Top Three
An Omicron Outbreak in a Primary School in Geneva: Study.
"In summary, this prospective, school class-based study provides evidence of higher transmission of infections in school settings with the omicron variant than was reported with previous variants. Children appear to be an important source of extra-household infections and have a key role in community transmission."
"Among the children without indication of previous infection or vaccination who were tested, 20 (50%) of 40 were infected. Five (50%) of ten teachers and one (20%) of five non-teaching staff members at the school tested positive during the omicron outbreak. Two (13%) of 15 staff members were not vaccinated against COVID-19, and both tested positive."
"We also investigated the introduction of SARS-CoV-2 infections in 24 households of children who tested positive. 52 household members were tested once or twice within the week after their child or sibling tested positive."
"Infections with the SARS-CoV-2 omicron variant were found in 15 (63%) of 24 households and 25 (48%) of 52 investigated household members (which increased to 27 [50%] of 54 if including probably cases), a household cumulative infection incidence that was similar to the findings of another report from South Korea."
"42 (91%) of 46 parents included were vaccinated, of whom 32 (76%) had received a booster. After excluding those who tested positive just before the outbreak and those who were not tested, the cumulative incidence of infection among those who had received a booster vaccination was 13 (43%) of 30, among those who had received one or two doses of vaccine was two (33%) of six, and among those who were unvaccinated was two (67%) of three, supporting the idea that this variant is highly transmissible even among fully vaccinated people."
How the Test-to-Treat Pillar of the US Covid Strategy Is Failing Patients: Via KHN.
"The program allows people with covid symptoms to get tested, be prescribed antiviral pills, and fill the prescription all in one visit. The federal government and many state and local health departments direct residents to an online national map where people can find test-to-treat sites and other pharmacies where they can fill prescriptions."
"But large swaths of the country had no test-to-treat pharmacies or health centers listed as of April 14. And the website of the largest participant, CVS, has significant technical issues that make booking an appointment difficult."
"Although the cost of the pills is covered by the federal government, obtaining a prescription at the pharmacies that dominate the program can be expensive. Though CVS does not charge symptomatic uninsured people for on-site covid tests, MinuteClinics charge upwards of $100 for in-person or telehealth appointments to examine patients and prescribe an antiviral, if needed. People without insurance, whose health plans don’t cover visits to the clinics, or who have high-deductible plans must shoulder the full cost of the appointment."
"It took a KHN reporter in the Washington, D.C., area three hours driving between stores to figure out whether testing was available and antivirals in stock across four MinuteClinic locations — time that few people can afford in general, let alone when they’re sick."
"Each store provided test-to-treat services, which could be booked through a kiosk. But three of the stores either didn’t have same-day appointments available or didn’t have the antiviral pills in stock that day."
"A KHN reporter also tried to book appointments online at clinics in several states, listing upper respiratory symptoms. After the reporter marked a positive covid test on the screening form, a message appeared — “For the safety of our patients and staff, we can’t allow you into the clinic at this time” — and the patient was then directed to book a telehealth visit."
"KHN also searched CVS’ website for testing appointments at all MinuteClinics shown on the federal map in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia, just over 100 clinics total. Only half listed any future testing appointments available."
Covid-19 Research
Under 5s: Andy Slavitt doesn't expect a vaccine approval until June.
BA.2 Cases Rise, But Few Signs of a Covid-19 Surge So Far: Via WSJ
"BA.2 hasn’t yet caused the rise in hospitalizations some doctors said they would have anticipated. Disease experts say some combination of immunity from Covid-19 vaccinations and a severe wintertime surge, aided by springtime weather drawing people outdoors, might be keeping the virus at bay."
"Health authorities remain cautious. New York state officials on Wednesday said they had identified two subvariants of BA.2 that preliminary data show to be more infectious and that accounted for 70% of cases in the Syracuse area during the month of March."
New Study Links Vaccine Rates to Socioeconomic Factors: “Language barriers, lack of regular health providers, absence of paid time off to get vaccinated and recover, and lack of trust in the health system all play a role in undermining vaccine coverage.”
"In the study, authored by members of Boston University’s School of Public Health and the city’s Public Health Commission, researchers analyzed state data on residents vaccinated and boosted by ZIP code through March 1."
State
Arkansas: EdWeek on the state's tutoring program:
"Arkansas’ Department of Education last year launched a program, called the Arkansas Tutoring Corps, to create a pipeline of qualified tutors to provide academic intervention to districts in need. It’s one of an array of efforts created — some by public agencies, some within the private sector — to meet districts’ surging appetites for academic recovery."
"State officials are building a bank of tutors who have gone through training and passed background checks, and making them available to districts. Tutors are eligible to receive stipends of up to $3,000 the first year, and $2,500 in subsequent years for participating. Private organizations also are utilizing the state’s tutoring network to staff their programs, especially as they are setting up programs to serve students during the summer, state officials say."
"The state estimates that 38 school districts are using the program. Approximately 67 private organizations are taking part."
"We budgeted for 500 qualified tutors, and we already have 558 qualified tutors and 873 applications, so I think it’s going to grow. If we can get the evidence we want, I don’t think it will stop at 2024. We’ll have to look within our own budget to see how to support this. Once you start receiving evidence that something’s working, you can’t stop."
California:
California delays COVID school vaccine mandate until 2023.
"The research, based on results of antibody tests performed on a control group then extrapolated across the overall population, found that between May and June of last year, there were actually three times more adults infected with Covid-19 than the county reported based on confirmed test results.”
The push to get children vaccinated is stalling. It poses new COVID-19 dangers
"In California, just 34% of children age 5 to 11 have completed their primary vaccination series, compared with 66% of youths age 12 to 17, according to state health data compiled by The Times."
"Sawyer cited data showing the cumulative rate of COVID-19 hospitalizations for children under age 18 are higher than what’s typical for the flu. As of mid-August, there were about 50 COVID-19 hospitalizations for every 100,000 children under age 18 since the beginning of the pandemic. Over the same time period, there would be typically roughly between 10 and 25 hospitalizations for the flu for every 100,000 children, according to data Sawyer presented."
“COVID is putting a lot more kids in the hospital than influenza does — and that’s a vaccine that we routinely use in children,” Sawyer said."
International
China:
Shanghai turns residences into COVID isolation facilities, sparking protest.
More video on police evicting residents.
Patients packed elbow-to-elbow and contact cases living in leaky container-houses: Shanghai residents have been thrown out of their apartments after the government requisitioned their homes to house COVID patients.
Growing defiance of COVID curbs in China brings wave of arrests.
Resources
Schools Spend Millions in Pandemic Funds on Tutoring, Often with Little Proof It Will Work: Via WSJ.
"While some states and districts are hiring in-person tutoring corps, many are looking online, which eases the burden of finding enough qualified tutors locally. Formats include scheduled video sessions as well as text-only chats available 24 hours a day. Companies that traditionally advertised to families say they are now pitching to districts to capitalize on the stimulus money."
"Houston Independent School District has allocated $113 million for tutoring and academic interventions. Miami-Dade County is aiming to spend $33 million, and Omaha Public Schools has budgeted $24.3 million."
"When Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina considered 54 companies vying for its $50 million budget to tutor its lowest-performing students, it cut a third of the bidders from consideration because they had no evidence to show their methods improve student performance, the district’s public bid records show."
"One of the companies that the district turned down because it lacked evidence, the bid records show, is Paper Education Company Inc., an online-tutoring company founded in 2014 in Montreal. Paper pairs tutors in the U.S. and Canada with students seeking help in 200 subjects and four languages, for chat-based online sessions."
"Research shows the most impactful tutoring includes regularly scheduled sessions with a consistent tutor. Even so, Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius said she thinks Paper, which the district uses, is effective if it helps a student work through a difficult concept that’s holding them back. “When the lightbulb turns on, that’s the dosage you need,” Ms. Cassellius said. Over six months, nearly 5,500 Boston students used Paper for tutoring or essay review, the district said, about 10% of enrollment."
How You Can Avoid Missing Out on COVID Relief Money: Erin Covington in EdWeek.
How Colleges and Universities Can Bring Pell Grant-Funded Programs Back to Prisons: Via CAP.
Changing a Life: Via the Urban Institute, Exploring how barriers and social interventions influence mobility and inequality.
The Volunteers Who Rushed to Help Ukrainians: Great piece by Tamar Jacoby.
Rediscovering “Third Place” Friendships in a Post-Pandemic World: Via Bruno Manno
Reflections During Passover and Easter:
“The Passover story is the Jewish people’s original story of becoming strangers in a strange land. It is the story that reminds us that we, too, have stood in the shoes of refugees and asylum seekers in search of safety and liberty. As we lift our voices in song and prayer, we call out together with those who long to be free. This year, there are still many who struggle towards liberation; next year, may we all be free.” via Mark Hetfield, President & CEO, HIAS
A new Passover prayer connects Jewish tradition to Ukrainian refugees: The Fifth Child: The Refugee Child
"One of the things I’ve discovered in my middle years is just how many lives are marked by wounds: terribly painful, life-altering, haunting, and impossible to make sense of. Some of them are visible on the surface; many of them are hidden in shadows. Some are carried alone.... For Christians, the agony of the cross gives way to the glory of resurrection—and with the resurrection comes redemption, shattered lives that are made whole, and the promise that all things are made new again." via Peter Wehner
How To Get Rid of Ants: Turns out running a hose from your propane tank into an ants nest, turning it on, removing the hose, and then lighting the hole will kill the ants that are annoying you. But there are, as economists like to remind us, tradeoffs.