This is Coronavirus 411, the latest COVID-19 info and new hotspots for September 24th, 2021.

A CDC advisory panel recommended a booster shot of the Pfizer vaccine for Americans 65 and older and some adults with underlying medical conditions that put them at risk of severe disease. What it declined to do was recommend boosters for younger adults, including healthcare workers, who live or work in places with high risk of contracting COVID-19.

Boy we hope this is true. The creator of the AstraZeneca vaccine says COVID-19 is unlikely to mutate into a deadlier variant and will eventually end up like the common cold. Professor Dame Sarah Gilbert said viruses tend to “become less virulent as they circulate” through the population. She also points out we already live with four different human coronaviruses and this one will become just another.

No choice this time. All Team USA athletes and staff will need to be fully vaccinated to compete at the Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Beijing that kick off in February 2022. Proof must be submitted by December 1 and the Olympic Committee added booster shots “may be required in the future.”

England’s Covid travel rules aren’t exactly winning raves. The country is refusing to recognize vaccines administered across Latin America, Africa, and south Asia. Critics call it illogical and discriminatory. Those without recognized vaccines will be considered “not fully vaccinated” and made to quarantine 10 days on arrival from amber list countries.

It was a joke. “Hey maybe some people will hold COVID parties to deliberately infect themselves like people used to do for their kids with chicken pox.” But now it’s not a joke, because a group of people in Alberta, Canada actually did it. Well, it worked, several attendees are now in the hospital, some in ICU. The Health Minister said it’s irresponsible and puts the health care system under “unprecedented pressure.”

In the United States cases were down 12%, deaths are up 35%, and hospitalizations are down 10% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending down since September 13. 

There are 9,795,988 active cases in the United States.

With not all states reporting daily numbers, the five states with the greatest increase in per capita hospitalizations over 14 days are Vermont at 51%, Idaho 33%, Montana 29%, Ohio 27%, and West Virginia 25%.  

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: Andrews, TX. Russell, KY. Lewis, WV. Whitley, KY. Harlan, KY. Knox, KY. Braxton, WV. Perry, KY. Scott, TN. And McCreary, KY.

There have been at least 684,286 deaths in the U.S. recorded as Covid-related.

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s been fully vaccinated: Vermont at 69.1%, Connecticut at 68.1%, and Maine at 67.9%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are West Virginia still unchanged at 40.2%, Wyoming at 40.9%, and Idaho at 41%. The percentage of the U.S. that’s been fully vaccinated is 54.9%.

The 5 countries with the largest recent 24-hour increase in the number of fully vaccinated people: Ethiopia up 24%, the Philippines 22%, Taiwan 6%, and Thailand and Palestine 3%.

Globally, cases were down 12% and deaths were down 8% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending down since August 27.

There are 18,590,619 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: The United States 127,463. The U.K. 36,710. India 31,458. Turkey 27,844. And Brazil 24,611.

There have now been at least 4,727,498 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide.

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