Coronavirus weekly need-to-know: odds of getting long COVID, lying about virus & more
In the United States, nearly 97 million people have tested positive for the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic as of Friday, Oct. 14, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Additionally, more than 1 million people in the U.S. have died. Worldwide, there have been more than 623 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and over 6.5 million people have died.
About 226 million people in the U.S. have completed their primary vaccine series (two doses) as of Oct. 14 — 68.1% of the population — and over 110 million of those have gotten their first booster shot, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
About 20% of people in the country live in a location where COVID-19 community levels are considered medium and high, the agency says as of Oct. 14. Masks are advised in high-level regions.
Around 80% of Americans reside where COVID-19 levels are considered low, according to the CDC.
The omicron BA.5 subvariant dominated U.S. cases for the week ending Oct. 8, making up 79.2% of COVID-19 cases, agency data estimates show.
Here’s what happened between Oct. 9 and 14.
Will you get long COVID? Study breaks down the odds of recovery months after infection
It’s likely you’ve heard of long COVID by now, and you may be wondering what’s the likelihood of developing it after a COVID-19 infection.
Researchers in Scotland have sought to determine a person’s long COVID chances in a new, nationwide study examining thousands of people in the country who had COVID-19 compared with those who didn’t.
Long COVID, or post-COVID conditions, is when virus symptoms last much longer than expected — preventing some from a full recovery — and scientists are still trying to understand the entire scope of the condition.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines post-COVID conditions as “new, returning, or ongoing” health issues experienced at least four weeks after a COVID-19 infection. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization defines it as occurring within three months after an infection, with symptoms persisting for two months or longer.
Here’s what you need to know about the new study involving 96,238 people living in Scotland.
Will you get long COVID? Study breaks down the odds of recovery months after infection
Lying about COVID? Many Americans did so to feel ‘normal’ amid pandemic, study finds
Many Americans have admitted to lying about COVID-19.
The lies include misleading others about whether they were sick and if they were following recommended public health guidance to reduce the spread of the virus, according to the study published Oct. 10 in JAMA Network Open.
The most common reasons 42% of Americans reported telling lies included desiring to feel “normal” and wanting to “exercise personal freedom,” the researchers found.
In the study, 1,733 adults in the U.S. were surveyed from Dec. 8 to Dec. 23. During this time, the coronavirus omicron variant had recently emerged and the country’s COVID-19 death toll exceeded 800,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The toll stands at more than 1 million deaths as of Oct. 13.
Study participants responded to a list of nine COVID-19 related behaviors they may have lied to others about. About 4 in 10 of those surveyed — 721 participants — said they had misled others about at least one of the listed behaviors, the research found.
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Lying about COVID? Many Americans did so to feel ‘normal’ amid pandemic, study finds
Woman got $267K in pandemic rental aid — and paid for vacations, real estate, feds say
A Missouri woman submitted 52 fraudulent applications seeking rent assistance for her and her “tenants” during the COVID-19 pandemic — and received $267,239 through her scam, according to federal authorities.
Now Semaj Portis, of St. Louis County, has been sentenced to one year and a day in prison. She’s also ordered to repay the money she fraudulently received, according to an Oct. 7 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri.
Authorities said the scheme began in January 2021, when Portis registered a company called Forever Riding as a nonprofit organization in Missouri. She listed herself as the incorporator and registered agent, according to court records.
Portis then submitted 52 applications seeking rent help to the Missouri Housing Development Commission, federal authorities said. She listed herself or Forever Riding as the landlord on those forms, and she submitted fake rental leases.
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Woman got $267K in pandemic rental aid — and paid for vacations, real estate, feds say
Treasury Department to investigate Florida’s use of COVID funds for migrant flights
A watchdog group with the U.S. Treasury Department plans to examine whether Florida’s state government properly used federal pandemic recovery money in connection to last month’s efforts to relocate migrants, a top official with the agency told the Massachusetts congressional delegation last week.
In a letter dated Oct. 7, Richard Delmar, the Treasury Department’s deputy inspector general, wrote that his department plans “to get this work underway as quickly as possible,” as part of its broader oversight of Florida’s use of funds allocated by the American Rescue Plan Act last year.
Delmar was responding to a written request from members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation, who last month called on the department to investigate what the lawmakers deemed a misuse of pandemic relief money.
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Treasury Department to investigate Florida’s use of COVID funds for migrant flights
Scientists question Florida surgeon general’s policy against certain COVID vaccines for men ages 18-39
Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo on Friday announced new guidance advising against COVID-19 mRNA vaccines for men aged 18-39, citing a Florida Department of Health study that some have said relies on imperfect data and does little to explain its methodology.
The move is the latest instance of Ladapo and the department recommending against coronavirus vaccines for certain age groups. Earlier this year, Florida became the first state to recommend against vaccines for healthy children, a recommendation that ran counter to major national health groups. Florida was also the only state to not preorder coronavirus vaccines for children under 5.
The state’s non-binding recommendation says the risk of cardiac complications from the mRNA vaccine “likely” outweighs the benefits of vaccination, citing an increase in relative cardiac-related death among men studied in the analysis. But some epidemiologists say that while risks of cardiac issues do exist, the state’s study — whose authors are not named — was too thin.
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Scientists question Ladapo’s policy against certain COVID vaccines for men ages 18-39
Reporters Kaitlyn Alanis, Alex Roarty and Romy Ellenbogen also contributed to this report.
