We ensure quality care through
Interim Management, Skilled Monitoring, and Reinvention
Greetings!

The New York Times “State of the virus” updated on Oct. 12, 2021:

  • Conditions continue to improve across most of the country, with cases, hospitalizations and deaths all declining nationally. But tens of thousands of Americans are still getting sick every day.
  • Case numbers have plummeted in the South, the region that had the worst outbreak this summer. Florida is averaging fewer than 4,000 new cases a day, down from more than 20,000 a day at the end of August.
  • The country surpassed 700,000 total deaths and continues to average more than 1,700 newly reported deaths a day. The vast majority of people dying from the virus are unvaccinated.
  • About 68 percent of American adults are fully vaccinated, though rates vary widely from state to state. More than 900,000 shots are being administered each day, a figure that includes booster doses for fully vaccinated people.
  • Alaska leads the country in recent cases per capita. Hospitals in that state have been overwhelmed, forcing doctors to make wrenching decisions about who to offer the most advanced care.
  • Infections are rising in some Midwestern states that avoided the worst of the summer surge. New case reports in Minnesota are up 36 percent over the last two weeks.


On Oct. 13, 2021 in the U.S. the seven-day daily average number of new cases was 91,939; the 14-day change in cases was a decrease of 21 percent, with a total of 43,205,257 total cases. The seven-day daily average number of new hospitalizations was 65,943; the 14-day change in hospitalization was a decrease of 10 percent. 

In the NY Times summary for Oct. 8 we find “The country surpassed 700,000 total deaths and continues to average more than 1,700 newly reported deaths a day. The vast majority of people dying from the virus are unvaccinated.”  On Oct. 13 in the U.S., the seven-day daily average number of new deaths was 1,938, the 14-day change in new deaths was a decrease of 4 percent, and the U.S. death total has reached 717,501. Sixty six percent of the U.S. over 12 population is fully vaccinated, 77 percent have had one jab.  

Next to Canada which had on Oct. 13, 2021, a seven-day daily average number of new cases of 2,692, the 14-day change in cases was a decrease of 32 percent with a total of 1,672,939 cases. The seven-day average of new deaths was 29, the 14-day change in new deaths was a decrease of 26 percent, and the Canadian death total has reached 28,209. Seventy three percent of Canadians are fully vaccinated, 78 percent have had one jab.

This week's issue offers comparative data for the U.K. France, Italy, and Spain. Like the US and Canada, virtually all of these countries’ new cases and deaths are unvaccinated people. We ask you to see the rapid and now sustained decrease in case numbers and deaths in Canada, France, Italy, and Spain, which stand in contrast to the US and the U.K. We offer some insights into the current state of combatting the pandemic in the U.K. via an article the New Statesman. Please go to The New York Times International Covid page for country data. 

In the United Kingdom, the seven-day daily average of new cases was 37,636 the 14-day change in cases was an increase of 10 percent with a total of 8,231,437 cases. The seven-day average of new deaths was 113, the 14-day change in new deaths was a decrease of 14 percent, and the U.K. death total has reached 137,944. Sixty eight percent of the U.K. is fully vaccinated, 74 percent have had one jab.

In France, the seven-day daily average of new cases was 5,090, the 14-day change in cases was a decrease of 11 percent with a total of 7,163,086 cases. The seven-day average of new deaths was 42 (12 less than last week), the 14-day change in new deaths was a decrease of 35 percent, and the French death total has reached 117,728. Sixty eight percent of the French citizens are fully vaccinated, 76 percent have had one jab.

In Italy, the seven-day daily average number of new cases was 2,601, the 14-day change in cases was a decrease of 21 percent with a total of 4,704,318 cases. In Italy the seven-day average of new deaths was 38 (six less than last week), the 14-day change in new deaths was a decrease of 31 percent, and the Italian death total has reached 131,384. Sixty nine percent of Italians are fully vaccinated, 76 percent have had one jab.

In Spain, the seven-day daily average number of new cases was 1,464, the 14-day change in cases was a decrease of 36 percent with a total of 4,977,448 cases. The seven-day average of new deaths was 29 (nine less than last week), the 14-day change in new deaths was a decrease of 45 percent, and the Spanish death total has reached 86,877. Seventy eight percent of Spaniards are fully vaccinated, 80 percent have had one jab.

As mentioned above, we start with the U.K. and link to a favorite practicing doctor who writes for a leading publication The doctor is Phil Whitaker, M.D., and the link is to the New Statesman article that tell us that “Despite the success of the UK vaccination program, Covid case numbers remain high and still have the capacity to devastate.”
 
In the “Morning Newsletter” post "Covid and Age: An unvaccinated child is at less risk of serious Covid illness than a vaccinated 70-year-old, The New York Times takes a second look at “Emily Oster, an economist at Brown University who frequently writes about parenting, published an article in The Atlantic in March that made a lot of people angry with the headline: "Your unvaccinated kid is like a vaccinated Grandma.” The article argued that Covid-19 tended to be so mild in children that vaccinated parents could feel comfortable going out in the world with their unvaccinated children. A last minute addition that is a must read.

Politico offers one of the best reporting on Texas Governor Greg Abbot versus the White House and now corporate America in the linked Southwest, American airlines workers will have to get vaccinated, despite Texas order. We ask you to click on a photo of the Jen Psaki press conference as she responds to questions about the White House versus the red states’ “governors putting politics ahead of public health” as well as a great quote on businesses needing the mandate to put workers and customers first.   

Your curators sense that you are getting a bit tired of the politicians choosing their own self interest and disease/death over public health so we offer two New Yorker articles that we believe will provide a worthwhile diversion from the craziness of divisive politics. First we offer "The mysterious case of the Covid-19 lab-leak theory" and then link you to the title that says it all in the article "The return-to-office quandaryAmbiguous plans are good for executives but bad for other employees."

Let us come back to California’s problems in regulating skilled nursing with the article by the great reporter and Berkeley lunch companion Jocelyn Weiner’s linked CalMatters article:"Shlomo Rechnitz nursing home suit over Covid deaths reflects ‘broken state licensing.'" Jocelyn rounds up the usual suspects (many of whom we work with) of providers, regulators, attorneys, and advocates to continue the saga of what went wrong and what we need to fix.
 
On Point is the podcast of the week (it is also an NPR weekly radio show, which is where we found it). Dr. Celine Gounder, Joseph Allen and Dale Fisher join host Meghna Chakrabarti on the linked What New Zealand's changing Covid strategy tells us about the pandemic's end. This is a great comparison of strategies across Asia and focusing on “New Zealand (who) was aiming for 'Covid zero.' (And now) What does New Zealand's changing strategy tell us about what the pandemic's end should look like?”

Balancing parent -teacher conferences for a brilliant daughter while a colleague sits in a cafe in the village square of the 10-year-old Playa Vista development, this is Revitalize for Oct, 14, 2021:
Revitalize: The week in health-care news you need
State of a Covid nation: why this winter could push the NHS to breaking point. Despite the success of the UK vaccination program, Covid case numbers remain high and still have the capacity to devastate.

Covid and age: An unvaccinated child is at less risk of serious Covid illness than a vaccinated 70-year-old.

Southwest, American airlines workers will have to get vaccinated, despite Texas order. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday signed a sweeping order effectively banning vaccine mandates for private businesses with 100 or more employees. And click on the Jen Psaki press conference responding to question as to White House versus the red states’ “governors putting politics ahead of public health and a great quote on business 

The mysterious case of the Covid-19 lab-leak theory.
The Return-to-office quandary: Ambiguous plans are good for executives but bad for other employees.
 
Shlomo Rechnitz nursing home suit over COVID deaths reflects ‘broken state licensing.’

What New Zealand's changing COVID strategy tells us about the pandemic's end. New Zealand was aiming for 'Covid zero.' What does New Zealand's changing strategy tell us about what the pandemic's end should look like?
Jerry Seelig, CEO
LA Office: 310-841-2549
Fax: 310-841-2842