Here are some significant developments:
- Following approval by the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending for use the Johnson & Johnson single shot vaccine with deliveries to start this week.
- Israel’s lightning-fast vaccination program is providing a wealth of information on the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, including that it is safe for pregnant and nursing women as well as for those with food allergies and autoimmune disorders.
- Former president Donald Trump urged people to get vaccinated in his speech before the Conservative Political Action Conference, something he declined to advocate while in the White House.
- Mexico’s Oaxaca depends on tourism and is glad to have many visitors return, but their lax attitude toward the coronavirus restrictions is a problem.
- More than 512,000 people have died in the United States from the coronavirus with 28.5 million cases reported since the virus was first identified. The rolling average for both deaths and new cases has been on the rise this week. So far 14.6 percent of the population has been vaccinated.