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The latest on the Covid-19 pandemic in the US
By Mike Hayes, Melissa Macaya, Melissa Mahtani, Meg Wagner and Veronica Rocha, CNN
- All
- Masks
- Vaccines
Harris County Health System in Texas says a quarter of all patients are Covid-19 positive
From CNN’s Carma Hassan
One in four patients at all hospitals in the Harris Health System in Texas have tested positive for Covid-19, according to the health care system, which covers Harris County, including Houston.
“Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital is at 100% ICU utilization (63% COVID+ cases), and the tents are not in use but are being readied for when they may be needed. There is no pre-determined time that the tents will be put into use,” Harris Health spokesperson Bryan McLeod told CNN in an email.
Ben Taub Hospital’s intensive care unit is at 95% capacity with 27% of utilization by Covid-19 patients, McLeod said.
Biden says he strongly supports defense secretary's decision to mandate Covid vaccine for service members
From CNN's Jason Hoffman
President Biden said in a statement Monday he supports Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s decision to make the Covid-19 vaccine mandatory for all for all active duty military members by mid-September or sooner if fully approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
“I strongly support Secretary Austin’s message to the Force today on the Department of Defense’s plan to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of required vaccinations for our service members not later than mid-September,” Biden wrote.
“Secretary Austin and I share an unshakable commitment to making sure our troops have every tool they need to do their jobs as safely as possible,” Biden continued. “Being vaccinated will enable our service members to stay healthy, to better protect their families, and to ensure that our force is ready to operate anywhere in the world.”
“I am proud that our military women and men will continue to help lead the charge in the fight against this pandemic, as they so often do, by setting the example of keeping their fellow Americans safe,” he concludes the statement.
Pentagon expected to mandate Covid-19 vaccine for active duty troops by mid-September
From CNN's Barbara Starr
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is expected seek the President’s approval to make the Covid-19 vaccine mandatory for all members of the active duty military by mid-September or sooner if fully approved by the FDA, according a US defense official.
The news is expected to be released in a memo Monday.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Mark Milley will communicate a message on this to the troops after the announcement.
The AP was first to report this.
CDC: More than 99.99% of fully vaccinated people have not had a severe breakthrough case of Covid-19
From CNN's Deidre McPhillips
More than 99.99% of people who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 have not had a breakthrough case resulting in hospitalization or death, according to a CNN analysis of data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As of Aug. 2, more than 164 million people in the United States were fully vaccinated against Covid-19, according to the CDC. Fewer than 0.001% of those individuals — 1,507 people — died and fewer than 0.005% — 7,101 people — were hospitalized with Covid-19.
CDC last published data on breakthrough cases through July 26. These latest figures include 938 additional severe breakthrough cases — 862 additional hospitalizations and 244 additional deaths — reported over that seven-day period. The CDC does not provide more detail about the timing of the breakthrough cases.
About three-quarters (74%) of all reported breakthrough cases were among seniors age 65 or older. Of the roughly 1,500 people who died, one in five passed away from something other than Covid-19 even though they had a breakthrough case of the virus, according to the CDC.
Since May, the CDC has focused on investigating only hospitalized or fatal cases among those who have been fully vaccinated.
According to the CDC, this data relies on “passive and voluntary reporting” and are a “snapshot” to “help identify patterns and look for signals among vaccine breakthrough cases.”
“To date, no unexpected patterns have been identified in the case demographics or vaccine characteristics among people with reported vaccine breakthrough infections,” according to the CDC.
Canadian study finds Covid-19 infections in newborns is rare, but should be monitored
From CNN's Jacqueline Howard
A new study out of Canada suggests that Covid-19 among newborns remains rare but testing both mothers and babies is needed to ensure infants are safe from infection.
The study, published on Monday in the journal JAMA Network Open, finds that only 2.9% of slightly more than 6,000 newborns tested had Covid-19.
"To our knowledge, this is the first population-based report of SARS-CoV-2 testing among a newborn cohort. The findings of this cohort study provide further evidence suggesting that perinatal transmission of, and early-life infection with, SARS-CoV-2 is rare," the researchers wrote. SARS-CoV-2 is the name of the coronavirus that causes Covid-19.
"Ontario’s current provincial guidelines do not recommend separation for newborns born to mothers confirmed to have SARS-CoV-2, although distancing and masks are recommended," the researchers wrote. "These measures appear to have effectively limited transmission to newborns, without imposing potential harms through separation."
The researchers, based in Canada and the United States, analyzed data on infants born in Ontario hospitals between Feb. 1 and Oct. 31 of last year. They also looked at data among mothers between Jan. 15 and Oct. 31 of last year.
More on the study: The data included 96,689 infants, among whom 6,176 or 6.4% had a record of receiving a diagnostic Covid-19 test. The researchers examined Covid-19 test results for mothers and their babies, and they found that 177 infants, or 2.9% of those tested, were positive for coronavirus infection.
The researchers noted that the median age at which Covid-19 was detected was 108 days old and fewer than 12 infections in infants were identified perinatally, meaning around the time of birth. Among the infected infants, 90 or about half of them had mothers who tested positive for Covid-19 at some point during the pandemic. Only six or 3.4% of the infected infants were considered perinatal cases.
The study did not include data on stillbirths or pregnancy loses, and some Covid-19 cases may have been missed among mothers and babies who were not tested.
In the United States, the National Institutes of Health announced on Friday that experts plan to study Covid-19 infections during pregnancy more closely – and specifically examine how infection during pregnancy has been linked to complications that may involve or be related to the placenta, the organ that provides a growing baby oxygen and nutrients during pregnancy.
South Carolina governor says school mask mandates have "negative consequences"
From CNN’s Camille Furst
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster held firm in his opposition to mandating masks in schools. At a news conference Monday morning he said that although "masking would help," it's "not necessary" and there are "negative consequences for all that."
Instead, McMaster said the decision "ought to be up to the parents."
McMaster signed an executive order on May 11 that restricted school districts from mandating masks for students.
He said that even though cases are on the rise, Covid-19 hospitalizations and ICU patient numbers are down from where they were at the peak of the pandemic.
"At this point, it's clear it's not like it was last year. We know how to handle a virus now. It's a completely different situation," McMaster said.
Although he didn't urge people to get vaccinated, he urged those who are eligible to "make that decision."
McMaster said, "If you are going to get a vaccination, now is a great time to do it."
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