“Six – The Musical” is one of three musicals that have opened since the start of the pandemic and are ongoing hits.
Good afternoon. This is Jonathan Spira, director of research at the Center for Long Covid Research, reporting. Here now the news of the pandemic from across the globe on its 1,472nd day.
In news we cover today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for a new antiviral to protect against Covid, Broadway has yet to recover from its shutdown, and a new analysis suggests that school shutdowns did more harm than good.
THIS DAY IN COVID HISTORY
On March 22, 2020, news media outlets were reporting on the threat of severe economic downturn: A global recession was looming as businesses wound down operations and sent workers home to stop the spread of the virus.
The U.S. death toll was rising: More than 400 people had died from the virus at this point, based on the Coronavirus Daily News Brief’s figures published at the time.
UNITED STATES
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday issued an emergency use authorization for an antibody to protect immunocompromised individuals against SARS-CoV-2.
The new monoclonal, pemivibart , which will be marketed as Pemgarda by biotech firm Invivyd, is the first such antibody to become available since the FDA pulled AstraZeneca’s Evusheld off the market in January 2023 after the omicron variant had effectively rendered Evusheld ineffective.
Invivyd was founded in 2020 by antibody expert Tillman Gerngross, under the name Adagio. It raised $309 million in an IPO in 2021. It released Adintrevimab , an antibody that was designed to be a potent, broadly neutralizing drug for both the prevention and treatment of Covid-19, including disease caused by most variants, as either a single or combination agent. Despite this, it was soon rendered ineffective by the omicron variant and that variants sublineages, which eventually led to Gerngross’ resignation and a shake-up at the highest levels of the company.
Pemgarda is a re-engineered version of the Adintrevimab, albeit one that is designed to protect against omicron variants. Using Adintrevimab as the basis for the new antiviral gave Invivyd a leg up in getting the drug to market while its competitors had to start basically from scratch.
A long-acting monoclonal antibody, pemivibart is specifically authorized by the FDA for use by people ages 12 years and older (and weighing 88 pounds or 40 kg or more) with moderate-to-severe immune compromise either because of a medical condition or due to immunosuppressant medications. Pemivibart is given as a single intravenous infusion and is not for use as post-exposure prophylaxis or in people currently infected with SARS-CoV-2.
Meanwhile, a recent data analysis by the New York Times suggests that closing schools in the first years of the pandemic had very little public health benefit, but that it did cause disastrous harm to schoolchildren in terms of learning and development.
SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
Four years ago, the pandemic brought live performance to a halt. The latest data indicates that the audience for pop concerts and sporting events has returned to pre-pandemic levels, while attendance on Broadway and at some major museums is still down.
On the Great White Way, overall attendance is still down about 17%: 9.3 million seats have been filled in the current season as of March 3, down from 11.1 million at the same point in 2020, at which point the shops, businesses, and theaters were closed
In addition, box office grosses are also down: Broadway shows have grossed $1.2 billion thus far this season, a figure that is 14% lower than the level in early March of 2020.
GLOBAL STATISTICS
Now here are the daily statistics for Friday, March 22.
As of Friday, at press time, the world has recorded 704.32 million Covid-19 cases, an increase of .02 million in the last 24 hours, and 7.01 million deaths, according to Worldometer, a service that tracks such information. In addition, 675.26 million people worldwide have recovered from the virus, an increase of 0.05 million in the same period.
The reader should note that infrequent reporting from some sources may appear as spikes in new case figures or death tolls as well as the occasional downward or upward adjustment as corrections to case figures warrant.
Worldwide, the number of active coronavirus cases as of Friday at press time is 22,053,281, a decrease of 28,000 in the past 24 hours. Out of that figure, 99.8%, or 22,018,196, are considered mild, and 0.2%, or 35,085, are listed as critical. The percentage of cases considered critical has not changed over the past 19 months.
Since the start of the pandemic, the United States has, as of Friday, recorded 111.73 million cases, a higher figure than any other country, and a death toll of 1.22 million. India has the world’s second highest number of officially recorded cases, 45.03 million, and the world’s fourth highest death toll, 533,535.
The newest data from Russia’s Rosstat state statistics service showed that, at the end of July 2022, the number of Covid or Covid-related deaths since the start of the pandemic there in April 2020 is now 823,623, giving the country the world’s second highest pandemic-related death toll, behind the United States. Rosstat last reported that 3,284 people died from the coronavirus or related causes in July 2022, down from 5,023 in June, 7,008 in May and 11,583 in April.
Meanwhile, France is the country with the third highest number of cases, with 40.14 million, and Germany is in the number four slot, with 38.82 million total cases.
Brazil, which has recorded the third highest number of deaths as a result of the virus, 710,427, has recorded 38.59 million cases, placing it in the number five slot.
The other five countries with total case figures over the 20 million mark are South Korea, with 34.57 million cases, as number six; Japan, with 33.8 million cases placing it in the number seven slot; and Italy, with 26.72 million, as number eight, as well as the United Kingdom, with 24.9 million, and Russia, with 24.06 million, as nine and ten respectively.
CURRENT U.S. COVID STATISTICS AT A GLANCE
In the United States, in the week ending March 9, 2024, the test positivity rate was, based on data released on March 15 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was 4.6%, and the trend in test positivity is -0.8% in the most recent week. Meanwhile, the percentage of emergency department visits that were diagnosed as SARS-CoV-2 was 0.7%, and the trend in emergency department visits is -25.6%.
The number of people admitted to hospital in the United States due to SARS-CoV-2 in the same 7-day period was 10,719, a figure that is down 20.9% over the past 7-day period. Meanwhile, the percentage of deaths due to SARS-CoV-2 was 1.8%, a figure that is essentially unchanged over the period..
VACCINATION SPOTLIGHT
Some 70.6% of the world population has received at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine by Friday, according to Our World in Data, an online scientific publication that tracks such information. So far, 13.57 billion doses of the vaccine have been administered on a global basis and 8,112 doses are now administered each day.
Meanwhile, only 32.7% of people in low-income countries have received one dose, while in countries such as Canada, China, Denmark, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States, at least 75% of the population has received at least one dose of vaccine.
Only a handful of the world’s poorest countries – Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia and Nepal – have reached the 70% mark in vaccinations. Many countries, however, are under 20% and, in countries such as Haiti, Senegal, and Tanzania, for example, vaccination rates remain at or below 10%.
In addition, with the beginning of vaccinations in North Korea in late September, 2023, Eritrea remains the only country in the world that has not administered vaccines in any significant number.
Finally, as of March 15, 2024 , only the following countries and territories have not reported any cases of SARS-CoV-2 infections whatsoever:
Antarctica
British Antarctic Territory
Peter Island
Overseas
Bouvet Island
Heard Island and McDonald Islands
Prince Edward Islands
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Anna Breuer contributed reporting to this story.
The Coronavirus Daily News Brief is a publication of the Center for Long Covid Research. www.longcov.org
If you have Long Covid and need to talk to someone, call the Long Covid Patient Peer Counseling Phone Line, or HOPELINE. The HOPELINE is our free, confidential support and information service.
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