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Your Coronavirus Update – December 22, 2021
Dr. Michael Fine on COVID crisis: Here today. Overwhelming tomorrow. Gone by March?
RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY
PC vs Georgetown game cancelled
ACCESS RI has requested RI’s government meetings move to remote, ZOOM, etc. to allow full participation without health risk by attending in person.
Provincetown trying to prevent history from repeating itself by requiring masks and vaccination proof as the virus upticks significantly.
Professor Leiber from Harvard who, locally, won many years of the largest pumpkin contest in RI, was found guilty of false tax returns, failing to file reports of a false Chinese bank account, etc.
Dr. McDonald from RIDOH has said about going back to school after the holidays – that most of the children who are getting sick are catching it in the community. In other states, such as Washington, DC, schools are planning for remote after the holidays.
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AARP’s Catherine TaylorState Director, AARP Rhode Island sent a letter to Governor asking to have the 132,000 older citizens (over 50) prioritized, especially nursing home residents, for boosters. A summary of the letter:
Failing to prioritize people 50+ for booster shots will cost more lives in a population that already makes up 98% of all COVID-19-related deaths and 74% of hospitalizations in Rhode Island.
Provide clear information about how people who do not have internet access or cannot navigate an online system can make a vaccine appointment through a fully staffed call center or other means.
Utilize ARPA funding to bolster the testing program so that in times of surge we have the capacity to keep PCR results to no more than 48 hours, ideally 24 hours.
Establish or improve systems to safely transport homebound people to vaccination sites or to bring the vaccine, including boosters, to the person’s home.
Ensure the state’s vaccination-related data, including booster shots, are publicly available, easily accessible, and include enough granularity to allow for the identification of populations that are still struggling to access COVID-19 vaccines.
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3 Fall River fire departments will be giving out 15,000 kits for Fall River residents today at 4 public locations.
3,000 Rhode Islanders have lost their lives due to this virus. Governor asked us all to get vaccinated – with booster – in their honor and he will direct Rhode Island flags to be flown at half-staff at all state facilities and buildings. The flags will remain at half-staff until sunset on December 22, 2021 as a mark of respect for the 3,000 lives lost. The State House will be lit blue and gold tonight in memory of those who have passed away due to COVID-19. McKee also asks Rhode Islanders to lower their flags as a sign of respect.
Governor Dan McKee today announced $21,871,003 for fiscal year 2022 for the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) to help eligible low-income Rhode Islanders pay their heating bills.
Governor McKee also announced the addition of the Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP), a federal program beginning in early 2022 that will help Rhode Islanders pay the cost of water and wastewater bills.
Governor’s Press Conference
This is a bellweather day, noting the 3,000 death from COVID19 threshold.
Testing and vaccination capacity. Before Thanksgiving we were ramping down. Things change. And we’re changing with them. We want to continue to lead the country in testing and treatment. Testing will expand 50%, beyond what it was last year. There were higher infection rates last year – but we want to ramp up to meet the need.
New rapid test site at Chapel View – will be open 7 days a week – portal.ri.org for appointments. New sites opening in next few weeks. 6 existing sites will be ramped up for asymptomatic people. (see list on RIDOH site). Symptomatic people can also be tested there.
Onboarding a new lab to process tests – additional 5,000 a week and we’ll have another lab working with existing lab.
Double our rapid tests which have all been delivered in poorer communities. 1 million tests coming in from FEMA – our goal is to administer them all by end of January and 1 million monthly through March. Will be distributed through each city/town. Opening two additional mass vaccination sites – partnering with cities and towns.
The work continues. We will remain flexible to what might be around the corner.
401Health app is launched – go to where you download your apps and download it – 3,500 downloads already. Easy, convenient storage of vax records, plus more handy info. 8 states have apps like this.
Hospital staffing and challenges continue. Exploring National Guard troops for non-medical assistance in hospitals. We will grant those with nursing licenses in other states to RI so they can have a seamless transition to working in RI.
When to go and when not to go to hospital emergency rooms. A document will be developed about that.
RI State Police will be working on enhancing the emergency response medical system.
LIHEAP is available to help pay heating bills, avoid shutoffs.
RIRentRelief program continues.
Low Income water payment program – New federal program to help pay water bills.
These programs will be administered through CAP agencies.
Eleanor Slater Hospital – has been accredited, after correcting past issues.
Lt. Gov. thanked Gov. for working on homeless issue and housing.
No national vaccine database, so if people have gotten some shots in MA and some in RI, you can provide proof of vaccination RI can add it to the database.
This is a unique challenge and there will be more of that in January and February – people might need to reassess family visits, etc during the holidays.
From response perspective, we want to keep Rhode Islanders out of the hospital, keep schools open, watch the nursing homes, and then work down from there.
Prioritizing testing results by groups – seniors in congregate settings, then schools, then general public.
If you test positive on the at home test, call a phone #, begin to isolate, and seek medical advice from primary cares, clinics, etc.
One year moratorium on minimum staffing for nursing homes that has been requested, we would look at any options and work with the legislature on this. Staffing is a priority.
Opening 2 mass vaccination sites – East Providence & Cranston and negotiating with Middletown now. 44% Rhode Islanders are boosted, over 300,000 still need to be boosted.
MA & CT have mask advisories – RI has mandates.
Q/A from press:
Q: AARP sent letter about booster rollout.
A: No need to prioritize anyone – we need to build out the capacity – there is enough supply to do everyone – we did prioritize last year. Last year we had to prioritize because of lack of vaccine – this year not so. We have always prioritized our nursing homes – we’ve called all our nursing homes with lower vax rates to see how we can help.
Q: Do we have a concern that as we change the mode of testing that we will lose the ability to measure the rate of infection, detection of variants?
A: Team has been looking at this. Hard and fast limit on # of tests you can do.
Q: Contact tracing isn’t happening.
A: We have to prioritize when we need to do this by groups.
Q: Spanish translation?
A: We are being translated as we speak. It will be available later.
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Dr. Michael Fine issued the first of 3 documents about COVID. Fine used to be director of the RI Department of Health. Its title: What’s Coming at Us: Covid, Omicron, Division and Democracy.
A brief summary and link to Document 1:
The Covid-19 vaccine does not protect people from getting or spreading Covid-19 Omicron variant well enough.
We can expect 70 to 100 preventable deaths in December and between 100 and 600 or more deaths in January, mostly among people over 60.
- 18 to 25 of those deaths in December will be among people under 60
- 25 to 150 of those deaths in January will be among people under 60
- About half of those deaths will be in people who were vaccinated.
Masks help prevent Covid-19 from spreading but they only reduce spread by 53 percent.
Government has failed to protect Rhode Islanders. We can protect one another by avoiding parties, stores, bars, and restaurants. Starting now. Omicron is going to upend our lives in January, whether we are tired of all this or not. More on omicron tomorrow.
A brief summary and link to Document 2:
The Omicron Variant has become the dominant form of Covid-19 in the US. It’s more contagious than Delta, more resistant to vaccines. It’s likely to infect an estimated 50% of the population of RI, all at once. And that’s with being so well vaccinated – the rest of the country will be even higher. We are still learning how dangerous it is, though it appears to be milder. We won’t know about hospitalizations and deaths for 3 to 4 weeks.
He notes that preliminary infection with Delta variant may not protect us well against infection with Omicron, so the argument about natural immunity doesn’t hold well here.
A person can infect others for 10 days after being infected themselves…starting on day twenty-one, and lasting until day thirty-seven to forty, between sixteen and fifty percent of the state’s population could be out of commission, even if no one ends up in the hospital or dying.
A major concern is running systems when 1/3 of all employees will be out with COVID – think fire, police, medical, teachers, retail staff, restaurant staff, pharmacy staff, truck drivers, delivery people, grocery store staff, COVID vaccination and treatment staff, physicians, etc.
It is likely already too late to stop it because it is already here and marching through the population, gaining strength, aided and abetted by all our fellow citizens who can’t seem to quench their need to shop, eat out, go to the bar and party. And by their deeply held belief that the freedom to do so is what makes America great.
Maybe, just maybe, we can cooperate with one another for once, and work together to slow the spread. Not because someone else is telling us to do it. Not because of the swamp or the mommy-state (which appears afraid of its own shadow, at the moment). But because we are one people, indivisible, and we can and should beat this thing back together as much as we can. Not government bureaucrats. All of us together.
You can read his statement in its entirety here: https://www.michaelfinemd.com/short-stories
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NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
Shortages in key products are being experienced – such as pet food, litter, baby formula, etc. With 1-2 months of major health and absentee issues coming, stocking up is advised, though not overstocking.
President Biden will send 500 million free coronavirus tests to Americans’ homes beginning next month and dispatch the military to shore up overwhelmed hospitals as the US confronts a resurgent pandemic.
Justice Brett Kavanugh Monday asked the Biden administration to respond to a flood of appeals of a Sixth Circuit ruling that allowed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to move forward.
Former head of the NIH acknowledges in an exit interview that they should have invested more research into behavioral research and learn and why people reacted to vaccines and mandates the way they did and how to present that information better.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith Reveals He Has COVID-19, Calls Nets Decision To Allow Unvaccinated Kyrie Irving Back ‘Disgraceful’.
Men who become infected with coronavirus can suffer reduced sperm quality for up to three months – says a new European study.
France could soon have 100,000 COVID cases a day.
California congresswoman Barbara Lee is positive for COVID
Thousands of federal inmates who were released from prison to complete their sentence from home as a preventative measure to combat the spread of Covid-19 will be allowed to remain on home confinement, the Justice Department has announced.
Boris Johnson has announced that there will be no further COVID restrictions ahead of Christmas, adding that there is ‘not enough evidence’ to justify them.
Financial guru, Jim Cramer, has COVID – was tripled vaccinated.
Teachers at Philadelphia’s largest high school staged a mass callout, causing school officials to switch to online learning, after a 17-year-old student’s death from COVID-19.
The head of the WHO says it is better to cancel holiday gatherings now.
President Biden’s News Conference:
2nd Christmas we are going through this.
Fully vaccinated could get COVID – but these cases are usually quite mild.
Fully vaccinated – need to wear a mask for extra protection.
Holidays – you can safely celebrate if you fully vaccinated (w/booster)
90M adults in July to fewer than 40M today without vaccinations – you all have an obligation to get vaccinated to each other – and it is your patriotic duty.
What can you do to be safer? Get your booster, and wear a mask.
Test to stay is the plan for kids in school.
Dangerous misinformation on cable TV and social media – I call on these purveyors of misinformation to stop it now.
Steps today:
1. Vaccination/Booster efforts will be stepped up. 10K more sites. Pop up clinics all across the US.
2. Children under 5 – while we wait for vaccines, get yourself and those around the children fully vaccinated – and wear masks.
3. Need more testing – but we are where we need to be right now. Starting next month, private insurance will cover at-home testing – you buy and get reimbursed. But we have to do better.
4. Emergency testing sites will be set up – before Christmas in NYC. Free. Will reduce waiting lines.
5. ½ billion at-home tests to be delivered in January.
6. COVID tests near me in Google search bar and you’ll find a location.
7. Hospitals will be extremely stressed again – PPP stock will be distributed. Plus 1,000 troops to help hospitals, nurses, medics, etc. to states in need – Wisconsin & Indiana already.
8. FEMA will have ambulances to transport patients.
9. Private employees 100+ will vaccinate or be tested every week.
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The World Health Organisation has sounded a new warning about the Omicron variant, arguing some events over the festive period should be postponed. ‘All of us are sick of this pandemic,’ said WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The fastest way to do this, he said, could mean potentially cancelling or delaying holiday events. ‘An event cancelled is better than a life cancelled,’ he said.