Florida leads surge of variant cases in US; death in Denmark draws more scrutiny
One person has died and another was critically ill with blood clots and cerebral hemorrhage Sunday after receiving the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, authorities in Denmark say.
The two developed severe symptoms within 14 days after vaccination, the Capital Region of Denmark, which operates public hospitals, told the Ekstra Bladet newspaper. Use of the AstraZeneca vaccine was suspended in several European countries last week amid reports of blood clots in a small number of patients, but the European Medicines Agency subsequently said the vaccine was safe and effective.
“We prioritize reports of suspected serious side effects such as these,” Tanja Erichsen, a director at the Danish Medicines Agency, said on Twitter. “We are in the process of dealing with the two specific cases.”
On Thursday, EMA Executive Director Emer Cooke said the benefits in protecting people from COVID-19 “outweigh the possible risks.” Germany, France, Italy and Spain were among nations saying they would resume using the vaccine.
Also in the news:
►Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Sunday he believes his proposal to remove a mask mandate, installed to slow the spread of the coronavirus, will take place as planned at the end of the month.
►Kent Taylor, founder of the Texas Roadhouse restaurant chain, took his own life last week, his family said. Details were not released, but he had been racked by post-COVID 19 symptoms that his family said became unbearable.
►India has reported its highest number of coronavirus cases in four months amid a worrying surge that has prompted multiple states to return to some form of restrictions on public gathering.
►Bill and Esther Ilnisky died minutes apart of COVID-19 this month at a Palm Beach County hospice. He was 88, she 92. Their 67th wedding anniversary would have been this weekend.
►One in four Americans in recent weeks has seen someone blame Asian people for the coronavirus epidemic, a new USA TODAY/Ipsos Poll finds. The nationwide survey was taken Thursday and Friday, in the wake of last week’s mass shooting in Georgia of eight people, six of them women of Asian descent.
►Republican Julia Letlow won Louisiana’s 5th Congressional District election Saturday in a landslide less than three months after her husband, Congressman-elect Luke Letlow, died from COVID complications before he could take office.
? Today’s numbers: The U.S. has over 29.8 million confirmed coronavirus cases and more than 542,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: 123 million cases and 2.7 million deaths. More than 156.7 million vaccine doses have been distributed in the U.S. and 124.4 million have been administered, according to the CDC.
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Miami Beach, overrun by spring breakers, declares state of emergency
Miami Beach has declared a state of emergency in its entertainment district because of an influx of spring breakers who have inundated the city. A curfew went into effect at 8 p.m. Saturday and will last at least until the same time Tuesday, Miami Beach Interim City Manager Raul Aguila said. All restaurants, bars, and businesses are required to be closed by 8 p.m. The decision, Aguila said, is necessary to protect residents and spring breakers alike.
“At the peak of spring break, we are quite simply overwhelmed in the entertainment district,” Aguila said. “Folks, this is not an easy decision to make. We are doing that to protect the public health and safety.”
– Morgan Hines
Florida leads surge of variant cases
Florida on Sunday became the first state to have more than 1,000 known cases of coronavirus variants. The U.S. reported another 834 variant cases since Thursday alone and now has 6,638 known cases, with almost 6,400 of them being of the B.1.1.7 type, the one first found in the United Kingdom, CDC data show.
Florida reported another 158 cases, bringing its tally to 1,070 even as the state’s coronavirus infections have been trending down. Florida leads the country in B.1.1.7 as well as the P.1 variant first seen in Brazil.
Other states dramatically increased their tallies of known variants, with Connecticut adding 111 cases to reach 291 and Georgia adding 101 cases to reach 367. Utah tripled its known case count, reporting 99 new cases to reach 151; Tennessee more than doubled its tally, adding 85 cases to reach 157.
The nation’s total of known coronavirus variants has roughly doubled since March 9.
— Mike Stucka
Supply-chain disruption, cargo backlog further impacts from the coronavirus
U.S. businesses are waiting months instead of the usual weeks for a delivery from China. Frustrated customers have no idea when the goods they’re seeking to buy will be available. Meanwhile, dozens of container ships sit anchored off the California coast, unable to unload their…
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