Politics, pop culture and entertainment news of interest to the LGBTQ community
A new survey conducted by The COVID States Project shows almost two-thirds of Americans say they’d support federal, state or local governments requiring everyone to get a coronavirus vaccine. Continue reading “Poll: 64% Of Americans Would Support Govt Vaccine Mandate”
A husband and wife in Jupiter, Florida, are both currently hospitalized after contracting COVID-19. Cindy has been receiving treatments for 14 days. Her husband, Juan, is on a ventilator, receiving dialysis, and in critical condition. Neither were vaccinated against the virus. Continue reading “FL Couple Regrets Skipping Vaccines After Being Hospitalized For COVID-19”
Medical experts looking into the Provincetown outbreak of COVID-19 have found the now-dominant delta variant may be able to spread among fully vaccinated people. The good news among the Ptown crowd is there were very few hospitalizations and zero deaths thanks to the majority of those infected having been vaccinated. Continue reading “Delta Variant: ‘The Rules Have Changed, We Have A Different Epidemic Now’”
A Mississippi man who chose not to get vaccinated against the coronavirus had to have his leg amputated after he developed complications due to COVID-19. Continue reading “MS Man Skipped Vaccination, Got COVID, Lost His Leg Due To Complications”
CBS News correspondent David Begnaud reports from a Mississippi hospital where the number of COVID-19 patients has soared from 2 the first week of May to 59 today. In interviews, several of the patients share their regret over skipping the vaccines. Continue reading “CBS News: Mississippi COVID Patients Express Regret Over Skipping Vaccines”
Nearly 60 major medical groups including the American Medical Association are calling for all health care personnel to be vaccinated against the coronavirus as new cases continue to increase thanks to the Delta variant. Continue reading “Medical Groups Urge Mandatory Vaccinations For Healthcare Workers”
Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 data tracking shows the United States had a massive spike of 79,310 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday.
On July 4, the number of new cases being reported had dropped to 3,491.
From The Daily Beast:
The number is the highest in the world, exceeding recorded totals from Indonesia (54,000), the United Kingdom (51,949), and Brazil (45,591), and doubling that of India (38,079).
The spiking case number matches the level hit in October 2020, a record at the time, though it would not remain so for long.
Despite the effectiveness of multiple vaccines against the virus, vaccine hesitancy is fueling “a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” according to CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky.
The vast majority of all patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19 are unvaccinated, according to the CDC.
Y’all…please get vaccinated. I’m just saying.
From USA Today:
Cases of COVID-19 have doubled in the U.S. in the past two weeks, and Arkansas is becoming a case study in how low vaccination rates can fuel the spread of the virus.
Arkansas continues to be the nation’s top state for new cases per capita, and only 35% of the state’s population is fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The virus appears to be largely sparing vaccinated people from the most severe illness.
“Of all of our critically ill COVID positive patients at Baptist Health facilities, none have been fully vaccinated,” said Stephanie Whitaker, chief nursing executive for Baptist Health, a major healthcare provider in the state.
The state’s Department of Health said there are 240 COVID-19 patients in the state’s ICUs and 118 on ventilators. Only 4% of the state’s intensive care unit beds are available.
Cases of COVID-19 rose in all 50 states this week.
"Of all of our critically ill COVID positive patients at Baptist Health facilities, none have been fully vaccinated.” https://t.co/xZFOgDGPTD
— Andy Slavitt 🇺🇸💉 (@ASlavitt) July 17, 2021
So heartbreaking.
An unvaccinated 13yo Arkansas girl is on a ventilator after getting COVID.
Her mom said she “decided against vaccinations for both herself and Caia due to misinformation.”
Now she pleads: “Everybody just needs to get the shot.”https://t.co/eHEkLy29ZV
— Ian Sams (@IanSams) July 16, 2021
“I don’t think there’s a thing in the world we could do to get them to get vaccinated.”
While much of the U.S. tiptoes toward normalcy, the coronavirus is swamping hospitals in Arkansas, where vaccine hesitancy and refusal run high. https://t.co/96zWnq0lMi
— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 17, 2021
"It is heart-wrenching to see unvaccinated individuals come into the hospital with regret," the doctor said. https://t.co/6GnxwTVl4H
— The Hill (@thehill) July 17, 2021
And, we’re back to wearing face masks here in my town of Las Vegas, Nevada, thanks to rising cases and slowing vaccination rates.
From the Review-Journal:
The Southern Nevada Health District on Friday recommended that everyone — including those vaccinated against COVID-19 —again wear face masks in crowded indoor public settings such as grocery stores, malls and casinos.
The health district’s recommendation comes as COVID-19 test positivity rates, case counts and hospitalizations continue to increase in Southern Nevada, which has been designated as a “sustained hotspot” for the disease by the federal government.
In mid-May, Gov. Steve Sisolak dropped the mask mandate for those who were vaccinated, following guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The mask requirement remained for unvaccinated people in most public indoor settings, but was largely unenforced and often ignored.
It’s worth noting the change is only a ‘recommendation’ at this time and not a mandate.
Los Angeles County reinstated its mask mandate beginning last night.
A Louisiana nurse who had railed against vaccinations on her social media has reportedly died from COVID-19 complications.
From The Acadiana Advocate:
Olivia Guidry, a registered nurse in the emergency department, died Saturday after battling the virus for days in the hospital’s intensive care unit. Friends, who had been pleading for prayers for the young woman, expressed grief as the news of her death spread Saturday afternoon.
Guidry was diagnosed with COVID in early July, according to a social media post from her sister, Brittany Smith. She spiked a high fever and had a seizure, Smith wrote. She was placed in a medically induced coma on Thursday.
Louisiana has a vaccination rate of about 36%, below the national vaccination rate of nearly 50%.
Friends, colleagues grieve after young Lafayette ER nurse dies from COVID complications https://t.co/K1CYm4Fwqv via @theadvocateaca please take the Damn Shot
— Russel L. Honore’ (@ltgrusselhonore) July 12, 2021
All I can say is how many more people have to die because of the idiotic, right-wing conspiracy theorists, their demagogic political leaders, and media disinformation organs? How many more? https://t.co/qbGxnd3kMg
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) July 12, 2021