Month: September 2021

Newman and Peggy Smith did everything they could to avoid COVID-19, including getting vaccinated. He died from the virus at LeConte Medical Center on September 1. GATLINBURG, Tenn — It was the sound of the mountains that first brought Peggy and Newman Smith together. She sang and played the dulcimer — an instrument he had always loved. He got her number from a friend and they immediately hit it off. "There was a dulcimer festival... he had called and we talked for an hour and a half," she said, adding that she normally didn't do that. "He was the most fascinating man I have ever talked with." ...

The proportion of serious and fatal COVID-19 infections among vaccinated Tennesseans is growing, but experts caution against using data on "breakthrough" infections — which occur when fully vaccinated people are infected by the coronavirus — to draw broad conclusions about vaccine efficacy. Unvaccinated Tennesseans continue to account for the majority of COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths in the state. But the proportion of patients who are fully vaccinated has increased threefold or more, according to the latest COVID-19 Critical Indicators report from the Tennessee Department of Health: — The vaccinated made up 13% of all COVID-19 cases in Tennessee in August, compared to 4% in May. — Among those hospitalized with COVID-19, 14% were vaccinated in August,...

Two from Deschutes County, one from Crook County PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- There are 25 new COVID-19 related deaths in Oregon over the past three days, three from Central Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 3,594, the Oregon Health Authority reported Monday.  Central Oregon health departments reported three of the 25 deaths were residents of the region, two from Deschutes County, bringing the county's tally to 102 deaths, and one from Crook County, where the toll rose to 38. OHA also reported 3,359 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. Monday, bringing the state total to 313,161. The 25 new deaths and 3,349 new cases reported Monday include data recorded by counties for the 3-day period between Friday, Sept. 17 and Sunday, S...

ATLANTA — New numbers from the state show Saturday is now the deadliest day of the COVID-19 pandemic so far. The state reported 191 new COVID-19 deaths. That’s five more than our previous high in February. That brings Georgia’s average of COVID-19 deaths to 103 people every day. But as deaths go up, cases continue to go down across the state. The Georgia Department of Public Health reported 9,490 new COVID-19 cases reported over the weekend. The seven-day average of cases is now at its lowest point in over a month. The numbers come on the same day as the U.S. met another grim milestone: COVID-19 has now killed about as many Americans as the 1918-19 Spanish flu pandemic did — approximately 675,000. The U.S. population a century ago was just one-third of what it is today, meaning the flu c...

Everyday tasks — such as buttoning a shirt, opening a jar or brushing teeth — can suddenly seem impossible after a stroke that affects the brain's fine motor control of the hands. New research suggests starting intensive rehab a bit later than typically happens now — and continuing it longer — might improve recovery. PeopleImages/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption PeopleImages/Getty Images Everyday tasks — such as buttoning a shirt, opening...