Publisher Health

Top U.S. health officials sought to reassure Americans on Sunday that the 10-day pause in the use of Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine showed how well safety monitoring for the Covid-19 vaccines worked, and should not add to the hesitancy to get shots among some Americans.“What we’re going to see, and we’ll probably see it soon, is that people will realize that we take safety very seriously,” said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the president’s top medical adviser for the coronavirus, during an interview on the ABC News program, “This Week.”“We’re out there trying to combat the degree of vaccine hesitancy that still is out there,” Dr. Fauci said. “And one of the real reasons why people have hesitancy is concern about the safety of the vaccine.”On Friday, federal officials lifted a pause that had been recommended on April 13 for the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine because of a few cases of a rare blood clotting disorder that had occurred mainly among younger women. By Friday, experts had identified 15 cases, including three deaths, stemming from the extremely unusual clotting issue. A warning about the risk for the disorder will be included for the company’s product.Public health experts have raised concerns that the Johnson & Johnson pause was particularly worrisome because many states were relying on the one-dose shot to expand vaccinations into harder-to-reach rural areas, and for those who were homebound, homeless and on college campuses. Some officials also worried that the pause would dampen vaccine rates that are already falling in the country.On NBC’s program “Meet the Press,” Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, compared the risk of a blood clot from the vaccine — less than 1 in 500,000 — to the danger of aspirin causing significant bleeding in the intestines among people who regularly take aspirin.“We’re talking about something about a thousand times less likely to happen,” Dr. Collins said. “But we Americans are not that good at this kind of risk calculation.”Many states have already announced that they would resume use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Nearly 8 million people had received it before the pause, and about 10 million doses were sitting on shelves around the country waiting to be dispensed.Overall, more than 50 percent of adult Americans have received at least one shot among the three vaccines available, Dr. Fauci said.Both Dr. Fauci and Dr. Collins said it was crucial for a high percentage of Americans to be vaccinated to end the pandemic. “The more people you get vaccinated, the more people you protect,” Dr. Fauci said. “When you get a critical number of people vaccinated, you really have a blanket of protection over the entire community.”Dr. Collins said scientists did not know the exact percentage of people with immunity, either from the vaccine or from antibodies generated from surviving a bout with the virus, that would be needed to reach herd immunity, especially as the coronavirus mutates into new variants that can be more infectious.“But it’s up there around 70, 85 percent,” he said. “And we’re not there yet.”He said that being fully vaccinated was freeing.“My wife and I were able to invite another couple to come to our house to dinner and take off our masks because they were immunized as well and have a normal conversation and hug each other at the end of the evening,” Dr. Collins said. “That was so liberating. If you’re not vaccinated, you’re missing out on that chance to lift that blanket of fear that’s been there.”Asked about calls for lessening restrictions for mask-wearing outdoors, Dr. Fauci said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could soon revise its recommendations. “I think it’s pretty common sense now that outdoor risk is really, really quite low,” Dr. Fauci said. “I mean, if you are a vaccinated person, wearing a mask outdoors, obviously, the risk is minuscule.”

A Florida grand jury indicted a man and his three sons, accusing them of marketing an “unproven and potentially harmful” solution as a remedy for Covid-19, cancer, autism and more.MIAMI — Leaders of a business masquerading as a church sold a toxic bleach solution as a religious sacrament and marketed it as a “miracle” cure for Covid-19, cancer, autism, Alzheimer’s disease and more, federal prosecutors said.A federal grand jury in Miami has indicted Mark Grenon, 62, and his three sons, Jonathan Grenon, 34; Jordan Grenon, 26; and Joseph Grenon, 32; all of Bradenton, Fla. Prosecutors said on Friday that they violated court orders and fraudulently produced and sold more than $1 million of their “Miracle Mineral Solution,” a dangerous industrial bleach solution.The solution contains sodium chlorite and water. When it is ingested orally, it becomes chlorine dioxide, a strong bleach used in industrial water treatments and in bleaching textiles, pulp or paper, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said.The federal Food and Drug Administration warned last year that the product the men were accused of marketing through the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing was “unproven and potentially harmful.”Mark Grenon and his sons relied on a book, radio station and a newsletter to market their solution to vulnerable consumers, prosecutors said.via YouTube“Despite a previous warning, the Genesis II Church of Healing has continued to actively place consumers at risk by peddling potentially dangerous and unapproved chlorine dioxide products,” Stephen M. Hahn said last year, when he was the F.D.A. commissioner.The Grenons relied on a book, radio station and newsletter and cited Bible verses to market the solution to vulnerable consumers, according to prosecutors. It was unclear whether anyone was sickened or died from taking the product they promoted.In documents from a civil case last year, a program analyst at the F.D.A. said she ordered the bleach product and had it shipped to her. Federal prosecutors said they found that the solution was being manufactured in a shed in Jonathan Grenon’s backyard.Officers seized dozens of blue chemical drums with nearly 10,000 pounds of sodium chlorite powder that could produce thousands of bottles of the solution, federal prosecutors said. Loaded firearms were also recovered, including a pump-action shotgun concealed in a custom-made violin case, officials said.The Grenons were each charged with conspiracy to commit fraud and criminal contempt. If convicted, they could face life in prison, federal prosecutors said.The church has described itself on its websites as a “nonreligious church,” federal prosecutors said.Mark Grenon, described as an archbishop and a founder, has also repeatedly said that the church “has nothing to do with religion,” and that he founded the institution to legalize the use of the bleach solution and to avoid going to prison, prosecutors said.The church has promoted the bleach solution for years.Jim Humble, a church founder and a former Scientologist, has claimed that he is a billion-year-old god from the Andromeda galaxy. Mr. Humble, who was not charged in the case involving the Grenons, said that he asked “to be put in the part of the space navy that watched over Earth,” according to an investigation last year by ABC7 in Los Angeles.Jonathan Grenon and Jordan Grenon were arrested last summer on related charges based on a complaint filed by federal prosecutors in Miami. They have been detained since their arrest based on a judge’s ruling that they posed a risk of not appearing at future court proceedings and were considered a danger to the community.Mark Grenon and Joseph Grenon are currently in Colombia, prosecutors said. The Grenons, who could not be reached, have previously represented themselves in court.Federal prosecutors believe that Mark Grenon and Joseph Grenon operate what they call a “health restoration center” in Santa Marta, Colombia, where they charge consumers about $5,000 a month to stay at the compound and “dose themselves with Miracle Mineral Solution,” court records show.Federal prosecutors brought criminal contempt charges against the Grenons, accusing them of willfully violating court orders in a separate civil court case last year that directed the family to halt distribution of the solution.Prosecutors said the Grenons also threatened a federal judge presiding over the civil case, saying that if the government stopped their solution distribution they would “pick up guns” and instigate “a Waco,” a reference to the deadly 1993 siege by federal agents of a religious sect’s compound in Texas.This case is one of several that have been prosecuted related to a debunked bleach cure. In 2015, a seller of a bleach solution from Spokane, Wash., was sentenced to more than four years in federal prison.“I can tell you that the Department of Justice is taking the distribution of Miracle Mineral Solution, and all chlorine dioxide products, extremely seriously,” said Michael B. Homer, the assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

A Florida grand jury indicted a man and his three sons, accusing them of marketing an “unproven and potentially harmful” solution as a remedy for Covid-19, cancer, autism and more.MIAMI — Leaders of a business masquerading as a church sold a toxic bleach solution as a religious sacrament and marketed it as a “miracle” cure for Covid-19, cancer, autism, Alzheimer’s disease and more, federal prosecutors said.A federal grand jury in Miami has indicted Mark Grenon, 62, and his three sons, Jonathan Grenon, 34; Jordan Grenon, 26; and Joseph Grenon, 32; all of Bradenton, Fla. Prosecutors said on Friday that they violated court orders and fraudulently produced and sold more than $1 million of their “Miracle Mineral Solution,” a dangerous industrial bleach solution.The solution contains sodium chlorite and water. When it is ingested orally, it becomes chlorine dioxide, a strong bleach used in industrial water treatments and in bleaching textiles, pulp or paper, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said.The federal Food and Drug Administration warned last year that the product the men were accused of marketing through the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing was “unproven and potentially harmful.”Mark Grenon and his sons relied on a book, radio station and a newsletter to market their solution to vulnerable consumers, prosecutors said.via YouTube“Despite a previous warning, the Genesis II Church of Healing has continued to actively place consumers at risk by peddling potentially dangerous and unapproved chlorine dioxide products,” Stephen M. Hahn said last year, when he was the F.D.A. commissioner.The Grenons relied on a book, radio station and newsletter and cited Bible verses to market the solution to vulnerable consumers, according to prosecutors. It was unclear whether anyone was sickened or died from taking the product they promoted.In documents from a civil case last year, a program analyst at the F.D.A. said she ordered the bleach product and had it shipped to her. Federal prosecutors said they found that the solution was being manufactured in a shed in Jonathan Grenon’s backyard.Officers seized dozens of blue chemical drums with nearly 10,000 pounds of sodium chlorite powder that could produce thousands of bottles of the solution, federal prosecutors said. Loaded firearms were also recovered, including a pump-action shotgun concealed in a custom-made violin case, officials said.The Grenons were each charged with conspiracy to commit fraud and criminal contempt. If convicted, they could face life in prison, federal prosecutors said.The church has described itself on its websites as a “nonreligious church,” federal prosecutors said.Mark Grenon, described as an archbishop and a founder, has also repeatedly said that the church “has nothing to do with religion,” and that he founded the institution to legalize the use of the bleach solution and to avoid going to prison, prosecutors said.The church has promoted the bleach solution for years.Jim Humble, a church founder and a former Scientologist, has claimed that he is a billion-year-old god from the Andromeda galaxy. Mr. Humble, who was not charged in the case involving the Grenons, said that he asked “to be put in the part of the space navy that watched over Earth,” according to an investigation last year by ABC7 in Los Angeles.Jonathan Grenon and Jordan Grenon were arrested last summer on related charges based on a complaint filed by federal prosecutors in Miami. They have been detained since their arrest based on a judge’s ruling that they posed a risk of not appearing at future court proceedings and were considered a danger to the community.Mark Grenon and Joseph Grenon are currently in Colombia, prosecutors said. The Grenons, who could not be reached, have previously represented themselves in court.Federal prosecutors believe that Mark Grenon and Joseph Grenon operate what they call a “health restoration center” in Santa Marta, Colombia, where they charge consumers about $5,000 a month to stay at the compound and “dose themselves with Miracle Mineral Solution,” court records show.Federal prosecutors brought criminal contempt charges against the Grenons, accusing them of willfully violating court orders in a separate civil court case last year that directed the family to halt distribution of the solution.Prosecutors said the Grenons also threatened a federal judge presiding over the civil case, saying that if the government stopped their solution distribution they would “pick up guns” and instigate “a Waco,” a reference to the deadly 1993 siege by federal agents of a religious sect’s compound in Texas.This case is one of several that have been prosecuted related to a debunked bleach cure. In 2015, a seller of a bleach solution from Spokane, Wash., was sentenced to more than four years in federal prison.“I can tell you that the Department of Justice is taking the distribution of Miracle Mineral Solution, and all chlorine dioxide products, extremely seriously,” said Michael B. Homer, the assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

Children going to camp this summer can be within three feet of peers in the same-group settings, but they must wear masks at all times, federal health officials say. The only times children should remove their masks is when they are swimming, napping, eating or drinking; they should be spaced far apart for these activities, positioned head to toe for naps and seated at least six feet apart for meals, snacks and water breaks.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued the anticipated updated guidance for summer camp operators on Sunday morning, just weeks before many camps resume operations in mid-May. Many parents have been eager to find camps for their children, who had spent months indoors in remote learning classes during the pandemic.A theme that runs throughout the updated guidance is the emphasis on conducting as many activities as possible outdoors, where the risk of infection in considered much lower than indoors. When activities must be brought indoors, spaces should be well-ventilated and windows should be kept open (windows should also be open on camp buses and vans), the C.D.C. said. The guidance urges children not to share toys, books or games. Each camper should have a labeled cubby for their belongings, and nap mats should be assigned to individual children, and sanitized before and after use.Some activities should still be avoided altogether, including close-contact or indoor sports, and large gatherings or assemblies. Singing, chanting, shouting or playing instruments are recommended for outdoors.Wearing a mask is a critical piece of the prevention effort, even as federal health officials are weighing whether to lessen that restriction for the outdoors especially among people who are fully vaccinated.“All people in camp facilities should wear masks at all times, with exceptions for certain people, or for certain settings or activities, such as while eating and drinking or swimming,” the guidance states in the only sentence emphasized in bold font in the 14-page advisory.Federal health officials also issued rules for overnight camps, saying eligible staff, volunteers, campers and family members should be fully vaccinated two weeks before traveling to camps, while those who are not vaccinated should self-quarantine for two weeks before arriving at camp. Those who are not fully vaccinated should also provide proof of a negative test for the virus, taken one to three days before arriving at the camp.Campers and staff members should be screened for Covid symptoms upon arrival at camps, and screening tests should be conducted if there is substantial community transmission in the area. Daily symptom checks should also be carried out to monitor for possible illness, the advice says.Anyone working at a camp who is 16 or older is “strongly encouraged” to get vaccinated “as soon as the opportunity is available,” health officials said.But immunized individuals must still wear masks around children, who are not eligible for vaccination yet, and stay six feet away from them. Children should also stay six feet away from children in other groups.

Many job seekers don’t know where to look after the year we’ve just had. If you count yourself among this crowd, here’s how to get back into the market, even if you’re feeling rusty.Airlines are canceling flights because they don’t have enough pilots to fly them. Restaurants are posting open positions on their Instagram feeds. Even the local grocery store has a “hiring” sign out front. Welcome to spring 2021: After a year of being battered by the pandemic, the economy is finally showing signs of a strong, steady recovery, and jobs are popping up like crocuses. Employers added almost a million positions in March alone, according to the Labor Department.“Across our industry, everyone is prioritizing hiring,” said Kelly McCulloch, the chief people officer at Taco Bell, which held a nationwide “hiring party” by converting parking lots into drive-through job fairs last week. The company’s goal: To find 5,000 new employees in one day. “It’s definitely unprecedented,” she said.It’s not just food, travel and hospitality businesses that are desperate for workers. “The market for job candidates in the technology space is crazy right now,” said Randi Weitzman, a recruiter for Robert Half, an international human resources consulting firm. “There are more jobs than there are available candidates, and most candidates are receiving multiple competing offers.”But with this hiring frenzy comes a new conundrum: How can the still-staggering number of unemployed Americans (about 9.7 million, per the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, or more if you’re counting those who are underemployed) find their way to the right positions? Especially those people who have been out of the work force for months or even a full year?“It’s frustrating when we hear job candidates say they’ve been looking for work and can’t find it,” said Richard Wahlquist, president and chief executive of the American Staffing Association, an alliance of recruiters and staffing agencies that helps companies fill contract and permanent roles. “We’ve got more than seven million open jobs right now in America that businesses are having a hard time filling, and our members are having a hard time sourcing talent.”The main problem, Mr. Wahlquist said, is that many job seekers don’t know where to look — or how to market themselves, especially in this new era of online job postings and remote work. “A lot of people just aren’t good at finding employment,” he added. “Most of us don’t get taught how to do that by our parents, or in high school or college.” If you count yourself among this crowd, here’s how to bridge the disconnect and get back into the job market, even if you’re feeling rusty.Brush up on your digital communication skills.If you haven’t spent the past year in Zoom meetings, you didn’t exactly miss out, but you still need to be able to present yourself as savvy and professional onscreen. “A lot of interviews are virtual now, even if the job itself will be done in person,” Ms. Weitzman said. “People who’ve been out of the work force should practice setting up Zooms with their friends or family, so that they feel comfortable on video.”Even if you’ve had plenty of experience chatting with people on FaceTime, that’s not quite the same thing. “Ask for feedback on how your background looks, and know where to look in the camera or on the screen in order to come across as engaged,” Ms. Weitzman explained. “It takes practice to be able to shake off nerves when you’re going through the process.”Look online — and not just on LinkedIn.LinkedIn is by far the biggest job-searching tool, and you’ll want to make sure your profile is up-to-date and well tended. (Better yet, use the platform’s “Open to Work” feature, which displays a badge on your profile photo that indicates you are looking for a new job and makes it easier for potential employers to find you.) But it’s not the only place you should look; many employers are soliciting candidates on other social platforms, too, like Facebook and Instagram.“We’re constantly looking for new ways to market our jobs,” Ms. McCulloch said. “To do that, we have to meet candidates where they are — and many of them are on social channels.”That goes both ways. If you’re looking for work, it can be helpful to share that with your own online network. A friend or connection might be able to refer you to a job opening. “We fill a lot of positions through referrals from existing employees,” Ms. McCulloch said. (While you’re at it, tidy up your social media presence — potential employers might be put off by certain types of content.)Finally, don’t be scared of online networking events. Many offer useful services like résumé reviews and interview coaching.Talk to an employment agency, recruiter, or headhunter.Many job seekers think that they have to pay recruiters to find them jobs. But it’s actually the opposite — employers hire recruiters to find qualified candidates. And no matter what field you’re in, there’s probably a recruiter who’s looking to staff it right now, Mr. Wahlquist assured. “You can find one that represents people who do the kind of work that you’ve done, or what you’re looking to do, based on your skills,” he said. A Google search can provide names, while the American Staffing Association also has a directory online of employment firms that’s searchable by location, field and job type.Mr. Wahlquist recommends having initial conversations with recruiters, to give you a sense of what work they have done with people with backgrounds similar to yours. Feel free to ask the firm to help you identify exactly what your skill set is, and how to sell it.“Most of us have learned things over the course of our careers that don’t logically fall out of our fingers onto a résumé,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “An employment professional will go through your education, training and job history to get a full picture of your hard and human skill sets, with an eye on what’s needed today by employers.”Broaden your horizons.The transition to, and acceptance of, remote work has enabled employers to cast a wider net when they search for talent — and so should you, in looking for jobs.“Many employers are open to hiring remote workers, but often in the same time zone,” Ms. Weitzman said. “That means if you live on the East Coast, you’ll have multiple options in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Connecticut.” Sure, this means you’re competing with a bigger pool of candidates, but it also gives you more chances to find the right fit.This could also be a good time to make a career transition. “You might want to be more flexible and think about switching fields,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “Take those skills that you’ve developed and try to find something that is even better, or more sustainable long term.”Meanwhile, consider taking a relevant training course, especially if you’ve been unemployed. “If you’re not working, I would 100-percent recommend to sign up for some training, because it shows initiative and a vested interest in updating and expanding your skill set,” Ms. Weitzman said. Be honest about why you’re unemployed.If you’ve been out of a job for a while, either for lack of opportunities or because you were busy shepherding children through Zoom school, that’s OK. “Everybody knows what happened this past year,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “Most people have a big free pass for a gap in their work history during the pandemic.”Still, you should be prepared to explain — succinctly — what happened and what you’ve been doing since. “Even if your past job loss wasn’t entirely due to Covid, most employers want to start a relationship with transparency,” he said.And, potential employers will want to check up on your references. Expect that they’ll want to talk to your former supervisors for the past five years, or past couple of jobs. “Take this time to go back to those people and be direct,” Mr. Wahlquist. “You can ask, ‘Will you be willing to give a reference, and able to give me a good reference?’” A question that your former supervisor might be asked is if he or she would rehire you. “And if the answer is no, then why?”Consider a temporary role.Some people enjoy contract work. But many others prefer the security of a long-term role, especially one that offers benefits like health insurance, retirement plans, and paid sick leave or vacation time. What a lot of people don’t realize is how useful temp work can be for landing a permanent position.“We see a lot of this in a recovering economy: Employers put people on temp-to-hire assignments,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “Essentially, it reduces a lot of the risk of hiring somebody, both for the job seeker and for the employer. You can see if your personality fits with your colleagues, and how you align in terms of mission values.” If it isn’t a slam dunk, you can both move on. But if it is, then your foot is in the door.At the very least, contract work puts something on your résumé. “It gets you experience, gets you exposure and gets you more references,” Ms. Weitzman said. “Sometimes a client falls in love with a contractor and says, ‘I can’t live without them, so I’m going to offer them a full-time job.’ It’s a great step for anyone to get back into the work force.”

Millions of Americans are not getting the second doses of their Covid-19 vaccines, and their ranks are growing.More than five million people, or nearly 8 percent of those who got a first shot of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, have missed their second doses, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That is more than double the rate among people who got inoculated in the first several weeks of the nationwide vaccine campaign.Even as the country wrestles with the problem of millions of people who are wary about getting vaccinated at all, local health authorities are confronting an emerging challenge of ensuring that those who do get inoculated are doing so fully.The reasons vary for why people are missing their second shots. In interviews, some said they feared the side effects, which can include flulike symptoms. Others said they felt that they were sufficiently protected with a single shot.Those attitudes were expected, but another hurdle has been surprisingly prevalent. A number of vaccine providers have canceled second-dose appointments because they ran out of supply or didn’t have the right brand in stock.Walgreens, one of the biggest vaccine providers, sent some people who got a first shot of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine to get their second doses at pharmacies that only had the other vaccine on hand.Several Walgreens customers said in interviews that they scrambled, in some cases with help from pharmacy staff, to find somewhere to get the correct second dose. Others, presumably, simply gave up.From the outset, public health experts worried that it would be difficult to get everyone to return for a second shot three or four weeks after the first dose. It is no surprise that, as vaccines are rolled out more broadly, the numbers of those skipping their second dose have gone up.But the trend is nonetheless troubling some state officials, who are rushing to keep the numbers of only partly vaccinated people from swelling.In Arkansas and Illinois, health officials have directed teams to call, text or send letters to people to remind them to get their second shots. In Pennsylvania, officials are trying to ensure that college students can get their second shots after they leave campus for the summer. South Carolina has allocated several thousand doses specifically for people who are overdue for their second shot.Pharmacists gave vaccines to patients at Cornerstone Pharmacy in Little Rock, Ark., in March. In Arkansas, about 11 percent of people eligible for second doses have missed them.Rory Doyle for The New York TimesMounting evidence collected in trials and from real-world immunization campaigns points to the peril of people skipping their second doses. Compared with the two-dose regimen, a single shot triggers a weaker immune response and may leave recipients more susceptible to dangerous virus variants. And even though a single dose provides partial protection against Covid, it’s not clear how long that protection will last.“I’m very worried, because you need that second dose,” said Dr. Paul Offit, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory panel.The stakes are high because there is only one vaccine authorized in the United States that is given as a single shot. The use of that vaccine, made by Johnson & Johnson, was paused this month after it was linked to a very rare but serious side effect involving blood clotting. Federal health officials on Friday recommended restarting use of the vaccine, but the combination of the safety scare and ongoing production problems is likely to make that vaccine a viable option for fewer people.The C.D.C.’s count of missed second doses is through April 9. It covers only people who got a first Moderna dose by March 7 or a first Pfizer dose by March 14.While millions of people have missed their second shots, the overall rates of follow-through, with some 92 percent getting fully vaccinated, are strong by historical standards. Roughly three-quarters of adults come back for their second dose of the vaccine that protects against shingles.In some cases, problems with shipments or scheduling may be playing a role in people missing their second doses. Some vaccine providers have had to cancel appointments because they did not receive expected vaccine deliveries. People have also reported having their second-dose appointments canceled or showing up only to find out that there were no doses available of the brand they needed.Some people can be flexible about being rebooked. But that’s harder for people who lack access to reliable transportation or who have jobs with strictly scheduled hours, said Elena Cyrus, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the University of Central Florida.Walgreens booked some customers for their second appointments at places that didn’t have the same vaccine that they had received for their initial doses. The company said it fixed the problem in late March.Some Walgreens locations have not had the right supply of the brand of shots that people need for second doses.John Taggart for The New York TimesSusan Ruel, 67, was scheduled to get her two vaccine doses at different Walgreens stores in Manhattan. She said she got her first Pfizer dose without incident in February, but when she arrived for her second appointment, she was told that the store only had Moderna doses in stock.A Walgreens pharmacist told Ms. Ruel that there was another Walgreens pharmacy less than two miles away with Pfizer doses in stock. While Ms. Ruel was waiting for the subway to take her there, she got a phone call: That Walgreens store had run out of Pfizer doses, too.Ms. Ruel managed to get the Pfizer dose at yet another Walgreens the next day. But she said many people in her situation probably wouldn’t have tried so hard. “All you need is hassles like this,” she said.In the Chicago area, for example, pharmacists at two Walgreens locations said the problem was causing headaches. They said that Walgreens’ appointment system was sending each pharmacy anywhere from 10 to 20 customers a week who need a second Pfizer shot, even though both pharmacies stock only the Moderna vaccine.It is not clear how widespread the Walgreens dose-matching problem has been or how many people have missed their second doses because of it.Jim Cohn, a spokesman for Walgreens, said that the problem affected “a small percentage” of people who had booked their appointments online and that the company contacted them to reschedule “in alignment with our vaccine availability.” He said that nearly 95 percent of people who got their first shot at Walgreens have also received their second shots from the company.Walgreens has also come under fire for, until recently, scheduling second doses of the Pfizer vaccine four weeks after the first shot, rather than the three-week gap recommended by the C.D.C. Pharmacists have been besieged by customers complaining, including about their inability to book vaccine appointments online.In other cases, though, access to vaccines is not the sole barrier; people’s attitudes contribute, too.Basith Syed, a 24-year-old consultant in Chicago, nabbed a leftover Moderna vaccine at a Walgreens in mid-February. But when the time came for his second shot, he was busy at work and preparing for his wedding. After the first shot, he had spent two days feeling drained. He didn’t want to risk a repeat, and he felt confident that a single dose would protect him.“I didn’t really feel the urgency to get that second dose,” Mr. Syed said.By early April, his schedule had calmed down a little, and he went looking for a second Moderna shot. But by then, the Walgreens where he had gotten his first shot was only offering Pfizer shots. He couldn’t find slots at other Walgreens stores. Mr. Syed is no longer actively looking for a second shot, though he still hopes to eventually get one.Basith Syed, of Chicago, said that after the first shot, he spent two days feeling drained. “I didn’t really feel the urgency to get that second dose.”Lyndon French for The New York Times.The C.D.C. says there is limited data on the vaccine’s effectiveness when shots are separated by more than six weeks, although some countries, including Britain and Canada, are giving shots with a gap of up to three or four months.Mr. Syed’s experience is part of a broader shift in Illinois. When vaccines were mostly being given to health care workers, residents of long-term care facilities and people over 65, almost everyone was getting their second shots. In recent weeks, though, the number dipped below 90 percent, though it has since rebounded slightly, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.In Arkansas, about 84,000 people have missed their second shots, representing 11 percent of those eligible for those shots, said Dr. Jennifer Dillaha, the state epidemiologist. Workers recently began calling people who are due or overdue for their second shots.College students pose a particular challenge. Many recently became eligible to be vaccinated and are getting their first shots, but they will have left campus by the time they are due for their second doses.In Pennsylvania, health officials have instructed vaccine providers to give second doses to college students even if they did not receive their first doses from that location. Some vaccine providers have put on special clinics for people who need a second dose. In South Carolina, the health system Tidelands Health started a program specifically for people who received their first Pfizer doses more than 23 days earlier but hadn’t been able to find a second shot. The state health department sent the health system 2,340 doses for the effort.Demand has been strong, and Tidelands only has a few hundred doses left. The majority of takers have been people who “were having difficulty navigating all the various scheduling systems and providers,” said Gayle Resetar, the health system’s chief operating officer.In many cases, vaccine providers had canceled second-dose appointments because of bad winter weather. “It was up to the individual to reschedule themselves on a web portal or web platform, and that just became difficult for people,” Ms. Resetar said.There are rare cases in which people are supposed to forgo the second shot, such as if they had an allergic reaction after their first shot.Shortly after receiving his first dose of the Moderna vaccine, Zvi Ish-Shalom developed a headache that remains more than a month later. Chet Strange for The New York TimesZvi Ish-Shalom, a religious studies professor from Boulder, Colo., had planned to get fully vaccinated. Then, an hour after his first shot of the Moderna vaccine, he developed a headache that hasn’t gone away more than a month later.There is no way to know for sure whether the vaccine triggered the headache. But after weighing what he saw as the risks and benefits of a second dose, Dr. Ish-Shalom reached a decision about how to proceed.“At this point in time, I feel very clear and very comfortable, given all the various elements of this equation, to forgo the second shot,” he said.

SharecloseShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingFor a fourth day in a row, India has set an unwelcome world record for the number of new coronavirus infections: a further 349,691 cases in the 24 hours to Sunday morning, with another 2,767 lives lost. The capital, Delhi, is one of the worst-hit areas. The BBC’s Vikas Pandey reports from a city whose hospitals are overwhelmed and whose citizens are in desperation. When Ashwin Mittal’s grandmother’s oxygen saturation level dropped a week ago, he started frantically looking for a hospital bed in Delhi. He called everybody he could, but every hospital refused.Her condition deteriorated further on Thursday and he took her to the emergency rooms of several hospitals, but every place was full. They accepted the fate that she was going to die without getting any treatment. But she was gasping for every breath and Ashwin just couldn’t bear it after a while. He took her in his car and went from one hospital to another for several hours until one in north Delhi agreed to take her in the emergency ward for “a few hours”. He was to continue looking for a bed.Ashwin, who has also tested positive for coronavirus, continued his search while battling a high fever and severe body aches. But he couldn’t find a bed, and the hospital continued to keep his grandmother in the emergency ward on compassionate grounds.Deaths climb as India reels from deadly Covid waveViral picture that defines India’s Covid distressWhy second Covid wave is devastating IndiaDoctors there said she needed an ICU and had a good chance of survival. A family friend told me that the hospital was planning to discharge her on Sunday as it was running out of oxygen.”The family is back to where they started and has accepted the fate. They know that if she survives, it will be because of a miracle, not because of any treatment,” the friend said.Miracles are what many families in Delhi are left to rely on. Most hospitals are full and many of them are refusing new admissions owing to the uncertainty over oxygen supply.Oxygen-equipped ambulances are in short supply and it’s becoming difficult for families to transport patients to hospitals even if they find a bed. image copyrightGetty ImagesIndia in crisisDelhi is extending its lockdown for a second weekIndian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged people to exercise caution and get vaccinated, saying ” this storm has shaken the nation” The Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, a private hospital in Delhi, said on Sunday it would not admit any more patients because of a shortage of oxygen At least 20 people died on Saturday at the Jaipur Golden Hospital in Delhi because of a lack of oxygenI know a few cases where patients have died because they did not get high-flow oxygen support. Every morning starts with frantic calls from friends, family and colleagues asking for a bed, oxygen cylinders or medicines. The number of people I am able to help is reducing every day as the doctors and officials who could earlier help are no longer available to speak on the phone. Helplines are not working and the vendors who could earlier help have run out of supplies.I go to bed with a sense of defeat every night, but then pick myself up and start in the morning again as more and more people call for help. I can understand their helplessness as I lost a cousin a few days ago in a top hospital in the city. He waited for 18 hours to get a ventilator but the hospital didn’t have any. That’s how Delhi is functioning at the moment. Friends are calling friends; social media is awash with desperate pleas for help.But it’s almost impossible to find a hospital bed here now. Oxygen cylinders and medicines are in short supply. On Saturday, Saroj Hospital and Batra Hospital told families to take their patients away as they were running out of oxygen. The city has been been reporting more than 24,000 cases daily in the past few days. The hospitals are completely overrun, and healthcare workers are exhausted. Some people I know are taking dangerous journeys with their critically ill relatives to other cities which are 300-500km (18-300 miles) away. Sivesh Rana’s brother was in a critical condition but he couldn’t find a bed in Delhi and decided to take him in an ambulance to a city in the neighbouring state of Haryana. But his condition worsened during the journey and the ambulance wasn’t equipped to deal with a critical patient. He died a few hours after arriving at the hospital.Dr A Fathahudeen, who is part of Kerala state’s Covid task force, says the crisis is unprecedented and doctors can’t do much if oxygen supply is not guaranteed.”You need high-pressure liquid oxygen for the smooth functioning of ventilators and bi-pap machines. When the pressure drops, the machines fail to deliver adequate oxygen into the lungs, and the consequences can be fatal,” he says.He adds that oxygen is one of the major treatments to stabilise the patient, allowing doctors time to assess them and plan a future course of treatment. image copyrightGetty ImagesDr Fathahudeen says urgent measures are needed as patients are dying without getting the treatment they require.”The Indian army is one of the finest in the world to build makeshift hospitals and ICU beds within a short span of time. They should be roped in,” he adds.The situation is not very different in other cities, including Pune, Nashik, Lucknow, Bhopal, Indore and Allahabad, as the second Covid wave devastates the country.India reported 349,000 cases on Friday – a record daily spike. It reported 2,767 deaths. But experts say the actual numbers are likely to be much higher.Getting tested has become very difficult in many cities as labs are overrun. As I earlier reported, many people are dying at home because they are not getting hospital beds or they are not being able to get tested for Covid. So, they don’t find a place as a Covid patient in the database managed by different states.Meanwhile, frantic calls continue – each one more heartbreaking than the last. How have you been affected by coronavirus in India? Tell us your story by emailing: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways:WhatsApp: +44 7756 165803Tweet: @BBC_HaveYourSayUpload your pictures/video hereOr fill out the form belowPlease read our terms & conditions and privacy policy

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On the first anniversary of the At Home section, zigzag through this puzzle to reveal the twist.This week is the one-year anniversary of the At Home section, and what better way to celebrate than with a puzzle containing a hidden picture? Solve the clues and reveal the twist, with a mini shout-out to the section’s basket-weaving activity from August.Write the answers to the 16 clues in the blank spaces on each strip. (We’ve filled in some letters to help.) Then cut and sort the strips into one of the four categories, based on your answers. Can you find what connects them? Words starting with B? Animals you’d find on a farm? We’ve given you a clue for each category.Once you’ve sorted your strips into categories, the A and B groups become the vertical “warp” for your weaving; the C and D groups are woven through them horizontally. They should be ordered alphabetically within their categories. Follow the diagram to weave the strips in an under-and-over pattern, with the lettered squares going under the vertical strips. The weaving will reveal the hidden picture.Robert VinluanStep 1Place the A and B groups vertically using alphabetical order within each group, starting from the left and alternating groups.Step 2 Start with the first strip alphabetically from the C group and weave it in, making sure the lettered squares go under the A strips. Slide the strip to the bottom.Step 3 Repeat with the first alphabetical strip from the D group, making sure it goes under the B strips. Keep weaving, alternating strips from the C and D groups until you have used all your strips.Step 4Congratulations! You’ve revealed the image! Now fold and tape the extra tabs to square the sides and save your artwork.A printable version of this activity is available for download here.

Books make great educational resources to combat discrimination and xenophobia, and to foster activism.After a year with a marked increase in discrimination and harassment aimed at Asian-Americans across the country, the past few months have been particularly shocking, in both the frequency and violence of attacks. A powerful way to fight racism is education. Conversations about prejudice with your children starting at a young age go a long way toward building empathy and acceptance, and books can be a great tool for sending important messages. This list of 10 fiction, nonfiction and comic books will help kids of all backgrounds understand and combat this wave of anti-Asian hate and bullying, and provide more context to America’s history of discrimination.Children’s Books“My Footprints,” by Bao Phi; illustrated by Basia TranIn this snowy yet colorful picture book, little Thuy uses her imagination to recover from a bullying incident at school, with help from her two mothers. Ages 4 to 7.“My Name is Bilal,” by Asma Mobin-Uddin; illustrated by Barbara KiwakBilal tries to hide his Muslim identity at his new school while his sister, Ayesha, is harassed for wearing a head scarf. A book, persuades Bilal to embrace his faith publicly and gives him the courage to stand up to the school bully. Ages 6 to 9.“Inside Out & Back Again,” by Thanhha LaiThis novel in verse spends a year with 10-year-old Ha and her family as they flee war-torn Saigon and start a new life in Alabama. Ha weathers bullying from classmates for her appearance and limited English skills until she pushes back. Ages 9 to 12.“Count Me In,” by Varsha BajajKarina and Chris have been neighbors for years, yet their families have never spoken until Karina’s Indian-American grandfather volunteers to tutor Chris in math. When the grandfather is attacked by a stranger while walking, the students work together to heal and overcome the hate. Ages 9 to 12.“Fred Korematsu Speaks Up,” by Laura Atkins and Stan Yogi; illustrated by Yutaka HouletteThe story of the civil rights activist Fred Korematsu is told in poems chronicling his experiences of racism as a child and his long fight for justice. This biography includes passages about the country’s history of discrimination, the impact it had on Japanese-Americans and resources for young activists. Ages 9 to 12.Teenage Nonfiction Books“They Called Us Enemy,” by George Takei, Justin Eisinger and Steven Scott; illustrated by Harmony BeckerIn this graphic memoir, the “Star Trek” actor and activist George Takei recounts his harrowing childhood and his family’s traumatic experience being uprooted from Los Angeles and being taken to three World War II internment camps. Ages 12 and up.“From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry: The Killing of Vincent Chin and the Trial that Galvanized the Asian American Movement,” by Paula YooIn 1982, Vincent Chin was celebrating his bachelor party at a bar when an argument with two white men turned fatal. Chin’s death and the light criminal sentences his killers received incited national protests and a federal trial. Yoo’s comprehensive account sheds new light on the tragedy and its legacy. Ages 13 and up.Teenage Graphic Novels“Displacement,” by Kiku Hughes In this science-fiction story inspired by her family, the teenage Kiku Hughes time-travels to the 1940s and finds herself trapped in the same World War II internment camp as her grandmother. There, Kiku gets a life-altering history lesson. Ages 12 and up.“Superman Smashes the Klan,” by Gene Luen Yang, art by Gurihiru Based on a 1946 Superman radio series, two Metropolis teenagers experience racism and attacks from the Ku Klux Klan when their family moves from Chinatown to the suburbs. Ages 12 and up.“Flamer,” by Mike Curato Boy Scout summer camp is fraught with anxiety for the teenager Aiden Navarro when he is bullied for his Filipino heritage, while questioning his religion and sexuality. This graphic novel is a moving story about self-discovery and survival. Ages 14 and up.

Many job seekers don’t know where to look after the year we’ve just had. If you count yourself among this crowd, here’s how to get back into the market, even if you’re feeling rusty.Airlines are canceling flights because they don’t have enough pilots to fly them. Restaurants are posting open positions on their Instagram feeds. Even the local grocery store has a “hiring” sign out front. Welcome to spring 2021: After a year of being battered by the pandemic, the economy is finally showing signs of a strong, steady recovery, and jobs are popping up like crocuses. Employers added almost a million positions in March alone, according to the Labor Department.“Across our industry, everyone is prioritizing hiring,” said Kelly McCulloch, the chief people officer at Taco Bell, which held a nationwide “hiring party” by converting parking lots into drive-through job fairs last week. The company’s goal: To find 5,000 new employees in one day. “It’s definitely unprecedented,” she said.It’s not just food, travel and hospitality businesses that are desperate for workers. “The market for job candidates in the technology space is crazy right now,” said Randi Weitzman, a recruiter for Robert Half, an international human resources consulting firm. “There are more jobs than there are available candidates, and most candidates are receiving multiple competing offers.”But with this hiring frenzy comes a new conundrum: How can the still-staggering number of unemployed Americans (about 9.7 million, per the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, or more if you’re counting those who are underemployed) find their way to the right positions? Especially those people who have been out of the work force for months or even a full year?“It’s frustrating when we hear job candidates say they’ve been looking for work and can’t find it,” said Richard Wahlquist, president and chief executive of the American Staffing Association, an alliance of recruiters and staffing agencies that helps companies fill contract and permanent roles. “We’ve got more than seven million open jobs right now in America that businesses are having a hard time filling, and our members are having a hard time sourcing talent.”The main problem, Mr. Wahlquist said, is that many job seekers don’t know where to look — or how to market themselves, especially in this new era of online job postings and remote work. “A lot of people just aren’t good at finding employment,” he added. “Most of us don’t get taught how to do that by our parents, or in high school or college.” If you count yourself among this crowd, here’s how to bridge the disconnect and get back into the job market, even if you’re feeling rusty.Brush up on your digital communication skills.If you haven’t spent the past year in Zoom meetings, you didn’t exactly miss out, but you still need to be able to present yourself as savvy and professional onscreen. “A lot of interviews are virtual now, even if the job itself will be done in person,” Ms. Weitzman said. “People who’ve been out of the work force should practice setting up Zooms with their friends or family, so that they feel comfortable on video.”Even if you’ve had plenty of experience chatting with people on FaceTime, that’s not quite the same thing. “Ask for feedback on how your background looks, and know where to look in the camera or on the screen in order to come across as engaged,” Ms. Weitzman explained. “It takes practice to be able to shake off nerves when you’re going through the process.”Look online — and not just on LinkedIn.LinkedIn is by far the biggest job-searching tool, and you’ll want to make sure your profile is up-to-date and well tended. (Better yet, use the platform’s “Open to Work” feature, which displays a badge on your profile photo that indicates you are looking for a new job and makes it easier for potential employers to find you.) But it’s not the only place you should look; many employers are soliciting candidates on other social platforms, too, like Facebook and Instagram.“We’re constantly looking for new ways to market our jobs,” Ms. McCulloch said. “To do that, we have to meet candidates where they are — and many of them are on social channels.”That goes both ways. If you’re looking for work, it can be helpful to share that with your own online network. A friend or connection might be able to refer you to a job opening. “We fill a lot of positions through referrals from existing employees,” Ms. McCulloch said. (While you’re at it, tidy up your social media presence — potential employers might be put off by certain types of content.)Finally, don’t be scared of online networking events. Many offer useful services like résumé reviews and interview coaching.Talk to an employment agency, recruiter, or headhunter.Many job seekers think that they have to pay recruiters to find them jobs. But it’s actually the opposite — employers hire recruiters to find qualified candidates. And no matter what field you’re in, there’s probably a recruiter who’s looking to staff it right now, Mr. Wahlquist assured. “You can find one that represents people who do the kind of work that you’ve done, or what you’re looking to do, based on your skills,” he said. A Google search can provide names, while the American Staffing Association also has a directory online of employment firms that’s searchable by location, field and job type.Mr. Wahlquist recommends having initial conversations with recruiters, to give you a sense of what work they have done with people with backgrounds similar to yours. Feel free to ask the firm to help you identify exactly what your skill set is, and how to sell it.“Most of us have learned things over the course of our careers that don’t logically fall out of our fingers onto a résumé,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “An employment professional will go through your education, training and job history to get a full picture of your hard and human skill sets, with an eye on what’s needed today by employers.”Broaden your horizons.The transition to, and acceptance of, remote work has enabled employers to cast a wider net when they search for talent — and so should you, in looking for jobs.“Many employers are open to hiring remote workers, but often in the same time zone,” Ms. Weitzman said. “That means if you live on the East Coast, you’ll have multiple options in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Connecticut.” Sure, this means you’re competing with a bigger pool of candidates, but it also gives you more chances to find the right fit.This could also be a good time to make a career transition. “You might want to be more flexible and think about switching fields,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “Take those skills that you’ve developed and try to find something that is even better, or more sustainable long term.”Meanwhile, consider taking a relevant training course, especially if you’ve been unemployed. “If you’re not working, I would 100-percent recommend to sign up for some training, because it shows initiative and a vested interest in updating and expanding your skill set,” Ms. Weitzman said. Be honest about why you’re unemployed.If you’ve been out of a job for a while, either for lack of opportunities or because you were busy shepherding children through Zoom school, that’s OK. “Everybody knows what happened this past year,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “Most people have a big free pass for a gap in their work history during the pandemic.”Still, you should be prepared to explain — succinctly — what happened and what you’ve been doing since. “Even if your past job loss wasn’t entirely due to Covid, most employers want to start a relationship with transparency,” he said.And, potential employers will want to check up on your references. Expect that they’ll want to talk to your former supervisors for the past five years, or past couple of jobs. “Take this time to go back to those people and be direct,” Mr. Wahlquist. “You can ask, ‘Will you be willing to give a reference, and able to give me a good reference?’” A question that your former supervisor might be asked is if he or she would rehire you. “And if the answer is no, then why?”Consider a temporary role.Some people enjoy contract work. But many others prefer the security of a long-term role, especially one that offers benefits like health insurance, retirement plans, and paid sick leave or vacation time. What a lot of people don’t realize is how useful temp work can be for landing a permanent position.“We see a lot of this in a recovering economy: Employers put people on temp-to-hire assignments,” Mr. Wahlquist said. “Essentially, it reduces a lot of the risk of hiring somebody, both for the job seeker and for the employer. You can see if your personality fits with your colleagues, and how you align in terms of mission values.” If it isn’t a slam dunk, you can both move on. But if it is, then your foot is in the door.At the very least, contract work puts something on your résumé. “It gets you experience, gets you exposure and gets you more references,” Ms. Weitzman said. “Sometimes a client falls in love with a contractor and says, ‘I can’t live without them, so I’m going to offer them a full-time job.’ It’s a great step for anyone to get back into the work force.”