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Covid-19 Vaccine Rollout for Young Children Is Slow in Many States

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Covid-19 vaccinations for children 5 to 11 years old are off to a slow start in many parts of the U.S., federal data show, underscoring the challenges health officials face in persuading parents to inoculate their children.

Roughly five million, or 18%, of the estimated 28.4 million U.S. children in the 5-to-11 age bracket have gotten at least one shot in the five weeks since they were cleared to get vaccinated, the data show. The picture varies by region, with rates in several New England states above 30% and some states in the South far off the national pace, an analysis by The Wall Street Journal of the data shows.

About three in 10 parents reported they had gotten their 5- to 11-year-olds a shot or said they planned to right away, according to polling of parents’ views from the Kaiser Family Foundation released Thursday, while 32% said they were going to wait and see, 7% said they would only if required and 29% said they definitely wouldn’t.

A health worker administered a Covid-19 test Tuesday on a child outside a pharmacy in Providence, R.I.



Photo:

David Goldman/Associated Press

Other analysis from the foundation, published Wednesday, found the pace of vaccinations for 5- to 11-year-olds nationally had slowed significantly after initial high demand. Health authorities in some slower-moving states said they thought they could still get most parents on board, though it may take time.

“The biggest challenge we have here, which is probably across broader Appalachia as well, is the messaging has to come from a trusted medical provider or a trusted individual in the family,” said

James Hoyer,

who leads the Joint Interagency Task Force for Covid-19 in West Virginia.

“So it’s going to be a much longer lead time for us to get people comfortable,” he said.

State data recently showed about 15,300, or 11%, of the 140,000 children aged 5 to 11 in West Virginia have gotten at least one shot.

Vermont leads the U.S. with at least 47% of its children in the 5-to-11 bracket having received a shot, the Journal analysis of the federal data shows. Vermont, where nearly 84% of adults are fully vaccinated, has long been a fast adopter of Covid-19 vaccines. Massachusetts, Maine and Rhode Island also are high on the list for young children, as they are with adults. Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi have started slowly with children in the 5-to-11 age group, echoing the South’s broader vaccine-uptake trends.

Children aged 5 to 11 started getting their first doses of Covid-19 vaccines on Nov. 3, after the CDC recommended use of the Pfizer-BioNTech shot for that age group. Some parents said they were eager for kids to get vaccinated and return to normal life. Photo: Maddie McGarvey/WSJ

State vaccination data and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data may differ in some cases, in part because of reporting lags.

Most infectious-disease experts have encouraged vaccines for children. While they typically experience milder cases than adults if they get Covid-19, children can and do get sick from it. They are also a part of the puzzle when it comes to achieving broad, communitywide protection.

Researchers haven’t found evidence the vaccines pose additional or different risks to children than to adults. Parents still often approach the shots cautiously, some pediatricians said. The new poll found safety and potential side effects were prominent concerns among parents.

“The younger a child is, the more a family tends to want to sit down with a medical professional they trust and talk through their questions,” said

Lee Beers,

president of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Covid-19 can cause heart-inflammation conditions. The conditions have also been reported in a smaller number of people who got an mRNA vaccine, most commonly in male adolescents and young adults.

The new Kaiser Family Foundation poll, of roughly 1,200 parents with a child under 18, was conducted between Nov. 8 and Nov. 23, before the Omicron variant hit the news, and included. The margin of error is 4 percentage points for the full sample and 5 points for parents with children in the 5-to-11 group.

Vaccine acceptance continues to break along political lines. About half of polled parents who self-identified as Republican said they wouldn’t vaccinate eligible children, compared with 7% of parents who self-identified as Democrats. Among self-identified independents, 33% said they wouldn’t vaccinate children aged 12 to 17 and 26% said they wouldn’t vaccinate those 5 to 11.

The polling also shows vaccine uptake among adolescents aged 12 to 17 has slowed after an initial surge. Parents of children in the 5-to-11 group seem less eager than parents of adolescents, according to the poll.

A family with young children signed up Tuesday for booster shots and vaccinations in Stamford, Conn.



Photo:

Amir Hamja for The Wall Street Journal

Louisiana recently reported that about 7% of its 5- to 11-year-olds had gotten at least one vaccine shot. The full vaccination rate for all Louisianans, about 49%, also lags behind the nation’s 60% level, federal data show.

Kimberly Hood,

assistant secretary of public health in Louisiana’s Department of Health, said she thought most parents could be persuaded, and that health authorities were trying to make inroads where they could. A recent clinic at a Baton Rouge arcade delivered about 480 new vaccine shots.

“We do feel there’s that movable middle that just wants information,” Ms. Hood said.

—Paul Overberg contributed to this article.

Write to Jon Kamp at jon.kamp@wsj.com

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Doctors weigh COVID-19 impact on children as vaccine drives ramp up

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JERUSALEM, Dec 9 (Reuters) – One month after her son Eran had recovered from a mild case of COVID-19, Sara Bittan rushed the three-year-old to the emergency room. He had high fever, a rash, his eyes and lower body were swollen and red, his stomach was hurting and he was crying in pain.

Eventually diagnosed with the rare multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), also known as pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome, or PIMS, Eran was hospitalized in October for a week and has fully recovered, Bittan said.

“It is important for me to tell parents, mothers, all over the world that there is a risk. They should know,” said Bittan. “He suffered a lot and I suffered with him.”

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Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, doctors worldwide are learning more about how the illness impacts children.

While cases of severe illness and death remain far more rare among pediatric patients than adults, tens of thousands of children may struggle with its effects. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cites COVID-19 as one of the top-10 causes of death among children age 5 to 11.

A very small portion can suffer badly from complications, such as PIMS, which affects fewer than 0.1% of infected children. “Long COVID” – the persistence of symptoms weeks or months after infection – affects children as well as adults.

A growing number of countries are making COVID-19 vaccines eligible for younger children. The European Union will begin a campaign to inoculate 5- to 11-year-olds next week, while a similar U.S. vaccination drive that began in November appears to be losing momentum.

Doctors hope the knowledge they have gained will not only improve treatment, but also help parents understand the risks of COVID-19 as they consider vaccinating their children.

“Long COVID and PIMS are a major consideration in getting vaccinated,” said Liat Ashkenazi-Hoffnung, who heads the post-coronavirus clinic at Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel.

PIMS, which typically occurs a few weeks after coronavirus infection, is caused by the immune system suddenly going into overdrive, creating inflammation in the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, and gastrointestinal organs. Affected children may spend up to two weeks in hospital, some requiring intensive care.

The CDC cited close to 6,000 PIMS cases nationwide, including 52 deaths. It is roughly estimated at 3 cases per 10,000 children, according to Boston Children’s Hospital’s Audrey Dionne, about in line with some European statistics and with the Israeli estimate of one in every 3,500 children infected and a fatality rate of 1%-2%.

Singapore’s Ministry of Health cites six cases of PIMS among more than 8,000 pediatric COVID-19 cases.

‘VERY DISHEARTENED’

Doctors say they have learned how to better treat the condition with most children recovering. UK studies of children six months and one year after PIMS show that most problems had resolved.

“Children from the second wave and now from the third wave (of COVID-19) are benefiting from the information of the first wave,” said Karyn Moshal, a pediatric infectious diseases expert at London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital.

A six-month assessment by Moshal and colleagues published in the Lancet found organ damage to be uncommon in children who were hospitalized with PIMS. Lingering symptoms including mental fatigue and physical weakness often persisted, but resolved with time.

“They get tired more quickly. So schoolwork is affected because they can only concentrate for a shorter period of time,” Moshal said. “Understanding this is important both for the families and for the young people because they can get very disheartened, and also for schools and teachers to understand how to deal with it.”

Several UK and U.S. studies have found that PIMS is more likely to affect Black, Hispanic and Asian children, although the reasons for that are still unknown.

Identifying long COVID in children presents more of a challenge. Determining its prevalence depends on what symptoms are looked at, and from whom the information is collected – physicians, parents or the children themselves, said Ashkenazi-Hoffnung.

Cautious estimates find about 1% of children with coronavirus will suffer long COVID, said Zachi Grossman, chairman of the Israel Pediatric Association.

Ashkenazi-Hoffnung said her clinic has treated around 200 children for long COVID.

She believes that is likely only the “tip of the iceberg” among previously healthy children and teens, who months after being infected suffer symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pain, headaches, tremors and dizziness.

“It can dramatically affect quality of life,” she said.

Simple actions like climbing stairs, running for a bus or simply standing or walking are intolerable, Ashkenazi-Hoffnung said. Some children have developed asthma-like symptoms or hearing loss, and some toddlers who had been walking reverted to crawling because they were so tired and achy.

Most children do recover with time, she said, aided by physiotherapy and medication. Around 20% are still struggling.

Ashkenazi-Hoffnung and Moshal noted an extra burden observed in children who suffered PIMS or long COVID – a sense of stigma and shame.

“I was quite shocked by this,” said Moshal. “You can’t ascribe blame or shame for being infected with a disease.”

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Additional reporting by Rami Amichay in Tel Aviv, Hannah Confino and Rinat Harash in Jerusalem; Aradhana Aravindan in Singapore; Alistair Smout and Josephine Mason in London and Stephanie Ulmer-Nebehay in Geneva; Writing by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Bill Berkrot

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Combination of Natural Infection and Vaccination Provides Maximum Protection Against COVID Variants

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A combination of vaccination and naturally acquired infection appears to boost the production of maximally potent antibodies against the (function(d, s, id){ var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.6"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));

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CDC updates its guidelines to encourage doctors to talk everyone who is sexually active about PrEP to prevent HIV

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The CDC updated its guidelines Wednesday in the hope that these conversations will encourage more people to protect themselves from getting HIV, Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, the director of CDC’s Division of HIV Prevention, told CNN. The intention is also to make the medication available to people who may be reluctant to disclose potentially stigmatizing behavior that puts them at risk.

“Stigma is our biggest enemy,” Daskalakis said. “I really think this puts PrEP in the same place as so many other really good preventive interventions like talking about smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc.”

PrEP reduces the risk of getting HIV from sex by about 99% when taken as prescribed, according to the CDC, with few side effects. In 2020 only a quarter of the people who could benefit from the treatment were taking it, according to the CDC.
The CDC recommends people may want to consider PrEP if they have a sexual partner with HIV, if they have sex but don’t consistently use a condom, or they have been diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease in the past 6 months. It is also recommended for people who share needles to inject drugs or who have an injection partner with HIV.
In 2019, the last year for which the CDC has updated information, the agency estimates 34,800 people were diagnosed with HIV in the US. If untreated, the human immunodeficiency virus or HIV can progress to AIDS.

The rate of new infections had declined slightly over the past four years, but the cases are not evenly distributed, and some communities — communities of color, gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men — are getting a disproportionate number of the new HIV diagnoses.

The guidance continues to recommend the first PrEP medicine, Truvada, for all genders. It also added a recommendation for the second PrEP medicine approved, Descovy, for sexually active men and transgender women. The drug hadn’t been on the market when the guidance was last revised in 2017. Both are pills people can take once a day. The new guidance also has a section on the first bimonthly injection PrEP drug, cabotegravir, for sexually active men and women, pending FDA approval.

The updated guidelines do not change the groups for whom PrEP is recommended.

“PrEP is one of the most powerful tools we have to prevent HIV transmission,” the CDC wrote in a letter to health care providers. “Expanding access to PrEP will be critical to ending the HIV epidemic in the United States.”

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Taking Viagra Has An Awesome Secondary Effect, Study Suggests

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Viagra is known for increasing your bedroom performance, but a new study has found it could have some other benefits, too. 

Taking Viagra cuts your Alzheimer’s risk by almost 70%, a new study suggests.

The scientists claim the erection hoisting drug may also give your brain health a boost and reduce the levels of bad proteins that cause dementia.

Researchers went through data on 7.2 million US adults and found regular Viagra users had a 69% lower chance of Alzheimer’s over the next six years, publishing their findings in Nature Aging.

As Medical News Today reports, “Laboratory tests on nerve cells from people with Alzheimer’s supported the notion that sildenafil may treat the disease.”

The researchers were quick to point out, however, that only clinical trials will give definitive proof that sildenafil (the drug that increases blood flow to the penis) is an effective treatment for Alzheimer’s.

“The association between sildenafil use and decreased incidence of AD does not establish causality, which will require a randomized controlled trial,” the paper in Nature Aging reads.

According to The Sun, “Medics are planning a fresh study to test the benefits of sildenafil – the generic version of Viagra – in early Alzheimer’s patients.”

Man taking little blue pill. Image Credit: thetimes.co.uk

The Sun also reports that a team from Cleveland Clinic “looked at whether any of 1,600 approved drugs could be repurposed to tackle the underlying causes of the disease,” quoting lead researcher Dr. Feixiong Cheng, from Cleveland Clinic’s Genomic Medicine Institute, as saying: “Sildenafil, which has been shown to significantly improve cognition and memory in preclinical models, presented as the best drug candidate.”

Healthline reports that the study had significant limitations, and that – at present – only one drug (Aducanumab) has been approved to treat Alzheimer’s.

Healthline draws attention to a statement made by Professor Tara Spires-Jones, DPhil, deputy director of the Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh, who said: “This study looks at data from a very large number of people, but there are several important limitations to consider.”

“According to Spires-Jones, study data came from insurance claims, aren’t very detailed, and did not include information on other important risk factors for Alzheimer’s, like sex, risk genes, and socioeconomic status” (Healthline).

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, it is estimated that in 2020 there [were] between 400,000 and 459,000 Australians with dementia, with Alzheimer’s disease accounting for up to 70% of diagnosed cases.

According to The Sun, Dr. Jack Auty, a lecturer in the medical sciences at the University of Tasmania, said of the news: “This is exciting stuff. But we need further research.”

Another university lecturer reportedly asked whether it is feasible to treat everyone with sildenafil for years before they are likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, and wondered whether this would cause problems in and of itself.

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Health

Is your cat a psychopath? Take this online test to find out

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My tuxedo cat, Tango, doesn’t have many psychopathic tendencies, although you can’t tell me that when she’s yowling at 3 a.m.


Gael Fashingbauer Cooper/CNET

It’s easy to throw the psychopath label at our furry feline friends when they’re doing something bizarre, like batting a terrified mouse or fighting each other from halfway up the Christmas tree. But now there’s a scientific survey — and an actual test you can take online — measuring 46 kitty behaviors that may reveal your cat’s level of psychopathy.

Scientists at the UK’s University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University developed the test, and published a study about it this month in the Journal of Research in Personality. The survey isn’t meant to slap your cat with a disturbing diagnosis, but to find out how kitty’s personality affects its relationship with its owner.

“It is likely that all cats have an element of psychopathy as it would have once been helpful for their ancestors in terms of acquiring resources: for example food, territory and mating opportunities,” lead researcher Rebecca Evans told the Metro newspaper.   

Researchers surveyed 549 people about their cats, focusing on the pets’ levels of boldness, meanness and inhibition. Those are the three traits that make up the model of psychopathy used with humans.

The quiz, called the CAT-Tri+, is actually a list of 46 statements about your cat, and you rank how much your pet fits each statement. They include whether the kitty seems unaware of danger, torments its prey rather than killing it, is aggressive toward neighborhood cats, and displaces other pets from their preferred position in the house. 

Of course, I had to take the quiz for my sometimes naughty but mostly just lively tuxedo cat, Tango. She’s terrified to go outside, but climbing an indoor Christmas tree is her favorite thing on earth.

One statement seemed especially odd to me — “my cat does not appear to act guilty after misbehaving” — because I’ve never known a cat that appeared to show guilt for anything. But overall, Tango scored very low in all categories, which touch on traits including boldness, disinhibition, meanness, pet-unfriendliness and human-unfriendliness. 

Other than her penchant for tree climbing, Tango didn’t even score very high for boldness, which was kind of surprising. She actually scored highest in disinhibition, which makes sense, as she is absolutely unbothered by being scolded when she climbs the tree or kicks the other cat, Torgo, out of a favored sleeping spot.

So what do you do with this information? Evans noted that the survey results can help those who live with cats adjust a pet’s environment. For example, cats who score high in boldness might appreciate a tall cat tower to climb. Or maybe the test will just help you realize that on a scale of the world’s cats, your little furball is pretty normal.

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Signs of Omicron found in California wastewater

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Signs of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus have been found in California’s wastewater, officials said, as the number of cases associated with the new variant rose to double digits, including two new infections in Los Angeles County confirmed since Tuesday.

Clues suggestive of Omicron’s presence in the Central Valley were picked up in wastewater samples collected in Sacramento and Merced counties, state epidemiologist Dr. Erica Pan said this week in a discussion hosted by the California Medical Assn.

“We definitely are seeing Omicron across the state, for sure,” Pan said.

In Sacramento County, Stanford University researchers detected a distinctive mutation that is found in Omicron from wastewater collected Nov. 30, according to a statement provided by county spokesperson Janna Haynes. Results were confirmed Monday, the county said.

“These findings indicate that the Omicron variant is most likely present in Sacramento County,” the statement said.

Pan said the mutation was also found in a wastewater sample collected in Merced County.

By Wednesday night, California’s tally of confirmed Omicron cases reached 12, with six cases in Alameda County, five in Los Angeles County and one in San Francisco.

L.A. County reported a new Omicron case Wednesday night, possibly a result of local transmission, in a fully vaccinated person who had received a booster and suffered only mild symptoms. Several close contacts of that person have also tested positive for the coronavirus, and work is underway to determine whether those cases involve the Omicron variant. Some of the close contacts are fully vaccinated; the vaccination status of others is under investigation.

A day earlier, Long Beach, which has its own health department, reported an Omicron case in a fully vaccinated resident who was experiencing no symptoms and who had traveled abroad, although not to southern Africa. The largest proportion of confirmed Omicron cases has been among people in southern Africa.

L.A. County reported its second and third Omicron cases on Monday: a USC student who had recently returned from the East Coast and someone who traveled from western Africa.

Gov. Gavin Newsom, in an interview with ABC’s “GMA3″ morning program, said he expects more Omicron cases to emerge.

Still, scientists say it’s unclear whether Omicron will become the nation’s dominant strain, displacing Delta, which now accounts for more than 99% of analyzed coronavirus cases nationwide — a point Newsom underscored.

“Here’s the deeper point: The Delta variant is the issue. And it’s the issue driving increases in 30 states over the last few weeks, driving hospitalizations and ICUs,” Newsom said. “And it’s why we’re still very cautious and promoting and very aggressive on boosters and vaccinations.”

At least five of the Omicron cases in Alameda County were among 12 coronavirus cases in people who were guests at a wedding in Wisconsin on Nov. 27. All were younger than 50 and had mild symptoms. They were all vaccinated, and most had received their booster shots, Pan said.

Eleven of the 12 people are staff members at Kaiser Oakland Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente said in a statement. Kaiser identified eight patients and eight staff members who were potentially exposed to those involved in the outbreak; 13 have tested negative, and the test results from three more close contacts are still being processed.

The index case, or the first infected person in the outbreak, is believed to be an Alameda County resident who attended the wedding after returning from Nigeria on Nov. 24 — the same day that scientists in South Africa disclosed their discovery of the new variant and two days before the World Health Organization declared Omicron a variant of concern. The wedding in Wisconsin had more than 100 people, and there were events at which people were masked and unmasked.

The California Department of Public Health said Wednesday night that a sixth Omicron case had been confirmed in Alameda County. It was not immediately clear whether that case was connected to the cluster associated with the Wisconsin wedding.

There are reasons to be concerned about how transmissible the Omicron variant is. Pan referred to a report published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that detailed a case of probable airborne transmission in a Hong Kong quarantine hotel between airline passengers staying across the hallway from each other.

“Retrospective investigation, including closed-circuit television camera footage, confirmed that neither case-patient left their room during the quarantine period. No items were shared between rooms, and other persons did not enter either room,” the report said.

“The only time the two quarantined persons opened their respective doors was to collect of food that was placed immediately outside each room door. The only other time they might have opened their doors would be for [coronavirus testing], which were conducted in three-day intervals. However, because these two case-patients arrived one day apart, it is unlikely that they would be tested on the same day.”

Omicron has been most prominently identified in South Africa, with an initial cluster of cases among university students in the populous province of Gauteng, which is home to Johannesburg and Pretoria, Pan said. Tracking websites say there are more than 67,000 probable Omicron cases in South Africa and more than 300 confirmed cases.

Officials in San Francisco confirmed the first case in the U.S. on Dec. 1 in a resident who returned to the city on Nov. 22 and became symptomatic around Nov. 25.

Many scientists are worried about Omicron because it has so many more mutations than previous variants of concern, including Delta. The mutations that have been identified “have a lot to do with transmission. So that’s why everyone’s concerned that it could be more transmissible,” which could affect how well the virus sticks to human cells, Pan said.

There is also concern that Omicron may cause more reinfection that previous variants. Pan noted preliminary data showing there is “over a two-times-higher risk of reinfection compared to prior waves. So that is again suggestive of invasion of immunity from prior infection.”

But doctors are hopeful that vaccinated people with booster shots will be protected against severe illness.

“A booster dose strengthens and broadens the immune response. It’s widely believed that being vaccinated to your fullest extent possible will keep you out of the hospital and keep you from dying from this Omicron variant,” said Dr. Robert Levin, the Ventura County health officer.

Pfizer and its vaccine partner, BioNTech, said Wednesday that an initial lab study suggested that three doses of their vaccine may provide a robust protection against Omicron. Two doses may not be sufficient to protect against infection from Omicron, the companies said, although two doses may still protect against severe illness.

“Although two doses of the vaccine may still offer protection against severe disease caused by the Omicron strain, it’s clear from these preliminary data that protection is improved with a third dose of our vaccine,” Albert Bourla, chairman and chief executive of Pfizer, said in a statement.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Biden’s chief medical advisor for the pandemic, called the news encouraging in an interview on CNN’s “At This Hour.”

“This is good news about the booster protection,” Fauci said. “The news we got last night and this morning about the effect of boosters does make me breathe a little better.”



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COVID-19 Statistics | Dec. 8, 2021 | Lost Coast Outpost

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Humboldt County Public Health reported today the death of a resident in their 70s from COVID-19. Staff in the Department Operations Center extend their condolences to the families, friends and caregivers of those who have died and all who have lost a loved one to the virus.

Thirty-five new cases of COVID-19 were reported, bringing to 10,314 the total number of residents who have tested positive for the virus. One new hospitalization was also reported, a resident in their 60s.

As of Tuesday, Public Health and other local vaccinators have administered a total of 165,818 doses of COVID-19 vaccine. Local vaccination data has been updated on the Humboldt County Data Dashboard (humboldtgov.org/dashboard). Highlights include:

  • Since the last weekly report, 1,738 vaccine doses have been administered, and 1,162 additional residents have completed their vaccine series.
  • A total of 82,529 residents, or approximately 69% of the county’s population aged 5 and older, are fully vaccinated. About of 9,100 residents, or approximately 8% of the population aged 5 and older, are partially vaccinated as of Tuesday.

With Omicron identified in California and 19 other U.S. states so far, Public Health is continuing to conduct genetic testing locally to monitor while awaiting the arrival of the fast-spreading variant.

All international passengers flying into the U.S., regardless of vaccination status, are now required to show a negative test taken one day before their departure as part of stricter travel requirements put in place this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC recommends that all international travelers get a COVID-19 test three to five days after travel regardless of vaccination status. Anyone with symptoms of COVID-19 after travel should test immediately.

Residents who have travelled internationally in the past two weeks and test positive with at-home tests are asked to call the Joint Information Center at 1-707-441-5000 to report their results to Public Health. Those who have not travelled outside the U.S. and test positive with an at-home test for COVID-19 should notify their primary care provider, or Public Health if there is no provider, and isolate to limit the spread of disease.

Travelers leaving Humboldt County who are flying internationally should contact the airline prior to travel and stay current on their destination’s specific COVID-19 vaccination and testing requirements. Information can be found for most countries at the U.S. Department of State’s travel advisory website.

All eligible adults aged 18 and older are encouraged to get a booster. Health officials also stress that those who are partially vaccinated should complete their vaccination series. A person who is fully vaccinated is half as likely to pass on the infection as someone who is unvaccinated. According to data from the CDC, an unvaccinated person is nearly six times more likely to get COVID-19 and 14 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than a vaccinated person.

Public Health is offering family vaccination clinics throughout December to give priority to children aged 5 to 11 and provide family members a convenient way to get their vaccines.

Vaccines, including boosters, are available at local pharmacies. To check the availability of a specific vaccine, visit the vaccines.gov page, or text a ZIP code to 438829 to locate a nearby pharmacy offering vaccines.

Humboldt County’s vaccination and testing services are available free of charge. Although walk-ins are allowed at most regular Public Health clinics and many pharmacy vaccination sites, a sharp increase in demand for boosters has caused delays at some locations. As a result, appointments are required for pediatric clinics and for clinics at Public Health’s main office. Appointments are strongly recommended for all other clinics and are the best way to ensure a shot is available during your visit. Appointments can be made at MyTurn.ca.gov.

See the schedule below for specific Public Health vaccination and testing clinic dates, times, locations and available services:

Trinidad Family Clinic— Thursday, Dec. 9, 4 to 7 p.m.
     Trinidad Town Hall (409 Trinity St.)
     Ages 5-18 and family members.
     Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson/Moderna.
     PCR and rapid testing available.
     Appointments strongly recommended.

Eureka— Friday, Dec. 10, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m – FULL
     College of the Redwoods Gym Lobby (7351 Tompkins Hill Road)
     Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson/Moderna.
     PCR and rapid testing available.

Hoopa Family Clinic — Saturday, Dec. 11, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m
     Hoopa High (101 Loop Road)
     Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson/Moderna.
     PCR and rapid testing available.

Eureka — Sunday, Dec. 12, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
     Ag Building (5630 South Broadway)
     Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson/Moderna.
     PCR and rapid testing available.

Eureka — Monday, Dec. 13, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Closed from noon to 1 p.m.
     Public Health Main Office (529 I St.)
     Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson/Moderna.
     Appointment required. No testing available.
     $25 gift card for adults receiving a first or second dose.
     Appointments required.

View the Data Dashboard online at humboldtgov.org/dashboard, or go to humboldtgov.org/DashboardArchives to download data from a previous time.

For the most recent COVID-19 information, visit cdc.gov or cdph.ca.gov. Local information is available at humboldtgov.org or by contacting covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us or calling 1-707-441-5000.

Sign up for COVID-19 vaccination: MyTurn.ca.gov
Check for vaccine availability at a local pharmacy: Vaccines.gov
Local COVID-19 vaccine information: humboldtgov.org/VaccineInfo
Humboldt County COVID-19 Data Dashboard: humboldtgov.org/Dashboard
Follow us on Facebook: @HumCoCOVID19
Instagram: @HumCoCOVID19
Twitter: @HumCoCOVID19
Humboldt Health Alert: humboldtgov.org/HumboldtHealthAlert



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Pfizer boosters dominate the U.S.

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Welcome to The Data Point, a series from the NBC News Data Graphics team that explains a slice of the latest news through charts and visuals.

The  United States is trying to get ahead of the new Covid-19 omicron variant with booster shots.

The Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine booster, which the companies say offers better protection against the new variant than an initial one or two-dose series,  accounts for about 55 percent of all booster shots in the U.S., according to an NBC News analysis of vaccine data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Several states have exceeded the national average. In Hawaii, 70 percent of boosters were from Pfizer, and Pfizer shots accounted for about 60 percent of boosters in states such as Utah, Missouri and Indiana. Just under 25 percent of people in the U.S. have received a booster, the CDC says.

The Pfizer shot’s dominance in boosters is in keeping with the country’s overall vaccination, as CDC data shows that approximately 57 percent of those who completed a vaccine series were given Pfizer shots.

Widespread boosters rolled out when the Food and Drug Administration authorized a third Pfizer shot in September for seniors and adults in high-risk settings. The FDA greenlighted a mix-and-match approach to booster shots in October.

Use the map below to see the Pfizer booster’s share in each state.

Elliott Ramos is a data journalist for NBCNews.com.

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Health

BNT162b2 Vaccine Booster and Mortality Due to Covid-19

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Study Design

The study period started on August 6, 2021, which was 7 days after the approval of the booster for use in persons 60 years of age or older in Israel. The study period ended on September 29, 2021, which was the last date for which data regarding confirmed deaths due to Covid-19 were available on the day the data were extracted (October 3, 2021). The study timeline is depicted in Figure S1 in the Supplementary Appendix, available with the full text of this article at NEJM.org.

The Clalit Health Services (CHS) Community Helsinki Committee and the CHS Data Utilization Committee approved the study. The study was exempt from the requirement to obtain informed consent.

Study Population

The study included all CHS members who were 50 years of age or older on the study start date and had received two doses of BNT162b2 at least 5 months earlier. CHS covers approximately 52% of the Israeli population and is the largest of four health care organizations in Israel that provide mandatory health care. Participants with missing data regarding date of birth or sex were excluded from the study. In addition, participants were excluded if they had been infected with SARS-CoV-2 or had received a booster before August 6, 2021; early administration of the booster was indicated in immunocompromised persons. Finally, participants who received the booster and had a confirmed case of Covid-19 within 3 days before the effective-booster date (defined as 7 days after the booster was administered) were excluded.

The study population was divided into two groups: those who had received a booster during the study period (booster group) and those who had not received a booster (nonbooster group). Participants were included in the booster group on the effective-booster date to allow time for antibodies to build effectively.4,8 Up to 7 days after receiving the booster, participants were still included in the nonbooster group. A description of the transition of participants from the nonbooster group to the booster group is provided in Figure S2.

Data Sources and Organization

We analyzed patient-level data that were extracted from CHS electronic medical records. A specific database was created for this study that integrated patient-level data from two primary sources: the CHS operational database and the CHS Covid-19 database. The CHS operational database includes sociodemographic data and comprehensive clinical information, such as coexisting chronic conditions, community-care visits, hospitalizations, medications, and results of laboratory tests and imaging studies. The CHS Covid-19 database includes information that is collected centrally by the Israeli Ministry of Health and transferred daily to CHS, such as vaccination dates, reverse-transcriptase–quantitative polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-qPCR) test dates and results, and hospitalizations and deaths related to Covid-19.

The CHS databases were used in the primary studies that evaluated the effectiveness1 and safety9 of the BNT162b2 vaccine in a real-world setting. In addition, the Israeli Ministry of Health Covid-19 database was used as the basis of the initial study that evaluated the effectiveness of the BNT162b2 booster among persons 60 years of age or older.10 A description of the CHS data repositories that were used in this study is provided in the Supplementary Appendix.

For each participant in the study, the following sociodemographic data were extracted: age, sex, population sector (general Jewish population, Arab population, or ultra-Orthodox Jewish population), and score for socioeconomic status (scores range from 1 [lowest] to 10 [highest]; details are provided in the Supplementary Appendix). The following clinical data were extracted: vaccination dates (first, second, and booster doses), RT-qPCR test dates and results, death due to Covid-19, and any clinical risk factors for death due to Covid-19 that have been identified in the general population,11 such as diabetes mellitus, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, chronic kidney failure, hypertension, ischemic heart disease, chronic heart failure, obesity, lung cancer, or a history of cerebrovascular accident, transient ischemic attack, or smoking.

Study Outcomes

The primary outcome was death due to Covid-19. In the primary analysis of the effectiveness of the booster with respect to this outcome, we compared the mortality due to Covid-19 in the booster group with that in the nonbooster group.

Because the initial approval of the booster by the Food and Drug Administration was for use in persons 65 years of age or older, we performed a subgroup analysis according to age group. We performed an additional subgroup analysis according to sex.

In a secondary analysis of the effectiveness of the booster in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection, we compared the frequency of positive RT-qPCR tests in the booster group with that in the nonbooster group.

Statistical Analysis

A chi-square test was used to compare categorical variables according to study group. Given that the independent variable (booster status) varied over time, univariate and multivariate survival analyses were performed with time-dependent covariates, in accordance with the study design.12 A Kaplan–Meier analysis with a log-rank test was used for the univariate analysis. Comparison of the survival curves and Schoenfeld’s global test were used to test the proportional-hazards assumption for each dependent variable. Variables that met the testing criteria served as inputs for multivariate regression analysis.

A Cox proportional-hazards regression model with time-dependent covariates was used to estimate the association of booster status with death due to Covid-19. The regression model was used to estimate the hazard ratio for death due to Covid-19 in the booster group, as compared with the nonbooster group, with the use of sociodemographic and baseline clinical characteristics as independent variables.

The assumption of a 7-day lag time between the administration of the booster and the effective-booster date, during which participants were included in the nonbooster group, was further tested to verify that this grouping did not create any bias. Validation of the lag time used to ensure booster effectiveness was performed through estimation of the hazard ratio for death due to Covid-19 in participants up to 7 days after the administration of the booster, as compared with the nonbooster group. Use of an alternative 14-day lag time was also tested with the same method.

R statistical software, version 3.5.0 (R Foundation for Statistical Computing), was used for the univariate and multivariate survival analyses with time-dependent covariates. SPSS software, version 26 (IBM), was used for all other statistical analyses. A P value of less than 0.05 was considered to indicate significance in all analyses.

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