Just finished rounding in the icu, definitely strange seeing the trees going wild outside patient windows. Not sure this parking sign is gonna make it outside the call room.

Update: So far, #COVID19 is outperforming #HurricaneIda & not in a good way pic.twitter.com/GpcU4SfHfJ

— Joshua Denson MD (@jdensonMD) August 29, 2021

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Everybody (globally) is already suffering COVID-19 fatigue, what happens when we are suffering climate change fatigue? Like multiple massive hurricanes and fires and droughts and floods every year...

Louisiana Emergency Manager said they were not going to separate people with Covid from people who do not have Covid.

She believed in nothing; only her skepticism kept her from being an atheist. -- Jean-Paul Sartre

JUST IN: The European Union encourages members to reinstate travel restrictions for visitors from the U.S., as Americans deal with a resurgence of COVID-19 cases. [_link]

— ABC News (@ABC) August 30, 2021

Biden's Response To The Coronavirus Crisis | Poll 538 |

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COVID-19 death toll passes 7,000; over 500 felled by virus in August alone [_link]

— The Times of Israel (@TimesofIsrael) August 30, 2021

Israel, the US, and three other countries were officially removed from a list of nations deemed "epidemiologically safe" by the European Union on Monday, due to rising COVID-19 cases.

EU travel restrictions will be in place for the following five nations: Israel, Kosovo, Lebanon, Montenegro, the Republic of North Macedonia and the United States of America.

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Connally Independent School District officials closed its five suburban Waco schools for the rest of the week after the Saturday COVID-19 death of Natalia Chansler, 41, a sixth-grade social studies teacher at Connally Junior High School. [_link]

— CBS Austin (@cbsaustin) September 1, 2021

Central Texas School District Closes After 2 Teachers Die of COVID-19 | NPR |

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1.
Mu [μ, mean] COVID variant: All you need to know about the new ["]UK["] coronavirus strain

A new coronavirus strain has been added to the World Health Organization's (WHO) watchlist. The Mu strain, also called B.1.621, has been listed as a 'variant of interest' as of 30 August 2021.

There have been 48 cases of the Mu strain in the UK, with two cases occurring in the week leading up to 25 August 2021. The strain shares mutations with variants of concern, including the Delta variant which is currently dominating in the UK and USA.
[...]
The Mu variant was first documented in Colombia, in January 2021. There, it has been responsible for 852 cases, according to the GISAID COVID tracking initiative.

According to data from GISAID, the strain has been detected in at least 40 countries and in 49 states across the USA.

2.
UK version What is C.1.2, the new Covid variant in South Africa, and should we be worried?

On Monday the National Institute for Communicable Diseases in South Africa issued an alert about the "C.1.2 lineage", saying it had been detected in all provinces in the country, but at a relatively low rate.

C.1.2 was first detected in May, the alert said, but Delta is still the dominant variant spreading in South Africa and the world.

A pre-print, non peer-reviewed paper published about the variant said C.1.2 "has since been detected across the majority of the provinces in South Africa and in seven other countries spanning Africa, Europe, Asia and Oceania".

USA version C.1.2 variant has concerning mutations, experts say, but Americans shouldn't panic: 'I wouldn't lose any lose sleep'

International health agencies don't list it as a "variant of concern." It's not even a "variant of interest." Still, as the the pandemic continues, scientists are keeping a close eye on mutations of the original coronavirus that might turn more dangerous.

Coincidentally, "Antimicrobial resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae has reached an alarming level, severely impacting the effective treatment of gonorrhea."

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis filed an appeal against a court ruling invalidating his ban on student mask mandates Thursday evening. [_link]

— ABC News (@ABC) September 3, 2021

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Pres. Biden's overall job approval rating is down to 44%, with 51% disapproving, according to new @ABC News/WaPo poll. [_link] pic.twitter.com/ReDUugPmCU

— ABC News (@ABC) September 3, 2021

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Get vaccinated ... across the globe where infection rates are high, this includes in the UK and US. The Coronavirus loves the unvaccinated in Red States with Governor ban on masks ... just lovely.

There has always been a plan. A clear plan, first issued by @WHO on 4 Feb 2020 and updated over time.

We can save lives now. We need all national leaders to step up & we can all play our part.

Thanks for the question @todaynewsafrica #COVID19 @DrTedros @DrMikeRyan [_link]

— Maria Van Kerkhove (@mvankerkhove) September 8, 2021

New WHO group aims to improve efforts to find pathogen origins

WHO Call for experts to joint Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO)

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TikTok Star Megan Alexandra Blankenbiller Begs Others to Get Vaccinated Before Dying of COVID in Hospital

In a later TikTok, Alexandra revealed that her hospital experience has been frightening. "I've been here since for early Friday morning," she said. "All I've been hearing are the moans and screams of people in pain. People, I'm assuming, that have lost people that they love because I know what that's like personally and what that sounds like."

"It's no secret this is something that should be taken seriously," Blankenbiller's sister, Cristina Blankenbiller, told WebMD. "But there's so much misinformation out there."

Cristina shared that she, Alexandra, their mother, and their sister made appointments to get vaccinated, but they all came down with COVID-19 before their shots. "Her final video really showed a lot of who she was," sister Rachel Blankenbiller said. "She was selfless--the type of person who used her final days to help others."

Unfortunately, her case is not unique. According to CDC data, Florida is seeing its deadliest surge of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Only 54% of the state population was fully vaccinated as of Sept. 3.

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