COVID-19 daily deaths soar to 3,580 in US, as second vaccine nears approval

US coronavirus deaths soared to a daily record of 3,580 and hospitalizations rose for the 19th straight day on Wednesday, ramping up the stakes as regulators on Thursday considered whether to approve a second COVID-19 vaccine.

Another 232,255 cases were reported, the second highest daily case load on record, as California became the first state to report more than 50,000 cases in a single day, according to a Reuters tally.

The United States leads the world with a cumulative 307,767 deaths and nearly 17 million cases as many Americans and the outgoing administration of President Donald Trump have resisted the stay-at-home orders and mask-wearing that have proven effective at controlling the spread.

But more help could be arriving soon with a second vaccine nearing approval from the US Food and Drug Administration.

A panel of outside advisers to the FDA is expected to endorse emergency use of Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine on Thursday, one week after the same committee backed the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech SE.

The FDA authorized emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine a day later, opening the gates to a massive inoculation program that began on Monday.

Some 570 vaccine distribution centers received the initial batch of shipments on Monday and Tuesday, and an additional 886 locations were due to receive vials on Friday, said US Army General Gustave Perna, chief operating officer of the government's Operation Warp Speed campaign.

But the first major storm of the winter season could also disrupt vaccine distribution.

Express delivery companies Federal Express and United Parcel Service had contingency plans to keep any delayed vaccine shipments secure until they can be delivered, Perna told reporters.

With millions of Americans thrown out of work, Congress could soon lend a hand as well.

After months of feuding and with a weekend deadline fast approaching, congressional negotiators haggled over details of a $900 billion COVID-19 aid bill that leaders have vowed to pass before going home this year.

The legislation is expected to include $600 to $700 stimulus checks, extend unemployment benefits, help pay for vaccine distribution and assist small businesses.

-reuters-

Man, 30, dies after attending a 'COVID Party,' Texas hospital says

A 30-year-old man who believed the coronavirus was a hoax and attended a “COVID party” died after being infected with the virus, according to a Texas hospital.

The man had attended a gathering with an infected person to test whether the coronavirus was real, said Dr. Jane Appleby, chief medical officer at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, where the man died.

She did not say when the party took place, how many people attended or how long after the event was the man hospitalized with COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. The man was not publicly identified.

The premise of such parties is to test whether the virus really exists or to intentionally expose people to the coronavirus in an attempt to gain immunity.

Appleby said the man had told his nurse that he attended a COVID party. Just before he died, she said the patient told his nurse: “I think I made a mistake. I thought this was a hoax, but it’s not.”

Appleby said she was sharing the story to warn others, especially in Texas, where coronavirus cases are surging.

There were 8,332 new confirmed coronavirus cases in the state Saturday, according to a New York Times database. More than 258,000 cases and more than 3,200 deaths have been recorded in Texas so far.

COVID parties are “dangerous, irresponsible and potentially deadly,” said Dr. Robert Glatter, an emergency physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

“Attending such a party may be a path to an early demise, if not chronic and unrelenting fatigue, chest pain, difficulty breathing and daily fevers, if you do survive,” Glatter said.

Before there was a chickenpox vaccine, people hosted chickenpox parties to infect their children with the disease, as it was thought to be more dangerous to contract as an adult.

The vaccine is the safest way to protect against chickenpox now that it is available, although some, including former Gov. Matt Bevin of Kentucky, still allowed their children to participate in such gatherings to contract the illness.

The coronavirus does not behave like the chickenpox, Glatter said, and parties for either virus should not be held.

In Alabama, reports that students were gathering to bet on who could get infected with the virus first — with the sickened winner taking home a pot of money — led to warnings from the University of Alabama to students about the parties’ risks, although the events could not be confirmed by state health officials.

The United States recently hit a record number of new cases per day, with more than 68,000 confirmed cases Friday.

Being infected by the coronavirus has yet to be proved to provide immunity, so reinfection is possible.

In an Op-Ed article for The Times, Dr. Greta Bauer, a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics, warned against coronavirus parties, noting that even young people can be hospitalized and face long-term damage from the virus.

“It is important that we don’t take unnecessary risks with unknown consequences,” Bauer wrote. “If we can avoid infection, we need to do exactly that.”

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that people infected with the coronavirus should not attend gatherings, and that any event where people are mingling without face coverings or social distancing are inherently high risk.

A California man died from COVID-19 after going to a party — not held for the purpose of infecting its attendees — where people did not wear masks and an infected person had attended.

-The New York Times Company-

US records more than 42,000 new virus cases in 24 hours: Johns Hopkins University tally

WASHINGTON - The United States recorded at least 42,000 coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, the Johns Hopkins University tally showed Monday, as the country confronts a rapid surge in the disease.

The new infections, concentrated in southern and western states, bring the total number of infections in the US to nearly 2.6 million, according to the Baltimore-based institution at 8:30pm (0030 GMT Tuesday).


The number of daily US deaths in the world's largest economic power continues to decline however, with 355 deaths in 24 hours.

Several state governors have been forced to reimpose lockdowns on businesses such as restaurants and bars, though the White House blames the rise in cases to record levels largely on expanded testing and not community spread.

Agence France-Presse

More than 2,700 dead in US from coronavirus in last 24 hours

WASHINGTON - The coronavirus death toll in the United States -- the country with the most fatalities in the pandemic -- has climbed by 2,751 in the past 24 hours, the latest tally from Johns Hopkins University showed Tuesday.

The US has recorded more than 800,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, according to the Baltimore-based university, with 44,845 deaths.

Nearly 40,000 new cases were reported between Monday at 8:30pm local time, and Tuesday at the same time, the university said.

la/leo/to/dw

Agence France-Presse

Trump economic stimulus against coronavirus off to slow start

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's push for economic stimulus measures to combat market turmoil caused by the growing coronavirus crisis got a slow start Tuesday after talks with skeptical lawmakers.

The outbreak has prompted US airlines to cancel flights, the Federal Reserve to make its first emergency rate cut in 12 years and the stock exchange to experience its worst session since 2008, though some of that ground was gained back in Tuesday's trading.

This spells trouble for the US economy but also threatens Trump's reelection campaign, which is based heavily on his touting of booming stock prices and low unemployment.

Trump promised to announce "major" economic measures on Tuesday and he made a rare trip to Capitol Hill for talks with his Republican party lawmakers.

The biggest item on his wish list is a cut in payroll taxes. But even allies in Congress and reportedly some aides in the White House are skeptical, questioning the cost.

By day's end there was a notable lack of detail about Trump's entire relief plan, especially how the tax cut would be funded.

"Let us put the proposal out in concrete details," Trump's economic adviser Larry Kudlow told a news conference, asking for more time when pushed to explain.

Trump says he wants to help hourly employees and small businesses, which could be hurt most by the need to take time off for quarantine or treatment in case of coronavirus infections. 

Measures are also being proposed to include aid for workers in the gig economy who worry about calling in sick.

The administration earlier in the day unveiled steps to help airlines and the cruise industry and agreements by insurance companies to waive copay charges for people seeking tests for the virus.

Given the emphasis on quarantine to keep people from spreading COVID-19, paid sick leave is seen as particularly important, yet is not guaranteed in the US.

"The vast majority of low wage workers have zero paid sick hours," said Arthur Wheaton, a professor at Cornell University who specializes in labor.

"The most vulnerable or precarious workers in the country have the least protections or security in case of sickness or emergencies," he added, arguing that workers in the gig economy -- drivers for delivery companies or ride-sharing services -- are even worse off.

Fight for $15, an organization representing McDonald's workers, called on the fast food giant to provide paid sick leave to workers whose immediate relatives show symptoms of potential infection and to keep paying workers even if they end up quarantined or if the outbreak requires a restaurant to shut.

LAYOFFS 

With few employees and sensitive to drops in demand, small businesses are also seen as vulnerable.

"Business cycles usually hit small retail establishments and restaurants... relatively lightly compared to heavy industries. This one, I think, is going to be the reverse," Alan Blinder, a former Fed vice chair.

Amanda Ballantyne, national director of The Main Street Alliance, which works with small businesses, said employers are asking for expanded unemployment benefits or other forms of direct support.

"There's a feeling of unpredictability and anxiety. Some businesses have already started contemplating temporary layoffs," she said, adding "there's a real need for some kind of stimulus money and emergency support."

Fears for the wider US economy are real: in a report last week, the Fed said the virus has already disrupted travel and access to goods for US industry, and businesses are fearful it may get worse.

Investors expect the Fed to cut the benchmark borrowing rate again at the March 17-18 policy meeting to stem the economic uncertainty.

Trump's talk of a tax cut has meanwhile been condemned by the Democratic opposition and also by some economists.

"A payroll tax cut is the politically most expedient way to shovel money to those who need it least," tweeted Justin Wolfers, an economics professor at the University of Michigan.

Agence France-Presse