Coronavirus Cases Increases as Winter Approaches

Health care workers are faced with increasing coronavirus cases on a daily basis. As reported by the Covid Tracking Project (CTP), in the United States, more people are being hospitalized than at the beginning of the pandemic. As of Nov. 11, 2020, 61,964 people are currently in the hospital.

Hospital staff is preparing for a flood of patients due to the coronavirus. Since late October hospitalizations have nearly doubled. Experts warn that the next intake wave will be prolonged and devastating. Dr. Mahshid Abir, a researcher at the Rand Corp. and an emergency room physician at the University of Michigan, who helps hospitals manage capacity surge stated:

I fear that we’re going to have multiple epicenters.

In 47 states hospitalization rates are rising according to CTP. Twenty-two states are at their highest number of hospitalizations since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

Illinois Sets a New Daily Record in the Chicago Area

Illinois has an additional 12,623 newly confirmed coronavirus cases, as of November 11. Public health officials reported 79 more deaths, increasing the statewide death toll to 10,289, according to the Chicago Tribune. Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the state has reported 511,183 cases.

State officials may add Michigan to Chicago’s travel ban.

Hotels are big contributors to the spread of the coronavirus, limiting capacities can reduce the spread of the infection. A study published in the journal Nature said that they used a complex statistical model to determine the public places where most infections occur. They used mobile phones and data on coronavirus cases to analyze travel patterns in ten major U.S. metropolitan regions including areas in Chicago. They searched for points of interest, as they call it, where many people visit, like restaurants, grocery stores, gyms, hotels, and churches.

In Chicago, about 10 percent of these organizations could be considered superspreaders because they were said to be the source of about 85 percent of all coronavirus infections. Full-service restaurants and hotels contributed far more to the infection rate. Researchers at Northwestern and Sanford Universities believe by reducing visits to businesses by 42 percent and decreasing the maximum capacity by 20 percent at places that are causing the disease to increase at a high rate, can cut the number of people being infected.

Low-income communities had higher coronavirus infection rates because they visit super spreading locations more often. People from these areas went to the grocery store and stayed 17 percent longer on average, and stores in their areas had 59 percent more hourly visitors.

Coronavirus Changes How Veteran’s Day Is Celebrated in Chicago

The surge of coronavirus has changed the way people in Chicago and around the United States celebrate veterans that served the country. The city of Chicago usually hosts a Veteran’s Day ceremony at Soldier Field, but this year they will have a virtual ceremony on the Department of Culture Affairs and Special Events YouTube channel and the mayor’s office Facebook page. The event will take place in the Grand Army of Republic Hall at the Chicago Cultural Center and the Victory Monument.

Aurora will also host a virtual event on their city’s Facebook page.

What will President-Elect Joe Biden do to Fight the Coronavirus?

President-Elect Joe Biden has pledged to confront the shortage of protective gear (PPE) for health workers. The United States’ surging coronavirus outbreak may hit nearly one million new cases weekly. At that rate, it could overwhelm the health care system across the country. He will create a task force to oversee the distribution of masks, test kits, and vaccines.

Biden will push congress to pass a massive coronavirus relief package. He is going to confront the governors that previously refused to implement mask mandates. He has a task force staffed with public health experts and former government officials including former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler, Yale’s Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, New York University’s Dr. Celine Gounder, former Obama white house aide Dr. Zeke Emanuel, and former Chicago Health Commissioner Dr. Julie Morita.

Written by Jessica Letcher
Edited by Cathy Milne-Ware

Sources:

The Chicago Tribune: Coronavirus in Illinois updates: State tops 500,000 total COVID-19 infections as 12,623 new cases reported — another daily record — and Michigan added to Chicago’s revamped travel order

NPR: COVID-19 Hospitalizations Are Surging. Where Are Hospitals Reaching Capacity?

Politico: Pandemic on course to overwhelm U.S. health system before Biden takes office; Dan Goldberg and Alice Miranda Ollstein

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Chad Davis’ Flickr Page Creative Commons License

Inset Image Courtesy of Duncan c’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License