Data Snapshot
UW Medicine Hospitals:
King County: The county reported 78 new positive cases and 5 new deaths on March 9.
Washington: The state reported 325,931 cases and 5,063 deaths as of March 7.
United States: The CDC reports 28,813,424 cases and 523,850 deaths as of March 8.
Global: WHO reports 116,874,912 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 2,597,381 deaths as of March. 9.
Numbers update frequently, please follow links for most up-to-date numbers.
UW Medicine COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Update
Total Vaccine Doses Administered: 119,636
- Total first dose: 65,617
- Total second dose: 54,019
As of March 7, 2021.
UW Medicine in the News
The Seattle Times: We may never reach herd immunity – but it probably doesn’t matter
Featuring: Deborah Fuller, Microbiology; Marion Pepper, Immunology; Ali Mokda, IHME, Jeffrey Duchin, Larry Corey, Allergy & Infectious Diseases; Trevor Bedford, Genome Sciences, Allergy & Infectious Diseases
“Dr. Jeffrey Duchin doesn’t put much stock in magic. He’s one of a growing number of experts who doubt herd immunity against the novel coronavirus will ever be achieved — and who say it doesn’t really matter. ‘It would be great if we reached that threshold,’ says Duchin, public health officer for Public Health – Seattle & King County. ‘I think it’s very questionable that we will, and I also think we don’t need to achieve true herd immunity to return to a normal lifestyle.’ Herd immunity essentially requires vanquishing the virus except for occasional flare-ups that can be quickly quenched. But there are several obstacles, foremost among them the emergence of new variants that are more infectious, possibly more deadly, and better able to dodge immunity. A more realistic goal, Duchin and others say, is preventing serious illness and death by vaccinating as many people as possible, as quickly as possible. The virus will almost certainly continue to circulate, but it won’t be nearly as deadly. It would, in essence, become more like influenza — a virus we coexist with and have somewhat tamed through long exposure and regular vaccination, says Deborah Fuller, a UW Medicine microbiologist and vaccine expert. ‘Instead of herd immunity, maybe we should be talking about getting back to where we’re not going to have to worry about dying or having our loved ones in the hospital or not being able to hug our grandparents anymore,’ she says. ‘We live with flu. It still kills 30,000 people a year, but it doesn’t kill 500,000 people.’”
USA Today: As Americans get vaccinated, fewer are getting tested for COVID-19. Doctors say that could be a big problem.
Featuring: Geoffrey Baird, Laboratory Medicine
“In metro Seattle, testing has dropped in tandem with new cases. At the University of Washington’s lab, tests surged in the late fall. Tests are about half of fall’s peak, said Geoffrey Baird, the university’s acting chair of laboratory medicine and pathology. The vaccine rollout is a pivotal period that Baird and others are watching. If vaccination efforts slow, more states relax mask mandates and virus variants gain traction, it could lead to another big spike in cases, Baird said. ‘All of us in the testing business are wondering what will occur in the coming month or two,’ he said.”
COVID-19 Literature Report
COVID-19 Literature Situation Report is a daily (M-F) newsletter put together by the Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness that provides a succinct summary of the latest scientific literature related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Key Takeaways: COVID-19 Literature Situation Report March 8, 2021
- Two SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks occurred among US university athletic programs during the fall 2020 despite mandatory directly observed daily antigen testing, suggesting that antigen testing along may not be sufficient to prevent outbreaks in congregate settings. More.
- Among 148,494 U.S. adults diagnosed with COVID-19 in March-December 2020, individuals with a BMI near the threshold between healthy weight and overweight generally had the lowest risks for hospitalization, ICU admission, and death, with higher risks associated with higher BMI. More.
- Among US adults with COVID-19 admitted to US medical centers between March 1 and August 31 2020, the highest in-hospital mortality occurred in March (22.1%), and with mortality decreasing each month until the end of the study period in August (6.5%). More.
COVID-19 Literature Surveillance Team, is an affiliated group of medical students, PhDs and physicians keeping up with the latest research on SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19 by finding the newest articles, reading them, grading their level of evidence and bringing you the bottom line.
Read the latest report: March 8 | Daily COVID-19 LST Report.
Listen to the latest podcast: Week of Feb. 15 | COVID-19 LST Podcast.
Tweet of the Week
In response to COVID-19, around 350 @UW health sciences students signed up to be volunteer vaccinators and coordinate support in efforts to get the community vaccinated. 👏 #DawgsCare https://t.co/5xzCSkcNwS
— UW Medicine (@UWMedicine) March 8, 2021
