Among reported tests, the positivity rate was 4.6%.
The number of tests reported fell 23.8% from the previous week.
Since Dec. 14, more than 245,591,000 doses of a coronavirus vaccine have been administered in the U.S.
More than 104,774,000 people have completed vaccination, or about 31.56% of the population. Read more in our vaccination tracker.*
Wash Post…Link...
“New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are lifting most Covid-19-related restrictions on May 19, signaling a denouement for some of the country’s strictest lockdown orders and social distancing protocols imposed during the pandemic,” Politico reports.
Associated Press: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis moved to suspend all remaining COVID-19 restrictions imposed by communities across his state, signing into law on Monday freshly passed legislation giving him sweeping powers to invalidate local emergency measures put in place during the pandemic — including mask mandates, limitations on business operations and the shuttering of schools.”
“While the law DeSantis signed Monday goes into effect July 1, the Republican governor said he would issue an executive order to more quickly enact some provisions of the new law, including the preemption of existing coronavirus measures enacted by local governments such as mask mandates.”
Experts say that herd immunity is unlikely soon, if ever
Public health experts and scientists say they do not believe herd immunity is attainable for the near future due to dropping COVID-19 vaccination rates, The New York Times reports.
According to the experts who spoke with the Times, the coronavirus will more likely become a constant but manageable threat in the U.S. for several more years. New COVID-19 strains are also reportedly developing too quickly for herd immunity to be reasonably expected.
“The virus is unlikely to go away,” Emory University evolutionary biologist Rustom Antia told the newspaper. “But we want to do all we can to check that it’s likely to become a mild infection.”
Experts warn low vaccine levels among police officers are looming
Despite working on the frontlines, many police officers are still reluctant to receive the coronavirus vaccine –– posing a health risk not only for themselves but the public they interact with.
The Washington Post reports that the number of police officers getting vaccinated is lower than or about the same as for those in the general public.
In Las Vegas, 39 percent of employed officers in the Metropolitan Police Department have gotten at least one dose, officials said. Across the country, however, more than 50 percent of eligible adults have received at least one dose, The Washington Post reports.
The Post also reports that 36 percent of officers in Atlanta are vaccinated; and 28 percent of officers in Ohio’s largest police department have a shot.
For officers themselves, many have preexisting conditions –– like diabetes, heart disease and weight-related health issues –– that put them at greater risk of a more severe coronavirus infection. And for the public, interacting with an officer who is not vaccinated could be a threat to their own health.
Note*
The CDC says about 43% of Americans are ‘fully’ vaccinated….
The WashPost figures are different….
This post has been updated w/WashPost stats
I return the office full time 5/21/21. All New York State Courts back to full operation 5/24/21…Reality has returned 🙁
Gonna be some nervous people….
In the continuing struggle to strike a balance between safety and classroom learning, Ohio joined a handful of states that have now remade their rules to cut back on student quarantines. Many point to lower than expected spread of the virus inside schools and note that school leaders say there are few infections among students who get quarantined. In Ohio’s case, quarantines are no longer required for potential classroom exposures as long as students were masked and other safeguards were in place….
More…
FDA to authorize Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine for 12-to-15-year-olds by early next week, official says…
CNN
India reports at least 20 Million virus infections….
The belief is this a vast under count….
NYC infection rate is below 2%….
The Liberals Who Can’t Quit Lockdown
The Atlantic: “The spring of 2021 is different from the spring of 2020… Scientists know a lot more about how COVID-19 spreads—and how it doesn’t. Public-health advice is shifting. But some progressives have not updated their behavior based on the new information. And in their eagerness to protect themselves and others, they may be underestimating other costs.”
“Being extra careful about COVID-19 is (mostly) harmless when it’s limited to wiping down your groceries with Lysol wipes and wearing a mask in places where you’re unlikely to spread the coronavirus, such as on a hiking trail. But vigilance can have unintended consequences when it imposes on other people’s lives. Even as scientific knowledge of COVID-19 has increased, some progressives have continued to embrace policies and behaviors that aren’t supported by evidence, such as banning access to playgrounds, closing beaches, and refusing to reopen schools for in-person learning.”
Please read the update I just put in this post…..
The GOPer’s gaming the system….
Rep. Val Demings
@RepValDemings
Interesting to see Florida Republicans taking credit for the billions in federal assistance our state received this year which they opposed. But despite these political games we’ll never stop doing what’s right for Florida.
Pfizer and its partner BioNTech have asked the Food and Drug Administration for full approval of their coronavirus vaccine for people ages 16 and over.
The vaccine and two others are currently available in the United States under an emergency authorization from FDA. Pfizer and BioNTech are the first Covid-19 vaccine makers to seek full approval from U.S. regulators, which would allow the companies to market the shot directly to consumers. It could also make it easier for schools, employers and the military to require vaccination against Covid-19….
More…
James,you told me last week that you “knew” more about police officers than I would ever know.
So explain to us why police officers won’t get vaccinated.
Also explain the basis of your “knowledge.”
James can’t even explain why he won’t get vaccinated. How can he explain why others won’t get vaccinated. So the best you will get is something like “some are concerned about the long term effects of the vaccine, police don’t like getting stuck by a needle, the inconvenience of getting vaccinated, religious reasons, etc. it’s complicated. Things aren’t always simple as you think, Jack”.
I should add that I watched Dragnet in the 1970s (starring Sargent Joe Friday), Beverly HillsCop is one of my faves, my cousin is a retired police officer, and I sat on juries, although they usually reject me because of my insurance background.
I bet it has been a very long time since Jack sat on a jury! I bet James has you beat on that score! 😊
Haha!
Yes I’m sure this is very “complex.”
As are a LOT of things….
Not getting vaccinated isnt “complex.”
And almost every excuse I have heard is pathetic.
The worst public health crisis of out lifetime And all these fools have is :scared of a jab, might feel bad afterwards, “principles” ,”librul plot,” etc.
No it’s very very simple and very very stupid!
Yes it is Jack, it’s just stupid.
Now the NYT reports in a survey that aThird of the unvaccinated said they would take the vaccine for a cash payment.
So much for “complex.”
Just good old fashioned greed!
What the Hell?For the sake of public health and to save lives?Pay em a hundred bucks,line em up like cattle and jab em!
Moving away from all those restrictions is almost solely dependent on the assumption that nearly everyone is vaccinated.
When only a minority aren’t vaccinated they have a moral duty not to imperil those who are, so the unvaccinated emphatically should still wear masks, keep long distances, stay away from schools, avoid theatres and arenas, only dine outdoors, worship virtually, etc., etc., etc.
This means you.
The unvaccinated ,as far as I can see, have no sense of “ moral duty.”