Covid Surge Expands, But Gauging Risks Is Difficult
The very highly transmissible omicron variant, BA.2.12.1, has exploded across many parts of the country. Reports look at increases in cases in Massachusetts, New Jersey, and the San Francisco area. Meanwhile, Eric Clapton — a prominent opponent of vaccination mandates — has tested positive. Apple is delaying the return of employees to the office.
The Washington Post:
How Big Is The Latest U.S. Covid Wave? No One Really Knows.
Eileen Wassermann struggles to calculate her daily risks at this stage of the coronavirus pandemic — with infections drastically undercounted and mask mandates gone. The immunocompromised 69-year-old ensconces herself in her SUV for the half-hour ferry ride across the Puget Sound from her home on Bainbridge Island to Seattle, where she undergoes treatment for the rare inflammatory condition sarcoidosis. … Experts say Americans can assume infections in their communities are five to ten times higher than official counts. (Nirappil, Shepherd and Keating, 5/17)
The New York Times:
New York City Coronavirus Cases Reach ‘High’ Alert Level
New York City health officials put the city on “high Covid alert” on Tuesday, after rising case counts and hospitalizations reached a level that could put substantial pressure on the health care system. The announcement was triggered by a color-coded alert system that the city introduced in March. But so far, the system has had little impact on the city’s disease control strategy or the public’s perception. (Goldstein, 5/18)
NJ.com:
N.J. ‘Looking At’ How To Respond To New COVID Surge, Murphy Says
With New Jersey in the midst of another surge in coronavirus cases, Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday officials are discussing how to respond — though he did not say whether new statewide mask or social distancing restrictions are in store. … The governor also said state models show the surge is expected to peak within the next week or two, adding the variant driving it is “a lot less lethal” for those who are vaccinated. “God willing, this wave will peak sooner than later,” he said. (Johnson, 5/17)
The Boston Globe:
The New, Highly Transmissible Omicron Variant, BA.2.12.1, Is Dominating In Massachusetts. Now What?
It didn’t seem that long ago that infectious disease experts spoke hopefully of a spring reprieve in COVID-19 cases. But that was before the latest, even more, transmissible Omicron variant, BA.2.12.1, exploded across Massachusetts in recent weeks and began to shove aside its predecessor, BA.2, in other regions, as well. Cases are climbing, edging the United States across the threshold of 1 million deaths. Hospitalizations are rising too, albeit more slowly. The levels of coronavirus detected in Eastern Massachusetts waste water — a bellwether for future infections — also continues a march upward. The virus seems relentless, as fully vaccinated and boosted people who managed to escape it are reporting infections. (Lazar, 5/17)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Bay Area COVID Cases Keep Swelling As Pandemic Persists
There’s no relief for Bay Area counties on the COVID-19 front, as the latest numbers from the state show new cases and hospitalizations driven by subvariants of the coronavirus continuing their steady climb. The Bay Area reported about 42 new daily cases per 100,000 residents on Tuesday, up from 35 a week ago. Eight of the nine counties in the region are among those that have the highest infection rate in California, with San Francisco reporting 54 daily cases per 100,000 residents. Health officials say the actual number of infections is probably much higher because of people testing at home or not getting tested at all. (Vaziri, 5/17)
AP:
New Orleans: Now Is The Time To Head Off Summer COVID Surge
Now is the time to head off a COVID-19 surge like the one that swamped area hospitals last summer, the head of the New Orleans Health Department said Tuesday. Case counts average 155 a day, five times higher than a month ago, and wastewater tests show increased coronavirus concentrations in both residential and tourist areas, Dr. Jennifer Avegno said. She noted that many people use home tests, so the case count “is a big underrepresentation.” (McConnaughey, 5/17)
Palm Beach Post:
Deborah Birx In West Palm Beach Warns Of Big Summer COVID Surge In Florida
Florida should expect an “exponential” COVID surge this summer, former White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx said Monday during a visit downtown. Birx spoke to an audience of more than 200 people at the Kravis Center for a lunch hosted by Forum Club of the Palm Beaches, where she touted her recently released book, “Silent Invasion.” Few attendees wore masks. (Persaud, 5/17)
The Washington Post:
Apple Delays Plan To Require Workers In The Office Three Days A Week
Apple has tabled a policy that would have required workers to be in the office on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, citing the rising wave of covid-19 cases for the latest delay in its return to full-scale, in-person work. (Telford, 5/17)
Also —
The Hill:
Virulently Anti-Vax Eric Clapton Tests Positive For COVID
Eric Clapton — one of the most prominent opponents of vaccination mandates — says he’s postponing performances after testing positive for COVID-19. The “Layla” singer announced in a Monday post on his official Facebook page that his shows planned in Zurich and Milan this week would be delayed following his diagnosis. … The 77-year-old English musician said last year that he would refuse to play at any venues requiring vaccinations, saying, “I wish to say that I will not perform on any stage where there is a discriminated audience present.” (Kurtz, 5/17)
AP:
Delaware Governor Isolating After Positive COVID-19 Test
Delaware Gov. John Carney has announced that he has tested positive for COVID-19 after experiencing mild symptoms. Carney, who turns 66 on Friday, has received the coronavirus vaccine and two booster shots. (5/17)
Long Covid Risks Could Be Spotted By Machine Learning
A new study, supported by the National Institutes of Health, found that machine learning models were able to spot patterns in patient data that pointed to higher risks of developing long covid. Other reports highlight the sometimes overlooked symptoms of long covid, and its impact.
CIDRAP:
Machine-Learning Models May Detect Patients At Risk For Long COVID-19
Machine-learning models created by a National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported research team can identify, with high accuracy, patients likely to have long COVID, according to a study yesterday in The Lancet Digital Health. … The three machine-learning models were designed to detect patterns of symptoms, healthcare use, demographics, and prescriptions to identify all COVID-19 patients likely to have lingering symptoms, including both hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients. (5/17)
The Lancet Digital Health:
Identifying Who Has Long COVID In The USA: A Machine Learning Approach Using N3C Data
Using the National COVID Cohort Collaborative’s (N3C) electronic health record repository, we developed XGBoost machine learning models to identify potential patients with long COVID. (Pfaff et al, 5/16)
Boston.com:
Harvard Economist On ‘The Costs Of Long COVID’: ‘We Should Worry About It’
Even as some of the effects of COVID-19 on everyday lives are fading, the pandemic still has its grips on the economy, according to one Harvard economist. Specifically, long COVID has the potential to have widespread and long-lasting effects on the economy, said David Cutler, a professor of economics at Harvard who focuses on health economics. (Hill, 5/17)
The Wall Street Journal:
Long Covid Symptoms Often Include Crushing Fatigue. Here’s How To Cope
Ken Todd, a 53-year-old in New York City, ran 18 marathons before he got Covid last year. Now, going out to brunch with friends exhausts him. “I need to plan to basically lie down when I get home for the rest of the day,” says Mr. Todd. He is among the many long Covid patients suffering from fatigue months after initial infection. Doctors say that many, like Mr. Todd, experience not only tiredness but also a syndrome called post-exertional malaise. Some long Covid patients try to push through the fatigue, a decision that often backfires and makes the fatigue and other symptoms worse. (Reddy, 5/16)
KHN:
‘That’s Just Part Of Aging’: Long Covid Symptoms Are Often Overlooked In Seniors
Nearly 18 months after getting covid-19 and spending weeks in the hospital, Terry Bell struggles with hanging up his shirts and pants after doing the laundry. Lifting his clothes, raising his arms, arranging items in his closet leave Bell short of breath and often trigger severe fatigue. He walks with a cane, only short distances. He’s 50 pounds lighter than when the virus struck. Bell, 70, is among millions of older adults who have grappled with long covid — a population that has received little attention even though research suggests seniors are more likely to develop the poorly understood condition than younger or middle-aged adults. (Graham, 5/18)
The Hill:
Five Things To Know About Long COVID
Patients who developed severe cases of COVID-19 or had to be hospitalized are generally believed to be more likely to have long-lasting symptoms after recovering from their initial infection. However, studies have indicated that a notable percentage of asymptomatic COVID-19 cases lead to long COVID. (Choi, 5/17)
In other covid research —
CIDRAP:
Estrogen Treatment Linked To Reduced COVID-19 Mortality
Women who received prescriptions for hormone replacement therapy (HRT) with estrogen within 6 months of a COVID-19 diagnosis had reduced mortality, according to a new study in Family Practice. The findings, coupled with data on sex differences between male and female COVID-19 severity, suggests estrogen may have protective role against the virus. (Soucheray, 5/17)
KHN:
How Better Ventilation Can Help ‘Covid-Proof’ Your Home
For two years, you beat the odds. You masked, kept your distance, got your shots. Now, despite those efforts, you, your child, or someone else in your home has come down with covid-19. And the last thing you want is for the virus to spread to everyone in the family or household. But how do you prevent it from circulating when you live in close quarters? (Szabo, 5/18)
Roll Call:
COVID-19 Wastewater Efforts Confront Long-Term Questions
In February 2020, environmental engineers Aaron Bivins and Kyle Bibby launched an informal collaborative with a few fellow researchers, hoping to share tips and strategies on monitoring wastewater for signs of the burgeoning COVID-19 pandemic. By April 2022, that group ballooned to more than 1,300 analysts and professionals worldwide, with a Slack account promoting new research and making introductions — all part of an effort to facilitate early information-sharing that didn’t exist at the federal level. (Clason, 5/16)
CIDRAP:
Trained Scent Dogs Detect Airline Travelers With COVID-19
At the Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport, the dogs sniffed skin swabs from 303 incoming passengers also tested for COVID-19 using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from September 2020 to April 2021. Relative to PCR, the canines had an estimated accuracy in detecting SARS-CoV-2 of 92%, a sensitivity of 92%, and a specificity of 91%. They were much less accurate in detecting infections caused by the Alpha variant (89% for wild-type virus vs 36% for Alpha. But the latter finding also illustrates how well dogs can distinguish between different scents, the team said. “This observation is remarkable as it proves the scent dogs’ robust discriminatory power,” they wrote. (Van Beusekom, 5/17)
On covid testing —
ProPublica:
The COVID Testing Company That Missed 96% Of Cases
“These parents were pretty adamant that their kid was not a case and that they could play,” said Heather Kerwin, epidemiology program manager for the Washoe County Health District. A pattern emerged. Athletes would test positive on the rapid test. But before a contact tracer could call, parents would learn from the testing company that their children’s PCR tests, typically the gold standard of COVID-19 testing, were negative, even for students with symptoms. Kerwin investigated and learned the University of Nevada Reno campus was seeing similarly conflicting results. The university and school district had something in common. Both had recently hired the same company to conduct their testing: Northshore Clinical Labs. (Damon, 5/17)
New Hampshire Bulletin:
Remember The 1 Million COVID Tests Sent To N.H. Liquor Stores? Most Of Them Are Still Unsold.
The 1 million COVID-19 tests the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services ordered in January to sell at state liquor stores didn’t quite fly off the shelves, leaving about 926,000 tests still available. The department has asked the Joint Legislative Fiscal Committee for permission to send many of the surplus tests to health centers, schools, camps and child care programs. In her request, Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette said sales of the $11.29 tests slowed at liquor stores as tests became more available elsewhere. That wasn’t the case in January when the department purchased the tests using $12 million in federal pandemic relief money. (Timmins, 5/17)
