Good evening,
Please find today's COVID-19 Update for January 14th below and attached. Please let me know if you have any comments or questions.
Thank you,
Jeff Cohen
INFORMS Members In The News
INFORMS Member: Sheldon Jacobson
INFORMS Member: Julie Swann
INFORMS Member: Pinar Keskinocak
INFORMS Member: Tinglong Dai
Federal Policy Update
- President-elect Joe Biden unveiled his incoming administration's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief proposal, called the American Rescue Plan. The package will include the following measures, among others:
- Federal minimum wage increase to $15 per hour;
- Provide expanded paid sick, family, and medical leave through September;
- $1,400 direct payments to most Americans;
- $400 weekly unemployment benefits (extended through September);
- $15 billion in flexible, equitably-distributed grants to small businesses;
- $350 billion for state and local governments;
- Extending the eviction moratorium through September;
- $50 billion for COVID testing; and
- $20 billion for a national vaccine program.
- The Department of Labor published their weekly unemployment data, finding that 965,000 Americans filed for first-time jobless benefits over the past week.
- Health & Human Services Department officials and US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams are urging citizens to request "underutilized" monoclonal antibody treatments from healthcare providers to prevent or shorten time spent in hospitals.
- Steven Anderson, President and CEO of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, announced that pharmacies nationwide will be able to administer 100 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine once the supply becomes available.
- The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention updated their vaccine tracker, finding that over 11 million people in the U.S. have been vaccinated with their first COVID-19 shot.
- According to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, more than 90,000 Americans are projected to die of COVID-19 in the next three weeks.
- Representative Adriano Espaillat (D-NY) has tested positive for COVID-19.
State Update
- Texas has officially administered 1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine – becoming the first state in the United States to reach this milestone.
- Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (R) announced that they would begin vaccinating people over the age of 80 that are not in long-term care – beginning next week.
- West Virginia has administered the most COVID-19 vaccines per capita, with 6,600 vaccines administered per 100,000 residents. West Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) attributes their success to "absolutely not go[ing] with the federal model" and instead relying on local pharmacies to administer vaccines and prioritizing older residents.
- Mississippi has ran out of their Covid-19 vaccine doses as the state expands their eligibility requirements.
Global Response
- France has strengthened border controls and extended a nationwide lockdown for all residents in the country from 6 PM to 6 AM for the next 15 days.
- The World Health Organization has begun conducting their investigation regarding the origins of COVID-19 in China.
- Jordan has begun administering Covid-19 vaccines to refugees, and Jordanian King Abdullah II received the vaccine on Thursday.
- The United Kingdom announced that they would ban travelers from Latin America and Portugal due to the evidence of a new coronavirus variant from Brazil.
- According to preliminary findings in a new study led by Public Health England, people who have recovered from COVID-19 seem to have immunity from the virus for approximately five months.
- Lebanon began its strictest lockdown of the pandemic today – imposing a 24-hour curfew, shutting down nearly all businesses, and only permitting grocery stores to conduct their operations through delivery.
- Regulators in the Philippines granted an emergency use authorization to the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine.
- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that the country's government would allow 1,000 international students back into the country starting in April.
Economic Update
- U.S. stocks were on the decline today, with all three indices closing with losses. The Nasdaq Composite fell by 0.12%, the S&P 500 by 0.38%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average by 0.22%.
Latest Impact Data
- In the United States: Over 23,778,502 cases and 396,801 deaths in 50 states, 4 territories, and Washington, D.C.
- Worldwide: Over 93,385,132 cases and 1,997,606 deaths in at least 204 countries and territories.
In the News
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Jeffrey M. Cohen, MBA
Director, Public Affairs & Marketing
INFORMS
jeff.cohen@informs.org------------------------------