Coronavirus, End of May, 2024

 Coronavirus, End of May, 2024

 By the Numbers

It's been a couple of months since the last update.  Not much to report, and that is a good thing.

The Numbers: 

The number of hospitalizations from Covid in the US seems to have hit its peak the first week of January,  and is now in decline.  My primary source for this information has changed their information layout.  I am not finding the raw hospitalization numbers, but instead a rate per 100,000.  So I do not have a direct apples to apples with previous reports.

This last surge of Covid peaked on Jan 6, 2024 with 35,000 hospitalizations for Covid.  This is listed as 7.6 per 100,000.  The third week of March was 9,300 or 1.9 per 100,000.  For the 3rd week in May hospitalizations was just 1 per 100,000

Source Covid-19 hospitalizations here...

Dominant Variants in the US:

Various JN.1.X's  48% down from 97% two months ago.

KP.1 and 2, "Flirt", 50+%

But at least it was easy to summarize.  

Per CDC tracker...

Again, the usual headlines about the latest version  is more infectious.  How else could it grow so fast?

My 2 cents.  JN.1 mutated rapidly into 5 or more variants, and not all variants win out, making room for the Flirt to grow in the power vacuum.  But that is just my 2 cents.

Average Covid Weekly Deaths per 100,000 in the USA.

I came across this graph in the New York Times. A good answer to the efficacy of the vaccines. 

Source: Our World in Data, C.D.C. | Numbers for the group “All” are age adjusted. | By The New York Times

What this means for the 6 month period of time, a total of 3.4 of all Americans out of 100,000 died of Covid every week.  2.5 of them were unvaccinated.

Those in retirement age, 46.5 out of 100,000, 33.5 were unvaccinated.

As of Oct, 2022, 68% of Americans were fully vaccinated and boosted and 80%, at least one shot, of the general population was vaccinated.  See USAFacts.

Using the "All" row,  when 2.5 of 3.4 (73%) of the deaths come from, at most, 32% of the population.  Another way of putting it is 1/3 of the population that is was unvaccinated is 2.8 times more likely to die of Covid. An "efficacy" rating of 8.4, and 14 if you use the at 80%, least one shot rating.

Is it time for a booster shot?

On Feb. 28, 2024, the CDC recommended a booster shot for ages 65 and over.  The shot will be the same as the one issued last fall.  There probably will be a reformulated booster available in the fall.  My intention is to get a booster about a month before my next travel overseas.   See CDC Media Statement.