Coronavirus news, updates, hotspots and information for 7-07-2021

This is Coronavirus 411, the latest COVID-19 info and new hotspots… Just the facts… for July 7th, 2021.

The CDC says the delta variant is now the dominant strain in the U.S., accounting for more than 51% of COVID-19 cases. In parts of the U.S., Midwestern states like Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa, delta accounts for more than 80% of new infections.

New data from Israel shows the Pfizer vaccine appears less effective at preventing COVID-19 cases from the delta variant but it’s still highly effective at preventing hospitalizations. From June 6 to July 2, the vaccine showed 64% efficacy at preventing cases and 94% efficacy at preventing hospitalizations.

Things do seem to be going backwards around the world. Sydney, Australia extended its hard lockdown, saying the delta strain is a game-changer. Mexico had the biggest jump in new daily infections since late February. Greece is planning to reimpose curbs on entertainment. South Korea reports a case level unseen since the worst of its outbreak in December. Fiji has record infections and a mortuary at the main hospital filled to capacity. And in parts of Indonesia, they’ve run out of oxygen, causing the deaths of dozens of critically ill COVID-19 patients.

So what do we know for sure about the new Lambda variant? It was first identified in Peru and is now in 29 countries. Scientists don’t know if it’s more transmissible. There's not a lot of data yet on how effective the vaccines are. Early findings suggest it is more infectious and can better escape the antibodies elicited by the Chinese CoronaVac vaccine, but that seems to be the only vaccine tested. The CDC has yet to identify Lambda as a variant of interest.

The Pentagon is thinking about making vaccinations mandatory for troops once the FDA fully approves the shots. It wouldn’t be anything new. They’re already mandated to get 17 different vaccines, including shots against measles, mumps, diphtheria, hepatitis, smallpox and the flu. But some have already said they will leave the service if forced to take the COVID-19 vaccine.

In the United States cases were up 5%, deaths are down 38%, and hospitalizations are down 3% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending flat since June 13. 

There are now 4,855,844 active cases in the United States.

The five states with the most current active cases: California 1,685,225. Virginia 612,595. Maryland 441,889. Kentucky 405,042. And Washington 222,871.

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Dimmit, TX. Shelby, TX. Reeves, TX. Joplin, MO. Dallas, MO. Hopkins, TX. Karnes, TX. Titus, TX. Ottawa, OK. And Moffat, CO.

There have been 605,903 deaths in U.S. recorded as Covid-related.

NPR did not update the top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s been fully vaccinated so they remain: Vermont at 66%, Massachusetts at 62.1%, and Maine at 61.9%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Mississippi at 29.9%, Alabama at 32.9%, and Arkansas at 34.5%. The percentage of the U.S. that’s been fully vaccinated is 47.4%.

The 5 countries with the largest recent 24-hour increase in the number of fully vaccinated people: Zambia up 8%. Macao, Trinidad and Tobago, and Ukraine 6%. And Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and Canada 4%.

Globally, cases were up 8% and deaths down 11% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending up since June 22.

There are now 11,651,433 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: Brazil 62,504. India 43,597. Indonesia 31,189. The U.K. 28,773. And Colombia 26,721.

There have now been 3,991,577 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide.

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