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More Than 12,000 Breakthrough Cases Reported in Massachusetts as of August 14
In the week between Aug. 7 and Aug. 14, almost 2,700 fully vaccinated people became infected with COVID-19 in Massachusetts, the Department of Public Health said Tuesday.
There have been a cumulative 12,641 breakthrough infections reported out of 4,415,936 fully vaccinated people as of Aug. 14, DPH said Tuesday — meaning that 0.29 percent of all fully vaccinated people have subsequently been infected with the coronavirus, up from 0.23 percent of the immunized population a week ago and 0.18 percent two weeks ago.
A total of 496 people with breakthrough infections, or 0.01 percent of all vaccinated people, have been hospitalized and 124 fully vaccinated people, or 0.003 percent of people who have gotten vaccinated, have died of COVID-19, DPH said.
COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Shots to Be Offered to Americans Beginning September 20, Health Officials Say
U.S. health officials and medical experts announced in a joint statement on Wednesday that booster doses of COVID-19 vaccine will be offered this fall, subject to authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and sign off from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We are prepared to offer booster shots for all Americans beginning the week of September 20 and starting 8 months after an individual’s second dose,” US health officials, including CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky and FDA Acting Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock, said in the statement.
‘We Are on Fire’: Five U.S. States Set New Records for COVID Cases as Hospitalizations Rise
Five states broke records for the average number of daily new COVID cases over the weekend as the Delta variant strains hospital systems across the U.S. and forces many states to reinstate public health restrictions.
Florida, Louisiana, Hawaii, Oregon and Mississippi all reached new peaks in their seven-day average of new cases per day as of Sunday, according to a CNBC analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. On a per capita basis, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida are suffering from the three worst outbreaks in the country.
Biden Poised to Repeat Mistakes that Led to COVID Pandemic, Biosecurity Experts Say
The COVID-19 pandemic may have made a future pandemic more likely. In a terrible irony, nations eager to get a handle on the virus and its variants are building high-containment laboratories at a brisk pace, ensuring that more scientists continue to experiment on dangerous pathogens even after the current threat fades — increasing the likelihood of future lab accidents that could release dangerous pathogens.
Regardless of whether the current pandemic got its start in a laboratory in Wuhan or in animals — a mystery that may never be resolved — the mere fact that it’s possible is reason enough to take precautions against any future occurrence, biosecurity experts say.
Pope Francis Urges People to Get COVID-19 Vaccine as ‘An Act of Love’
Pope Francis said getting the coronavirus vaccine was “an act of love” Wednesday, as the head of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics joined a campaign to boost confidence in COVID-19 shots.
“Thanks to God and to the work of many, we now have vaccines to protect us from COVID-19,” Francis said in a message for the U.S.-based “It’s Up to You” initiative.
“They grant us the hope of ending the pandemic, but only if they are available to all and if we work together,” he said in the video, aimed at communities disproportionately affected by the virus in North, Central and South America.
Millennials, GenZers Are Cutting Ties With Unvaccinated, Creating Own Vaccine Mandates
About one-third of Millennials and Gen Zers have cut ties with friends, family members or acquaintances who will not get the COVID-19 vaccine.
This is according to a survey from Axios and The Harris Poll. They surveyed 1,334 U.S. adults in August 2021 and categorized them by generation.
The survey results show:
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- 33% of Millennials say they have cuts ties with somebody in their life over not getting vaccinated against COVID-19
- 30% of Gen Zers, 9% of Gen Xers and 7% of Baby Boomers say the same
“It’s the new cultural dividing line,” John Gerzema, CEO of The Harris Poll, told Axios. “Three in 10 Gen Zers, and even more millennials, have ghosted friends who would not get vaccinated.”
Regeneron, Glaxosmithkline COVID-19 Antibodies in High Demand as Delta Drives a Pandemic Surge in the U.S.
Despite the high-profile success of COVID-19 antibodies as a treatment for former president Donald Trump, it’s taken a while for the drugs to really catch on.
But less than a year later, and amid a new surge of virus in the United States, that’s quickly changing. With hospitals again filling up with COVID-19 patients, especially in states like Florida and Texas where the Delta variant is surging, antibodies are becoming the go-to treatment to help keep high-risk patients from progressing to severe forms of illness.
Regeneron, now the nation’s top supplier of COVID-19 antibodies after the feds sidelined Eli Lilly’s treatment, is cranking out massive shipments of its cocktail. Last week, the company delivered 135,023 doses of REGEN-COV in the United States, a spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal.
