California
COVID: 1 in 7 new California cases this month are reinfections
Have you ever had COVID a second time? Or a 3rd? If that’s the case, you might be in good firm.
New information from California’s public well being division present that within the first three weeks of July there have been greater than 50,000 documented reinfections, accounting for 1 in 7 new COVID circumstances by the center of the month.
And, because the Golden State approaches 10 million COVID circumstances for the reason that begin of the pandemic, the variety of repeat infections is steadily climbing.
With extremely contagious and immunity-dodging variants of the virus like the present king BA.5 battling for dominance, you may get COVID once more just some weeks after you get better.
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo joined the membership this previous week — two months after he first examined constructive.
“Signs are minor, with intermittent grumpiness,” he tweeted Thursday. “My apologies to anybody I might need uncovered in latest hours or days — please take a look at and observe CDC pointers.”
I remorse to report that I’ve simply examined constructive for COVID—once more. Signs are minor, with intermittent grumpiness. My apologies to anybody I might need uncovered in latest hours or days—please take a look at and observe CDC pointers.
— Sam Liccardo (@sliccardo) July 29, 2022
President Joe Biden’s constructive take a look at Saturday is totally different, a “rebound” of the virus, after testing damaging for a couple of days, fairly than a reinfection. His doctor believes it’s related to a the anti-viral Paxlovid, prescribed to deal with his sickness after he examined constructive July 21.
Reinfection information launched for the primary time by the California Division of Public Well being in response to a request from this information group present greater than 350,000 reinfections up to now 46 weeks, with a major climb for the reason that first week of September throughout the delta surge when nearly 2% of circumstances have been identified reinfections.
Over time of shutdowns, social distancing, masking and vaccinations, we now have completed rather a lot to keep away from getting COVID. However since early within the pandemic the silver lining of an infection was a short lived corridor go of types, while you have been unlikely to get the virus once more no matter your publicity.
Those that had examined constructive and recovered had motive to really feel protected for weeks and months afterwards.
“That most likely wasn’t incorrect earlier than,” mentioned Dr. Bob Wachter, chair of UCSF’s Division of Medication, “but it surely’s clearly incorrect now.”
Now, with a extremely vaccinated inhabitants and the regular march again to business-as-usual, many have loosened their guidelines, relying extra on the immunity offered by pictures and former infections. However these protections are waning, with time and with new variants.
“There’s a big group of people that had an an infection who most likely let their guard down,” mentioned Wachter. “Individuals have a tough time shifting from their prior understanding to a brand new one.”
The brand new one? The immunity offered by earlier COVID infections is turning into much less significant at avoiding secondary an infection, as back-to-back omicron variants have induced a protracted peak of infections this summer time. Whereas it’s unlikely to get the identical variant a second time in lower than three months, the speedy succession of recent variants this summer time made fast reinfections simpler.
Sophie Meryash, an elementary faculty studying specialist in Oakland, has had COVID thrice in 9 months. She and her girlfriend have been very cautious to keep away from publicity till the summer time of 2021 once they have been in a position to get absolutely vaccinated. “We had a month of feeling euphoric,” mentioned Meryash. However in early July, proper earlier than a trip, she began feeling sick and examined constructive.
“That was intense, we each had 102-degree fevers, misplaced style and scent,” she mentioned, and her signs lingered for a month and a half. In January, just some months later, she began feeling sick once more. Growth, a second constructive take a look at, on the peak of the omicron surge.
When she received sick the third time, in direction of the tip of the varsity yr in March, she was not stunned. “I work in an elementary faculty,” mentioned Meryash. “I’m round a number of germs.”
She blames her place within the “thricer” membership totally on a weak immune system, and whereas her second and third diseases weren’t unhealthy, she is barely involved for herself and her colleagues with faculty beginning once more quickly and the specter of new variants. “We’re like petri dishes.”
Daily extra individuals are becoming a member of the ‘”twicer” and “thricer” golf equipment: Over 14% of recent COVID infections the week of July 16 occurred amongst Californians who had already examined constructive not less than as soon as, in accordance with the latest weekly information from the state.
Throughout the first omicron surge this winter there have been greater than 45,000 reinfections in California in a single week in January, probably the most reported in per week, however that was solely 5.3% of all circumstances that week. Since then the % of circumstances decided to be reinfections has practically tripled.
However like all COVID circumstances, reinfections are an undercount. Solely those that have taken a PCR take a look at for every an infection are counted within the state’s information, and we all know that COVID circumstances are massively undercounted now that at-home speedy exams are available, and fewer of these contaminated are getting severely in poor health.
“If 1 in 7 circumstances are reinfections, it begs for a brand new analysis agenda to know the chance elements,” Wachter mentioned, emphasizing that whereas the info present how ceaselessly they’re taking place, we don’t but have good information on how extreme these reinfections are, or how typically they trigger lengthy COVID signs.
‘There’s a silver lining,” mentioned Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, UCSF professor of medication and a specialist in infectious illnesses, who thinks immunity would possibly as soon as once more final months, if new variants come much less rapidly than the previous few omicron variants did. “If BA.5 stays dominant, the three-month rule will kick in,” however the possibilities of which can be unsure, contemplating how rapidly BA.5 adopted BA.4 and BA.2.12.1 earlier than that.
Should you received COVID and recovered up to now few weeks, “you don’t have a get-out-of-jail-free card,” Chin-Hong warns, “however that doesn’t imply it’s a must to worry the virus, you simply must bear in mind, and take a look at when you’ve got signs,”
“In any case, pandemics finish in some unspecified time in the future,” mentioned Chin-Hong, “the inhabitants will get stronger and stronger.”
California
California Gov. Gavin Newsom says state will provide rebates if Trump removes tax credit for electric vehicles
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state will provide rebates to residents if President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration does away with a federal tax credit for electric vehicles.
In a news release issued Monday, Newsom said he would restart the state’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Program, which provided financial incentives on more than 590,000 vehicles before it was phased out late 2023.
“We will intervene if the Trump Administration eliminates the federal tax credit, doubling down on our commitment to clean air and green jobs in California,” Newsom said. “We’re not turning back on a clean transportation future — we’re going to make it more affordable for people to drive vehicles that don’t pollute.”
The federal rebates on new and used electric vehicles were implemented in the Inflation Reduction Act that President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022. When Trump’s second term in office begins next year, he could work with Congress to change the rules around those rebates. Those potential changes could limit the federal rebates, including by reducing the amount of money available or limiting who is eligible.
Limiting federal subsidies on electric vehicle purchases would hurt many American automakers, including Ford, General Motors and the EV startup Rivian. Tesla, which also builds its automobiles in the United States, would take a smaller hit since that company currently sells more EVs and has a higher profit margin than any other EV manufacturer.
Newsom also announced earlier this month that he will convene a special session “to protect California values,” including fundamental civil rights and reproductive rights, that he said “are under attack by this incoming administration.”
“Whether it be our fundamental civil rights, reproductive freedom, or climate action — we refuse to turn back the clock and allow our values and laws to be attacked,” Newsom said on X on Nov. 7.
A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This isn’t the first time California will be taking action against the Trump’s administration concerning clean transportation legislation.
In 2019, California and 22 other states sued his administration for revoking its ability to set standards for greenhouse gas emission and fuel economy standards for vehicles, The Associated Press reported.
California sued the Trump administration over 100 times during his first term, primarily on matters including gun control, health care, education and immigration, the Los Angeles Times reported.
California
45 Years Later, California Murder Mystery Solved Through DNA Evidence
A 45-year-old cold case of a 17-year-old girl brutally raped and murdered has been resolved, bringing closure to the family. On February 9, 1979, Esther Gonzalez walked from her parents’ home to her sister’s in Banning, California, roughly 137 km east of Los Angeles. She never arrived. The next day, her body was discovered in a snowpack near a highway in Riverside County, California. Authorities determined she had been raped and bludgeoned to death, leading to an investigation that spanned decades.
The lab was able to match the DNA to a man named Lewis Randolph “Randy” Williamson, who died in 2014. Williamson, a US Marine Corps veteran, called authorities on the fateful day to report finding Ms Gonzalez’s body. At the time, he claimed he could not identify whether the body was male or female. Described as “argumentative” by deputies, Williamson was asked to take a polygraph test, which he passed, clearing him of suspicion in the pre-DNA era. He had faced assault allegations in the past but was never convicted of any violent crimes, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Despite limited leads, the Riverside County cold case homicide team didn’t give up. A semen sample recovered from Ms Gonzalez’s body in 1979 was preserved but remained unmatched in the national Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) for decades.
In 2023, forensic technology finally caught up. The homicide team collaborated with a genetic lab in Texas that specialises in forensic genealogy. A sample of Williamson’s blood from his 2014 autopsy provided the DNA match needed to confirm him as the 17-year-old’s rapist and killer.
The Gonzalez family had mixed emotions—relief at finally having answers and sadness knowing Williamson would not face justice, as he died in Florida ten years ago. Ms Gonzalez, remembered by her family as a shy yet funny and mild-mannered young woman, was the fourth of seven children. Her oldest brother, Eddie Gonzalez, wrote on Facebook, “The Gonzalez family would like to thank the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department on a job well done. After 40 years, the Gonzalez family has closure.”
“We are very happy that we finally have closure,” Ms Gonzalez’s sister, Elizabeth, 64, shared with CNN. “We are happy about it but, since the guy has died, a little sad that he won’t spend any time for her murder.”
California
Bird Flu Virus Identified In Raw Milk Sold In California
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has detected the avian influenza or “bird flu” virus in a sample of a raw milk product. The product which was for sale at retailers at the time of the testing has now been recalled by the producer after the state of California requested it’s withdrawal from sale.
The affected product is cream top, whole raw milk produced and packaged by Raw Farm, LLC of Fresno County with lot code 2024110. The best buy date of the batch is 11. Nov, 2024 meaning consumers could still have it in their homes. No illnesses have currently been reported from this batch of milk, but people can take several days to develop bird flu after exposure. According to the World Health Organization, most people develop symptoms within 2-5 days, but can take up to 17 days to develop.
According to the CDC, bird flu symptoms may include fever or feeling feverish or chills, eye redness or irritation, and respiratory symptoms, such as cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle or body aches, headaches, and tiredness.
Customers should not consume any product matching the description above and should return the product to stores or dispose of it. The CDPH is also in the process of informing re also in the process of informing retailers about the infected product to notify them to remove it from their shelves. The CDPH has since visited both locations of the company’s farms and has found no further evidence of bird flu. The CDPH will continue to test the farm’s milk twice a week.
The CDPH stresses that there is no risk of consuming pasteurized milk as the milk is heated to temperatures which inactivate bacteria and viruses. However raw milk does not go through this process, meaning any bacteria or viruses in the milk can be transferred to the consumer. Public health departments, as well as the CDC have long warned against the dangers of consuming raw milk, which has been responsible for outbreaks of Listeria, E. coli, Campylobacter and Salmonella, among other microbes.
California has been hit with bird flu outbreaks in both dairy cow herds and poultry farms with over 400 dairy herds affected as of 22. November. Twenty-nine human cases have also been recorded in the state, mostly individuals who have had close contact with infected livestock. The numbers of infected individuals are likely to be under reported and very little is known about the severity of disease in humans so far. Just two days ago, the CDC confirmed a case of H5N1 bird flu in a child in California with no known contact with livestock.
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