DM MONITORING
NEWYORK: With the daily number of infections hitting record highs in the United States, India, Israel and Australia, adding to pressure on health services.
Gripped by the pandemic for two years, the United States continues to experience the devastating consequences of the disease, continually breaking its previous records and remaining the country most affected by COVID-19. The United States has reported nearly 1 million new cases, the highest daily rate of any country in the world.
The number of hospitalized patients has grown by almost 50% in the past week and now surpasses 100,000, according to data compiled by Reuters, the first to hit that threshold in a year.
The latest spike, which has sparked a spate of commercial cancellations of Broadway shows in recent weeks, has disrupted public schools’ plans to welcome students back from winter break.
Israel has also recorded its highest-ever number of new coronavirus infections – driven by the ultra-contagious omicron variant – despite restrictions on travel and required quarantines, the government reported on Wednesday. The record of 11,978 cases diagnosed on Tuesday marks the most new infections reported in a single day since the start of the pandemic. The previous record was set on Sept. 2 with 11,345 new infections logged during the delta variant’s wave.
Omicron, first detected in South Africa, is apparently more contagious but causes fewer cases of severe illness and death – especially among vaccinated people.
In Israel as elsewhere, the variant is spreading so fast – straining testing, schools, hospitals and airlines – that some experts are urging a focus instead on hospital admissions. Those, as well as deaths from the coronavirus, aren’t climbing as quickly – the result, experts say, of protections offered by vaccinations.
The rapid climb in infections has pushed Israeli leaders far from the clear protocol of vaccinations, testing, quarantining and contact tracing that characterized the government’s response early in the pandemic. The country’s speedy vaccination early on made Israel a world leader.
Now, Israel is believed to be the first country to offer a fourth vaccination to people 60 and older, as well as those with compromised immune systems. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Tuesday said early results from a study at Sheba Medical Center showed a nearly fivefold increase in antibodies among people with a fourth jab, according to The Associated Press (AP).
Israel is rapidly changing rules and practices to adapt, including scaling back quarantines to keep the economy from shutting down. More changes are expected. The demand for testing, for example, is likely to prompt the government to focus tests on high-risk groups, such as older people.
Despite record numbers of infections, Israel opened to tourists for the first time in nearly two years. After just a month, it slammed shut. The country will once again crack open – but only to travelers from certain countries.
