President Joe Biden remembered the 500,000 American lives now lost to COVID-19 at a Monday evening ceremony outside the White House, drawing on his own experience with heartbreak to personalize the unfathomable tragedy while exhorting Americans to wear masks and take other steps to prevent spread of the virus.
Half-a-million Americans have now died from COVID-19 in just 13 months
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He pointed out the death toll from the pandemic is higher than the number of U.S. service members killed in battle during World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War combined.
“The people we lost were extraordinary. They spanned generations,” Biden said. “Born in America, emigrated to America. Just like that so many of them took their final breath alone in America. As a nation, we can’t accept such a cruel fate. While we’re fighting this pandemic for so long, we have to resist becoming numb to the sorrow.”
The U.S., with about 4% of the world’s population, has recorded 25% of the COVID-19 cases and 20% of the fatalities. Experts warn that about 90,000 more deaths are likely in the next few months, despite the country’s massive vaccination campaign.
Already the outbreak has driven down life expectancy and left 4.5 million grieving relatives in the U.S. For every American who dies of COVID-19, an average of nine family members are left mourning.
But even as the nation reaches what Dr. Anthony Fauci called a “terribly historic milestone,’’ there are signs of better days ahead. Not only have infections, hospitalizations and deaths been dwindling since a post-holiday spike in January, but two highly effective vaccines are finding their way into millions of American arms, and another one might be authorized soon.
It is a race against time, though, because coronavirus variants are spreading across the country and threaten to touch off another surge of cases.
As the vaccination effort continues, public health officials are preaching vigilance and continued adherence to well-known mitigation measures – masking, social distancing, hand washing and avoiding large gatherings – hoping to avoid yet another COVID-19 landmark.
Also in the news:
►The House is focusing this week on President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. Democrats in Congress aim to pass the whole proposal by mid-March, and it currently includes a new round of checks for Americans, renewal of the Paycheck Protection Program and an extension of a federal boost for unemployment benefits.
►States will need to administer annual standardized achievement exams to students in 2021, but they can modify or delay the tests, the U.S. Department of Education said Monday.
►California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday plans to sign a state-sized coronavirus relief package that will include $600 one-time payments for 5.7 million people with low-to-moderate incomes. The bill was approved Monday by state lawmakers.
📈 Today’s numbers: The U.S. has more than 28.18 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 500,200 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: More than 111.7 million cases and 2.47 million deaths. More than 75.2 million vaccine doses have been distributed in the U.S. and about 64.1 million have been administered, according to the CDC.
📘 What we’re reading: Language and cultural barriers have made it difficult for many people of color, immigrants and non-English-speaking communities to get a COVID-19 vaccine. Here’s how we break them down.
Johnson & Johnson plans to provide 20M vaccine doses by end of March
Drugmaker Johnson & Johnson says it will be able to provide 20 million U.S. doses of its single-shot COVID-19 vaccine by the end of March, assuming it gets the greenlight from federal regulators.
J&J disclosed the figure in written testimony ahead of a Congressional hearing Tuesday looking at the country’s vaccine supply. White House officials cautioned last week that initial supplies of J&J’s vaccine would be limited.
The company reiterated that it will have capacity to provide 100 million vaccine doses to the U.S. by the end of June. That supply will help government officials reach the goal of having enough injections to vaccinate most adult Americans later this year. On a global scale the company aims to produce 1 billion doses this year.
U.S. health regulators are still reviewing the safety and effectiveness of the shot and a decision to allow its emergency use is expected later this week. J&J’s vaccine would be the first in the U.S. that requires only a single shot.
Why get COVID vaccine if you still have to wear a mask? Immediate benefits, experts say
Get a COVID-19 vaccine and you’ll be counseled to keep wearing a mask and keep staying away from other people. So, what’s the point?
There’s an immediate benefit to the individual who gets a vaccine, said Andy Slavitt, White House senior advisor on the COVID-19 response. “People are interested in taking the vaccine,” he said at a Monday news conference, because “they don’t want to be sick and they don’t want to die.”
Getting two shots of either the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine reduces an individual’s risk of developing symptomatic COVID-19 by about 95%, according to large research trials.
But life won’t get back to something like normal for the broader society until national infection rates come down further, according to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
– Karen Weintraub
Contributing: The Associated Press
Students at Durand Eastman Intermediate School in East Irondequoit, NY have assigned seats on the bus which will be theirs for the school year. President Joe Biden has made reopening schools a top priority. Teachers say they feel vulnerable when the virus is widespread in their communities.
Mackenzie Cobb listens to her teacher speak on Feb. 1, 2021, at Thomas Elementary School in Carbondale, Ill. Feb.1 was the first day that Carbondale Elementary School District 95 returned to in-person learning, for all families who chose that instruction method.
Olivia Jones-Martin, a pre-kindergarten instructional aid, helps students get off the bus on Feb. 1, 2021, at Parrish Elementary School in Carbondale, Ill. The school is taking various precautions, such as limited classroom sizes and social distancing, to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Geraldine Robinson, a pre-kindergarten paraprofessional, takes the temperature of A’Toria Creer, a student on Feb. 1, 2021, at Parrish Elementary School in Carbondale, Ill.
Desks with individually packed breakfasts are pictured at Parrish Elementary School in Carbondale, Ill. The school is taking various precautions, such as limited classroom sizes and social distancing, to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Karisa Peters, a senior at Carbondale Community High School, plays the flute while in band class on Jan. 29, 2021. The school has provided students with bell covers and specialized masks to limit the spread droplets that could be associated with spread of the novel coronavirus.
Teacher Elizabeth DeSantis, wearing a mask and face shield, helps a first grader during reading class at Stark Elementary School on Sept. 16, 2020, in Stamford, Conn. Most students at Stamford Public Schools are taking part in a hybrid education model, in which they attend in-school classes every other day and distance learn the rest. About 20% of students in the school district are enrolled in the distance learning option because of coronavirus concerns.
Cutouts of Elvis Presley and former Maine Sen. Margaret Chase Smith, instead of fellow students, occupy seats to encourage social distancing at desks next to Simone Moore, foreground, and Hailey Rousseau at the Bruce M. Whittier Middle School, Jan. 29, 2021, in Poland, Maine. With instruction time reduced as much as half by the coronavirus pandemic, many of the nation’s middle school and high school teachers have given up on covering all the material normally included in their classes and instead are cutting lessons.
Full-time teacher Monica Rey during class at Grassy Waters Elementary School in West Palm Beach, Fla. on Jan. 8, 2021.
Pre-kindergarten teacher Sarah McCarthy works with a student at Dawes Elementary in Chicago on Jan. 11, 2021. President Joe Biden says he wants most schools serving kindergarten through eighth grade to reopen by late April 2021. But even if that happens, many schools in urban areas that serve high concentrations of minority students are likely to stay closed.
Full-time 3rd grade teacher Kathryn Dorros teaches math class online and in person at the same time at Grassy Waters Elementary School in West Palm Beach, Fla. on Jan. 8, 2021.
Pre-kindergarten teacher Angela Panush reads a story to her students at Dawes Elementary in Chicago on Jan. 11, 2021.
Third grader Gabriella Desrosiers, 8, listens to her teacher during class at Grassy Waters Elementary School in West Palm Beach, Fla. on Jan. 8, 2021.
Rycc Smith welcomes Montello Elementary School students as they board his bus outside the Lewiston, Maine school, Jan. 21, 2021 after the first day back in nearly a month. The entire school district switched to all remote learning after an uptick in COVID-19 cases last month. Smith has been driving a school bus for the past 40 years and said the students have been very cooperative following the protocols.
A teacher sets up her laptop outside of Suder Montessori Magnet Elementary School to begin virtual classes in solidarity with pre-K educators forced back into the building in Chicago, Jan. 11, 2021.
Second grader Cody Yang spreads out his arms as he practices socially distancing while standing in the hallway Jan. 19, 2021 at Park Brook Elementary School in Brooklyn Park, Minn. About 100 students in prekindergarten to second grade returned to school for in-person learning.
Susan Gould, Spectrum Academy elementary school principal, receives the COVID-19 vaccine at the Davis County Legacy Center, Jan. 12, 2021, in Farmington, Utah. Utah began vaccinating teachers and school staff across the state. They are aiming to have all teachers and school staff vaccinated by the end of February.
A sign that indicates a room has been disinfected hangs in a fourth-grade classroom, Feb. 2, 2021, at Elk Ridge Elementary School in Buckley, Wash. The school has had some students in classrooms for in-person learning since September of 2020, but other students who attend the school are still learning remotely.
A preschool student gets his temperature checked as he walks into Dawes Elementary School in Chicago on Jan. 11, 2021.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot, left, and Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson, second from left, visit a preschool classroom at Dawes Elementary School in Chicago, Jan. 11, 2021.
Students wear masks as they work in a fourth-grade classroom, Feb. 2, 2021, at Elk Ridge Elementary School in Buckley, Wash. The school has had some students in classrooms for in-person learning since September of 2020, but other students who attend the school are still learning remotely.
A preschool student washes her hands before breakfast at Dawes Elementary School in Chicago, Jan. 11, 2021. Monday was the first day of optional in-person learning for preschoolers and some special education students in Chicago Public Schools after going remote last March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A view of 1st grade students in the gym at Yung Wing School P.S. 124 on Jan. 13, 2021 in New York City. New York City Public Schools continue to adapt learning environments during the COVID-19 pandemic. The nation’s largest school district continues to face uncertainty with COVID-19 cases on the rise city, state and nationwide.
Seventh grader Trinity Cressey works on her computer at the Bruce M. Whittier Middle School, Jan. 29, 2021, in Poland, Maine.
Preschool students eat lunch at Dawes Elementary in Chicago on Jan. 11, 2021.
Full-time 3rd grade teacher Kathryn Dorros gives her students a thumbs up after they answered her questions correctly at Grassy Waters Elementary School in West Palm Beach, Fla. on Jan. 8, 2021.
Hand sanitizer, wipes, and surgical masks rest on a desk in a fourth-grade classroom, Feb. 2, 2021, at Elk Ridge Elementary School in Buckley, Wash. The school has had some students in classrooms for in-person learning since September of 2020, but other students who attend the school are still learning remotely.
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