Hope on the rise amid the pandemic

Coronavirus cases have been on the rise but there is a glimmer of hope with cases, slowly starting to decline.

HOWEVER, SO FAR, IT DOES APPEARTHAT THE VACCINES SHOULD BEEFFECTIVE AGAINST THE VARIANT.WHILE THAT NEW VARIANT LOOMS ONTHE HORIZON, RIGHT NOW, THE THENUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO’VE BEENINFECTED WITH COVID-19 IN THEU-S ... IS ABOUT THE SAME AS THEPOPULATIONS OF NEW YORK ANDMASSACHUSETTS COMBINED.THE C-D-C SAYS MORE THAN 21MILLION DOSES OF COVID-19VACCINE HAVE BEEN GIVEN ACROSSTHE UNITED STATES..THAT’S UP MORE THANONE-POINT-THREE MILLION DOSES...FROM THE DAYS BEFORE.C-N-N’S NATASHA CHEN HAS THEDETAILS BEHIND THOSE NUMBERS.:31-:381:05-1:111:42-1:451:46-1:512:08-2:18THE U-S HAS NOW SURPASSED 25MILLION CORONAVIRUS CASES, ANDTHE DEATH TOLL CONTINUES TOCLIMB WITH MORE THAN THREETHOUSAND WHO PEOPLE HAVE DIED OFCOVID-19 *EVERY DAY* IN THE LASTFOUR DAYS.AND THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHMETRICS AND EVALUATION PROJECTSA TOTAL OF 569 THOUSANDAMERICANS WILL HAVE DIED FROMCORONAVIRUS BY MAY FIRST.XAVIER BECERRA, PRESIDENTBIDEN’S NOMINEE TO RUN HEALTHAND HUMAN SERVICES, DESCRIBED ITTHIS WAY ON SUNDAY:Xavier Becerra/Health and HumanServices nominee: "The plane isin a nosedive and we got to pullit up.

And you’re not going todo that overnight but we’regoing to pull it up.

We have topull it up.

Failure is not anoption here."BUT THERE HAS BEEN SOME GOODNEWS.THE SAME MODEL THAT PREDICTED569K DEATHS ALSO SHOWS NEARLY 43THOUSAND PEOPLE’S LIVES MAY BESAVED IN THAT SAME TIME FRAMETHANKS TO VACCINATION.AND THE SEVEN-DAY MOVING AVERAGEOF NEW CASES IN THE U-S ISSTARTING TO DROP AFTER ANAGGRESSIVE POST-HOLIDAY PEAK.AND THE POSITIVITY RATE STAYEDLOW ENOUGH IN CHICAGO FORRESTAURANTS AND BARS TO RESTARTLIMITED INDOOR DINING.Casey Cora/Spokesperson,Frontera Grill: "When the rumorsstarted swirling around ourstaff that it was going to beable to happen, there was aspike in everybody’s eyes to beable to know that we’re going tobe able to do what we do bestonce again and that’s anexciting thing for us in thehospitality profession."THAT SAME LOOK OF EXCITEMENT-AND GRATITUDE ...Nats: "That’s so very kind.Thank you."IS IN THE EYES OF MILLIONS OFPEOPLE LINING UP TO BEVACCINATED AROUND THE COUNTRY,INCLUDING NOW MOBILE AND POP-UPVACCINATION SITES RUN BYCOMPANIES LIKE AMAZON.THE CHALLENGE IS GETTING MORESUPPLY DISTRIBUTED TO WHAT’SCURRENTLY A PATCHWORK OF LOCALHEALTH PROVIDERS - WHO ARESOMETIMES BATTLING WEBSITECRASHES AND SCHEDULING MISHAPS.Julian Fuerst/Struggled toschedule vaccine appointment:"No one knew what the hell theywere doing.

So they senteverybody home."Vela McClam MitchellThomas/Struggled to schedulevaccine appointment: "If this ishappening to me, and I’m welleducated, my husband’s a statesenator.

If this is happening tome, what’s happening to peoplewho don’t have what I have, whodon’t have the access that Ihave?"MEANWHILE - OFFICIALS HAVE THEIREYE ON CORONAVIRUS VARIANTS, AHOW WELL THE VACCINE MAY HOLD UPAS THE VIRUS CHANGES.Dr. Vivek Murthy/Fmr. U.S.Surgeon General: "It means,we’ve got to, number one, domuch better genomicsurveillance, we need to double-down on public health measures,like masking and avoiding indoorgatherings.

// The bottom lineis, we’re in a race againstthese variants.

The vi