Page 28 - bon-dia-aruba-20210824

A28 u.s. news
Diamars 24 augustus 2021

Students' lack of routine vaccines muddies start of school

(AP) — The vaccinations is still weeks off, when grace into an artificial dichotomy,”
that U.S. schoolchildren periods that allow unvacci- she said. “That does worry
are required to get to hold nated children to temporarily me a great deal.”
terrible diseases like po- attend school begin to lapse
lio, measles, tetanus and around the country. Dr. Sara “Sally” Goza, im-
whooping cough in check mediate past president of the
are way behind sched- But the latest COVID-19 American Academy of Pe-
ule this year, threaten- surge linked to the delta vari- diatrics, said her practice in
ing further complications ant has added new hurdles Fayetteville, Georgia, was in-
to a school year already — including swamped doc- undated with families need-
marred by COVID-19. tor’s offices and clinics, and ing to get caught up on their
even potential shortages of shots. That caused a backlog
The lag was caused by pan- medicine vials, syringes and of patients headed into the
demic-related disruptions needles — to the swirl of first day of school in early
last year to routine doctor’s confusion and fatigue al- August.
visits, summer and sports ready facing those working to
camps at which kids usually tackle the backlog, health and “Actually, we’ve even had pa-
get their immunizations. getting seriously sick this fall, for Disease Control and Pre- pharmaceutical experts said. tients of other pediatricians
and the sad part is, for the vention showed. calling us,” she said, “because
Now, pediatricians and edu- most part, it’s preventable.” Dr. Melinda Wharton, di- I guess they’ve been told that
cators are scrambling to en- A subsequent review of 10 rector of the CDC’s Immu- we’re somehow magically
sure that backlogs don’t keep The number of non-flu vac- jurisdictions, released in nization Services Division, able to work people in and
kids from school or leave cines ordered and admin- June, showed that, despite said political rhetoric and get to them when their doc-
them vulnerable to conta- istered through the federal administered doses again ap- misinformation around CO- tors aren’t able to get them
gious diseases. Vaccines for Children pro- proaching pre-pandemic lev- VID-19 vaccines also aren’t in.”
gram, which covers about els last fall, they “did not in- helping. And some parents remain
“It’s a big deal,” said Richard half of Americans under 18 crease to the level that would complacent, experts said —
Long, executive director of and serves as a barometer of have been necessary to catch “In a lot of communities, we either because they’re vaccine
the Learning First Alliance, a national trends, plummeted up children who did not re- polarize vaccines: Either you skeptics or because they’re
partnership of education or- after former President Don- ceive routine vaccinations on believe in vaccines or you exhausted by the pandemic
ganizations that has mounted ald Trump declared a national time.” don’t believe in vaccines. and come from a generation
a public outreach campaign. emergency in March 2020, a And we’re lumping a whole unfamiliar with the ravages
“We’re going to have kids review by the U.S. Centers A full reckoning for schools lot of perspectives and issues of diseases like polio.

Crews search for missing in Tennessee deluge that killed 22

(AP) — Search crews and safety supervisor with toured the area, calling it a
worked through shattered Humphreys County Schools. “devastating picture of loss
homes and tangled de- and heartache.” President Joe
bris on Monday, looking Many of the missing live in Biden offered condolences to
for about a dozen people the neighborhoods where the people of Tennessee and
still missing after record- the water rose the fastest, said directed federal disaster offi-
breaking rain sent flood- Humphreys County Sheriff cials to talk with the governor
waters surging through Chris Davis, who confirmed and offer assistance.
rural Tennessee, killing at the 22 fatalities in his county
least 22 people. and said 12 to 15 people re- Just to the east of Waverly,
main missing. The names of the town of McEwen was
Saturday’s flooding took out the missing were on a board pummeled Saturday with
roads, cellphone towers and in the county’s emergency 17.02 inches (43.2 centime-
telephone lines, leaving peo- center and listed on a city ters) of rain, smashing the
ple uncertain about whether of Waverly Facebook page, state’s 24-hour record of 13.6
family and friends survived which is being updated as inches (34.5 centimeters)
the unprecedented deluge, people call in and report from 1982, according to the
with rainfall that more than themselves safe. National Weather Service in
tripled forecasts and shat- Nashville, though Saturday’s
tered the state record for “I would expect, given the Tennessee Emergency Man- retta Lynn’s ranch also died. numbers would have to be
one-day rainfall. Emergency number of fatalities, that agement Director Patrick The sheriff of the county of confirmed.
workers were searching door we’re going to see mostly Sheehan said. about 18,000 people some 60
to door, said Kristi Brown, recovery efforts at this point miles (96 kilometers) west of A flash flood watch was is-
coordinated school health rather than rescue efforts,” Record-shattering rainfall Nashville said he lost one of sued for the area before the
washed away homes and ru- his best friends. rain started, with forecasters
ral roads. (Aug. 22) saying 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15
The Humphreys County Up to 17 inches (43 centi- centimeters) were possible.
Sheriff Office Facebook page meters) of rain fell in Hum- Before Saturday’s deluge, the
filled with people looking fo phreys County in less than 24 worst storm recorded in this
r missing friends and family. hours Saturday, shattering the area of central Tennessee had
GoFundMe pages asked for Tennessee record for one-day been 9 inches (23 centime-
help for funeral expenses for rainfall by more than 3 inches ters) of rain, said Krissy Hur-
the dead, including 7-month- (8 centimeters), the National ley, a weather service meteo-
old twins swept from their Weather Service said. rologist in Nashville.
father’s arms as they tried to
escape. Waverly Junior High suffered “Forecasting almost a re-
extensive damage, according cord is something we don’t
The death of the twins was to Brown, the schools health do very often,” Hurley said.
confirmed by surviving fam- and safety supervisor. “Double the amount we’ve
ily members. A foreman ever seen was almost unfath-
at country music star Lo- Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee omable.”