COVID on campus: Last period’s numbers

From Oct. 13 through 19, there have been 19 positive COVID-19 cases reported to BGSU. 17 of those are confirmed and two are suspected, meaning they have been reported but they are not yet in the state database.

18 of these COVID-19 cases are students, 15 are off campus and the remaining three are on campus. Only one staff member reported a positive test result. This period has increased from 16 to 19 over the past two weeks. Also, there are more confirmed cases this week compared to last.

As of Oct. 25, the Wood County Health Department reported that there are a total of 106 new cases, 1 new COVID-19 related death and 3 new hospitalizations.

For the Oct. 20 to 26 numbers, check the BGSU COVID-19 Dashboard.

Vaccines for kids

Dr. Anthony Fauci announced that children ages five to 11 could be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine early next month, projecting for full immunization by the holidays.

A trial was conducted by Pfizer and BioNTech to see how children would react to the vaccination; although, they were only receiving one-third the size of an adult dose.

The results found a “90.7% efficacy rate for preventing symptomatic COVID-19 in a clinical trial of 5-to 11-year-olds,” according to The New York Times. On Oct. 26, Pfizer’s application for those ages will be determined by an advisory panel for the F.D.A.

Side effects that are common for children include headaches, fatigue, chills and muscle pain. The data submitted from the F.D.A. showed there were “no cases of myocarditis inflammation of the heart muscle, or pericarditis, inflammation of the outer lining of the heart, rare complications that have been reported among young boys and men receiving the vaccine in other trials and in real-world applications,” according to The New York Times.

Both Dr. Fauci and Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, were interviewed by two separate sources on the decision of child vaccines. 

On ABC’s news program, “This Week” Dr. Fauci said Pfizer’s data “look good as to the efficacy and safety,” 

Dr. Walensky said, “We know how many parents are interested in getting their children vaccinated, and we intended to work as quickly as you can,”  on “Fox News Sunday.”

New travel policy

The Biden Administration announced a new travel policy which will come into effect on Nov. 8.

This new policy will impose a worldwide travel restriction that focuses on vaccination, as a requirement to travel. It requires foreign national air travelers coming to the U.S. to be fully vaccinated, with limited exceptions, and provide proof of vaccination, prior to boarding the plane.

The White House said this new policy is an attempt to “move away from country-by-country restrictions previously applied during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

It is encouraged by Travel.Stave.Gov that both U.S. citizens and foreign travelers carry vaccination proof with them. Those who are vaccinated and are traveling into the U.S. will now be required to show their negative viral COVID-19 test result within three days of departing. Those who aren’t vaccinated are required to show their negative viral COVID-19 test result within one day of departure.

Japan’s Princess Mako gives up royal status 

On Oct. 26 Princess Mako married Kei Komuro, a civilian whom she met at the International Christian University, which means she has left the Imperial family’s Akasaka Estate in Tokyo and is now a commoner.

As she left, her family, Crown Prince and Princess Akishino and her youngest sister, Princess Kako sent her off. The couple’s four year engagement ended in a trip to a registry office in Tokyo, where the two married while everything was handled by royal representatives. 

Though their relationship was filled with controversy surrounding financial debt and Komuro’s mother, the two prevailed and ended up together. 

According to The New York Times, “Under Imperial Household Law, which governs the succession of Japan’s emperors, women are not allowed to reign on the throne.” The same law also makes Princess Mako relinquish her royal title.  

In addition, The New York Times says most of the Japanese public think this law should be amended. This issue is current because the current emperor Naruhito, has a 19-year-old daughter, Princess Aiko, who many think should be in the line of succession.  “A recent survey by Kyodo News showed that about 80 percent also want children born of royal women like Princess Mako to be in the line of succession.”

Currently, the Imperial family only has three males left who are eligible to succeed the current monarch. Those being “Emperor Naruhito’s 85-year-old uncle; the emperor’s 55-year-old brother, Akishino, Princess Mako’s father and the emperor’s 15-year-old nephew, and the younger brother of Princess Mako,” according to The New York Times.