The Herald's Weekly Virus Update

The Morrisons Cove Herald again is providing articles about the coronavirus. The information below is the latest that could be included in this week’s edition. This information is taken from the sources listed at the end of the article. Blair and Bedford counties are in the Green Phase as of Friday, June 5.

Note: There might be some inconsistencies in statistics from week to week as counties and states occasionally adjust numbers as new information is received.

AS OF NOON TUESDAY, JULY 21

Blair County

• 138 cases confirmed, up from 96 cases confirmed; 8,366 negatives, 1 death, 0.8 percent death rate per 100,000 residents

Bedford County

• 98 cases confirmed, up from 86 cases; 2,244 negatives, 4 deaths, 8.3 percent death rate per 100,000 residents

Nearby counties

60 Pa. counties have reported COVID-19 deaths

Cambria: 159 cases confirmed, up from 116; 11,999 negatives, 3 deaths, no change, 2.3 percent death rate per 100,000 residents

Somerset: 87 cases confirmed, up from 74 cases; 4,835 negatives, 1 death, no change, 1.4 percent death rate per 100,000 residents

Huntingdon: 264 cases confirmed, up from 253 cases; 2,473 negatives, 4 deaths, no change, 8.9 percent death rate per 100,000 residents

Fulton: 17 cases confirmed, no change from 17 cases; 681 negatives, 1 death, no change, 6.9 percent death rate per 100,000 residents

Centre: 270 cases confirmed, up from 231; 6,739 negatives, 9 deaths, up from 8, 5.5 percent death rate per 100,000 residents

Pa. Statewide

• 99,875 confirmed cases, up from 93,906 last Tuesday

• 2,890 probable cases, up from 2,765 last Tuesday

• 952,998 tested negative to date, up from 850,612 last Tuesday

• 7,038 deaths, up from 6,931 last Tuesday

Nearby states

New York: 408,181 cases, up from 403,175 cases; 29,680 deaths, up from 29,610 last week – 151.3 death rate percent per 100,000 residents

New Jersey: 176,963 cases, up from 175,915 cases; 15,715 deaths, up from 15,582 last week – 176.9 death rate percent per 100,000 residents

United States

• 3,832,300 cases, up from 3,376,359 cases; 138,420 deaths, up from 133,150

Worldwide

• 14,741,000 cases, up from 13,154,000 cases last week; 608,000 deaths, up from 571,000 last week *

* Numbers rounded

Latest developments

• President Trump said Monday that wearing a mask in an effort to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus was “patriotic,” a marked change from his previous rhetoric. Amid flagging poll numbers, he also announced plans to bring back the White House coronavirus task force briefings that have been on hiatus since April.

• Though Trump on Tuesday continued to put a positive spin on the U.S. response to the pandemic – contending on Twitter that “we are doing very well” – this marks a shift from recent weeks, when the president held events largely centered on other subjects, such as cutting regulations. Aides said he had stopped attending coronavirus task force meetings because he did not have time.

• More promising news has emerged in the search for a vaccine. One leading candidate triggered an immune response in early human trials and did not appear to have any serious side effects, according to a study published in the Lancet, a British medical journal.

• The United States, in an indictment unsealed in Spokane, Wash., on Tuesday, accused the Chinese government of sponsoring criminal hackers who are targeting biotech firms around the world working on covid-19 vaccines and treatments. The Justice Department has charged two former engineering students with hacking companies engaged in high-tech manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and gaming software development, and with targeting dissidents, clergy and human rights activists in the United States, China and Hong Kong. The defendants hacked for their own profit but also for the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS), a civilian spy agency responsible for counterintelligence, foreign intelligence and domestic political security. They were aided in that effort by an MSS officer, authorities charge.

• Six months after the first coronavirus case appeared in the United States, most states are failing to report critical information needed to track and control the resurgence of covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, according to an analysis released Tuesday by a former top Obama administration health official. The analysis is the first comprehensive review of COVID-19 data that all 50 states and the District are using to make decisions about policies on mask-wearing and opening schools and businesses. In the absence of a national strategy to fight the pandemic, states have had to develop their own metrics for tracking and controlling COVID-19. But with few common standards, the data are inconsistent and incomplete, according to the report released by Resolve to Save Lives, a New York nonprofit led by former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Tom Frieden.

What you can do

• Wear a mask anytime you are outside your house and around other people.

• Stay at least six feet away from other people.

• Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.

• Cover any coughs or sneezes with your elbow, not your hands.

• Clean surfaces frequently.

• Stay home to avoid spreading COVID-19, especially if you are unwell.

How It Spreads

Coronavirus disease spreads primarily through contact with an infected person when they cough or sneeze. It also spreads when a person touches a surface or object that has the virus on it, then touches their eyes, nose, or mouth.

Sources: Washington Post, New York Times, Pa. Department of Health