CDC Data Reveals Status of COVID-19 Hospitalizations Across US

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) posted updated data showing that COVID-19 hospital admissions are continuing to decline across the United States after it showed an uptick in cases over the summer.

As of the week ending Sept. 30, hospitalizations are down by 6 percent, emergency department visits are down by 14.5 percent, and cases are down by 1.2 percent, according to the CDC. Deaths are up by 3.8 percent, but health officials have long said that deaths usually lag behind hospitalizations and case numbers.

For several weeks now, hospital admissions have been declining on a weekly basis. In July, COVID-19 hospitalizations, however, had been on the rise—although CDC historical data suggest that they were relatively low compared with previous years.

The EG.5 variant, which has been dubbed Eris, has accounted for about 24.5 percent of all COVID-19 cases, according to the federal health agency's variant tracker. FL.1.5.1, known as Fornax, is estimated to be responsible for about 13.7 percent of infections, the CDC figures show.

During the late summer and during a rise in hospitalizations, some health officials suggested that it doesn’t appear to be as bad as previous increases of the virus.

“Looking at that graph [of] hospitalizations, even though it’s on an upward trend, that’s still lower than it was last year at this time,” Dr. John Segreti, an epidemiologist and the medical director of infection control and prevention at Chicago's Rush University Medical Center, told ABC News at the time. “The fact that the numbers are going up fairly slowly, I think is a good sign.”

Dr. Shira Doron, chief infection control officer for Tufts Medicine, said that the recent “upswing is not a surge; it’s not even a wave.” The doctor added: “What we’re seeing is a very gradual and small upward trajectory of cases and hospitalizations, without deaths really going along, which is great news."

'Public Health Threat'

Despite the drop in hospitalizations over multiple consecutive weeks, the CDC issued a report on Oct. 6 saying that COVID-19 remains a "public health threat" for older Americans and called on people again to get the updated COVID-19 booster vaccine. Older adults, it said, make up the majority of hospitalizations across the United States in recent days, although that has been consistent with historical trends.

In mid-July, around seven out of every 100,000 people aged 65 and older were hospitalized with COVID-19, said the CDC. But by mid-August, according to the agency, 16.4 per 100,000 adults aged 65 and older were hospitalized with the viral infection.

Overall, from January to August 2023, adults aged 65 years and older "accounted for 62.9 percent of all COVID-19–associated hospitalizations," it said before suggesting that older people get the "recommended COVID-19 bivalent vaccine."

Other than getting the vaccine, they should also adopt "measures to reduce risk for contracting COVID-19" and receive "prompt outpatient antiviral treatment after a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result," it added.

The second highest hospitalization rate was among individuals aged 50 to 64 at around one out of 100,000, it said.

Since the original COVID-19 vaccines were rolled out several years ago, uptake of the booster shots has consistently dropped. After the CDC and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) signed off on the latest vaccines, data from the Department of Health and Human Services show that just 1 percent of all Americans opted to get the shot in September.

However, six medical journals rejected a key paper on COVID-19 vaccines and heart inflammation, a condition the vaccines cause, according to documents reviewed by The Epoch Times. The CDC's journal, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, was among those that rejected the paper, which estimated that COVID-19 hospitalizations would be prevented than cases of heart inflammation, or myocarditis, caused.

Another report from The Epoch Times, published Wednesday, revealed the FDA received results from two studies of subclinical heart inflammation following Moderna COVID-19 vaccination, but won't release them to the public—for now.

Some hospitals since August have started implementing mask mandates—at least for staff—claiming a rise in COVID-19 and other respiratory infections like RSV or influenza.

Notably, several Northern California counties issued a rule mandating masks be worn by all health care staff starting Nov. 1 and lasting until April 30, 2024. Contra Costa, Sonoma, Alameda, and San Mateo counties in September mandated masking regardless of vaccination status for hospitals and other care facilities, starting Nov. 1 and ending April 30, 2024.

California's San Luis Obispo County issued a similar mandate several days ago, requiring staffers to either wear a mask or get the vaccine.

Several hospitals in upstate New York, Massachusetts, and California also implemented a mandate in recent weeks, while at least one school in Maryland made masks mandatory for one kindergarten class. As for vaccine mandates, several dozen U.S. universities and colleges still have them intact, according to a recent report.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/cdc-data-reveals-status-of-covid-19-hospitalizations-across-us-5508214

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The VA Is Rejecting Disability Claims for COVID Vaccine Injuries and Senators Want to Know Why

After forcing U.S. service members to receive the COVID-19 vaccine or be released from the military, the Biden administration is refusing to provide disability status for soldiers injured by the jab. A number of Republican Senators are demanding to know why.

"We write for clarification on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) policy for veterans who have injuries resulting from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine while in service. As you are aware, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) required all service members to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Many service members, despite hesitations against receiving the vaccine, chose to be vaccinated to continue their service to our country," Senators Marco Rubio, Mike Braun, Tom Cotton, Rick Scott, Ted Cruz, and Steve Daines wrote in a letter to Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough.

"Thousands of service members were discharged from service as a result of refusing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Yet, some U.S. service members received the vaccine to maintain their service and have since experienced lasting health impacts as a result," they continued. "If our government is asking service members to receive a vaccine, we must be cognizant that there will be unintended side effects that may cause lifelong impacts on their health. We must keep our promise to support our service members, including ensuring those who come to the VA for help with COVID-19 vaccine injuries are justly compensated and receive the care that they deserve."

The Senators also pointed out that the department has provided disability for injuries from vaccines for years but isn't doing so for the COVID-19 shot.

"For years, the VA has evaluated the health effects of certain vaccinations that veterans received during their service, and have expressed concern with certain health impacts arising from these vaccinations," they wrote. "The agency has also provided several resources to veterans seeking the COVID-19 vaccination, but no clear information about how to support members who are injured as a result of the vaccine. Given the high rate of service members who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 under DoD’s mandate, we request information as to how the VA is considering vaccine-related injuries in determining VA benefits and disability claims."

The Senators are seeking information from McDonough about how the department is handling claims.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2023/10/11/the-va-is-rejecting-disability-claims-for-vaccine-injuries-and-senators-want-to-know-why-n2629692

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Also see my other blogs. Main ones below:

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com (TONGUE-TIED)

https://immigwatch.blogspot.com (IMMIGRATION WATCH)

https://awesternheart.blogspot.com (THE PSYCHOLOGIST)

http://jonjayray.com/blogall.html More blogs

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