Coronavirus Watch: Fauci to throw first pitch ⚾
Who better to throw out the first pitch of MLB's short season? Dr. Fauci.
The nation's top infectious disease expert will be joining the Washington Nationals on the mound in tonight's opener against the New York Yankees.
It's Thursday, and this is the Coronavirus Watch from the Paste BN Network. Here's the most significant news of the day, as of 2 p.m. ET:
- Unemployment claims rise for first time since March: 1.4 million more people filed for jobless benefits for the first time last week. In little more than four months, a staggering 52.7 million people have sought unemployment aid for the first time.
- The nationwide daily death toll surpassed 1,000 for the second straight day and hospitalizations were again peaking.
- $1 trillion relief package: Senate Republicans plan to release details of the package later today that will include another round of stimulus checks and additional funding to help schools.
- More bankruptcies: The parent company of Lane Bryant, Ann Taylor and the Justice tween brand has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, a move spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Today's numbers: The U.S. is nearing 4 million confirmed cases and more than 143,000 deaths, according to John Hopkins University data. Worldwide cases have surpassed 15 million with more than 624,000 deaths. See the numbers in your area here, and check out where cases are rising here.
What we're reading: To understand when pre-COVID-19 life in the U.S. can resume, Paste BN created a panel of experts to estimate how close we are to securing a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The panelists were pretty much in agreement in June: We were about one-third of the way. This month, opinions turned out to be more diverse – estimates ranged from a cautious to optimistic. We break it down here.
Do you have questions about the coronavirus? You can submit them through this form. Joe from Phoenix asks: Does the severity or length of time a COVID-19 case lasts have any effect on the antibodies that develop as far as strength or time of longevity?
"What data we have suggests that the more severe the disease, in general, the higher the antibody levels, but there are definitely exceptions to this," said Gregory Poland, director of the Mayo Clinic's Vaccine Research Group.
Regardless of severity, antibody levels seem to peak about three weeks, then start falling, Poland said.
"The pressing issue is how long after recovery (or immunization) are people protected? We don’t know yet, but it is likely that individuals will become susceptible again at some point," he said.
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– Grace Hauck, Paste BN breaking news reporter, @grace_hauck