In most states in the country there is a vaccination delay, even as vaccines continue to become available.
The culprit behind this delay? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most vaccination reluctance came from young, rural, and low-income people. Additional data shows that at least 10% of people who have received a dose of an mRNA vaccine have not yet received a second vaccination.
But some experts have come up with a solution: researchers found in a study published in May that people recommended to get a flu shot SMS were more likely to be vaccinated, and some states have started using the same strategy to check vaccination rates to increase.
Hengchen Dai, an assistant professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, tested UCLA’s health system text messages and found that the message reminders increased vaccination rates by up to 3.4 percentage points.
Oklahoma launched a statewide text message campaign earlier this month to reach out to people across the state with details on how to find an appointment near them. The federal government also launched one in May.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment took a different approach: on Monday, it called residents who had not received the vaccine to remind them to get vaccinated and to give them information about where to get vaccinated should.
Various other states have used lotteries and monetary incentives to vaccinate residents.
Study author Dr. Mitesh Patel told CNN the lyrics are unlikely to convince a reluctant person to get vaccinated.
But “there is probably 10% of people who are just apathetic,” he said. “They’re not against it, but they’re not going to do anything to get it and that 10% could really push us toward herd immunity.”
Also on the news:
►The last update from the World Health Organization, reported last week on Tuesday, reflected the lowest COVID death rate in the world since early November 2020, with a total of 57,000 new deaths. But the rate of new cases remained similar to the previous week at over 2.6 million new cases.
►South Korea reports the biggest daily surge in new coronavirus cases in about two months, just a day before it plans to relax its physical distancing rules.
► The Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed a state moratorium on evictions in response to the coronavirus pandemic to remain in place. The move came days after the Biden government extended the moratorium for another 30 days to July 31. Officials told the court that the CDC had no plans to renew it after the end of next month.
►From July 12, U.S. unionized auto workers who have been fully vaccinated against the novel coronavirus will no longer need to wear face masks while at work.
►Massachusetts reported far fewer coronavirus cases in the week that ended Sunday, adding 374 new cases. That’s 28.1% fewer than the previous week’s 520 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.
► 90.5% of all active cases in Arkansas are not fully vaccinated, according to the CBS.
📈 Today’s numbers: There are more than 33.65 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and at least 604,400 deaths in the United States, according to Johns Hopkins University. The global totals: more than 181.7 million cases and more than 3.93 million deaths. More than 154.1 million Americans have been fully vaccinated – nearly 46% of the population, according to the CDC.
📘 What we read: Although COVID-19 vaccines work incredibly well for the vast majority of people, around 10 million Americans whose immune systems are weakened from drugs or illness may not be well protected. Read the full story.
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An elderly inmate sent home during COVID is back in prison after taking computer class
Gwen Levi left prison last year believing it was forever. She volunteered for several criminal law groups and began learning to use a computer.
On June 16, about a year after the Justice Department allowed her to serve her sentence for the coronavirus pandemic at home, Levi was arrested again for violating the terms of her home detention, her lawyer Sapna Mirchandani said.
Levi took a computer class in Baltimore four days earlier because he believed he had been approved. Officials at her halfway home pinged her ankle monitor and called her several times after realizing that she was not home. But Levi had her phone turned off during class and her ankle monitor didn’t turn off, her lawyer said. She was unavailable for several hours.
A report from the Bureau of Prison described the incident as an “escape”. Levi is now in a Washington, DC jail waiting to be transferred to a federal institution where she is expected to serve the remaining four years of her sentence. She is 76. Read more here.
– Kristine Phillips, USA TODAY
Brazil’s Bolsonaro under fire after vaccine deal allegations
Allegations that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro turned a blind eye to possible corruption on a deal to buy coronavirus vaccines have heightened threats to his presidency, including recommending that he hit him on criminal charges.
The allegations have rejuvenated the opposition’s impeachment process and prompted the Brazilian leader’s allies in Congress to weigh the cost of their support.
Bolsonaro, targeted by nationwide street protests in recent weeks, has called the Senate committee investigating the government’s COVID-19 response a “national disgrace” aimed at undermining his government. For two months, the national televised hearings largely focused on why his Department of Health was ignoring vaccine purchase opportunities while Bolsonaro tirelessly promoted hydroxychloroquine, the malaria drug that rigorous studies have shown to be ineffective in treating COVID-19 Has.
Testimony before the Senate committee last week from Luis Ricardo Miranda, head of the Department of Health’s imports, and his brother Luis Miranda, a lawmaker allied with Bolsonaro until recently, fueled the heat even more.
Contribution: The Associated Press.