- A Poor People’s Pandemic Report: This new report, compiled by the Poor People’s Campaign (a national activist group that advocates for low-income Americans) as well as U.N. economists and other researchers, shows the pandemic’s disproportionate impacts by income levels. Overall, people in poorer counties died of COVID-19 at nearly twice the rate of those in richer counties, the report found. On this dashboard, users can see the correlations of COVID-19 death rates with income, population density, and other factors. This article from the Guardian includes more context on the findings.
- SARS-CoV-2 in Animals: I recently learned about this dashboard while working on an upcoming Documenting COVID-19 story: the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports on COVID-19 cases in animals, identified through both PCR and antibody tests. In addition to the case numbers, the dashboard includes announcements of notable cases and recent research in this area. It’s important to note that these numbers are likely undercounts, because the U.S. doesn’t actively monitor animals for COVID-19, unlike some other countries.
- The Role of Wastewater Data in Pandemic Management: This new report from the Rockefeller Foundation examines how state and local public health agencies are using wastewater surveillance. The foundation surveyed 12 state and 194 local agencies, many of which have been monitoring wastewater for a year or more; this report includes findings on the populations served by wastewater surveillance, data used to make pandemic management decisions, barriers that agencies face for expanding their surveillance, and more.
- GAO report on Wastewater Surveillance: Speaking of wastewater, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) also released a report on the monitoring tool this week. The GAO report provides an overview of how wastewater surveillance works and its potential for providing early warnings of outbreaks, along with challenges faced by agencies seeking to start testing their wastewater. From the report’s highlights: “the lack of national coordination and standardized methods pose challenges to wider adoption.”
- Protection from vaccination and previous infection: A new study, published in the CDC MMWR this week, assesses the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination for people who had a prior infection. During the Omicron surge, the study shows, people who had been previously infected and vaccinated were less likely to be hospitalized due to a COVID-19 reinfection, compared to those who weren’t vaccinated. Vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization was 35% for those who had two doses, and 69% for those who had received a booster.
- Pfizer seeks booster shot for 5-11 year olds: This week, Pfizer announced that it’s asking the FDA to authorize a booster shot for children in the 5 to 11 age group. The company cited new data showing that kids who got a booster shot six months after their primary series experienced a significant increase in antibodies that protect against COVID-19. These data have yet to be published in a scientific report or vetted by experts, though. Also, still no news on Pfizer’s vaccine for younger children (which could also require three doses).
Tag: Featured sources
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Sources and updates, April 17
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Sources and updates, April 10
- Lessons learned from the non-superspreader Anime NYC convention: Last fall, one of the first Omicron cases detected in the U.S. was linked to the Anime NYC convention, a gathering of more than 50,000 fans. Many worried that the event had been a superspreader for this highly contagious variant, but an investigation from the CDC later found that, in fact, Omicron spread at the convention was minimal. My latest feature story for Science News unpacks what we can learn from this event about preventing infectious disease spread—not just COVID-19—at future large events. I am a big anime fan (and have actually attended previous iterations of Anime NYC!), so this was a very fun story for me; I hope you give it a read!
- States keep reducing their data reporting frequency: Last Sunday, I noted that Florida—one of the first states to shift from daily to weekly COVID-19 data updates—has now gone down to updating its data every other week. This is part of an increasing trend, writes Beth Blauer from the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 data team in a recent blog post. “As of March 30, only eight states and territories (AR, DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA, PR, and TX) report case data every day of the week,” Blauer says. And it seems unlikely that states will increase reporting frequencies again without a major change in public health funding or the state of the pandemic.
- Biden administration announces Long COVID task force: This week, the Biden administration issued a memo addressing the millions of Americans living with Long COVID. The administration is creating a new, interagency task force, with the goal of developing a “national research action plan” on Long COVID, as well as a report laying out services and resources that can be directed to people experiencing this condition. It’s worth noting that recent estimates from the U.K. indicate 1.7 million people in that country (or one in every 37 residents) are living with Long COVID; current numbers in the U.S. are unknown due to data gaps, but are likely on a similar scale, if not higher.
- New scientific data sharing site from the NIH: Not directly COVID-related, but an exciting new source: the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has created an online data repository for projects funded by and affiliated with the agency. The site currently includes over 100 datasets, including scientific data, genomic data, and clinical data; it also includes information on data management and sharing for researchers working on these projects. This press release from NIH has more info. (H/t Liz Essley Whyte.)
- Study indicates continued utility for COVID-19 testing in schools: During the Omicron surge, testing programs in a lot of schools collapsed, simply because institutions didn’t have enough resources to handle all of the students and staff getting sick. The surge led some schools to consider whether school testing programs are worth continuing at all. But a new study, released last week in The Lancet, suggests that yes, surveillance testing can still reduce transmission—even when schools are dealing with highly contagious variants. (Note that this was a modeling study, not a real-world trial.)
- Preprint shows interest in self-reporting antigen test results: Another interesting study released recently: researchers at the University of Massachusetts distributed three million free rapid, at-home antigen tests between April and October 2021, then studied how test recipients interacted with a digital app for ordering tests and logging results. About 8% of test recipients used the app, the researchers found; but more than 75% of those who used it did report their antigen test results to their state health agency. The results (which haven’t yet been peer-reviewed) suggest that, if institutions make it easy and accessible for people to self-report their test results, the reporting will happen.
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Sources and updates, April 3
- Feds unveil new COVID.gov website: This week, the federal government launched a new website, COVID.gov, intended to be a one-stop-shop for Americans to find COVID-19 guidance and connect to resources in their communities. It’s a fun kind of irony that this is launching over two years into the pandemic, at a time when the U.S. is about to lose funding for free vaccines, tests, and other health measures. One wonders how many people will actually use this website!
- FDA and CDC authorize additional booster shots for seniors: This past Tuesday, the FDA authorized a fourth dose for Americans over age 50 who received their booster of Pfizer or Moderna’s vaccine at least four months ago. The CDC incorporated this additional dose into their recommendations later that day; fourth doses are also recommended for immunocompromised people, and additional mRNA vaccine people who originally received two doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Notably, the FDA and CDC decisions come before an FDA advisory committee meeting, scheduled for this coming Wednesday, about booster shots. Not a great look for either agency’s transparency.
- New data on Johnson & Johnson vaccine effectiveness: When the CDC recommended that anyone who received two J&J doses should get a third dose of Pfizer or Moderna’s vaccine, the agency cited this study published last week in MMWR. CDC researchers and their collaborators found that, during the Omicron surge, vaccine effectiveness against a COVID-related hospitalization or emergency department visit was much higher for J&J recipients who got a booster dose of an mRNA vaccine (90% for hospitalization, 79% for ED visit) compared to those who received two J&J doses (67% and 54%).
- Racial disparities in COVID-19 patients with cancer: Another new study, published this week in JAMA Network Open, found that Black COVID-19 patients with cancer are more likely to experience severe outcomes than white patients—even after the scientists adjusted for other demographic and clinical factors. Black cancer patients already have higher mortality rates than white patients, the scientists explain in their paper; COVID-19 worsened this existing inequality.
- NYC mask compliance: I recently learned that the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) regularly publishes data demonstrating how well passengers on MTA subways and buses are complying with the city’s mask requirement for public transportation. The data are compiled from surveys; MTA workers observe passengers at a selection of subway and bus stops, and count how many people are wearing masks (categorized by whether the masks are worn correctly or not). Compliance recently slipped to a new low, AMNY reports.
- Database of WHO disease outbreak reports: A group of researchers led by Colin J. Carlson has compiled a database of over 2,700 outbreak reports from the World Health Organization, which include information on significant public health events (or “potential events of concern”) going back to December 1996. You can read a preprint with analysis of the database here. (H/t Data Is Plural.)
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Sources and updates, March 27
- New report on pandemic-related workplace violence for public health officials: A new study, published last week in the American Journal of Public Health, shares the results of a survey that included hundreds of public health officials across the U.S. During the study’s time frame (March 2020 to January 2021), the researchers identified about 1,500 instances of harassment against public health officials, and found that over 200 officials left their jobs. And public health has only become more polarized in the year since this survey period ended. See this article in STAT News for more context on the study.
- Health insurance plans available through the federal insurance marketplace: This one isn’t directly COVID-related, but it seemed like an interesting data source to share: the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) publishes a series of data files on health insurance plans available through the federal Health Insurance Exchange. The files include health benefits, coverage limits, cost-sharing potential, provider networks, anonymized insurance claims, and much more. (H/t Data Is Plural.)
- At-home COVID-19 test use exacerbates inequities: This week, the CDC published a new MMWR study discussing rapid at-home test use. The authors used an online survey to estimate at-home test use among about 400,000 U.S. adults between August 2021 and early March 2022. Its findings provide additional evidence for the popularity of these tests during the Omicron surge, as well as for the way that these tests exacerbate health inequities in the U.S.: “at-home test use was lower among persons who self-identified as Black, were aged ≥75 years, had lower incomes, and had a high school level education or less,” the authors reported.
- Considering another round of mRNA booster shots: Will the U.S. authorize a fourth round of shots for Americans who received the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines? At the moment, signs point to yes: countries like Israel and the U.K., which U.S. regulators watch for their vaccine efficacy data, are providing fourth doses to seniors. And the Biden administration is planning fourth doses for U.S. adults over age 50, the New York Times reported on Friday. Data so far suggest that these additional doses may be useful for older adults, but provide less of an immunity boost in younger age groups; Dr. Katelyn Jetelina’s Your Local Epidemiologist post on the subject provides a helpful overview of the evidence.
- New data on Moderna vaccine for young children: As we consider additional boosters for seniors, the youngest Americans may soon be eligible for vaccination! Finally! After a lot of back-and-forth on the potential of Pfizer’s vaccine for kids under age five, Moderna released data this week suggesting that the company has found a dosage of its vaccine that significantly reduces the risk of severe COVID-19 symptoms for children between six months and six years old. Effectiveness against any symptomatic coronavirus infection was only about 40% in this trial—but that result is in line with vaccine efficacy for adults during the Omicron wave, when Moderna’s trial was conducted.
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Sources and updates, March 20
Data sources and data-related updates for this week:
- APM Research Lab relaunches Color of Coronavirus tracker: From April 2020 to March 2021, the American Public Media (APM) Research Lab compiled state-level data on COVID-19 deaths by race and ethnicity, in order to present a picture of which U.S. populations were most hard-hit by the pandemic. The project relaunched this week, now utilizing CDC mortality statistics instead of compiling data from states. One major finding from the updated data: “Indigenous Americans have the highest crude COVID-19 mortality rates nationwide—about 2.8 times as high as the rate for Asians, who have the lowest crude rates.”
- CDC might take back hospital data reporting responsibilities from HHS: As longtime readers may remember, back in summer 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) developed a new data system for hospitals to report COVID-19 patient numbers and other related metrics. At the time, the HHS was taking over responsibility for these data from the CDC; this inspired some political posturing and concerns about data quality, though the eventual HHS dataset turned out to be very comprehensive and useful. (This original data switch was the subject of my very first CDD issue, and I followed the HHS data system closely throughout 2020.) Now, Bloomberg reports, the CDC wants to take back hospital data reporting from the HHS. More political posturing and data quality concerns are, it seems, inevitable—this time tied to the CDC’s challenges in modernizing its data systems.
- Hospitalizations among young children, by race/ethnicity during Omicron surge: Two MMWR studies that caught my attention this week: one examined hospitalization rates among young children, ages 0 to 4, between March 2020 and February 2022. This study found that COVID-19 hospitalization rates among children in this age range were five times higher at the peak of the Omicron surge compared to the Delta surge. The second report examined hospitalizations by race and ethnicity, finding that, during Omicron’s peak, hospitalization rates among Black adults were nearly four times higher than rates among white adults. Both reports clearly demonstrate who is still vulnerable to COVID-19 as the U.S. abandons safety measures.
- Pfizer and Moderna both seeking EUAs for additional booster shots: POLITICO reported this week that first Pfizer, then Moderna have requested Emergency Use Authorization for fourth doses of their COVID-19 vaccines. Pfizer’s request is specifically for people age 65 and over, while Moderna’s is for all adults. Notably, Pfizer’s request is based on data from Israel suggesting that immunity from an initial booster wanes after several months—just as Pfizer’s initial case for boosters in the fall was also based on Israeli data.
- Global COVID-related deaths may be three times higher than official records: Throughout the pandemic, researchers have used excess mortality (i.e. the deaths occurring in a given region and time period above what’s expected) to determine the true toll of COVID-19. A new study, published this week in The Lancet, took this approach for 191 countries and territories from January 2020 to December 2021. The researchers estimate that about 18 million people died worldwide due to the pandemic—including not just direct COVID-19 deaths but also others caused by COVID-related disruptions. That’s three times higher than the 6 million COVID-19 deaths that have been officially reported in this time period.
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Sources and updates, March 13
A couple of data sources, and a few data-related news items:
- COVID-19 vaccine data annotations: Yesterday, I updated my annotations page on U.S. vaccination data sources for the first time in a few weeks. The page lists both national dashboards and vaccine data pages from all 50 state public health agencies, including notes on what each source offers. Going through the dashboards yesterday, I was struck by how many states are now offering data on booster shots (43, by my count), as well as how counts of doses distributed in a state, once a major feature of these dashboards, have become less useful now that the U.S. has ample vaccine supplies.
- Order more free rapid tests from the federal government: The COVIDtests.gov site is now open for additional orders of free rapid at-home tests, as part of the federal program that launched in mid-January. Each household can now order two sets of four tests. I ordered a set of tests last Monday, and received them on Thursday—much faster than the initial round of this program!
- Scientists are investigating combinations of Delta and Omicron: You might have seen some recent headlines about “Deltacron,” a portmanteau of the two variants of concern. When a very unlucky person gets infected with both Delta and Omicron at the same time, the variants can combine and form a new strain with genetic elements of both lineages. Scientists have recently identified a small number of “Deltacron” cases in France, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the U.S.; it’s not cause for major concern at this time, but is under study to determine if this combined strain might have any transmission or severity advantages. The Guardian has a good explainer on the subject.
- New studies on masks, vaccines for kids: This week, the CDC MMWR published a new study on masking in K-12 schools; the researchers found that Arkansas school districts with a universal mask requirement in the fall 2021 semester had 23% lower cases than schools that did not have a requirement. The journal also published a new study on vaccinations in children ages 5 to 11; this study found that, within three months of COVID-19 vaccines becoming available for this age group, 92% of kids ages 5 to 11 lived within 5 miles of a vaccine provider. However, vaccination coverage in this age group is low, suggesting the need for more targeted communication to families with young kids.
- NIH starts new trial on allergic reactions to vaccines: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently announced a new clinical trial to understand “rare but potentially serious systemic allergic reactions” to the COVID-19 vaccines. The trial will include up to 100 people between the ages of 16 and 69 who had allergic reactions to their first vaccine doses; the NIH will provide second doses under heavily monitored conditions and study how these patients respond.
- How to better recruit for COVID-19 trials: Speaking of clinical trials, a new preprint posted this week to medRxiv outlines a potential strategy for better studying effectiveness and potential rare side effects of COVID-19 treatments. The preprint authors propose targeting recruitment to people who are high-risk for coronavirus infection, so that studies may collect data on a statistically significant number of cases more quickly.
- COVID-19 at the Tokyo Olympics: Another study that caught my eye this week: researchers from Tokyo described the results of intensive surveillance testing for athletes who competed in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics. In total, among over one million PCR tests conducted before and during the Olympic games, just 299 returned positive results—a positivity rate of 0.03%.
- COVID-19 on Capitol Hill: Reporters at The Hill analyzed data on COVID-19 test results among House and Senate lawmakers, finding that more than one-quarter have tested positive since the pandemic began. The highest case numbers occurred in January 2022 during the Omicron wave, aligning with the U.S. overall. (Though I imagine many legislators travel and socialize indoors more than the average American.)
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Sources and updates, March 6
A couple of data sources, a couple of data-related updates:
- State plans for utilizing COVID-19 relief funding: The federal Office of Elementary and Secondary Education has posted every state’s plan for utilizing ESSER funding, a $13-billion fund set aside to help schools address the impact of COVID-19. Money can be utilized for academic assistance, improving ventilation in schools, testing, and more. State plans were due to the federal government last June, though some materials are still pending on the website.
- New GAO report on Long COVID: Between 8 and 23 million Americans may have developed Long COVID in the last two years—and an estimated one million are out of work because of this condition—according to a new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. The report discusses medical and economic impacts of Long COVID, including current efforts by the federal government to study the condition.
- KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor update: This week, the Kaiser Family Foundation published a new report detailing America’s sentiments on COVID-19 vaccines and other pandemic issues. Key findings include: COVID-19 vaccine uptake “remains relatively unchanged since January” for both adults and children; a majority of parents with children under five say they “don’t have enough information” about vaccines for that age group; and “most adults believe that the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is over but there are disagreements about what returning to normal means and when it should happen.”
- Vaccination disparities between urban and rural counties: Here’s a CDC MMWR study that caught my eye this week: researchers compared vaccination rates in urban and rural U.S. counties, finding that the rate of people in urban counties who have received at least one dose (75.4%) is much higher than the rate in rural counties (58.5%). Moreover, the gap between urban and rural counties has more than doubled between April 2021 and January 2022, the researchers found.
- CDC updates seroprevalence data: The CDC recently updated a dashboard showing data from seroprevalence surveys, which use information from labs across the country to estimate how many Americans have resolving or recent coronavirus infections. (This does not include vaccinations, unlike other seroprevalence estimates.) According to this new update, about 43% of the country had antibodies from a recent infection as of late January. In some parts of the country that were harder-hit by Omicron, the esimate is over 50%.
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Featured sources, February 27
- CDC Museum COVID-19 Timeline: I recently learned that the CDC museum, which is part of the Smithsonian, has produced a detailed timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. It starts with the first cluster of COVID-19 patients in Wuhan, China, then include milestones in cases, treatments and vaccines, guidance changes, and more. The timeline currently ends in late 2021.
- COVID-19 Data Dispatch resources: In absence of other outside sources this week, I wanted to send a reminder that the COVID-19 Data Dispatch maintains detailed annotations describing how states report vaccination data and COVID-19 cases in K-12 schools. Both sets of annotations are overdue for updates, which I’m planning to do in the next week!
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Featured sources, February 20
- COVID-19 drug order and inventory info: Rob Relyea has produced three interactive maps that show state-by-state availability for COVID-19 drugs: one for Sotrovimab, the one widely used monoclonal antibody treatment (out of three available in the U.S.) that is still effective against Omicron; one for Paxlovid, the highly effective Pfizer pill; and one for Evusheld, a monoclonal antibody drug that works preemptively for COVID-19, reducing COVID-19 risk for immunocompromised people. Click on a state to see drug provider locations and drug supplies.
- (Updated) Vaccine Breakthrough Reporting Scorecard: A couple of months ago, I shared a scorecard from the Rockefeller Foundation and former COVID Tracking Project researchers that grades state reporting of breakthrough COVID-19 cases. This scorecard was recently updated. According to the Pandemic Prevention Institute’s twitter, as of this update: “46 states are now regularly reporting some breakthrough data. Currently, 5 states get an A, up from 4 states in January.”
- Updated Long COVID source list: Journalists covering Long COVID can use this public database, compiled by myself and Fiona Lowenstein, to find patients, scientists, and advocates who are interested in talking to reporters for their stories. The database was published in January, but I recently updated it by adding a few new sources to the list. Read more about the resource here!
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Sources and updates, February 13
- Biden administration is reportedly shifting hospital reporting on COVID-19 patients: During the Omicron surge, there’s been a push among some COVID-19 experts (and in the media) to separately report patients who are admitted to hospitals because of their COVID-19 symptoms from patients who are admitted to hospitals for some other reason, but then test positive later. This push, also called the “with” versus “for” issue, has reached the White House, according to a recent report from POLITICO. The Biden administration now wants all hospitals to separate out their COVID-19 numbers in this way, to get a better picture of severe disease caused by the virus. Such a shift may be tricky for hospitals to follow, however, in part because a lot of people who appear to be incidental, “with COVID-19” patients actually had rare symptoms or chronic conditions exacerbated by the virus. “You need a panel of experts to review the cases” and judge this issue, expert Eric Topol told POLITICO.
- Long-term cardiovascular outcomes of COVID-19: A new paper from researchers at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), published this week in Nature Medicine, sheds light on potential long-term COVID-19 impacts for the heart. The researchers used national health records databases from the VA to study over 150,000 COVID-19 patients—a much larger study size than most Long COVID research in the U.S. The paper found that, after their first month of infection, COVID-19 patients are at increased risk for a variety of cardiovascular issues, including heart inflammation and heart failure. Outside scientists commenting on the paper in Science magazine said that the findings clearly demonstrate that COVID-19 has grave long-term risks for heart health.
COVID-19 Data Dispatch 