WIf he is going to the cinema or a bar in New York these days, he may get the impression that the pandemic is over. People jostle in crowded bars, you can go to the cinema without a mask and no longer need to keep your distance from your neighbors. Since all restrictions were lifted, New Yorkers have been wearing their masks mainly on the subway and on the bus. In the meantime, however, the number of new Covid infections has doubled again: A few weeks ago there were around 200 new infections per day, now there are again more than 500. And despite an ambitious vaccination campaign, the proportion of those in the city of New York is stagnating fully vaccinated adults in 64 percent.
The increase in the number of infections is attributed to the delta variant of the virus, which is now responsible for 40 percent of new infections. And it reflects the national trend. Less than four weeks ago, an average of 11,000 new cases a day were registered across the country. There are now a seven-day average of 28,000 new infections. Hospitals in particularly affected states such as Louisiana and Mississippi are reporting that their intensive care units are filling up with Covid-19 patients again. In Mississippi, where seven children with the virus are currently in intensive care, only 33.5 percent of people are fully vaccinated.
Swipe at Fauci
In the whole country it is almost half of the population. Even so, the number of cases is increasing in almost all states. There have been a particularly large number of new infections in recent weeks in countries with low vaccination rates. In Arkansas, for example, there were fewer than 200 new infections a day at the beginning of June – now there are again almost 1,000 daily. The authorities blame the delta variant for the increase in the state in the south and appeal to the population to get vaccinated. In contrast, in some areas with a high vaccination rate, the number of infections is very low. Vermont, the state with the most immunized, reported an average of eleven new infections a day over seven days. With nearly 75 percent vaccinated once or twice, the state is nearing herd immunity conditions.
Vermont has a moderate Republican governor in Phil Scott, but it is one of the most liberal states. Other Republican states made headlines with aggressive opening strategies even during the deadliest periods of the pandemic. This included Florida, where there are currently more than 5600 new infections daily. There all protection rules against the virus fell in spring. There have been repeated reports from the sunny state that the authorities may have set the number of deaths too low. At the moment the official count is 38,000 deceased. In total, more than 608,000 people have died in the United States after being infected with Covid-19.
– .
