Coronavirus news, updates, hotspots and information for 3-10-2021

This is Coronavirus 411, the latest COVID-19 info and new hotspots… Just the facts… for March 10th, 2021. 

A first-of-its-kind test for detecting whether someone was infected in the past that uses the body's T-cells was granted emergency authorization by the FDA. It would be a game changer for many with long term symptoms and for people who never got a clear answer on whether or not they were infected. T-cells can better "remember" prior infections and are thus said to be superior to other antibody tests.

A study in the New England Journal of Medicine reports the Pfizer vaccine was able to neutralize a new variant spreading rapidly in Brazil. Scientists said this neutralizing ability was almost equal to the vaccine’s effect on a previous less contagious version of the virus from last year.

Breaking news, not everything on Instagram is real. A non-profit that tracks online misinformation reports the platform recommended false claims about COVID-19 and vaccines. From September to November 2020, Instagram recommended 104 posts containing misinformation to 15 profiles set up by the group. These automated recommendations appeared in the "suggested posts" and "Explore" features.

A Pew Research survey shows black Americans stand out from groups in the U.S. for high levels of concern about the pandemic. 81% think it’s a major threat to public health. 49% think it’s a major threat to their own health. 61% say they’ll definitely or probably get a vaccine. That compares to 69% of white adults, 70% of Hispanic adults and 91% of Asian adults. 

There’s one dose of vaccine you’re definitely not getting. The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History has acquired the vial containing the first dose of vaccine administered in the United States. It’s part of an exhibit to document the pandemic and “this extraordinary period we were going through.”

In the United States cases were down 12%, deaths are down 18%, and hospitalizations down 34% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending down since February 26.  

There are now 8,711,254 active cases in the United States. The current top 5 states by number of active cases: California, New York, Florida, Georgia, and Maryland. 

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Dallam, TX. Lyon, KY. Hartley, TX. Cimarron, OK. Sherman, TX. Coke, TX. La Salle, TX. Aleutians West Census Area, AK. Petersburg Borough, AK. And Chattahoochee, GA. 

The five states with the highest risk levels and most daily new cases per capita over 7 days are Rhode Island, New Jersey, New York, South Carolina, and Florida. 

There have been 527,643 deaths in the US reported as Covid-related, with a current national fatality rate of 1.81%.

The states with the most new deaths reported as COVID-related: California 227. Texas 168. Oklahoma 167. Florida 162. Virginia 107. Missouri 99. New York 83. New Jersey 45. Ohio 40. And Pennsylvania 39. 

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s had at least one dose, New Mexico at 25.8%, Alaska at 24.9%, and Connecticut at 24.8%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Georgia at 13.3%, Alabama at 14.9%, and Utah at 15.1%.

Globally, cases were up 9% and deaths down 8% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending up since March 4.  

There are now 21,692,497 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: Brazil 69,537. The United States 55,683. France 23,302. Italy 19,749. And India 16,846.    There have now been 2,609,805 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide. 

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