Coronavirus news, updates, hotspots and information for 4-15-2021

This is Coronavirus 411, the latest COVID-19 info and new hotspots… Just the facts… for April 15th, 2021.

The halt on Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine remains for now. U.S. health advisors told the government yesterday they need more evidence to decide if a handful of unusual blood clots were linked to the shot — and if so, how big the risk is. There have been six cases out of more than 7 million inoculations in the U.S.

Denmark became the first country to stop using AstraZeneca’s vaccine altogether over similar potential links to rare blood clotting. Problem is, the new plan includes use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, whose rollout in Europe has been delayed.

The answer, in case you’ve been wondering is yes, the CDC is studying those who are getting COVID-19 after being fully immunized. It’s called vaccine breakthrough. Dr. Saad Omer, a vaccine researcher at Yale, says this happens with a vaccine against any disease, it’s expected, and there’s no need to freak out.

People are flying again, and airlines are starting to fill those middle seats again and that may not be good. A new CDC/Kansas State study says leaving them open was working, reducing the risk of infection by 23% to 57%. Only Delta is still blocking middle seats and that will end May 1.

Would it comfort you to know that Professor Snape is working on potions to prevent COVID-19? Well, he is. But it’s not the one from Harry Potter’s Hogwart’s. There’s a real Professor Snape, his name is Matthew, at Oxford. He’s a professor of vaccinology and he’s trying to boost protections against the coronavirus by mixing vaccines in different ways. And yes, he’s heard every joke there is.

In the United States cases were up 8%, deaths are down 27%, and hospitalizations were up 9% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending up since April 5. 

There are now 6,874,970 active cases in the United States. The current top 5 states by number of active cases: California, New York, Virginia, Florida, and Maryland.

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Chattahoochee, GA. Crosby, TX. Lamb, TX. Huron, MI. Hutchinson, TX. St. Clair, MI. Carson, TX. Hockley, TX. Cochran, TX. And Floyd, TX. Most of these Texas counties, by the way are located in the panhandle.

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

There have been 564,388 deaths in the US reported as Covid-related, with a current national fatality rate of 1.8%.

The states with the most new deaths reported as COVID-related: California 178. New York 83. Texas 71. New Jersey 61. Pennsylvania 53. Georgia 52. Florida and Illinois 39. Michigan 37. And Oklahoma 28.

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s had at least one dose, New Hampshire at 53.3%, Maine at 45.2%, and New Mexico at 45.1%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Mississippi at 28.1%, Alabama at 28.7%, and Louisiana at 29.9%.

Globally, cases were up 25% and deaths up 25% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending up since March 5.  

There are now 24,232,351 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: India 199,569. The United States 78,439. Brazil 75,998. Turkey 62,797. And France 43,505.

There have now been 2,971,181 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide.

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