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Your Coronavirus Update – Sept. 16, 2021
Photo: Mayor Joseph Polisena, of Johnston, welcomes Governor’s press conference at Johnston High School athletic field
RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY
In the 2nd week of school, hundreds of children are home on quarantine – no at-home learning is being done, but schools do have take-home kits and assignments for the most part – most children in quarantine are not sick, but are close contacts of those who have tested positive or have tested positive themselves.
Brown University is tightening guidelines as they see a rise in positive, asymptomatic students, with over 82 cases in the past 7 days. They will pause in-person dining, limit gatherings to 5, discourage gatherings at bars and restaurants, wear masks both on and off campus – focus on undergrads. None of the 82 are showing symptoms.
URI has canceled a concert for this weekend, and is revising policies to suggest people who attend events be vaccinated and/or tested.
URI has 22 positive cases out of 2,652 tested – 1..39%
RI’s Higher Ed group voted to mandate staff and RIC and CCRI to be vaccinated by Nov. 1 – students are already required.
Mask wearing in RI schools is a mandate and was extended by Gov. McKee
10 of 23 unvaccinated firefighters in No. Providence have signed up for their shots, after the Mayor said they would be terminated, according to a report in the Valley Breeze
At Brown Univ, almost all students are vaccinated. Grad students are tested twice a week; undergrads once a week. 82 students have tested positive – all vaccinated.
The RI Medical Society supports keeping Oct. 1st as the mandatory vaccination deadline for healthcare workers.
A Johnston elementary school was closed while it considered how to address outbreak impacting an unvaccinated teachers and approximately 15 students.
Media reports are that 12 fully vaccinated Rhode Islanders have died of COVID19
After about a week of school, a Cranston second grader was asked to quarantine when the school found out she went to visit her grandmother in Maine.
Hocus Pocus filming still looking for extras – must be vaccinated and submit to a test.
Governor’s Press Conference – 9-15-2021:
Held at the Johnston High School athletic field – set up with a vaccination clinic.
RI one of top states in US with vaccinations and testing. 86% 19+ have at least one shot. 66% have both shots.
145,000 Rhode Islanders yet to be vaccinated. We will reach 90%.
With high school cheerleaders and players in the background, speakers thanked the RIIL for their leadership – if you want to participate fully in school, athletics and other activities, get vaccinated.
Johnston students/athletes spoke – difference this year is students in high school are vaccinated. If vaccinated and not symptomatic you do not have to quarantine.
Question on medical exemption for prior having had COVID – not an exemption for having had COVID. Even if infected in the past, the new strain is new and different. Please get vaccinated.
Question on requiring staff/faculty to be vaccinated – many have moved in this direction – RI applauds that initiative.
Question on religious exemptions – will state tighten up? – there are very specific federal requirements on this.
Question on mistake in reporting hospitalization numbers increased when federal government reported they went down.
Question: ACI bring your family to work day – bring family through the prison – what is status, given COVID? Important issue. Honor health issues and honor equity issues. We will continue to support and promote. We will work with RIDOC on the event.
Question: Do children have to quarantine if they leave the state and return under the age of 12. We support the guidance we have for unvaccinated. Current guidelines do involve quarantining from hotspots.
Governor will review mask mandate for schools which expires on Saturday.
Question: Testing difficulty – both in getting access and getting results. What is backlog about? RIDOH has a strong comprehensive plan, and rapid rise in testing demand – we are expanding now – current turnaround is 24-48 hours.
Question: What about distance learning? Primary goal is in-person learning; and to have group out of school be smaller and smaller.
Question: What is vaccination plan for children under 12? Tom McCarthy: We’re excited, we don’t know when – we’ve seen “end of year”, also “October” and even “end of September”. We’re prepared.
Question: Do you plan on collecting data on HS athletes and mask wearing decisions for sports such as wrestling, etc? We will continue to work with RIIL and others to do the best we can for sports.
NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
Boosters are now being recommended SIX months after the 2nd shot – not 8 months – by Pfizer, Moderna, and other vaccine producers. This could result in an emergent push to booster shots in a matter of weeks.
663,913 people in the U.S. have died of COVID-19
54% of the population fully vaccinated
Pfizer will be applying for emergency authorization to vaccinate children ages 5-11, especially targeted at high risk children.
United Airlines announced last month that all employees would have to be vaccinated by Sept. 25; the vast majority of its pilots and flight attendants have already gotten the shots. This week, the airline also said anyone refusing to be vaccinated for religious reasons would have to stay home until the pandemic “meaningfully recedes.”
Fines for non-masking passengers on transportation venues will be fined $500 – doubling of the fine from $250
Vladimir Putin is isolating with exposure of many close leadership to COVID19
8 pregnant women who were not vaccinated have died of COVID in Mississippi in the past several weeks. State health officer issues new advisory to vaccinate pregnant women in any stage of pregnancy or nursing in Mississippi.
Dr. Fauci said if you want to fly you should be vaccinated.
TSA said over 10,000 employees have had COVID in the pandemic.
Be safer when flying: The window seat when flying is a safer seat for COVID than the aisle seat – less traffic and exposure to germs. Likewise, keep your bags stored in upper storage areas and reduce the need to go to the bags for anything. Masks, hand sanitizer, wiping down seats with antibacterial cloths, etc. are also important steps.
The National Nurses Union applauded President Joe Biden’s proposal to require that companies with more than 100 employees vaccinate their work force.
The American Federation of Teachers once said vaccine mandates weren’t necessary, but now embraces them.
Nicki Minaj won’t attend the Met Gala because she wants to do more research before getting vaccinated, a requirement to attend.
Tyson Foods said last month that workers in its facilities would have to be vaccinated by Nov. 1.
Tennessee now leads the nation in new COVID cases per capita, said to be due to the low vaccination rate among children.
Comedian Patton Oswalt has canceled multiple shows in Florida and Utah after venues refused to require proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test for entry.
California couple in their 30s die of Covid and leave behind 5 kids, including newborn daughter.
Several gorillas at Zoo Atlanta have tested positive for Covid-19 after handlers noticed many of them were showing signs of mild coughing, runny noses and a small loss of appetite
Sam’s Club raises wages from $11/hr to start to $15 to attract more employees
Dr. Fauci said he would support a mandate on vaccinations for flying.
Britain’s chief medical officers said Monday that children ages 12 to 15 should be vaccinated against coronavirus – they are opting for the Johnson & Johnson one shot vaccine.
½ million children are now testing positive for COVID as back to school starts in all states.
So-called “breakthrough” cases in the fully vaccinated accounted for 14% of hospitalizations and 16% of deaths in June and July, about twice the percentage as earlier in the year.