This is Coronavirus 411, the latest COVID-19 info and new hotspots… Just the facts… for March 2nd, 2021.

A senior World Health Organization official said it’s “premature” and “unrealistic” to think the pandemic will be over by the end of the year. Dr. Michael Ryan said the singular focus right now should be keeping transmission low. And if that can be done, at least the hospitalizations and deaths won’t be at tragic levels by the end of 2021.

California’s political leaders have reached a deal on requirements for reopening schools that could have more students back in class by the end of March. $2 billion would go to school districts and the deal would forgo conditions on collective bargaining with teachers’ unions and testing and vaccinations for staff that have been holding up an agreement.

Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization is not recommending people 65 and older use the AstraZeneca vaccine. They say it’s because there’s not enough evidence of efficacy in that age group. But for those in other countries who have taken it, Health Canada points out there are no safety concerns.

Finland declared a state of emergency yesterday because of rising infections. That clears the way to close restaurants, shut schools, and limit movement between regions. The borders were already closed. The move was in response to new coronavirus variants.

Japan has asked China for a favor. Please stop doing anal swab tests on our citizens. The Japanese government says the procedure causes psychological pain. To collect test samples, well, we’ll spare you the details. But American diplomats have also reportedly experienced it and Washington also complained.

In the United States cases were down 26%, deaths are down 21%, and hospitalizations down 30% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending flat since February 21.

There are now under 9 million active cases in the United States at 8,969,496. The current top 5 states by number of active cases: California, New York, Florida, Arizona, and Virginia.

The top 10 counties with the highest number of recent cases per capita according to The New York Times: La Salle, TX. Caldwell, KY. Calhoun, TX. Aleutians West Census Area, AK. Johnson, WY. Cimarron, OK. Concho, TX. Kane, UT. Petersburg Borough, AK. And Alleghany, VA.

The five states with the highest risk levels and most daily new cases per capita over 7 days are Rhode Island, South Carolina, New York, New Jersey, and Delaware.

There have been 514,333 deaths in the US reported as Covid-related, with a current national fatality rate of 1.8%.

The states with the most new deaths reported as COVID-related: California 276. Virginia 231. Florida 150. New York 122. Texas 106. Georgia 81. Oklahoma 50. Ohio 48. North Carolina 42. And South Carolina 32.

The top 3 vaccinating states by percentage of population that’s had at least one dose, Alaska at 22.8%, New Mexico at 21.8%, and South Dakota at 20.8%. The bottom 3 vaccinating states are Georgia at 12.1%, Utah at 12.2%, and Texas at 12.7%.

Globally, cases were flat, and deaths down 23% over 14 days, with the 7-day average trending up since February 21.

There are now 21,733,475 active cases around the world.

The five countries with the most new cases: the United States 53,147. Brazil 38,349. Italy 13,114. Russia 11,571. And India 11,563.

There have now been 2,537,563 deaths reported as Covid-related worldwide.

For the latest updates, subscribe for free to Coronavirus 411 on your podcast app or ask your smart speaker to play the Coronavirus 411 podcast.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.