US coronavirus: Cases rise nationwide as vaccination rates drop from peak spring

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Every state in the US reported more Covid-19 cases in the week ending Friday than in the previous week, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, with the situation evident from coast to coast.

In California this week, both San Diego County and Los Angeles County reported the most cases since February, and the number of hospitalizations in Los Angeles County more than doubled in two weeks. In Florida, state health data shows new case positivity nearly doubled in two weeks, from 7.8% in the week of July 2 to 15.1% this week.

State officials noted Friday that Louisiana now has the highest growth rate in the number of cases per capita in the United States. Louisiana has reported the third highest number of daily cases since the start of the pandemic on Wednesday.

“We know that more than 80% of these are Delta models, and that’s the reason for this increase,” Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said. “And what helps with the surge is that there’s a very low percentage of people vaccinated.”

Thirty states still have to fully vaccinate at least half of their residents, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As of Friday, the daily rate of people being fully vaccinated is the lowest since the end of January, and as shown this year after the winter break increased, vaccinations remain the best way forward in defeating Covid-19 by giving people a much stronger chance of avoiding infection. or hospitalization.

US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy confirmed Friday that in the rare case that a vaccinated person has contracted the virus, the infection will likely be mild or asymptomatic.

“You have to feel confident if you get vaccinated, your chances of getting seriously ill or dying from Covid are very low,” Murthy told CNN reporter Erin Burnett. “If you do have a breakthrough infection – which in itself would be unusual – it is likely to be mild or asymptomatic.”

Murthy said he is concerned that Delta is spreading rapidly among unvaccinated people, who account for the vast majority of hospitalizations and deaths from the coronavirus.

“The thing that makes this possible is the fact that we are dealing with the most transmissible version of Covid-19 that we have seen so far,” he said.

Immunocompromised Americans are still at risk

According to Murthy, people who are immunocompromised and vaccinated against Covid-19 may want to continue to wear masks, and vaccinated people who live in areas of high transmission and those with young children may want to cover up as well.

“These are all circumstances where people may make the decision to go further, be careful and wear masks, especially indoors,” Murthy told CNN.

Murthy noted that immunocompromised people may be more susceptible to Covid-19 themselves, while others may want to cover up to protect the people around them.

“In the case of parents who have children at home, they may decide, ‘Even if there is a really small chance I can pass it on to my children, I want to be careful because I live in an area with a lot of virus spread.'”

Meanwhile, research is being conducted to determine if an additional boost with vaccines can be provided for those who are immunocompromised.

The CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are “exploring multiple options” for how to make a third dose of the Covid-19 vaccine possible for immunocompromised people if needed, according to a statement released Friday.

The possibility of needing another dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna mRNA Covid-19 vaccines after full immunization is under review. Vaccines are currently approved for emergency use and a third dose is not authorized.

On Thursday, the CDC submitted data to its Committee on Vaccines Advisers indicating that immunocompromised people make up about 2.7% of adults in the United States.

When people who are immunocompromised are infected with the coronavirus, data has shown that they are more likely to develop serious illness. If they are vaccinated, the data has shown that they are more likely to get infections. A study in the United States found that 44% of hospital breakouts were from immunocompromised people, while a study in Israel found the rate to be 40%.

“Emerging data shows that there is an improved antibody response after an additional dose of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine in some immunocompromised people,” the CDC said in a statement to CNN on Friday. “While early data show some potential benefits of giving an additional dose, more evidence is needed to determine safety and efficacy in immunocompromised people.”

Caution urged at festival as cases surge in Florida

Even for the general community that is not immunocompromised, the delta variant still puts people at risk of infection, as is evident in Florida.

The state reported 73,199 new cases of Covid-19 last week, up from 45,603 the previous week, according to data from the Florida Department of Health (DOH).

And the number of Covid-19 vaccine doses taken in the past 10 weeks has fallen from more than 769,000 in the week of May 14 to about 245,000 this week.

Miami-Dade recorded the most new cases of all Florida counties this week, according to Health Department data, and officials are calling for caution during summer gatherings.

Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniela Levine Cava on Saturday urged concertgoers at the three-day Rolling Loud festival to help “slow the spread by practicing safe behavior.”

The mayor said anyone who hasn’t been vaccinated can do so at the county’s pop-up vaccine site set up at the music festival.

The vaccine website was created in cooperation with the state health department and will offer both Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines until midnight Sunday, according to the county’s website.

Lauren Mascarenhas, John Bonefield, Elizabeth Cohen, Melissa Alonso, Chuck Johnston, Alexandra Mix and Diana Hackney contributed to this report.

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