Learning about the Virus
CDC Ends Public Health Emergency
The federal COVID-19 Public Health Emergency declaration ended on May 11, 2023.This page describes what data and public health services have changed and what will remain.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/end-of-phe.html
World Health Organization Question and Answers
Frequently updated questions and answers from the World Health
Organization, organized by focus area, such as variants, virus
evolution, global excess deaths, environmental surveillance, and
more.
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/question-and-answers-hub
Virus Variants
The World Health Organization maintains a list of "variants of concern" and explains the naming convention used, from Alpha through Omicron.
https://www.who.int/en/activities/tracking-SARS-CoV-2-variants/
Variant Surveillance
The CDC explains how they monitor for prevalence of variants, which
involves analyzing thousands of specimens every week through CDC’s
national genomic sequencing and bioinformatics efforts.
CDC provides updated variant proportions for weighted estimates and
Nowcast estimates every other week on Friday. Check out this page for a
map indicating virus variant proportions in the U.S.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions
Images of Coronavirus and other Viruses - National Institute for Allergies and
Infectious Diseases
https://www.flickr.com/photos/niaid/albums/72157712914621487/
Check out your county's hospital admissions level (replaced the
"Community Transmissions Level" metric in May 2023:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/covid-by-county.html
State Health Departments Directory
A listing with links to the health departments for all 50 states,
District of Columbia, and 8 territories and freely associated
states.
https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/healthdepartments.html
International Travel Information:
Travel Advisories by Country Issued by U.S. State Department
If new Covid-19 related travel restrictions arise, they will be listed on the State Department website along with
security-risk related travel restrictions.
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/
What to do if you think you might have COVID-19
Symptoms
Checker
List of
common symptoms and emergency warning signs.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html
Quarantine (Isolation) Guidance from CDC
If you
have Covid-19, the CDC recommends that you isolate at home for five
days and to wear a mask if you must go out in public.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/isolation.html
CDC's Guide to Face Masks
How to select, wear, clean, and store masks that can help prevent Covid-19 transmission.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/about-face-coverings.html
DIY Instructions for a simple cloth facial mask: 45-second video of
former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams demonstrating how to
make the no-sew version.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI1GxNjAjlw
Disinfecting and Cleaning:
EPA List N Tool: COVID-19 Disinfectants
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a database of
594 products (including
sprays, concentrates, and wipes) that meet EPA criteria for residential and institutional
use against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. 50 products kill it in a
minute or less, and 177 do so within 5 minutes or less. When
searching this mobile-friendly database, simply enter in a word from the product
name in the "keyword" box.
https://cfpub.epa.gov/giwiz/disinfectants/index.cfm
EPA Tips on Air Quality and Circulation in Homes and Businesses
Lowering the concentration of SARS CoV-2 by means of ventilation and
filtration can play a role in controlling transmission of the virus
that causes COVID-19, in addition to social distancing, cleaning and
disinfection. Check out these tips on how to improve the air quality
in your home.
https://www.epa.gov/coronavirus/indoor-air-homes-and-coronavirus-covid-19#natural
Vaccines
Ask a Patient Covid-19 Vaccine Patient Reviews
Novavax Vaccine Reviews
Janssen Vaccine Reviews (no
longer authorized in the U.S.)
Pfizer Covid-19 Vaccine Reviews
Moderna Vaccine Reviews
FDA-Approved or Emergency-Use-Authorized Vaccines
https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/covid-19-vaccines
Reporting Adverse Reactions to a Covid-19
Vaccine
Adverse reactions to a COVID-19 vaccine may be reported
by a doctor, vaccine administrator, vaccine manufacturer, or directly by
the patient to the the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS):
https://vaers.hhs.gov/reportevent.html
Ask a Patient also has
rating forms for you to read and share experiences with some vaccines,
including
Moderna's vaccine and the
Pfizer/Biontech Vaccine.
Highlights of Vaccine Safety Reports (V-Safe)
from CDC
Check out our article with comparisons of reactions to the three U.S.-authorized vaccines.
https://www.askapatient.com/news/comparing-vaccine-reactions-and-pipeline-news.asp
CDC Glossary of Vaccine-Related Terms
Not sure
what is meant by an "adjuvanted" or "recombinant" vaccine? Here is a glossary of
vaccine-related terms for the layman, with everything from "accelular vaccine"
to "waning immunity" and "whooping cough." Includes some audio clips with
pronunciations of the terms.
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/terms/glossary.html
Testing Information
Self Testing General Information
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/testing/self-testing.html
List of 36 FDA-authorized At-home (Self-testing) Covid testing kits, including images of
the products:
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/coronavirus-covid-19-and-medical-devices/home-otc-covid-19-diagnostic-tests
FDA List of Emergency Use Authorized Diagnostic (PCR) Tests
These tests will tell you if you have an active COVID-19 infection.
For at-home options, the test will be sent to you at your home after you
complete an online questionnaire, or you may get a prescription for one
and take it and get the results at home within minutes without needing
to send a sample to a laboratory for analysis. Scroll down the
page to view the sortable table of tests.
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/covid-19-emergency-use-authorizations-medical-devices/in-vitro-diagnostics-euas-molecular-diagnostic-tests-sars-cov-2
FDA List of Emergency Use Authorized Serology (Antibody) Tests
Includes a table of authorized serology tests for SARS-CoV-2 ,
including at least two that estimate the level of antibodies, not
just the presence of them, and one that tests for the presence of
"neutralizing" antibodies. Scroll down the page to view the sortable
table of serology/antibody tests.
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-emergency-use-authorizations-medical-devices/vitro-diagnostics-euas#individual-serological
FDA Authorized Serology (Antibody) Tests: Accuracy
rates
Check this page to find out how well a serology test it is
expected to work, based on performance results submitted to the FDA.
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/emergency-situations-medical-devices/eua-authorized-serology-test-performance
FDA Frequently Asked Questions
about Antibody Tests
The FDA answers common questions about
serology testing, noting that "researchers do not know whether the presence of
antibodies means that you are immune to the coronavirus in the future; or if you
are immune, how long it will last." This page was last updated in May 2023.
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/coronavirus-covid-19-and-medical-devices/antibody-serology-testing-covid-19-information-patients-and-consumers
Drugs and Treatments for COVID-19
Covid Drugs Interaction Tool - University of Liverpool
Find the Covid-19 drug in the left column
(for example, Paxlovid), the drug you are already
taking in the middle column (for example, omeprazole), and find out if the drugs are safe to
take together.
https://www.covid19-druginteractions.org/checker
NIH Official Treatment Guidelines
This page from the National
Institutes of Health outlines the guidance for how to treat each level of infection:
from asymptomatic (or presymptomatic) to the most severe.
https://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/whats-new/
Antiviral Therapies Summary Recommendations
https://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/therapies/antiviral-therapy/summary-recommendations/
NIH also provides detailed descriptions and drug interactions
warnings for
Paxlovid
https://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/therapies/antiviral-therapy/ritonavir-boosted-nirmatrelvir--paxlovid-/
Read
FDA List of Products for COVID-19 Disease with Emergency Use
Authorization
Includes list of ventilators and other medical devices, drug products
(including
remdesivir for hospitalized patients, convalescent blood plasma, monoclonal
antibodies). These emergency use
authorizations (EUA) "allow unapproved medical products or
unapproved uses of approved medical products to be used in an
emergency to diagnose, treat, or prevent serious or life-threatening
diseases or conditions caused by CBRN threat agents when there are
no adequate, approved, and available alternatives." Merck's
Molnupiravir is for
mild to moderate cases of Covid-19. Pfizer's Paxlovid
was authorized in December 2021 for mild-to-moderate cases of
Covid-19 and received full FDA approval in May 2023.
Drug Products :
https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/mcm-legal-regulatory-and-policy-framework/emergency-use-authorization#coviddrugs
All other products:
https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/mcm-legal-regulatory-and-policy-framework/emergency-use-authorization#covid19euas
FDA Guide to Covid-19 Treatment Options:
This page for consumers has
descriptions of Pfizer's Paxlovid (2 pills taken concurrently) and
Merck's Lagevrio (molnipriavir capsule) for mild to moderate cases.
Includes a 50-second video.
https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/know-your-treatment-options-covid-19
Blood Plasma: National
Covid-19 Convalescent Plasma Project
The CCPP19
organization reports that donors of convalescent plasma for treating
Covid-19 are no longer being recruited. However, there is still an
urgent need for plasma and blood donations.
Most organizations just require you have been COVID-free for 14
days.
https://ccpp19.org/donors/index.html
Drug Shortages Database
Are you finding it hard to obtain a
prescription drug? Availability for some drugs is limited because of the
coronavirus pandemic. Check the FDA's drug shortage database to find out how long the shortage may be expected to last.
Check this list by ingredient (generic name), then find out which
generics and brand names are on the list.
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/drugshortages/default.cfm
Statistics and Cases
Global Statistics
For global case and death
data that is also broken out by region and country, check the World
Health Organization (WHO) Global Situation Report, which is updated
weekly.
WHO
Covid-19 situation reports
Walgreens Covid-19 Dashboard
This dashboard includes Covid Testing Data (Positivity Rates)
by Vaccine Status and virus variant proportions.
https://www.walgreens.com/businesssolutions/covid-19-index.jsp
Wasterwater Detection of Covid Levels in Communities
The CDC added wastewater treatment surveillance Covid detection statistics to its Covid Tracker in 2022.
As of May 2023, it includes data from 1,176 wastewater treatment
plants across the U.S. with data. Screening the sewer system allows public health officials to track the virus and even predict community outbreaks without depending on individuals to seek out testing or go to the doctor when they are sick. Samples are collected by utility operators dipping a bottle into wastewater flow, then the bottles are sent out to a laboratory.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#wastewater-surveillance
Vaccine Distribution Statistics
In a March 2022 update of this resource guide, we reported that the
CDC estimated that 698
million doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the U.S. (as of March
18, 2022). In the meantime, some data was recalculated, because as
of May 9, 2023, the last day of reporting vaccine data, the CDC
reports that only 676 million doses of Covid vaccine have been
administered in the U.S. (Also in May 2023, they report only 566
million doses as of that March 18 2022 date.) The CDC does provide a
disclaimer: "All reported numbers might change over time as
historical data are reported to CDC." Click on "historical data" on
the page below to create visualizations. As of May 9, 2023, the CDC
reports that 984 million doses have been distributed.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccinations
CDC Data on Hospitalizations by County
This metric replaces the "Community Level" metric used to determine the
severity of the outbreak in a community.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#cases_testsper100k7day
CDC Seroprevalence (Antibody Testing) Data - How
many have immunity based on vaccination or infection?
What percent of the population have immunity to Covid because of
actual infection and/or vaccination? Based on the blood donor
sampling (blood bank) study, it's almost 95% of the U.S. population as of
December,
2021. This includes about 29% seroprevalence due to infection, not
vaccine. This page is no longer being updated, but provides an
explanation of how the CDC tracked seroprevalence using four
separate studies.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#antibody-seroprevalence
Statistics for Canada
Canadian government health web site provides data on active cases,
recovered cases, number of people tested and deaths in Canada.
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection.html#a1
CMS Nursing Home COVID-19 Cases and Hospitalizations
Dashboard
This database provides a variety of statistics
related to COVID-19 by nursing home location and is updated weekly. For each nursing home,
includes the number of covid
cases, resident deaths, covid deaths, number of beds available, and number of
occupied beds. It also includes data on number of cases among staff, whether
there is a shortage of staff (yes or no), whether any patients are on
ventilators, and total resident confirmed cases per 1000 residents. The
visual dashboard allows you to create your own data visualizations. For
example, here is an example of a chart created with the tool showing the
monthly number of cases occurring among residents (blue) and staff (green) from May
through
November 12, 2020.
For an overview of the nursing home data, and some ready-made charts like the one below, go to this page:
https://data.cms.gov/covid-19/covid-19-nursing-home-data
Excess Deaths Associated with COVID-19
National Center for Health Statistic's database on expected and actual deaths
in the U.S. and by individual state. Estimates of excess deaths can provide
information about the burden of mortality potentially related to the COVID-19
pandemic, including deaths that are directly or indirectly attributed to
COVID-19.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid19/excess_deaths.htm
The visualization dashboard allows you to create your own charts. The chart below is ready-made on the site and depicts weekly deaths (including excess deaths) January 2018 thru the week
ending May 13, 2023.
COVID-19 Clinical Trials information and Volunteer Opportunities
European Union Clinical Trials Register
https://www.clinicaltrialsregister.eu/ctr-search/search?query=covid-19
ClinicalTrials.gov
Contains COVID-19 drug-related and vaccine-related clinical trials.
As of 30 June 2022, 7,993 studies were listed. Of those, 2,512 are recruiting;
2,637 studies have been completeed.
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?cond=COVID-19
Medical and Scientific Research: Journals
WHO Database of Global Research on Coronavirus Disease
The World Health Organization (WHO) has a
database of scientific research related to COVID-19 disease.
Includes these databases: Medline (U.S.), Western Pacific, WHO COVID and more.
Scroll down to the middle of the page to search by author or key word, or
journal.
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/global-research-on-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov
Direct search:
https://search.bvsalud.org/global-literature-on-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov/
LitCovid
(National Library of Medicine)
LitCovid
is a curated literature hub for tracking up-to-date scientific information about
the 2019 novel Coronavirus. The menu along the top divides the literature into
these broad sections: General, Mechanism, Transmission, Diagnosis,
Treatment, Prevention, Case Reports, and Forecasting. In addition,
convenient filters include chemical, journal, and country. It contains more than
59,000 relevant articles from PubMed as of October 8, 2020.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/research/coronavirus/
