Daily Archives: November 28, 2021

A new Covid-19 variant, now named the omicron variant, was detected in South Africa on Wednesday, prompting renewed concern about the pandemic, a major stock market drop, and the imposition of new international travel restrictions to stop the spread.

Though the variants existence was first reported by South Africa, it has also been found in Belgium, Botswana, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, and the United Kingdom, meaning the variant has already spread though how far is unclear, as new cases continue cropping up around the world.

While it will take scientists some weeks to understand the omicron variant, including how quickly it can spread and what the illness from infection with the variant looks like, the World Health Organization has already labeled omicron a variant of concern, which means it could be more transmissible, more virulent, or more able to evade the protection granted by vaccines than the original strain of Covid-19.

More information about the new variant is sure to emerge over the coming days and weeks, but heres what experts are saying so far.

Early evidence suggests that the omicron variant is highly contagious, possibly more so than the delta variant. With more than 30 mutations on the spike protein the part of the virus that binds to a human cell, infecting it omicron could both be more transmissible and have more mechanisms to evade immunity already conferred by vaccines or prior infection.

The mutations would strongly suggest that it would be more transmissible and that it might evade some of the protection of monoclonal antibodies and convalescent plasma, and perhaps even antibodies that are induced by vaccine, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious disease expert, told George Stephanopoulos on ABCs This Week on Sunday.

As Fauci emphasized, however, the vaccines still work, and they are still the best way to protect yourself from the virus.

I dont think theres any possibility that [the omicron variant] could completely evade any protection by vaccine, Fauci said. It may diminish it a bit, but thats the reason why you boost.

So far, cases of the variant have appeared primarily in young people, leaving them exhausted and with body aches and soreness, according to Dr. Angelique Coetzee, head of the South African Medical Association. Were not talking about patients that might go straight to a hospital and be admitted, she told the BBC.

Compared to its pandemic peak, cases in South Africa are relatively low right now. However, the country has still seen a substantial spike in new infections: On Friday, South Africa reported 2,828 new Covid-19 cases, according to the Associated Press, with as many as 90 percent of those cases potentially caused by the omicron variant.

Reinfection is also a concern with the new variant, according to the journal Nature, but at this early stage, its difficult to tell how likely reinfection or breakthrough infections actually are.

The mutation profile gives us concern, but now we need to do the work to understand the significance of this variant and what it means for the response to the pandemic, Dr. Richard Lessells, an infectious disease expert at University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, South Africa, said at a South African health ministry press conference on Thursday.

Whether the efficacy of treatments such as monoclonal antibodies and new pill treatments from Pfizer and Merck will be the same against the omicron variant is also unclear, as is the new variants virulence, or how sick it will make those infected, Dr. Leana Wen, a professor of health policy at George Washington University, told CNNs Jim Acosta on Friday.

According to the WHO, the earliest known case of the omicron variant was on November 9, and the mutation was first detected November 24 in South Africa, which has an advanced detection system. While the delta variant is still the dominant strain worldwide and currently accounts for 99.9 percent of cases in the US, the discovery of the omicron variant has coincided with a spike in South African cases a more than 1,400 percent increase over the past two weeks, according to the New York Times.

However, the variant has likely spread far more widely than South Africa, according to Fauci. When you have a virus thats showing this degree of transmissibility & youre having travel-related cases ... it almost invariably is going to go all over, NBC reporter Kaitlan Collins tweeted Saturday, quoting Fauci.

On Friday, President Joe Biden announced new travel restrictions on eight southern African countries, which will take effect on Monday. Travel from Lesotho, South Africa, Eswatini, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, and Botswana will be restricted, though those restrictions wont apply to US citizens or green card holders, among other groups.

As Wen said on Friday, travel bans dont necessarily do much overall to prevent the spread of the virus, but they can buy time for governments to learn more about diseases and variants and better protect their populations.

Ive decided that were going to be cautious, Biden told reporters on Friday. But we dont know a lot about the variant except that it is of great concern; it seems to spread rapidly.

Other nations including the UK, Australia, Israel, France, and Germany are also restricting travel from southern African nations in an effort to contain the new variant, despite criticism from the South African government.

This latest round of travel bans is akin to punishing South Africa for its advanced genomic sequencing and the ability to detect new variants quicker, South Africas foreign ministry said in a Saturday statement. Excellent science should be applauded and not punished.

As of Saturday the US has not imposed any new travel restrictions on the European or Asian nations where the omicron variant has appeared.

In addition to imminent travel restrictions on a number of southern African nations, Biden urged vaccination and boosters for US citizens as a response to the new variant.

To that end, Biden on Friday also called on wealthy countries with the capability to donate vaccines to do so to low- and middle-income countries, as well as to waive intellectual property rights on current vaccines and treatments so that poorer countries can produce generic versions.

Accessibility isnt the only issue when it comes to a global vaccination campaign, however. Vaccine hesitancy has proven to be a global problem, including in South Africa, where last week the government asked drug companies to delay delivery of new vaccine doses in response to declining demand, despite less than 30 percent of its adult population being inoculated. Europe is presently struggling with a new outbreak at least partly due to its uneven vaccine uptake and vaccine resistance.

Omicron is likely already in the US, given the loosened restrictions on international travel earlier in the month and that the variant dates at least as far back as November 9. And even if its not yet, it soon will be, experts say.

Its not going to be possible to keep this infection out of the country, Fauci told the New York Times. The question is: Can you slow it down?

While there are still many unknowns about the omicron variant, experts agree that its a troubling development in the Covid-19 pandemic.

Weve seen variants come and go, and every month or two we hear about one, Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, told PBS on Friday. This one is concerning. This one is different. There are a lot of features here that have me and many of us concerned about this.

Delta, the current dominant strain of the virus, shows heightened transmissibility and an ability to evade antibodies, as Voxs Umair Irfan explained in June. But as with delta, the key to limiting omicrons spread depends upon human behavior and peoples willingness to engage with proven public health responses.

Stopping the spread also means stopping the possibility of harmful mutations to the virus. Mutations changes to the makeup of the virus are bound to happen, and many of them are harmless to people. The more opportunities the virus has to spread, however, the more chance it has to mutate into a variation that spreads faster, is more resistant to antibodies and treatments, or creates worse health outcomes or even all of these negative traits.

Existing tools, however, should still be effective in stopping omicron PCR tests appear to detect the variant, according to the WHO, and Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, told NPR on Friday that there is no data at the present time to indicate that the current vaccines would not work [against omicron].

Additionally, masking and social distancing both are proven strategies to stop the spread of Covid-19, as are getting vaccinated and getting a booster shot.

Those steps are especially crucial as the holiday season and cold weather bring people together indoors, where transmission occurs. According to the New York Timess Covid-19 tracker, cases in the US have increased 10 percent over the past two weeks, with daily averages of new cases over 85,000, hospitalizations over 52,000, and about 1,000 deaths each day. As of November 24, almost 75 percent of vaccine-eligible Americans have received at least one vaccine dose.

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What to know about the omicron variant, a new Covid-19 mutation - Vox

THE HAGUE, Netherlands Cases of the omicron variant of the coronavirus popped up in countries on opposite sides of the world Sunday and many governments rushed to close their borders even as scientists cautioned that its not clear if the new variant is more alarming than other versions of the virus.

The variant was identified days ago by researchers in South Africa, and much is still not known about it, including whether it is more contagious, more likely to cause serious illness or more able to evade the protection of vaccines. But many countries rushed to act, reflecting anxiety about anything that could prolong the pandemic that has killed more than 5 million people.

Israel decided to bar entry to foreigners, and Morocco said it would suspend all incoming flights for two weeks starting Monday among the most drastic of a growing raft of travel curbs being imposed by nations around the world as they scrambled to slow the variants spread. Scientists in several places from Hong Kong to Europe have confirmed its presence. The Netherlands reported 13 omicron cases on Sunday, and both Canada and Australia each found two.

Noting that the variant has already been detected in many countries and that closing borders often has limited effect, the World Health Organization called for frontiers to remain open.

Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health in the United States, meanwhile, emphasized that there is no data yet that suggests the new variant causes more serious illness than previous COVID-19 variants.

I do think its more contagious when you look at how rapidly it spread through multiple districts in South Africa. It has the earmarks therefore of being particularly likely to spread from one person to another. What we dont know is whether it can compete with delta, Collins said on CNNs State of the Union.

Collins echoed several experts in saying the news should make everyone redouble their efforts to use the tools the world already has, including vaccinations, booster shots and measures such as mask-wearing.

I know, America, youre really tired about hearing those things, but the virus is not tired of us, Collins said.

The Dutch public health authority confirmed that 13 people who arrived from South Africa on Friday have so far tested positive for omicron. They were among 61 people who tested positive for the virus after arriving on the last two flights to Amsterdams Schiphol airport before a flight ban was implemented. They were immediately put into isolation, most at a nearby hotel.

Canadas health minister says the countrys first two cases of omicron were found in Ontario after two individuals who had recently traveled from Nigeria tested positive.

Authorities in Australia said two travelers who arrived in Sydney from Africa became the first in the country to test positive for the new variant. Arrivals from nine African countries are now required to quarantine in a hotel upon arrival. Two German states reported a total of three cases in returning travelers over the weekend.

Israel moved to ban entry by foreigners and mandate quarantine for all Israelis arriving from abroad.

Restrictions on the countrys borders is not an easy step, but its a temporary and necessary step, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.

Moroccos Foreign Ministry tweeted Sunday that all incoming air travel to the North African country would be suspended to preserve the achievements realized by Morocco in the fight against the pandemic, and to protect the health of citizens. Morocco has been at the forefront of vaccinations in Africa, and kept its borders closed for months in 2020 because of the pandemic.

The U.S. plans to ban travel from South Africa and seven other southern African countries starting Monday. Its going to give us a period of time to enhance our preparedness, the United States top infectious diseases expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said of the ban on ABCs This Week.

Many countries are introducing such bans, though they go against the advice of the WHO, which has warned against any overreaction before the variant is thoroughly studied.

Fauci says it will take approximately two more weeks to have more definitive information on the transmissibility, severity and other characteristics of omicron, according to a statement from the White House Sunday evening.

South Africas government responded angrily to the travel bans, which it said are akin to punishing South Africa for its advanced genomic sequencing and the ability to detect new variants quicker. It said it will try to persuade countries that imposed them to reconsider.

The WHO sent out a statement saying it stands with African nations and noting that travel restrictions may play a role in slightly reducing the spread of COVID-19 but place a heavy burden on lives and livelihoods. It said if restrictions are put in place, they should be scientifically based and not intrusive.

In Europe, much of which already has been struggling with a sharp increase in cases over recent weeks, officials were on guard.

The U.K. on Saturday tightened rules on mask-wearing and on testing of international arrivals after finding two omicron cases, but British Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the government was nowhere near reinstituting work from home or more severe social-distancing measures.

We know now those types of measures do carry a very heavy price, both economically, socially, in terms of non-COVID health outcomes such as impact on mental health, he told Sky News.

Spain announced it wont admit unvaccinated British visitors starting Dec. 1. Italy was going through lists of airline passengers who arrived in the past two weeks. France is continuing to push vaccinations and booster shots.

David Hui, a respiratory medicine expert and government adviser on the pandemic in Hong Kong, agreed with that strategy.

He said the two people who tested positive for the omicron variant had received the Pfizer vaccine and exhibited very mild symptoms, such as a sore throat.

Vaccines should work but there would be some reduction in effectiveness, he said.

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Omicron COVID-19 variant now reported in Canada, Australia, The Netherlands - oregonlive.com

LONDON South African scientists identified a new version of the coronavirus that they say is behind a recent spike in COVID-19 infections in Gauteng, the countrys most populous province.

Its unclear where the new variant first emerged, but scientists in South Africa alerted the World Health Organization in recent days, and it has now been seen in travelers arriving in several countries, from Australia to Israel to the Netherlands.

On Friday, the WHO designated it as a variant of concern, naming it omicron after a letter in the Greek alphabet.

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT OMICRON?

Health Minister Joe Phaahla said the variant was linked to an exponential rise of cases in the last few days.

From just over 200 new confirmed cases per day in recent weeks, South Africa saw the number of new daily cases rocket to more than 3,200 Saturday, most in Gauteng.

Struggling to explain the sudden rise in cases, scientists studied virus samples and discovered the new variant. Now, as many as 90% of the new cases in Gauteng are caused by it, according to Tulio de Oliveira, director of the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform.

WHY ARE SCIENTISTS WORRIED ABOUT THIS NEW VARIANT?

After convening a group of experts to assess the data, the WHO said that preliminary evidence suggests an increased risk of reinfection with this variant, as compared to other variants.

That means people who contracted COVID-19 and recovered could be subject to catching it again.

The variant appears to have a high number of mutations about 30 in the coronavirus spike protein, which could affect how easily it spreads to people.

Sharon Peacock, who has led genetic sequencing of COVID-19 in Britain at the University of Cambridge, said the data so far suggest the new variant has mutations consistent with enhanced transmissibility, but said that the significance of many of the mutations is still not known.

Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, described omicron as the most heavily mutated version of the virus we have seen, including potentially worrying changes never before seen all in the same virus.

WHATS KNOWN AND NOT KNOWN ABOUT THE VARIANT?

Scientists know that omicron is genetically distinct from previous variants including the beta and delta variants, but do not know if these genetic changes make it any more transmissible or dangerous. So far, there is no indication the variant causes more severe disease.

It will likely take weeks to sort out if omicron is more infectious and if vaccines are still effective against it.

Peter Openshaw, a professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London said it was extremely unlikely that current vaccines wouldnt work, noting they are effective against numerous other variants.

Even though some of the genetic changes in omicron appear worrying, its still unclear if they will pose a public health threat. Some previous variants, like the beta variant, initially alarmed scientists but didnt end up spreading very far.

We dont know if this new variant could get a toehold in regions where delta is, said Peacock of the University of Cambridge. The jury is out on how well this variant will do where there are other variants circulating.

To date, delta is by far the most predominant form of COVID-19, accounting for more than 99% of sequences submitted to the worlds biggest public database.

HOW DID THIS NEW VARIANT ARISE?

The coronavirus mutates as it spreads and many new variants, including those with worrying genetic changes, often just die out. Scientists monitor COVID-19 sequences for mutations that could make the disease more transmissible or deadly, but they cannot determine that simply by looking at the virus.

Peacock said the variant may have evolved in someone who was infected but could then not clear the virus, giving the virus the chance to genetically evolve, in a scenario similar to how experts think the alpha variant which was first identified in England also emerged, by mutating in an immune-compromised person.

ARE THE TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS BEING IMPOSED BY SOME COUNTRIES JUSTIFIED?

Maybe.

Israel is banning foreigners from entering the country and Morocco has stopped all incoming international air travel.

A number of other countries are restricting flights in from southern Africa.

Given the recent rapid rise in COVID-19 in South Africa, restricting travel from the region is prudent and would buy authorities more time, said Neil Ferguson, an infectious diseases expert at Imperial College London.

But the WHO noted that such restrictions are often limited in their effect and urged countries to keep borders open.

Jeffrey Barrett, director of COVID-19 Genetics at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, thought that the early detection of the new variant could mean restrictions taken now would have a bigger impact than when the delta variant first emerged.

With delta, it took many, many weeks into Indias terrible wave before it became clear what was going on and delta had already seeded itself in many places in the world and it was too late to do anything about it, he said. We may be at an earlier point with this new variant so there may still be time to do something about it.

South Africas government said the country was being treated unfairly because it has advanced genomic sequencing and could detect the variant quicker and asked other countries to reconsider the travel bans.

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHOs regional director for Africa, commended South Africa and Botswana for quickly informing the world about the new variant.

With the omicron variant now detected in several regions of the world, putting in place travel bans that target Africa attacks global solidarity, Moeti said. COVID-19 constantly exploits our divisions. We will only get the better of the virus if we work together for solutions.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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What we know and don't know on new COVID-19 variant - pressherald.com

The Cowboys roster has been harangued by COVID-19 all season long, with the virus affecting more players in Dallas than any other locker room in the league.

Now its working its way though the coaching staff, too, causing a ripple effect of gameday duties.

The Cowboys have announced that offensive line coach Joe Philbin, assistant offensive line coach Joe Blasko, and coaching assistant Scott Tolzien have entered the leagues COVID-19 protocol and will miss Thursday nights game against the Saints.

Their absences will put several other Cowboys staffers in new roles on a fill-in basis.

We have some different scenarios of exactly how were going to work the week, head coach Mike McCarthy said Sunday in a conference call with media members.

Those scenarios include tight end coach Lunda Wells, quality control coach Chase Haslett, and Ben McAdoo, who has been serving the team in a consultant role, scouting future opponents.

Wellss first coaching job was as an offensive line assistant at LSU for two seasons; he did the same job again with the New York Giants from 2013 to 2017.

Haslett is the son of former NFL coach Jim Haslett. He was hired by Dallas in 2020 after gaining offensive coaching experience at Nebraska, Mississippi State, and Mercer.

McAdoos name is most familiar as the head coach of the Giants in 2016 and most of 2017. Most of his body of work as a coach comes on the offensive side of the ball, working with the offensive line, tight ends, or quarterbacks.

Now all three will pitch in on getting the Cowboys line- without Terence Steele, who has also tested positive for COVID ready for New Orleans.

As for whether McCarthy himself will get personally more involved with that unit for the Week 13 game, the coach had this to say:

I think the biggest thing is just to make sure that the job description and responsibility is always tight. We feel really good about our game plan process. How well do the group meetings, well spend a little more time together as a group. This is something that I think that this an opportunity for young coaches to take advantage of. Definitely, Ill be where I need to be this week.

Philbin tested positive for the virus last week and missed the Thanksgiving Day game versus Las Vegas, as did assistant strength and conditioning coaches Kendall Smith and Cedric Smith.

Blasko handled O-line coaching responsibilities on Thursday; he and Tolzien turned in positive COVID tests since then.

Following the clash with the Saints, the Cowboys will have nine full days off before beginning their final five-game stretch of the regular season, in which theyll play four divisional games and one against the NFCs top seed Arizona Cardinals.

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COVID-19 to have ripple effect on multiple Cowboys coaches for Week 13 - Cowboys Wire

The Bowdoinham Guild of Artisans Holiday Show will return this year after being canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The six-day event will promote the local artisans work, including pottery, jewelry, woodworking, stained glass, paintings, fine art photos and fiber arts.

There will be 18 artisans and some local guest artists showing and selling their work this year.

There are a couple of people that are not participating because of other obligations, so we have invited some guest artists to join us, said Bowdoinham Guild of Artisans President Lynn Sternfels. They are not necessarily a member of the guild, but they are local artisans.

Sternfels said they were unsure if they could conduct the show even this year because of the COVID-19.

COVID-19 is still with us. In the pandemic, people must be careful, but there was so much energy from every artist, so we wanted to give it a try, said Sternfels.

For Jeffery Lipton, a pottery artist and a guild member, the show is an opportunity to get out of his studio and meet his friends and neighbors in the community.

This is a fun show because it is such a tight community, and everyone shows up, and it is fun. Its good to receive feedback and see what work resonates with people, said Lipton. The way that works out it some things sell better than other things, and that is good information for me as a maker.

Lipton added that all artists have continued to grow from events like the guild show.

In the 10 years that I have been a guild member, I think everyones work has evolved, said Lipton. For most of us, our studio work is a solitary pursuit. I have a small studio, and I am the only one working here, and so I just, I can get caught in my little world. But by being the guild member, I can get out and talk to other artists. Its supporting and fostering the pursuit of fine craft and art.

Joanie Mitchell, a guild member and an artist said it feels great that the show is back this year. She sews felted wool mittens from recycled wool sweaters.

I attend this one show a year, and usually, I do quite well, said Mitchell. I sew quite a few mittens, and I also get orders. Sometimes people bring their favorite sweater that may belong to their mother, and I will make mittens from it. It is a great way to see people and to get your product out there.

In addition, the famous Bowdoinham Public Library will have book arts available such as tree ornaments and blank notebooks and journals. There will be gift items that are priced affordably.

As a COVID-19 precaution, all visitors must wear a mask.

For the first time, the show will be held on two weekends. Usually, it is held only on the first weekend of December.

I think we have learned from last years pop-up store that was open for almost three weeks, including weekdays, said Bowdoinham Guild of Artisans secretary Wendy Rose. A lot of people appreciated the opportunity to have more time to come and look at the artwork and often than they would return to buy something they have seen.

We wanted to give people an opportunity to come more often, added Wendy.

Bowdoinham Guild of Artisans was started in 2004 by five local artists looking for a way to promote their art. Over the years, other artists joined them, and although there are only one of the original members still in the Guild, there are currently 20 members.

The event will be held on from 6-8 p.m. on Dec. 3, and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Dec. 4 and 5. For the first time, the show will be open on a weekday, Wednesday, Dec. 8, from 2-6 p.m., on Dec. 10 from 6-8 p.m. and Dec. 11 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Bowdoinham Town Hall.

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Bowdoinham Guild Show returns after COVID-19 disrupted last year's - pressherald.com

The floor of theNewYorkStockExchange(NYSE) is seen after the close of trading inNewYork, U.S., March 18, 2020. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

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NEW YORK, Nov 26 (Reuters) - COVID-19 has resurfaced as a worry for investors and a potential driver of big market moves after a new variant triggered alarm, long after the threat had receded in Wall Street's eyes.

Worries about a new strain of the virus, named Omicron and classified by the World Health Organization as a variant of concern, slammed markets worldwide and dealt the S&P 500 index its biggest one-day percentage loss in nine months. The moves came a day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday when thin volume likely exacerbated the moves.

With little known about the new variant, longer term implications for U.S. assets were unclear. At least, investors said signs that the new strain is spreading and questions over its resistance to vaccines could weigh on the so-called reopening trade that has lifted markets at various times this year.

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The new strain may also complicate the outlook for how aggressively the Federal Reserve normalizes monetary policy to fight inflation.

"Markets were celebrating the end of the pandemic. Slam. It isn't over," said David Kotok, chairman and chief investment officer at Cumberland Advisors. "All policy issues, meaning monetary policy, business trajectories, GDP growth estimates, leisure and hospitality recovery, the list goes on, are on hold."

The S&P 500 fell by a third as pandemic fears mushroomed in early 2020, but has more than doubled in value since then, though the pandemic's ebb and flow has driven sometimes-violent rotations in the types of stocks investors favor. The index is up more than 22% this year.

Before Friday, broader vaccine availability and advances in treatments made markets potentially less sensitive to COVID-19. The virus had dropped to a distant fifth in a list of so-called "tail risks" to the market in a recent survey of fund managers by BofA Global Research, with inflation and central bank hikes taking the top spots.

On Friday, however, technology and growth stocks that had prospered during last year's so-called stay-at-home trade soared, including Zoom Communications (ZM.O), Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) and Peloton (PTON.O).

At the same time, stocks that had rallied this year on bets of economic reopening may suffer if virus fears grow. Energy, financials and other economically sensitive stocks tumbled on Friday, as did those of many travel-related companies such as airlines and hotels.

The new Omicron coronavirus variant spread further around the world on Sunday, with 13 cases found in the Netherlands and two each in Denmark and Australia, even as more countries tried to seal themselves off by imposing travel restrictions.

First discovered in South Africa, the new variant has now also been detected in Britain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, Botswana, Israel, Australia and Hong Kong. read more

Friday's swings also sent the Cboe Volatility Index (.VIX), known as Wall Street's fear gauge, soaring and options investors scrambling to hedge their portfolios against further market swings. read more

Andrew Thrasher, portfolio manager for The Financial Enhancement Group, had been concerned that recent gains in a handful of technology stocks with large weightings in the S&P 500, including Apple Inc (AAPL.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), were masking weakness in the broader market.

"This set the kindling for sellers to push markets lower and the latest COVID news appears to have stoked that bearish flame," he said.

Some investors said the latest COVID-19 related weakness could be a chance to buy stocks at comparatively lower levels, expecting the market to continue rapidly recovering from dips, a pattern that has marked its march to record highs this year.

"We've had numerous days when economic optimism collapses. Each of these optimism collapses were a good buying opportunity," wrote Bill Smead, founder of Smead Capital Management, in a note to investors. Among the stocks he recommended were Occidental Petroleum (OXY.N) and Macerich Co (MAC.N), down 7.2% and 5.2% respectively on Friday.

One of several wild cards is whether virus-driven economic uncertainty will slow the Federal Reserve's plans to normalize monetary policy, just as it has started unwinding its $120 billion a month bond buying program.

Futures on the U.S. federal funds rate, which track short-term interest rate expectations, on Friday showed investors rolling back their view of a sooner-than-expected rate increase.

Investors will be watching Fed Chair Jerome Powell and U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's appearance before Congress to discuss the government's COVID response on Nov. 30 as well as U.S. employment numbers, due out next Friday.

Investors held out hope that markets could stabilize. Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Cresset Capital Management, said moves may have been exaggerated by lack of liquidity on Friday, with many participants out for the Thanksgiving holiday.

"My first reaction is anything we are going to see today is overdone," Ablin said.

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Reporting by Saqib Iqbal Ahmed; Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak, Megan Davies and Lewis Krauskopf; Writing by Ira Iosebashvili; Editing by Megan Davies, Richard Chang and Alexander Smith

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Wall St Week Ahead COVID-19 fears reappear as a threat to market - Reuters

Cases of COVID-19 among children are increasing far faster than all other age groups in Maine, creating concerns among pediatricians that children are spreading the virus to older and more at-risk residents while facing risks to their own health, as well.

Over the last month, Maines overall seven-day case average has increased by 49 percent, from 463 on average in late October to 688 cases on average this week, according to data from the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Among individuals under the age of 20, however, the increase has been 83 percent during that time, more than 100 cases per day on average.

The larger increase among children makes sense given that they also have the lowest rates of vaccination. Children between the ages of 5 and 11 have only been eligible to get vaccine for a few weeks and those under the age of 5 are still not eligible. By comparison, Mainers with the highest rate of vaccination 60-79-year-olds have seen cases increase by about 19 percent in the last month.

Children and young adults do sometimes become seriously ill from the disease, although the chances are lower than among older age groups. Even if they dont become ill, children can play a major role in keeping the virus transmission line going and can sometimes do so unknowingly because they are not exhibiting symptoms.

Its the same with influenza. Kids are major transmitters, said Dr. Dora Anne Mills, chief health improvement officer for MaineHealth, the state largest health care network. Even if they dont die or get sick, they are carriers, and often silent carriers.

The longer the virus is able to spread, the greater chance other variants might develop, too. Some could be worse than the highly contagious delta variant that is dominating right now, and some could even prove vaccine-resistant. The Associated Press reported last week that estimates by the COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub, a collection of university and medical research organizations, suggest vaccines could make a big difference.

The hubs latest estimates show that for November through March 12, 2022, vaccinating a high percentage of 5- to 11-year-olds could avert about 430,000 COVID cases in the overall U.S. population if no new variant arose.

Dr. Gretchen Pianka, a pediatrician with Central Maine Pediatrics, said some of the recent surge in transmission among the young is likely a function of fatigue. Parents have been making decisions constantly for the last year and a half about how best to keep their kids safe, but schools are fully open now and extracurricular activities are far more prevalent than a year ago.

Families are relaxed, she said. They think, I have a healthy child and they should do fine, and it can be hard to expand that lens.

Pianka said its true children have been at lower risk of serious illness, but shes seen young patients get super sick.

And we still dont have a sense of the long-term effects, she said.

The trend of increasing transmission among children is happening across the country, too. The American Academy of Pediatrics this week released a report that showed, as of last week, pediatric cases of COVID-19 have increased by 32 percent from two weeks earlier. It was the 15th consecutive week that cases among Americans 18 or younger have been above 100,000.

At least some of the virus spread has been happening in schools and extracurricular activities in Maine. During the last school year, many communities took measures to limit the number of children in a classroom and mask mandates were near-universal. Now, fewer measures are in place, although many schools still do require masks.

Over the last 30 days, 5,181 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in public schools and 200 schools have seen an outbreak, which means at least three cases are linked epidemiologically.

According to U.S. Census data, there are approximately 280,000 Maine residents under the age of 20. Thats about 21 percent of the population. Since the pandemic began, there have been 26,524 cases in that age group, or 22.5 percent of all cases. But that number has been rising steadily recently. Younger people make up a higher percentage of cases than ever before.

The Maine CDC also has recorded 76 hospitalizations among those under 25, which is as specific as the agency breaks down COVID-19 patients by age. Maine has not had any pediatric COVID-19 deaths, but nationwide, at least 731 deaths from COVID-19 have occurred in individuals ages 18 or younger, according to the U.S. CDC.

Dr. Mills said past studies have shown that with infectious diseases, especially when vaccines are scarce, its prudent to vaccinate children first because they are the biggest spreaders. That hasnt happened with COVID-19 because it took many months for federal officials to authorize vaccines for children.

The vaccine has only been approved for 5- to 11-year-olds since the beginning of the month. Those between the age of 12 and 15 have been eligible since mid-May.

The rate of vaccination among 12- to 19-year-olds in Maine is 62.6 percent, or about 5 percentage points lower than the states overall rate. Among 5- to 11-year-olds, 26 percent have gotten first doses thus far. Vaccines havent been in use long enough to help slow the spread among that age group.

But as has been the case throughout the states vaccination effort, people are far less likely to get vaccinated in rural, inland Maine counties. For example, 77 percent of all Cumberland County residents age 12 through 19 are fully vaccinated, but just 43 percent of Franklin County residents in that age group are.

Among 5- to 11-year-olds, 45 percent in Cumberland County have gotten a first dose, while just 8 percent of elementary school age children in Somerset County have.

Pianka said she still hears from parents who have concerns about vaccinating their children. She said she listens to those concerns and, if needed, dispels any misinformation.

I tell them it does one thing and one thing only, she said. It sends a message to cells that says Make antibodies to protect against this virus. Thats all it does.

One example of a concern, she said, is risk of myocarditis, an inflammation of heart muscles. Early studies of the vaccines showed a small number of cases of this condition.

But Pianka said subsequent studies have shown that the risk of myocarditis is 10 times greater for those who contract COVID-19 than the general population, and the risk for those who have been vaccinated is actually lower than the risk level for the general population at the moment.

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Children and teens lead surge in COVID-19 cases - Press Herald

Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff said Tuesday its difficult to predict COVID-19 patterns, but said the recent numbers do not bode well.

We are heading into the winter with very high levels of disease transmission, he said. And over the last couple of weeks, a definite upturn in the number of cases and the number of hospitalizations. So essentially were heading into the winter already in a surge.

In the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, the number of patients admitted to Kettering Health hospitals with COVID-19 nearly doubled, said Dr. Jeffrey Weinstein, patient safety officer at Kettering Health. In the three weeks between Nov. 2 and Nov. 23, statewide hospitalizations for COVID-19 increased by 40%.

The severity of these COVID-19 illnesses is very high, and we are unfortunately seeing many deaths, he said. This is tragic as these deaths are largely preventable by the widely available vaccines And the upcoming Thanksgiving travel poses a major risk of spread for both COVID-19 and influenza.

At this point in the pandemic, the majority of hospitalizations and deaths are among the unvaccinated. Statewide this year, about 95% of those hospitalized with COVID-19 and 95% of those who died of COVID-19 were not fully vaccinated. Regional COVID-19 hospitalizations have largely been unvaccinated people, hovering at around 87% of COVID patients in recent weeks, according to the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association.

Premier Health centers have seen a similar increase in COVID hospitalizations as the rest of the state in recent weeks, said Dr. Roberto Coln, chief medical officer at Miami Valley Hospital.

Unfortunately, there is indeed concern about another significant spike again if we are not careful, he said. The best ways to help avoid further increase is to continue to increase vaccine use and follow mask-wearing recommendations.

How cold weather affects the virus

Respiratory viruses tend to transmit better in weather thats cooler and less humid, Wooley explained. She pointed to studies that show the COVID-19 virus particle survives longer in cooler temperatures.

So its a matter of the virus particle structure being more stable in the cooler temperatures, she said. And also, if you look at peoples susceptibility in their lungs, in this winter weather where its again cooler and drier, even their lungs can become a little bit more dry and more vulnerable to viral infections.

Dawn Wooley, a Wright State University Professor with a doctorate in virology

Other coronaviruses that cause common colds that have been studied for years have seasonal patterns.

So its very likely that this one will have the same pattern, and the data is emerging that it is fitting that same seasonal pattern, Wooley said.

But like other viruses, COVID-19 is present year-round. And it reared its ugly head this summer. Wooley explained there were a number of factors that fueled that surge, which was still smaller than last winters peak.

After over a year of lockdowns, a loosening of the social distancing guidelines and larger gatherings of people contributed to the surge. The more contagious Delta variant came on the scene and made younger people sicker than the original. Although the vaccine was available to everyone by summer, there were many people refusing the vaccine (and they still are), she said.

How traveling, gathering could play a role

Thanksgiving travel rebounded this year. Over 53 million people were predicted to travel for the Thanksgiving holiday, up 13% from last year, according to AAA.

While experts said its safe for most fully vaccinated families to gather, they warned against unvaccinated people traveling and gathering together. But according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll from October, only 7% of unvaccinated adults said they wont travel for the holidays due to the pandemic or avoid large gatherings (12%).

The large number of people gathering indoors in the winter from different households, especially people from far away, compounds on the cold weather factor to spread respiratory viruses at higher rates, Wooley said.

The more confined spaces with less airflow, theres a higher chance of transmission and susceptible people may breathe in a higher dose, she said.

Not at herd immunity

Until a population acquires enough immunity from a virus, outbreaks will continue.

Theres still a lot of transmission, said Sara Paton, an epidemiology professor at Wright State University. And from what weve seen from other countries, it looks like you need to have 90% or more to really see COVID start to decrease significantly. I also think we have waning immunity. So even those that are fully vaccinated, if they havent gotten their booster, theyre not going to be as immune against COVID as they were a few months ago.

Only about 52% of Ohio is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and some area counties lag behind. Darke County is about 35% fully vaccinated, Preble County is about 37% vaccinated, Champaign County is about 40% vaccinated and Miami County is about 43% vaccinated.

Given what we have learned about COVID so far, it is unlikely that we will reach herd immunity anytime soon, Paton said. New variants, vaccine hesitancy, waning immunity and human factors all play into this. However, the vaccines have shown to be highly effective at preventing hospitalizations and deaths. It is more realistic to expect that increased vaccination rates will reduce the severity and prominence of the disease, making the virus easier to live with.

Ending the spread of the virus is one way to end the pandemic and return to normal, Paton said.

But another way of ending the pandemic is to prevent severe disease and death, she said.

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Another winter surge of COVID-19 predicted in Ohio - Dayton Daily News

Mayor-elect Eric Adams had planned a weeklong international trip thats now up in the air because of the new Omicron COVID-19 variant, sources familiar with his travel told The Post.

Adams was going to head out of the country to an unknown destination from Nov. 30 through Dec. 8, sources said. The trip had not previously been reported.

But hes now reconsidering the trip since the Omicron variant that originated in Africa has beenfound among travelersin the UK, Germany and the Czech Republic.

Adams itinerary was unclear even to people in his inner circle. Some told The Post he was headed to Europe while others said it was a mystery locale off the beaten path.

The mayor-elect, who will be sworn in at midnight on Jan. 1, is famously guarded about his private life. The retired NYPD captain told reporters through tears on the primary campaign trail in June that he never let his cop colleagues know he had a son fearing for the boys safety because of his status as a police department reformer.

The outgoing Brooklyn borough president last traveled abroad in August during the general election campaign. At the time his reps would only say he was on a personal trip to Europe with family. Politico later reported that he was vacationing in Monaco.

A spokesman for Adams did not return messages seeking comment about the upcoming trip.

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Eric Adams' planned international trip now up in the air due to COVID-19 Omicron variant - New York Post