To judge by popular movies, people who live in the Brazilian Amazon are at constant risk of being attacked by huge tarantulas, squeezed to death by giant anacondas and being eaten alive by voracious piranhas. In fact, the real dangers have more to do with tropical diseases such as malaria, cholera, dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya. And while illnesses would be mostly preventable through modern sanitation and hygiene measures, these are mostly unavailable.

Take Porto Velho, for examplea city of half a million people and the capital of the state of Rondnia, in the heart of the Brazilian Amazon, where fewer than 1 percent of residences have access to treated water and proper sewerage. And rather than take responsibility for these conditions, TV ads created by the government blame the population itself for disease outbreaks, as if the lack of hygiene were a cultural characteristic and not a matter of failed public policies.

The same sort of abdication of responsibility occurs when nearby farmers outside the city burn the forest to create pastureland for cattle. Despite the increase in hospital admissions, especially of children, resulting from respiratory problems caused by the smoke, the official position is that the wildfires are inevitable because of development. This is technically correct: without the fires, there would be no cattle to export, and without cattle, the ranch owners wouldnt have enough money to donate to the politicians (or to keep for themselves, because many of the ranch owners are politicians).

And now, with the arrival of COVID-19, we are seeing a similar pattern. By late July, there were more than 800 deaths from the coronavirus in Rondnia. But COVID-19 has become an ideological issue, not just a public health problem. Whether or not people wear protective masks or practice self-isolation depends on whether they support President Jair Bolsonaro, who has consistently downplayed the dangers of the pandemic. The official line is that the economic disruption that would result from aggressive measures against the disease would take more lives than the virus itself. (Bolsonaro tested positive himself recently, although according to an official statement he remained in good condition.)

The illness in Porto Velho reflects what we already know about disease in the Brazilian Amazon: the poorest are most at risk. When we cross-check mobility data provided by Google; data from the states Health Department; and social indicators such as the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI) on access to sanitation, education and employment, it becomes clear that areas in Porto Velho where compliance with self-isolation falls below 30 percent are also the poorest ones and those in which there is a greater number of confirmed COVID-19 confirmed cases.

In short, the poorest people are the sickest. We may understand these data in two ways. The first interpretation, advanced by public administrators at the state level, is that its their own fault that the poorest people are seeing the most illness. But poor housing, malnutrition and lack of formal employment are clearly not their fault. These conditions mean that the poor are unable to isolate themselves socially, wash their hands or buy protective masks. They have little access to public health resources and social assistance.

The challenge becomes to understand the structural factors that maintain these inequalities and their consequences for peoples health, and to begin to remedy them. Only then will these communities no longer have to choose between working and putting themselves and their families at risk on one hand, versus self-isolating and starving.

Read the rest here:

Blame Poverty, Not the Poor, for COVID-19's Spread in Brazil's Amazon - Scientific American

The West Virginia Department of Health andHuman Resources (DHHR) reportsas of 10:00 a.m., on August 8, 2020, there have been 317,763 total confirmatory laboratory results receivedfor COVID-19, with 7,563 total cases and 131 deaths.

DHHRhas confirmed the deaths of a 70-year old male from CabellCounty, a 38-year old female from Kanawha County, an 84-year old female fromFayette County, and a 77-year old female from Fayette County. It is with a heavyheart that we confirm the deaths of these four West Virginians, said Bill J.Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary.

In alignment with updated definitions fromthe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the dashboard includes probablecases which are individuals that have symptoms and either serologic (antibody)or epidemiologic (e.g., a link to a confirmed case) evidence of disease, but noconfirmatory test.

CASESPER COUNTY (Case confirmed by lab test/Probable case):Barbour (29/0), Berkeley (666/27), Boone(100/0), Braxton (8/0), Brooke (61/1), Cabell (380/9), Calhoun (6/0), Clay(18/0), Doddridge (6/0), Fayette (144/0), Gilmer (16/0), Grant (118/1),Greenbrier (92/0), Hampshire (76/0), Hancock (107/4), Hardy (57/1), Harrison(216/3), Jackson (162/0), Jefferson (287/7), Kanawha (898/13), Lewis (28/1),Lincoln (88/0), Logan (221/0), Marion (182/4), Marshall (127/4), Mason (54/0),McDowell (57/1), Mercer (182/0), Mineral (118/2), Mingo (170/2), Monongalia(921/17), Monroe (20/1), Morgan (25/1), Nicholas (36/1), Ohio (263/3),Pendleton (38/1), Pleasants (11/1), Pocahontas (40/1), Preston (103/21), Putnam(192/1), Raleigh (220/7), Randolph (204/4), Ritchie (3/0), Roane (15/0),Summers (10/0), Taylor (55/1), Tucker (10/0), Tyler (13/0), Upshur (36/3),Wayne (201/2), Webster (4/0), Wetzel (42/0), Wirt (6/0), Wood (233/12), Wyoming(31/0).

As case surveillance continues at thelocal health department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certaincounty may not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individualin question may have crossed the state border to be tested.Such is the case of Pendleton and Tuckercounties in this report.

Pleasenote that delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from thelocal health department to DHHR. Visitthe dashboard at http://www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more detailed information.

On July 24,2020, Gov. Jim Justice announced that DHHR, the agency in charge of reportingthe number of COVID-19 cases will transition from providing twice-daily updatesto one report every 24 hours. This becameeffective August 1, 2020.

Read more from the original source:

COVID-19 Daily Update 8-8-2020 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources

Wisconsin health officials reported anadditional 1,165 people have tested positive for COVID-19, another single-day record.

Those positive casesmade up 8.9% of the 13,162 test results reported by the Department of Health Services on Saturday. The seven-day average for positive tests stands at 6.1% as of Saturday.

The state health departmentalso reported Saturday that six more people have died, bringing the state's total number of deaths to 996. Those who have died as a result of COVID-19 make up 1.7% of all those diagnosed, according to DHS. The majority of deaths are among those 70 and older.

RELATED:Small businesses say masks, distancing are key to protecting and reviving local economies

RELATED:UW-Oshkosh football players, coach deal with canceled season

In total, 59,933 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Wisconsin. According to the state health department, around 16% of those cases remain active. DHS defines an active case as someone who is still alive, has been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the last 30 days, and still has symptoms or has not beenreleased from isolation.

Recent research from those studying the virus have found that even after someone has recovered from COVID-19 and no longer has symptoms,it's possible for the virus to flare up again in some patients andsymptoms can return.

As of Saturday morning, 311 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized, 96 of them in intensive care. An additional 152 patients were hospitalized awaiting the results of a COVID-19 test.

The department of health's weekly ratings of county COVID-19 activitywhich are based on a combination of total new cases per 100,000 people over the past two weeks and the percent change in new cases between the past seven days and the seven days before that are as follows:

DHS updates this list every Wednesday.

RELATED:Federal spending on COVID-19 vaccine candidates tops $9 billion, spread among 7 companies

RELATED:Why do some people refuse to wear face masks? Here's what mental health professionals say.

Contact Natalie Brophy at 715-216-5452 or nbrophy@gannett.com. Followher on Twitter @brophy_natalie.

Our subscribers make this coverage possible. Subscribe to a USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin site today with one of our special offers and support local journalism.

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Wisconsin reports 1,165 new confirmed COVID-19 cases Saturday, another single-day record - Post-Crescent

Health officials are encouraging anyone who attended the wedding at Cattle Barn Ranch in Cle Elum on August 2 to get tested for COVID-19.

CLE ELUM, Wash. A person tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a wedding ceremony in Kittitas County earlier this month and now health officials are trying to notify everyone in attendance so they can get tested.

The wedding was held Sunday, August 2 at the Cattle Barn Ranch wedding venue in Cle Elum, according to a release from the Kittitas County Incident Management Team (IMT).

The ceremony was held outdoors with 100 people in attendance, and there was a reception, said Dr. Mark Larson, Kittitas County health officer.

The individual became symptomatic on Monday, August, 3 and was tested for the virus, Dr. Larson said. The results were positive for COVID-19.

"Because of the amount of people in attendance, the IMT is unable to guarantee that we can contact every person who was potentially exposed," read the release from the IMT.

Health officials are encouraging anyone who attended that wedding at Cattle Barn Ranch on August 2 to get tested for COVID-19. If a person does not have a healthcare provider, they can call the Temporary COVID Clinic at KVH at 509-933-8850.

There are currently 116 cases of COVID-19 and 18 deaths in Kittitas County.

Kittitas County is currently in Phase 3 of Governor Jay Inslee's Safe Start reopening plan.

The wedding that occurred on August 2 was in compliance with the governor's previous guidelines for wedding ceremonies, however, new guidelines take effect August 10.

Starting Monday, for counties in Phase 3, wedding ceremonies are permitted with some restrictions. Indoor occupancy is limited to 20% or 30 people, whichever is less, and outdoor ceremonies are limited to 30 people. Receptions are prohibited in Phase 3.

While in attendance, guests must wear facial coverings and maintain six feet of physical distance to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Excerpt from:

Person tests positive for COVID-19 after attending wedding in Kittitas County - KING5.com

Zach Thompson, Iowa City Press-Citizen Published 10:25 a.m. CT Aug. 8, 2020 | Updated 1:40 p.m. CT Aug. 8, 2020

At 10 a.m. Saturday, Iowa was reporting an additional 383 cases of COVID-19 and 13 additional COVID-19-related deaths including three in Johnson County, the county's 11th in just over three weekssince the state's tally at 10 a.m. Friday, according to Coronavirus.Iowa.gov.

State officials report a total of 925 people with COVID-19 have died from the disease across the state, including 19 in Johnson County.BetweenJune and the first part of July, the county had gonemore than seven weeks without reporting a deathrelated to the disease. The county saw its first death,Regina High School P.E. teacher and football coach John DeMarco, on April 4.

We will remember:Share your stories of loved ones lost to the coronavirus

A total of 514,451 Iowans have been tested for the SARS-CoV-2 novel coronavirus, which causes the disease, including 24,941 in Johnson County. A total of 48,112 have tested positive in Iowa.

As of 10 a.m. Saturday, the state was reporting a total of 2,055 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Johnson County, an increase of 19from 10 a.m. Friday.

COVID-19 maps and charts track cases and data in Iowa and across the U.S.

Hospitalizations related to the virus in southeast Iowa returned to levels not seen since April 26on Wednesday. As of 10 a.m. Saturday, 56people were hospitalized with the virus in the state's fifth Regional Medical Coordination Center, which includes Clinton, Des Moines, Henry, Iowa, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Keokuk, Lee, Muscatine, Scott, Van Buren, Wapello and Washington counties, down from 70 Wednesday. The region hit a peak of 88 hospitalized patients on April 22.

Twenty-four patients were still being cared for in the region's intensive care units Saturday morning,down from 32 Wednesday, which had been the most seen in the region since May 7 but still below the region's peak of 39 on April 22. According tothe state's coronavirus website, the region has 412general hospital beds and 90 ICU beds available for area coronavirus patients.

The state reported an outbreak at Solon's Nursing Care Center, where 36 cases had been confirmed, and just seven have recovered.

Numbers reported by the state for Johnson County and all of Iowa, respectively, as of 10 a.m. Saturday. Numbers in parentheses represent change over the previous 24 hours.

Total tested: 24,941 (+156); 514,451(+3,929)

Total confirmed: 2,055 (+19, or 12.18%); 48,112 (+383, or 9.75%)

Johnson County's 14-day average positivity rate: 8% (-)

Total recoveries: 1,511 (+31); 36,850 (+600)

Total deaths: 19 (+3); 925 (+13)

Hospitalized in RMCC Region 5: 56 (+2)

Receiving ICU care in RMCC Region 5: 24 (+1)

RMCC Region 5 includes Clinton, Des Moines, Henry, Iowa, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Keokuk, Lee, Muscatine, Scott, Van Buren, Wapello and Washington counties.

Source: Iowa Department of Public Health

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Iowa reports another 13 COVID-19-related deaths, including 3 in Johnson County - Iowa City Press-Citizen

The West Virginia Department of Health andHuman Resources (DHHR) reports as of 10:00 a.m., on August 4,2020, there have been 298,290 total confirmatorylaboratory results received for COVID-19, with 7,051 totalcases and 124 deaths.

DHHR has confirmed the deaths of a70-year old male from Preston County, a 55-year old female from Taylor County,a 68-year old female from Kanawha County, a 73-year old male from Marshall County,a 92-year old male from Grant County, a 43-year old male from Mingo County, anda 91-year old male from Wood County. Eachdeath reported is a solemn reminder of the seriousness of this disease. We sendour deepest sympathy to these families, saidBill J. Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary.

In alignment with updated definitions fromthe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the dashboard includes probablecases which are individuals that have symptoms and either serologic (antibody)or epidemiologic (e.g., a link to a confirmed case) evidence of disease, but noconfirmatory test.

CASESPER COUNTY (Case confirmed by lab test/Probable case):Barbour (29/0), Berkeley (637/24), Boone (88/0), Braxton (8/0), Brooke(60/1), Cabell (341/9), Calhoun (6/0), Clay (17/1), Doddridge (4/0), Fayette(131/0), Gilmer (16/0), Grant (80/1), Greenbrier (87/0), Hampshire (74/0),Hancock (100/4), Hardy (53/1), Harrison (198/1), Jackson (158/0), Jefferson(287/5), Kanawha (835/13), Lewis (26/1), Lincoln (68/1), Logan (157/0), Marion(174/4), Marshall (126/3), Mason (50/0), McDowell (45/1), Mercer (167/0),Mineral (112/2), Mingo (142/2), Monongalia (913/16), Monroe (18/1), Morgan(25/1), Nicholas (32/1), Ohio (259/1), Pendleton (40/1), Pleasants (7/1),Pocahontas (40/1), Preston (102/23), Putnam (173/1), Raleigh (191/7), Randolph(203/3), Ritchie (3/0), Roane (14/0), Summers (6/0), Taylor (52/1), Tucker(11/0), Tyler (12/0), Upshur (36/3), Wayne (189/2), Webster (3/0), Wetzel(40/0), Wirt (6/0), Wood (228/12), Wyoming (23/0).

As case surveillance continues at thelocal health department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certaincounty may not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individualin question may have crossed the state border to be tested.Such is the case of Kanawha and Marion counties in this report.

Pleasenote that delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from thelocal health department to DHHR. Visitthe dashboard at http://www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more detailed information.

On July 24,2020, Gov. Jim Justice announced that DHHR, the agency in charge of reportingthe number of COVID-19 cases, will transition from providing twice-dailyupdates to one report every 24 hours. This became effective August 1, 2020.

Originally posted here:

COVID-19 Daily Update 8-4-2020 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources

Hot August Nights organized a cruise at Renown Hospital in Reno to thank health care workers. Reno Gazette Journal

This is a breaking news story and will be updated throughout the day Saturday, August 8.This story is part of the Reno Gazette Journals essential COVID-19 coverage and is being provided for free.Pleaseconsidersubscribing to the RGJ to support our work.

2:30 p.m. Saturday

The number of positive cases of COVID-19 in Nevada increased by 886 from the day prior, to 55,419, the state Department of Health and Human Resources reported Saturday.

The death toll increased by 29; 949 Nevadans have lost their lives to the infectious respiratory disease.

An additional 12,133 tests were performed, for a total of 691,615. The daily positivity rate stands at 11.2%, and the cumulative positivity rate is 10.4 percent on Saturday.

Patients in hospitals statewide with confirmed cases of COVID-19 was 796, a decline of 40 from the previous report. Suspected cases in hospitals went down 19, to 180.

Across the state, 278 patients are in intensive care units, a decrease of 11.

Of the 55,419 total reported cases since the pandemic hit Nevada, 59% are between the ages of 20 and 49.

In Washoe County, the case total stood at 5,756 on Saturday, an increase of 41 from Friday. The death toll remained 118. Of the total cases, 1,155 are active, and 87 people are currently hospitalized with the disease.

Friday

Washoe Schools Principal Association President Don McHenry said Friday that the district is setting itself up to fail by opening schools on Aug. 17 amid so many unknowns about safety protocols and how things will work.

In an interview with the Reno Gazette Journal, McHenry said principals don't know for sure what staff are returning, who has been granted leave or distance learning positions and, in many cases, don't even know which students will show up.

"I would support the district taking a step back," McHenry said.

The school district on Friday evening sent out a statement that no principal has told administrators that schools are not ready to open, and none of them has asked for more time to prepare.

The district said it had spent many hours this past week meeting with principals and going over safety protocols.

"At no time during these many meetings has any principal indicated either formally or informally that they were unable to open our schools and would prefer more time to prepare to welcome back their students and staff members," the statement said.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE: WCSD, Principals Union chief at odds over readiness to reopen schools

Friday

The Washoe Education Association said teachers are calling for guidanceafter the district informed them that a custodian at Hunter Lake Elementary School tested positive for COVID-19.

The association is the union that represents more than 2,500 district teachers.

Teachers, who returned to school buildings this week, called the unionasking if they needed to get tested or were now under a mandatory quarantine.Some may have been in close contact with the employee. No students were in the school.

The school district said in a statement that it was aware of the staff member who tested positivefor COVID-19 and worked with the health district to follow all procedures.

READ THE FULL STORY: WCSD teachers asking for guidance after custodian tests positive for COVID-19

Friday

Eight of Nevada's 17 counties, including Washoe,have been flagged as having elevated disease transmission risk, requiring county officials to submit action plans to the state, the Nevada Health Response Team announced Friday.

Washoe, Clark, Elko, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln andNye counties as well as Carson City have met at least two of the criteria prompting additional action. The criteria include:

In all, nine counties failed to reach the minimum testing threshhold; seven surpassed the maximum number of cases; and seven exceeded the maximum positive test rate. Elko and Humboldt were the only counties that met all three criteria.

The eight flagged counties must provide to the state an assessment of their hospital capacity, testing capacity, access to personal protective equipment, case investigation and contact tracing plans, enforcement plans, and plans to protect vulnerable populations.

Friday

The Regional Information Center reported 88new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, with no additional deaths reported.

Washoe County recorded the 88new cases of COVID-19 Thursday through 1,340tests. The single-day positive test rate was 6.6%, while the rolling seven-day positive test rate rose slightly to 7.0%.

Of the 1,175patients with active casesin Washoe County, 85are currently hospitalized, down threefrom yesterday. Seventy-fourpatients were reported to have recovered over the past day.

The share of intensive care unit beds in use dropped to 41%over the past day, a decrease of 16 percentage points. Sixteenpercent of available ventilators are currently in use, a drop of 4 percentage points.

Since the outbreak began, a total of 5,715Washoe County residents about 1 in 83residents have been diagnosed with the coronavirus. Of those, 4,422have recovered, and 118have died. Overall, about 77.4% of county residents with the coronavirus have recovered.

Here are the rest of the latest COVID-19 numbers for Washoe County:

Friday

Century Summit Sierra is one of a handful of Cinemark theaters selected to reopen next week as part of a"test-and-learn process," the company announced Friday.

The test process will be "instrumental in defining the training, communication and implementation of all cleaning and sanitization protocols and new technology," the company said in a press release.

Movie theaters have been allowed to reopen in Nevada at 50% capacity since May 29 under Gov. Sisolak's Phase 2 reopening.

Cinemark's guidelinesfor reopening include:

Century Summit Sierra plans to reopen Friday, Aug. 14, with 21 total showingsof second-run films including Jurassic Park, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Back to the Future, The Goonies, Jumanji: The Next Level, The Invisible Man, Beauty and the Beast and Ghostbusters. Ticket prices will be reduced to $5 for adults and $3 for children and seniors during the test program.

Movie theater chains have been reeling since the pandemic began, with AMC Theatres announcing the chain might not survive the fallout. Last month AMCscrapped plans for a mid-July reopening, instead delaying plans until August.

Friday

Nevada reported 20 more COVID-19 deaths on Friday, bringing the states total death toll up to 920 as of Aug. 6.

The state also saw 976 more confirmed cases for COVID-19 as its number of daily tests surged in the last two days. Nevada reported nearly 16,400 tests on Aug. 5 and almost 12,500 tests on Aug. 6, a marked increase over the fewer than3,000 tests reported on Aug. 4.

Nevada is on track to soon hit 55,000 confirmed cases for COVID-19 since the pandemic started. Hospitalizations saw some improvement, however, as the number of people hospitalized for the virus dropped by about 7%.

Clark County continued to account for the bulk of coronavirus cases in the state, as well as the highest incidence rate among all Nevada counties. Clarks nearly 47,000 confirmed cases account for more than 86% of all COVID-19 cases reported in the state to date. Its incidence numbers also cracked the 2,000 threshold with a case rate of 2,027 per 100,000 people.

Washoe came in second with 5,627 confirmed cases to date and an incidence rate of nearly 1,177 cases per 100,000 people.

The state reported 770 deaths in Clark and 118 in Washoe to date. Carson City has 330 total confirmed cases and eight deaths since the start of the pandemic. The states numbers can differ from the daily local numbers reported by the various counties.

The daily positivity rate, which tracks the share of COVID-19 tests that return with a positive result, was at 17.8 percent. The seven-day moving average dipped below 14% for the first time since July 3.

Here is a rundown of the latest COVID-19 numbers for Nevada:

Read or Share this story: https://www.rgj.com/story/news/2020/08/08/covid-nevada-coronavirus-updates-cases-deaths-reno-las-vegas-washoe-county/3326158001/

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COVID-19 live updates: 886 cases and 29 deaths reported Saturday in Nevada - Reno Gazette-Journal

News Release

Tuesday, August 4, 2020

Study aims to determine safety and efficacy of experimental monoclonal antibodies.

Patients admitted with COVID-19 at select hospitals may now volunteer to enroll in a clinical trial to test the safety and efficacy of a potential new treatment for the disease. The Phase 3 randomized, controlled trial is known as ACTIV-3, and as a master protocol, it is designed to expand to test multiple different kinds of monoclonal antibody treatments. It also can enroll additional volunteers in the middle of the trial, if a specific investigational treatment shows promise.

The new study is one of four ongoing or planned trials in the National Institutes of Healths.Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV)program,a public-private partnership to speed development of the most promising treatments and vaccine candidates. Italso is receiving support throughOperation Warp Speed, the U.S. governments multi-agency effort to develop, manufacture and distribute medical countermeasures to fight COVID-19.

The trial will take place at select hospitals around the world that are part of existing clinical trial networks. They include the lead network, the International Network of Strategic Initiatives in Global HIV Trials (INSIGHT), operated by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a part of the National Institutes of Health. Collaborating clinical trial networks include the Prevention and Early Treatment of Acute Lung Injury network (PETAL) and Cardiothoracic Surgical Trials Network (CTSN), supported by the NIHs National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute through the Collaborating Network of Networks for Evaluating COVID-19 and Therapeutic Strategies (CONNECTS) program, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers.

Under Operation Warp Speed, the U.S. Government has brought together multiple agencies to accelerate the development, manufacture and distribution of medical countermeasures for COVID-19, said NIH Director Dr. Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. The ACTIV studies are just a few examples of this critical activity, which emphasizes flexibility and minimizes delays to generate scientifically sound results.

ACTIV-3 uses an adaptive two-stage Phase 3 protocol design. The ACTIV-3 trial can be modified to test additional experimental therapeutics and flexibly allow novel therapeutics to enter at either stage 1 or stage 2. In addition, if a treatment appears to be safe and effective in the initial stage after review by an independent data and safety monitoring board (DSMB), the investigational therapeutic proceeds to stage 2 testing, where more volunteers are enrolled. If an investigational therapeutic is unsafe or not likely to be effective, it will be dropped.

The ACTIV-3 study will begin by studying the investigational monoclonal antibodyLY-CoV555, which was identified in a blood sample from a recovered COVID-19 patient. Antibodies are infection-fighting proteins made by the immune system that can bind to the surface of viruses and prevent them from infecting cells. Synthetic versions of antibodies can be reproduced in a laboratory. These manufactured antibodies are known as monoclonal antibodies. The LY-CoV555 antibody was discovered by Abcellera Biologics (Vancouver, British Columbia) in collaboration with NIAIDs Vaccine Research Center. Subsequently, it was developed and manufactured byLilly Research Laboratories, Eli Lilly and Company (Indianapolis, Indiana), in partnership with AbCellera. The investigational product also is being tested in another ongoing NIAID study, ACTIV-2, which is studying its safety and efficacy in people with mild to moderate symptoms of COVID-19 who have not been hospitalized. Safety data and other findings will be shared across the ACTIV-2 and ACTIV-3 studies through the DSMB.

Studying the impact of this investigational therapeutic on multiple patient populations at the same time is critical to determining whether it can help COVID-19 patients with differing levels of disease severity, said NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. These concurrent trials have the potential to yield significant and comprehensive clinical data.

The initial stage of the ACTIV-3 clinical trial aims to enroll approximately 300 volunteers who have been hospitalized with mild to moderate COVID-19 with fewer than 13 days of symptoms. Once their COVID-19 infections have been confirmed and they have consented to take part in the study, participants will be randomly assigned to receive either an intravenous (IV) infusion of LY-CoV555 or a saline placebo infusion. Participants also will receive standard care for COVID-19, including the antiviral remdesivir. After five days, participants symptoms will be assessed, as will their need for supplemental oxygen, mechanical ventilation, or other supportive care. Volunteers will be followed for 90 days after enrollment and will receive regular examinations and have blood samples taken periodically during this time to analyze their response to the investivational therapeutic.

Data collected on the fifth day of the volunteers participation will determine whether the investigational therapeutic will be administered to a larger group of volunteers. If LY-CoV555 appears to be safe and appears to be effective, the trial will enroll an additional 700 participants. It also will begin enrolling more severely ill participants, such as those with organ failure requiring mechanical support, or COVID-19-associated dysfunction of organs other than the lungs. The primary endpoint of the trial is the participants sustained recovery for 14 days after release from the hospital.

The principal investigator of ACTIV-3 is Jens Lundgren,M.D., of the University of Copenhagen and Rigshospitalet. Leads of the participating networks include James Neaton, Ph.D., of the INSIGHT network, Taylor Thompson, M.D., of the PETAL network, Annetine Gelijns, Ph.D., and Alan Moskowitz, M.D., of the CTSN, and Rachel Ramoni, D.M.D., Sc.D., of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. To ensure that the trial is being conducted in a safe and effective manner, an independent DSMB will oversee the trial and conduct periodic reviews of the accumulating data.

NIAID conducts and supports research at NIH, throughout the United States, and worldwide to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases, and to develop better means of preventing, diagnosing and treating these illnesses. News releases, fact sheets and other NIAID-related materials are available on theNIAID website.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH):NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit http://www.nih.gov.

NIHTurning Discovery Into Health

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View original post here:

NIH launches clinical trial to test antibody treatment in hospitalized COVID-19 patients - National Institutes of Health

QUINCY (WGEM) The Adams County Health Department reported Saturday it has been notified of public exposure to COVID-19 at Jimmy John's at 4500 Broadway in Quincy.

Health officials stated anyone who visited this Jimmy John's location July 27 through July 30 should monitor their health and watch for symptoms. Individuals experiencing symptoms should seek testing.

The Adams County Health Department stated it is working with the restaurant to provide guidance and help to mitigate this situation and stop the spread of COVID-19.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people with COVID-19 have reported a wide range of symptoms, ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness.

The following symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure of the virus:

Health officials stated, if you develop any of these symptoms, you are encouraged to call the Blessing COVID-19 Hotline at 217-277-3504.

RELATED:Health department warns of COVID-19 exposure at Quincy restaurant

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Health department warns of COVID-19 exposure at another Quincy restaurant - WGEM

Good morning. Like many other U.S. states, California currently has no travel restrictions in place. That leaves a lot of travelers wondering about what precautions they should take after returning from a trip.

The question came to us from Abel Cruz, a reader in El Paso, who asked: If I drive to California from Texas, will I have to quarantine once I get there?

Mr. Cruz wants to visit family members in San Diego and the Victor Valley. I have been thinking of driving out to California but am not sure whether I should plan to quarantine once I get there, before I see family, he said.

[Track coronavirus cases by California county.]

While California does not have restrictions in place, Gov. Gavin Newsom urged people coming to the state to act responsibly. The key is when you do come into the state, that you abide by all the rules and regulations that our health officers have put forth, he said during a briefing on Monday.

The question of traveling across state lines during the pandemic can be tricky, since nearly half of the country currently has restrictions in place. Hawaii, for instance, requires visitors to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival, or risk being fined $5,000 or up to a year in prison.

[See which states currently have travel restrictions in place.]

For some additional guidance, I talked to Dr. Jeanne A. Noble, an emergency medicine doctor and the director of the Covid-19 response at U.C.S.F. Medical Centers emergency department, about how people can stay safe while traveling. Here are the takeaways from our conversation.

Arrange for testing ahead of time. Dr. Noble recommends getting a Covid-19 test a week before departing on a trip, to allow time for the results to come in. Be extra vigilant with your social distancing and face mask use during your pre-travel week so that you can remain confident that your negative test is meaningful, she said.

Since airline travel itself also puts you at risk for infection, you will need to quarantine and be retested once you have arrived at your destination, Dr. Noble said. Its best to wait at least four days after arriving in order to leave time for the virus, if present, to get to detectable levels.

If traveling by car, simply getting tested before you leave is probably adequate, but you should still quarantine if you have accidentally exposed yourself to potential risks.

When in doubt, quarantine. Although not required in California, its always safer to quarantine yourself if you cant get tested. This is to reduce the risk of spreading the virus to others. You can shorten your time in isolation, however, if you get a negative test.

And as always, if you begin to show flulike symptoms, assume that you are infected and seek repeat testing while you continue to self-isolate, Dr. Noble said.

[Could your symptoms be Covid-19?]

Wipe down high-touch surfaces. Traveling by car is generally safer because your car can be easily wiped down and sterilized. Dr. Noble recommends that people sanitize their hands and wipe down their steering wheel with disinfectants every time they get into the car.

Its best to travel with an ample supply of hand sanitizer and bleach or hydrogen peroxide wipes, Dr. Noble said.

If you have to stay overnight in a hotel, wipe down all high-touch surfaces, like doorknobs, faucets and phones, when you arrive.

Wear a mask and social distance. Face masks are one of the best protections we have against Covid-19, Dr. Noble said, so make sure you pack enough to last. Wear masks in public places, like hotel lobbies or food establishments. If you are in a setting where people are not wearing masks or practicing safe distancing, Dr. Noble recommends that you leave that place immediately.

Pay attention to local regulations. California residents visiting other states should check the specific restrictions at their destination before leaving. Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Connecticut require visitors from California to quarantine themselves for 14 days upon arrival.

Visitors to California should abide by Californias safe and responsible travel code and follow all public health rules, including a statewide mandate to wear a mask in public places.

Updated August 6, 2020

Have a question about how the pandemic is changing daily life in California? Click here to submit.

We often link to sites that limit access for nonsubscribers. We appreciate your reading Times coverage, but we also encourage you to support local news if you can.

They were fashioned from gauze and cheesecloth and became a symbol of the fight against an invisible enemy. Medical workers, police officers and everyday Americans wore them, but some resisted. This week, my colleague Christine Hauser wrote about how masks were politicized during the influenza pandemic of 1918. Four cities in California San Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento and Pasadena became some of the first in the country to put in effect mandatory face mask laws. Violators were sent to mask court, where they were subject to fines or 10 days imprisonment.

It is the most unpopular law ever placed on the Pasadena records, W.S. McIntyre, the chief of police, told The Los Angeles Times. We are cursed from all sides.

[Read the full article here.]

California Today goes live at 6:30 a.m. Pacific time weekdays. Tell us what you want to see: CAtoday@nytimes.com. Were you forwarded this email? Sign up for California Today here.

Jill Cowan grew up in Orange County, went to school at U.C. Berkeley and has reported all over the state, including the Bay Area, Bakersfield and Los Angeles but she always wants to see more. Follow along here or on Twitter, @jillcowan.

California Today is edited by Julie Bloom, who grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from U.C. Berkeley.

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California Doesn't Have Covid-19 Travel Restrictions. But Here's How to Protect Yourself - The New York Times

The West Virginia Department of Health andHuman Resources (DHHR) reports as of 10:00 a.m., on August 7,2020, there have been 312,521 total confirmatorylaboratory results received for COVID-19, with 7,433 totalcases and 127 deaths.

DHHR has confirmed the deaths of an81-year old female from Pleasants County, a 66-year old male from Mingo Countyand a 73-year old male from Mingo County. We offer our deepest sympathies to thefamilies as our state grieves more losses due to COVID-19, said Bill J.Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary.

In alignment with updated definitions fromthe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the dashboard includes probablecases which are individuals that have symptoms and either serologic (antibody)or epidemiologic (e.g., a link to a confirmed case) evidence of disease, but noconfirmatory test.

CASESPER COUNTY (Case confirmed by lab test/Probable case):Barbour (29/0), Berkeley (658/28), Boone(97/0), Braxton (8/0), Brooke (61/1), Cabell (364/9), Calhoun (6/0), Clay(17/1), Doddridge (5/0), Fayette (140/0), Gilmer (16/0), Grant (116/1),Greenbrier (91/0), Hampshire (76/0), Hancock (105/4), Hardy (57/1), Harrison(213/1), Jackson (162/0), Jefferson (288/6), Kanawha (885/13), Lewis (28/1),Lincoln (81/0), Logan (209/0), Marion (179/4), Marshall (126/4), Mason (54/0),McDowell (57/1), Mercer (177/0), Mineral (115/2), Mingo (156/2), Monongalia(918/17), Monroe (20/1), Morgan (25/1), Nicholas (35/1), Ohio (263/3),Pendleton (39/1), Pleasants (11/1), Pocahontas (40/1), Preston (101/21), Putnam(185/1), Raleigh (208/7), Randolph (204/4), Ritchie (3/0), Roane (15/0),Summers (7/0), Taylor (55/1), Tucker (11/0), Tyler (13/0), Upshur (36/3), Wayne(198/2), Webster (4/0), Wetzel (42/0), Wirt (6/0), Wood (231/12), Wyoming(31/0).

As case surveillance continues at thelocal health department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certaincounty may not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individualin question may have crossed the state border to be tested.Such is the case of Preston County in this report.

Specificallyregarding the change in cases for Grant and Pendleton counties in this report,when the tests were administered in these counties the facility left someaddress fields blank therefore the address on file resorted back to thehistoric address on file for an individual which was not necessarily consideredtheir current address.

Pleasenote that delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from thelocal health department to DHHR. Visitthe dashboard at http://www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more detailed information.

On July 24,2020, Gov. Jim Justice announced that DHHR, the agency in charge of reportingthe number of COVID-19 cases, will transition from providing twice-dailyupdates to one report every 24 hours. This became effective August 1, 2020.

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COVID-19 Daily Update 8-7-2020 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources

The West Virginia Department of Health andHuman Resources (DHHR) reports as of 10:00 a.m., on August 5,2020, there have been 302,443 total confirmatorylaboratory results received for COVID-19, with 7,159 totalcases and 124 deaths.

In alignment with updated definitions fromthe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the dashboard includes probablecases which are individuals that have symptoms and either serologic (antibody)or epidemiologic (e.g., a link to a confirmed case) evidence of disease, but noconfirmatory test.

CASESPER COUNTY (Case confirmed by lab test/Probable case):Barbour (30/0), Berkeley (643/27), Boone (92/0), Braxton (8/0), Brooke(60/1), Cabell (353/9), Calhoun (6/0), Clay (17/1), Doddridge (4/0), Fayette(134/0), Gilmer (16/0), Grant (88/1), Greenbrier (88/0), Hampshire (75/0),Hancock (102/4), Hardy (53/1), Harrison (203/1), Jackson (158/0), Jefferson(287/5), Kanawha (843/13), Lewis (27/1), Lincoln (75/0), Logan (162/0), Marion(175/4), Marshall (126/3), Mason (51/0), McDowell (47/1), Mercer (173/0),Mineral (114/2), Mingo (151/2), Monongalia (913/16), Monroe (18/1), Morgan(25/1), Nicholas (32/1), Ohio (262/1), Pendleton (41/1), Pleasants (8/1),Pocahontas (40/1), Preston (102/23), Putnam (173/1), Raleigh (200/7), Randolph(203/3), Ritchie (3/0), Roane (14/0), Summers (7/0), Taylor (54/1), Tucker(11/0), Tyler (12/0), Upshur (36/3), Wayne (192/2), Webster (3/0), Wetzel(40/0), Wirt (6/0), Wood (228/12), Wyoming (24/0).

As case surveillance continues at thelocal health department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certaincounty may not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individualin question may have crossed the state border to be tested.

Pleasenote that delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from thelocal health department to DHHR. Visitthe dashboard at http://www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more detailed information.

On July 24,2020, Gov. Jim Justice announced that DHHR, the agency in charge of reportingthe number of COVID-19 cases, will transition from providing twice-dailyupdates to one report every 24 hours. This became effective August 1, 2020.

Visit link:

COVID-19 Daily Update 8-5-2020 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources

People wear masks as they walk through an outdoor market in Brazil, a country that has seen skyrocketing numbers of COVID-19 cases. Getty Images

UC San Francisco has spearheaded campaigns across the globe to stop the spread of deadly diseases such as malaria, measles and AIDS in developing countries. Now UCSFs Institute for Global Health Sciences (IGHS) is building upon lessons learned to help low- and middle-income countries fight COVID-19, a disease that hits the poorest among us the hardest.

The Bay Areas success flattening the COVID curve during the spring meant UCSF could send teams to New York and the Navajo Nation to support weary health workers. But even as the SARS-CoV-2 virus is spiking in California and across the U.S., global health leaders say our experience as challenging as it is may pale in comparison to the outbreaks developing in countries with fewer resources.

COVID-19 wreaks its greatest havoc on communities of color, sickening and killing Latinx and Black people in the U.S. at numbers significantly higher than those of white people, due to social and racial injustices. Such inequities are even more stark in developing countries where hospitals are few, food is scarce, and struggling families earn less than $5 a day. Experts predict the number of deaths from COVID-19 will be far worse in poorer nations compared to wealthier ones where 100 to 1,000 times more is spent per person per year on health care.

Everyone in global health is incredibly conscious that this is an unfolding catastrophe. The numbers in Brazil have been rocketing upwards. India and all its neighbors are facing an explosive pandemic, said Sir Richard Feachem, PhD, DSc, director of the Global Health Group (GHG), an IGHS action tank that translates bold ideas in global health into large-scale operations that impact millions of people. Not only will the coronavirus cause much sickness and death, but we also face major setbacks in malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, and childhood immunization, to name four, because health systems are overwhelmed and supply chains disrupted.

It is the worsening crisis along the U.S. border with our southern neighbor that worries Jaime Sepulveda, MD, MPH, DrSc, MSc, the IGHS executive director and Haile T. Debas Distinguished Professor in Global Health Sciences. As of Aug. 2, Mexico had 424,600 cases and 46,700 deaths, a toll that is now third highest in the world, behind the U.S. with the most deaths followed by Brazil. Sepulveda, who served as director-general of Mexicos National Institute of Public Health, has traveled to Tijuana, Mexico, several times since last fall to visit the detention and refugee camps.

It is the perfect storm for having a huge outbreak in those squalid camps, where thousands and thousands of people are living in miserable conditions crowding, no water, no sanitation. If nothing is done, he predicted, there is a risk of large outbreaks and continuing chains of transmission among migrant families. The consequences are dire indeed.

Since April, IGHS has mobilized its international partners, resources and expertise to fight the coronavirus in Africa, Central America and South Asia under the leadership of Feachem and Sepulveda. Experience gained in malaria eradication and AIDS control around the world has given these global veterans technical know-how, expertise in building systems to tackle disease outbreaks, and strong partnerships with other like-minded organizations to combat COVID-19. Their record speaks for itself: Working with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the GHG and its partners cut worldwide malaria incidence by 36 percent and death rates by 60 percent since 2000. Today, more than half of the worlds countries are malaria-free largely due to the on-the-ground efforts of this team.

Those working in the global sphere know that measures that slow disease spread in richer nations, i.e. lockdowns, will not work in poorer ones where many citizens are day laborers living in crowded, urban slums. Lockdown is a middle-class luxury that would lead to starvation and misery on an extraordinary scale in these countries, Feachem said, so we are relying on other measures and other combinations of interventions to slow transmission.

Lockdown is a middle-class luxury that would lead to starvation and misery on an extraordinary scale in these countries, so we are relying on other measures and other combinations of interventions to slow transmission.

Sir Richard Feachem, PhD, DSc

Jeremy Alberga, the GHGs deputy director, said each country is developing its own pandemic playbook that uses surveillance, diagnostic tools and therapeutic remedies to inform public health responses and conserve scarce resources. Working closely with partners IDinsight and Evidence Action in Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe and India, UCSF has launched the Pandemic Community Response and Resilience Initiative, which employs a three-pronged approach:

Longtime global health supporter Unorthodox Philanthropy fully supports the IGHSs efforts to develop community-based COVID-19 responses, knowing its $200,000 investment goes further in poorer countries. "With more than a decade at the forefront of fighting infectious diseases, the Global Health Group knows how to help countries find their own path to fight the novel coronavirus, the foundation said in a statement. The GHG is expert at taking scientific research and translating it into actionable policy that meets each nation's particular needs.

Public radio producer Wendy Holcombe, a member of the IGHSs leadership council, and her husband, Carl Kawaja, chairman of Capital Research and Management Company and a member of the UCSF Board of Overseers, are enthusiastic supporters of UCSFs global efforts, and gave $500,000 in 2020.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has made clear the vital importance of the institutes work, Holcombe said. We admire the team and want to support them as they tackle COVID-19 and other global health challenges of the future. We also recognize that because were located in this unique ecosystem of the Bay Area, we can take advantage of the knowledge and skills here to make positive changes around the world."

Feachem and Sepulveda say that until a vaccine is discovered and distributed, their efforts will require buying testing kits, identifying infected individuals, tracing contacts, isolating and treating those who are sick, and implementing basic hygiene measures. Both leaders are turning to their networks, including the 300 Global Health Institute-affiliated faculty members, and philanthropic partners to help advance these crucial endeavors.

For those in the global sphere, COVID-19 has thrown into stark relief a maxim they already knew was true: We all sink or we all swim. Were in this together, Feachem said. Noting how the virus spread to every country in the world in its first three months, he added, There's no wall that any country can build to protect itself from COVID-19 or the next pandemic, which could be worse.

Both Feachem and Sepulveda somberly noted that the toll from paused efforts to fight other infectious diseases like measles, AIDS, and malaria could be even higher than that of COVID-19. But they agree that today the priority is to get a grip on this deadly virus as cases continue to climb around the world.

We need to be working with other countries and the World Health Organization to bring the numbers down, Feachem said. When we have new drugs, we must distribute them widely, and when we have a vaccine, we must distribute it widely. This really is a collective enterprise.

Sepulveda wholeheartedly agreed. This is the fastest expanding pandemic mankind has ever seen. But eventually we will conquer the virus, as we have done with every other bug in history. It will be at a huge cost to society. And when we emerge, it will be a new world.

Continued here:

UCSF's Global Health Institute Fights COVID-19 Around the World - UCSF News Services

Posted: Aug 8, 2020 / 07:43 AM EDT / Updated: Aug 8, 2020 / 07:43 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) Ohio Gov. Mike DeWines positive-then-negative test results for the coronavirus are a reminder that no test is definitive.

The governor tested positive using a rapid test Thursday, before testing negative later in the day using a more sensitive laboratory-developed test. He was tested because he was going to meet with President Donald Trump during his visit to the state.

No test for coronavirus infection is perfect, and test results can be affected by a variety of factors, including the type of test used, the quality of the sample and when it was taken during the course of any infection.

A look at the types of tests currently used to diagnose COVID-19:

ANTIGEN TEST

DeWine initially received an antigen test, a type of rapid test that uses similar technology for screening for flu, strep throat and other infections on small machines at doctors offices.

Instead of detecting the virus itself, such tests look for proteins, or antigens, found on the surface of the virus, which are generally considered a less accurate measure of infection. The test, which uses a nasal swab, takes about 15 minutes.

The tests are relatively new in the U.S. and federal regulators have only allowed two on the market, from manufacturers Quidel and Becton Dickinson. DeWine spokesman Dan Tierney said a Quidel test was used for DeWine; a spokesman for Quidel said the company is looking into the matter.

The biggest risk with antigen tests is that they may deliver false negatives, missing real COVID-19 infections. But they are considered very accurate for ruling out the virus when it is not present, making false positive results highly unlikely.

Some experts have been calling for increased use of antigen tests because they can be developed quickly, avoiding the delayed results frequently seen with higher-grade tests that must be shipped to a laboratory for processing.

GENETIC TEST

After testing positive with the antigen test, DeWine said he and his wife received a genetic, laboratory-developed test that came back negative. This is the most commonly used test in the U.S. and is considered the gold standard for accuracy.

A nasal swab is mixed with chemicals to isolate any genetic material of coronavirus. Laboratory equipment is used to amplify the material millions of times, until it is detectable with a computer.

These tests take several hours to process and are done at large laboratories, hospitals or universities. They are considered the best method for both detecting whether the virus is present and ruling it out if theres no infection.

A third type of test uses technology similar to the genetic test but speeds up the process dramatically to deliver results in about 15 minutes. These tests done on small machines are used at the White House and at nursing homes to rapidly screen for the virus. But federal regulators consider them slightly less sensitive than the conventional laboratory test.

In either case, accuracy can be affected by a faulty nasal swab and where the person is in terms of the course of the infection. Even the most accurate genetic test usually only begins detecting virus three to five days after initial infection, when levels are high enough to be picked up.

Farnoush Amiri contributed to this report from Columbus, Ohio.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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Ohio governors COVID-19 results show tests imperfections - WANE

The NFL and the NFL Players Association have tweaked their coronavirus testing procedures in an attempt to separate "false-positive" results from active infections, the league said in a memo sent to clubs Friday.

The policy will apply to any Tier 1 or Tier 2 employee -- including all players and coaches -- who produces a positive test but is asymptomatic and has no known history of a coronavirus infection. If the person meets those criteria, the league will require two additional tests within 24 hours. If both of those tests come back negative, the person will be allowed to resume normal activity.

List of NFL players who are opting out Could players wear masks during season? Football historians discuss 1918 pandemic No bubble for NFL play? Why league said no Calendar: Coronavirus-impacted schedules

The change comes less than a week after Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list because of one positive test during the league's training camp intake process. Stafford later tested negative three times and was reinstated to the active roster.

Dr. Allen Sills, the NFL's chief medical officer, said Friday that the league has conducted 75,000 tests in the past two weeks and remains committed to evolving the league's policy whenever necessary.

"We've always wanted to make sure that we provide the most accurate test results," Sills said. "In doing 75,000 tests over the first two weeks, you collect a lot of learning. We are constantly looking at all aspects of the protocol and how we can make it better. ...

"What we're trying to do here is be really, radically transparent. We're trying to tell you, 'This is what we're learning and seeing in real time, here are the steps we're making to adjust.' And I expect that process to continue over the course of this season."

The NFLPA announced Thursday on its website that 56 players have tested positive since the start of training camp. Sills declined to confirm that number, however. He said that IQVIA, the league's health data analyst, is in the process of reconciling positive test numbers to understand how many revealed actual infections and how many were either "persistent" -- a result of a previous infection that is no longer active -- or otherwise inconclusive. The league is not using the term "false positive," an NFL adviser said, because the tests are considered accurate but sometimes identify remnants of an inactive infection or, in some cases, an immunological response to a virus other than COVID-19.

To this point, NFL players had been placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list if they had any positive test or if they were determined to have had close contact with someone who was infected.

In the memo, the NFL also reminded teams that all Tier 1 and Tier 2 employees must wear masks inside their team buildings, and that a face shield is not an acceptable substitute. Also, the league continued to encourage players to test out custom Oakley mouth shields that can be attached to their helmets. Another suggested option is to wear a neck gaiter. Neither is required, however.

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NFL, NFLPA agree to tweak COVID-19 testing protocols - ESPN

Rob Gregson, 52, of South Orange, N.J., went to bed feeling under the weather and woke up with chest tightness, a weird cough, difficulty breathing and crazy fatigue. It was March 11, just before lockdowns were imposed, and he immediately suspected Covid-19. But because he never had a fever, it took him more than a week to find a doctor to help and get a swab test. He tested positive.

Its been the fatigue that is the most debilitating, said Mr. Gregson, executive director of a faith-based nonprofit, adding that hes still struggling to regain his stamina nearly five months later. Ive been on the coronavirus roller coaster, feeling better and thinking Ill be OK, then it comes roaring back.

When Erin, a 30-year-old who works for a nonprofit in Washington, D.C., first developed a cough and headache in May, she wasnt worried. I did not have a fever, and Id been very diligent about wearing a mask and washing my hands, so I figured it was allergies or a cold at the beginning, she said.

About four days after the cough began, Erin was hit with severe fatigue, sore throat, congestion, chills, body aches and a slight loss of sense of smell but still no fever. She also had one unusual symptom: severe pain in her hip muscles, which she described as really weird.

Although body aches are a common symptom of Covid-19, some patients are reporting severe joint and body pain, particularly in large muscles. Although its rare, Covid-19 can cause painful inflammation in the joints or lead to rhabdomyolysis, a serious and potentially life-threatening illness that can cause excruciating muscle pain in the shoulders, thighs or lower back.

A New York cyclist who developed severe leg pain in May was initially diagnosed via telemedicine with a bulging disc. She sought a second telemedicine opinion with Dr. Jordan Metzl, a sports medicine specialist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, who asked her to move, twist and put pressure on her legs as he watched her on video.

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The Many Symptoms of Covid-19 - The New York Times

In almost all Oregon counties, on-site dining is allowed in some form: Restaurants can open their indoor dining rooms with socially distanced tables, or begin serving customers outside on patios. However, with more than 20,000 total cases, Oregon isnt out of the woods with COVID-19. And the role Oregon restaurants and bars play in the spread of COVID-19 is unclear, mostly because according to a senior health advisor at the Oregon Health Authority contact tracers arent asking Oregonians which restaurants theyve visited, if any.

In an OPB story, OHA advisor Ann Thomas says that the states overworked contact tracers arent asking about restaurants or bars during case interviews, partially because of the already lengthy interview process. We cant ask every little thing that you and I think of or would like to know, Thomas told the NPR affiliate. We dont ask if you were in a bar or restaurant.

The spread of COVID-19 at bars and restaurants, however, is more than hypothetical; many states across the country have attributed specific outbreaks and resurgences of COVID-19 cases to dining at restaurants at bars. In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott attributed a June surge in cases to 20-somethings going to bars, and in Louisiana, health officials tied at least 100 coronavirus cases to bars, according to the New York Times.

When the employees of a restaurant contract COVID-19 and it spreads within the workplace, the Oregon Health Authority will include that restaurant in its weekly report; for instance, there are 14 cases traced to a McDonalds in Umatilla County. However, OPB reports that the Oregon Health Authority does not notify the patrons of restaurants with workplace outbreaks. We just dont have the manpower, Oregon state epidemiologist Dean Sidelinger told OPB. But that certainly doesnt mean theres been transmission in those settings.

Then again, getting clear lists of patrons at a restaurant or bar at a given time is difficult in Oregon; unlike states like Washington, Oregon bar and restaurant owners dont need to keep a list of patrons for contact tracing measures. Most Oregon restaurants and bars remain open for dine-in service, excluding Umatilla County.

Oregon health officials are adamant that there is no indication of significant spread traced back to restaurants or bars. What happens is, you find out that two people who work together in a bar had COVID. But they probably got it from their roommates, Thomas told OPB. We arent seeing a week later that you have 20 patrons who got it.

Is indoor dining safe? Oregons data cant say [OPB] Is It Safe to Eat at Restaurants Yet? [E] OHA COVID-19 News [Official] All Eyes on Bars as Virus Surges and Americans Go Drinking [NYT] Oregon COVID-19 status [JHU] Oregon Phase One restaurant guidance [OHA]

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Contact Tracers Arent Asking COVID-19-Positive Oregonians If Theyve Visited Restaurants - Eater Portland

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Harper's Restaurant photographed on Tuesday, June 23, 2020, in East Lansing.(Photo: Nick King/Lansing State Journal)

EAST LANSING Over the course of about a month, nearly 200 people from 18 counties tested positive for COVID-19 in connectionwith an outbreak at Harper's Brewpub.

The outbreak, which gained national media attention, infected 192 people, according to a state epidemiology report.

Of those infected, 146 visited the bar while it was open between June 8and June 20. Another 46 were infected after coming into contact with those people.

Read the latest on the outbreak: Harper's owners defend safety of bar before liquor commission after COVID-19 outbreak

To date, no one has been hospitalized as a result of the outbreak, though most of those infected have shown symptoms.

Here's what else the state report, shared by Ingham County Health Officer Linda Vail, reveals about the outbreak.

According to the report, there was a little more than a month between the first person showing symptoms and the person with thelast confirmed case either being referred to take a test or taking a test.

People who were at the bar started showing symptoms as soon as June 13 five daysafter the bar reopenedand as late as July 30.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the incubation period for COVID-19 is as long as two weeks, with a median time of four to five days from exposure to symptoms onset.

The onset of symptoms spiked on June 21.

This graph shows when people infected in the Harper's outbreak started showing symptoms.(Photo: Courtesy of Ingham County Health Department)

The people they went on to infect started showing symptoms as early as June 18 and as late as July 5.

People who were referred for a test without first showing symptoms got a doctor's order or simply took the test as early as June 15.

This graph shows when people infected in the Harper's outbreak were referred for a COVID-19 test.(Photo: Courtesy of Ingham County Health Department)

Referrals spiked on June 25 and 26 after the increasing number of cases received widespread publicity.

The final referral related to the outbreak was on July 15.

Though no one infected had symptoms serious enough to go to the hospital, the majority of those infected as part of the outbreakdid get sick.

About 73% of people who tested positive in relation to the outbreak reported symptoms.

The most common symptoms were:

There is overlap in symptoms, which is why the percentageswhen added are greater than 100%.

No one showed evidence of pneumonia or reported acute respiratory distress, sepsis, organ failure, encephalitis or seizure.

Most people who were infected as a result of the outbreak were young, white adults.

The age of all those infected ranged from 3 to 79 years old, with 11 people age 50 or older testing positive through secondary contact with the virus.

People who were infected at the bar were 18 to 28 years old.

Nearly everyone infected was white about 87% of all those who tested positive.

Less than 10% combined were Black or Asian, and 3.6% identify themselves by more than one race or a race other than those listed in the report.

No one identified as Native American, Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.

People from 18 counties were infected, including two counties in which residents were only infected secondarily.

No one listed a county in the Upper Peninsula as their primary county of residence.

There were no secondary cases in Berrien, Kalamazoo, Lapeer, Livingston, Manistee, Midland, Ottawa or St. Clair county residents

There were only secondary cases in Isabella and Sanilac county residents.

The report doesn't make it clear whether secondary cases happened after people traveled or whether those people were infected in Ingham County and simply list the other counties as their primary place of residence.

There is no discussionof the outbreak just statistics in the report, which is dated July 24.

Contact reporter Megan Banta at mbanta@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @MeganBanta_1.

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Harper's COVID-19 outbreak: What a state report shows about who got infected and when - Lansing State Journal

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Austin nutrition expert talks Quarantine-15 and helping recovering COVID-19 patients eat healthy - KXAN.com

Hospitalizations for COVID-19 in Maine remained at low levels this week, and slightly below those of last week.

The key metric, which typically lags exposure to the disease by one to three weeks, had generally fallen for more than a month and has been at low levels since the end of May, even as summer tourism season has progressed here and the disease has surged to crisis levels in other parts of the country.

Maine Medical Center, which has handled nearly half the states coronavirus burden through most of the crisis, had an average of 4.7 confirmed COVID-19 inpatients each day for the week ending Thursday, up slightly from 4.6 last week but far below its peak daily census counts of 35 set on both April 7 and May 25.

Central Maine Medical Center had an average of 3.3 COVID-19 inpatients a day, essentially unchanged from 3.4 last week. The Lewiston hospital has now seen the third largest pandemic inpatient burden overall after Maine Med and Southern Maine Health Care Medical Center in Biddeford. But the citys other hospital, St. Marys, hasnt had a COVID-19 inpatient since July 26.

Mid Coast Hospital in Brunswick had its busiest week since May with 1.4 COVID-19 inpatients a day but ended the period with no inpatients.

Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor hasnt had such a patient since July 31 after having at least one each day since the middle of June. MaineGeneral in Augusta, which had been the third most affected hospital in the state, hasnt had an inpatient with the disease since July 27.

Portlands Mercy Hospital had an average of 0.7 inpatients a day for the period, while York Countys largest hospital, SMHC Medical Center, had an average of 0.6 per day, up slightly from 0.3 the previous week.

York Hospital in York hasnt reported a COVID-19 inpatient since June 22.

Bridgton Hospital had an average of 0.9 such inpatients a day after not having one since June 22, but three other hospitals that had reported having patients during June Rumford, and Waldo in Belfast and Franklin Memorial in Farmington had none for the week.

Hospitalizations can end three ways: recovery, death or transfer to another facility. The data does not include outpatients or inpatients who were suspected of having the virus but never tested.

The Press Heralds survey is for the seven days ending Aug. 6. It compiles data received directly from the hospitals and hospital networks. It includes most, but not all, of the states hospitals, but accounts for the vast majority of the statewide hospitalizations reported each week by the Maine CDC.

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COVID-19 hospitalizations remain low in Maine for another week - Press Herald