Brazilian variant of covid-19 reportedly more contagious 0:43
. – For weeks, public health leaders in the United States have stressed that now is not the time to ease restrictions on covid-19 and cut security measures, warning that another potentially dangerous surge, motivated by variations, could soon arrive.
But despite repeated warnings, more governors are relaxing covid-19 measures.
With less than 7% of his state’s residents fully vaccinated and as communities still recover from a devastating series of winter storms, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order that overturns most of his previous executive orders related to the virus. The decree lifts the state’s mandate to wear masks and allows companies to operate at 100% of their capacity from March 10.
Greg Abbott, Governor of Texas.
The governor said a county judge may choose to use mitigation strategies if hospitalizations related to COVID-19 in any of the state’s 22 hospital regions exceed 15% of bed capacity. hospital in this region for seven consecutive days. But they can’t impose prison sentences on people who don’t follow COVID-19 orders, and residents can’t be penalized for not wearing masks either, he said.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said the move “made no sense,” while Austin Mayor Steve Adler said he was “flabbergasted” by the announcement and pleaded with residents. to act like we have a mandate “to wear a mask, so that people continue to use it, so that businesses continue to need it”.
In Mississippi, Gov. Tate Reeves said that starting Wednesday, the state will lift mask-wearing warrants in the county and allow businesses to operate at full capacity.
“Our hospitalizations and the number of cases have dropped, and the vaccine is being distributed quickly. Now is the time, ”he wrote on Twitter.
However, health experts say now is not the time to lift the restrictions.
“This is a huge mistake,” said Dr. Jonathan Reiner, professor of medicine at George Washington University, of the Texas and Mississippi ads. “We saw this movie and it didn’t go well.”
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine also announced revisions to public health orders, including removing the 300-person limit for banquet hall events, while Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, revealed a series of relaxed restrictions that will take effect on Friday, including increased capacity for restaurants. , retail stores, gymnasiums, stadiums and other facilities.
In Chicago, officials announced that the indoor capacity of bars, restaurants and other businesses can now be increased to 50% and that bars and restaurants will be able to stay open until 1 a.m.
And in Louisiana, most businesses, including restaurants and barber shops, will be allowed to operate at 75 percent of capacity, while church services will no longer have capacity limits, the governor said.
SEE: Brazilian variant of covid-19 is more contagious and eludes immunity, study finds
Demand for testing decreases
It is true that cases have dropped since their peak in January and experts have been encouraged by a steady decline in the number of Covid-19 cases over several weeks.
But two factors are important to consider: First, the sharp drop in reported cases in the United States for weeks appears to have stabilized, according to the CDC director. And that plateau is still very high, with an average of more than 65,000 new cases per day in the United States over the past week.
And second, it appears fewer people are getting tested, although the covid-19 test remains a powerful tool in the country’s battle against the virus, according to the CDC.
In the week ending Monday, the United States averaged about 1.5 million COVID-19 tests per day, according to data from the COVID Tracking Project.
That’s about 26% below the average in mid-January, when the United States recorded a seven-day average of more than 2 million reported tests.
“Widespread testing must continue to beat the pandemic,” CDC’s Dr Greta Massetti told CNN. “It will take several months for every American to have the opportunity to receive one of the available vaccines.”
“In the meantime, it is essential that people continue to take preventive measures.”
More good news for vaccines
So far, more than 51.7 million Americans have received at least their first dose of the covid-19 vaccine, according to CDC data.
More than 26.1 million have received both doses, the data shows. This means that about 7.9% of the US population is fully vaccinated against the virus.
The good news: President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced that the United States will have sufficient doses of the covid-19 vaccine for all adult Americans by the end of May, accelerating the target timeline by two months precedent of the administration.
Miriam De La Torre, intervention specialist for LAUSD ICEF charter public schools, celebrates with tears in her eyes when she receives her first Covid-19 Moderna vaccine.
His remarks came as the president officially announced a partnership between pharmaceutical companies Merck and Johnson & Johnson to help expand production of the new Johnson & Johnson covid-19 vaccine.
Governors across the country have said the extra doses will help ramp up vaccines quickly, and some have even announced expanded eligibility guidelines due to the extra supply.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper announced that starting Wednesday, all essential frontline workers in Group 3 are eligible to schedule appointments for vaccinations, noting that the state also plans to make residents with comorbidities eligible in group 4 later this month.
North Carolina has created priority groups for vaccines and already vaccinates Groups 1 and 2, which include healthcare workers, long-term care facility staff and residents, and the elderly.
“The third vaccine and improving the vaccine supply will help us get more people vaccinated faster,” the governor said. “But as we said before, we still don’t have enough vaccines. You may have to wait for an appointment even if today’s action means you are eligible for the vaccine.
For Americans who have already received a first dose, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should not replace second doses of Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, except in “rare situations,” the CDC warned.
“Covid-19 vaccines are not interchangeable and the safety and efficacy of a number of combination products have not been evaluated,” Dr Sarah Mbaeyi, a CDC medical official, said on Tuesday. “We don’t want people to start mixing and matching what’s easiest to get.”
READ: Here’s how Johnson’s coronavirus vaccine differs Johnson from others used in the United States.
Vaccine orientation to come
For Americans who are already fully immunized, recommendations on what to do next are underway.
The CDC will release a guide for fully vaccinated people when it is ready later this week, a CDC official told CNN.
The official confirmed general topics in the guide which were first reported by Politico.
The guide would contain a recommendation that fully immunized people limit their social interactions to small gatherings at home with other fully immunized people.
He will also recommend that fully vaccinated people continue to wear masks in public and practice social distancing. It’s a recommendation that other health officials have made as well, including Dr Anthony Fauci.
In addition, the guide would include scenarios for Americans to consider when making plans, including travel.
Jen Christensen, John Bonifield, Jason Hoffman, Deidre McPhillips, Alec Snyder, Rebekah Riess, Gisela Crespo and Chris Boyette contributed to this report.
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