Coronavirus vaccine and Delta variant updates for 9-14-2021

<p>This is Vaccine 411, the latest coronavirus vaccine information for September 14th, 2021.</p><p><br></p><p>In a heartbreaking illustration of maxed out hospitals, the staff in one north Alabama hospital contacted 43 others across three states looking for a specialty cardiac ICU bed for patient Ray DeMonia. Most were full with COVID patients, which Ray was not. He wound up in Meridian, Mississippi, about 170 miles away, where he died of a cardiac event shortly after arriving.</p><p><br></p><p>Looks like Americans are okay with government vaccination mandates. A new Morning Consult/Politico poll shows 58% support them. 62% favor encouraging states to require vaccinations for all school employees; 60% support a mandate for most health care workers with no ability to opt out through regular testing; and 56% support the same rule for most federal workers and contractors.</p><p><br></p><p>The mantra is the vaccines help keep infections from turning into serious COVID cases. But it does happen. In fact, the Office for National Statistics in England says those who were fully vaccinated accounted for 1.2% of all deaths involving Covid-19 in England so far this year. That number is low and is actually being promoted as proof the vaccines are effective.</p><p><br></p><p>An international group of scientists including two FDA vaccine reviewers wrote in the science journal Lancet that the average person doesn’t need a booster yet. Their review shows the shots are working well, even against Delta. The White House, which promised to “follow the science,” is continuing to follow a different science and is pressing forward with third shots as soon as later this month.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>The CDC says Americans should not travel to Afghanistan. Which leads to the obvious response, duh. But it’s not because of that Taliban thing. The country was added to the list of Level 4 high risk areas for COVID. Also added to the list: Belize, Grenada, Mauritius, Saint Kitts and Nevis. Pretty much anyplace tropical and beautiful you’d lik