I join the ranks of the inoculated – The third wave in Europe – Mistrust of the AstraZeneca vaccine – The Sputnik vaccine in Russia and abroad – COVID in Mexico and Brazil – The danger of a third wave in the U.S. – Our varying state regulations – Evening statistics
I received the second dose this morning and am now fully vaccinated. As before, the process was admirably efficient. I actually arrived somewhat early, but stations were available and I was directed to one after my appointment was verified. I felt only the slightest prick when the needle was inserted and nothing more. After that I sat in the waiting area for the prescribed ten minutes and then departed, clinging to the vaccine card so as to ensure that it would not be lost. When I returned home the first thing I did was to scan it so that I would have an electronic copy as a backup.
It is a great relief, although the modification to my behavior will not at first be very apparent. I still will wear facemasks in public areas indoors and in crowded locations out of doors, such as Burke Lake. I will feel somewhat easier about activities such as taking public transportation or dining at restaurants; but even so, I don’t plan to do much of either for the present. I will undertake some travel, but at this point the only international trip planned is one in September for the French Alps – and even that is tentative.
For it is apparent that the situation is now worse in Europe than it is here. Nearly every country on the continent is undergoing a “third wave” of the virus, with daily infection rates ranging from 0.05% – 0.1% of the population of various nations. The number of COVID patients in intensive care units in France has risen by 10% in the past week. Doctors report that these patients are significantly younger than those who were infected during the first and second waves: the majority are in the 30-65 year-old range, and many with no underlying conditions. France has been losing 200-300 people daily, which, in the words of Benjamin Clouzeau, an ICU doctor at Bordeaux Hospital, is “like a plane crashing every day.”
“A few weeks ago, the people dying were very old, and somehow, we accepted that as a society,” he added. “Now we are down to 200, 300 deaths a day, but it’s not old people dying anymore. These are people who still had 30 or 40 years to live.”
The variants apparently have played a role in the increase, but the main factor appears to be the delayed rollout of the vaccines, which has been considerably slower than ours. Many countries relied heavily on the AstraZeneca vaccine; and when concerns about its linkage to blood clots halted its distribution, the virus had the opportunity to spread again. Foreign travel in Europe may well be restricted for many months to come, despite the fact that many European nations depend on tourism as a major source of income.
Speaking of vaccines, Russia has been exporting its Sputnik V vaccine to countries in Latin America, Africa and Europe to great fanfare. But there is one country whose inhabitants have been slow in receiving it – namely, Russia. The amount that was manufactured for domestic demand became seriously reduced after the vaccine’s export to other countries. As a result, Russia has now made a deal with GL Rapha, a South Korean firm, to make Sputnik V doses and ship them to Russia. Russia’s vaccination rollout is even slower than that of the EU. It has vaccinated 4.4% of its population, compared with 10% in the EU and 26% in the U.S.
Europe is not the only area facing difficulties. Mexico’s government has acknowledged that the country’s true death toll from the coronavirus pandemic now stands above 321,000, almost 60% more than the official test-confirmed number of 201,429. If that is correct, it means that Mexico’s death rate from the virus is one of the highest in the world, exceeded only by the Czech Republic and Hungary. Even this estimate may be too conservative. The number of excess deaths since the pandemic began is 417,000. About 70% of these were listed as COVID-related on the death certificates; but experts say COVID may have contributed to many of the other excess deaths because these people couldn’t get treatment for other diseases on account of hospitals being overwhelmed.
Brazil is another country whose hospitals are on the verge of collapse as a result of the pandemic. It has accounted for about 24% of the COVID-related deaths worldwide over the past two weeks. The number of daily deaths average 2,400 in the past seven days; the average rate may go as high as 3,000. Already there have been spikes of daily death counts well over that figure. This past Friday the death toll was 3,650. About a third of the deaths are occurring among people under 60. The number of new infections is as high as 100,000 per day, putting no little strain on the country’s health care system. Of Brazil’s 26 states plus its federal district, only one or two on any given day have ICU occupancy rates below 80% and more than half are above 90%. Dr. José Antônio Curiati, a supervisor at Sao Paulo’s Hospital das Clinicas, the biggest hospital complex in Latin America, said that its beds are full, but that patients keep arriving.
It will not do to become too complacent here at home. Case numbers are still high and, while we have reached a plateau as far as the daily increase of new cases is concerned, that plateau is at a rate of 60,000. It is not a comforting figure if we are to experience a surge in cases similar that those going on now in Europe. Many states are easing restrictions on mask-wearing and social distancing. We have in fact quite a patchwork of virus-related regulations among the various states. Consider the following:
In Arizona, planners of events with more than 50 people no longer need to seek approval first and all local mask mandates will be phased out (although face-masking is still “encouraged” – whatever that means). Georgia, also, encourages mask-wearing but falls short of enforcing it. Florida is no longer imposing fees or penalties on those who don’t follow social distancing practices and mask mandates, thereby rendering these limitations meaningless. In Idaho the mask-wearing mandate applies only to visits to long-term care facilities. In Iowa mask-wearing mandates and other restrictions have been lifted completely. Mississippi has lifted its mask mandate, with the exception of the interiors of school buildings and restaurants. Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas have lifted all restrictions, although individual localities may apply their own. In Montana the statewide mask mandate, limits to gatherings (either social or public events), and curfews on restaurant have been lifted entirely. North Dakota has had no mask mandate since January. Oklahoma no longer requires masks in state buildings. South Carolina no longer requires masks for entering state buildings or restaurants, and has no limit on large gatherings.
Today’s statistics as of 9:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 127,745,079; # of deaths worldwide: 2,795,557; # of cases U.S.: 30,957,520; # of deaths; U.S.: 562,482.