Precautions for Covid-19 need to remain consistent – whether or not the numbers go down – because the more Americans move, the more the virus does, a health expert said.
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 06: People with and without masks are seen walking down the street as the city goes through Phase 4 of reopening following restrictions imposed to slow the spread of coronavirus on August 06, 2020 in New York City . The fourth phase will feature outdoor arts and entertainment, sporting events without fans and media production. (Photo by Alexi Rosenfeld / Getty Images)
As case numbers begin to decline, people tend to interact more, and more movement predicts how the virus will spread, said Dr. Christopher Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington.
Although cases have increased to more than 4.9 million and coronavirus deaths have exceeded 161,000, previous hotspots such as New York see positive changes. But health experts have predicted that the national death toll will decrease by the year, and many have called for a stronger national leadership against the virus.
In the list-changing response to the pandemic reviewed by Foreign Policy Magazine, the United States ranks near the bottom.
“If you look at the mobility data collected from mobile phones in many parts of the country, we are almost back to pre-Covid levels of mobility, so we are just not as careful as other people in other countries, “Murray told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on Friday.
Precautionary measures could bring the numbers down and hold while the nation waits for a vaccine, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams said in a newsletter Friday. All it takes is what he calls his ‘Three W’s’.
“Number one, wash your hands. Number two, look at your distance – which means you stay at least six feet from others and avoid over crowded places. And number three, wear a face mask,” Adams said.
There’s encouraging news: Murray said Friday that the rate of mask use in the U.S. has risen about 5% in the last 10 days, particularly in states with higher caseloads, such as California, Texas and Florida.
That could save tens of thousands of lives. While the IHME model projected more than 295,000 deaths in the U.S. by December 1, it also shows that consistent wearing of masks could save more than 66,000 lives.
Nation wrestles with economic fallout
Adding to the nation’s struggle is the economic fallout of the pandemic.
President Donald Trump on Saturday signed four executive orders, including one that would provide $ 400 in improved unemployment benefits – 25% of which states are expected to cover – after negotiations halted this week over a new incentive package.
The other three orders signed by the president include a tax break for Americans earning less than $ 100,000 a year, as well as extending an eviction moratorium and deferring student loan payments.
The actions are likely to be challenged by Democrats in court.
Up to 40 million Americans risk eviction by the end of the year, according to a report published Friday by the Aspen Institute. And although the U.S. economy added another 1.8 million jobs in July, it was a reduction from the 4.8 million jobs added in June and a small step for an economy that fell another 12.9 million jobs during the pandemic.
In Los Angeles, cars were parked on a backpack Friday and providing food for students’ families. Among them was Henry Herrera, a father of two who said he was unemployed because of the pandemic.
On Friday, he was able to get backpacks and food for his children who rely on school meal plans for breakfast and lunch. Herrera showed CNN a box full of fresh produce like apples, potatoes and carrots.
“That really helped a lot, because with Covid-19 I’m not able to work. We struggle here and there to end it,” Herrera said, adding, “but we do it anyway.”
The Covid-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected the poor, in addition to older populations and people with chronic conditions, Drs. Richard Seidman, the chief medical officer at LA Care Health Plan, one of the hosts of the drive-th event.
“The communities with the highest rates of poverty also have the highest rates of infections and deaths,” Seidman told CNN. “That the longer this lasts – and unfortunately with some of the challenges at the national level with Congress failing to pass on and expanding some of the benefits of financial aid – it sends some people that much more into poverty.”
Re-think the test
One key factor in reopening the U.S. while maintaining security is rethinking the national strategy for testing for the virus, said Dr. Rajiv Shah, president of the Rockefeller Foundation and former USAID administrator.
At present, only symptomatic people are frequently tested, which means that 40% to 50% of all spreaders, those who have no symptoms, are not tested and told they can be contagious, he said.
“You need to know that as soon as possible, and then limit transmission from that node of contamination,” he said during an Aspen Ideas webinar on Friday. “That’s the whole ball game.”
But even tests of primarily symptomatic people have been affected by delays, many states report.
The Virginia Department of Health reported a sharp increase in cases on Friday, but that increase came from a technical problem and a delay of two days in advance, according to a statement.
And Miami-Dade County, the hotspot for cases in Florida, is struggling with a lag in test results, according to state data obtained by CNN.
One day in the past week, test tabs reported that 19.2% of test results took more than seven days to deliver. On another day, 45% of the test results took between four and seven days.
Precautions are also important for children
Researchers are learning more about how the virus spreads among children.
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supports the early belief that most cases of coronavirus in children seem asymptomatic or mild in children. But, the report said, when children are in the hospital, they need the intensive care unit as often as adults do.
To carry out the pandemic, the CDC said that children should be encouraged to wash their hands frequently, keep a good physical distance from others, and if they are 2 years or older, they should wear a mask when they are outside people outside their family members.
One rare but serious complication that children can develop from a coronavirus infection is known as multisystem inflammatory syndrome, known as MIS-C, and at least 570 cases have been reported, the CDC said.
As the pandemic continues, health care providers should be on the lookout for the syndrome that most commonly causes abdominal pain, vomiting and a skin rash.
More than 74% of the cases were among Spanish and Black children, the CDC said.
The report comes as schools reopen for the new school year, including in Georgia’s largest school district, where teachers are protesting the decision to restore instruction in person on August 26, after just two weeks of online learning.
At least 263 Gwinnett County employees have already tested positive for Covid-19 or are in quarantine, and school has not even started.
“It seems that standardized test results mean a lot to this province,” teacher Brian Westlake told CNN’s Natasha Chen. “But Covid test results don’t seem to be doing enough.”
Dr Marybeth Sexton, an assistant professor of infectious disease at Emory University, warned that with community outbreaks, there is a risk that students and staff will develop Covid-19.
“With the degree of cases we still see in the Metro Atlanta area and many places in the United States, it means on the first class days, you will have a certain percentage of students and faculty who see leave up those who are already infected, “she said.
She said masks were essential for the safety of not only the school building but also the wider community. “Those students go home to family members who may be vulnerable, and the teachers, the school bus drivers, the school animals, the people who work in the cafeteria – all of these people are also at risk.”
Cases come up as land reaches new milestone
State and local leaders across the country are trying to control and contain the spread of the coronavirus as the number of U.S. cases approaches 5 million cases.
South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control announced a new “Fight the Spread” campaign on Saturday, to encourage residents to wear masks, exercise and test social distance. The state reported 1,178 new cases, bringing the statewide total to more than 98,700, according to DHEC.
Wisconsin saw its highest daily new counts of counting on Saturday, with 1,165 reported cases, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, bringing the statewide total to 59,933 reported cases.
Illinois reported 2,190 new cases on Saturday – the second day in a row that the state health department reported more than 2,000 new Covid-19 positive cases. It was the highest daily reported case count since May 24, when the department reported 2,508 new cases. Statewide, there are more than 192,698 cases, according to the Department of Health.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott extended his Covid-19 disaster declaration on his state on Saturday, nearly 5 months after it was first issued on March 13 to help Texas counties fight the pandemic.
“I urge Texans to remain vigilant in our fight against this virus,” Abbott said in a statement. “Everyone should do their part to control the spread of COVID-19 by wearing a mask, exercising social distance and washing your hands often and thoroughly.”
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