NOTE: I think we could all use a few days off, so I’m going to skip these daily updates for the bulk of the Independence Day weekend. There will be an Update tomorrow (Friday), none on Saturday, Sunday, or Monday. After that, posting will (Murphy the Trickster God willing) resume on Tuesday morning, July 6th.
I know America is awash with vaccines, but they literally have a few desks as soon as you hit the arrivals hall of LAX and a guy with a FREE COVID VACCINE sign for anyone who just landed and they’re jabbing away at people.
— Melissa Chan (@melissakchan) June 30, 2021
The vaccine tourism is on the rise, esp. from South America.
— Sheldon Chang (@sheldonchang) June 30, 2021
*Excellent* news!
Grand jury declines charges against Houston doctor accused of stealing COVID vaccine doses https://t.co/8bzDB0Ihx9
— St. John Barned-Smith ?? (@stjbs) June 30, 2021
Back in December, when every vaccine dose was liquid gold, Dr. Hasan Gokal scrambled to find nine more recipients before the last of a vial expired — with literally minutes to spare. Update per local station ABC-13:
A grand jury has declined to indict a Harris County doctor today who was accused of stealing nine doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The news comes after two days of testimony in the case of Dr. Hasan Gokal, who was a Harris County Public Health worker, and months after a judge dismissed the case due to a lack of probable cause…
Gokal was accused of taking a vial that contained nine doses while working at the county vaccination site at Lyndsay Lyons Park on Dec. 29.
A week later, Gokal told a fellow Harris County Public Health employee, who then reported him to supervisors. Mishandling a vaccine can result in a loss of government funding to the county, according to Harris County Public Health officials, who first investigated the matter resulting in Gokal’s termination…
In addition to the charges being dropped earlier this year, The Texas Medical Board had also dismissed its investigation in March in connection with the case, saying in a statement that Gokal, “appeared to have administered doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to patients that were properly consented, in the eligible patient category, and they were given doses that would have otherwise been wasted.”
In its decision, the medical board acknowledged “there were no established/written waste protocols or waiting list on December 29, 2020” for Gokal to follow.
President Joe Biden has come up well short on his goal of delivering 80 million doses of coronavirus vaccine to the rest of the world by the end of June. The White House blames logistical and regulatory hurdles, and says more vaccine will be sent soon. https://t.co/L8nURXhynd
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 1, 2021
If only it were as simple as saying Make it so…
… It’s not for lack of doses. All the American shots are ready to ship, the White House said. Rather, it’s taking more time than anticipated to sort through a complex web of legal requirements, health codes, customs clearances, cold-storage chains, language barriers and delivery programs. Complicating matters even further is that no two shipments are alike.
One country requires an act of its Cabinet to approve the vaccine donation, others require inspectors to conduct their own safety checks on the U.S. doses, and still others have yet to develop critical aspects of their vaccine distribution plans to ensure the doses can reach people’s arms before they spoil.
The White House declined to specify which nations were grappling with which local hurdles, saying it is working with recipient nations on an individual basis to remove obstacles to delivery…
Biden announced the 80 million target on May 17, saying, “This will be more vaccines than any country has actually shared to date — five times more than any other country — more than Russia and China.” Even while missing his goal, Biden has made the U.S. the largest global vaccine donor, delivering more doses than either Russia or China, who have at times sought to leverage their vaccines for geopolitical gain.
The 80 million doses are meant as a down payment on a far larger plan to purchase and donate 500 million vaccine doses for the world over the next year. That plan, relying on a purchase contract from Pfizer that will begin delivering doses in August, remains on track, officials said…
The U.S. recipients to date are Colombia (2.5 million Johnson & Johnson doses), Bangladesh (2.5 million Moderna), Peru (2 million Pfizer), Pakistan (2.5 million Moderna), Honduras (1.5 million Moderna), Brazil (3 million J&J), South Korea (1 million J&J), Taiwan (2.5 million Moderna), Canada (1 million Moderna, 1.5 million AstraZeneca) and Mexico (1.35 million J&J, 2.5 million AstraZeneca). All told, it’s enough vaccine to fully protect 15.9 million people…
2.5 million doses of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine will begin to ship to Bangladesh today, WH press sec Jen Psaki says.
— Kate Sullivan (@KateSullivanDC) June 29, 2021
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India seeks reciprocal vaccine pass for EU arrivals https://t.co/L0KhxhqBXf
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) July 1, 2021
Women in rural India hesitant to take Covid vaccines https://t.co/WQTdZzYEos
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) July 1, 2021
Indonesia announces Covid lockdown as cases surge https://t.co/STwo9Su8eU
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) July 1, 2021
Thousands of Indonesians lined up at a sports stadium to get a COVID-19 vaccine dose in a mass, one-day event that’s part of a push to dramatically scale up the nation’s virus fight as hospitals fill with sick patients. https://t.co/g5F1cJjL6c
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 1, 2021
Thousands of people blocked from entering vaccine centre in Java, Indonesia, after turning up without being registeredhttps://t.co/YT4vNsFQGz pic.twitter.com/QrYd8q5K6A
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) June 30, 2021
Parts of Indonesia are running out of hospital beds as delta variant surges. An expert w/ the Internat'l Federation of Red Cross/Red Crescent said: “Every day we are seeing this delta variant driving Indonesia closer to the edge of a Covid-19 catastrophe" https://t.co/D2rw6iFoSf
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) July 1, 2021
Thailand, for more than 12 months of the pandemic had total containment, but now with 10% 1st-dose vaccinated and ~30% Delta variant (https://t.co/nKnmp5OBZK) things have drastically changed@OurWorldInData pic.twitter.com/2nj0FryPlk
— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) July 1, 2021
Thailand has opened the popular resort island of Phuket to fully vaccinated foreigners from lower-risk countries in an ambitious but risky plan that it hopes will breathe new life into a tourism industry devastated by the pandemic. https://t.co/0HP1X8oUkM
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 1, 2021
Japan likely to extend COVID-19 curbs in Tokyo as infections rise -sources https://t.co/eVu5KByW03 pic.twitter.com/r7LIjUkSuj
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 1, 2021
Australia's NSW state says Delta outbreak grows despite lockdown https://t.co/Ka1ZYMfU3e pic.twitter.com/weX8VRDhXt
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 1, 2021
⚡️ Russia on Thursday confirmed 23,543 new coronavirus cases and 672 deaths, an all-time case and mortality record for the country since the start of the pandemichttps://t.co/nACyWdiqiJ
— The Moscow Times (@MoscowTimes) July 1, 2021
⚡President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that he was vaccinated against the coronavirus with Russia’s Sputnik V jab, lifting the veil on a months-long secret that did little to quell Russians’ vaccine hesitancy.https://t.co/7kRRa9ObkJ
— The Moscow Times (@MoscowTimes) June 30, 2021
Delta variant watch in the UK and Israel
UK—99% Delta, significant spike in cases, relatively small increase in hospitalizations/deaths
Israel—45% Delta, small spike in cases by absolute N, Today: no change (290), 0 deaths again; little rise in hospitalizations, none in deaths pic.twitter.com/ZxQajmX3HR— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) June 30, 2021
Britain is starting to plan for a COVID-19 vaccine booster campaign starting later this year after top vaccine advisers said it might be necessary to give third shots to the elderly and most vulnerable from September https://t.co/GIqgN4F29q
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 1, 2021
Could be a momentary blip, or cases in France start to increase slowly. Guess we're about to find out pic.twitter.com/3eZYL6iVGR
— Björn Meyer (@_b_meyer) June 30, 2021
#Covid_19 in Germany:3728141 (+808) (13000 active) cases /90875 (+56) fatalities reported by @rki_de & @ProMED_mail as of 30 June; average CFR per state is 2.56 (1.76-3.52)%, nationwide CFR is 2.43%/ R value is 0.84 (0.79-0.90), approx. 3624200 (+1600) recoveries,45307672 vacc. pic.twitter.com/c1APiwoyY5
— thelonevirologist (@thelonevirologi) June 30, 2021
As the #DeltaVariant overwhelms one state after another in #SouthAfrica a new, 3rd wave of #COVID19 threatens to not only be the country's worst so far, but to reach devastating levels. And only 4.5% of So Africans are vaccinated, due to inequitable global access. https://t.co/mGvP6BNQ4x
— Laurie Garrett (@Laurie_Garrett) June 30, 2021
Covid in Namibia: Mortuaries at capacity https://t.co/BHHN89OwEM
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) June 30, 2021
Researchers in #Brazil fear #COVID19 is spreading in contaminated buses and terminals… https://t.co/9zDdrC8RXV
— Laurie Garrett (@Laurie_Garrett) June 30, 2021
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Covid infection changes blood cells over the long haul. The size & stiffness of red & white blood cells are affected—sometimes for months. This finding may help explain why some people continue to complain of symptoms long after active infection has waned https://t.co/cWu59rYKZc pic.twitter.com/4sermUW1VS
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) June 30, 2021
There are many lessons to be learned from the drive to design, test, produce & distribute #Covid19 vaccines during this pandemic. Some of them we keep not learning. (The need to test critical new vaccines in pregnant people.) https://t.co/fn4eib5GYD
— Helen Branswell (@HelenBranswell) June 30, 2021
SARSCoV2's #alpha variant—formerly known as B117— is associated with more severe disease in hospitalized women. The British study found that women infected w/ alpha variant were at elevated risk of ICU admission & death compared w/ their male counterparts https://t.co/Dmrk59emtM
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) June 30, 2021
"#LongCovid is our next public health disaster in the making" @NEJM
Estimated 15 million US cases are affected@StevePhillipsMD and @HarvardChanDean map out a 5-point approach and why this is such an urgent matterhttps://t.co/wlKLF3dSWp pic.twitter.com/LDCbsxrpQv— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) June 30, 2021
Scientists identify 160 drugs that can be repurposed to fight Covid https://t.co/gD35Q9bl4s via @medical_xpress pic.twitter.com/PAenqR2BCg
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) June 30, 2021
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100 million eligible Americans still haven't gotten vaccinated. This holdout group — ranging from vaccine opponents to people merely waiting for the shots to be fully approved — isn’t made up of a single demographic https://t.co/4i51OZjv1k
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) July 1, 2021
Masks again? Delta variant’s spread prompts reconsideration of precautions. Los Angeles County and the WHO warn that even immunized people should wear masks indoors. Some scientists agree, but urge a localized approach https://t.co/fKbLiOpwdm
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) June 30, 2021
California broadly reopened its economy barely two weeks ago and since then an especially contagious coronavirus variant has spread among the unvaccinated, a development that has health officials on edge. https://t.co/iZmZGC2Ys1
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 1, 2021
COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Wednesday / Thursday, June 30 – July 1Post + Comments (41)