1/14/2021
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ʻIs Not Over Yetʼ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin
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`Last Updated
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`Jan. 4, 2021, 5:16 a.m. ET
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`The Trump administration is working on a deal that would enable Pfizer to make additional shots for Americans early next year. A surge of
`infections in Sweden is fueling criticism of the government.
`
`This briefing has ended. Follow our live coronavirus news updates.
`
`Hereʼs what you need to know:
`
`With 244,365 new cases reported in a single day, the U.S. enters new territory.
`
`How good is that mask youʼre wearing? You may soon find out.
`
`ʻIt doesnʼt get better than this,ʼ N.Y.C.ʼs mayor says as Elmhurst Hospital workers are vaccinated.
`
`After personal threats over a local mask mandate, the Dodge City, Kansas, mayor resigns.
`
`2 Alaska health care workers had allergic reactions to the vaccine.
`
`In cities expecting snow, some coronavirus testing is delayed.
`
`A happy surprise as vaccine vials turn out to hold more than thought.
`
`Chris Christie, reflecting on his own coronavirus experience, releases a video urging people to wear masks.
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`With 244,365 new cases reported in a single day, the U.S. enters new territory.
`
`Officials across the United States on Wednesday reported the highest daily number for new coronavirus since the pandemic began, as well
`as the most deaths in a single day.
`
`New infections were put at 244,365, and deaths at 3,607 — nearly 500 more than the record set only a week ago. The previous case record,
`236,800, was set last Friday (though a reporting anomaly in Texas made it appear still higher.)
`
`The latest figures capped day on which health experts warned Americans, buoyed by the rollout of a vaccination campaign, that it is far
`too soon to abandon common-sense precautions for halting the spread of the virus.
`
`The first shots of a vaccine made by Pfizer and BioNTech were administered on Monday, and another vaccine, made by Moderna, is
`expected to receive emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration this week.
`
`Both were highly effective in preventing Covid-19 in clinical trials, but it will be months before a broad-enough swath of the population can
`be vaccinated. Officials are also scrambling to combat skepticism about the vaccines.
`
`“As wonderful as this is, because it’s been an extraordinary manifestation of the fruits of science done in a very rapid way, it’s also
`bittersweet,” Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said of the country’s split-screen reality on “CBS This
`Morning” on Wednesday.
`
`As the doses are distributed throughout the states, the virus continues to engulf the country. The death toll passed 300,000 in the United
`States on Monday, more than any other country, just as the first injections of the vaccine were going into the arms of frontline health care
`workers. Nearly 3,000 new deaths were reported on Tuesday, while new cases exceeded 200,000. The seven-day average of new cases is
`up 28 percent from two weeks ago.
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`Hospitalizations have surpassed 112,000, and I.C.U. units in some areas are close to capacity.
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`“We should celebrate the fact that the science has come through,” Dr. Fauci said, “but it is not over yet. We have a ways to go. We have to
`abide by the public health measures that we talk about all the time.”
`
`Those public health measures, of course, include social distancing, wearing masks, avoiding travel and indoor gatherings and frequent
`hand washing. Dr. Fauci called them “the bridge to get to the vaccine, which is going to get us out of this.”
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
`1/14/2021
`Then there is the question of persuading people to take a vaccine. Dr. Fauci noted that some people are hesitant because of the speed with
`which the vaccines were developed. But he argued that the speed was a reflection of “extraordinary scientific advances in vaccine
`platform technology” and enormous investment.
`
`“We hope that the overwhelming percentage of the population will accept the vaccine,” he said. (In an interview with the Vox podcast
`“Today, Explained” on Tuesday, Dr. Fauci said that he hoped that as many as 85 percent of Americans would get it.)
`
`“If we do that, we will get a veil, or an umbrella, of herd immunity over the population that would dramatically diminish the dynamics of
`the outbreak. When we do that, then that would be the end of this outbreak. So it’s going to take months to do, but we certainly are on the
`right track.”
`
`Adm. Brett P. Giroir, who heads up national testing efforts, also stressed the need to continue protective measures on Wednesday, urging
`Americans to wear masks and avoid travel and crowds over the holidays.
`
`He noted that the Midwest appeared to have turned a corner as case rates improve. But outbreaks continue to escalate in the Northeast,
`the South and on the West Coast.
`
`“We are still at a dangerous and critical part of this pandemic and tens of thousands of American lives are at stake really every week,” he
`said on CNN’s “New Day,” even as “the end of the pandemic is in sight.”
`
`“But until we get a few more months down the road, do your best. Save lives, save American lives, save global lives, just by doing these
`simple measures. If you do that, we’re going to be in really good shape. But if you don’t, we’re going to have thousands of more casualties
`in this country that we can avoid.”
`
`Late Wednesday, officials said that the U.S. interior secretary, David Bernhardt, had tested positive for the virus. An agency spokesman,
`Nicholas Goodwin, said in statement that the Mr. Bernhardt “is currently asymptomatic” and in isolation.
`
`The secretary learned he had tested positive ahead of a cabinet meeting at the White House and did not attend, an administration official
`said. The Interior Department has canceled its holiday party, which had been scheduled for Thursday.
`
`— Karen Zraick
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`Tracking the Coronavirus ›
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`United States ›
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`New cases
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`New deaths
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`Where cases per capita are highest
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`Ariz.
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`R.I.
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`Tenn.
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`Calif.
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`Mass.
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`S.C.
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`On Jan. 13
`230,476
`3,922
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`Okla.
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`Ark.
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`Ky.
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`14-day change
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`Utah
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`Ga.
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`Conn.
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`U.S. hot spots ›
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`Vaccinations ›
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`Worldwide ›
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`Other trackers:
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`Choose your own places to track
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`Vaccines
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`U.K. cases
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`U.S. deaths
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`Global deaths
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`State restrictions
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`College cases
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`Tracking the Coronavirus ›
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`United States ›
`
`New cases
`
`New deaths
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`14-day change
`
`On Jan. 13
`230,476
`3,922
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`Where cases per capita are highest
`
`Ariz.
`
`Calif.
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`Okla.
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`Utah
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`2/15
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`+34%
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`+45%
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`+34%
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`+45%
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`1/14/2021
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
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`R.I.
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`Tenn.
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`Mass.
`
`S.C.
`
`Ark.
`
`Ky.
`
`Ga.
`
`Conn.
`
`U.S. hot spots ›
`
`Vaccinations ›
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`Worldwide ›
`
`Other trackers:
`
`Choose your own places to track
`
`Vaccines
`
`U.K. cases
`
`U.S. deaths
`
`Global deaths
`
`State restrictions
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`College cases
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`How good is that mask youʼre wearing? You may soon find out.
`
`More than 100,000 face masks have hit the market. They come in a variety of colors, designs and materials. They are a pandemic
`necessity. But what they don’t come with is a label that says how well they block infectious particles — a fundamental omission that has
`frustrated public health officials.
`
`That could soon change, however. A set of federal standards for minimum filter efficiency and labels indicating which products meet them
`are being developed for the bewildering marketplace for masks and other face coverings.
`
`Guidelines are expected to be made public in January, after months without federal oversight of the quality of the masks and face
`coverings that have become critical to the fight to prevent the spread of the virus. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and
`Health has been creating guidelines with the industry standards organization, ASTM International (formerly the American Society for
`Testing and Materials). The institute is a division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
`
`“By having a standard in place you will be able to know what level of protection is being achieved and you’ll have a consistent way of
`evaluating these products,” said Maryann D’Alessandro, director of the institute’s National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory.
`
`The Food and Drug Administration released an emergency measure in April, noting that it would not take action against companies
`selling masks to the general public. Although the agency warned that some products “may or may not meet fluid barrier or filtration
`efficiency levels,” the warning did little to disturb the market.
`
`“The F.D.A. could have issued a guidance that masks should be fitted, at least two layers of cloth, not made of stretchy materials, etc.
`Instead, there was a free-for-all,” said Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Center for Health Research, a nonprofit health policy
`group.
`
`The C.D.C. has updated its guidance on masks on numerous occasions, pointing out that tightly woven, multilayered fabric offers better
`protection than single-layer, loosely knit masks.
`
`Members of a standards development working group of federal and industry officials have suggested manufacturers adopt one high and
`one lower filtration requirement for masks. This would give a measure of a product’s efficiency in filtering particles measuring 0.3
`microns, generally the most penetrative particles, which are standard for the institute’s tests. “Breathability” is also another standard
`members are suggesting to rate masks and face coverings.
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`In order to display on mask packaging that the contents meet the ASTM standard, manufacturers must have their products tested by an
`accredited laboratory and show that their masks provide a reasonable fit to the population at large. There’s no enforcement mechanism,
`however.
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`“What we have here is a really good standard,” said Dale Pfriem, president of Protective Equipment Consulting Services and a member of
`the standards development working group addressing mask guidelines. “Manufacturers will have something to design their products to,
`and something to put in their marketing materials and packaging, and consumers will have a sense of confidence.”
`
`— Sheila Kaplan
`
`ADVERTISEMENT
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`1/14/2021
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
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`ʻIt doesnʼt get better than this,ʼ N.Y.C.ʼs mayor says as Elmhurst Hospital workers are vaccinated.
`
`At the height of the pandemic in New York City, as hospitals filled and deaths mounted, Elmhurst Hospital in Queens bore the brunt of the
`crisis. A public hospital near the neighborhoods hit hardest by the coronavirus in the spring, Elmhurst quickly became overrun with
`patients and ran short of beds, equipment and staff.
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`On Wednesday morning, the hospital entered a new, brighter phase, when two employees became Elmhurst’s first to receive a Covid-19
`vaccine.
`
`The employees — Veronica Delgado, a lead physician assistant in the hospital’s emergency department, and William Kelly, who works in
`environmental services — both said they were thrilled.
`
`“I don’t know a health care worker in this hospital who doesn’t want the vaccine immediately,” Ms. Delgado, 65, said.
`
`A room full of city employees and hospital workers applauded as the shots were administered.
`
`“This is a standing ovation,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said as he looked on. “It doesn’t get better than this.”
`
`Since the city’s first vaccinations outside a clinical trial took place at another Queens hospital, more than 1,600 health care workers have
`received a first dose, Mr. de Blasio said.
`
`Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said on Wednesday that the state had received 87,750 doses of the Pfizer vaccine so far, with 80,000 additional ones
`expected in the coming days for nursing home residents and employees. He said the state expected 346,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine
`once it was federally authorized.
`
`Mr. Cuomo also said that he expected the state would likely move into its second phase of vaccine distribution, targeting essential workers
`and high-risk members of the public, by late January.
`
`In preparation, the state would direct insurers to cover the costs of vaccination. Federal officials working as part of Operation Warp Speed
`— the multiagency effort to quickly make a coronavirus vaccine available to Americans — have also said their goal was to make vaccines
`free for all Americans.
`
`“In New York State, no person will pay a penny for a vaccination,” Mr. Cuomo said.
`
`Both Mr. Cuomo and Mr. de Blasio have cheered the vaccine as a positive development at a time when more people have been testing
`positive and growing ill in New York City, which both officials have warned could lead to another shutdown. However, Mr. Cuomo, not the
`mayor, has the power to impose a shutdown.
`
`Mr. de Blasio said that over the last week, an average of 5.71 percent of the city’s coronavirus tests were coming back positive, a rate that
`was “higher than we want it to be.”
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`“Hospitalizations keep increasing, and I’m worried about that,” the mayor said on Wednesday.
`
`Mr. Cuomo also said that the rise in hospitalizations was troubling, particularly in areas upstate. To address the issue, the state’s health
`commissioner sent a letter to hospitals directing them to start “crisis management mode” and directing overburdened hospitals to shift
`patients to facilities that have available beds. Statewide, hospitalizations topped 6,000, Mr. Cuomo said. The figure peaked in April when
`the state neared 19,000 hospitalizations.
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`The strategy was reminiscent of one needed in the city’s hospitals in the spring, when Elmhurst Hospital was reaching capacity but
`thousands of hospital beds were available in facilities elsewhere.
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`Officials maintained on Wednesday that the city’s hospitals were prepared to handle the surge, including at Elmhurst.
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
`1/14/2021
`Dr. Mitchell Katz, the head of Health and Hospitals, the agency that oversees the city’s public hospitals, said there were just 280 patients in
`them now who have the virus, compared with nearly 4,000 patients at the peak in the spring.
`
`Elmhurst was particularly hard hit. On one day in late March, it saw 13 virus-related deaths in 24 hours. Hundreds of patients were
`arriving seeking help; some of them were found dead in rooms. A medical worker at the hospital described the conditions as “apocalyptic.”
`
`“One of the toughest battles anywhere in the United States against the coronavirus happened right here,” Mr. de Blasio said on
`Wednesday.
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`Dr. Katz said that he expected to have every employee at Elmhurst vaccinated within three weeks. Ms. Delgado, after receiving her shot,
`urged the mayor and city officials to make it happen quickly.
`
`She also had a message to the public: Don’t be afraid of the vaccine, and don’t “get information off of Facebook.”
`
`— Michael Gold
`
`After personal threats over a local mask mandate, the Dodge City, Kansas, mayor resigns.
`
`The emails Joyce Warshaw received as mayor of Dodge City, Kan., were hostile enough last month, when the city was merely considering
`passing a mask mandate.
`
`But then the mandate was passed, and USA Today ran an article last week about Dodge City’s struggles with the coronavirus — and the
`hostility just boiled over, Ms. Warshaw said.
`
`“We’re coming to get you,” read one message. “You’ll burn in hell,” said another. The word “murder” was used several times, she said.
`
`Fearing for her family’s safety and her own, Ms. Warshaw, 69, resigned as mayor on Tuesday, a few weeks before the end of her one-year
`term.
`
`“I can get past words,” Ms. Warshaw, a retired elementary school principal, said in an interview on Wednesday. “But I think right now our
`nation is seeing so much divisiveness and so much inappropriate bullying that is accepted, and it just worried me. I don’t know if these
`people would act out on their words.”
`
`Ms. Warshaw’s experience provides a stark example of the challenges that public officials have had to navigate amid the emotional and
`political battle over the virus. Leaders of local and state health departments have faced harassment, personal insults and death threats
`over their roles in imposing virus restrictions. Political leaders have also come under fire.
`
`Prosecutors accused a man in Wichita, Kan., of threatening to kidnap and kill that city’s mayor over a mask ordinance. And the mayor of
`Kansas City, Mo., received a text message that referred to him using a racial slur and suggested he should be lynched for requiring
`masks. Council members in Green Bay, Wis., said they received threats over their mask mandates, and the superintendent of a school
`district in Arizona resigned amid claims that he had been harassed over the decision to move to virtual learning.
`
`Ms. Warshaw said she understood that people may disagree, but she was disheartened by the lack of civility. Even when she tried to
`explain things to critics, they would dismiss her and tell her she was lying, she said. She hopes that her resignation might help some of the
`anger over the mask mandate the city passed in response to Ford County’s decision to opt out of the state mask order.
`
`One in seven residents in that county have tested positive for the virus since the pandemic began, making it one of the hardest-hit counties
`in the country. Several of Ms. Warshaw’s relatives, including her daughter, have contracted the virus, and her aunt died from Covid-19, she
`said.
`
`“If all of us could have a little compassion for society as a whole instead of looking at our individual want or belief,” Ms. Warshaw said, “we
`could have curbed this pandemic earlier.”
`
`— John Eligon
`
`2 Alaska health care workers had allergic reactions to the vaccine.
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`Two health care workers at the same hospital in Alaska developed reactions just minutes after receiving the new coronavirus vaccine this
`week. One was expected to remain hospitalized until Thursday.
`
`Health officials said that the cases would not disrupt their vaccine rollout plans and that they were sharing the information for the sake of
`transparency.
`
`The first worker, a middle-aged woman who had no history of allergies, had an anaphylactic reaction that began 10 minutes after she
`received the vaccine at Bartlett Regional Hospital in Juneau on Tuesday, a hospital official said. She experienced a rash over her face and
`torso, shortness of breath and an elevated heart rate.
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
`1/14/2021
`Dr. Lindy Jones, the hospital’s emergency department medical director, said the worker was first given a shot of epinephrine, a standard
`treatment for severe allergic reactions. Her symptoms subsided but then re-emerged, and she was treated with steroids and an
`epinephrine drip.
`
`When doctors tried to stop the drip, her symptoms re-emerged yet again, so the woman was moved to the intensive care unit, observed
`throughout the night, then weaned off the drip early Wednesday morning, Dr. Jones said.
`
`The second worker received his shot on Wednesday and developed eye puffiness, lightheadedness and a scratchy throat 10 minutes after
`the injection, the hospital said in a statement. He was taken to the emergency room and treated with epinephrine, Pepcid and Benadryl,
`although the hospital said the reaction was not considered anaphylaxis. The worker was back to normal within an hour and released.
`
`The hospital, which had administered 144 total doses as of Wednesday night, said both workers did not want their experiences to have a
`negative impact on others lining up for the vaccine.
`
`“We have no plans to change our vaccine schedule, dosing or regimen,” Dr. Anne Zink, Alaska’s chief medical officer, said in a statement.
`
`— Noah Weiland, Sharon LaFraniere and Katie Thomas
`
`ADVERTISEMENT
`
`In cities expecting snow, some coronavirus testing is delayed.
`
`As a powerful winter storm raced up the East Coast on Wednesday, several major cities planned to temporarily shut down coronavirus
`testing facilities.
`
`In Baltimore, the city health department postponed testing at two outdoor testing sites on Wednesday and Thursday, although several
`sites remained open for “walk-up” testing.
`
`“We would urge residents to remain safe while they travel to the testing site, and would encourage residents to dress warmly should they
`need to wait in line,” the city department said in a written statement.
`
`Hartford HealthCare said its nine drive-through testing sites in Connecticut would be closed on Thursday, and two city-sponsored mobile
`testing sites in Boston will also be closed. In Rhode Island, Gov. Gina Raimondo warned residents that test scheduling on the state’s online
`portal would be “temporarily paused” for Thursday “to ensure the safety of Rhode Islanders.” Some outdoor sites may close, and some
`indoor or covered sites will stay open, she said.
`
`In Philadelphia, where the snowfall could reach up to eight inches, city testing clinics remained open on Wednesday, and officials expected
`that they would be open Thursday as well, said James Garrow, a spokesman for the city department of health.
`
`He stressed “the need to call ahead to make sure that folks’ local testing site is open.”
`
`— Giulia McDonnell Nieto del Rio
`
`A happy surprise as vaccine vials turn out to hold more than thought.
`
`A little bit of “over fill” in vials that contain multiple doses of a drug is normal, but this was different.
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
`1/14/2021
`When pharmacists on the staff of the University of Utah began diluting the new coronavirus vaccine with saline on Tuesday and drawing it
`into syringes, they were surprised how much was left over, said Erin Fox, the senior pharmacy director of drug information and support
`services there.
`
`“They initially thought that they had incorrectly done it because there was so much left in the vial after they pulled up the five doses,” Ms.
`Fox said. “They sent us a picture and were like, can we use the extra?”
`
`On Wednesday, they got their answer: yes.
`
`In a statement, the Food and Drug Administration said that “given the public health emergency,” it was acceptable to use every full dose
`left over in each vial. The agency said it was consulting with Pfizer, which developed the vaccine with BioNTech, to determine “the best
`path forward.”
`
`It was a bit of good news for a country battling a pandemic. The newly released vaccine is in short supply, for the moment, and every drop
`counts.
`
`The University of Utah’s experience was not unique. As boxes of the vaccine began arriving around the country this week, hospital
`pharmacists discovered that the glass vials that are supposed to hold five doses contained enough for a sixth, or even a seventh.
`
`The news prompted a flurry of excited exchanges on Twitter and pharmacy message boards as hospital workers considered the
`tantalizing possibility that the limited supply of desperately needed vaccine might be stretched to reach more people.
`
`But it also set off a wave of confusion and debate over whether to use the extra doses, or to throw them out. Some did just that.
`
`Anna Legreid Dopp, senior director of clinical guidelines and quality improvement at the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists,
`said hospitals that wanted to squeeze out extra doses would have to make sure that recipients will have a second shot waiting for them.
`That may be somewhat challenging.
`
`But it’s a nice problem to have, Ms. Dopp acknowledged.
`
`— Katie Thomas and Roni Caryn Rabin
`
`GLOBAL ROUNDUP
`
`More than 137,000 received shots in the first week in the U.K., and other news from around the world.
`
`A little over a week after Britain kicked off its mass inoculation program, the first in the world to approve and begin distributing a fully
`tested vaccine, more than 137,000 people have received shots, the government minister in charge of the rollout wrote on Twitter on
`Wednesday.
`
`Since the inoculations began last Tuesday, hospitals have distributed some 137,897 vaccines across the country, according to the minister,
`Nadhim Zahawi. He noted that the figure did not take into account shots administered by primary care doctors, the next phase of the
`rollout that is intended to reach a broader stretch of the population, which began on Monday.
`
`The Pfizer-BioNTech shots are being prioritized in Britain for health care workers, those 80 years of age or older, and workers and
`residents at nursing homes. Those who have received the first dose require a second shot after 21 days to enjoy the full benefits of the
`vaccine.
`
`Britain had an initial batch of 800,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which is enough to vaccinate 400,000 people, but the vaccine’s
`complex cold storage requirements make it difficult to transport and store in smaller batches, so the rollout has been limited far.
`
`Mr. Zahawi called the figures “a really good start” and said that the government would begin to publish weekly statistics starting next
`week. In the days since Britain began distributing the vaccine, the United States and Canada have also begun inoculation campaigns, and
`several other countries have approved the Pfizer-BioNTech shots for emergency use.
`
`Emergency approval for the vaccine in the European Union could come as early as Dec. 21, when the European Medicines Agency meets.
`Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, told the European Parliament on Wednesday that vaccinating enough
`of the population would be a “huge task.” She encouraged the 27 member states of the bloc to begin on the same day.
`
`“As we have gone in unity through this pandemic, let us start the eradication of this horrible virus together and united,” she said.
`
`Here’s what else to know from around the world:
`
`Germany entered a nationwide lockdown on Wednesday that saw schools and nonessential businesses close through at least Jan. 10, as
`the country battles to bring down record numbers of new infections and fatalities. There were 27,728 new cases of the coronavirus
`recorded on Wednesday and 952 additional deaths in the country, according to a New York Times database.
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
`1/14/2021
`South Korea reported a daily record of 1,078 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, nearly all of them locally transmitted, the Yonhap
`news agency reported. The country’s health authorities were deciding whether to raise the national Covid-19 alert system to the highest
`of five tiers — a move that would shutter schools and reduce the maximum size of gatherings to 10, from 49. South Korea kept its
`caseload low for much of the year but has been grappling with a fresh wave of infections.
`
`Almost half of Singapore’s migrant workers, or 152,000 people, were infected with the coronavirus this year, new government data
`showed. By comparison, the rest of the population recorded fewer than 4,000 cases. The Singaporean economy is heavily dependent on
`migrant workers, and the virus spread rapidly through their crowded dormitories in the spring. The data released Monday by the
`Ministry of Health, which said it had tested all 323,000 migrant workers living in dormitories, showed more than 98,000 workers tested
`positive for coronavirus antibodies, and more than 54,000 workers had received positive coronavirus tests and had already been
`reported. The government has been criticized over its treatment of the workers, who continue to be mostly confined to their dormitories
`even as the rest of Singapore prepares to enter its final phase of reopening later this month.
`
`— Megan Specia, Melissa Eddy, Jennifer Jett and Mike Ives
`
`ADVERTISEMENT
`
`New Mexico sends $1,200 payments to about 130,000 unemployed residents.
`
`With Congress wrangling for months over aid proposals, New Mexico has stepped in and begun distributing one-time payments of $1,200
`each to about 130,000 unemployed residents to help ease persistent economic hardship in the state.
`
`The payments are going to people who qualify for unemployment benefits or whose benefits have expired. Democrats and Republicans in
`the State Legislature came together in a special session in late November to support the payments as part of a $330 million relief package.
`
`Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, commended the bipartisan action in a statement after the legislation was approved, saying that
`the payments were needed because “the economic pain caused by the spread of the virus is felt in every corner of New Mexico.”
`
`The downturn has weighed heavily on industries like tourism and oil production that are important in New Mexico, one of the country’s
`least wealthy states. In Albuquerque, the state’s largest city, a similar distribution of $2,000 checks ran out of funds in nine hours, after
`thousands more people applied for the relief than the program could accommodate.
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`The unemployment rate in New Mexico was 8.1 percent in October, compared with 4.8 percent in the same month a year earlier. Nationally,
`the rate was 6.7 percent in November.
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`Most of the money for the payments comes from funds allocated to New Mexico, but not yet spent, under the CARES Act, the federal
`stimulus legislation passed as the pandemic’s first wave surged in the spring. The state has until Dec. 30 to spend those funds.
`
`— Simon Romero
`
`The F.D.A. green lights a $25 at-home antigen virus test.
`
`The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday granted an emergency authorization to Abbott Laboratories for an at-home version of
`its rapid coronavirus test, the BinaxNOW. The test is an antigen test, which are typically less accurate than laboratory tests. Still, the
`green light brings the number of available home tests for the virus to three. Of those, Abbott’s option is the cheapest, at $25.
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`https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/16/world/covid-19-coronavirus
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`8/15
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`Officials Stress That the Pandemic ‘Is Not Over Yet’ as U.S. Vaccinations Begin - The New York Times
`1/14/2021
`With a prescription from a health care provider, people with symptoms can swab their noses and receive results in about 15 or 20 minutes.
`The test, which requires some finagling of liquid chemicals, can only be performed with the supervision of a telehealth proctor.
`
`People 15 years and older can perform the test on themselves. Children ages 4 and up can take the test if an adult collects the swab for
`them.
`
`In a statement, Dr. Stephen M. Hahn, the commissioner of the F.D.A., praised the test and others like it for offering “greater testing
`flexibility and options.” Dr. Hahn and other experts have repeatedly stressed the need for more testing amid skyrocketing cases of the
`coronavirus, which continue to strain laboratory testing pipelines nationwide.
`
`The home version of the BinaxNOW offers a faster path to a test result for people who are feeling sick. Within a matter of minutes, a
`positive result could usher those individuals into isolation to stop them from spreading the coronavirus to others. “That’s huge,” said
`Susan Butler-Wu, a clinical microbiologist at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine.
`
`But tests like the BinaxNOW, which looks for bits of coronavirus proteins called antigens, are known to be less accurate than laboratory
`tests that hunt for coronavirus genetic material. In a study of 52 people, the BinaxNOW found 91.7 percent of the infections detected by a
`laboratory test for the coronavirus. Another set of data that included 460 people showed the BinaxNOW missed more than 15 percent of
`the infections discovered by its laboratory counterpart.
`
`In a statement, the F.D.A. noted that people who test negative with the BinaxNOW product aren’t necessarily coronavirus-free, and might
`need to take another type of test — perhaps a laboratory test — to confirm their infection status.
`
`Dr. Butler-Wu also noted that the test’s complicated instructions might raise some hurdles. The test cartridge itself works a little bit like a
`pregnancy test, providing results through a series of colored lines. But the person taking the test is expected to interpret their results with
`the