COVID   UPDATE

                                                    U.S.                                                                  California

                                   CASES               DEATHS                                     CASES                DEATHS       

December 2020    19,111,443              341,149                                 2,120,610               24,241

2021   Timeline

January                  26,185,362             441,319                                 3,310,949                40,702

December             54,859,966             825,816                                 5,515,250                76,520

2022 Timeline

January                  74,333,528             884,265                                 8,292,735                79,801

December           100,751,994          1,092,674                              11,829,499                 98,637

2023 Timeline

January               104,196,861           1,132,935                              11,964,001                99,944

February              105,345,992           1,146,142                              12,084,297              100,816

March                  106,102,029           1,153,730                             12,155,825               101,798                                   

The JHU stopped collecting data as of 10 March 2023.   In the U.S., only New York, Arkansas and Puerto Rico still publish case and death counts daily.    

UPDATED WEEKLY – Worldometer, Last updated on 30 April 2023

POPULATION - is 336,555,518 of 30 April 2023 9:09 pm PST, based on Census U.S. and World Population Clock.

      * updated information

    ** no updated information at this reporting

Cases Worldwide

                              Worldometer       

• TOTAL CASES       -    687,108,868

Recovered        -    659,663,264

• TOTAL DEATHS     -       6,863,787

Cases in the U.S.

• TOTAL CASES       -   106,630,327

Recovered        -    104,571,743

• TOTAL DEATHS     -        1,159,839

• Employment increased by 236,000 jobs in March
• Unemployment dropped slightly to 3.5 % in March

Cases in California

• TOTAL CASES       -   12,221,606                         

Recovered        -   12,053,187

• TOTAL DEATHS     -        102,390

• Primary series       -  29,097,827      72.8 %
• Bivalent Booster   -    7,463,290      25.7 %

                     *  USA Facts as of 26 April, 2023

04/30/2023 (WHO)           Cases                 Deaths      Recovered    Fully Vaccinated, % (USA Facts)*

• Texas                    -    8,587,827         94,331        8,454,676          18,398,448          64 %
• Florida                  -   7,542,869         87,331         7,455,728          14,964,446          70 %
• New York             -    7,010,565         77,529        6,926,581          15,756,743          81 %
• Illinois**                 -   4,127,625         41,866        4,052,989             9,049,639         71 %       
• Pennsylvania      -    3,551,440         50,860        3,499,406             9,435,863         74 %
• N. Carolina          -   3,496,830         28,973            N/A                  7,014,285         67 %
• Ohio**                  -  3,435,359          42,126            N/A                  7,086,935         61 %
• Georgia**            -  3,082,328          42,717         3,029,211            6,100,916         57 %   
• Tennessee**        -   2,522,587         29,322         2,493,265            3,849,086          56 %
• Arizona                -  2,468,340          33,395         2,421,763            4,819,349          66 %
• Alabama             -  1,657,175         21,133         1,613,926             2,610,908         53 %
• Louisiana**          -  1,597,070          18,937         1,570.447            2,561,017          55 %
• W. Virginia**        -     646,864           8,043             N/A                  1,071,304          60 %

 *   USA Facts as of 30 April, 2023

**  no updated information at this reporting

             ***  correction

United States progress                                       Updated 30 April 2023 9:09 pm PST

• Doses Distributed                                                  979,617,855
• Doses Administered                                             675,442,636
• 1st dose administered                                          270,142,789           81.4 %                    
• Primary series administered                                 230,533,196           69.4  %
• Bivalent Booster**                                                   55,743,629           16.8  %           
• Total population                                                    336,555,518  

   *Updated information

             ** No updated information at this reporting

• https://usafacts.org/visualizations/covid-vaccine-tracker-states/
• https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/
• https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccinations
• https://usafacts.org/visualizations/weekly-unemployment-claims/?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=ND-Jobs&msclkid=b11efd9b16dc12762fd79d422c12da27
• https://www.edd.ca.gov/newsroom/unemployment-may-2021.htm
• https://www.bls.gov/
• https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.nr0.htm
• https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/us-population/

COVID UPDATE

John Hopkins updates pandemic dashboard for the last time.  March 10, 2023.    Johns Hopkins University published the final update to its free COVID-19 dashboard.  Researchers announced government sources for real-time tallies had drastically declined, making it difficult to offer accurate reporting on Coronavirus Resource Center.   In the U.S., only New York, Arkansas and Puerto Rico still publish case and death counts daily. 

VARIANT  UPDATE – THEIR DOING IT AGAIN!  MEET TRANSFORMERS ORTHUS AND CA.3.1

Is Orthrus the Next Top-Dog COVID Variant?  CH.1.1 now accounts for about a quarter of cases in the U.K.  Last Updated February 9, 2023.  The Omicron sub-variant XBB.1.5 has climbed to 66% of new COVID-19 cases in the U.S.  A new sub-variant named Orthus or CH.1.1, after a two-headed dog, accounted for less than 2% of cases in the U.S. as of January, per the CDC.

Shan-Lu Liu, MD, PhD and colleagues indicated Orthrus emerged in Southeast Asia in November 2022 and now accounts for a quarter of cases in the U.K. and New Zealand.  At other times in the pandemic, the U.K. has served as an indicator of what could hit the U.S. in terms of new variants and potential surges.

Orthrus, has a mutation L452R, previously seen in the Delta variant and the highly transmissible BA.4 and BA.5 variants, according to researchers from the Ohio State University in Columbus.

They explained that Orthrus and another new variant, CA.3.1, possess a "consistently stronger neutralization resistance than XBB, XBB.1, and XBB.1.5. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) lists Orthrus among the top three most prevalent variants in Europe.  Recent CDC data shows U.S. COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths trending down as of Feb. 1.  Currently, bivalent boosters demonstrated similar protection against symptomatic illness from the XBB/XBB.1.5 Omicron sub-variants.  

What’s CH.1.1? Meet ‘Orthrus,’ a new wildcard Omicron strain with a concerning Delta mutation.  CH.1.1, or Orthrus, features a concerning mutation seen in the deadly Delta variant that generally isn’t seen in Omicrons.  While CH.1.1 isn’t a Deltacron, a recombinant or combination of Delta and Omicron, it’s an example of COVID variants evolving independently but pick up the same mutations.   This process is convergent evolution. 

“I don’t think we have a real sense of what variants to be concerned about and which not to be.  It’s anyone’s best guess as to how CH.1.1 will play out in countries throughout the world, including the U.S.,” Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) indicated. 

What countries has it been located in?  New Zealand is seeing the bulk of CH.1.1 cases, according to outbreak.info, responsible for more than a third of cases.  Other hotspots include Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea, behind less than a fifth of cases in Cambodia and Ireland.

Why is it so concerning?  CH.1.1 binds well to ACE2 receptors, where COVID infects human cells, according to Ohio State researchers.  It has potential to override antibody immunity from prior infection and vaccination, as well as cause more severe disease.  It may out-perform other Omicron strains due to a mutation, L452R, seen in Delta but not Omicron.  CH.1.1 and another new variant, CA.3.1, are more immune evasive than XBB and BQ sub-variants. 

UPDATES:   COVID in California: Three years later, has the virus won?  March 10, 2023, 4:00 AM.   The latest data from California’s Department of Public Health shows COVID in a holding pattern, with levels that are still above previous lows.  Some jurisdictions, such as Los Angeles County, are retaining limited protections. Stanford University will drop its regular testing requirements.  Scientists have discovered three coronavirus strains in New York rats and a lion in an Indiana zoo.

More than 85% of U.S. counties have low virus levels.  The COVID-19 community levels, determined by new hospital admissions, inpatient bed metrics and new cases per 100,000 population, have leveled off since February.  Once the national public health emergency comes to an end May 11, the CDC will no longer report community transmission levels due to a lack of regional data.

• 85.06% of all U.S. counties have low COVID-19 community levels, according to updated figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• 13.5% have medium levels
• 1.89% rate high.

U.S. cases and deaths fall 40% in a month.  U.S. coronavirus cases and COVID-19 deaths dropped 40% over the past month, according to updated figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

• The national average was 170,576 new COVID-19 cases per week, based on federal data, down from 284,724 a month ago.
• 1,862 Americans are dying each week, compared to 3,113 on Feb. 8. 
• Hospital data shows 2,849 new admissions per day of patients with confirmed COVID-19, compared with the prior seven-day average of 3,264.
• 16.2% of the U.S. population, roughly 53.6 million, eligible for the updated bivalent booster, have received the shot.

Covid was top line-of-duty death for US police for third year running in 2022.  Fri, March 3, 2023 at 2:00 AM PST.   Covid was the top cause of death in the line of duty for American law enforcement for the third year in a row in 2022, according to a recent report.  Many law enforcement officers did what they could to lower the risks, taking some reports over the phone, to limit contact within departments and the public.  In the line of duty some face-to-face contact is unavoidable. 

The actual mortality rate is assuredly higher, due to undercounting when tests were scarce and reports only include line-of-duty deaths, according to a report from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF).

• 2020, at least 346 confirmed Covid deaths
• 2021 at least 301 work-associated deaths.
• 2022 was significantly lower, with 70 deaths

A key way of counting line-of-duty deaths from Covid will soon disappear, making it harder to discern the virus’s toll, also signaling loss of benefits for families of officers who die by contracting Covid in the course of their duties.  If the benefits aren’t renewed and the national public health emergency ends, it could also become more difficult to access tests, vaccines and treatments.  Protective service workers have had some of the highest Covid mortality rates of any occupation, according to a report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

There are also lasting impacts of the virus not counted in tallies such as Long Covid, with elevated risk of cardiac events, strokes and other serious illnesses following infection, and the inflicted psychological harm, according to one study. 

But the risks haven’t been evenly distributed throughout the US.

• Texas, the second-most populous state in the country, 223 deaths - the highest number, or more than one-fifth of all US police deaths, according to a tally as of September 2022 by the Fraternal Order of Police.
• California, the most populous state, only 72 line-of-duty deaths in the same time period.

Covid vaccines are very effective at preventing severe illness and death, especially among those who receive regular boosters.  It is not clear what the number of law enforcement officers across the country are who are currently vaccinated and boosted.  Some first responders protested vaccine mandates, threatening to quit if mandated to get the shots, more about the political climate than the vaccines themselves, experts said.

The coronavirus has infected New York City's rats. Why that's bad news for people.  Fri, March 10, 2023 at 5:00 AM PST.   Rat populations in cities exploded during the pandemic and join the list of wildlife believed capable of catching and transmitting the virus that causes COVID-19, new research finds.

In a study published in the journal mBio, researchers showed that rats, like dogs, cats, hamsters, ferrets and other human close cohabitants, can pick up the pandemic virus from their environment.  The rats don't appear to get very sick.  None of the wild rats infected in a lab lost weight or died.  When exposed to the Alpha, Delta and Omicron variants of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, researchers found evidence of robust viral replication in the animals' noses, mouths, throats and lungs.

Brown rats, also known as Norway rats, have coexisted with humans for thousands of years and are prolific transmitters of human diseases.  Exposure to their feces, urine or saliva is known to spread hantavirus, leptospirosis, lymphocytic choriomeningitis, tularemia and salmonella.

A detailed examination of 79 brown rats, Rattus norvegicus, collected in and around sewers of New York City turned up signs that 13 had been exposed to the coronavirus and developed an immune response.  Four of the 79 rats had active infections when they were euthanized. 

New findings suggest wild rats, whose populations in U.S. cities have seen explosive growth in the last three years, could become a vector for reinfection of humans but also a source of new variants that evade our protection from vaccines or past infections.

The infected rats are capable of spreading their germs, the prospect of free-range rats scurrying across surfaces touched by humans, their noses could deposit respiratory secretions that deliver the virus to people.  While aerosol transmission has been the primary of spread among humans, acquiring the virus through touch is also a concern.

VACCINE  UPDATE

Single Bivalent COVID Booster Is Enough for Now: CDC.  March 29, 2023.  The CDC has updated its COVID-19 booster shot guidelines to clarify that a single dose of the latest bivalent booster is recommended at this time.  “If you have completed your updated booster dose, you are currently up to date” the CDC website now explains.

In January, the COVID panel recommended the U.S. move toward an annual COVID booster shot in the fall, similar to the annual flu shot. Recent studies have shown that booster strength wanes after a few months, spurring discussions of whether people at high risk of getting a severe case of COVID may need more than one annual shot.

The last time a new booster was recommended was in September, when the bivalent booster was released, offering new protection against Omicron variants.  Health officials are now shifting from preventing infections to reducing the likelihood of severe ones, reported the San Francisco Chronicle. 

 “… there is some waning of protection for those who got boosters more than six months ago and haven’t had an intervening infection,” said Bob Wachter, MD, head of the University of California-San Francisco’s Department of Medicine.  The level of protection versus severe infection continues to be high, enough that people who aren’t at super high risk are probably fine waiting until a new booster comes out in the fall.”  16.4% of people in the U.S. have gotten the latest booster released in September, CDC data shows.

WHO experts revise Covid-19  vaccine advice, say healthy kids and teens low risk.   Updated 2:22 AM EDT, Wed March 29, 2023.  CNN — The World Health Organization’s vaccine experts have revised global Covid-19 vaccination recommendations.  Healthy kids and teenagers, considered low priority, may not need to get a shot.

The updated roadmap is designed to prioritize Covid-19 vaccines for those at greatest risk of death and severe disease, according to the World Health Organization’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE).

The new streamlined recommendations focus on high-, medium- and low-risk groups.

SAGE recommends additional booster doses for: 

• high-priority -  groups such as older people, immunocompromised people of all ages, front-line health workers and those pregnant, six or 12 months after their last booster dose.
• medium risk, recommends primary vaccinations and first booster doses but does not recommend routine additional boosters. This group includes children and adolescents with health risks and healthy adults under the age of 60.
• healthy kids six months to 17 years old, countries should consider vaccinating based on factors such as disease burden and cost-effectiveness.

The group said its vaccine guidance is based on current epidemiological conditions and could change if the pandemic evolves.  Countries are making their own choices about vaccine recommendations based on their vaccine supply and progress.  US officials, are weighing whether to offer people at high risk the chance to get another bivalent booster. The United Kingdom and Canada have already begun allowing certain people to get another bivalent booster.

The rising cases of measles across all WHO regions, immunization programs around the world must be strengthened and restored. Measles is a known “tracer,” or a sign that other vaccine-preventable diseases are in communities.

Polio is also circulating in several countries.  WHO advisers recommend improving immune vaccine coverage and supplementing with a dose of injectable polio vaccine when there is “persistent poliovirus circulation.”

How to Protect Yourself?  Getting vaccinated is your best bet!

IT’S NOT OVER!

Stay safe.  Mask.  Social distance.  Frequent hand washing.  Avoid crowds

ALWAYS CONSULT YOUR PERSONAL HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL

• https://www.medpagetoday.com/special-reports/features/103002
• https://fortune.com/well/2023/01/27/meet-orthus-ch11-new-omcrion-covid-variant-delta-mutation-deltacron-convergent-evolution/
• https://news.yahoo.com/coronavirus-infected-york-citys-rats-130024564.html
• https://news.yahoo.com/covid-top-line-duty-death-100053566.html
• https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/covid-in-california-cdc-now-tracking-xbb151-coronavirus-offshoot/ar-AA18tefT
• https://www.webmd.com/vaccines/covid-19-vaccine/news/20230329/single-bivalent-covid-booster-enough-for-now-cdc
• https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/29/health/who-updates-covid-vaccine-recommendations-intl-hnk/index.html