and his wife, Kathi, were at their home in Palm Springs, Calif. when they first showed symptoms of COVID Hopkins said losing someone he deeply cares about to COVID-19 is difficult. "It makes it real.

To learn more about 7-Eleven's ongoing efforts in response to COVID-19, please visit: 7-eleven.com/coronavirus-safety

Español (Spanish) Show Me the Science – When & How to Use Hand Sanitizer in Community Settings CDC recommends washing hands with soap and water whenever possible because handwashing reduces the amounts of all types of germs and chemicals on hands. But if soap and water are not available, using a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol can help you avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. The guidance for effective handwashing and use of hand sanitizer in community settings was developed based on data from a number of studies. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers can quickly reduce the number of microbes on hands in some situations, but sanitizers do not eliminate all types of germs. Why? Soap and water are more effective than hand sanitizers at removing certain kinds of germs, like Cryptosporidium, norovirus, and Clostridium difficile1-5. Although alcohol-based hand sanitizers can inactivate many types of microbes very effectively when used correctly 1-15, people may not use a large enough volume of the sanitizers or may wipe it off before it has dried 14. Hand sanitizers may not be as effective when hands are visibly dirty or greasy. Why? Many studies show that hand sanitizers work well in clinical settings like hospitals, where hands come into contact with germs but generally are not heavily soiled or greasy 16. Some data also show that hand sanitizers may work well against certain types of germs on slightly soiled hands 17,18. However, hands may become very greasy or soiled in community settings, such as after people handle food, play sports, work in the garden, or go camping or fishing. When hands are heavily soiled or greasy, hand sanitizers may not work well 3,7,16. Handwashing with soap and water is recommended in such circumstances. Hand sanitizers might not remove harmful chemicals, like pesticides and heavy metals, from hands. Why? Although few studies have been conducted, hand sanitizers probably cannot remove or inactivate many types of harmful chemicals. In one study, people who reported using hand sanitizer to clean hands had increased levels of pesticides in their bodies 19. If hands have touched harmful chemicals, wash carefully with soap and water (or as directed by a poison control center). If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Why? Many studies have found that sanitizers with an alcohol concentration between 60–95% are more effective at killing germs than those with a lower alcohol concentration or non-alcohol-based hand sanitizers 16,20. Hand sanitizers without 60-95% alcohol 1) may not work equally well for many types of germs; and 2) merely reduce the growth of germs rather than kill them outright. When using hand sanitizer, apply the product to the palm of one hand (read the label to learn the correct amount) and rub the product all over the surfaces of your hands until your hands are dry. Why? The steps for hand sanitizer use are based on a simplified procedure recommended by CDC 21. Instructing people to cover all surfaces of both hands with hand sanitizer has been found to provide similar disinfection effectiveness as providing detailed steps for rubbing-in hand sanitizer 22. Swallowing alcohol-based hand sanitizers can cause alcohol poisoning. Why? Ethyl alcohol (ethanol)-based hand sanitizers are safe when used as directed, 23 but they can cause alcohol poisoning if a person swallows more than a couple of mouthfuls 24. From 2011 – 2015, U.S. poison control centers received nearly 85,000 calls about hand sanitizer exposures among children 25. Children may be particularly likely to swallow hand sanitizers that are scented, brightly colored, or attractively packaged. Hand sanitizers should be stored out of the reach of young children and should be used with adult supervision. Child-resistant caps could also help reduce hand sanitizer-related poisonings among young children 24. Older children and adults might purposefully swallow hand sanitizers to become drunk 26.

Test First Rapid, Point-of-Care and Near-Patient Molecular Test for Detection of Virus that Causes COVID SARS-CoV-2, a rapid molecular diagnostic test for qualitative detection of SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID Mythbusters of COVID 19

North Texas businesses affected by COVID-19 can soon start applying for Paycheck Protection Program Small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic can soon begin applying for some of the money in the big DALLAS - Small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic can soon begin applying for some of the money

Dallas County reports 100 new cases, 2 COVID-19 deaths; Tarrant County reports 2 deaths Dallas County on Wednesday reported triple-digit numbers of new COVID-19 cases for the first time during the coronavirus Dallas County on Wednesday reported triple-digit numbers of new COVID-19 cases for the first time during Health officials said there were 100 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and two additional deaths in the The county continues to lead the state in COVID-19 cases.

plant and they are packaging frozen food it wouldn't be hard to contaminate the item because we know COVID government testing recently, three samples from a northern China ice cream company came back positive for COVID Perhaps we will see new food labels in the future stating "Covid Free" or "Covid tested"?

7 Virus Variants Found in U.S. Carrying the Same Mutation Scientists agree that the mutation makes the variants more contagious... Scientists at Duke University sequenced positive coronavirus tests to identify which strains are circulating in the community. As Americans anxiously watch variants first identified in the United Kingdom and South Africa spread in the United States, scientists are finding a number of new variants that originated here. More concerning, many of these variants seem to be evolving in the same direction — potentially becoming contagious threats of their own. In a study posted on Sunday, a team of researchers reported seven growing lineages of the novel coronavirus, spotted in states across the country. All of them have evolved a mutation in the same genetic letter. “There’s clearly something going on with this mutation,” said Jeremy Kamil, a virologist at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center Shreveport and a co-author of the new study. It’s unclear whether it makes the variants more contagious. But because the mutation appears in a gene that influences how the virus enters human cells, the scientists are highly suspicious. “I think there’s a clear signature of an evolutionary benefit,” Dr. Kamil said. The history of life is full of examples of so-called convergent evolution, in which different lineages follow the same path. Birds gained wings as they evolved from feathered dinosaurs, for example, just as bats did when they evolved from furry, shrew-like mammals. In both cases, natural selection gave rise to a pair of flat surfaces that could be flapped to generate lift — enabling bats and birds alike to take to the sky and fill an ecological niche that other animals could not. Charles Darwin first recognized convergent evolution by studying living animals. In recent years, virologists have found that viruses can evolve convergently, too. H.I.V., for example, arose when several species of viruses shifted from monkeys and apes to humans. Many of those lineages of H.I.V. gained the same mutations as they adapted to our species. As the coronavirus now branches into new variants, researchers are observing Darwin’s theory of evolution in action, day in and day out. Dr. Kamil stumbled across some of the new variants while he was sequencing samples from coronavirus tests in Louisiana. At the end of January, he observed an unfamiliar mutation in a number of samples. The mutation altered the proteins that stud the surface of the coronavirus. Known as spike proteins, they are folded chains of more than 1,200 molecular building blocks called amino acids. Dr. Kamil’s viruses all shared a mutation that changed the 677th amino acid. Investigating these mutant viruses, Dr. Kamil realized they all belonged to the same lineage. The earliest virus in the lineage dated back to Dec. 1. In later weeks, it grew more common. On the evening of his discovery, Dr. Kamil uploaded the genomes of the viruses to an online database used by scientists across the world. The next morning, he got an email from Daryl Domman of the University of New Mexico. He and his colleagues had just found the same variant in their state, with the same 677 mutation. Their samples dated back to October. The scientists wondered whether the lineage they had discovered was the only one to have a 677 mutation. Probing the database, Dr. Kamil and his colleagues found six other lineages that independently gained the same mutation on their own. Coronavirus Variants and Mutations Tracking recent mutations, variants and lineages. It’s difficult to answer even basic questions about the prevalence of these seven lineages because the United States sequences genomes from less than 1 percent of coronavirus test samples. The researchers found samples from the lineages scattered across much of the country. But they can’t tell where the mutations first arose. The Coronavirus Outbreak › It’s also hard to say whether the increase in variants is actually the result of their being more contagious. They might have become more common simply because of all of the travel over the holiday season. Or they might have exploded during superspreader events at bars or factories. Still, scientists are worried because the mutation could plausibly affect how easily the virus gets into human cells. The Coronavirus Outbreak › Let Us Help You Better Understand the Coronavirus Are coronavirus case counts rising in your region? Our maps will help you determine how your state, county or country is faring. Vaccines are rolling out and will reach many of us by spring. We’ve answered some common questions about the vaccines. Now that we are all getting used to living in a pandemic, you may have new questions about how to go about your routine safely, how your children will be impacted, how to travel and more. We’re answering those questions as well. So far, the coronavirus outbreak has sickened more than 106 million people globally. More than two million people have died. A timeline of the events that led to these numbers may help you understand how we got here. An infection begins when a coronavirus uses the tip of the spike protein to latch onto the surface of a human cell. It then unleashes harpoon-like arms from the spike’s base, pulling itself to the cell and delivering its genes. Before the virus can carry out this invasion, however, the spike protein has to bump into a human protein on the surface of the cell. After that contact, the spike becomes free to twist, exposing its harpoon tips. The 677 mutation alters the spike protein next to the spot where our proteins nick the virus, conceivably making it easier for the spike to be activated. Jason McLellan, a structural biologist at the University of Texas at Austin who was not involved in the study, called it “an important advance.” But he cautioned that the way that the coronavirus unleashed its harpoons was still fairly mysterious. “It’s tough to know what these substitutions are doing,” he said. “It really needs to be followed up with some additional experimental data.” Dr. Kamil and his colleagues are starting those experiments, hoping to see whether the mutation does indeed make a difference to infections. If the experiments bear out their suspicions, the 677 mutation will join a small, dangerous club. Convergent evolution has transformed a few other spots on the spike protein as well. The 501st amino acid has mutated in a number of lineages, for example, including the contagious variants first observed in the United Kingdom and South Africa. Experiments have revealed that the 501 mutation alters the very tip of the spike. That change allows the virus to latch onto cells more tightly, and infect them more effectively. Scientists anticipate that coronaviruses will converge on more mutations that give them an advantage — against not only other viruses but also our own immune system. But Vaughn Cooper, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Pittsburgh and a co-author of the new study, said lab experiments alone wouldn’t be able to reveal the extent of the threat. To really understand what the mutations are doing, he said, scientists will need to analyze a much bigger sampling of coronaviruses gathered from across the country. But right now, they can look at only a relatively meager number of genomes collected by a patchwork of state and university labs. “It’s ridiculous that our country is not coming up with a national strategy for doing surveillance,” Dr. Cooper said.

This week, more than 7,400 Texans are hospitalized for COVID-19, and the positivity rate has exceeded “They’re assuming that all those licensed beds can somehow be utilized for a COVID-19 surge, and that “By using that number, that overestimates our capacity to handle COVID-19 patients.” He also noted that El Paso's share of hospital beds occupied by COVID-19 patients is several times Abbott's “The protocols proved effective in slowing the spread over the summer and containing COVID-19, and they

If COVID-19 hospitalizations stay above 15% for seven straight days, a county judge may use mitigation "The COVID-19 virus with variants is still here and we have not achieved herd immunity," Love said. "It's unfortunate that on a day we record 25 deaths, which takes us above 3,000 [COVID-19] deaths for Dallas County since COVID began nearly a year ago, the governor has removed all of the state orders that he designed to protect you and the people that you care about from contracting COVID," the judge

Many people are still getting infected with COVID-19 subvariants. Since the COVID-19 Omicron variant became the world’s dominant strain, it has mutated into different In persons aged 70 and above, rates are like those seen with the original COVID-19 virus and the omicron

Valley Fever is traveling from the west coast and maybe settle in Texas Fungal illness mimics COVID symptoms For most people who suffer from fever, cough, and fatigue, the likely culprits are cold, flu, or COVID