This is Vaccine 411, the latest coronavirus vaccine information for November 16th, 2021.

A couple of openings to tell you travelers about. India started letting fully vaccinated foreign tourists enter the country on regular commercial flights. Infections are falling and vaccinations rising there. Visitors haven’t been allowed in since March 2020. Or maybe Cambodia’s more to your liking. It reopened its borders to fully vaccinated travelers two weeks earlier than planned and has one of the world's highest rates of immunization.

But here’s where not to go, especially if you’re using the CDC as your travel agent. The agency has advised against travel to the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Iceland because of rising cases there. However, they moved some countries to the level one low risk category, including Japan, India, Pakistan, Liberia, Gambia, and Mozambique.

Without waiting for authorization from the FDA or a recommendation from the CDC, all adults in New York City are now allowed to get booster shots. Three states, California, Colorado and New Mexico, are also shoving the federal government aside and taking matters into their own hands.

COVID sure hurt the melting pot on U.S. college campuses. International student enrollment fell by 15% or 1.1 million students during the 2020-2021 academic year. That’s the biggest drop since the late 1940s. Travel restrictions and delayed visa processing were largely to blame.  

Amazon agreed to pay $500,000 and be monitored by California officials to make sure that from now on, it notifies workers within a day about new coronavirus cases. It will also notify local health agencies within 48 hours. The half-million will go to enforce the state’s consumer protection laws. All of this is because of California’s “right-to-know” law that took effect last year.

In the United States cases were up 14%, deaths are down 14%, and hospitalizations are down 7% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending up since November 3. 

The five states that had the most daily deaths per 100,000 are Wyoming, Montana, Kentucky, Alaska, and Ohio.

There are 9,237,610 active cases in the United States.

The five states with the greatest increase in hospitalizations per capita: Rhode Island 34%, Michigan 22%, Minnesota 20%, and New Mexico and South Dakota 15%.

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Nome Census Area, AK. Scotts Bluff, NE. San Juan, NM. Grant, NM. Scurry, TX. Big Horn, MT. Wadena, MN. Bethel Census Area, AK. Otsego, MI. And Washburn, WI.

There have been at least 764,363 deaths in the U.S. recorded as Covid-related.

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s been fully vaccinated: Vermont unchanged at 72%, Rhode Island at 71.7%, and Connecticut and Maine at 71.4%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are West Virginia at 41.2%, Wyoming unchanged at 44.8%, and Alabama at 45.5%. The percentage of the U.S. that’s been fully vaccinated is 58.8%.

Globally, cases were up 12% and deaths were down 3% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending up since October 15.

There are 19,303,850 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: The United States 70,823. The U.K. 39,705. Russia 38,420. Germany 30,483. And Turkey 23,852.  

There have been at least 5,106,593 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide.

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