On March 11, the United States will commemorate one year since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a glocal pandemic and the country shut down. Since then, there have been more than 29 million cases and 525,000 deaths in the United States.

Here at Clipboard Health, we would like to recognize the sacrifices made by those of you who have worked in the healthcare field during this time, and we would like to acknowledge and recognize the many people who have lost their lives to the coronavirus. 

CDC Says Fully Vaccinated People Can Gather Without Masks

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its COVID-19 recommendations on Monday. The new guidelines say that people who have been fully vaccinated can meet indoors in small groups with other fully vaccinated people or with people from one other household who are not yet vaccinated and are at a low risk for getting severe illness. 

The CDC stated that it still discourages fully vaccinated people from unnecessary travel.

New COVID-19 Cases Decline 12% in US while Vaccines Reach 2 Million Daily

On Monday, the US reported that it saw a 12% decline in new COVID-19 cases last week. This will be the eighth week in a row that numbers have dropped.

Additionally, the US is administering 2.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine per day for a total of 92.1 million doses. Currently, 18% of the US population has received one dose of vaccine with 9% of the population having received two doses.

FDA Boosts Sampling and Inspections of Baby Foods Due to Report of Toxic Heavy Metals

A recent congressional reported that it found “dangerous levels of toxic heavy metals” in some samples of baby food. The levels are toxic enough to potentially cause neurological damage if consumed.

In response, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced an increase in sampling baby foods and an increase in inspections but have not issued any new regulations. 

Ebola Risk “Very High” For Guinea’s Neighboring Countries, says WHO

The World Health Organization cautioned that the chances of Ebola spreading to the neighboring countries of Guinea are “very high.” So far, 18 cases have been identified during this new outbreak, resulting in four deaths.

Medical Studies Round-Up

Here’s a brief round-up of recent medical studies and their findings for you to stay up-to-date with the ever-evolving field of medical research.

• A small study of six lactating women found significant levels of COVID-19 antibodies in breast milk starting seven days after the first dose of the vaccine.
• Early data from a study by the University of Oxford shows that the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine is effective against the Brazilian variant of COVID-19.
• A study of the Brazilian COVID-19 variant found that it is likely to be nearly two times more transmissible and anywhere from 25% to 60% more likely to reinfect people who have already had a different strain of COVID-19. 

COVID-19 in the News

To learn more about the top COVID-19 vaccines, vaccination timelines, potential requirements for health care professionals and facilities, and more, check out our COVID-19 Vaccine Information hub.

Here’s some more of the most recent news from the past week concerning the COVID-19 pandemic.

• US government scientists said they are skeptical of the efficacy of receiving just one dose of the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, which both require two doses spread 21 to 28 days apart. The scientists said that there isn’t enough evidence that people can get sufficient long-term immunity from one dose.
• The World Health Organization said that its findings from its mission to Wuhan, China, to identify the source of COVID-19 will be available mid-March.