The unique perspective and provocative opinions of Joe O’Neill
COVID Bits
Driven by the delta variant, lagging vaccine rates and holiday gatherings, the number of new COVID cases per day doubled over the last three weeks.
COVID context: The virus continues to kill people faster than guns, car crashes and influenza combined.
“This is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated.”—CDC Director Dr. RochelleWalensky.
According to the State Department, there’s a backlog of 1.5 million passport applications. The wait time for renewing or applying could be as much as 18 weeks.
Los Angeles County, the nation’s largest, has restored an indoor mask mandate—even for those who have been vaccinated.
Consensus: Most vaccinated Americans are unlikely to need COVID-19 booster shots for months—or even a year.
According to the American Psychology Association’s annual stress survey, 42 percent of the population gained unwanted weight—averaging 29 lbs.—during the pandemic.
Airbnb upside: As the country adjusts to post-lockdown status, many travelers are choosing to stay in rented homes rather than hotels as a way of maintaining a safer bubble.
According to White House coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zients, nearly one in five of the nation’s new COVID-19 infections is from Florida.
Florida is third in the nation in new COVID cases per capita—trailing only Arkansas and Missouri, according to the CDC.
The U.S. has been experiencing COVID outbreaks tied to summer camps in a number of states, including Florida.
According to Dr. Peggy Duggan, TGH’s executive vice president and chief medical officer, nearly 90 percent of hospitalized COVID-19 patients have not been vaccinated.
“There should be more mandates (at the local level to crush the COVID spread).”—Dr.Anthony Fauci.