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Your Coronavirus Update – Dec. 9, 2021
RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY
No Omicron case identified in RI yet – cases are in both MA and CT with 21 states, total.
Hospitals in Massachusetts are now over capacity – 120% at capacity in trauma rooms at UMass Memorial
RI has doubled its number of hospitalized in one month – now at 225+
Two large state vaccination sites – Sockanosset site and East Providence site – will close next week as the state move to more community vaccination sites. Dec. 18th will be final day. – Rhode Island will be running approximately 100 COVID-19 vaccination clinics in settings such as schools, churches, senior centers, and many other community sites over the next month. These clinics are in addition to the vaccination opportunities in pharmacies and the offices of many primary care providers. A list of community clinics can be found at: covid.ri.gov/vaccination. COVID-19 booster doses are available at many of these clinics. As a part of this shift to community located vaccination opportunities, operations at Rhode Island’s remaining State-run and municipal-run vaccination sites will wind down. The last day of vaccinating at Sockanosset Cross Road (100 Sockanosset Cross Road, Cranston) will be December 18th, and the last day for regular operations at the East Providence vaccination site (585 Taunton Avenue, East Providence) will be December 29th. The vaccination site at Sockanosset has administered approximately 211,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine since opening in January 2021, and the East Providence site has administered approximately 21,000 doses since opening in May 2021. All COVID-19 vaccination options will continue to be available at C19VaccineRI.org. Schedules and appointments for these vaccination sites will continue to be available at vaccinateRI.org. Rhode Islanders can continue to call the COVID-19 information line (401-222-8022) or 2-1-1 for information about COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines.
Some RI students and staff are waiting at home for 4 to 5 days for their test results as the state experiences lengthy delays.
Maine is calling in the National Guard as hospitals are overwhelmed with unvaccinated patients.
Mark Patinkin, a well known Providence Journal writer, has tested positive after being fully (3) vaccinated – he had mild symptoms and points to a family Thanksgiving gathering of 10 people who traveled to northern New England.
Gov’s Press Conference: Funding “Rhode Island Rebounds”:
Investing in RI small businesses and people. 38.5 M for children – 32 M for small business – 29 M for affordable housing – 13M for hard hit tourism/hospitality/event industries as a down payment towards more. Additional $6M for growing childcare needs. Spent over 3 years – and we should be eligible for bonuses after that if we do it right. We needed to get $65M out in housing assistance, and we got $70M out so no money was given back.
The Rev. Joseph D. Santos, 62, who was the administrator of Holy Name Parish on Providence’s upper East Side
The RI Municipal Police Academy is having a breakout, canceling the remainder of classes, will graduate attendees, but no ceremony will be held.
Beacon Diner in EG will close due to pandemic issues of business, staffing, etc.
CODAC, a nonprofit that treats people with addiction disorders says they’ve never had an employee shortage like this – losing 2 employees most recently to Chick-fil-a and Petco because they had to earn a living for their families – report on NBC10
MBTA will cut one of every two runs due to lack of riders and drivers.
Gov. McKee issued a statement Wednesday night asking people to get vaccinated, get boosted, and wear masks when in high risk areas – he says nothing is off the table as the state’s case #s rise and begin to overwhelm our hospital.
Providence, the Rhode Island Foundation, Providence Foundation and Crossroads Rhode Island announced a new collaboration to address homelessness and creation of a dedicated fund supported in part by corporate donors. $495,000 will support a new citywide mobile diversion program for Providence residents experiencing unsheltered homelessness.
Cases are rising in congregate facilities – as of Dec. 8, 2021 – new cases in last 7 days:
Apple Clipper Rehab, Westerly – 5 to 9
Berkshire Place, Providence – 25 to 29
Evergreen, East Providence – 10 to 14
Jeanne Jugan, Pawtucket – 10 to 14
Pawtucket Falls, Pawtucket – 5 to 9
Summit Commons, Providence – 10 to 14
West View Nursing, West Warwick – 15 to 19
Highlands, Providence – 5 to 9
Bridge at Cherry Hill, Johnston – 10 to 14
Winslow Gardens, East Providence – 5 to 9
A few others have “less than 5” and some have numbers elevated from previous weeks.
Data Update: Dec. 8, 2021
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NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
Judge blocks effort to mandate vaccines for federal employees
Only 1/3 of Americans say they will stop dining in restaurants; less than 25% are canceling holiday plans; 28% say they will cancel meeting with family.
Half of all COVID infections are coming from 6 states – Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York and Illinois.
100,000 new infections per day.
National hospitalizations are up 25% from last month.
Norwegian Cruise lines with 17 infected has left Louisiana.
240 companies surveyed say they will give their employees raises over 3.5% (to retain workers)
The EMA, together with the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said that a mix-and-match strategy could give nations more options in inoculation campaigns as much of the continent seeks to contain the latest virus surge
South Africa is seeing a doubling of cases of the Omicron variant – however, no uptick in deaths, and little uptick in hospitalizations – the new strain seems to be more contagious, but less serious.
Early evidence is showing that Omicron may be more highly contagious, but less severe. It is now in 21 states. Many of infected are young and healthy. Those who are getting very sick are those without being vaccinated and boosted.
CDC expert: Everyone in the United States is either going to get vaccinated or going to get COVID.
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said Wednesday that people might need a fourth Covid-19 shot sooner than expected after preliminary research shows the new Omicron variant can undermine protective antibodies generated by the vaccine the company developed with BioNTech.
NYC Mandate: First in the nation to have vaccine mandate beginning on Dec. 27th for private employers. Also, those ages 12 and over need to show proof of 2 vaccine doses to go into dining, fitness, and entertainment venues. Beginning Dec. 14th, children ages 5-11 required to have at least 1 vaccine for indoor dining, fitness and entertainment venues. Children mandates also include after school sports and cultural activities.
Oslo party appears to be omicron superspreader event. All attendees fully vaxxed & had tested negative pre-event. 1 attendee recently returned from S Africa At least 13 now confirmed infected w omicron; dozens of others tested positive, awaiting sequencing
Starting on December 6, air travelers aged two and older, regardless of nationality or vaccination status, are required to show documentation of a negative viral test result taken within one day of the flight’s departure to the United States before boarding. You must show your negative result to the airline before you board your flight. That includes all travelers – U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents (LPRs), and foreign nationals. If you recently recovered from COVID-19, you may instead travel with documentation of recovery from COVID-19 (i.e., your positive COVID-19 viral test result on a sample taken no more than 90 days before the flight’s departure from a foreign country, and a letter from a licensed healthcare provider or a public health official stating that you were cleared to travel). Exemptions will be considered on an extremely limited basis. Please visit the CDC for more information about exemptions and the requirement for proof of negative COVID-19 test or recovery from COVID-19, including types of accepted tests for all air passengers arriving in the United States.
Rio de Janeiro has canceled their New Year’s Eve celebration due to Omicron
There were 35,000 attendees at the Anime conference in NYC where the first known case of the Omicron variant was detected in the US – they have all been contacted.
Manhattan workers going back into the office are being advised to dress down, not to wear corporate logo-wear, and avoid subways – many are offering car service after dark. 15 friends of the first American to test positive for Omicron who had attended the Anime convention have now tested positive for COVID, unknown if it is Omicron variant.
Russia reports first cases of Omicron COVID-19 variant
The FDA authorized the use of Eli Lilly’s COVID-19 dual-antibody therapy in treating mild to moderate symptoms in all children, including newborns, who are at risk of severe illness.