Page 28 - bon-dia-aruba-20201217

A28 u.s. news
Diahuebs 17 December 2020

Vaccinations reach nursing homes as California faces crisis

facility that will start receiv-
ing patients by the end of the
week.
"Unfortunately, I'm antici-
pating a grim set of weeks be-
fore and after the New Year,
just given the trends that
we're seeing with the number
of cases," said Dr. Rais Vohra,
the county's interim public
health officer.

In Orange County, health of-
ficials planned to send large
tents to four hospitals to help
accommodate patients.

In Washington, congressio-
nal leaders said they hoped to
seal a deal as early as Wednes-
day on a package that would
extend aid to individuals and
businesses and help ship vac-
cines to millions. It would
include enhanced federal
unemployment benefits and
The first COVID-19 vac- third of the nation's 300,000 Marty Wright, head of the hard-hit Los Angeles and San another round of stimulus
cinations are underway or so confirmed deaths from West Virginia Health Care Diego areas and has 60 refrig- checks.
at U.S. nursing homes, COVID-19. Association, which repre- erated trailers standing by as
where the virus has killed sents nursing homes and as- makeshift morgues as deaths On Thursday, a government
more than 110,000 people, In Florida, the longtime sisted living communities, surge. The state is averaging advisory panel will consider
even as the nation strug- retirement haven whose said the state's pharmacies 163 virus deaths per day, up whether to endorse emer-
gles to contain a surge so 141,000 nursing home resi- expect to get 7,000 doses into from 63 just two weeks ago. gency use of a second vac-
alarming it has spurred dents are the second most of arms by the end of the week. cine, made by Moderna.
California to dispense any state behind California, With new cases of the infec-
thousands of body bags eagerness to get the vaccine The developments come as tion in California averaging Meanwhile, officials super-
and line up refrigerated was mixed with some anxiety. as the crisis grows increas- more than 32,000 a day — vising distribution of the first
morgue trucks. ingly dire by many measures. nearly as many as the entire vaccine said they didn't ex-
"I hope it will help me U.S. was seeing just three pect the winter storm to dis-
With the rollout of shots from getting COVID," said The U.S. recorded over months ago — hospitals in rupt distribution.
picking up speed Wednesday, 88-year-old retired school- 3,000 deaths on Tuesday for parts of the state are running
lawmakers in Washington teacher Vera Leip, a resident the third time in less than out of space in intensive care U.S. Health and Human Ser-
closed in on a long-stalled of John Knox Village near a week, eclipsing the peaks wards. vices Secretary Alex Azar said
coronavirus relief package Fort Lauderdale. "I don't seen last spring. New cases the government is tracking
that would send direct pay- know anything about it, but are running at over 212,000 In Fresno County, officials the vaccine shipments pre-
ments of perhaps $600 to I would prefer not to have it." a day on average. And the said Tuesday that just 16 ICU cisely, has staffers in place to
most Americans. Meanwhile, number of Americans in the beds remained available and receive them and believes the
the U.S. appeared to be days The home is not requiring hospital with COVID-19 hit were filling rapidly. To keep companies transporting them
away from adding a second its employees to get the vac- another all-time high Tues- up, the county's hospital sys- — FedEx and UPS — have
vaccine to its arsenal. cine, and only 80 of the 200 day of about 113,000. tem has contracted with a the expertise to navigate the
staffers in the skilled nursing Virginia company to supply storm.
At the same time, a major facility volunteered for the California is distributing doctors, nurses and others
snowstorm pushing its way first wave, said Mark Rayner, 5,000 body bags mostly to the to staff a temporary 50-bed
into the Northeast raised its director of health services.
concern it could disrupt dis- He said many of those de-
tribution of the first vaccine. clining the shot are African-
American and don't trust it,
Nursing home residents in given the nation's history of
Florida began receiving shots medical experimentation on
Wednesday, after nearly 2,000 Black people.
such vaccinations were ad-
ministered in West Virginia "They are frightened," he
on Tuesday. Thousands more said. "There is that culture
are scheduled there in the line even as much as we edu-
coming days. Other states are cate them."
expected to follow soon.
West Virginia, with one of
The elderly and infirm in the oldest and unhealthiest
long-term care have been populations in America, is
among the most vulnerable working with small and lo-
to the virus and, together cal pharmacies to reach nurs-
with health workers, are first ing homes across the heavily
in line to get the limited, ini- rural state, leapfrogging states
tial supplies of the vaccine, that are relying on a partner-
developed by Pfizer and Ger- ship with the CVS and Wal-
many's BioNTech. Nursing greens drugstore chains to
home residents and workers kick in any day now.
account for more than one-