This is Coronavirus 411, the latest COVID-19 info and new hotspots… Just the facts… for May 13th, 2021.

COVID-19 deaths in the United States have fallen to an average of around 600 per day. That’s the lowest level in 10 months. Over half of states are in the single digits and there are days when a state’s number is zero. But at the same time, the Red Cross is warning cases are exploding across Asia and the Pacific. Over 5.9 million new infections in the past two weeks.

An independent review ordered by the World Health Organization found there was a range of problems in addressing the pandemic, from slow initial reaction to "weak links at every point in preparedness and response." Its overall conclusion was COVID-19 was "a preventable disaster.” The panel said circumstances have not improved over the past year and the system is still unfit to prevent another highly infectious pathogen.

A new study has found two current vaccines are effective against the new India variant. A team of researchers from Emory, Stanford, and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases found the variant to be almost 7 times more resistant to antibodies. But individuals who got either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine were still able to neutralize it.

It’s still an issue though. How do you get people to take the vaccine? Research in the UK showed that emphasizing the personal benefits might be the way to go. Those strongly hesitant seem to feel getting COVID-19 isn’t that big a deal, but the vaccines for it pose great personal risk. Researchers say the best counterargument appears to be the possible devastating effects of having long Covid.

Or you could try what the Governor of Ohio is doing. Kids 12 to 17 who get the vaccine will be put into a lottery to get a full four-year scholarship to a state university, including tuition, room and board, and books. Adults who get at least one dose will go into a million-dollar cash lottery, with winners chosen once a week for five weeks. The money is coming from existing federal coronavirus relief funds.

In the United States cases were down 30%, deaths are down 10%, and hospitalizations are down 17% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending down since April 14.  

There are now 6,368,122 active cases in the United States. The current top 5 states by number of active cases: California, Virginia, New York, Maryland, and Kentucky. 

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Adams, MS. Calhoun, WV. Gilmer, WV. Conejos, kow-NEI-hows CO. Luce, MI. Jackson, LA. Guadalupe, NM. Reeves, TX. Chattahoochee, GA. And Charlton, GA.

The five states with the highest risk levels and most daily new cases per capita over 7 days are Rhode Island, Michigan, Colorado, Minnesota, and Maine.

There have been 583,647 deaths in United States recorded as Covid-related, with a current national fatality rate of 1.79%.

The states with the most new deaths reported as COVID-related: California 109. Texas 70. Pennsylvania 64. New York 54. Florida 48. Oklahoma 46. New Jersey and Georgia 41. North Carolina 29. And Illinois 23. 

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s had at least one dose, Vermont at 62.3%, Massachusetts at 60.8%, and Hawaii at 59.2%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Mississippi at 32.2%, Louisiana at 33.6%, and Alabama at 33.8%. The percentage of the U.S. that’s been fully vaccinated is 35.1%

Globally, cases were down 16% and deaths down 9% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending down since April 23. 

There are now 18,872,080 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: India 362,406. Brazil 76,638. The United States 35,816. Argentina 24,475. And France 21,498. 

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