Maryland continues decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations – WTOP

The decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations in Maryland is continuing, Gov. Larry Hogan said Friday. The number of people in Maryland’s COVID-19 intensive care wards has dropped below 200 for the first time since last Nov. 12, Hogan’s office said in a statement.

Is the B.1.1.7 variant more lethal? – Medical News Today

In early September 2020, scientists detected a new variant of SARS-CoV-2 in the south-east of England that is more transmissible than older variants. By the end of 2020, the new variant — called B.1.1.7 — had spread across the United Kingdom and accounted for three-quarters of all infections.

Chaos returns to Europe – New York Times

A third wave of infections is hammering Europe, and the situation is looking startlingly similar to the early days of the pandemic.

B117 deadlier than other COVID-19 strains, more data affirm – CIDRAP

The B117 COVID-19 variant, which was first identified in the United Kingdom in October 2020, may pose a 61% higher risk of 28-day mortality, according to a study published today in Nature.

10 reasons for Australia’s covid-19 success story – Washington Post

Last week, Anthony S. Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, singled out Australia’s response to the covid-19 pandemic as an example of success. “They really do get the cases almost to nothing,” he said. “We’ve never had that in the United States.”

WHO Points To Wildlife Farms In Southern China As Likely Source Of Pandemic – NPR

3 minute audio at the link – A member of the World Health Organization investigative team says wildlife farms in southern China are the most likely source of the COVID-19 pandemic. China shut down those wildlife farms in February 2020, says Peter Daszak, a disease ecologist with EcoHealth Alliance and a member of the WHO delegation that traveled to China this year. During that trip, Daszak says, the WHO team found new evidence that these wildlife farms were supplying vendors at the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan with animals.

CDC Looks At Whether 3 Feet — Instead Of 6 — Is Safe For Schools’ Social Distancing – NPR

As President Biden pushes to get students back in schools, there’s one crucial question: How much social distance is necessary in the classroom?

The answer (to that question) has huge consequences for how many students can safely fit into classrooms. Public schools in particular are finding it difficult to accommodate a full return if 6 feet of social distancing is required — a key factor behind many schools offering hybrid schedules that bring students back to the classroom just a few days a week.

Vaccine Headlines

The curious case of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine – STAT News

AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine is facing a crisis of confidence, with one European country after another, as if seized by a fit of panic, temporarily suspending its use over concerns about reports of blood clots in people who received it.

More nations pause AstraZeneca COVID vaccines, await safety reviews – CIDRAP

The Netherlands and Ireland joint the list of countries that have temporarily stopped using the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine, as World Health Organization (WHO) experts review the findings.

Four of Europe’s largest countries suspend AstraZeneca vaccinations; safety agency says blood clot incidence is low – Washington Post

Four of Europe’s most populous countries have now suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine after reports of blood clots in some recently inoculated patients — even as the World Health Organization said it was safe and urged countries to continue using it.

New SARS-CoV-2 variants: How can vaccines be adapted? – Medical News Today

As the SARS-CoV-2 virus continues to evolve, we explore what vaccine developers are doing to ensure their vaccines work against emerging variants and whether we need specifically adapted vaccines.

For the first time in decades, vaccines are having a moment. Will it last? – STAT

Lupali Limaye got her first dose of Covid-19 vaccine a couple of weeks ago. “I bawled,” she admitted without the slightest hint of embarrassment.

It so happens that Limaye is a staunch proponent of vaccination; she works at the International Vaccine Access Center at Johns Hopkins University. But her reaction is not uncommon. Talk to anyone working in or volunteering at Covid vaccination clinics, and you’ll hear tales about the joy, the relief, the shedding of the cloak of dread that has weighed people down during our difficult period of pandemic isolation.

Clinical Considerations

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