DESPITE A DAILY DECLINE IN NEW INFECTIONS, WHITTIER SEES DEADLIEST COVID DAY SO FAR

While the number daily new infections declined on Tuesday December 29, the Whittier Area still saw its highest daily count so far.

Politics:

American Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked an attempt to increase the amount of economic assistance going to American citizens yesterday saying there would be a vote on Friday on two versions of the bill. One is a pure version that deals only with increasing the amount of the COVID relief checks set to arrive in most people's bank accounts on Monday January 4th that other version contains provisions requiring an investigation into how states conduct their elections and repealing Section 230, a law that gives non American companies that power to impose foreign and unconstitutional censorship laws on Americans in America. In the House version, the Democrats have proposed giving bigger checks to illegal immigrants. Those checks would be up to $5,000 each. That is the biggest stumbling block preventing the GOP Senate from agreeing to the increase in aid for Americans according to people familiar with the matter.

The State of California is now on an indefinite but largely unenforceable lockdown as the situation grows so dim that some are now considering a change to the US Constitution to give states slightly more leeway to deal with future pandemics which according to the CDC and World Health Organization are going to be worse than COVID 19. As part of the new orders, the state has ordered hospitals all over California to prepare to start rationing medical care and turning people away. Many hospitals have no room to recieve ambulances and some are running out of oxygen for patients.

The US Treasury Department in the meantime has begun sending out $600 checks to all US citizens.

TRAVEL

You will need proof of COVID 19 vaccination in order to travel according to various sources. Starting in 2021, everyone who wants to travel outside the US will be required to have verification of their COVID 19 vaccination on their passports. The new requirement is currently being imposed by many of the world's airlines and would require passengers to show proof of vaccination before they can board the plane, even they had already paid for the ticket. Attempting to board a plane without proving you received the vaccination could end with you being banned from the airline without getting your money refunded.

Many countries have announced plans to ban travelers who don't have proof of receiving a complete COVID 19 vaccination.

LOCAL

The Whittier Area saw another drop in daily new infections. The number of new infections on Tuesday December 29 was just 558. Despite that, the day appears to have been the deadliest so far for the Whittier Area with a total of 14 deaths.

The highest daily death count in the Whittier Area:

1. Hacienda Heights 4 deaths

2. City of Whittier 3 deaths

3. South Whittier, Santa Fe Springs, and Pico Rivera tied at 2 deaths each yesterday

There was on death in West Whittier.

In comparison the highest daily new infection numbers were:

1. South Whittier 106

2. City of Whittier 105

3. Pico Rivera 100

4. La Habra 64

5. Hacienda Heights 50

The positivity ratio for the Whittier Area is now at 20%. The percentage means that the Whittier Area is just 20% close toward herd immunity which is likely to come at a high cost in lives lost to the pandemic.

The positivity ratios for the communities that experienced COVID deaths yesterday are:

1. Hacienda Heights 17.39%

2. City of Whittier 20.12%

3. South Whittier 23.65%

4. Santa Fe Springs 21.83%

5. Pico Rivera 24.53%

6. West Whittier 23.93%

In comparison the top 5 positivity ratios yesterday were:

1. La Habra Heights 78.57%

2. Whittier Narrows 27.59%

3. Avocado Heights 26.22%

4. Pellisier Village 25.61%

5. Sunrise Village 25.05%

As you can see, Pico Rivera is about to enter the top 5 list for positivity ratios and could surpass the smaller populated Sunrise Village by the end of the next week or two.

In the meantime, reports out of Colorado are that British COVID, the new variant of COVID 19 first discovered in Britain and possibly the worst form of COVID yet, has officially arrived in the US and is already chopping people down into their graves. In Experts say that of the vaccines that have been approved recently, they can only be certain that the Astra Zeneca vaccine has a high likelihood of working against the more virulent and deadly British version of the disease. Astra Zeneca's vaccine has been approved in the UK but has not yet been approved for use in the USA by the federal government here.

In Germany, some people freaked out so much by COVID took more than the manufacturer's recommended dosage of the vaccine and are currently hospitalized due to serious vaccine over dosing.