California plans to drop its tier system and open up the state June 15 if vaccine supply remains steady and coronavirus metrics continue to decline, officials said Tuesday. Everyday activities will be allowed and businesses will open with "common-sense risk-reduction measures," state Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said.
"Our hospitalizations have been steadily decreasing for months," he said. "We have consistently low and improving metrics."
In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the launch of mobile vaccination teams armed with one-shot, Johnson & Johnson vaccines that will target some of the hardest-to-reach New Yorkers. The vans and buses will be equipped with four to six vaccinators each, bringing doses to communities most in need, including neighborhoods identified by the city’s Task Force for Racial Inclusion and Equity as being hardest-hit by the virus and histories of socio-economic disparity.
“We’re doing all we can to get as many shots in arms as possible,” de Blasio said. “We’re going above and beyond to reach every New Yorker ... to help our city recover one dose at a time.”
Also in the news:
►President Joe Biden moved up to April 19 his deadline for states to make all U.S. adults eligible for a coronavirus vaccine, he announced Tuesday at a vaccination site in Alexandria, Virginia. Biden previously had said that 90% of adults would be eligible by April 19 – and have a vaccination site within five miles – and all by May 1.
►Not a single oceangoing cruise ship has departed with passengers from a U.S. port in the past year: For more, check out this USA TODAY story about how COVID-19 has devastated the cruise industry.
►New York and Maryland on Tuesday joined the growing list of states allowing anyone over 16 to sign up for COVID-19 vaccinations. Twelve states joined the list Monday.
►New research suggests that protection from the Moderna vaccine lasts at least six months. The report Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine echoes what Pfizer said last week about its vaccine.
? Today's numbers: The U.S. has more than 30.8 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 556,400 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: More than 132.2 million cases and 2.87 million deaths. At least 219 million vaccine doses have been distributed in the U.S. and 168.5 million have been administered, according to the CDC.
? What we're reading: People across the country spoke with USA TODAY about their emotions after getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Here are their stories.
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Will you get a vaccine shot April 19? Probably not, but likely soon after
President Joe Biden's new pledge to make every U.S. adult eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine by April 19 comes with a big question: Will there be enough doses available?
Experts expect a mad scramble at first as millions previously denied access to vaccines by priority requirements search for appointments to get the shots. But that crush figures to give way to a vaccine surplus as supply increases substantially in the coming weeks. The U.S. reached a single-day high with 4.1 million vaccinations Saturday.
"Very quickly, really in a matter of weeks after each state moves to open eligibility, we’re going to shift to a very different phase in the vaccine rollout where we will have plenty of doses available,’’ said Jason L. Schwartz, assistant professor of health policy at Yale University.
– Jorge L. Ortiz
Put down the Lysol, disinfectant probably isn't needed, CDC says
The run on Lysol and other disinfectants may finally be over. Disinfection to reduce transmission of COVID-19 at home is probably not needed unless someone in the home is sick or someone with COVID-19 has been in the home within 24 hours, the CDC says in new guidance. Cleaning with a household cleaner that contains soap or detergent reduces the amount of germs on surfaces and, in most situations, removes most virus particles on surfaces, the guidance says.
"Clean high-touch surfaces regularly (for example, daily) and after you have visitors in your home," the guidance says.
Researchers identify ‘double mutant’ virus variant in California
At least one case of a COVID-19 variant that contains two worrisome mutations has been documented in California. It’s called a "double mutant" because the spike protein of the virus contains two mutations – one that is found in a variant tied to California and another that is commonly found in a variants tied to South Africa and Brazil, said Dr. Benjamin Pinsky, the medical director of the Clinical Virology Laboratory for Stanford Health Care.
“So far we’ve sequenced one case, and confirmed that indeed it is one of these variants – these ‘double mutant’ variants – that was recently identified out of India,” Pinsky said in an interview with ABC7 News Bay Area.
The effect of combining the two mutations in a single virus variant has not been well documented, but both of the mutations are believed to be more transmissible, Pinsky said. Vaccines, however, are expected to continue to be effective at preventing severe illness.
– Joel Shannon
Fewer are dying from the virus, more are testing positive
Americans are now dying of COVID-19 at less than half the pace they were a month ago, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. The 5,453 U.S. deaths from the disease in the week ending Monday is down from 12,263 who died in one week a month earlier – and down from 21,383 in one week just two months ago.
Experts says the U.S. vaccination effort largely aimed at the most vulnerable people is helping curb fatalities. But the news isn't all good – the U.S. continues to report high levels of cases. The 452,636 cases reported in the week ending Monday was up 20% from two weeks earlier.
– Mike Stucka
3 vaccinated people have died from the virus in Michigan
Michigan public health officials say 246 people tested positive for the coronavirus two weeks or more after becoming fully vaccinated – and three have died. Lynn Sutfin, spokeswoman for the state health department, told USA TODAY in an email that the positive tests represent a small fraction of 1% of the 1.7 million vaccinated across the state. Two of the three deaths occurred within three weeks of completing the vaccine, she said. All three were 65 or older.
“While the majority of the population develops full immunity within 14 days of completion of their vaccine series, a small proportion appear to take longer to mount a full antibody response,” Sutfin wrote.
California, after winter surge, now has lowest COVID-19 rate in US
California now has the lowest coronavirus infection rate in the country – months after the state saw a winter surge that made it the epicenter of the pandemic.
Gov. Gavin Newsom bragged on Twitter about the low infection rate. The Golden State is the only one in the country with a rate under 2%, according to data released by the Department of Health and Human Services for the last week in March. The state saw a 1.7% positivity rate.
Los Angeles County, similarly, has seen drastic drops in the number of COVID cases after the area – the most populous county in the country – became overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases over the winter.
At the start of the pandemic, California was applauded for its quick actions to curb the spread of the virus, but the strict measures quickly became unpopular. The frustration grew over the winter when the state saw a sudden surge in cases. At one point, California had a nearly 20% positivity rate. The grievances led to more support of a recall effort against the governor. A total of 1.2 million people have contracted COVID-19 in the state and more than 23,000 people have died.
Contributing: The Associated Press
