Coronavirus updates: Here’s what you need to know this week in South Carolina
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus and vaccines in South Carolina. The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control is providing weekly updates every Tuesday.
Over 1,000 new COVID cases reported
At least 1.4 million coronavirus cases have been reported in South Carolina, and at least 17,591 people have died of the virus since March 2020, according to state health officials.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control on Tuesday, March 29, reported 1,095 new COVID-19 cases and 10 coronavirus-related deaths for the week of March 20-26. The counts include probable and confirmed coronavirus cases and deaths.
The omicron variant accounted for 100% of coronavirus strains identified in South Carolina for the week ending on March 26, according to the latest available state data. The DHEC’s Public Health Laboratory conducts sequencing on randomly chosen samples as part of nationwide efforts to identify new strains of the virus, the agency’s website reads.
An average of 171 people in the state have been hospitalized with COVID-19 in the last week, including 29 patients being treated in intensive care units and 14 patients on ventilators.
As of March 26, 2.3% of molecular COVID-19 tests received in the last seven days returned a positive result. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said 5% or lower means there is a low level of community spread.
Just over 54% percent of South Carolinians eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and nearly 63% have received at least one dose, state health data shows.
Airline CEOs press Biden for return to pre-pandemic normalcy
President Joe Biden is facing pressure from airline industry leaders to do away with air travel restrictions such as mask mandates and pre-departure testing requirements, McClatchy News reported.
“COVID-19 need no longer control our lives,” reads a letter signed by the heads of Delta Airlines, Southwest Airlines, JetBlue and several others. “Now is the time for the Administration to sunset federal transportation travel restrictions ... that are no longer aligned with the realities of the current epidemiological environment.”
The push comes as coronavirus cases are on the decline and states begin to relax mask rules and other COVID-19-related restrictions.
In his State of the Union address on March 1, Biden acknowledged the progress made on the pandemic and said that “COVID-19 no longer need control our lives.” Some public health experts argue it’s too soon to lift certain travel restrictions, however.
Read the full story here.
Workers feel employers don’t care about them, survey shows
Some workers aren’t feeling the love from their employers. In fact, fewer than one in four U.S. workers say they feel their bosses care about their overall well-being, McClatchy News reporting, citing a Gallup poll.
That number has taken a nosedive since the start of the pandemic, when about 49% of people polled said their employer’s response to concerns over coronavirus transmission was properly planned, communicated, “and what many employees believed was genuine concern for them, their work, and their lives.”
That number is now at the lowest it’s been in 10 years, according to the report.
Gallup’s findings are based on a survey conducted in February that polled 15,000 full- and part-time employees across the U.S., McClatchy News reported. It comes as workers across several industries quit their jobs over low pay, poor treatment and no opportunities for advancement in what’s been dubbed the “Great Resignation.”
Read the full story here.