COVID, Coronavirus, Omicron and Delta variants, and vaccine updates for 01-24-2022
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This is Covid 411, the latest on Omicron and other COVID variants, and new hotspots for January 24th, 2022.

So with things winding down for the moment, just how many more boosters are we going to need? The CEO of Pfizer says a once a year shot should eventually do the trick, and that would, for any number of reasons, be preferable to a booster shot needed every four months. He said Pfizer could be ready to file for approval of a redesigned vaccine to fight Omicron, and mass produce it, as soon as March.

But in Israel, they’re a fan of boosters. Their Health Ministry said a fourth dose given to people over 60 made them 3x more resistant to serious illness than triple-vaccinated people in the same age group. In fact, Israel’s green pass is no longer considered a viable indicator of protection because it only shows three shots. 

Students in the Los Angeles Unified School District were already required to stay masked throughout the school day but now many parents are being told, “your kid’s mask isn’t good enough.” Students are now prohibited from wearing cloth masks. They must wear "well-fitting, non-cloth masks with a nose wire" both indoors and outdoors. 

You’ve heard people say it. “Everybody’s just gonna have to get it.” Well, if that’s true, how close are we to every American having had COVID? Turns out not even a little bit close. Only one in five have been infected since the pandemic began. That number is likely much higher because of bad data and unreported cases, but it’d still be a long way from “everybody got it.”

You’re probably going to love me after I tell you this. New research shows red wine could help make you more resistant to Covid. Apparently, those who drink more than five glasses a week had a 17% lower risk. White wine drinkers who have one to four glasses a week had an 8% lower risk. Sorry beer drinkers, you have an almost 28% higher chance of getting Covid, no matter how much you drink.

In the United States, cases were up 2%, deaths are up 39%, and hospitalizations are up 19% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending down since January 14.  

The five states that had the most daily deaths per 100,000 are Ohio, Alaska, New York, Connecticut, and Tennessee. 

There are now over 26 million active cases in the United States, at 26,671,065.

The five areas with the greatest increase in hospitalizations per capita: Montana 91%. Alaska 86%. Wyoming 82%. Alabama 81%. And the U.S. Virgin Islands 78%. 

The top 10 areas with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Waukesha, WI. Dane, WI. Uvalde, TX. Nome Census Area, AK. Maverick, TX. Santa Cruz, AZ. Dimmit, TX. Randolph, IL. Kodiak Island Borough, AK. And Wyoming, WV. 

There have been at least 866,540 deaths in the U.S. recorded as Covid-related.

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s been fully vaccinated: Vermont at 79%, Rhode Island at 78.3%, and Maine at 77.2%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Alabama at 49%, Wyoming at 49.6%, and Mississippi at 49.8%. The percentage of the U.S. that’s been fully vaccinated is 63.2%.

Globally, cases were up 32% and deaths up 21% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending up since January 17. 

There are now over 66 million active cases around the world, at 66,958,038.

The five countries with the most new cases: India 306,064. France 301,614. The United States 197,374. Italy 138,860. And Brazil 84,230. 

There have been 5,595,967 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide. 

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