18th Sep 2022 https://nfind.uk/lockdown_exit/index.php/newsletter=739 lockdown_exit

Lockdown Exit

New Zealand Herald New Zealand confronted Omicron as one of the most vaccinated populations on the planet so what difference did that make in blunting the worst impacts Thats what researchers plan to find out in a new study exploring the effectiveness of multiple doses of the Pfizer vaccine against the variant in what was also one of the worlds few infectionnave populations. Study leaders Dr Anna Howe and Dr Matt Hobbs also aim to answer another critical question what protection the vaccine gave Mori Pasifika and other highrisk groups. By the time the Omicron outbreak forced the whole of New Zealand into the red traffic light setting on January 23 about 93 per cent of our eligible adult population thats 3910251 people had already received at least two doses of Pfizers Comirnaty vaccine https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-how-did-pfizer-vaccine-fare-against-omicron-in-new-zealand/WPYH7243X42PO2MYBFP2SWMVTE/ 18th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

The Guardian Australians believe their life is improving and are more confident in the government compared with last year with much of this wellbeing boost being reported among young people the results of a national survey suggest. The latest Covid Impact Monitoring survey of more than 3510 adults completed in August found the 18 to 24 age group in particular are feeling more positive about their lives. This is despite being the age group to suffer some of the greatest psychological distress during the peak of the pandemic. That does not mean that Australia has returned to prepandemic levels of wellbeing and mental health the results of the latest survey published on Wednesday found. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/sep/15/australians-believe-life-is-improving-after-lockdowns-and-are-more-confident-in-government-survey-finds 18th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

Evening Standard The UK Covid19 inquiry has been delayed by two weeks out of respect for the national mourning period following the Queens death officials have said. The inquiry which will investigate decisions made by Boris Johnsons government during the pandemic was due to begin on September 20 but has been postponed until October 4. It will begin with a preliminary hearing which will outline how the inquiry will develop and what it will investigate. During this hearing inquiry chair Baroness Heather Hallett will hold a short period of silence to commemorate the impact of the pandemic on peoples lives. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/health/government-queen-london-b1025967.html 16th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

BBC News Residents under Covid lockdowns in areas across China are complaining of shortages of food and essential items. Tens of millions of people in at least 30 regions have been ordered to stay at home under partial or full lockdowns. Its been 15 days we are out of flour rice eggs. From days ago we run out of milk for kids said one resident in western Xinjiang. Authorities are scrambling to contain local outbreaks ahead of the Communist partys congress in October. Chinas zeroCovid policy requires strict lockdowns even if just a handful of cases are reported. On Monday China recorded 949 new Covid cases across the entire country. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-62830326 16th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

Reuters The Chinese city of Chengdu will on Thursday lift a full COVID19 lockdown in all districts still facing strict movement curbs as a recent outbreak comes under control local authorities said. Chengdu the capital of southwestern Chinas Sichuan province was locked down on Sept. 1 after COVID cases were detected becoming the largest Chinese metropolis hit with curbs since Shanghais lockdown in April and May. Some districts in Chengdu a city of more than 21 million people have already started to exit from a full lockdown since Sept. 8. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-chengdu-lift-citywide-covid-lockdown-thursday-2022-09-14/ 16th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

Bloomberg Article repots that the World Health Organization chiefs comment that the end of the pandemic is within reach sparked lively online debate and some censorship in China the only major country still trying to stop the spread of the virus. WHO DirectorGeneral Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday that we have never been in a better position to end the pandemic. We are not there yet but the end is in sight. China Newsweek and popular online media outlet Guancha.cn reported on Tedross remark and shared videos on social media platform Weibo but those were removed in the afternoon. A hashtag on Tedross comments that gathered some 4.5 million views also appeared to have been removed and Chinese media disabled the comment function on Weibo posts sharing the news. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-15/who-saying-pandemic-end-in-sight-falls-flat-in-covid-zero-china?srnd=premium 15th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

Bloomberg Nigeria will start building a vaccine plant by end of the year after signing a contract manufacturing agreement with the Serum Institute of India for local production of the jabs the countrys health minister said. The country struck the deal with the worlds biggest vaccine manufacturer on Wednesday Health Minister Osagie Ehanire said at a briefing in the capital Abuja. The plant should be producing routine vaccines initially against polio measles and yellow fever among others by 2028 he added. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-14/nigeria-strikes-deal-with-serum-institute-of-india 14th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

Channel NewsAsia Singapore The Malaysian government will procure new COVID19 vaccines which are tailored to fight new strains of the virus said Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin. The vaccines will be administered free of charge to highrisk groups such as the elderly and those with serious comorbidities the Malaysian media quoted Mr Khairy as saying on Tuesday. A decision on this procurement will be announced later along with the vaccines for children under five he said at a press conference after launching the Record Breaking COVID19 Vaccination Report PublicPrivate Partnership according to Bernama. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-updated-covid-19-vaccine-khairy-pfizer-covax-2937406 14th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

VietnamPlus The Vietnamese Government appreciated the contributions of the ThailandVietnam Friendship Association TVFA and five Thai corporations as well as their efforts to call for donations of medical equipment and materials to Vietnam during the fight against COVID19 last year said Vietnamese Ambassador to Thailand Phan Chi Thanh. Thanh made the statement during a ceremony in Bangkok on September 14 to present the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs certificates of merit to the TVFA and Thai corporations including Thai Beverage SCG Berli Jucker Amata Vietnam and B.Grimm Power in recognition of their assistance in calling for medical equipment and supplies in the fight against COVID19 in Vietnam in 2021 when the two countries celebrated the 45th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnam-appreciates-thailands-support-in-covid19-fight-ambassador/237350.vnp 14th Sep 2022

Lockdown Exit

Medscape Podcast This is Eric Topol for Medscape. Im with my cohost Abraham Verghese for a new edition of Medicine and the Machine. We have an extraordinary guest today Professor Christina Pagel. She is a force a professor at University College London with an extraordinary background in math physics and even interplanetary space. Weve never had a guest with such a diverse background. Welcome Christina. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/978637 9th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

South China Morning Post Rollout expected to be timed for endOctober or early November given. Singapores relatively low caseload Health Minister Ong Ye Kung says City state also plans to introduce bivalent jabs targeting both the wildtype virus and its circulating variants Ong adds https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3192357/singapore-begin-giving-covid-19-vaccines-children 18th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

The Guardian Chinas city of 21 million has endured heatwaves power cuts quarantine and a deadly earthquake while panic also simmers in a neighbouring province https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/12/desperation-grows-in-hard-hit-chengdus-indefinite-covid-lockdown?fbclid=IwAR1t-NnRVbMn9bR_xM9WRe1TER6SsJboJMIiy78w6J_AIH74OyBNKY9zcXc 18th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

Sydney Morning Herald Less than 50 payments have been made to compensate Australians who have had adverse reactions to COVID19 vaccines representing a miniscule percentage of the total number of doses administered. Government Services Minister Bill Shorten seized upon the figures to criticise fringe operators who spread misinformation about COVID vaccines. https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/less-than-50-payments-made-for-adverse-reactions-to-covid-19-vaccines-20220915-p5bigu.html 18th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

ABC News Last week at least 33 cities were reportedly put in lockdown as China continues to pursue its COVIDzero policy. But unlike lockdowns in other major cities in China lockdowns in Xinjiang are rarely discussed publicly and face strict censorship on the Chinese internet. Chinese language media reported that censors in Xinjiang have been asked to dilute discussions about Ilis lockdown by posting videos and pictures of lifestyle baby matters and food. The Xinjiang lockdowns come as outgoing United Nations human rights commissioner Michelle Bachelet recently released a report detailing serious allegations of human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Chinas Xinjiang region. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-15/uyghur-australians-call-for-attention-on-lockdown-in-xinjiang/101435940 16th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

The Guardian Across Australia more than 3000 people living in residential aged care have died with Covid19 this year. This is three times more than in the first two years of the pandemic when tight lockdowns prevented families from spending precious time together and negatively impacted mental health cognitive and physical wellbeing. To what end https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/sep/15/australians-might-be-living-with-covid-but-aged-care-residents-are-still-dying-with-it-where-is-the-outrage-and-grief 16th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

Bloomberg Nigeria will start building a vaccine plant by end of the year after signing a contract manufacturing agreement with the Serum Institute of India for local production of the jabs the countrys health minister said. The country struck the deal with the worlds biggest vaccine manufacturer on Wednesday Health Minister Osagie Ehanire said at a briefing in the capital Abuja. The plant should be producing routine vaccines initially against polio measles and yellow fever among others by 2028 he added. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-14/nigeria-strikes-deal-with-serum-institute-of-india 14th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

Bloomberg Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc.s Covid19 vaccines targeting the omicron variant were approved by Japans health ministry late Monday paving the way for them to be rolled out in the worlds thirdlargest healthcare market. The ministry endorsed the shots shortly after an expert panel advised deploying the boosters. Pfizers omicron booster can be administered to Japanese aged 12 and over the panel advised while Modernas should be limited to those 18 and above. Japan is the latest country to sign off on the targeted boosters following similar approvals by the US UK and Australia in the past couple of months. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-12/japan-drug-panel-backs-backs-pfizer-moderna-omicron-boosters 12th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

Reuters on MSN.com Economists around the world from the most liberal freespenders to fiscal conservative deficit hawks largely agreed the coronavirus pandemic required a gobig gofast policy response to avoid an outright global depression. https://www.msn.com/en-ca/finance/topstories/gusher-of-pandemic-aid-averted-global-depression-but-left-a-bad-hangover/ar-AA11JdBu 12th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

The Wall Street Journal Illness caused by Covid19 shrank the U.S. labor force by around 500000 people a hit that is likely to continue if the virus continues to sicken workers at current rates according to a new study released Monday. Millions of people left the labor forcethe number of people working or looking for workduring the pandemic for various reasons including retirement lack of child care and fear of Covid. The total size of the labor force reached 164.7 million people in August exceeding the February 2020 prepandemic level for the first time. The labor force would have 500000 more members if not for the people sickened by Covid according to the studys authors economists Gopi Shah Goda of Stanford University and Evan J. Soltas at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-illnesses-are-keeping-at-least-500-000-workers-out-of-u-s-labor-force-study-says-11662955321 12th Sep 2022

Exit Strategies

Reuters The Bank of Japan is expected to end as scheduled a pandemicrelief funding scheme this month and discuss adjustments to a policy guidance that flags the COVID19 pandemic as the top economic risk three sources familiar with its thinking say. A final decision will be made at the BOJs policy meeting on Sept. 2122 when the board will scrutinise data to ensure Japans persistently high coronavirus cases do not lead to a sharp drop in economic activity the sources said. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/boj-set-end-covid-relief-scheme-no-change-loose-policy-2022-09-12/ 12th Sep 2022

Partisan Exits

Bloomberg The pandemic response that swept Jacinda Ardern to a second term as New Zealands prime minister may end up costing her a third. Ardern this week scrapped what was left of the rules she deployed to battle Covid19 bringing an end to twoandahalf years of tough restrictions that initially served the country well. But their removal hasnt come soon enough for some voters who have grown tired of controls on daily life and are deserting Arderns Labour Party ahead of the 2023 general election. An economic slowdown also looms next year as the full impact of pandemic measures such as the closed border plays out. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-15/jacinda-ardern-s-feted-covid-response-could-yet-be-her-undoing 18th Sep 2022

Partisan Exits

Mother Jones So far enthusiasm for the Omicronspecific Covid boosters is just soso. In a University of Michigan poll conducted last month among adults over age 50 just 61 percent of those surveyed said they were very likely to get the new booster this fall and 23 percent of adults ages 50 to 64 said they were not likely to get it. There are likely many reasons for this tepid reception including the fact that many people have recently recovered from Covid and are waiting a few months before getting boosted in order to optimize protection. But theres another factor tooone that weve seen before. Influential physicians who have opposed Covid protections since the beginning of the pandemic continue to downplay the effectiveness of vaccines. https://www.motherjones.com/media/2022/09/the-truth-about-those-viral-tweets-questioning-the-omicron-boosters-safety/ 17th Sep 2022

Partisan Exits

The Washington Post In a 45page editorial the Lancet Covid19 Commission warned that many governments proved untrustworthy and ineffective as the pandemic tore across the world citing examples such as richer nations hoarding vaccine doses and failing to fund global response efforts and politicians such as former U.S. president Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro playing down the viruss risks even as hundreds of thousands of their citizens died of it. What we saw rather than a cooperative global strategy was basically each country on its own Jeffrey Sachs a Columbia University economist who chaired the commission told reporters in a briefing convened by the respected medical journal. https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2022/09/14/lancet-covid-commission-report-who/ 15th Sep 2022

Partisan Exits

The Wall Street Journal Some union members of the New York Times and NBC Newss digital properties vowed not to come to the office this week and instead work remotely defying their respective employers backtotheoffice plans. Starting this week the Times and NBC News expect employees to return to the office at least part of the week both news organizations have told staff in recent memos. The Times union on Sunday said it has more than 1280 signatures from members pledging to stay home some of which come from a coordinated effort with the Timess tech and Wirecutter unions. The three Times unions collectively have around 2000 members. A Times spokeswoman said the news organization believes a hybrid work environment best suits the New York Times at this moment. She also said a collaborative work environment is a driver of success. https://www.wsj.com/articles/members-of-new-york-times-nbc-news-digital-unions-defy-return-to-office-plans-11663021373 13th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

World Health Organization WHO Regional Office for Africa AFRO convened a meeting of COVID19 epidemiology focal points from ministries of health of selected highrisk countries in Brazzaville Republic of the Congo which took place between 10 to 13 August 2022. The aim was to discuss initiatives aimed at improving the quality and effectiveness of COVID19 surveillance including genomic surveillance. The Regional Virologist at WHO AFRO set the scene Currently 40 out of the 47 Member States 85 in the African Region have incountry capabilities for genomic sequencing and 46 Member States 98 are sharing their genetic sequence data through a publicly accessible database. The Region has established a coordinated mechanism to sustain and strengthen these gains and has set up three centres of excellence for genomic surveillance developed standardized guidance documents offered capacity building for Ministries of Healths personnel and set up laboratory infrastructure for routine pathogen genomic surveillance including wastewater surveillance. https://www.who.int/news/item/16-09-2022-reflecting-on-the-implementation-of-genomic-surveillance-for-COVID-19-and-beyond-in-the-african-region 18th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

South China Morning Post An international expert panel on Covid19 has called for continued investigation into the origins of the coronavirus saying the pathogen could have either spilled over from nature or an infection of a laboratory worker. In its final report this week the Lancet Commission on Covid19 led by Columbia University professor Jeffrey Sachs said the virus could well have had a natural origin but the commission could not rule out it could have passed to humans during laboratory research in Wuhan the Chinese city where the virus was first detected or elsewhere. Even if it was a laboratory leak it could well be a natural virus or a bioengineered virus the report said adding investigation and better monitoring of such research was needed. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3192821/step-hunt-origins-covid-19-lancet-panel-urges 18th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

Bloomberg The antibody drugs GSK Plc and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. developed against Covid dont appear to work for omicron and its subvariants a panel of experts advising the World Health Organization said recommending against the use of the medicines. The groups decision comes amid evidence from laboratory studies that these drugs are not likely to work against currently circulating variants the panel said in the medical journal BMJ Friday. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-15/who-panel-advises-against-gsk-regeneron-antibodies-for-covid 18th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters Two COVID19 antibody therapies are no longer recommended by the World Health Organization WHO on the basis that Omicron and the variants latest offshoots have likely rendered them obsolete. The two therapies which are designed to work by binding to the spike protein of SARSCoV2 to neutralise the virus ability to infect cells were some of the first medicines developed early in the pandemic. The virus has since evolved and mounting evidence from lab tests suggests the two therapies sotrovimab as well as casirivimabimdevimab have limited clinical activity against the latest iterations of the virus. As a result they have also fallen out of favour with the U.S. health regulator. On Thursday WHO experts said they strongly advised against the use of the two therapies in patients with COVID19 reversing previous conditional recommendations endorsing them as part of a suite of recommendations published in the British Medical Journal. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/who-strongly-advises-against-use-two-covid-treatments-2022-09-15/ 17th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters Europes medicines regulator has backed using AstraZenecas preventative COVID19 therapy as a treatment for the disease and also endorsed another medicine as preventative option for another common virus. The regulators recommendations are usually followed by the European Commission when it takes a final decision on drug approvals. AstraZeneca said on Friday the European Medicines Agency EMA had backed Evusheld as a treatment for adults and adolescents with COVID who do not need supplemental oxygen and who are at increased risk of their disease worsening. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/astrazeneca-says-antibody-cocktail-backed-treating-covid-eu-2022-09-16/ 17th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

The Connexion France Covid appears to be making a comeback in France after cases jumped by 55.5 over the past seven days and 41850 cases were reported in the last 24 hours. The figures from the Health Ministry and health authority Sant publique France released on September 13 show a significant rise in infections. The daily average over the past seven days is around 17000 but rising. The Health Ministry has warned that an eighth wave appears to be imminent and Health Minister Franois Braun has called on people in France to take responsibility and think about bringing back their social distancing and hygiene measures where appropriate. https://www.connexionfrance.com/article/French-news/Covid-19/Eighth-wave-of-Covid-19-imminent-in-France-says-French-health-ministry 16th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

CNA The Health Sciences Authority HSA on Wednesday Sep 14 granted interim authorisation for the first bivalent COVID19 booster vaccine in the country. The Spikevax Bivalent OriginalOmicron COVID19 jab by Moderna comprises two components that target the original SARSCoV2 strain and the Omicron BA.1 variant respectively. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/covid-19-first-bivalent-vaccine-moderna-hsa-spikevax-omicron-2937321 16th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters Moderna Inc has held talks with the Chinese government about supplying COVID19 vaccines but no decision has yet been made CEO Stephane Bancel told Reuters on Wednesday. As the rest of the world gradually lifts COVID restrictions China continues to lock down enormous parts of society and conduct mass testing to eradicate the coronavirus. It has not approved any foreign COVID vaccines and relies on several domestically developed shots. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/moderna-believed-pandemic-beginning-that-biontech-violated-patent-ceo-2022-09-14/ 16th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

CNA Modernas new bivalent COVID19 booster vaccine is expected to be available in Singapore by end of this month. We hope to have hundreds of thousands of doses available in Singapore before the end of the month the pharmaceutical firms senior vice president of commercial vaccines Patrick Bergstedt told CNA on Wednesday Sep 14. His comments came after the Health Sciences Authority HSA announced that it granted interim authorisation for Modernas Spikevax Bivalent OriginalOmicron jab the first bivalent COVID19 booster vaccine in the country. Official vaccination recommendations using this booster will be issued by the Expert Committee on COVID19 Vaccination and the Ministry of Health MOH in due time HSA said. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/moderna-bivalent-covid-19-vaccine-booster-expected-available-end-september-2940001 15th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

The Conversation Indonesia BA.4.6 a subvariant of the omicron COVID variant which has been quickly gaining traction in the US is now confirmed to be spreading in the UK. The latest briefing document on COVID variants from the UK Health Security Agency UKHSA noted that during the week beginning August 14 BA.4.6 accounted for 3.3 of samples in the UK. It has since grown to make up around 9 of sequenced cases. Similarly according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention BA.4.6 now accounts for more than 9 of recent cases across the US. The variant has also been identified in several other countries around the world. https://theconversation.com/another-new-covid-variant-is-spreading-heres-what-we-know-about-omicron-ba-4-6-189939 14th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc.s Covid19 vaccines targeting the omicron variant were approved by Japans health ministry late Monday paving the way for them to be rolled out in the worlds thirdlargest healthcare market. The ministry endorsed the shots shortly after an expert panel advised deploying the boosters. Pfizers omicron booster can be administered to Japanese aged 12 and over the panel advised while Modernas should be limited to those 18 and above. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-12/japan-drug-panel-backs-backs-pfizer-moderna-omicron-boosters?srnd=premium-uk 13th Sep 2022

Scientific Viewpoint

Nation Thailand He added that he expects Covid19 cases to start dropping from late September to midDecember but start spreading again in the cool season from late December to early March and then again the in the rainy season. He pointed out that most people in Thailand catch flu and other respiratory viruses during the rainy season. However Covid19 infections are currently on a downward trajectory he said adding that public health agencies should launch vaccination drives for Covid19 and other viruses before the start of the rainy season every year. https://www.nationthailand.com/life/health-beauty/40019711 4th Sep 2022

Coronavirus Resurgence

Reuters Some 15000 nurses in Minnesota walked off the job on Monday to protest hospital understaffing that their union says has harmed patient care and exhausted health workers as they negotiate a new contract with hospital executives. The strike slated to last three days and described by the Minnesota Nurses Association as one of the largest in United States history highlights nationwide health worker shortages that have been exacerbated by the COVID19 pandemic. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/understaffed-overworked-thousands-minnesota-nurses-go-strike-2022-09-12/ 12th Sep 2022

Coronavirus Resurgence

MarketWatch U.S. known cases of COVID are continuing to ease and now stand at their lowest level since early May although the true tally is likely higher given how many people are testing at home where the data are not being collected. The daily average for new cases stood at 66159 on Sunday according to a New York Times tracker down 25 from two weeks ago. Cases are now rising in just three states South Carolina Missouri and Texas. They are flat in West Virginia and falling everywhere else the tracker shows. The daily average for hospitalizations was down 8 at 35249 while the daily average for deaths is down 22 to 375. In Minnesota thousands of nurses launched a threeday walkout on Monday in protest over issues of pay and understaffing that they say has got worse because of the pandemic the Associated Press reported. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/u-s-covid-cases-continue-to-decline-as-minnesota-nurses-stage-3-day-walkout-over-pay-and-understaffing-11662990912 12th Sep 2022

Coronavirus Resurgence

The Wall Street Journal Mark Pfundheller promptly got his first two Covid19 shots and a booster his family said knowing the disease was a threat related to treatment for an inflammatory disorder that compromised his immune system. The 66yearold former aviation consultant for Wisconsins Transportation Department caught the virus in April at a family wedding near his home in southern Wisconsin where many guests were infected. Mr. Pfundheller died in a Madison Wis. hospital on July 2 after an illness including time on a ventilator. His was one of nearly 200000 Covid19 deaths in the U.S. this year according to deathcertificate data. While the virus has become less risky for many thanks in part to immunity from vaccines and prior infections it is still killing hundreds each day. Most are older people and many have underlying health conditions and compromised immune systems doctors said. https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-is-still-killing-hundreds-of-americans-daily-11662888600 11th Sep 2022