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Wisconsin pharmacist who tried to destroy Covid vaccine is ‘conspiracy theorist,’ authorities say
A pharmacist accused of trying to destroy hundreds of doses of coronavirus vaccine is allegedly a conspiracy theorist who believed the medication wasn’t safe, Wisconsin authorities said Monday.
Steven Brandenburg, 46, was ordered held in lieu of $10,000 bond by Ozaukee County Circuit Court Judge Paul Malloy during a brief appearance.
Police in Grafton, about 20 miles north of Milwaukee, arrested the Advocate Aurora Health pharmacist on Thursday after 57 vials of the Moderna vaccine were apparently spoiled. Brandenburg took the vaccine doses from a refrigerator and left them out for 12 hours, possibly rendering them useless, police said.
Each vial contained 10 doses and was all together worth between $8,550 to $11,400, according to a probable cause statement by Grafton Police Det.-Sgt. Eric Sutherland.
Brandenburg is an “admitted conspiracy theorist” and he “told investigators that he believed that Covid-19 vaccine was not safe for people and could harm them and change their DNA,” Sutherland wrote.
“He admitted this was an intentional act,” the probable cause statement added.
9 nuns died of Covid-19 at a New York convent in December
Coronavirus tore through an upstate New York convent in December, with dozens testing positive and at least nine nuns dying of Covid-19.
The outbreak occurred at St. Joseph’s Provincial House — a convent for retired and infirm nuns run by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet — in Latham, New York, just outside of Albany.
A spokesperson for the order confirmed that 47 sisters tested positive and at least nine have died of Covid-19 in the final month of 2020, saying the convent had largely been spared throughout the year.
“At this time, three of our sisters living at the Provincial House are receiving treatment for the virus, and are under the care of their personal physicians,” Sr. Mary Rose Noonan wrote in an email to NBC News, adding that most of the nuns who tested positive have recovered. Twenty-one convent employees tested positive and recovered, while five remain in isolation, Noonan said.
“Like all members of our global community, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet have been struggling with the tragic consequences of COVID-19,” Noonan wrote, saying that they have been following all CDC and New York state safety guidelines.
N.Y. reports first known case of U.K. variant of the coronavirus
The first known case in New York state of someone infected with the coronavirus variant spreading in the United Kingdom was confirmed in a man from Saratoga County, north of Albany, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Monday.
The man, who is in his 60s and works in a jewelry store, had not recently traveled outside of the country, Cuomo said during a conference call. Three other people in the store also have Covid-19, and they are being checked for the same strain, the governor added.
The new variant of the coronavirus has been found in more than a dozen countries and at least three other states: California, Colorado and Florida. Scientists have said the variant appears to spread more easily, but does not make people sicker.
Still, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday moved to curb the spread of Covid-19, and announced a new national lockdown in England, including the most stringent level of restrictions since the start of the pandemic.
Faced with mounting cases, England announces new lockdown
LONDON — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday announced a new national lockdown in England, including the most stringent level of restrictions since the start of the pandemic, to slow down the spiral in new cases of Covid-19 on the same day the U.K. started the rollout of AstraZeneca‘s vaccine.
The measures are similar to the lockdown imposed last March, and include asking the public to stay at home and only leave for limited reasons. Trips outside will only be allowed for essential shopping, exercise, Covid-19 testing, medical help, escaping domestic abuse and work for those who can’t work from home.
Primary and secondary schools will also have to switch to remote learning starting Tuesday.
Speaking in a late night televised address, Johnson warned that the weeks ahead will be the hardest yet, but the new lockdown was a pivotal moment.
“I know how tough this is and I know how frustrated you are,” Johnson said. “But now more than ever, we must pull together.”
Photo: Hospital at the breaking point in California
Registered nurse Yeni Sandoval wears personal protective equipment as she cares for a Covid-19 patient in the Intensive Care Unit at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana, Calif. on Jan. 3.
About four weeks ago, the hospital had very few patients in the ICU, but now 80 percent of the hospital is filled with Covid patients and 90 percent of the ICU.
Georgia woman makes miraculous recovery from Covid-19
A Georgia woman was discharged from the hospital on New Year’s Eve after battling Covid-19 for three months.
Lisa Martin first went to Memorial Satilla Health’s emergency room on Sept. 27 after developing a fever and painful breathing, according to a press release from the hospital. Her husband Jeff had earlier tested positive for Covid-19, but had been on the path to recovery.
Martin, who is in her 40s and has no known underlying health conditions, was soon placed on a ventilator because of the severity of her breathing problems, one of the most dangerous symptoms of Covid-19. From there, her condition worsened and she was placed in a medically induced coma.
When the hospital called the family to say goodbye, Martin’s family held a meeting to decide the next steps in her care. They were not ready to say goodbye and instead decided to make a decision within the 11 days.
“We are not pulling that plug,” Martin’s son Jack said according to the hospital’s press release. “I’m not ready to be without mama.”
On the 11th day, the family was overjoyed when Martin broke through the sedatives, began moving her hand and tracking Jeff with her eyes. She was transported to the hospital’s sister facility, Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah, Georgia to begin her recovery.
As part of her recovery, Martin spent the next two months relearning how to speak, eat and walk. On Dec. 31, she was finally discharged from Memorial Satilla Rehabilitation after spending 59 days on a ventilator and 40 days in an induced coma, a recovery the hospital called miraculous.
U.S. air travel hits new peak after the holidays
More than 1.3 million people in the United States boarded planes Sunday — the most nationwide since the pandemic began — according to data compiled by the Transportation Security Administration.
The TSA screened 1,327,289 passengers across the country on Sunday, despite pleas from public health experts and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to avoid unnecessary travel this holiday season.
“Yesterday would typically be one of the busiest travel days of the year as families return from what is often a two-week school vacation surrounding Christmas and the start of the new year,” TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein tweeted Monday.
Although air travel overall remains lower than in previous years, the TSA recorded increases around Thanksgiving and Christmas, which suggests that some Americans are continuing to ignore guidelines from the CDC. Nearly 1.2 million passengers passed through airport checkpoints in the U.S. on Dec. 23 and more than 1 million people boarded planes the day before Thanksgiving, according to TSA data.
Some Chicago teachers returning to classrooms Monday
Some teachers in Chicago returned to the classroom Monday for the first time since a statewide shutdown in March, a move met with criticism from the Chicago Teachers Union as some members said they did not feel safe going back into their buildings in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
Roughly 5,000 teachers in the Chicago Public Schools district serving preschoolers and special education students were ordered to return to their classrooms on Monday, with students expected to return next Monday, Jan. 11.
“I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen tomorrow,” Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey told NBC Chicago on Sunday. “Certainly what I’m hearing is that a number of teachers are going to not be showing up at work tomorrow, at least not in person.”
Sharkey told the station that about 1,800 members asked for special accommodations, but only about 600 received them. It was not immediately clear Monday morning how many teachers did not report to work.
Chicago Public Schools said in a statement to NBC Chicago that the “overwhelming scientific evidence, expert guidance and experiences of districts across Illinois are clear: Schools can safely reopen with a comprehensive plan in place.”
Teachers for kindergarten through eighth grade will return to school starting Jan. 25, with those students expected to return on Feb.1.
College basketball’s ‘March Madness’ will be an all-Indiana affair
College basketball’s top-fight post-season tournament, known as “March Madness,” will be played entirely in Indiana, in hopes of keeping participants safe from coronavirus, officials said Monday.
The NCAA said in November it was planning to centralize the tournament which is normally staged at 13 arenas across America, not including the play-in games in Dayton, Ohio.
All of the 2021 games will now be played at Bankers Life Fieldhouse at Ball State University, Hinkle Fieldhouse at Butler University, Indiana Farmers Coliseum at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis, Mackey Arena at Purdue University, Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall at Indiana University in Bloomington, and Lucas Oil Stadium, the NCAA said.
The cancellation of March Madness in 2020 was one of the first, major cultural events lost to the pandemic.
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