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- Aug. 15, 2021, 10:35 a.m. ET
As coronavirus cases and hospitalizations rise crossed the country, immoderate areas with debased vaccination rates person been deed hard, similar Louisiana, Florida and Mississippi.
The aforesaid is existent for the U.S. Virgin Islands, wherever lone astir a 3rd of residents are vaccinated. In caller days, the islands person seen their highest numbers of confirmed cases and hospitalizations since the commencement of the pandemic.
The islands, a fashionable tourer destination with a year-round colonisation of astir 106,000, are present successful the apical 20 U.S. states and territories for cases per capita, according to a New York Times database.
Active cases person been ticking up for weeks, rising from astir 60 astatine the opening of July to a precocious of 401 connected Friday, according to information from the islands’ Department of Health. Before this summer’s surge, the highest fig of progressive cases was 295, reported astir a twelvemonth ago. Only 37 percent of the colonisation was afloat vaccinated arsenic of Saturday, trailing each authorities but Mississippi and Alabama, according to national data.
Richard Motta Jr., communications manager for the territory’s governor, Albert Bryan Jr., said successful a telephone interrogation aboriginal past week that determination were 26 Covid hospitalizations, much than astatine immoderate clip since the pandemic effect connected the islands began successful March 2020.
Mr. Motta attributed the lagging vaccination complaint to misinformation, a conception of the islands’ colonisation that is profoundly suspicious of vaccines and the information that the shots are not yet afloat approved but are being administered nether exigency usage authorizations.
The islands person acceptable up a lottery to incentivize vaccinations, Mr. Motta said, and shots oregon regular investigating are required for the astir 6,000 authorities employees, the unit members astatine the territory’s hospitals, arsenic good arsenic students and workers astatine the University of the Virgin Islands.
The islands made vaccines disposable to each adults erstwhile overmuch of the state inactive constricted them to high-risk groups, starring some Americans to sojourn successful bid to beryllium inoculated.
All deaths and hospitalizations recorded successful the islands impact unvaccinated people, Mr. Motta said, and the fewer documented breakthrough infections were not superior — much grounds that vaccines connection precocious extortion from the worst outcomes.
The islands person stricter precautions than overmuch of the mainland, including an indoor disguise mandate, societal distancing rules and a curfew connected beaches and businesses.
Understand the State of Vaccine and Mask Mandates successful the U.S.
- Mask rules. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention successful July recommended that each Americans, careless of vaccination status, deterioration masks successful indoor nationalist places wrong areas experiencing outbreaks, a reversal of the guidance it offered successful May. See wherever the C.D.C. guidance would apply, and wherever states person instituted their ain disguise policies. The conflict implicit masks has go contentious successful immoderate states, with immoderate local leaders defying authorities bans.
- Vaccine rules . . . and businesses. Private companies are increasingly mandating coronavirus vaccines for employees, with varying approaches. Such mandates are legally allowed and person been upheld successful tribunal challenges.
- College and universities. More than 400 colleges and universities are requiring students to beryllium vaccinated against Covid-19. Almost each are successful states that voted for President Biden.
- Schools. On Aug. 11, California announced that it would necessitate teachers and unit of some nationalist and backstage schools to beryllium vaccinated or look regular testing, the archetypal authorities successful the federation to bash so. A survey released successful August recovered that galore American parents of school-age children are opposed to mandated vaccines for students, but were more supportive of disguise mandates for students, teachers and unit members who bash not person their shots.
- Hospitals and aesculapian centers. Many hospitals and large wellness systems are requiring employees to get a Covid-19 vaccine, citing rising caseloads fueled by the Delta variant and stubbornly debased vaccination rates successful their communities, adjacent wrong their enactment force.
- New York. On Aug. 3, Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York announced that impervious of vaccination would beryllium required of workers and customers for indoor dining, gyms, performances and different indoor situations, becoming the archetypal U.S. metropolis to necessitate vaccines for a wide scope of activities. City infirmary workers must besides get a vaccine oregon beryllium subjected to play testing. Similar rules are successful spot for New York State employees.
- At the national level. The Pentagon announced that it would question to marque coronavirus vaccinations mandatory for the country’s 1.3 cardinal active-duty troops “no later” than the mediate of September. President Biden announced that all civilian national employees would person to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or taxable to regular testing, societal distancing, disguise requirements and restrictions connected astir travel.
Schools, which conscionable reopened, are afloat remote, and volition enactment that mode astatine slightest until September, Mr. Motta said.
The islands usually gully arsenic galore arsenic 2,000 visitors a day, Mr. Motta said, but erstwhile cases were climbing successful the summertime of 2020, the islands banned caller edifice reservations. Tourism has since roared back; immoderate airlines introduced caller flights determination this spring.
Regardless of vaccination status, visitors ages 5 and older person to station impervious connected an online question portal of a antagonistic coronavirus trial taken nary much than 5 days earlier arrival. Mr. Motta said that 1 twelve to 2 twelve radical had falsified tests, and that immoderate were arrested.
The British Virgin Islands, a territory that is lone a fewer miles distant from the U.S. Virgin Islands by ferry, virtually unopen down its waterways to inbound planetary travelers until April. The territory besides saw a surge successful cases that has lone precocious begun to subside.
Both land territories escaped Tropical Depression Fred mostly unscathed, but the hurricane play runs done November. A earthy catastrophe could greatly complicate their pandemic prospects, a constituent made past week by President Biden, who said that getting vaccinated was a captious portion of preparing for hurricane season.
“If you upwind up having to evacuate, if you upwind up having to enactment successful a shelter,” Mr. Biden said, “you don’t privation to adhd Covid-19 to the database of dangers that you’re going to beryllium confronting.”
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