America tunes out
Even before the pandemic, I subscribed to a lot of health care newsletters in order to catch news I may have missed and help generate ideas for local coverage – but newsletters have been downright essential in the COVID-19 era. Axios Vitals is one of my favorites for hitting all the biggest stories in a quick and easy format. Well, today the major takeaway was that Americans are “tuning out” the virus right as it reaches its peak destruction. Admittedly, I think I’ve been so wrapped up in the vaccine frenzy that these numbers took me aback as I read this morning:
- The U.S. averaged 244,519 new cases per day over the past week, a 13% jump from the week before.
- Coronavirus patients now occupy 40% of all the hospital beds in Arizona, 33% in California and Nevada, and 26% of all the beds in Georgia and Texas.
- December was the deadliest month of the entire pandemic, and January is on track to beat it. The virus has already killed roughly 35,000 Americans just in the first 13 days of this month.
- This will keep getting worse before it gets better. Each of the 244,519 people infected every day can each go on to infect several more.
It’s normal (and even healthy!) to tune out from the news sometimes, but it’s also important that we not stick our heads in the sand when it matters most.
What other newsletters do you all read to stay informed?
Stay safe,
– Elizabeth Fite, health care reporter, efite@timesfreepress.com
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