Coronavirus news, updates, hotspots and information for 4-28-2021

This is Coronavirus 411, the latest COVID-19 info and new hotspots… Just the facts… for April 28th, 2021.

India has reported more than 17.6 million cases since the pandemic began last year. But experts fear the actual number could be 30x higher. That means more than half a billion cases. Health workers and scientists have long warned infections and deaths are greatly underreported for a variety of reasons. Some predictions have the death toll peaking at more than 13,000 a day — more than 4x the current daily death toll.

As expected, the CDC eased guidelines in the U.S. on wearing masks outdoors. Fully vaccinated Americans don't need to cover their faces anymore unless they are in a big crowd of strangers. The unvaccinated can also go outside without masks in some situations. It was essentially an endorsement what many Americans were already doing.

Brazil's health regulator rejected several states’ requests to import almost 30 million doses of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine out of safety concerns, and the Russian government is not happy. The agency said there were faults in all clinical studies of the vaccine’s development, as well as absent or insufficient data.

Pfizer’s CEO said that before the end of this year, they may release a pill that can treat early-stage COVID-19 infections at home. It would work by inhibiting the enzyme the virus needs to infiltrate human cells. Of course, it all depends on clinical trials and the FDA.

West Virginia’s trying to climb up the ranks of our top vaccinating states report by paying young people to get the vaccine. $100 savings bond for anyone age 16 to 35 who gets vaccinated. The Governor said, "I'm trying to come up with a way that's truly going to motivate them to get over the hump." Even those who’ve already gotten the shots will get paid retroactively.

In the United States cases were down 24%, deaths are down 5%, and hospitalizations are flat over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending down since April 14.  

There are now 6,817,794 active cases in the United States. The current top 5 states by number of active cases: California, Virginia, New York, Maryland, and Florida. 

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Dimmit, TX. Chattahoochee, GA. Grant, OR. Caroline, VA. Pecos, TX. Hemphill, TX. Ferry, WA. Coos, NH. Muskegon, MI. And Huron, MI. 

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

There have been 573,355 deaths in the US reported as Covid-related, with a current national fatality rate of 1.79%.

The states with the most new deaths reported as COVID-related: Michigan 117. New York 116. Pennsylvania 77. New Jersey 61. Texas 60. Florida 58. Illinois 24. California and North Carolina 23. And Georgia, Virginia, and Maryland 18. 

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s had at least one dose, New Hampshire at 59.5%, Massachusetts at 53.6%, and Connecticut at 53.2%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Mississippi at 30.2%, Alabama at 31.6%, and Louisiana at 31.9%.

Globally, cases were up 6% and deaths down 2% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending down since April 23. 

There are 19,197,940 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: India 362,902. Brazil 76,085. The United States 52,046. Turkey 43,301. And France 30,317.    There have now been 3,131,405 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide. 

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