Pandemic restrictions being reimposed rapidly across the country

To date, more than 247,000 people have died due to COVID-19, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

California pulled the “emergency brake” on reopening Monday as the coronavirus outbreak in the state surges, the Los Angeles Times reported. Most of the state is now experiencing uncontrolled spread, per state public health guidelines.

“We are seeing community spread broadly now throughout the state of California,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday. “We are now moving backward, not forward.”

About 94% of Californians will live in counties designated as purple, or being the most restrictive tier in the reopening plan.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, said Monday that she has the authority to institute a second stay-at-home order if necessary for public health. She announced new restrictions on Sunday, calling them a “targeted approach.” They include ordering all Michigan high schools and colleges to halt in-person classes. Restaurants must stop indoor dining, and entertainment businesses such as casinos, movie theaters, and bowling alleys must close for three weeks. Limits on gathering sizes will also be tightened.

The conservative radiologist-turned-White House adviser Dr. Scott Atlas tweeted Sunday night, “The only way this stops is if people rise up. You get what you accept. #FreedomMatters #StepUp.”

Whitmer said on MSNBC Monday, “It actually took my breath away, to tell you the truth.”

The number of cases in Michigan has increased more than 20% in the last week alone, from 229,003 on Nov. 8 to a total of 275,792 on Sunday, according to data from the COVID Tracking Project.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee also tightened the state’s coronavirus restrictions on Sunday. Inslee ordered restaurants and bars to halt indoor services and limited outdoor services to parties of five or fewer. Indoor gyms and fitness centers must shut down, in addition to movie theaters, bowling alleys, and museums. Indoor gatherings with people outside a single household will be prohibited unless participants have quarantined for at least a week and tested negative.

Inslee said he hopes restrictions can be lifted after the requisite four weeks, adding, “We would hope we have progress and that would be the limit of these restrictions.”

Philadelphia also reinstated coronavirus restrictions as cases continue to increase in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The new round of restrictions, to last through Jan. 1, includes closing indoor restaurant dining, gyms, and museums starting on Friday and will require office workers to work remotely.

Mayor Jim Kenney also announced a ban on public and private indoor gatherings, which would make large holiday gatherings violations of city regulations. Large outdoor gatherings, such as sports games in stadiums, will also be banned starting Friday. All high schools and colleges in the city will have to move to full-time remote learning.

El Paso hospitals have started rationing care to prioritize certain patients, a morally questionable last-resort policy adopted by several European countries in the spring as COVID-19 deaths piled up. On Monday, hospitalizations increased to 1,111, while the number of ICU patients decreased from 319 to 300. The number of hospitalized coronavirus patients has increased nearly tenfold since the start of September, according to the Dallas Morning News.

“I think we’re there,” said Dr. Emiliano Gonzalez Ayala, a leading cardiovascular and pulmonary disease specialist affiliated with Dallas-based Tenet Hospitals. “We’re already flying people from ERs in El Paso to hospitals elsewhere in Texas because we don’t have the ability to keep them in our ER.”

Pharmaceutical company Moderna announced that its vaccine was 94.5% in preliminary Phase 3 trials.

“This is a pivotal moment in the development of our COVID-19 vaccine candidate,” Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said on Monday. “This milestone is only possible because of the hard work and sacrifices of so many.”

U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar was upbeat about the Moderna news. He suggested that 40 million doses would be available by the end of this year. That’s enough to inoculate 20 million people because the vaccine requires two doses.

“Our goal would be by the second quarter [of 2021] to have enough vaccine for every American,” Azar told CNBC.

Alaska’s sole House lawmaker, Rep. Don Young, announced he was released from an Anchorage hospital after receiving treatment for the coronavirus. Young, 87, who is currently the longest-serving House lawmaker, serves as the “dean” of the House, a ceremonial role. Young was elected to a 25th term this month.

President-elect Joe Biden said he wouldn’t hesitate to take a coronavirus vaccine.

“It’s important those who are under the greatest need get it,” Biden said during a question-and-answer session following a speech on the economy on Monday. “I wouldn’t hesitate to get the vaccine. But I also want to set an example. But I wouldn’t hesitate to get the vaccine if, in fact, Dr. [Anthony] Fauci and these two organizations, whether it is Moderna or Pfizer, who have been extremely responsible, conclude that it is safe and able to be done.”

Sixty-five World Health Organization staff members have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to an internal email.

The email, obtained by the Associated Press, shows that about half, 32 staffers, were working at the WHO’s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, suggesting that the agency’s strict screening and prevention measures were not sufficient to protect its workers from the virus.

The WHO had previously claimed that there were no infections at the Geneva headquarters.

Stock markets on Monday reacted positively to news that U.S. biotech company Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine was at least 94% effective at preventing COVID-19 in preliminary testing. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a record high of 29,951 points, up 1.6%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite index also closed up 1.2% and 0.8%, respectively.