Pregnant women are at a higher risk of severe illness and even death due to COVID-19 than women who are not pregnant, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A new CDC study Monday found that the risk of death increased 70% for pregnant women infected with the coronavirus when compared to nonpregnant women. They were also more likely to be admitted to an intensive care unit, receive invasive ventilation, or be connected to a specialized heart-lung bypass machine. The study examined 409,462 women ages 15 to 44 who were symptomatic with COVID-19, including 23,434 who were pregnant.
However, the overall risk to pregnant women is still relatively low.
“The absolute risk of these severe outcomes are low among women 15 to 44, regardless of pregnancy status, but what we do see is an increased risk associated with pregnancy,” Sascha Ellington, a health scientist with the CDC, told the New York Times.
The study prompted the CDC to add pregnancy to its list of the conditions that are at higher risk of severe illness due to the coronavirus.
The United States has confirmed nearly 9.3 million cases and more than 231,000 deaths to date.
The rift between Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, and the Trump administration widened late Sunday, when Trump told supporters in Florida that he would fire Fauci after the election. But Fauci had already been effectively sidelined in the administration’s response to the pandemic and brought into open confrontation with the administration.
As conservative sentiment has turned against him and the administration has limited his media appearances, Fauci has had to use alternative channels to get the message across, such as a virtual interview with actress Jennifer Garner through Instagram Live. Fauci, a career civil servant, cannot be fired by Trump, except for cause.
While public health officials have urged people for months to wear masks in all public places, many states will not require voters to wear them to polling places on Tuesday.
“Voters are encouraged but not required to wear a face covering while at a polling place for the purpose of voting in an election,” Michigan’s website said in an update, which is similar to comments made by officials in Pennsylvania, California, and Virginia.
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced curfews for some businesses in response to the recent rise in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Massachusetts. Restaurants will have to stop table services at 9:30 p.m., and other facilities, including gyms and theaters, will have to close at the same time. Baker also announced a tighter mask mandate requiring that anyone over 5 years old must wear a mask in public regardless of his or her distance from other people. The limit on indoor gatherings has been reduced to 10 people and outdoor gatherings to 25 people. All gatherings, regardless of size, must end and disperse by 9:30 p.m. Fines for violating the order will be $500 for each person above the limit.
The Department of Public Health stopped short of instituting a formal curfew and instead issued a new stay-at-home advisory that urges people to be at home between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., except for necessary activities, such as going to work, school, or the grocery store.
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is heading into a voluntary quarantine after being in contact with someone infected with the novel coronavirus.
“I am well and without symptoms but will self-quarantine over the coming days, in line with WHO protocols, and work from home,” Tedros announced via Twitter on Sunday.
The WHO chief’s exposure comes as a surge in coronavirus cases across Europe is spurring governments to renew lockdowns, with varying degrees of intensity, despite the economic consequences of the measures earlier this year. Tedros’s precautionary step isn’t the only high-profile exposure, as German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer is also headed into isolation, even though she tested negative for the coronavirus.
Coronavirus cases rose over 24% in nursing homes in October.
A new report from the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living, based on data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Johns Hopkins University, finds that weekly cases rose nationwide from 6,141 on Oct. 4 to 7,563 on Oct. 18.
The Midwest has been the hardest hit, accounting for 43% of the cases.
Prince William revealed that he tested positive for COVID-19 in April.
Explaining why he hid his diagnosis, the Duke of Cambridge said, “There were important things going on, and I didn’t want to worry anyone.”
“William was hit pretty hard by the virus — it really knocked him for six,” a source told the Sun. “At one stage, he was struggling to breathe, so obviously, everyone around him was pretty panicked.”
