The Road goes ever on and on ... Day 200 (700)

Kern County, in Southern California not too far from Los Angeles County, has invited deputies in LA County who might lose their jobs for not being vaccinated to apply to work in Kern County. There, in the last two weeks, 53 residents have died of covid. There are currently about 4,000 unvaccinated deputies in LA County, so there would be lots for Kern County to consider. Kansas and Tennessee have also invited unvaccinated law enforcement officers from around the country to come there and work. 

Covid deaths are up in 26 states. Deaths here in Virginia have gone up 260 percent in the last two weeks. Mississippi has seen deaths go up 209 percent over the same time period; South Carolina's deaths also went up over 200 percent. Nevada, where deaths have gone up 37 percent in the last two weeks and where only 59 percent of the population is fully vaccinated, just ended mask mandates effective immediately. There, and elsewhere, mask mandate decisions have been made on the basis of case numbers rather than deaths. Nationally, new daily cases are down about 75 percent from the mid-January peak but are still in six digits. 

Norway is adopting a "live-with" approach to the coronavirus. The prime minister explains, "This is the day we have been waiting for....The coronavirus pandemic no longer poses a major health threat to most of us. The Omicron virus causes far less serious illness, and we are well protected by vaccines." In Norway, 81 percent of the population have had at least a first dose, 75 percent are fully vaccinated, and 53 percent have gotten a third, booster dose. Other changes include that only adults with symptoms need to be tested. Those infected only need to remain at home for four days. Children who are ill should remain at home until they have been fever-free for 24 hours. Finally, there are now no travel restrictions except to Svalbard. 

I wish that the Norwegian prime minister's comment about being well protected by vaccines applied here. Vaccination rates in West Virginia, Alabama, and Kentucky are well below the national averages, and they have the highest recent per capita hospitalization rates. It seems that the vaccine-resistant will stay resistant, and the only new vaccinations that might happen would be those of children under five when such authorization is given. 

It's Super Bowl Sunday which means I'm making chili even if it's just The Professor and me here to eat it. We'll watch some of the game paying the most attention to ads, several of which I've already seen online. We can then bid football farewell until August. I wonder if we'll be officially endemic by then.