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, had only 12.5% of its ICU beds available, the California Department of Public Health reported Saturday. The figure was 8.6% for the San Joaquin Valley region, composed of a dozen counties in the agricultural Central Valley and rural areas of the Sierra Nevada. Together the two regions are home to more than half of California's population of 40 million. “We are at a point where surging cases and hospitalizations are not letting up," said Dr. Salvador Sandoval, public health officer for the Central Valley city of Merced. “I can’t emphasize this enough – everyone must take personal steps to protect themselves and protect others.” The other three regions — Greater Sacramento, Northern California and San Francisco Bay Area — were all around 21% capacity. But health officers in five of the Bay Area's 11 counties didn’t wait. On Friday, they adopted the state's stay-at-home order. The changes begin to take effect Sunday night in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Marin, Alameda and Contra Costa counties, as well as the city of Berkeley. “We don’t think we can wait for the state’s new restrictions to go into effect. ... This is an emergency,” Contra Costa Health Officer Chris Farnitano said. “Our biggest fear all along — that we won’t have a bed for you or your mother or your grandmother or grandfather when they get sick — is the reality we’ll be facing unless we slow the spread,” San Francisco Mayor London Breed said. The Bay Area order will last at least through Jan. 4, a week longer than the state's timeline, and came as the state recorded another daily record number of new cases with 22,018. Hospitalizations topped 9,000 for first time, and ICU patients were at a record 2,152. The new shutdowns were a gut-wrenching move for small businesses that have struggled to survive over nearly a year in which they were repeatedly ordered to close, then allowed to reopen but with complex safety precautions. Michelle Saunders James was in tears Friday at the thought of closing down her Oakland nail salon just five weeks after reopening it. “We wear (face) shields. We take temperatures. We do everything we are told to do so everyone feels safe, including our staff and team,” she told KGO-TV. “So I don’t understand why it’s not enough, and I’m terribly sad and afraid.” Critics say the broad statewide order unfairly lumps too many disparate counties together into regions. “I feel like it’s absurd. That’s how I feel. It’s a joke. I mean, first of all we are 220 miles away from Los Angeles. And we are geographically isolated and we have no problem ... with overfilled ICU beds,” said Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham, a Republican who represents San Luis Obispo. He asked why his county should be lumped in with Southern California counties like Los Angeles and Riverside when the San Luis Obispo hospital has just one COVID patient in the ICU. The effect on business has already been devastating, he said. “We’ve got small businesses that are losing everything, everything they have." The explosive rise in COVID-19 infections that began in October is being blamed largely on people ignoring safety measures and socializing with others. Berkeley Health Officer Lisa Hernandez said people should not meet in person with anyone they don’t live with, “even in a small group, and even outdoors with precautions.” “If you have a social bubble, it is now popped,” Hernandez said. “Do not let this be the last holiday with your family.” In the inland Central Valley, Fresno County had just 10 of its 150 ICU beds available. Health officials described a grim picture with hospitals struggling to stay staffed because of coronavirus infections and exposures. One hospital is holding ICU patients in the emergency department until beds open up, Emergency Medical Services Director Daniel Lynch said Friday. The county has requested help from the state with staffing for a couple of weeks. But so far only one or two additional workers have shown up at three local hospitals as the whole state struggles with staffing. ___ Associated Press writers Olga R. Rodriguez and Juliet Williams in San Francisco, Robert Jablon and Brian Melley in Los Angeles and Adam Beam in Sacramento contributed. December 05, 2020 Optimism growing for COVID relief bill as pressure builds WASHINGTON (AP) — After numerous fits and starts and months of inaction, optimism is finally building in Washington for a COVID-19 aid bill that would offer relief for businesses, the unemployed, schools, and health care providers, among others struggling as caseloads are spiking. Under pressure from moderates in both parties, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have initiated late-game negotiations in hopes of combining a relief package of, in all likelihood, less than $1 trillion with a separate $1.4 trillion governmentwide omnibus spending bill. The duo were the architects of the $1.8 trillion CARES Act, the landmark relief bill passed in March. Success is not certain and considerable differences remain over items such as aid to states and local governments, liability protections for businesses and universities reopening during the pandemic, and whether to issue a second round of $1,200 direct payments to most Americans. But renewing soon-to-expire jobless benefits, providing a second round of “paycheck protection” subsidies, and funding to distribute vaccines are sure bets to be included in any deal. Here are the top issues for the end-stage COVID-19 relief talks. ___ JOBLESS BENEFITS The CARES Act created a $600 per-week bonus COVID-19 unemployment benefit that sustained household incomes and consumer demand during the springtime shutdowns. It expired at the end of July and Republicans are against its renewal. The CARES Act also allowed for additional weeks of emergency pandemic unemployment payments at regular benefit levels — which are themselves about to expire, on Dec. 31. Any deal is sure to extend the emergency benefits, and a bipartisan compromise framework that’s helping guide the talks calls for restoring half of the bonus benefit, or $300 per week more. ___ BUSINESS SUBSIDIES Another sure thing is a reauthorization of the Paycheck Protection Program, also established by the CARES Act, to give a second round of subsidies to businesses struggling through the pandemic and make other changes to the program, which enjoys bipartisan support but is particularly revered by Republicans. Leftover PPP funds from two springtime infusions into the program would cover almost half of the $300 billion or so cost. ___ DIRECT PAYMENTS President Trump has long supported another $1,200 round of direct payments to most Americans, subject to income limits that make upper-bracket taxpayers ineligible. House Democrats support the idea, but it is unpopular with many Senate Republicans and was left out of a scaled-back Senate GOP plan. A bipartisan bill by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and others, leaves out the direct payments as well, and their up to $300 billion cost could render them too expensive for inclusion in the year-end package, though lawmakers ranging from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., to Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., are pushing to retain them. ___ STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS This is one of the trickiest issues in the talks — another round of aid to states and local governments to follow a $150 billion installment this spring. It’s a top priority of Pelosi and other Democrats but is opposed by many Republicans, who warn it would bail out states run by Democrats like California and New York. Trump doesn’t like the idea as well, but Pelosi’s demands for the money have been slashed from earlier amounts approaching $1 trillion. Revenue losses due to COVID-19 haven’t been as large as feared. But smaller localities left out of the first tranche of payments are eager for funding. A plan endorsed by moderates would provide $160 billion. ___ LIABILITY SHIELD Businesses reopening during the pandemic have for months been seeking a shield against lawsuits claiming negligence for COVID-19 outbreaks. McConnell is the most potent backer of the idea and he’s drafted sweeping protections against lawsuits for businesses, universities, and other organizations. The powerful trial lawyers lobby — which still holds great influence with Democrats — is opposed, and McConnell’s fears of a wave of COVID-related lawsuits haven’t materialized. Veteran Senate Judiciary Committee members Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, have been deputized to negotiate the issue, a sign the talks are at a serious stage. ___ ODDS AND ENDS Numerous smaller items are ripe for inclusion, including $10 billion for the Postal Service, a $20 billion-plus deal adding food aid sought by Democrats and farm subsidies favored by Republicans, more than $100 billion in funding for schools seeking to reopen, along with funding for child care, Amtrak, transit systems, and health care providers. ___' This version of the story corrects that Ocasio-Cortez is from New York. December 04, 2020 UK authorizes Pfizer vaccine for emergency use LONDON (AP) — Britain became the first country in the world to authorize a rigorously tested COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday and could be dispensing shots within days — a historic step toward eventually ending the scourge that has killed more than 1.4 million people around the globe. In giving the go-ahead for emergency use of the vaccine developed by American drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech, Britain vaulted past the United States by at least a week. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is not scheduled to consider the vaccine until Dec. 10. “This is a day to remember, frankly, in a year to forget," British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said. The announcement sets the stage for the biggest vaccination campaign in British history and came just ahead of what experts are warning will be a long, dark winter, with the coronavirus surging to epic levels in the U.S. and Europe and putting pressure on hospitals and businesses. Officials cautioned that several tough months still lie ahead even in Britain, given the monumental scale of the operation needed to vaccinate large swaths of the population. Because of the limited initial supply, the first shots will be reserved for those most in danger, namely nursing home patients, the elderly and health care workers. Britain's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency recommended the vaccine after clinical trials involving tens of thousands of volunteers showed it was 95% effective and turned up no serious side effects. The vaccine is still considered experimental while final testing is done. “This is an unprecedented piece of science,” given that the vaccine was authorized less than a year after the virus was discovered, said David Harper, senior consulting fellow in global health at the Chatham House think tank. Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that the “searchlights of science” had picked out the “invisible enemy,” which has been blamed for close to 60,000 deaths in Britain. He said that in developing the vaccine, scientists had performed “biological jujitsu” by turning the virus on itself. Other countries aren’t far behind: Regulators not only in the U.S. but in the European Union and Canada also are vetting the Pfizer vaccine along with a shot made by Moderna Inc. British and Canadian regulators are also considering a vaccine made by AstraZeneca and Oxford University. Amid growing concern in the U.S. that Americans will greet vaccines with skepticism, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Britain’s decision “should give Americans additional confidence in the quality of such a vaccine.” The virus has killed more than 270,000 in the U.S. Hancock said Britain will begin receiving the first shipment of 800,000 doses from Belgium within days, and people will start getting the shots as soon as it arrives. Two doses three weeks apart are required. The country expects to receive millions of doses by the end of this year, Hancock said, though the exact number will depend on how fast it can be manufactured and checked for quality. BioNTech, which owns the vaccine, said it has so far signed deals to supply 570 million doses worldwide in 2021, with options to deliver 600 million more. It hopes to supply at least 1.3 billion in 2021. That is only a fraction of what will be needed as public health officials try to vaccinate much of the world’s population. Experts have said several vaccines will be required to quickly end the pandemic that has infected more than 64 million people globally. In Britain, the first shots will go to nursing home patients and those who care for them, followed by everyone over 80 and health care workers. From there, the program will be expanded as the supply increases, with the vaccine offered roughly on the basis of age groups, starting with the oldest people. Despite the speed with which they approved the vaccine, and the intense political pressure surrounding the worldwide race to solve the crisis, British regulators insisted “no corners have been cut” during the review process. The MHRA made its recommendation following a so-called rolling review that allowed it to assess information about the vaccine as it became available, starting back in October. “The safety of the public will always come first,” said Dr. June Raine, chief executive of the agency. “And I emphasize again that this recommendation has only been given by the MHRA following the most rigorous scientific assessment of every piece of data.” Getting that message to the public will be critical if any vaccination program is to be successful. Some people are worried about getting any vaccine, never mind a new one. “But I think once they understand and see everyone else having it without hesitation, I think you’ll find that people will go and have it,” Jacqueline Roubians, a 76-year-old retired nurse, said at Brixton Market in London. “People are dying of COVID, so you make that decision: Do you want to die or do you want the vaccine?” In addition to the huge logistical challenges of distributing the vaccines, the Pfizer-BioNTech one must be stored and shipped at ultra-cold temperatures of around minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit). Pfizer said that it has developed shipping containers that use dry ice and that GPS-enabled sensors will allow the company to track each shipment and ensure it stays cold. Every country has different rules for determining when an experimental vaccine is safe and effective enough to use. China and Russia have offered different vaccines to their citizens before they had gone through large-scale, late-stage testing. Hours after Britain's announcement, Russian President Vladimir Putin, not to be outdone, ordered the start of a large-scale COVID-19 vaccination campaign by late next week, with doctors and teachers to be first in line to receive the Sputnik V shot, whose name was inspired by the 1957 satellite that was one of Moscow's proudest technical achievements. The Russian vaccine won regulatory approval in August but has yet to complete advanced studies of its effectiveness and safety. Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said more than 100,000 people in Russia have been given the shots. Still to be determined is whether the Pfizer-BioNTech shots prevent people from spreading the virus when they have no symptoms. Another question is how long protection lasts. The vaccine also has been tested in only a small number of children, none younger than 12, and there’s no information on its effects in pregnant women. ___ Neergaard reported from Alexandria, Virginia. Associated Press writers Frank Jordans in Berlin and Lawless, Pan Pylas and Jo Kearney in London contributed __ Follow AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. December 02, 2020 US panel: 1st vaccines to health care workers, nursing homes NEW YORK (AP) — Health care workers and nursing home residents should be at the front of the line when the first coronavirus vaccine shots become available, an influential government advisory panel said Tuesday. The panel voted 13-1 to recommend those groups get priority in the first days of any coming vaccination program, when doses are expected to be very limited. The two groups encompass about 24 million people out of a U.S. population of about 330 million. Later this month, the Food and Drug Administration will consider authorizing emergency use of two vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna. Current estimates project that no more than 20 million doses of each vaccine will be available by the end of 2020. And each product requires two doses. As a result, the shots will be rationed in the early stages. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will meet again at some point to decide who should be next in line. Among the possibilities: teachers, police, firefighters and workers in other essential fields such as food production and transportation; the elderly; and people with underlying medical conditions. Tuesday's action merely designated who should get shots first if a safe and effective vaccine becomes available. The panel did not endorse any particular vaccine. Panel members are waiting to hear FDA's evaluation and to see more safety and efficacy data before endorsing any particular product. Experts say the vaccine will probably not become widely available in the U.S. until the spring. The panel of outside scientific experts, created in 1964, makes recommendations to the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who almost always approves them. It normally has 15 voting members, but one seat is vacant. The recommendations are not binding, but for decades they have been widely heeded by doctors, and they have determined the scope and funding of U.S. vaccination programs. It will be up to state authorities whether to follow the guidance. It will also be left to them to make further, more detailed decisions if necessary — for example, whether to put emergency room doctors and nurses ahead of other health care workers if vaccine supplies are low. The outbreak in the U.S. has killed nearly 270,000 people and caused more than 13.5 million confirmed infections, with deaths, hospitalizations and cases rocketing in recent weeks. As the virtual meeting got underway, panel member Dr. Beth Bell of the University of Washington noted that on average, one person is dying of COVID-19 per minute in the U.S. right now, “so I guess we are acting none too soon.” About 3 million people are living in nursing homes, long-term chronic care hospitals, and other U.S. long-term care facilities. Those patients and the staff members who care for them have accounted for 6% of the nation’s coronavirus cases and a staggering 39% of the deaths, CDC officials say. Despite the heavy toll, some board members at Tuesday's meeting said they hesitated to include such patients in the first group getting shots. Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot, an infectious diseases researcher at Vanderbilt University who was the lone committee member to vote against the proposal, cited flu research that found vaccinating the staff of such facilities has a greatest impact on preventing its spread there. Dr. Richard Zimmerman, a University of Pittsburgh flu vaccine researcher who watched the meeting online, echoed Talbot's concerns. “I think it was premature” to include nursing home residents as a priority group, said Zimmerman, a former ACIP member. “Their vote seems to assume that these people will respond well to the vaccine. ... I don't think we know that.” Committee members were unanimous in voicing support for vaccinating health care workers — about 21 million people, according to CDC officials. That broad category includes medical staff who care for — or come in contact with — patients in hospitals, nursing homes, clinics and doctor’s offices. It also includes home health care workers and paramedics. Depending on how state officials apply the panel's recommendations, it could also encompass janitorial staff, food service employees and medical records clerks. The government estimates people working in health care account for 12% of U.S. COVID-19 cases but only about 0.5% of deaths. Experts say it’s imperative to keep health care workers on their feet so they can administer the shots and tend to the booming number of infected Americans. For months, members of the immunization panel had said they wouldn't take a vote until the FDA approved a vaccine, as is customary. But late last week, the group scheduled an emergency meeting. The panel's chairman, Dr. Jose Romero, said the decision stemmed from a realization that the states are facing a Friday deadline to place initial orders for the Pfizer vaccine and determine where they should be delivered. The committee decided to meet now to give state and local officials guidance, he said. But some panel members and other experts had also grown concerned by comments from Trump administration officials that suggested differing vaccine priorities. Dr. Deborah Birx of the White House coronavirus task force said in a meeting with CDC officials last month that people 65 and older should go to the head of the line, according to a federal official who was not authorized to discuss the matter and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Then last week U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar stressed that ultimately governors will decide who in their states gets the shots. Vice President Mike Pence echoed that view. Asked whether Azar's comment played a role in the scheduling of the meeting, Romero said; “We don’t live in a bubble. We know what he said. But that wasn’t the primary reason this is being done.” Jason Schwartz, a professor of health policy at the Yale School of Public Health, said it makes sense for the panel to take the unusual step of getting its recommendation out first. “Without that formal recommendation, it does create a void from which states could go off in all sorts of different directions,” said Schwartz, who is not on the panel. HHS officials have said they will distribute initial doses to states based on population, and it's possible that some states won't receive enough to cover all of their health care workers and nursing home residents. CDC officials said they are optimistic such shortages would last only a few weeks. Still, governors and local officials may have to decide which health care workers or regions get shots first, Schwartz said. “It's up to states to figure out the more granular detail,” he said. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. December 02, 2020 Experts: Virus numbers could be erratic after Thanksgiving Holiday MILWAUKEE (AP) — The coronavirus testing numbers that have guided much of the nation's response to the pandemic are likely to be erratic over the next week or so, experts said Friday, as fewer people get tested during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend and testing sites observe shorter hours. The result could be potential dips in reported infections that offer the illusion that the spread of the virus is easing when, in fact, the numbers say little about where the nation stands in fighting COVID-19. The number of Americans who have tested positive passed 13 million Friday, according to Johns Hopkins University. “I just hope that people don’t misinterpret the numbers and think that there wasn’t a major surge as a result of Thanksgiving, and then end up making Christmas and Hanukkah and other travel plans,” said Dr. Leana Wen, a professor at George Washington University and an emergency physician. A similar pattern unfolds on many weekends. Because some testing centers, labs and state offices are closed on Saturdays and Sundays, COVID case numbers often drop each Sunday and Monday, only to peak on Tuesday. Dr. Mark Rupp, professor and chief of infectious diseases at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, said the effect of Thanksgiving is likely to be a magnified version of the weekend figures. The Thursday holiday will exacerbate the record-keeping discrepancies over the long weekend, artificially depressing the reported numbers for four or five days before spiking as test results catch up. Johns Hopkins University reported a high of more than 2 million tests a few days before Thanksgiving as people prepared to travel, but that number had dropped to less than 1.2 million tests on Thanksgiving Day. The latter number, as well as positive case numbers, which had dropped by about a third Friday, could be adjusted as more results are returned. In several state and cities, officials reported sharp drops in testing Friday and reminded people not to read improvements into them. Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said the drop means that residents might not know for weeks how much their efforts to slow the spread affected the state's rate of positive tests. While testing was down Thursday and Friday, health officials said they anecdotally saw a jump in people getting tested before deciding to travel or gather for Thanksgiving meals. They warned that the tests are often a snapshot, not a complete assurance that someone has not been exposed to the virus. “I think it can be kind of a false sense of security for some people," Rupp said, predicting that the holiday will be followed within weeks by another surge “because people have continued to travel, they’ve continued to have gatherings outside their immediate family.” Experts worry how people might interpret the situation after the long weekend, especially if it takes a few weeks for Thanksgiving exposures to show up in testing data. Cities and states generally use hospitalization and intensive care numbers, which lag behind virus case reporting, to determine when to increase or ease public health restrictions and recommendations. But the public is more likely to look at testing numbers or case counts, which might be misleading, Wen said, and waiting until hospitals are overwhelmed is risky. “Where we are now is a completely unsustainable place. I think it’s extremely frustrating to those of us in health care to see our calls are not being heeded," Wen said. "And the level of alarm that we have is not reflected in individuals’ behavior.” ___ Associated Press writers Desiree Mathurin in Bay Shore, N.Y., and Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia contributed to this report. November 27, 2020 27 COVID deaths at Illinois veterans nursing home prompts probe LASALLE, Ill. (AP) — State officials are investigating a coronavirus outbreak at a veterans nursing home in rural Illinois that has infected nearly 200 residents and staff, and killed 27 veterans. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office and the state’s Department of Veterans Affairs are attempting to determine what caused the outbreak at the state-run LaSalle Veterans Home in LaSalle, about 90 miles (145 kilometers) southwest of Chicago. The department on Tuesday requested an independent probe into the facility, which was the focus of a state Senate committee virtual hearing on the outbreak. “The tragedy of what has unfolded at the veterans’ home cannot be understated," said state Sen. Sue Rezin, who represents the district where the home is located. “I’m glad that the director has called for an independent investigation and agree that there are lesson to be learned from this terrible outbreak that has claimed the lives of 27 of our nation’s heroes.” The current outbreak was identified in late October when a staff member and a resident tested positive for the virus. Since the beginning of November, two-thirds of residents and employees have tested positive, according to the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. “November 4th, there were only four cases of COVID within the home,” Rezin said Monday. “Very quickly within the past 20 days, we’ve had almost 200 cases.” Dr. Avery Hart, a consultant for the state’s Public Health department, said at the hearing that all 16 long-term care facilities in LaSalle County have had outbreaks. “It is no coincidence that cases within the home began to rise just as cases rose dramatically within the surrounding community,” Veterans Affairs Director Linda Chapa LaVia testified Tuesday at the hearing. State officials have increased staff testing at the facility, and the governor said an infection control team was sent to the home. As of Tuesday morning, 40 of 101 residents and 24 staff members had tested positive for the virus. Also Tuesday, the state's health director said Illinois will receive far fewer doses of the COVID-19 vaccine than originally estimated. Dr. Ngozi Ezike told reporters that she expects the state to receive about 80,000 initial doses instead of the 400,000 doses that Illinois officials had anticipated, pending FDA approval of the vaccines. She also said she still expects health care and emergency workers who could come into direct contact with coronavirus patients to be vaccinated first. November 25, 2020 Vaccine mandate? International carriers may require before travel WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — International air travel could come booming back next year but with a new rule: Travelers to certain countries must be vaccinated against the coronavirus before they can fly. Encouraging news about vaccine development has given airlines and nations hope they may soon be able to revive suspended flight routes and dust off lucrative tourism plans. But countries in Asia and the Pacific, in particular, are determined not to let their hard-won gains against the virus evaporate. In Australia, the boss of Qantas, the country's largest airline, said that once a virus vaccine becomes widely available, his carrier will likely require passengers use it before they can travel abroad or land in Australia. Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce said he's been talking to his counterparts at other airlines around the world about the possibility of a “vaccination passport” for international travelers. “We are looking at changing our terms and conditions to say for international travelers, that we will ask people to have the vaccination before they get on the aircraft,” Joyce told Australia's Network Nine television. He said they were looking at ways to electronically verify that people have the necessary vaccine for their intended destination, a difficult task. "But certainly for international visitors coming out, and people leaving the country, we think that’s a necessity,” he said. South Korea's largest airline has a similar message. Jill Chung, a spokesperson for Korean Air, said Tuesday there’s a real possibility that airlines will require that passengers be vaccinated. She said that's because governments are likely to require vaccinations as a condition for lifting quarantine requirements for new arrivals. While Korean Air is reviewing several possibilities for screening, any change by the company or other airlines would be the result of coordination with governments, Chung said. “This is not something for airlines to independently decide,” she said. Air New Zealand echoed Chung's position. “Ultimately, it’s up to governments to determine when and how it is safe to reopen borders and we continue to work closely with authorities on this,” Air New Zealand said in a statement. Australia, South Korea and New Zealand have all managed to minimize the spread of the virus. They are seen internationally as success stories, and a big part of their containment effort has focused on keeping infectious people out. Australia has imposed some of the most severe border restrictions in the world since the pandemic began. It has closed its borders to most international visitors and allowed its own citizens to travel internationally only under special circumstances. New Zealand has also closed its borders, while South Korea has imposed a two-week quarantine on all arriving passengers. Australia, with 26 million people, has reported about 900 deaths since the pandemic began, fewer than many nations its size. South Korea, with 51 million people, has reported a little over 500 deaths. And New Zealand, with 5 million people, has reported just 25 deaths. Chung said there are already a variety of discussions within the industry to ensure safer travel during the pandemic. These include trials of “Common Pass,” an app endorsed by the World Economic Forum that aims to provide a standardized format for airlines to evaluate the coronavirus test results of passengers to determine whether they should travel. “With the world coming closer to coronavirus vaccines and negative tests also becoming requirements for lifting travelers from self-quarantines in countries across the world, airlines are feeling the need for an effective system to screen passengers for vaccinations and tests,” Chung said. Several companies have been testing possible virus vaccines with encouraging early results. Many people are hoping that vaccinations will become widely available next year, paving the way for a broader reopening of international air travel. Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt told reporters Tuesday there had not been a decision yet on border or re-entry rules around potential vaccines. “Our task is to provide the vaccine to all Australians,” he said. ___ Kim reported from Seoul, South Korea. November 24, 2020 Millions stick to Thanksgiving travel plans despite warnings About 1 million Americans a day packed airports and planes over the weekend even as coronavirus deaths surged across the U.S. and public health experts begged people to stay home and avoid big Thanksgiving gatherings. And the crowds are only expected to grow. Next Sunday is likely to be the busiest day of the holiday period. To be sure, the number of people flying for Thanksgiving is down by more than half from last year because of the rapidly worsening outbreak. However, the 3 million who went through U.S. airport checkpoints from Friday through Sunday marked the biggest crowds since mid-March, when the COVID-19 crisis took hold in the United States. Many travelers are unwilling to miss out on seeing family and are convinced they can do it safely. Also, many colleges have ended their in-person classes, propelling students to return home. Laurie Pearcy, director of administration for a Minneapolis law firm, is flying to New Orleans to attend her daughter’s bridal shower and have a small Thanksgiving dinner with her son. “I don’t want to unknowingly make anyone sick. But I also don’t want to miss this special event for my only daughter,” she said. Stephen Browning, a retired executive from Tucson, Arizona, will be flying to Seattle for Thanksgiving with his sister. The celebration usually has up to 30 people; this year only 10 are coming, and everyone was asked to get a coronavirus test. He doesn’t plan on removing his mask to eat or drink on the flight. “This is my first flight since December 2019, so yes, I have concerns," he said. "But I think most airlines are acting responsibly now and enforcing masks on all flights.” Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged Americans not to travel or spend the holiday with people outside their household. New cases of the virus in the U.S. have rocketed to all-time highs, averaging more than 170,000 per day, and deaths have soared to over 1,500 a day, the highest level since the spring. The virus is blamed for more than a quarter-million deaths in the U.S. and over 12 million confirmed infections. “There is so much community transmission all over the United States that the chances of you encountering somebody that has COVID-19 is actually very, very high, whether it’s on an airplane, at the airport or at a rest area,” said Dr. Syra Madad, an infectious-disease epidemiologist for New York City hospitals. The nation’s top infectious-diseases expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, told CBS’ “Face the Nation” that people at airports “are going to get us into even more trouble than we’re in right now.” The message may be sinking in for some. Bookings in 2020 are down about 60% from where they were this time last year. Thanksgiving reservations were ticking upward in early October but fell back again as case numbers surged. Since airlines have made it easier to cancel tickets, there could be a rash of cancellations closer to the holiday, said John Elder, an adviser to airlines from Boston Consulting Group. In 2019, a record 26 million passengers and crew passed through U.S. airport screening in the 11-day period around Thanksgiving. This year, the industry trade group Airlines for America isn’t even providing a forecast because things are so uncertain. Because of tighter restrictions by many governments, air travel in other parts of the world has, in contrast, come to a near standstill. In Europe, traffic between countries was down by 83% in September from a year earlier, and that has only worsened since then because many countries imposed new limits. Josh Holman and his family were planning to fly to Lake Tahoe and spend Thanksgiving with his brother, who lives in San Francisco, and his parents, who live in North Dakota. But they scrapped those plans. “I see it as my civic duty not to spread this virus further,” said Holman, an assistant county prosecutor who lives outside Detroit. Alejandro Zuniga and his fiancee, Megan Muhs, who live in Costa Rica, thought briefly about flying to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving to see Muhs’ family but decided against it. They also nixed a trip to the U.S. in December. “No part of a major international trip seems safe at this point,” Zuniga said. The pair plans to make video calls to family and stream the Detroit Lions football game on Thanksgiving Day. More people tend to drive than fly over Thanksgiving, but even car travel is expected to see a drop-off, according to AAA. Based on surveys in mid-October, the association was expecting 47.8 million people to drive to Thanksgiving gatherings, down 4% from last year. But AAA said the drop could prove to be even bigger, given the worsening crisis. Brad Carr and his wife, retirees who live in Griffin, Georgia, debated whether to drive 35 miles north to his son’s house for Thanksgiving and eat at a separate table on the porch. But after the CDC's announcement, they decided to stay home. Carr's son will deliver their meal “a la Uber Eats,” Carr said. Those who do gather should eat outdoors, wear masks, stay 6 feet apart and have one person serve the food, the CDC said. That’s the plan for Juliana Walter’s family. Walter, a student at the University of Tampa, plans to get a coronavirus test and then drive home to Maryland. Her parents have rented tents and outdoor heaters and will host up to 30 masked family members for Thanksgiving dinner. The holidays close out a bleak year for U.S. travel. Travel spending is expected to drop 45% from 2019 levels, to $617 billion, according to the U.S. Travel Association, a trade group. Canceling Thanksgiving trips is painful for many families. Kelly Kleber usually flies from Seattle to her hometown of Tucson, Arizona, to spend the holiday with her parents. They have a picnic to celebrate the life of her sister, who died on Thanksgiving in 2015. This year, Kleber is sending her parents a portrait of her sister and plans a video call on Thanksgiving. “It’s going to be hard being away from family this year,” she said. November 23, 2020 Ben Carson says he s out of the woods after battling COVID-19 STERLING, Va. (AP) — Housing Secretary Ben Carson is crediting unapproved, experimental treatments with saving his life after he became “desperately ill” following his infection with the coronavirus. There is no medical evidence that the treatments Carson cited worked. A retired neurosurgeon, Carson said Friday that he believes he's “out of the woods." He disclosed that his wife, Candy, also had COVID-19, the disease the coronavirus causes. Carson tested positive earlier this month. Most people recover from the disease, which has killed more than 250,000 Americans and sickened nearly 12 million, including President Donald Trump and members of his family. In a statement posted on Facebook, Carson said he was “extremely sick” but saw “dramatic improvement” after taking a botanical treatment derived from the oleander plant. Carson said he has underlying conditions, which he did not specify, “and after a brief period when I only experienced minor discomfort, the symptoms accelerated and I became desperately ill.” Carson said Trump was aware of his condition and “cleared me for the monoclonal antibody therapy that he had previously received, which I am convinced saved my life.” The White House declined comment, instead referring questions about possible intervention into Carson's medical care by Trump to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. A HUD spokesperson did not immediately respond Saturday to a request for comment. “I do believe I am out of the woods at this point,” said the secretary, who gave credit to Trump, the White House medical team and doctors at the Walter Reed military hospital. Trump spent three days at Walter Reed after his infection in early October, where he received a variety of experimental treatments, including an antibody therapy from Regeneron. Trump later credited the experimental drug therapy with aiding his recovery. Carson said he took Oleander 4X, but there's no evidence that the treatment or any other homeopathic medicine works against COVID-19. Trump received the Regeneron treatment through a “compassionate use” exemption, a recognition of the above-and-beyond standard of care he receives as president. The safety and effectiveness of the Regeneron drug have not yet been proven. There also is no way for the president or his doctors to know that the drug had any effect. In his statement, Carson acknowledged having access to a level of medical care that is unavailable to most Americans. He said a priority must be placed on getting comparable treatments and care to the general population as quickly as possible. November 21, 2020 Phone: 877-975-9825 When texting this station, message data rates apply. Message frequency is recurring and varies. Reply STOP to cancel. No purchase necessary.

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