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Benjy Renton Profile picture
Benjy Renton
@bhrenton
Research Associate at @Brown_SPH. Formerly at @ariadnelabs/@HarvardChanSPH, @VermontDFR and @Middlebury. Views own.
3 subscribers
Oct 11, 2024 • 8 tweets • 3 min read
Just out in @JAMANetworkOpen led by @jeremyfaust: Our accounting of racial and ethnic disparities in all-cause excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic period finds:
- >1.38 million excess deaths
- Pandemic exacerbated existing disparities
jamanetwork.com/journals/jaman… Crucially, we found that while the greatest number of deaths occurred in the elderly population, mortality was 20% above what could be expected in the working-age population (ages 25-64). This has major implications for lost economic productivity and life expectancy. Image
Sep 1, 2022 • 10 tweets • 5 min read
What if we considered the fact that the least-vaccinated demographic group is not along age, racial/ethnic, gender, or political lines, and is instead those who are uninsured?

As fall boosters ramp up, we need to conduct better outreach to the uninsured.
kff.org/coronavirus-co… Latest NCHS report says 31.2 million (11.5%) Americans under the age of 65 are uninsured, many of whom are concentrated in Southern states (see map with HHS ASPE data here). Polling from last year showed that many were unaware the vaccine was free.
nytimes.com/2021/06/01/ups…
Jul 29, 2022 • 9 tweets • 5 min read
New analysis: Over 77% of Americans (256 million) and 66% of Americans 65+ (45 million) are not up to date on their COVID-19 vaccines, making the population vulnerable to severe outcomes from future surges. There are wide disparities among states, from 11% in AL/MS to 36% in VT. Recent analysis updated yesterday from colleagues at @KFF (@annarouw, @jenkatesdc, @KrutikaAmin and @cynthiaccox) show similar results and layer on COVID-19 community levels.
kff.org/coronavirus-co…
Jul 29, 2022 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Update on vaccines for kids under 5: Over 632,000 kids under 5 have received their first dose — up by around 92,000 from last week and now ~3.2% of this age group.

DC leads jurisdictions in uptake, with 17% of kids having received their first dose. Vermont leads states at 12%. Despite a reasonably strong week the previous week, the pace of new doses being administered is showing signs of slowing (accounting for any possible data lag in recent days). More work on outreach and access is needed to sustain a high vaccination pace.
Mar 30, 2022 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
New this morning: The White House has launched covid.gov, a one-stop website with information on tests, masks, treatments, vaccines and more. This tool provides useful resources for Americans to navigate this next phase of the pandemic.
npr.org/2022/03/30/108… The site is offered in three languages: English, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. For those without internet access, there is also a phone number.

说中文的朋友们能搜索他们社区的新冠肺炎情况，寻找接种疫苗、检测的位置。
Mar 30, 2022 • 12 tweets • 6 min read
With today's announcement authorizing a second booster for individuals 50+, it is important to note that 16% (18.5 million) of these individuals are not fully vaccinated and 50% (59.2 million) have not received their first booster.

Data thread on this moment in the pandemic: First, national trends. Cases and hospitalizations continue to decrease but are flattening out (excluding at-home tests). New cases are down to levels not seen since last May — ~26,000 per day.
Mar 14, 2022 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
We may be starting to see signs of increases in SARS-CoV-2 viral prevalence in wastewater, as 37% of sites in CDC's database have seen upticks in the last two weeks. Worth watching. More reporting from @ArmstrongDrew and @andretartar in @business:
bloomberg.com/news/articles/… Image As seen here, after improving trends with the recession of the Omicron surge, more sites have started to see a rise in viral RNA in wastewater. As @BillHanage notes with cases rising in Europe, immunity can determine the effects of severe outcomes.
Image
Mar 13, 2022 • 8 tweets • 4 min read
Around 2 years ago, like many of us, I ordered Clorox wipes. On this week a year ago, they arrived — 349 days after I ordered them. Thanks to @skbaer for writing about what turned out to be one of my craziest experiences during the pandemic.
buzzfeednews.com/article/skbaer… Original tweet for reference. Really didn't think it was that interesting of a story at first, and then it took off.
Feb 9, 2022 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
New: Yesterday, states were able to start pre-ordering doses of the Pfizer vaccine for kids ages 6 months-4 years. This is in advance of next Tuesday's FDA advisory committee meeting. Following FDA, ACIP and CDC authorization, shots can begin going into arms end of Feb. Thread: There are around 19.5 million kids under the age of 5 in the United States, representing around 6% of the total population. This map shows the estimated population of this age band in each state (actual numbers are slightly fewer due to the limit at six months of age). Image
Feb 7, 2022 • 17 tweets • 7 min read
Progress nationally with declining cases and hospitalizations, as @ashishkjha notes. We see already that states with higher booster (and vaccination) rates see hospitalization peaks sooner, and a current hospitalization rate rate ½ of that in lower-boosted states.

Vaccines work. When we look on a county level, we see the power of vaccines to prevent severe outcomes. In counties with lower booster rates, we see death rates almost twice those in counties with higher booster rates, despite essentially parallel case trends.
Jan 21, 2022 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
Just out: 3 new large-scale studies on the effectiveness of boosters.

First, from @CDCMMWR with over 80,000 COVID-19 hospitalizations: Boosters were 90% effective against Omicron hospitalizations and 82% effective against ED/urgent care visits.
cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/7… Second, a study with data from 25 health departments found that case rates unvaccinated adults were 5 times higher compared with those with a booster. Case rates in vaccinated but not boosted adults were nearly twice as high compared to those boosted.
cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/7…
Jan 13, 2022 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
Tomorrow morning, President Biden will deliver an update on his administration's response to the Omicron variant. Will post a thread this weekend with more detailed data, but in the meantime here's the state of the pandemic in 5 charts. 1. Nationally, cases are up 47% compared with one week ago. While we hear some discussion of certain places (NYC, Boston, DC) "peaking," much of the country continues to see high case growth. In many areas, lower vaccination rates will likely lead to more severe outcomes.
Nov 22, 2021 • 12 tweets • 5 min read
Winter is coming and the US continues to see rising cases and hospitalizations, while deaths have plateaued at over 1,000 per day. Aside from NPIs such as mask-wearing, we must use boosters and vaccines for kids to our advantage in the next few weeks. Thread on this week's data: Case rises remain concentrated in many northern states, though we must carefully watch viral growth in the Sunbelt. This virus will continue to find unvaccinated communities to infect, and Michigan serves as an example of how infection-induced immunity is not sufficient.
Nov 8, 2021 • 12 tweets • 5 min read
As @ashishkjha notes, we enter the winter at a much better place than last year — despite a highly contagious variant, national cases are flat and not increasing. However, we must remain vigilant to prevent a surge. An update on the state of the country:
First, it's important to acknowledge that this was a major week in our fight against COVID-19. From promising news on treatments to kids' vaccinations to 70% of adults being fully vaccinated, there is reason for optimism.
Nov 2, 2021 • 11 tweets • 4 min read
A few data notes on the state of the country in its fight against COVID: Heading into the winter season, the rate of cases and hospitalizations may continue to be decreasing but at a slower rate. We must continue to use our vaccine tools. Thread on this week's data: While we previously saw spikes in the Upper Midwest, it appears that we are now seeing cases increase in western states such as Arizona and New Mexico.
Oct 20, 2021 • 8 tweets • 3 min read
Beginning tomorrow, states will be able to pre-order doses of the Pfizer vaccine for kids ages 5-11. This is in advance of the FDA advisory committee meeting on October 26 and the ACIP meeting on November 2-3, after which shots can begin going into arms pending approval. Thread: There are around 28.4 million kids ages 5-11 in the United States, representing around 8.7% of the total population. This map shows the estimated population of this age band in each state.
Oct 18, 2021 • 11 tweets • 5 min read
We have made progress yet we still need to be vigilant. While nationally, cases continue to be on the decline, counties in the northern part of the country, as well as part of Appalachia, are seeing case spikes. We need to drive transmission down. Thread on this week's data: Image On a state level, much of the South has seen the Delta variant already burn through communities. However, Minnesota, Montana and Michigan are among states seeing rising cases. Image
Oct 11, 2021 • 13 tweets • 6 min read
It's not over until it's over. As @meganranney, @drsajumathew and others have said this week, we cannot declare victory too early. With the holidays approaching, we face critical weeks to bring cases down through vaccination and other measures. Thread on this week's data: First, let's look on a state level. Our national picture is primarily driven by CA, TX, FL and NY (the largest states), which have all seen cases declining. However, as @ashishkjha notes, the national picture masks local issues, many in Northern states.
Sep 27, 2021 • 9 tweets • 5 min read
Another week with lots of news, but here is the key takeaway: The vaccines continue to work, especially at preventing severe outcomes. While cases in lower-vaccinated states have decreased dramatically, the gap in death rates has widened. Thread on data:
While national cases are on the decline, this is mainly due to states with early surges now seeing cases plummet after the Delta variant has run its course. However, these states with lower vaccination rates still have much higher case, hospitalization and death rates.
Sep 24, 2021 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
The question everyone is asking: How many people are eligible for a booster today?

Some rough estimates: The number is between 12 and 22.9 million (it is hard to estimate how many people with medical/occupational risks have been vaccinated, so let's think about this by age). Image Nationally, up to 22.9 million people are eligible as of today — 6.9% of the US' total population. However, that number varies by state — mainly due to some states' early successes in rolling out the vaccine to the most vulnerable groups — 11% in NM compared to 4.8% in GA. Image
Sep 21, 2021 • 10 tweets • 6 min read
New op-ed in @ABC with @johnbrownstein and @AriadneLabs' @RWeintraubMD: @POTUS' new vaccination plan takes advantage of a major delivery channel: The workplace. This is a productive step and the road ahead has some challenges to overcome. Thread:
abcnews.go.com/Health/vaccine… While we are still waiting for the rule from OSHA, @POTUS' plan will require all companies with over 100 employees to get vaccinated or face weekly testing. After months of incentives, the number of people getting newly vaccinated is ~342,000 a day.