virus

The Nevada State Public Health Laboratory at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine has characterized the first known Nevada case of the new B.1.1.7 coronavirus strain. The new strain was detected in a sample that was initially tested in the Southern Nevada Public Health Laboratory.

The Carson City and Quad-County region is experiencing a downward trend of COVID-19 hospitalizations since the start of the new year. However, while rates of transmission for children and teenagers have remained low since the pandemic began, new reporting shows a significant increase in minors contracting the virus, according to statistics.

Gov. Steve Sisolak is proposing a two-year budget that reverses cuts to Medicaid and other key K-12 programs made last summer, after financial projections left the state at what officials are calling an “inconsistent, if not positive, ending point” for tax revenue.

Due to the COVID-19 virus and its impact on our community, the annual American Association of University Women Capital Branch Feast of Chocolate event, usually held in February at the Carson Plaza Event Center, must be reimagined this year. Our goal is to continue to provide scholarships for deserving young women in their pursuit of educational advancement.

Carson City Health and Human Services announced last week that vaccinations would be moving into Tier 2 beginning on Monday, Jan. 11 starting with educators and daycare providers.

On Friday, March 13, as the state prepared to shut down, the fate of many four-legged, feathered and scaled residents hung in the balance.

Greg Hall, CEO of the Nevada Humane Society, which has a presence in Reno and Carson City, organized a late-night emergency call with staff. They discussed how to operate amid the threat of COVID-19, a potentially lethal virus that carried so many unknowns. Meanwhile, seven hours south, staff at The Animal Foundation in Las Vegas braced for the worst.

One of the most overlooked pieces of noteworthy scientific advancement buried by the pandemic of 2020 occurred in Uruguay. Yes, right out of Ripley's Believe It or Not, a group of Uruguayan scientists announced that they had successfully modified the genetic makeup of a group of sheep to make them glow in the dark.

Finally! That’s the word now heard on almost every newscast as we wrap up this tumultuous year. It’s the thought that precedes every thought when speaking of 2020.

CARSON CITY — We are now approaching a full year of coordinated efforts to address and minimize the spread of COVID-19. This has presented challenges to many, including health systems near and far. Early this year, Carson Tahoe Health began to pivot service lines and conserve personal protective equipment (PPE).

Science has always been a passion of mine, partly because I flunked science in high school and have never understood why. But I stumbled upon a gemstone of science the other day that would make the most lettered academic in the world smile.

Gov. Steve Sisolak announced on Sunday that he is extending current coronavirus health and safety restrictions for another month and putting in place a new moratorium on evictions through the end of March.

In our region, as well as in many areas across the country, there have been massive spikes in COVID-19 transmissions over the past few months. Even as restaurants and bars were reopened, daily positive cases were generally staying within single digits inside the Quad-County region.

However, between October and December, both test positivity rates as well as overall cases — and deaths — have seen a massive increase. Local health organizations are now not only fighting against the disease, but against misinformation campaigns as well.

Two Carson City leaders have teamed up to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and provide information on how families can protect themselves and others during the holidays.

CARSON CITY — The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public and Behavioral Health is expanding the capabilities of the COVID Trace app by launching Exposure Notification Express through a partnership with Apple and Google.

On a recent Saturday night I went to see the James Bond classic Goldfinger at Carson Stadium Cinemas, 2571 N Carson St. I'd seen that movie when it was released in 1964, and I have the DVD as part of a boxed set of James Bond films, but I was thrilled when it appeared on the marquee because there is nothing like seeing a movie made for the big screen on an actual big screen.

The Stewart Conservation Camp sits adjacent to the Northern Nevada Correctional Center in the southeast corner of Carson City. Those serving time here are generally low risk, non-violent, held under minimum security and allowed to take on jobs like fighting wildfires and even training wild horses.

CARSON CITY — More than eight months into the Nevada guard’s support of the battle against COVID-19, the stubborn microscopic enemy showed no sign of surrender as many of the state’s counties reported record number of cases in late fall.

Crowds have often flocked to the major corporate retailers in Carson City for the best deals of the season, and in recent years, stores have begun to open earlier and earlier for a leg up, breaching into Thanksgiving day. However this year, many stores are finally closing their doors on Thanksgiving Day, and more bargain hunters are turning to online deals for their holiday shopping.

While Carson City may be on a pause, residents and visitors are encouraged to safely support small businesses, every day not just on Small Business Saturday, Nov. 28. As of today, retailers must adhere to the 50 percent capacity limits, alternatively, many businesses use online marketplace platforms, which may be more convenient. The COVID – 19 impact left many small businesses reliant on online platforms to maintain sales.

Gov. Steve Sisolak announced on Sunday that he is lowering occupancy limits and once again reducing the size of allowed gatherings as COVID-19 continues to spread like wildfire across the state, setting records day after day for new reported cases.

As we approach the end of this memorable year, I can’t help but reflect on how much we still have to be thankful for at Carson Tahoe Health.

Thankful for our dedicated healthcare providers, hospital, and administrative staff who remain steadfast in their mission to provide the very best care possible to all of our patients. I’m so very thankful for our team’s ability to be focused, yet flexible, in this constantly evolving, healthcare crisis.

The Nevada COVID-19 Mitigation and Management Task Force met with nine counties flagged for having an elevated risk of transmission of COVID-19.

Carson City, Clark, Elko, Humboldt, Lincoln, Lyon, Nye and Washoe counties’ plans were previously approved by the Task Force.

Nevada prison officials say they’ve identified just two people in a population of nearly 14,000 who might be eligible for an early release on the basis of their susceptibility to COVID-19 and other factors, even as more than 80 percent of the inmate population in a Carson City prison has tested positive for coronavirus.

The Stewart Indian School Cultural Center and Museum announced Wednesday it is temporarily closing to the public to comply with Gov. Steve Sisolak’s request for Nevadans to stay home to bring the virus numbers down over the next 2 weeks.

Gov. Steve Sisolak is asking Nevadans to voluntarily stay home for the next two weeks as COVID-19 cases spike statewide, warning that if the data doesn’t improve over that period he will be forced to take more drastic action.

Hobbes was wrong. Life is not nasty, brutish and short. Life is nasty, and brutish, but long enough to embrace civic grace, public good and a life of purpose. By coming together in 2021 we can turn a horse chestnut into a chestnut horse, and join Dinah Washington in singing, "This bitter earth may not be so bitter after all."

On Friday, the Department of Corrections announced that Carson City's Warm Springs Correctional Center is currently on lockdown due to 93 inmate COVID-19 cases, as well as 7 staff COVID-19 cases.

CARSON CITY — On Sunday, Nov. 1, the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange, the state agency that connects Nevadans to budget-appropriate Qualified Health Plans through the online marketplace known as Nevada Health Link, kicked off its eighth Open Enrollment Period and its second year operating as a State Based Exchange.

The results are in. Students laughed at them because they had to dress differently, today, but they laughed at the students, too, because they were all dressed the same.

Health care workers, first responders and lab employees will be among the first in Nevada to receive the COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available, according to a draft of the state’s vaccination plan released Monday.