June 17 coronavirus news

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday lowered the level of its travel health notice for cruise ships from "Level 4: Very High" to "Level 3: High." 

On its website, the CDC says this travel notice is specifically for travelers who are not fully vaccinated and that it recommends that travelers who aren’t fully vaccinated avoid travel on all cruise ships.

They note that since the coronavirus spreads easier between people who are in close quarters aboard ships, the chance of getting it on one is high. 

It also advises that people who decide to go on a cruise should get tested one to three days before their trip and three to five days after. People who are not fully vaccinated should also self-quarantine for seven days after travel, even if they test negative. Those who do not get tested should self-quarantine for 10 days after travel.   

Linsey Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, says that the CDC easing this travel warning reflects the country’s current situation. 

“I think they can do that because enough people have been vaccinated and cases are low enough right now that that lowers the overall risk,” she told CNN. 

However, Marr who also studies the airborne transmission of Covid-19 gave an emphatic “no” when asked whether she’d recommend unvaccinated people go on cruises right now.

The Biden administration announced it was investing about $3 billion from the American Rescue Plan to go toward a Covid-19 antiviral development strategy.

“We know that there are many people who are immunosuppressed in which vaccines, at least initially, may not give an optimal response. And it also adds a line of defense against other unexpected emerging things like variants of concern that we are currently dealing with,” Fauci continued.

Claims for unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly last week, marking the first increase in initial claims since late April.

Another 412,000 workers filed for first-time benefits in the week ended June 12, adjusted for seasonal swings, the Labor Department said Thursday. 

Since the start of May, weekly claims had set new pandemic-era lows every week — and economists polled by Refinitiv expected another low for Thursday's report.

The number of claims under the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program — which isn't adjusted for seasonality — also climbed at 118,025 claims. Congress set up the program to provide aid for those not eligible for regular state benefits, such as the self-employed, during the pandemic.

For context: Continued claims, which count those who have filed for benefits for at least two weeks in a row, rose slightly to 3.5 million in the week ended June 5, adjusted for seasonal swings.

The B.1.617.2, or Delta, variant first identified in India is like “Covid on steroids,” Andy Slavitt, former White House senior adviser for Covid-19 response, said Wednesday.

The CDC has labeled the Delta variant a “variant of concern,” noting it now accounts for about 10% of cases in the US.

Slavitt said the variant provides people with one more reason to get vaccinated against Covid-19.

“If you have been vaccinated, you have very little to worry about,” he said.

Watch:

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on NPR’s Morning Edition Thursday that when it comes to the Delta variant, he’s not concerned about people who are vaccinated, and the variant is another good reason for people to get vaccinated.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention elevated the Delta variant to a variant of concern this week. Fauci said that “the combination of more transmissibility and greater severity of disease, appropriately, prompted the CDC to elevate it to a variant of concern.” 

When asked how concerned he was about the variant, Fauci said “I’m not concerned about the people who are vaccinated. Because the good news about all this, among the seriousness of the situation with regards to the variant, is that the vaccines work really quite well.” 

People who are vaccinated are protected, he said, “which is another very good reason to encourage people strongly to get vaccinated because if you are not vaccinated, you are at risk of getting infected with a virus that now spreads more rapidly and gives more serious disease.” 

He said that the United Kingdom is having a “very difficult time with this,” adding that more than 90% of their isolates are the Delta variant. 

“Ten percent of our isolates are Delta, we want to make sure we don’t get into the same situation that people in the UK did,” he said. 

Thirteen states have fully vaccinated more than half of their residents against Covid-19, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Here's a breakdown of the numbers:

The White House will host a celebration for thousands of essential workers and military families on July Fourth on the South Lawn to mark America's "independence from the virus," according to a White House official. 

The celebration, which will be the largest in-person White House event since President Biden took office, comes as states across the nation lift restrictions put in place to stop the spread of Covid-19. 

The White House is encouraging state and local partners to host their own events across the nation to celebrate the progress the country has made in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic. More than 50% of Americans 12 and older are fully vaccinated, children are returning to in-person learning and businesses have been returning to full capacity across the nation. 

The National Mall will be open for the traditional July Fourth fireworks, with crowds expected to gather.

But the event will follow a grim milestone in the country's fight against the pandemic: The US surpassed 600,000 Covid-19 deaths on Tuesday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. In February, the President held a candle-lighting ceremony and a moment of silence after the US surpassed 500,000 deaths.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now calling the Delta variant of the novel coronavirus, also known as B.1.617.2, a "variant of concern." 

The variant of concern designation is given to strains of the virus that scientists believe are more transmissible or can cause more severe disease. Vaccines, treatments and tests that detect the virus may also be less effective against a variant of concern. Previously, the CDC had considered the Delta variant to be a variant of interest.

What we know: The CDC said the Delta variant, which was first identified in India, shows increased transmissibility, potential reduction in neutralization by some monoclonal antibody treatments under emergency authorization and potential reduction in neutralization from sera after vaccination in lab tests.

The World Health Organization classified the Delta variant as a variant of concern on May 10.

Covid-19 cases have been declining over the past few months in the United States, but there's concern that could change as the pace of vaccinations slows and the Delta variant spreads.

Read more about the Delta variant here.