Coronavirus Deaths

California State Capital

California Halts Three Years of Population Loss

The Golden State grew by 67,000 people, or 0.17%, last year, to just over 39.1 million on Jan. 1, 2024, according to a demographic report released April 30 by the California Department of Finance.

May 16, 2024 - California Department of Finance

Aerial view of coastline with homes in Encinitas, California

State Estimates Show Third Year of Population Loss for California

Demographic data from the California Department of Finance released last month shows a third consecutive year of population loss, mirroring Census data. Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties saw the highest numeric losses.

February 5, 2023 - San Francisco Chronicle

Social Distancing

Second Anniversary of the COVID-19 Pandemic

March 11 marked the second anniversary of WHO's declaration of the pandemic and the beginning of its third year. Cases continue to plummet in the U.S. and plateau globally while war in Europe has overshadowed the virus that has killed 6 million.

March 16, 2022 - The Associated Press

A close up image of the exterior of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda illuminated at dusk.

Senate Vote Illustrates America's Polarized Response to Pandemic

A Senate joint resolution to roll back the Biden administration's only vaccine mandate to be upheld by the Supreme Court passed on a party-line vote on March 2. In Europe, the legislative branch often needs to approve these measures to become law.

March 7, 2022 - The New York Times

COVID-19 and Public Health

Let the Endemic Planning Begin

The first state in the nation to issue a stay-at-home order to slow the spread of a novel coronavirus that humans had no immunity from became the first to release an actual endemic plan, complete with a fancy acronym, SMARTER.

February 23, 2022 - The Washington Post

An image of a sign asking people to wear masks during the Covid-19 pandemic.

COVID Deaths: U.S. in a League of its Own

An analysis by The New York Times compares current and cumulative COVID deaths in the U.S. to other large, wealthy countries. Data analyzed include vaccination, age and obesity levels, and public trust, all factors that influence outcomes.

February 9, 2022 - The New York Times

COVID-19 and Public Health

The Pandemic Era

"We are living in the Covid-19 era, not the Covid-19 crisis," Allan Brandt, a historian of science and medicine at Harvard University, told Gina Kolata of the New York Times last October in a review of past pandemics and what we can learn from them.

February 3, 2022 - The New York Times

COVID-19 Test

COVID Zero: The High Price of Containment

Vision Zero: a strategy to eliminate road crashes, particularly those with fatal outcomes. COVID Zero: a strategy to end coronavirus transmission. Only one has worked—but at a steep price.

January 27, 2022 - The New York Times

A woman wears a mask during the Covid-19 pandemic in a large crowd at a transit station in New York City.

After Omicron

Don't count on Omicron ending the pandemic, cautioned America's top infectious disease expert on Jan. 17. "Get ready to learn new Greek letters," warned the Associated Press as daily COVID deaths topped the peak set in the Delta wave.

January 24, 2022 - New York Post

An image of Washington D.C. with highways and the streaks from car head and tail lights in the foreground, and the Washington Monument in the background.

Nation's Capital Is #1 COVID Hotspot

Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations per capita in the District of Columbia are higher than in any state or U.S. territory on New Year's Day. Only Puerto Rico and Louisiana have seen hospitalizations increase faster than D.C. in the last two weeks.

January 3, 2022 - The Washington Post

An image showing a smart phone with information from the World Health Organization about the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

Omicron Helps to Shatter Infection Records

The rapidly spreading Omicron variant and its viral competitor, the Delta variant, are setting new case records globally and in the U.S.

December 31, 2021 - Bloomberg Prognosis

A vial of blood marked "Omicron" sits on top of paperwork indicating relevance to Covid-19.

'A Tidal Wave of Omicron Coming'

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson sounded an alarm on the public health threat posed by the Omicron variant. On Monday, he announced that a British resident had become the first person in the world whose death is tied to the new variant.

December 16, 2021 - Daily Mail

An image of a bridge in Vermont with a sign in front of it announcing a COVID-19 quarantine order.

Revisiting Vermont: A COVID Update

PBS NewsHour investigates the surging coronavirus cases and hospitalizations in Vermont which, along with Rhode Island, has 75% of its total population fully vaccinated, the nation's highest, as the U.S. appears to enter a winter surge.

December 13, 2021 - PBS NewsHour

COVID-19 Test

Global COVID Death Toll Reaches Another Grim Milestone

The official death toll due to COVID-19 since the first recorded death in Wuhan, China, on Jan. 10, 2020, passed 5 million on Nov. 1, although The New York Times stresses that's a vast undercount. The WHO points to Europe as the latest hot spot.

November 10, 2021 - The New York Times

A restaurant in Singapore places tape on seats to maintain distance between diners during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

Pandemic Geography: What's Going on in Singapore?

With 82% of its population fully vaccinated, mostly with mRNA vaccines, COVID case incidence on Nov. 1 is the same as Wyoming, where 44% of the population is fully vaccinated. Hospitals are feeling the strain, and deaths are at their highest level.

November 2, 2021 - Reuters

COVID-19 Vaccinations

The Major Shortcoming in Biden's COVID Action Plan

Dr. Leana S. Wen, an emergency physician and public health expert, writes that Covid will become a 'manageable problem' with three key actions, only one of which hasn't received the attention it deserves in the Biden administration's action plan.

October 21, 2021 - The Washington Post

An image of a bridge in Vermont with a sign in front of it announcing a COVID-19 quarantine order.

Boosters and Breakthroughs in Vermont

The most vaccinated state in the U.S. may tell us where the future of the country is headed in the war against the coronavirus. Could it become a 'pandemic of the vaccinated'?

October 4, 2021 - WPTZ

Downtown Anchorage with the snow covered Chugach Mountains in the background.

Alaska Activates Crisis Standards of Care

Daily new COVID cases per capita in Alaska are the nation's highest. The crisis standards enable overwhelmed hospitals to ration care. Gov. Mike Dunleavy recognized the crisis yet saw no need to take steps to reduce coronavirus transmission.

September 27, 2021 - The New York Times

Social Distancing

Supreme Court of Texas Upholds Governor's Ban on Local Mask Mandates

As the coronavirus surges in hard-hit Texas, threatening to overwhelm hospitals, the state supreme court affirmed the right of the governor to preempt local governments from enacting proven health measures to keep residents safe from infection.

August 17, 2021 - Houston Chronicle

Masked Passengers at Rainway Station

Delta Variant's High Transmissibility Prompts CDC to Issue Masking Correction

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, acting on new data that it had yet to publish, changed its masking guidance on July 27 to reflect the prevalence of the virus in specific counties rather than basing it on a person's vaccination status.

August 2, 2021 - The Washington Post

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