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| The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new data Friday supporting its decision earlier this week to revise masking guidelines for millions of Americans living in COVID-19 hotspots. |
| The report found roughly three-quarters of infections from a COVID-19 outbreak in Massachusetts earlier this month occurred in fully vaccinated individuals, including mostly delta variant cases. |
| "This finding is concerning and was a pivotal discovery leading to CDC's updated mask recommendation," Walensky said in a statement. |
| People in parts of the country with "high" or "substantial" COVID-19 transmission are now recommended to wear masks in indoor public spaces, regardless of vaccination status, the agency announced earlier this week. |
| It's Friday, and this is Coronavirus Watch from the USA TODAY Network. Here's more news you need to know: |
| • | Louisiana has broken its all-time COVID-19 case record, reporting 26,650 new infections in past seven days, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. The state's previous record was 26,291 cases in the week ending Jan. 12. | | • | Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said he will call the state legislature into session likely next week to reverse its ban on face mask mandates in public schools. Arkansas has been one of the hardest hit states in the current wave of COVID-19 cases. | | • | Six passengers sailing on Royal Caribbean International's Adventure of the Seas, which departed from Nassau on Saturday, have tested positive for COVID-19, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY. | | • | Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he will sign an executive order to issue emergency rules to make face masks optional across the state in schools, leaving it up to parents. | | • | COVID-19 and possible link to dementia: In several trials made public Thursday, scientists have found changes in brain biology after hospitalization with COVID-19, problems lingering months after infection, and a link between smell loss and mental sharpness in older adults. | |
| Today's numbers: The U.S. has had more than 34.7 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and 612,100 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: More than 196.9 million cases and 4.2 million deaths. More than 163.8 million Americans — 49.4% of the population — have been fully vaccinated, according to the CDC. |
| Tracking the pandemic: See the numbers in your area here. See where cases are rising here. See vaccination rates here. And here, compare vaccinations rates worldwide and see which countries are using which vaccines. |
| – Ryan Miller, USA TODAY breaking news reporter, @RyanW_Miller |
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