Tag: coronavirus

Posted on

NYC: COVID Vaccination Site For Broadway Industry Workers Announced

(photo: Ludovic Bertron/Flickr)
Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced plans to create a coronavirus vaccination site on Broadway that will be reserved for theater industry workers. The mayor added there will be additional city resources dedicated to the push to reopen Broadway theaters by this fall. From the New York Times:

At a news conference, Mr. de Blasio said that in addition to the Broadway vaccination site, there would be a mobile vaccination unit to serve theater workers beyond Broadway. The sites will be staffed by theater workers, many of whom have been relying on unemployment insurance since Broadway shut down over a year ago.

The city’s plans will not change the state’s rules around vaccine eligibility, which currently allow residents older than 50 to sign up for shots, as well as those in certain job categories and with certain health conditions. Mr. de Blasio said that the sites would be set up over the next four weeks or so and that vaccination eligibility is expected to be much more broad by then.

I want to stress that last part – theater workers won’t be ‘jumping the line’ to get vaccinated. These plans are being initiated in advance of when eligibility opens up as requested by President Biden. Earlier this month, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced that arts, entertainment and events venues will be allowed to reopen April 2 at 33 percent capacity up to a maximum of 100 people indoors or 200 people outdoors. While Broadway shows can’t afford to operate at 100 tickets per performance, it’s expected that there will be some special events inside Broadway theaters throughout the spring and summer. Trust and believe – the Broadway theater community is a resilient one. Just like streaming/virtual events have become the new normal over the past year, I’m sure we’ll be seeing some exciting live theater moments in the near future.

Posted on

AstraZeneca Vaccine Found To Be 79% Effective Against COVID

Vials of COVID-19 vaccine

Vials of COVID-19 vaccine UPDATE: Federal health officials said early Tuesday that results from a U.S. trial of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine may have relied on “outdated information” that “may have provided an incomplete view of the efficacy data,” casting doubt on an announcement on Monday that had been seen as good news.

The results of a clinical trial of the two-shot coronavirus vaccine by AstraZeneca and Oxford University to be completely effective at protecting against severe cases of COVID-19. From the Washington Post:

The trials included 32,449 adult participants in all age groups, most of them in the United States. The volunteers received either two standard doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine or a placebo, at a four-week interval, the researchers said.

The scientists said the data show the vaccine is 79 percent effective against symptomatic covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, and 100 percent effective against severe illness.

There were five cases of severe illness in the trial, all of them in the group that received a placebo.

The independent monitoring board specifically looked for any evidence of possible blood clotting since that was raised as a possible issue in Europe. But the board found nothing in the data that suggested there was any increased risk of clotting. Read the full article here.

Posted on

With COVID Deaths Soaring, Brazil’s President Says He’s The Victim

Former President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro

President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil (photo: Flickr/Isac Nóbrega – CC license)
The coronavirus pandemic continues to savage the country of Brazil as more than 45,000 died from COVID in the last month. But President Jair Bolsonaro is casting himself as the victim. From CNN:

In the coastal city of Rio de Janeiro, intensive care units are 95% full. Fifteen other state capitals are similarly verging on collapse, with ICU occupancy over 90% — a deluge of hospitalizations that has accompanied a sharp rise in Covid-19 cases in the country.

While Covid-19 cases are beginning to plateau or decline in many countries, Brazil is reporting record daily numbers. Just on Wednesday the country saw its largest daily jump in cases since the start of the pandemic — 90,303 new cases.

“Here it became a war against the President. It seems that people only die of Covid,” Bolsonaro, who wasn’t wearing a mask, told supporters outside the presidential palace on Thursday.

“The hospitals are 90% occupied. But we need to find out how many are from Covid and how many are from other illnesses,” he said.

Perhaps Bolsonaro should consult Brazil’s health ministry which reported 2,724 more people had died from the virus that very day bringing the total to 287,499. The South American nation is the second worst-affected nation in the world in regard to total number of cases and deaths due to coronavirus, after the U.S.

Posted on

43 Million Americans Are Fully Vaccinated For COVID

Getting my second dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine

Getting my second dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine
Getting my 2nd Pfizer shot today
About one in six adults in the U.S. have now been fully vaccinated for the coronavirus (including me!) according to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). From The Hill:

The CDC’s vaccine tracker, which was updated Saturday afternoon, shows that 16.7 percent of the adult population has been fully vaccinated. More than 40 percent of adults aged 65 years and older are also fully vaccinated.

More than 121 million doses in total have been administered, and nearly 43 million adults are fully inoculated.

More than 21 million of the fully vaccinated adults received the Pfizer shot, followed by 19.8 million who received the Moderna vaccine and 2.15 million who got the Johnson & Johnson shot, which was just recently released.

To reach ‘herd immunity’ scientists tell us we need to reach between 70-85 percent. p.s. After getting on a “leftover list” here in Las Vegas, I received my second Pfizer vaccine shot today #GetVaccinated

Posted on

Biden Reaches 100 Million Vaccine Shot Promise In 58 Days

President Joe Biden
President Joe Biden campaigned on a promise to get 100 million vaccine shots in arms before his the end of his first 100 days in office. That goal was reached today – 42 days early. Speaking to reporters at the White House today, Biden said he’ll set a new goal by next week, teasing the possibility of hitting 200 million vaccinations by Day 100. In related news, Biden’s coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zients announced today that the U.S. would “loan” Mexico 2.5 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine and 1.5 million doses to Canada. Zients said because the AstraZeneca shot is not yet authorized in the U.S., “This loan will not reduce the supply of vaccine to Americans.” Meanwhile, folks took to social media to celebrate the 100 million mark.

Posted on

Nevada Will Open Vaccinations To All Adults April 5

Gov. Steve Sisolak of Nevada announced during a press conference today that on April 5 all Nevadans 16-years-old and up will be able to schedule a vaccination for the coronavirus. Prior to that, on March 22 vaccine availability will open up to anyone 16 and older with underlying health conditions. Investigative news journalist David Charns reports Sisolak noted that appointments will be based on availability and doses received. The Silver State is currently receiving nearly 65,000 doses of vaccine a week.

Posted on

Pharmacist With Extra Vaccine Makes House Call To LGBTQ Seniors

Pharmacist vaccinating senior
Pharmacist vaccinating senior
(stock image via Depositphotos)

An independent pharmacist in Brooklyn came to the aid of LGBTQ seniors who were having difficulties trying to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Ambar Keluskar, a pharmacist who supervises Rossi Pharmacy in Brooklyn, found himself with hundreds of doses of vaccine he had “just sitting in the freezer.”

The state of New York allows pharmacies to dispense the vaccines, but with some limitations. Citing the lack of ability to verify the identity and occupation of some eligible candidates like essential workers, the state limits pharmacists to giving the vaccine to teachers, child care workers and people over the age of 60.

In January, Keluskar began making the shots available at his pharmacy. At first, he received 100 doses a week from the state, and then upped that to 200.

But by March, the number of eligible people signing up for vaccinations began to decline. Keluskar pointed to the opening of a mass vaccination site in the area for the lessening demand.

With state laws requiring him to notify the state if he hadn’t used all doses sent to him, Keluskar became worried state authorities would stop sending him doses.

So, he decided to look outside his pharmacy for eligible folks including taking to social media to make it known he had doses to spare.

Thanks to an aide in the office of State Senator Jabari Brisport, Kelsukar got in touch with Stonewall House, New York City’s first LGBTQ-only senior housing building in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood.

It turns out most of the residents there, many homebound, had not been able to get their vaccination. With scheduling done primarily online, many seniors with limited income and/or poor internet access can find themselves left out of the process of signing up for vaccine appointments.

One resident, 78-year-old Emma DeJesus, told the New York Times, “I can’t handle the phone. Everything is on the computer now and I don’t have a computer.”

After weeks of unsuccessful attempts to schedule an appointment for a vaccine shot, DeJesus is now looking forward to receiving her second shot so she can visit her nieces in the Bronx.

Keluskar was able to deliver nearly 50 vaccinations in that first visit to Stonewall House. And since then, he’s had outreach from two city councilmen for additional pop-up visits.

This past Saturday, Keluskar vaccinated more than 150 more eligible candidates at Ingersoll Houses, a large public housing development in Fort Greene.

Keluskar told the New York Times he hopes restrictions on vaccine eligibility will be lifted soon, but until then, “we have to do everything can to stay in the program, and keep providing, keep vaccinating people.”

Posted on

Poll: 49% Of GOP Men Don’t Plan On Getting COVID Vaccine

Image of a vaccine shot

Image of a vaccine shot The latest NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, which surveyed 1,227 American adults, shows 49% of Republican men say they don’t plan on getting vaccinated against the coronavirus compared with just 6% of men who identify as Democrats. Overall, 67% say they either plan to get their shot or already have, while 30% say they will not be getting the vaccine. More from NPR:

Among those who responded to the survey, 73% of Black people and 70% of White people said that they either planned to get a coronavirus vaccine or had done so already; 25% of Black respondents and 28% of white respondents said they did not plan to get a shot.

Latino respondents were slightly more likely to say they would not get vaccinated at 37%, compared with 63% who either had or intended to get a vaccine.

Read the full article.

Posted on

COVID-19 One Year Later

New York state is about to drop its face mask mandate as COVID-19 cases continue to drop in the Empire State.

A man wearing a face mask during the pandemic Today marks one year to the day that the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Axios looks at where we were then:

A year ago today, the U.S. had confirmed 1,000 coronavirus infections. Now, we’re approaching 30 million.

In those early days, Americans were terrified by White House projections — informed by well-respected modeling — that 100,000 to 240,000 Americans could die from the virus. 

Many models thought the virus would peak last May — nowhere close. The deadliest month of the pandemic was January.

We now have 530,606 American deaths from COVID, but we do have vaccines. Vaccines that by all analysis are working. (p.s. yes, I’ve gotten my first shot of the Pfizer vaccine) President Biden will announce tonight that he will order all states to offer vaccinations against COVID to all adults by May 1. Currently, the U.S. is getting an average of 2 million shots in arms each day. Estimates says 25% of adults in the U.S. have gotten at least one shot. And – the federal government has now ordered an additional 100 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine adding to the 300 million from Pfizer, 300 million from Moderna and previously ordered 100 million from J&J. #Forward

Posted on

CDC Issues Guidance On What’s Safe After Being Vaccinated

New York state is about to drop its face mask mandate as COVID-19 cases continue to drop in the Empire State.

A man wearing a face mask during the pandemic The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued guidance for those people who have been fully vaccinated (two weeks past your final shot) in regard to what is or isn’t safe to do. From the New York Times:

  • Fully vaccinated Americans may gather indoors in private homes with one another in small groups without masks or distancing.

  • Vaccinated people may gather in a private residence with unvaccinated people from a single household who are at low risk for developing severe disease if they contract the coronavirus, also without masks or distancing.

  • Vaccinated Americans need not quarantine or get tested if they have a known exposure to the virus, as long as they do not develop symptoms of infection. If they do develop symptoms, they must isolate themselves, get tested and speak with their doctor.

  • In public, vaccinated people must continue to wear masks and maintain social distance, and take other precautions, such as avoiding poorly ventilated spaces, covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands often and following any other protocols that are in place.

  • Vaccinated people should continue to avoid large and medium gatherings, though the agency did not specify the gathering size with numbers.

As I reported yesterday, over 90 million people in the U.S. have received at least one shot of vaccine. In related news, new polling shows 68% of Americans approve of President Biden’s handling of the COVID crisis. By comparison, the highest approval marks Donald Trump received during the COVID pandemic was 55% in mid-March 2020. The poll also showed a majority of Americans (56%) think face mask mandates are being lifted too soon.