Coronavirus update: What is ‘COVID arm?’ And, what to do if you get it
California will set aside 40% of its allotment of COVID-19 vaccines for the most vulnerable areas in the state based on metrics including household income, education level and housing status, in effort to vaccinate those most at risk from the coronavirus and reopen the economy more quickly.
The San Joaquin Valley will be a primary target, from Sacramento to Bakersfield and every county in between.
With more doses of vaccine on the way, a Thursday update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccines may be pertinent.
Included in it: COVID arm.
The CDC has received reports that some have developed a red, itchy, swollen or painful rash after receiving the Moderna vaccine, which can start after a few days to more than one week later after receiving the shot.
The rash, known as COVID arm, typically goes away after four or five days, according to a report on Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine. If it develops after receiving a first dose of the vaccine the CDC says you should still get the second shot at the recommended interval.
The Moderna vaccine requires a second shot 28 days after the first shot, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine 21 days after the first and the Johnson & Johnson requires only a single dose.
The vaccination provider may recommend the second shot goes in the opposite arm, if experiencing a rash.
If the rash is itchy, you can take an antihistamine, according to the CDC. If it is painful, you can take a pain medication like acetaminophen or a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug.
The CDC monitors allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccines through its Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, collecting and tracking reports from healthcare providers, manufacturers, and the public about adverse reactions.
The latest updates from Central San Joaquin Valley counties
Fresno County public health officials reported 108 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Thursday with the total now 95,893. The new cases came through 1,796 tests, a 6.0% positivity rate.
There also were eight new deaths in the county, bringing the total to 1,466.
Elsewhere in the Central San Joaquin Valley, counties reported:
Kings County
- 28 new cases; 22,119 total
- 7 new deaths; 227 total
Madera County
- 36 new cases; 15,508 total
- 0 new deaths; 214 total
Mariposa County
- 0 new cases; 395 total
- 0 new deaths; 7 total
Merced County
- 61 new cases; 29,325 total
- 5 new deaths; 412 total
Tulare County
- 49 new cases; 48,163 total
- 0 new deaths; 768 total
Statewide, there were 3,504 new confirmed coronavirus cases reported on Thursday by the California Department of Public Health with a total of 3,488,467 since the start of the pandemic.
The 7- and 14-day positivity rates in the state are 2.1% and 2.5%.
There also were 273 new deaths and a total of 53,048.
Promising projections from CDPH
There are several counties in the San Joaquin Valley with test positivity rates higher than the state overall. But a short-term forecast by the California Department of Public Health showed a significant drop in coronavirus-related hospitalizations and deaths from early March to early April.
In the San Joaquin Valley, which includes the six counties in the Central Valley as well as Kern, San Benito, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Calaveras and Tuolumne counties, total hospitalizations were projected to drop to 224 from 654, intensive care patients to 43 from 164 and the number of deaths was projected to rise by 354 to 6,576.
In the Central Valley the hospitalization and ICU projections …
Fresno County: 57 from 180; 9 from 36
Kings County: 7 from 34; 1 from 4
Madera County: 12 from 14; 2 from 3
Mariposa County: 0 from 0; 0 from 0
Merced County: 20 from 29; 3 from 4
Tulare County: 23 from 62; 4 from 10
The CDPH short-term forecasts take into account the most recent trends in cases, hospitalizations, ICU patients, and deaths and apply statistical models to that data to generate anticipated trends in the next two to four weeks.