Coronavirus vaccine news, updates and information for 5-13-2021

<p>This is Vaccine 411, the latest coronavirus vaccine information for May 13th, 2021.</p><p><br></p><p>COVID-19 deaths in the United States have fallen to an average of around 600 per day. That’s the lowest level in 10 months. Over half of states are in the single digits and there are days when a state’s number is zero. But at the same time, the Red Cross is warning cases are exploding across Asia and the Pacific. Over 5.9 million new infections in the past two weeks.</p><p><br></p><p>An independent review ordered by the World Health Organization found there was a range of problems in addressing the pandemic, from slow initial reaction to "weak links at every point in preparedness and response." Its overall conclusion was COVID-19 was "a preventable disaster.” The panel said circumstances have not improved over the past year and the system is still unfit to prevent another highly infectious pathogen.</p><p><br></p><p>A new study has found two current vaccines are effective against the new India variant. A team of researchers from Emory, Stanford, and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases found the variant to be almost 7 times more resistant to antibodies. But individuals who got either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine were still able to neutralize it.</p><p><br></p><p>It’s still an issue though. How do you get people to take the vaccine? Research in the UK showed that emphasizing the personal benefits might be the way to go. Those strongly hesitant seem to feel getting COVID-19 isn’t that big a deal, but the vaccines for it pose great personal risk. Researchers say the best counterargument appears to be the possible devastating effects of having long Covid.</p><p><br></p><p>Or you could try what the Governor of Ohio is doing. Kids 12 to 17 who get the vaccine will be put into a lottery to get a full four-year scholarship to a state university, including tuition, room and board, and books. Adults who get at least one dose will go into a million-dollar cash lottery, with winners chosen once a week