Category Archives: Covid-19

Ryan Seacrest and Lucy Hale chat with USA TODAY's Ralphie Aversa about safety preparations for ringing in 2021 on "Dick Clark New Year's Rockin' Eve." USA TODAY

Joe and Jill Biden proved they can speak from anywhere with their final interview of 2020 on "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest."

That now includesspeaking with their image broadcast from a giant Times Square Jumbotron, answering questions from a winter jacket-wearing Ryan Seacrest perched onthe opposite end of the surreally deserted square.

While Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper were throwing back tequila shots on CNN's Times Square broadcast, Seacrest gave the introduction, "This is a first, joining us right now are President-Elect Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden."

It wasn't clear which part Seacrestmeant by"first," but the future leader of the free world taking questions over anempty Times Squarewas certainly novel, and odd.

But it's (the end of)2020. So after awkward hellosand stumbling congratulations, the Bidens got cooking and made it work.

Ryan Seacrest: On 'New Year's Rockin' Eve' safety protocols, Biden interview

Ryan Seacrest interviews Joe and Jill Biden from across Times Square.(Photo: Jeff Neira, ABC)

Seacrest had previously told USA TODAY thatthe interview would allow Joe Biden to honorthe nation's healthcare and frontline workers during the deadly pandemic. The few people allowed to gather atthe iconic New York destinationwere a collection of first responders, medical workers and their families.

Biden followed through with stirring words like "bravery resides in every heart and someday it will be summoned."

"The people we are honoring tonight were summoned and they stepped up and they were brave. They have done so much. They risked their lives. We owe them," said Biden. "They brought the country together. Its a big deal."

Jill Biden, not a fan of needles, discussed receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

"You have to take it. And it doesnt hurt. I promise," she said.

President-elect Joe Biden and wife Jill Biden gave their last interview of 2020.(Photo: Jeff Neira, ABC)

"She hates needles, so thats saying something," interrupted her husband.

"It doesnt hurt and I didn'thave any after affects," Jill Biden added. "Everybody has to take it, so that we all can be safe."

Joe Biden then knocked out a softball question about the future of a country facing an out-of-control pandemic among other crises. He trotted the bases in the interviewthat aired minutesbefore the ball dropped on Times Square to welcome 2021.

"Im more optimistic about Americas chances than Ive ever been. And Ive been around this for a while," Bidensaid. "Theres never been a single thing that America has been unable able to overcome, no matter how drastic its been, when we have all worked together. And I'm absolutely positive were going to come back even stronger than we were before."

Jill Biden ended the interview attempting to set off aparty popper. Naturally, it made no noise, prompting laughter from the amused couple.

"Theynever work right," said Seacrest. "Here's to better luck in the new year."

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Joe and Jill Biden talk COVID-19 heroes, vaccines in odd, Jumbotron 'New Year's Rockin' Eve' interview - USA TODAY

News Release

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Results from a study of 19 deceased patients suggests brain damage is a byproduct of a patients illness.

In an in-depth study of how COVID-19 affects a patients brain, National Institutes of Health researchers consistently spotted hallmarks of damage caused by thinning and leaky brain blood vessels in tissue samples from patients who died shortly after contracting the disease. In addition, they saw no signs of SARS-CoV-2 in the tissue samples, suggesting the damage was not caused by a direct viral attack on the brain. The results were published as a correspondence in the New England Journal of Medicine.

We found that the brains of patients who contract infection from SARS-CoV-2 may be susceptible to microvascular blood vessel damage. Our results suggest that this may be caused by the bodys inflammatory response to the virus said Avindra Nath, M.D., clinical director at the NIHs National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and the senior author of the study. We hope these results will help doctors understand the full spectrum of problems patients may suffer so that we can come up with better treatments.

Although COVID-19 is primarily a respiratory disease, patients often experience neurological problems including headaches, delirium, cognitive dysfunction, dizziness, fatigue, and loss of the sense of smell. The disease may also cause patients to suffer strokes and other neuropathologies.

Several studies have shown that the disease can cause inflammation and blood vessel damage. In one of these studies, the researchers found evidence of small amounts of SARS-CoV-2 in some patients brains. Nevertheless, scientists are still trying to understand how the disease affects the brain.

In this study, the researchers conducted an in-depth examination of brain tissue samples from 19 patients who had died after experiencing COVID-19 between March and July 2020. Samples from 16 of the patients were provided by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in New York City while the other 3 cases were provided by the department of pathology at the University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City. The patients died at a wide range of ages, from 5 to 73 years old. They died within a few hours to two months after reporting symptoms. Many patients had one or more risk factors, including diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Eight of the patients were found dead at home or in public settings. Another three patients collapsed and died suddenly.

Initially, the researchers used a special, high-powered magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner that is 4 to 10 times more sensitive than most MRI scanners, to examine samples of the olfactory bulbs and brainstems from each patient. These regions are thought to be highly susceptible to COVID-19. Olfactory bulbs control our sense of smell while the brainstem controls our breathing and heart rate. The scans revealed that both regions had an abundance of bright spots, called hyperintensities, that often indicate inflammation, and dark spots, called hypointensities, that represent bleeding.

The researchers then used the scans as a guide to examine the spots more closely under a microscope. They found that the bright spots contained blood vessels that were thinner than normal and sometimes leaking blood proteins, like fibrinogen, into the brain. This appeared to trigger an immune reaction. The spots were surrounded by T cells from the blood and the brains own immune cells called microglia. In contrast, the dark spots contained both clotted and leaky blood vessels but no immune response.

We were completely surprised. Originally, we expected to see damage that is caused by a lack of oxygen. Instead, we saw multifocal areas of damage that is usually associated with strokes and neuroinflammatory diseases, said Dr. Nath.

Finally, the researchers saw no signs of infection in the brain tissue samples even though they used several methods for detecting genetic material or proteins from SARS-CoV-2.

So far, our results suggest that the damage we saw may not have been not caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus directly infecting the brain, said Dr. Nath. In the future, we plan to study how COVID-19 harms the brains blood vessels and whether that produces some of the short- and long-term symptoms we see in patients.

This study was supported by NIH Intramural Research Program at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NS003130) and an NIH grant (NS109284).

NINDS (https://www.ninds.nih.gov) is the nations leading funder of research on the brain and nervous system.The mission of NINDS is to seek fundamental knowledge about the brain and nervous system and to use that knowledge to reduce the burden of neurological disease.

About the National Institute on Aging (NIA):NIA leads the U.S. federal government effort to conduct and support research on aging and the health and well-being of older people. Learn more about age-related cognitive change and neurodegenerative diseases via NIAsAlzheimer's and related Dementias Education and Referral (ADEAR) Centerwebsite. For information about a broad range of aging topics, visit themain NIA websiteandstay connected.

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

Lee MH, Perl DP, Nair G, Li W, Maric D, Murray H, Dodd SJ, Koretsky AP, Watts JA, Cheung V, Masliah E, Horkayne-Szakaly I, Jones R, Stram MN, Moncur J, Hefti M, Folkerth RD, Nath A. Microvascular Injury in the Brains of Patients with COVID-19. New England Journal of Medicine, December 30, 2020 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMc2033369.

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NIH study uncovers blood vessel damage and inflammation in COVID-19 patients' brains but no infection - National Institutes of Health

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, received his first dose of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine. USA TODAY

This story is part of the Reno Gazette Journal's essential coronavirus coverage, and will be updated with the latest information available.Pleaseconsider subscribing to support our work.

Northern Nevada received its first doses of Pfizer'scoronavirus vaccine on Dec. 15, with the first shotsadministered two days later. Since then, doses of a second vaccine by Moderna also have been administered locally. Like all states, Nevada has sorted its residents into tiers of eligibility for the vaccine and as of Dec. 31, only individuals in Tier 1 are eligible.

For now, there are no specificdates for when Tiers 2 through 4 will be eligible to receive the vaccine; the Washoe County Health District on Dec. 31 said Tier 2 vaccinations are expected to begin in late January.Washoe County Health District Officer Kevin Dick has said that individuals in Tier 4, the final tier, likely would begin receiving the vaccine by late spring or early summer.

Several factors will determine how quickly vaccines will become available for each tier, including how quickly the vaccines can be manufactured, how many prospective vaccines receive approval, and how many individuals in each tier choose to be vaccinated.

Details are still incomplete on the rollout procedure and timeline, but here's what we know now.

More: Nevada updates COVID-19 vaccination structure, moves 75 and older to Tier 2

Nevada submitted its distribution game plan and four-tier system to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Oct. 16, and released details to the public on Oct. 26. The plan prioritized health care workers, essential workers and those with health conditions ahead of healthy adults.

The structure underwent one significant change on Dec. 30, updating Tier 2 to include individuals 75 and older a move that opened the door to the possibility offurther updates to the tier structure as the vaccination program progresses.

The Washoe County Health District on Dec. 31 said that employers will be tasked with notifying employees on how to receive the vaccine once they're eligible.

For Tier 1 vaccinations, Nevada National Guard members are stationed at the entrance to vaccination locations to check identification and verify employment. It's unclear at this time how individuals will be asked to identify themselves as an employee in a Tier 2 or 3 profession.

More: Nevada updates COVID-19 vaccination structure, moves 75 and older to Tier 2

Here's how the tiers are comprised as of Dec. 31:

Tier 1 (173,000+individuals)

Tier 1 vaccinations have begun.

Tier 2 (270,000+individuals)

Tier 2 vaccinations are expected to begin in late January.

Tier 3 (estimated 2,150,000+ individuals)

Tier 3 vaccinations are expected to begin in early spring.

Tier 4 (all remaining adults)

Tier 4 vaccinations are expected to begin in late spring or early summer.

Children under 18 were notpart of the initial coronavirus vaccine trials for the Moderna vaccine, and children under 16 were not part of the Pfizer vaccine trials. One estimated date for approval of the vaccines for children is late 2021.

More: Washoe prepares to dispense vaccines for Tier 2, which now includes those 75 and older

There will be no charge for vaccinations, according to a Dec. 29 press release from Nevada Health Response. The cost will be paid through private insurance, Nevada Medicaid and/or the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange.

It's important to note that, as of Dec. 31, there is no announced date to begin vaccination of individuals at Washoe Countypharmacies. Kevin Dick said Wednesday that 43 local pharmacies will participate in dispensing Tier 2 vaccines, but did not identify the pharmacies.

According to corporate websites, CVS,Rite Aid, Target and Walgreens have posted information on possible participation in vaccinations.

Brett McGinness is the engagement editor for the Reno Gazette Journal. He's also the writer of The Reno Memo a free newsletter about news in the Biggest Little City. Subscribe to the newsletter right here. Consider supporting the Reno Gazette Journal,too.

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When will the COVID-19 vaccine be available in Washoe County? Here's what we know - Reno Gazette Journal

Alaskans 65 and older will be the next group eligible for early doses of the coronavirus vaccine, state health officials announced Thursday.

Once the majority of seniors who want vaccines are able to access them, next up will be prison inmates, correctional officers and residents of homeless shelters, as well as frontline essential workers age 50 and older including teachers, emergency responders and seafood industry workers whose work is performed on-site and in close proximity to the public or to co-workers.

After that, according to a list released Thursday by the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, the next eligible group will be Alaskans between the age of 55 and 64, those who live in rural communities where theres limited access to running water and sanitation facilities, and frontline essential workers with public-facing jobs who are between 16 and 50 and have two or more high-risk health conditions.

A fourth phase will include persons 50 and older who have two or more high-risk health conditions, and all other public-facing frontline essential workers between 16 and 50 years old.

[Read the full Phase 1B guidelines here.]

The states decision to prioritize the elderly for vaccines before many non-health-care frontline workers puts Alaska in a small group of states that have diverged from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that put frontline essential workers in the same group as those 75 and older, and before those 65 and older.

Dr. Anne Zink, the states chief medical officer, said Thursday that Alaska officials made this prioritization decision because most of the states oldest residents are cared for at home instead of in nursing homes or assisted living facilities, which means that while other states have already vaccinated many in this group, Alaska has not.

This was an attempt to try to get to that high-risk group overall, she said.

Seniors also make up the vast majority of the states virus-related deaths and hospitalizations, she said.

It wasnt immediately clear when the next phase of immunizations will start. Zink did not immediately announce a timeline, but said seniors would likely begin receiving vaccinations in late January or early February.

There are about 90,000 Alaskans who are over 65, Zink said a relatively large group that will likely take at least all of February to get through. However, many seniors in long-term care facilities have already been vaccinated.

And many tribal health organizations have already begun vaccinating their elders, too: The state has no say over vaccine allocated by the Indian Health Service, so those officials are able to move more quickly and prioritize differently.

The states current plan is to work through the first group (seniors) as quickly as possible, and then move one by one through the next tiers, Zink said.

She said that it does not mean that every person 65 and older has to to be vaccinated for the next group to begin.

As soon as tier one is starting to not fill up appointments and slow down, then tier two opens up, she said.

The same process will follow for the additional tiers that make up Phase 1B, she said.

She said it was difficult to estimate how long it will take to move through this entire phase, but itd probably be a few months.

Phase 1B is decently large, Zink said. It will take a bit.

She added that the current plan could change as needed. The state advisory committee will meet again next month to determine who will be eligible for the vaccine next, including essential workers who dont work in close proximity with one another or the public.

The first groups in Alaska to become eligible for vaccine in December were hospital-based frontline health care workers, residents and staff at long-term care facilities, emergency personnel, community health aides and people performing vaccinations currently eligible to receive it.

Beginning Jan. 4, another tier of people in the states first phase will start receiving vaccines. That group includes people who work in health care settings who are at the highest risk of getting COVID-19, are considered essential to the health care system and do regular work that cant be postponed or done remotely.

Alaska received more than 60,000 doses in December. Officials this week said they expect another 52,900 next month. So far, 13,772 people have been immunized less than a quarter of the states initial allotment.

When asked why it was taking so long to get vaccine out to Alaskans, Zink said it was a matter of logistics: strict temperature restrictions for the vaccines, not knowing what the states numbers would be or what day the shipments would be arriving until the last minute, and having to build up a response very quickly.

Its taking longer than I was expecting or hoping, she said. Our team is working incredibly hard to overcome (those challenges).

Daily News reporter Zaz Hollander contributed.

[Read the states latest allocation plan below:]

Read more from the original source:

Alaskans over 65 will be the next group eligible for COVID-19 vaccine, followed by 'frontline essential workers' and others - Anchorage Daily News

Doyle Coleman, chief medical officer, begins to layer on protective gear to treat a COVID-19 patient. All of the gear must be put on before entering the room, and taken off immediately after leaving. Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

Doyle Coleman, chief medical officer, begins to layer on protective gear to treat a COVID-19 patient. All of the gear must be put on before entering the room, and taken off immediately after leaving.

When the coronavirus hit the U.S., hospitals issued strict limitations on visitors. Nurses and doctors started acting as liaisons to the sick and dying for family members not allowed at bedsides. As deaths reach new daily highs, that work is not getting any easier. The emotional toil of adapting to new dynamics with patients and families at one rural hospital in Livingston, Mont., is a case study of what health care workers are grappling with all over the country.

Framed by the rugged Absaroka Mountains in south-central Montana, Livingston HealthCare looks more like an upscale ski chalet than a medical facility. It's one of more than 1,300 critical access hospitals in the U.S., which are federally designated to increase health care access in rural areas. Here, the hospital has 25 beds and serves a huge region about twice the size of Rhode Island but with a population just shy of 17,000.

Livingston HealthCare is one of more than 1,300 critical access hospitals in the U.S. Built in 2015, it serves an area twice the size of Rhode Island, home to about 17,000 people. Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

Livingston HealthCare is one of more than 1,300 critical access hospitals in the U.S. Built in 2015, it serves an area twice the size of Rhode Island, home to about 17,000 people.

It's about an hour drive north of Yellowstone National Park, and the walls are dotted with images of trout and breathtaking vistas.

On this windy, wintry mid-December day, three beds here are occupied by COVID-19 patients.

End-of-life care

Assistant Director of Nursing Jenn Schmid is in one of Livingston HealthCare's two ICU rooms. Before COVID-19, Schmidt's job was mostly administrative but she stepped in to fill the hospital's need during the area's coronavirus surges. One duty she took up was spending time with families as they said farewell to loved ones through the ICU's glass windows. Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

Assistant Director of Nursing Jenn Schmid is in one of Livingston HealthCare's two ICU rooms. Before COVID-19, Schmidt's job was mostly administrative but she stepped in to fill the hospital's need during the area's coronavirus surges. One duty she took up was spending time with families as they said farewell to loved ones through the ICU's glass windows.

Jenn Schmid, the assistant director of nursing, is standing outside large windows that offer a view inside the hospital's two ICU rooms. This is the epicenter of the pandemic in the hospital where the worst cases are. The beds are empty and neatly made. Soft, yellow light is pouring in from outside. But a few weeks ago, the scene here would have looked very different. Over the past several months, cases in the area ebbed and flowed and they were in the midst of the biggest spike they'd seen so far.

"My job consisted of 24/7 begging people to try to come in to get help, coming in to try to staff it myself, just because we didn't have enough nurses," Schmid says.

The CDC recommends that hospitals limit visitation, especially during times of community spread. Figuring out how to do so requires balancing safety with the emotion and trauma faced by patients and their families.

Here, the hospital banned visitors, but there are exceptions. When patients near the end of their lives, their closest relatives are allowed to say their goodbyes from a distance through those windows that look into the ICU. Schmid sat outside the room with families. She says that glass barrier between patients and their loved ones made farewells an even more emotionally devastating experience.

"Having to sit out here with family and try to be their support and give them that affection or that caring when you yourself have to stay 6 feet away and they can't see their dad or their husband for the last time and you have to watch that, it's gut-wrenching," she says. "And I don't think I'll ever get used to that. I've seen a lot of death and I've held multiple peoples' hands while they're dying. But I've never had anything that has affected me like that. It's so foreign. And it's tragic."

Respiratory therapist Mary Graham sets up a ventilator at the height of the pandemic at the facility. Three critical patients were on those machines while the hospital had only two dedicated ICU rooms. Ordinarily, the hospital would be able to transfer its worst cases to larger facilities in the area, but COVID-19 had pushed those over capacity too. Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

Respiratory therapist Mary Graham sets up a ventilator at the height of the pandemic at the facility. Three critical patients were on those machines while the hospital had only two dedicated ICU rooms. Ordinarily, the hospital would be able to transfer its worst cases to larger facilities in the area, but COVID-19 had pushed those over capacity too.

Respiratory therapist Mary Graham says all 265 health care workers at the hospital are taking on more responsibility to care for patients. "The hardest thing is watching them go without their family members," she says.

She's been in the room twice when this happened. She says she holds the patient's hand and says a prayer. She hopes that can give families an ounce of closure. "It's tough," she says.

Patients and families

A canvas photo of Lori Schmidt and her late husband Jerry on vacation. The photo was a gift after Jerry passed away of COVID-19 in Livingston HealthCare on Nov. 15. Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

A canvas photo of Lori Schmidt and her late husband Jerry on vacation. The photo was a gift after Jerry passed away of COVID-19 in Livingston HealthCare on Nov. 15.

Doctors and nurses experience that isolation very differently than patients and family members, who maintain connection with each other only through screens and glass. Last month, Lori Schmidt's husband Jerry was in one of those ICU rooms.

"If I had known that I would never get to hold his hand or anything again, oh my gosh, I would've done things so differently," Schmidt says. "But I guess naively I really didn't think Jerry was gonna die from this."

She's 59, a retired banker and calls herself a "glass-half-full" kind of person. Her husband was 74.

While Lori Schmidt's husband Jerry was in the hospital, she was unable to visit him. "If I had known that I would never get to hold his hand or anything again, oh my gosh, I would've done things so differently," Schmidt says. "But I guess naively I really didn't think Jerry was gonna die from this." Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

While Lori Schmidt's husband Jerry was in the hospital, she was unable to visit him. "If I had known that I would never get to hold his hand or anything again, oh my gosh, I would've done things so differently," Schmidt says. "But I guess naively I really didn't think Jerry was gonna die from this."

"He was an amazing man," she says. "He could build, fix, wire. He was an electrician. He could do anything he could rebuild a Mustang from start to finish."

One night in early November, her husband fell down in their house. He had a fever and was throwing up. She called the paramedics, who took him to the hospital. It was the last time she saw him face to face.

Schmidt says at Livingston HealthCare, nurses would call her from her husband's cellphone on FaceTime.

"When Jerry pops up on my phone, there's a big daisy and when I would see that, no matter how bad I felt, I felt renewed," she says. "It was like 'Jerry's calling!' I was so excited."

With her husband in isolation, it was the closest she could get to human contact. When it became clear it was the end, the hospital brought the family into the ICU, where they could see Jerry through the window.

She says nurses were at his side. They sang him songs to help him feel at ease, and helped relay what Schmidt and her family were saying.

"[They were] trying to make him feel like he didn't have to hold on anymore because he was so tired," she says.

Schmidt says Jerry passed peacefully on Nov. 15 after 12 days in the hospital. As we talk, it's been one month, to the minute, since his death.

Schmidt's thankful for the health care workers who made sure her husband felt less isolated. Screens, windows and all the small efforts of health care workers are a saving grace for Schmidt and people like her.

"I mean, that made all the difference in the world."

Bedside manner

The emergency department at Livingston Healthcare. The Absaroka Mountains just outside the facility run south toward Yellowstone National Park. Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

The emergency department at Livingston Healthcare. The Absaroka Mountains just outside the facility run south toward Yellowstone National Park.

"Nursing is touching and interaction," says Per Gunness, an ICU and medical surgical nurse at Livingston HealthCare. "To hide the part of your face which shows your emotions, your intentions, your fear, your humor. You try to smile really hard so your eyes show it. That's been incredibly bizarre."

Health care workers layer up in masks, protective glasses and other gear to stave off the spread of the disease. Instead of smiles and facial expressions, only their eyes perched above an N95 can show emotion and establish connection.

"It makes me sick to my stomach thinking about that, like, so many people are dying alone and their nurse has maybe known 'em or a couple of days is the last person they see," medical floor nurse Kristy Blaine says.

She says she recognizes the emotional work it takes to keep patients feeling connected.

Travel nurse Michael Niynaku, tasked with treating COVID-19 patients for the day, at a nurses' station in front of baggies containing staff members' N95 masks. Nick Mott for NPR hide caption

Travel nurse Michael Niynaku, tasked with treating COVID-19 patients for the day, at a nurses' station in front of baggies containing staff members' N95 masks.

"You also, you know, feel bad for your patients because these Martians are coming in, looking so different," Blaine says. "You know, you literally look like an alien and you're trying to care for your patients, and they just feel like lepers."

Blaine does what she can to make the hospital feel less sterile for her patients. She keeps a squishy, pink-haired unicorn dangling from a keychain on her ID badge. When you squeeze it, she demonstrates, a little brown bubble forms on its backside.

"It poops," she whispers, laughing." I like to joke around and I like to have fun and I feel like we all only get one trip on this Earth and it might as well be part of a good old laugh. You know nurses always ask about poop."

Blaine says that for nurses, adaptability is part of the job description. With only eyes peering out behind a mask, that pooping unicorn is one way of bringing joy into a world of isolation.

Limits on visitations in hospitals across the country are unlikely to change much until this spring or summer, when vaccines are widely available. Until then, health care workers will continue to adapt, to innovate, and to find reasons to smile.

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COVID-19 And End-Of-Life Care: A Hospital Is Case Study For Mental Toll - NPR

Posted: Dec 31, 2020 / 09:04 PM CST / Updated: Dec 31, 2020 / 09:04 PM CST

TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) A medical expert at the University of Kansas is weighing in on the coronavirus variant, and said it may not be as dangerous as some may think.

Its not unusual for this virus or many of these types of viruses to mutate or change or have variance, said Dr. Dana Hawkinson.

The coronavirus variant, called B.1.1.7, was first spotted in Britain, then crossed over to the U.S., with cases first found in Colorado and California.

According to KDHE, this variant of the virus has not been found in Kansas. Although, KDHE Secretary Dr. Lee Norman noted that other strains may be present in other parts of the state from earlier in the pandemic, during a press conference on Wednesday.

We have a very narrow cluster in the state of Kansas that is kind of a Midwest variant, early on, said Dr. Norman, explaining that the state has been monitoring data on different changes in the virus that may appear. The virus has always changed over time with minor genetic variations.

Hawkinson explained that most viruses have about 12 different base pair changes, or mutations, with about 90% of the mutations having no impact on the properties of the virus. He said, as of now, the there is no evidence of it being an immediate threat.

The big thing to remember is that clinically it doesnt change anything that we do. It doesnt seem to have any different clinical disease, meaning more severe or less severe disease, Dr. Hawkinson said.

According to Dr. Hawkinson, the negative aspect of some genetic mutations, like the coronavirus variant, is that the spike protein, the part of the virus that enables it to enter human cells, can bind more strongly to the human receptor, causing the virus to become more infectious. However, Hawk noted that there can be a positive aspect of mutation as well, where the virus may mutate more than intended, which would cause the protein not to fit in the human receptor. This would mean that the infectious rate could go down if the protein no longer has anything to bind to.

Sometimes it will cause the virus too not be able to bind to our receptors if it mutates too much, or become too different, but what weve seen is that they seem to be binding stronger to our receptors, Dr. Hawkinson said.

But, Hawkinson said the virus mutation has also shown no impact on the effecacy of the current coronavirus vaccines that are being rolled out. He said a key thing to remember is focusing on stopping the spread with safety protocols, like proper hygiene and social distancing.

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Kansas medical experts weigh in on COVID-19 variant, what to expect - KSNT News

PRINCESS ANNE, Md. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, an Eastern Shore New Years tradition will still be taking place in Princess Anne. Marshall the Muskrat will be ringing in the new year by diving through the air. But, theres been some changes to accommodate social distancing and COVID-19 safety. This year, rather than closing the street down and having a big public event, were doing a virtual event. Anybody, no matter where you are if you have an internet connection, you can watch the muskrat dive at midnight, said Princess Anne Main Street manager Carrie Samis.

Samis says even with the changes, she wanted to make sure that people could continue to celebrate an Eastern Shore tradition. One of the things that happens every year is this guy makes local news, national news, gets a lot of positive press for Princess Anne. Especially this year with our businesses, local families, and community struggling to meet the challenges of COVID, we are really happy to be able to at least do something fun, said Samis.

Samis says the event typically attracts up to 500 people. This year the exact location is being kept secret to avoid having people gather in large numbers. Samis tells 47ABC that a local man who is a NASA employee has been working for months to design and rig up a new mechanism that will allow Marshall to fly through the air. Marshalls big dive will be paired with a countdown clock and a confetti cannon.

The rest is here:

Despite COVID-19, Eastern Shore NYE tradition will go on - 47abc - WMDT

He couldnt get the vaccine, so I thought let me get it for him, in honor of him, said Brigid Roberson.

HOUSTON Brigid Roberson is one of the 15,000 healthcare workers to get the COVID-19 vaccine at Memorial Hermann Hospital.

She got the shot to honor her grandfather, who died from COVID-19 earlier this month.

Roberson describes her grandpa, James Avery, as 92 years young. He was living in a nursing home, so she hadnt touched him or held his hand since January due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Sometimes he went from depression to being mad. He would call and say, 'You dont love me.' He felt we put him there and left him there. Our hands were tied, because we couldnt get into the nursing home to see him, said Roberson, the regional director of security for Memorial Hermann Hospital.

She hoped the COVID-19 vaccine would change that. But earlier this month, her beloved grandfather got the virus. He died the same morning the first shipment of vaccines arrived at Memorial Hermann Hospital. She was in the room watching when the first frontline healthcare worker in Houston received the vaccine.

When he sat there and got his shot, it was so emotional for me. I literally was sitting there with these big tears on my face, because I thought if they had just had the vaccine a little earlierit could have helped (my grandfather) to maybe live, Roberson said.

Nursing home residents in Houston are getting their shots now. Just this week, Texas moved on to phase 1B of vaccine distribution, so people 65 years old and older and people with underlying conditions can get vaccinated, too.

Roberson proudly got her vaccine wearing a T-shirt honoring her grandfather.

He couldnt get it, so I thought let me get it for him, in honor of him, Roberson said.

She hopes everyone eligible to get the vaccine right away, because every shot thats administered gives everyone else hope for the future.

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Grandfather dies of COVID-19 two weeks before vaccines arrived at nursing homes - KHOU.com

Yellowstone National Park: "Yellowstone visitation statistics for October 2020."

Environmental Research: "Blue space, health and well-being: A narrative overview and synthesis of potential benefits."

Scientific Reports: "Spending at least 120 minutes a week in nature is associated with good health and wellbeing."

Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine: "Effects of Walking in Bamboo Forest and City Environments on Brainwave Activity in Young Adults."

NPD Group: "America Outdoors: Consumers Are Flocking to These 5 Activities."

J.J. Clause, retired school music teacher, South Lake Tahoe, CA.

Jeff Stafford, Danville, IN.

John Norcross, PhD, professor of psychology, University of Scranton, Scranton, PA.

Matt Powell, adviser, NPD Group, Port Washington, NY.

Ben Page, forest therapy guide, founder of Integral Forest Bathing, Los Angeles.

Denise Lu, education coordinator, Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden, Arcadia, CA.

David Sabgir, MD, cardiologist, Columbus, OH.

Manuela Siegfried, forest therapy guide, Santa Ana, Costa Rica.

Philadelphia Inquirer: Anthony Fauci talks with Jefferson doctors about coronavirus vaccines, herd immunity, and how long well need masks

Visit link:

Get Out: Nature Is the Fix for COVID-19 Stress - WebMD

Despite pleas for people to stay home and restrictions on dining and gatherings, New Jersey remains stubbornly stuck in the orange zone on the states weekly COVID-19 activity map.

For the sixth week in a row, all 21 counties are orange, indicating high coronavirus activity, according to data released by the state Department of Health Thursday.

The weekly COVID-19 Activity Level map breaks New Jersey into six regions and uses local health data to calculate where COVID-19 is spreading the fastest. If any region turns red on the map, virus levels are considered very high and all schools in those counties must switch to all-remote learning.

Because every region is still orange on this weeks map, schools across the state still have the option of opening for in-person classes when they return from winter break next week. But districts are still encouraged to consider switching to all-virtual learning while their regions are orange, according to state health guidelines.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

We urge everyone to stay safe. Avoid large gatherings. Social distance. Mask up, Gov. Phil Murphy said on Twitter Thursday after announcing 5,107 new coronavirus cases and another 90 deaths in his daily update.

Though they remain orange on the map, two part of the state the Northwest and the Central West showed a slight improvement over last week, according to the new data.

The percent positivity indicator dropped to moderate in the Northwest region of Morris, Passaic, Sussex and Warren counties after slightly less than 10% of COVID-19 tests in those counties came back positive.

In the Central West region of Hunterdon, Mercer and Somerset counties the percentage of people showing COVID-like symptoms dropped from high to moderate and the percent positivity fell slightly to 8.2%.

However, the case rates in both regions remained high, keeping the counties orange on the map.

All six regions in New Jersey continued to score a 3 on the state's COVID-19 Activity Level Index for the week ending Dec. 26. That means virus levels are "high" across the state.

The COVID-19 Activity Level Report calculates a score each week for each region using case rates, percentage of positive tests and the percent of people reporting cough, fever and other symptoms that might be the coronavirus.

The state was last red, indicating very high virus activity, in April. But it dropped to orange in May, then was green (low activity) or yellow (moderate activity) for most of the summer and fall as infection rates fell.

However, all six regions jumped to orange again in mid-November when the second wave of the pandemic hit the state.

The regions are:

-Northwest: Morris, Passaic, Sussex, Warren

-Northeast: Bergen, Essex, Hudson

-Central West: Hunterdon, Mercer, Somerset

-Central East: Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, Union

-Southwest: Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Salem

-Southeast: Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland

This weeks map is based on data for the week ending Dec. 26 and likely does not include the results from people who were exposed to the virus during Christmas gatherings.

The color assigned for each region green (low), yellow (moderate), orange (high) or red (very high) is based on the COVID-19 Activity Level Index, or CALI, a score from 1 to 4 that health officials give each region weekly. The score is calculated using a formula that uses the case rate per 100,000 people, the regions seven-day average percentage of people who test positive and the percent of people who report coughs, fever and other symptoms that could be COVID-19.

As of Thursday, the pandemic has killed at least 19,042 people in New Jersey since the first death was reported in March.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.

Kelly Heyboer may be reached at kheyboer@njadvancemedia.com.

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COVID-19 activity still high in every N.J. county, map says. But things are slightly better in these 2 regi - NJ.com