Your Coronavirus Update – Jan. 22, 2022

RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY

Governor Dan McKee today announced a number of Rhode Island health care professionals who will advise him on the search for both an interim and permanent director of the Rhode Island Department of Health. Advisors include: Megan Ranney, MD, MPH; John A. Stoukides, MD, ScD; Bradley J. Collins, MD, SFHM, FACP; Kristina Duarte, MD, ScM; Abdul Saied Calvino, MD, MPH, FACS; Heather A. Smith, MPH, MD, FACOG; and Chris Abhulime, DVM, MS, PMHNP-BC.

RI cities and towns are giving out free test kits – each community is doing it differently – contact your city/town for details – kits are expected to quickly run out. Gov. McKee, Mayor Polisena, and city officials will be giving out FREE COVID Test Kits TODAY – Saturday, at 10am – NOON at Johnston High School. Approx. 9,000 test kits will be given out in Johnston. JOHNSTON residents only – bring proof of residency. DRIVE-THRU. One test kit per person and two test kits per family of four – while supplies last.

Newport will open a testing site for rapid & PCR tests at Benny’s store at 1400 West Main Road, starting Monday morning at 8am – make appointments on the RIDOH website. 

An article in the Boston Globe, by health reporter, Freyer, says, “The latest wave of COVID-19 in Massachusetts has crested, with the number of new cases dropping precipitously since last week, prompting even the most wary prognosticators to see a flicker at the end of the tunnel.

COVID has doubled at the ACI in a week.

Support local, independent restaurants with Project Take Two. Commit to ordering takeout once a week, or twice, or however often you can afford, to help get these businesses through the next weeks and months.

More than two dozen researchers and epidemiologists at Brown University School of Public Health urged the Providence City Council in an open letter to require that the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for city employees be extended to public safety workers.

The Health and Medical Task Force (HMTF) arrived at Kent Hospital in Warwick yesterday, January 18, 2022 and began work this morning. The Medium Medical Team (MMT) is expected to arrive to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence later this week.

A front page story in the Washington Post did a scathing story on the conditions at Kent Hospital’s emergency department.

The federal government is handing out hundreds of millions of N95 masks for free in Southern New England. The masks will come from the Strategic National Stockpile, which has more than 750 million on hand.  There will be a limit of three N95 masks per person. CVS Pharmacy, Stop & Shop, and Rite Aid are targeted for distribution points.

Tufts Medical Center will close its 41-bed pediatric hospital this summer, and refer those hospitalizations to Boston Children’s Hospital. They will use the space for adult patients.

The Fall River Carousel ice cream shop has plans to open by spring.

A home nursing agency that trains people to care for their loved ones, Preferred Residential Network, contracts with MassHealth to provide this service to people receiving healthcare coverage from the state. They train people in how to be at-home caregivers for a relative or friend, covering skills like helping a person with mobility issues get out of bed or walk, bathe, dress or use the toilet safely. The caregiver can then be compensated for their work through MassHealth if the person qualifies. For more info: https://prnafc.com

Marina Cafe and Pub on Goat Island is closing as their lease could not be renewed.

20,000 at-home test kits will be administered to Aquidneck Island communities and organizations.

Warwick residents over the age of 55 or those with underlying health conditions are eligible to get a test at the Warwick Public Library located at 600 Sandy Lane from 9am-8pm Monday through Wednesday, 9am-5pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 1pm-5pm on Sunday. They also can obtain a test at the Pilgrim Senior Center located at 27 Pilgrim Parkway 8:30-4:30 Monday through Friday. We ask residents to only acquire a test kit if they have symptoms or have been exposed to COVID. Instructions to use the self-test are included with each box, which contains two tests. 

58 children are admitted at Hasbro Children’s Hospital – no breakdown on with-COVID or from-COVID – doubling the amount in the past 2 weeks

Tufts Floating Children’s Hospital will close and convert to adult ICU beds.

At Brigham & Women’s Hospital, statistics show that black patients are 50% more likely to use digital technology than “white” patients.

A Justice Department case against Massachusetts Institute of Technology Professor Greg Chen alleging he hid work done for the Chinese government was dropped yesterday

Massachusetts data on hospital admissions WITH vs. DUE TO COVID – (RI has not yet produced this data for the state):

C19VaccineRI.org.   Community Based COVID-19 Vaccination Clinics for January 22

11:00am-1:00pm Calcutt Middle School 112 Washington Street Central Falls Moderna, Pfizer (12+)
8:30am-11:30am Rhode Island School for the Deaf 1 Corliss Park Providence Moderna, Pfizer (12+)
10:00am-11:30am CCRI – Lincoln 1762 Old Louisquisset Pike Lincoln J&J, Pfizer
1:30pm-4:00pm Warwick Library 600 Sandy Lane Warwick Pfizer, Pfizer (5-11)
10:00am-12:00pm William Hall Library 1825 Broad Street Cranston Pfizer, Pfizer (5-11)
1:00pm-2:30pm CCRI – Newport 1 John H. Chafee Boulevard Newport J&J, Moderna, Pfizer (12+) 12:00pm-1:30pm CCRI – Warwick 400 East Avenue Warwick J&J, Moderna, Pfizer (12+)
9:00am-11:00am South Road Elementary 1157 South Road South Kingstown J&J, Moderna, Pfizer (12+) 10:00am-3:00pm Cumberland Public Library 1464 Diamond Hill Road Cumberland Pfizer, Pfizer (5-11)
9:00am-10:45am St. Peter’s & St. Andrew’s Church 70 Pemberton Street Providence J&J, Moderna, Pfizer (12+), Pfizer (5-11)

A moratorium on nursing home staff mandates has gone into effect TODAY.

NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL

Because the nature of this crisis is so science-oriented, we’re seeing that a broad swath of people are becoming more literate in infectious diseases.

Three new research studies show that the booster is essential in preventing COVID hospitalization, effective by as much as 90%.

Ireland set to rapidly drop almost all COVID-19 restrictions

COVID-19 Cuts Life Expectancy in Dozens of Countries

Japan is ramping up COVID-19 restrictions as omicron cases surge

Dozens of firms to make cheap version of Merck COVID pill for poorer nations

Vaccinated With Prior Infection Most Protected During Delta Wave

Starbucks Cancels Vaccine Mandate After Supreme Court Ruling

Some physicians recommend waiting weeks to vaccinate if someone is recovering from COVID – if they’ve received the monoclonal antibodies, they should wait 3 months.

CVS will be distributing free N95 masks in the coming weeks from the federal government’s supply.

Breast milk from mothers infected with Covid-19 isn’t likely to harm breastfeeding infants, a small new study concludes

Adele postpones Caesar’s Palance residencey in Vegas due to illness among her crew

Some of the compounds (not THC) in marijuana are showing to destroy the virus in testing – more research is needed.

In the NYT:  Since early last week, new cases in Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey and New York have fallen by more than 30 percent. They’re down by more than 10 percent in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. In California, cases may have peaked. “Let’s be clear on this — we are winning,” Mayor Eric Adams of New York said yesterday. Kathy Hochul, the governor of New York State, said during a budget speech, “We hope to close the books on this winter surge soon.”

White House frees up 400 million masks – The Biden administration will announce a plan Wednesday to distribute hundreds of millions of free, high-quality masks through pharmacies and community sites

The states of Texas, Arizona, Utah, and Idaho are back to pre-pandemic employment levels.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla awarded Genesis Prize for work developing coronavirus vaccine

England prepares for the COVID pandemic to bcome endemic. Boris Johnson announces: Restrictions including COVID-19 passes, mask mandates, and work-from-home guidance will be removed – self-isolation rules may also be thrown out at the end of March – Effective immediately, the UK government is no longer asking people to work from home – the COVID pass mandate for nightclubs and large events won’t be renewed when it expires on Jan. 26 – indoor mask-wearing will no longer be compulsory anywhere in England after Jan 27 – the requirement for secondary school pupils to wear masks during class and in communal areas will be lifted on Jan. 20 – people who test positive for COVID-19 and their unvaccinated contacts are still required to self-isolate, but Johnson said he “very much expect[s] not to renew” the rule when the relevant regulations expire on March 24. As COVID becomes endemic, we will need to replace legal requirements with advice and guidance, urging people with the virus to be careful and considerate of others,”

Starbucks Ends COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

A record 9 million Americans are out sick as COVID rates surge

“The idea of intentionally trying to catch Omicron is ‘all the rage,'” Dr. Paul Offit of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia tells CNN. But don’t do it: The virus is worse than a bad cold, you could catch “long” Covid and add stress to the health care system

COVID-19 Vaccines Not Linked to Trouble Conceiving

ESPN is opting not to send its TV crews to cover the Olympics due to COVID

In addition to ordering your test kits online, you can order them over the phone, at: 800 232 0223

Additional data released yesterday by the CDC confirm the effectiveness of COVID vaccination and especially booster shots in keeping older Americans out of the hospital. 

Unvaccinated people age 50 and older were 17 times more likely to be hospitalized than those who had completed the initial immunization series (without boosters). The differences increase with age: unvaccinated Americans between 50 and 64 were 44 times more likely to be hospitalized for COVID than those in the age group who were vaccinated and received a booster shot. For those over 65, unvaccinated had a 49 times greater risk of hospitalization compared to those over 65 who had received vaccination plus a booster shot. 

https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#covidnet-hospitalizations-vaccination