COVID, Coronavirus, Omicron and Delta variants, and vaccine updates for 12-30-2021

This is Covid 411, the latest on Omicron and other COVID variants, and new hotspots for December 30th, 2021.

Whoops. Germany’s health minister said their infection rate is likely two to three times higher than the statistics that have been reported. He said there’s a shortfall in staff that becomes particularly noticeable over holiday periods at local health offices, and that’s a key part of Germany's reporting chain.

France is taking the record-breaking surge seriously, increasing the pressure on the unvaccinated. The plan is to banish them from, well, society. Restaurants, cinemas, theaters, museums, and sports arenas, inter-regional trains and buses, and domestic flights. More than 4 million adults there remain unvaccinated, including more than 1 million who are over 65.

Will France’s strategy work? Let’s look at China, which has a zero-tolerance policy toward the virus and a population that’s in virtual total compliance. Cases rose for the fourth day in a row in the city of Xi’an, where 13 million people have been living under a comprehensive lockdown.

And again, all this over a variant that is by nearly all reporting, mild, with symptoms akin to allergies. The CDC Director said COVID deaths and hospitalizations are comparatively low given how fast and broad Omicron has spread. And Dr. Anthony Fauci agrees.

Let’s check in with those unvaccinated folks and get the latest on why they aren’t getting it. A new Census Bureau poll shows most, nearly half, are worried about potential side effects. Not trusting the vaccines and not trusting the government were also among the top reasons. And, being the Census Bureau, they broke down the demographics of the unvaccinated. 75% are under age 50. The unvaccinated also tend to have lower levels of education, be single, and African-American. 

In the United States, while cases were up 153% and breaking records, deaths are down 7%, and hospitalizations are up 11% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending up since December 14.  

The five states that had the most daily deaths per 100,000 are Michigan, Tennessee, New Mexico, Arizona, and Pennsylvania.

There are now over 12 million active cases in the United States, at 12,404,303.

The five areas with the greatest increase in hospitalizations per capita: Puerto Rico 275%, Washington DC 141%, Louisiana 96%, Hawaii 86%, and Florida 83%.  

The top 10 areas with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Pitkin, CO. Summit, CO. Essex, NJ. Eagle, CO. New York City, NY. Nassau, NY. San Juan, PR. Washington, DC. Miami-Dade, FL. And Guaynabo, PR.

There have been at least 822,892 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 77.3%, Rhode Island at 76.2%, and Maine at 75.7%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Wyoming at 47.4%, Alabama at 47.6%, and Mississippi unchanged at 48.1%. The percentage of the U.S. that’s been fully vaccinated is 61.9%.

Globally, cases were up 62% and deaths down 14% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending up since October 15. 

There are now over 27 million active cases around the world, at 27,048,801.

The five countries with the most new cases: The United States 465,670. France 208,099. The U.K. 183,037. Spain 100,760. And Italy 98,030. 

There have been at least 5,421,557 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide. 

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