Current Events in May 2021

Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.)

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 32,819,878 (32,780,283)

Total U.S. deaths: 583,779 (582,867)

Total global cases: 160,566,700 (159,784,683)

Total global deaths: 3,334,194 (3,320,036)

Blood expert zeros in on vaccine blood-clotting cause

A German blood expert has conducted research that he says sheds light on why the Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca vaccines have triggered rare but serious blood clot conditions in a few vaccine recipients.

Andreas Greinacher, a researcher at the University of Greifswald, believes so-called viral vector vaccines could cause an autoimmune response that leads to blood clots in a small number of people. He believes that reaction could be tied to stray proteins and a preservative used in the vaccines.

“We strongly support raising awareness of the signs and symptoms of this very rare event, and we are currently exploring a potential collaboration with Dr. Greinacher,” a Johnson & Johnson spokesman told the Wall Street Journal.

CDC recommends Pfizer vaccine for adolescents

Just days after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for children ages 12 to 15, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has followed suit with a recommendation that the policy be implemented.

An advisory committee to the government health agency took the final step, making the vaccine available to adolescents as statistics show the virus has increased in younger, unvaccinated Americans.

"CDC now recommends that this vaccine be used among this population, and providers may begin vaccinating them right away," CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said in a statement.

Unemployment claims keep falling

While job creation numbers for April were a disappointment, other government statistics suggest that layoffs have dropped sharply over the last four weeks. The Labor Department reports that initial claims for unemployment benefits declined last week to 473,000, the lowest number since the pandemic shut down the economy in March 2020. 

Last week’s number was down 34,000 from the previous week’s revised number. But this week, that number was the smallest of the pandemic so far.

It may be hard to recall, but jobless benefit claims were routinely half of the past week’s low before the pandemic. For the week of March 14, 2020 -- the week before the economy was shut down -- claims totaled just 256,000.

Post-pandemic retirements on the rise

A year ago, when the pandemic threw millions of Americans out of work, surveys showed that there was an increase in the number of people who planned to retire later in life, or not at all. 

A year later, that sentiment appears to have reversed. Government statistics show that the percentage of Americans between the ages of 55 and 74 who have retired has increased over the last 12 months.

The numbers show that the biggest increase has occurred among people between the ages of 65 and 74, which is traditionally considered prime retirement years. Employment experts attribute the increase to job losses and business closings during the pandemic.

The Yankees’ COVID-19 struggles get worse

The New York Yankees’ COVID-19 outbreak has risen from three to seven in the last 24 hours. As we mentioned Wednesday, two coaches and a support staff member have tested positive for the virus.

Before Wednesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said the number of positive cases within the team and staff had more than doubled. Six of the seven infected individuals reportedly have no symptoms, and all of them have been vaccinated.

Boone said the fact that the whole organization has been vaccinated prevented the outbreak from being worse. "I feel like in a lot of ways, because we're vaccinated, we're kind of good and able to deal with this,” he stated.

Around the nation

• California: Los Angeles County plans to start vaccinating younger teenagers and 12-year-olds starting today. County-run vaccination venues will administer the shots to people under 18 who are with a parent or guardian.

• Ohio: Companies have offered everything from free beer to donuts to persuade Americans to get vaccinated. Gov. Mike DeWine is upping the ante, announcing that adults who roll up their sleeves will be entered into a special state lottery, with the winner getting $1 million.

• Illinois: Now that the pandemic is receding, Gov. J.B. Pritzker is trying to rebuild Illinois’ tourism industry. Days before the first leg of the state’s reopening, Pritzker unveiled a new tourism campaign urging visitors from neighboring states to “see all of Illinois.”

President Biden has signed a new executive order that he hopes will improve cybersecurity for Americans and protect federal government networks from attacks like the recent Colonial Pipeline incident. 

Biden said malicious cyber activities -- like network hacks, phishing, and data thefts -- have gone too far and that the U.S. cyber defense systems are insufficient, making both the public and private sectors more vulnerable to incidents. 

“These incidents share a few things in common. First, a laissez-faire attitude towards cybersecurity,” commented a senior White House official in announcing the order. “For too long, we failed to take the necessary steps to modernize our cybersecurity defenses because doing so takes time, effort, and money. And instead, we’ve accepted that we’ll move from one incident response to the next. And we simply cannot let ‘waiting for the next incident to happen’ to be the status quo under which we operate.”

Starting at the top 

The Colonial Pipeline incident wasn’t pegged as the breaking point that created the new order. It -- along with the SolarWinds and Microsoft Exchange incidents -- proved that U.S. cybersecurity was in a world of hurt. To prevent skirmishes like that in the future, the White House’s goals will start at the top of the digital food chain with the intent of creating a “zero-trust environment.” 

Internet service providers, network security systems, and other top-level segments are being asked to deploy measures like multi-factor authentication, encryption, endpoint detection response, and logging to keep bad actors at bay. They’re also being asked to share their attacks with their peers so an all-for-one, one-for-all community can be nurtured. The second layer of the Biden administration’s plan deals with improving the security of commercial software by establishing baseline security requirements based on industry best practices. 

“We wouldn’t build a building in an earthquake-prone zone without building standards,” the White House official said. “And we need standards for how we build software securely.”

Tighter controls on software development

To that end, the U.S. is kickstarting a pilot program to create an “energy star” type of label so the government – and the public at large – can quickly determine whether software was developed securely. 

“Too much of our software, including critical software, is shipped with significant vulnerabilities that our adversaries exploit. This is a long-standing, well-known problem, but for too long we have kicked the can down the road,” the White House said in a statement.

However, the official warned that this move alone isn’t the answer. “This will be the first of many ambitious steps the public and private sector must and will take together to safeguard our economy, security, and the services on which the American way of life relies,” they said.

A new study conducted by researchers from Northwestern University explored the safety of pregnant women getting the COVID-19 vaccine. 

According to their findings, the vaccine poses no harm to the placenta. Based on the important role that the placenta plays in a pregnancy, the researchers hope these findings can reduce some of the hesitancy surrounding pregnant women getting vaccinated. 

“The placenta is like the black box in an airplane,” said researcher Dr. Jeffery Goldstein. “If something goes wrong with a pregnancy, we usually see changes in the placenta that can help us figure out what happened. From what we can tell, the COVID vaccine does not damage the placenta.” 

Keeping pregnant women safe

The researchers analyzed the placentas of 200 pregnant women who delivered at Prentice Women’s Hospital in Chicago. Of that group, 116 women received the COVID-19 vaccine during their third trimesters and 84 women were unvaccinated when they gave birth. 

The researchers learned that there were no major differences in the placentas of vaccinated versus unvaccinated women. In looking at infections, injuries, and blood flow from mother to fetus, there was no indication that the COVID-19 vaccine posed any threat to pregnant women or their babies. 

“The internet has amplified a concern that the vaccine might trigger an immunological response that causes the mother to reject the fetus,” Dr. Goldstein said. “But these findings lead us to believe that doesn’t happen.” 

One of the biggest differences between vaccinated and unvaccinated women was the antibody count; vaccinated women tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies, while unvaccinated women had no traces of antibodies. 

“We are beginning to move to a framework of protecting fetuses through vaccination, rather than from vaccination,” said researcher Dr. Emily Miller. “Until infants can get vaccinated, the only way for them to get COVID antibodies is from their mother.” 

Moving forward, the researchers hope these findings make consumers feel more confident in the safety and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine -- especially for pregnant women. 

“We have reached a stage in vaccine distribution where we are seeing vaccine hesitancy, and this hesitancy is pronounced for pregnant people,” said Dr. Miller. “Our team hopes these data, albeit preliminary, can reduce concerns about the risk of the vaccine to the pregnancy.” 

In what should be good news for motorists in the Southeast and along the mid-Atlantic coast, the main pipeline carrying fuel from Texas to New York, shutdown since Friday by a cyberattack, is back in operation.

The Colonial Pipeline Company initiated the restart of pipeline operations at approximately 5 p.m. ET Wednesday -- a day that saw more than a thousand gas stations in the region run out of fuel. While relief is on the way, it won’t occur overnight.

“Following this restart, it will take several days for the product delivery supply chain to return to normal,” the company said in a statement. “Some markets served by Colonial Pipeline may experience, or continue to experience, intermittent service interruptions during the start-up period.”

While the pipeline operation ramps up, Colonial said it would move as much gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel as is safely possible and will continue to do so until markets return to normal.

“As we initiate our return to service, our primary focus remains safety. As part of this startup process, Colonial will conduct a comprehensive series of pipeline safety assessments in compliance with all Federal pipeline safety requirements,” the company said.

Panic buying and hoarding

Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, has been active on Twitter in the last few days keeping us updated on where the shortages are as they spread mostly across Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. He has also urged consumers to refrain from panic buying and hoarding.

“Please be a decent human and think about others around you,” he wrote. “If you don't need it, please wait.”

Stations in the Colonial Pipeline service area that still have fuel have attracted long lines, with some motorists seen fueling their cars and also filling containers. Motorists outside the service area have plenty of fuel and mostly stable prices and DeHaan said they have no reason to hoard gasoline.

Colonial’s pipeline supplies about 45% of the East Coast’s fuel and has had issues in the past four years that have caused temporary shutdowns. The Biden administration seized on last Friday’s ransomware attack by the hacker group Darkside as a reason for the government to invest in improving the nation’s vital infrastructure. 

Amazon has announced that it’s recruiting 75,000 workers and that it will offer $1,000 signing bonuses in some locations. 

The company is looking to fill positions in its fulfillment and transportation segments. Some areas with large numbers of open positions include California, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington, and Michigan. 

Most new roles will offer an average pay of $17 an hour. In addition to the $1,000 signing bonuses, Amazon said it will also provide an additional $100 to new employees who provide proof that they have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

Worker mistreatment claims

Amazon saw demand grow exponentially during the COVID-19 pandemic and has worked to bring on significantly more workers since last March. Simultaneously, it’s faced numerous complaints about its treatment of fulfillment center workers. 

Employees and advocates have complained that the company imposes impossibly high quotas on workers, while others argued that the company’s health and safety practices during the pandemic have been insufficient. 

A large-scale unionization effort at one of its fulfillment centers recently failed, but founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos said the unionization drive clearly demonstrated that the company needed to do more for its employees. 

“While the voting results were lopsided and our direct relationship with employees is strong, it’s clear to me that we need a better vision for how we create value for employees — a vision for their success,” Bezos wrote in his last shareholder letter. 

“We don’t set unreasonable performance goals. We set achievable performance goals that take into account tenure and actual employee performance data. Performance is evaluated over a long period of time as we know that a variety of things can impact performance in any given week, day, or hour,” Bezos said. “If employees are on track to miss a performance target over a period of time, their manager talks with them and provides coaching.” 

Raising pay

Last month, Amazon announced that it would be raising wages for more than 500,000 hourly employees by between 50 cents and $3 an hour -- a total investment of more than $1 billion. 

Over the past year, the company has added more than 400,000 workers to help it meet consumer demand stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Its total number of employees is currently more than 1 million, and the company is looking to bring on tens of thousands more U.S. workers by early 2022. 

On Thursday afternoon, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expected to announce that people who have been fully vaccinated for at least two weeks can stop wearing face masks inside most places. 

Citing “a person briefed on the announcement,” the Associated Press reported that the CDC’s new guidance will still call for the use of masks in crowded indoor settings, like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons, and homeless shelters. But the agency will no longer recommend that vaccinated people wear masks in most indoor places or outdoors in crowds. 

Sources told NBC News that there are a few caveats to the new guidance regarding indoor mask use for vaccinated individuals. Health officials will recommend that people with compromised immune systems talk to their doctors about whether or not to continue mask use indoors. Fully vaccinated people may also still be asked to wear masks in certain locations, like hospitals or other health care settings. 

CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky is expected to announce the new guidance during a White House briefing Thursday afternoon.

For several weeks, federal health officials have faced pressure to update indoor mask guidance for vaccinated people. Prior to the forthcoming guidance, the agency continued to recommend that fully vaccinated people continue to wear masks indoors in all settings, as well as outdoors in large crowds. 

Nearly 60% of people have received at least one dose of the three available COVID-19 vaccines, and nearly 40% of the nation is now fully vaccinated. 

Health officials have now identified a dozen additional cases of the blood clotting disorder linked to Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine. Last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 15 confirmed cases -- all in women. Now the agency says there have been 28 cases, including six in men. Three people have died and four remain hospitalized.

Dr. Tom Shimabukuro, the deputy director of the immunization safety office at the CDC, said Wednesday during a meeting with a panel of advisors that women still appear to be at a greater risk for the condition. Twenty-two of the 28 cases have been in women. 

“The trend is that the reporting rates are higher in females compared to males in all age categories,” Dr. Shimabukuro said.

He described the blood clotting disorder as “rare,” but “clinically serious and potentially life-threatening condition.” Patients who have experienced it have developed blood clots (often in the brain) and low levels of platelets. 

Of those who developed it, 12 were clinically obese, 7 had high blood pressure, 3 had diabetes, and 3 were taking estrogen. At this time, the CDC isn’t sure whether any of those factors significantly increase a person’s risk of the disorder. 

‘Plausible’ connection

When patients initially began reporting blood clots after getting vaccinated with Johnson & Johnson’s one-shot vaccine, federal health officials paused use of the company’s vaccine while they investigated the matter. Ten days later, officials concluded that the blood clotting disorder was exceedingly rare and resumed use of the vaccine. 

A warning label has been added to the vaccine’s label that notes the “plausible” connection between the blood clotting disorder and the vaccine. 

Zero cases of the clotting disorder have been reported by people who received either Pfizer or Moderna’s vaccine, but Dr. Shimaburkuro said the CDC will continue to monitor for cases in people who have been vaccinated. 

The never-ending saga of Boeing’s 737 MAX has a new chapter. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has given the aircraft manufacturer approval for an electrical fix and notified Southwest Airlines, American, United, and more than a dozen small international airlines that they can return more than 60 MAX jets to service.

Boeing alerted the FAA in early April that it was recommending that operators of certain Boeing 737 MAX airplanes temporarily ground the planes to address a manufacturing issue that could impact a backup power control unit. 

“After gaining final approvals from the FAA, we have issued service bulletins for the affected fleet,” Boeing told Reuters. “We are also completing the work as we prepare to resume deliveries.”

The news couldn’t come at a better time. With airlines trying to serve the pent-up demand of vaccinated wanderlusters and a beckoning summer travel season, they could use all the available planes they can get.

A pretty straightforward fix

Unlike Boeing’s past problems with the MAX, this one was pretty easy. In discussions with lawmakers, FAA Administrator Steve Dickson said that the electrical issue called for a “pretty straightforward fix.”

Dickson also gave Boeing — and the flying public — a shot of confidence by saying that he was convinced that the MAX models are safe, despite the aircraft’s past mechanical issues and fatal crashes.

Boeing hopes its MAX problems are finally behind it. The financial impact of the 737 MAX’s grounding created at least $18 billion in losses.

Credit card balances haven’t gotten any larger during the pandemic; in fact, data released by various card issuers shows that they’ve actually fallen.

One reason may be the generous stimulus money handed out by Washington. It seems clear that many consumers used much of it to pay down their credit card debt. Diving into the data, the Wall Street Journal reports that the percentage of Discover Card balances paid off at the end of the first quarter was the largest in two decades. 

Even more startling, Capital One reported that half of the credit card balances on its books at the beginning of March were paid off completely by the end of the month. In addition to paying off debt, consumers also paid their bills on time, a key factor in improving credit scores.

“Delinquencies can’t get much lower than where they are now, but if your loans keep shrinking, your revenues come down [and] margins will get worse,” Discover CEO Roger Hochschild told the newspaper.

Delinquencies are down

If you note a hint of concern in Hochschild’s voice, that’s because this is a very real concern for lenders. These companies tend to reap larger profits when consumers go on a spending spree and only pay the minimum. The pandemic-related shift to reducing debt is squeezing banks and may present consumers with better credit card terms. 

In recent weeks, some card issuers have marketed more aggressively and made underwriting stands more lenient in a bid to attract new customers. Check out ConsumerAffairs’ credit card reviews of the best companies and check to see if they have updated their terms.

In a bid to increase credit card revenue, the Journal also reports that major banks plan to begin issuing credit cards to consumers who lack credit scores, sharing bill payment data in order to determine creditworthiness.

“Cash wasn’t king”

TransUnion, one of three credit reporting agencies, has also tracked improved consumer debt payment behavior during the pandemic. It notes that the improvement did not come from a lack of use but from better payment discipline.

“Cash was definitely not king during the early parts of the pandemic,” said Matt Komos, TransUnion’s head of research and consulting in the U.S. “Millions of people opted to use their credit cards to make digital transactions from the safety of their homes for groceries, clothes, and other everyday items.”

Even though consumers have made strides recently to pay down credit card debt, the total consumers owe is still quite high. A recent report by Value Penguin found that the average American’s credit card debt is more than $6,000 and that 45% of U.S. families carry some credit card debt.

Many college students struggle with stress and poor mental health, and it can be difficult to find effective ways to be mindful and productive. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from Washington State University explored the role that therapy dogs could have on college students’ stress levels. 

Their findings showed that petting therapy dogs was beneficial for college students’ overall stress levels, and it led to improved planning abilities and general thinking skills. The researchers explained that these findings are particularly important because the benefits of interacting with animals stayed with the students for more than a month. 

“It’s a really powerful finding,” said researcher Patricia Pendry. “Universities are doing a lot of great work trying to help students succeed academically, especially those who may be at risk due to a history of mental health issues or academic and learning issues. This study shows that traditional stress management approaches aren’t as effective for this population compared with programs that focus on providing opportunities to interact with therapy dogs.” 

Managing stress levels

For the study, the researchers divided over 300 college students into three groups that focused on different stress management skills. Some of the students interacted with therapy dogs, while others participated in lecture-based stress management classes. To see how effective these interventions were, the team evaluated the students’ memory and organization to see if there was a noticeable change.

The results showed that students had the best outcomes when they were given time with the therapy dogs. As opposed to students who were taught about stress management in a classroom environment, those who got to interact with the dogs had stronger thinking and concentrating skills for as long as six weeks after the initial four-week study. 

By interacting with the dogs in a relaxed setting, the students were able to tackle their stressors from a different mindset. While the dogs didn’t change anything going on in the students’ lives, it helped put them in a more positive space to tackle the things that are typically stressful or overwhelming. 

“You can’t learn math just by being chill,” said Pendry. “But when you are looking at the ability to study, engage, concentrate, and take a test, then having the animal aspect is very powerful. Being calm is helpful for learning especially for those who struggle with stress and learning.” 

Choosing the best interventions

The researchers hope these findings change the way that universities go about addressing the topic of stress management. While workshop-style sessions aren’t designed to increase students’ stress levels, the researchers explained that being lectured about stress isn’t the best approach. 

“These are really important topics, and these workshops are helping typical students succeed by teaching them how to manage stress,” said Pendry. “Interestingly though, our findings suggest that these types of educational workshops are less effective for students that are struggling. It seems that students may experience these programs as another lecture, which is exactly what causes the students to feel stressed. 

“If you’re stressed, you can’t think or take up information; learning about stress is stressful!” she said. 

Chrysler is recalling 2,721 model year 2020-2021 Dodge Durangos. The side airbag inflatable curtain fastener may be loose or missing.

A loose or missing fastener may cause the side curtain airbag to deploy incorrectly, increasing the risk of injury.

What to do

Dealers will tighten or replace the fastener free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin June 11, 2021.

Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at (800) 853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is Y16.

Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) is recalling 6,331 model year 2021 AMG GLE 53s, and model year 2020 GLE350s, GLE450s, GLE580s, GLS450s & GLS580s.

The air conditioner drain hoses may have been incorrectly installed, causing water to drain into the passenger compartment.

Water intrusion into the driver and passenger side foot wells may cause corrosion and/or short circuits to electrical components, increasing the risk of fire.

In addition, the emergency call (eCall) feature may be disabled and the doors may not unlock, increasing the risk of injury.

Also, the engine may not start or may enter a limp-home mode, increasing the risk of a crash.

What to do

Dealers will inspect and correct the air conditioner drain hoses -- as necessary -- free of charge.

Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed on June 22, 2021.

Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at (800) 367-6372.

The day that millions of Americans have been waiting for is now here. Under a new Federal Communications Commission (FCC) program going into effect on May 12, consumers can apply for $50 off their monthly internet bill. The reduction came about as part of the FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, which is designed to keep people connected while the COVID-19 pandemic lingers on. 

The program partners with more than 800 internet providers and gives eligible consumers discounts of up to $50 a month for broadband service and up to $75 a month if the household is on tribal lands. A one-time discount of up to $100 on a computer or tablet will also be given to eligible households, the FCC said. There’s a bit of fine print on that discount, though -- a participant has to contribute more than $10 and less than $50 toward the purchase price.

“This program will have a tremendous, positive impact on so many American households.  It’s an investment in American families and a vote of confidence in the economic power of getting us all online,” said Jessica Rosenworcel, Acting Chairwoman of the FCC.  

“High-speed internet service is vital for families to take advantage of today’s health, education, and workplace opportunities. And the discount for laptops and desktop computers will continue to have a positive impact even after this temporary discount program wraps up.” 

Who qualifies

The Emergency Broadband Benefit is available to households that:

• Have an income that is at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines or participates in certain assistance programs, such as SNAP, Medicaid, or Lifeline;

• Have received a Federal Pell Grant during the current award year;

• Are approved to receive benefits under the free and reduced-price school lunch program or the school breakfast program, including through the USDA Community Eligibility Provision in the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school year;

• Meet the eligibility criteria for a participating internet service provider's existing low-income or COVID-19 program; or

• Are low-income households who suffered a large loss in income during the pandemic due to job loss or furlough since February 29, 2020. Households must have had a total income in 2020 at or below $99,000 for single filers and $198,000 for joint filers.

How to apply

There are three ways for eligible households to apply:

1. Contact your preferred participating broadband provider directly to learn about their application process. A complete list of eligible providers is available here.

2. Go to GetEmergencyBroadband.org to apply online and to find participating providers near you.

3. Call 833-511-0311 for a mail-in application and return it along with copies of documents showing proof of eligibility to the Emergency Broadband Support Center (P.O. Box 7081, London, KY 40742).

ConsumerAffairs found that applying online is relatively simple. When we went through the registration process, it took less than five minutes. All that was required was:

• Name

• Date of birth

• Either your Social Security number, Tribal ID number, driver’s license number, military ID, taxpayer ID, or other government ID

• Home address

• Phone number

• Email address

• Choose a name and password

Limitations

Consumers should keep in mind that this program has limited funds and is only available for a limited time. The FCC said the program will continue until either the $3.2 billion in federal funding runs out or six months have passed after the Department of Health and Human Services declares an end to the pandemic.  

Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.)

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 32,780,283 (32,745,835)

Total U.S. deaths: 582,867 (582,183)

Total global cases: 159,784,683 (159,073,559)

Total global deaths: 3,320,036 (3,306,550)

McDonald’s joins campaign to promote vaccinations

McDonald’s is the latest company to throw its support behind the government’s effort to promote vaccinations against the coronavirus (COVID-19). 

Later this month, the fast-food chain will use its billboard in New York’s Times Square to post vaccine information from trusted third parties. In July, McDonald's hot McCafé cups and McDelivery seal stickers will urge customers to visit vaccines.gov to learn more about the vaccination process.

"Getting vaccinated is easy. More than 150 million people have already gotten at least one dose of vaccine, and millions more are getting vaccinated every day," said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. "Thanks to McDonald’s, people will now be able to get trusted information about vaccines when they grab a cup of coffee or order a meal.”

Lots of employees won’t return to the office if it means moving

Remember all those people who moved out of their apartments and bought houses once they started working from home? Many moved pretty far from the office, so they’ve got a big decision to make now that these spaces are reopening. 

A new survey from realtor.com shows that nearly 60% of new homeowners who purchased within the last twelve months are working from home, and 62% prefer it. About a quarter of those in the survey said they haven’t decided if they’ll quit if they are required to resume their commute.

"Throughout the last year we have seen homebuyers across the country, empowered by the newfound ability to work remotely, moving farther and farther from crowded urban downtowns in search of more space, higher quality of life, and a lower cost of living," said George Ratiu, senior economist for realtor.com. "Our survey data shows that people are really enjoying their new communities and larger homes, and aren't willing to give them up anytime soon.”

FDA warns another marketer about COVID-19 claims

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has fired off a warning letter to Covalon Technologies Inc. for selling unapproved products with fraudulent COVID-19 claims. Consumers concerned about COVID-19 should consult with their health care provider, the agency said. 

The FDA has also updated its COVID-19 Response At-A-Glance Summary, which provides a quick look at facts, figures, and highlights on the FDA's response efforts.

Veterinarians now face stress and burnout

Hospitals were nearly overwhelmed with sick patients at the height of the pandemic, and that took a heavy mental and physical toll on hospital personnel. The same burnout factor now appears to be affecting the nation’s veterinarians.

When the pandemic forced most Americans to shelter in their homes, many sought the comfort of a new pet. Those adoptions all required a visit to the vet, and animal clinics saw their patient loads surge overnight. Apparently, it hasn’t let up.

Veterinarians interviewed by the Associated Press report that they have to work longer hours and hire more people. Some clinics have closed their doors to new patients.

New York Yankees report an outbreak

Getting a vaccination doesn’t mean you can’t get COVID-19, but cases should be rarer. Tell that to the New York Yankees, which announced that three people associated with the club -- all fully vaccinated -- have tested positive.

Third base coach Phil Nevin was the first to be identified as one of the positive cases. The team also announced that first base coach Reggie Willits tested positive. One other person who works on the Yankees’ support staff and was not identified has also been infected.

The three vaccines currently in use in the U.S. all have efficacy ratings of over 90%. They also have been shown to reduce the severity of symptoms in instances where someone with a vaccination gets the virus.

Around the nation

• Maine: Hospitals across the state are coping with a large increase in unvaccinated COVID-19 patients who require critical care. Most of the patients are young. “The good news is that we are seeing vaccinations work in the older populations that have been vaccinated – they’re not in the hospital or becoming critically ill,” said Dr. Joan Boomsma, chief medical officer for MaineHealth.

• Tennessee: Governor Bill Lee has announced that Tennessee will end participation in all federal pandemic unemployment compensation programs on July 3. One of the programs provides an extra $300 a week in unemployment benefits.

• Ohio: Supplies of the COVID-19 vaccines are exceeding demand. State health officials say they only took 20% of their allotted amount this week because of surpluses. The state is holding onto nearly 140,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine in anticipation of beginning vaccinations of adolescents.

Is the future of energy blowin’ in the wind? The Biden administration sure thinks so and has staked a sizable claim on wind as a viable source of power. On Tuesday, the White House decided to lead the charge by giving the go-ahead for the first major offshore wind project in U.S. waters.

The project will be built 12 nautical miles southeast of Martha’s Vineyard off the coast of Massachusetts. Officials say it will operate at a level of 800-megawatts -- enough to provide power for 400,000 homes and businesses. Biden’s hope is to generate a total of 30 gigawatts of energy from offshore wind by 2030. If 800-megawatts is the standard, then there will be 36 more of these wind farms coming sometime in the future.

“A clean energy future is within our grasp in the United States. The approval of this project is an important step toward advancing the Administration's goals to create good-paying union jobs while combating climate change and powering our nation,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “Today is one of many actions we are determined to take to open the doors of economic opportunity to more Americans.”

A quick consumer primer on wind energy

Wind energy has never been a big part of most Americans’ lives. But the game has changed under Biden’s new initiative, and consumers will likely now have questions about wind power. Some of the advantages include:

Cost-effectiveness. The Energy Department claims that wind is one of the lowest-priced energy sources available today, costing 1–2 cents per kilowatt-hour (after the production tax credit). 

How does that stack up against electricity? The latest per kilowatt-hour rates can run 10 times or higher than that. In April, the cost of electricity was 21.62¢ / kWh in Connecticut, 11.37¢ / kWh in Florida, 16.07¢ / kWh in Michigan, and 19.90¢ / kWh in California.

Wind creates jobs. The new Biden project is set to create an additional 3,000 jobs on top of the 100,000+ workers that are already employed in the wind energy sector. According to the Wind Vision Report, this type of energy has the potential to support more than 600,000 jobs in manufacturing, installation, maintenance, and supporting services by 2050.

It’s clean and sustainable. One major positive differentiator for wind energy is that it doesn't pollute the air like power plants, which rely on the combustion of fossil fuels like coal or natural gas. Taking that out of the equation could lead to a reduction in human health problems and economic damages. As to sustainability, as long as there’s a sun and the Earth continues to rotate, there will be plenty of wind power. 

Concerns about the impact of wind farms

The project had been a heated subject locally, raising questions about the human health impact of infrasound coming from large wind turbines. The fishing industry has expressed its disapproval of the move, saying the project lacks mitigation measures to offset impacts to critical ocean ecosystems and commercial fisheries.

The fishing industry’s concerns about wildlife have actually been merited by the U.S. Department of Energy. In discussing the pros and cons of wind power, the agency noted that wind plants can impact local wildlife. 

The agency said that while birds have been killed by flying into spinning turbine blades, that problem has been greatly reduced through technological development or by properly siting wind plants. Bats have also been killed by turbine blades, and there is ongoing research to also reduce the impact of wind turbines on that species.

“Like all energy sources, wind projects can alter the habitat on which they are built, which may alter the suitability of that habitat for certain species,” the agency wrote.

A new study conducted by researchers from Penn State explored the risks associated with consumers with HIV contracting COVID-19. According to their work, HIV could increase the severity of COVID-19 and also increase the risk of death from the infection. 

“Previous studies were inconclusive on whether or not HIV is a risk factor for susceptibility to SARS-Co-V-2 infection and poor outcomes in populations with COVID-19,” said researcher Dr. Paddy Ssentongo. “This is because a vast majority of people living with HIV/AIDS are on [antiretroviral therapy], some of which have been used experimentally to treat COVID-19.” 

Assessing the health risks

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from nearly two dozen earlier studies that included information from more than 21 million people. All of the participants had HIV or AIDS, and the researchers evaluated their health outcomes after getting infected with COVID-19. 

The team learned that those with HIV were nearly 80% more likely to die from COVID-19, and they were nearly 25% more likely to contract the virus. 

The researchers noted that the large majority of participants involved in the study -- more than 95% -- were taking antiretrovirals for HIV therapy. It was believed that these drugs could reduce the severity of COVID-19 infections, but these study findings can’t prove either way what role these medications play when HIV interacts with the coronavirus. 

The team explained that having HIV or AIDS can be associated with other pre-existing conditions that increase the severity of COVID-19, including diabetes, COPD, and high blood pressure. Moving forward, they hope their work prompts more people with pre-existing conditions, including HIV and AIDS, to get vaccinated against COVID-19. 

“As the pandemic has evolved, we’ve obtained sufficient information to characterize the epidemiology of HIV/SARS-CoV-2 coinfection, which could not be done at the beginning of the pandemic due to scarcity of data,” said researcher Vernon Chinchilli. “Our findings support the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance to prioritize persons living with HIV to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.”

As the Colonial Pipeline shutdown stretches into a fifth day, gas stations all along the East Coast are running out of fuel as panicked motorists formed long lines. Prices are also moving higher.

The AAA Fuel Gauge Survey shows the national average price of regular has risen to $3 a gallon for the first time in seven years, eight cents higher than a week ago. In Georgia, one of the hardest-hit states, the average price has risen 18 cents a gallon in the last two days to $2.95 a gallon.

The Colonial Pipeline Company said it expects to resume operations by the end of the week but the interruption in supplies caused by a weekend cyberattack has created a situation at gas stations not seen since the late 1970s.

Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, was busy on Twitter Tuesday night keeping a running count: 30% of gas stations in metro Atlanta were out of fuel; 29% of Charlotte-area stations were on empty; 31% of Raleigh gas stations had no fuel.

Critical fuel artery to the East Coast

That’s because the pipeline, originating on the Texas Gulf Coast, carries millions of gallons of gasoline each day across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Caroline, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York, with stops along the way to offload fuel.

The pipeline was shut down last weekend after the operators discovered they had been the target of a ransomware attack. Company officials said the attack did not penetrate vital systems, but the pipeline was shut down out of an abundance of caution.

In a statement late Tuesday, the company said it continues to make progress to return the system to service, with additional laterals operating manually to deliver existing inventories to markets along the pipeline’s route.

“Since our pipeline system was taken offline, working with our shippers, Colonial has delivered approximately 967,000 barrels to various delivery points along our system,” the company said. “This includes delivery into the following markets: Atlanta, Ga., Belton and Spartanburg, S.C., Charlotte and Greensboro, N.C., Baltimore, Md., and Woodbury and Linden N.J.”

Once operations resume, the company promises fuel will quickly begin flowing. It says it has taken delivery of 2 million barrels of gasoline from refineries that will begin moving through the pipeline as early as Friday.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has mailed millions in refunds to consumers who fell victim to a scheme carried out by Reckitt Benckiser Group and Indivior, Inc.

In a statement, the FTC said the “Suboxone Film scheme” sought to snuff out lower-priced generic competition with the branded drug Suboxone -- a prescription medication used to minimize withdrawal symptoms in patients recovering from opioid addiction. In doing so, the FTC says the company “put Americans’ health and safety at risk.” 

The agency alleged that Reckitt Benckiser and Indivior employed deceptive tactics and sought to deny consumers a lower-cost generic alternative in order to “maintain their lucrative monopoly on the branded drug.”  

The FTC stressed that it “does not tolerate the kind of deceptive practices that make it harder or more expensive to get prescription medication” -- especially in light of the ongoing opioid crisis.

“Today the check is in the mail for over 50,000 people suffering from opioid addiction – a pandemic in its own right still ravaging our communities – who were misled by these parties. While we trust the settlement has sent a strong warning to copycat companies, the FTC remains diligent in its work to promote a safe and competitive marketplace,” said FTC Acting Chairwoman Rebecca Slaughter. 

Refunds are in the mail

In its complaint, the FTC said that RB Group, through its subsidiary Indivior, developed a dissolvable oral film version of Suboxone and worked to shift prescriptions to the film version in a deceptive way.

In an attempt to get doctors and patients to switch to Suboxone Film, Reckitt and Indivior allegedly employed a “product hopping” scheme in which they said the film version of Suboxone was safer than Suboxone tablets because children are less likely to be accidentally exposed to the film product. 

“Suboxone Film contains the same active ingredients and is clinically interchangeable with Suboxone Tablets,” the complaint said. “Any differences between the two formulations are clinically insignificant.” 

A total of $59 million is being refunded to 51,875 consumers. The average payment amount is $1,139. Some victims will receive checks and others will receive prepaid debit cards.