Coronavirus Live Updates: Vaccine volunteers continue to participate in clinical trials

COVID-19 Live Updates, News and Information

ByEyewitness News WABC logo

Sunday, September 13, 2020

Volunteers continue to take part in vaccine clinical trials

Tens of thousands of volunteers are rolling up their sleeves as some top drug companies enter the last phase of trials.

NEW YORK (WABC) -- The race to find a safe vaccine against COVID-19 continues in laboratories around the world.

Tens of thousands of volunteers are rolling up their sleeves as some top drug companies enter the last phase of trials.

Groups most affected by the virus are participating less. Just last week, 17% of Moderna's new participants were Hispanic and Latino. 9% were African American or Black.

Participating volunteers feel it's their obligation to get involved.

Meanwhile, New York state's infection rate continues to remain low, making it the 37th straight day that the rate has remained below one percent.

What to know about coronavirus:

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How coronavirus changed the New York region

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What's Open, What's Closed in the Tri-State area

Here are more of today's headlines:

Trump officials changed CDC reports, ABC News confirms

Politically appointed members of the Department of Health and Human Services' communications teams were allowed to review, change and delay reports authored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to a bombshell report published by Politico late Friday.

The Politico report said that the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports, a public report compiled by scientists that's served as the key communication avenue between the CDC and health care providers, researchers, journalists and the public since the 1980s, has been tinkered with when CDC findings didn't align with President Donald Trump's public statements about coronavirus.

Israel clamps down again to fight COVID-19 surge

Israel will reinstate a strict new countrywide lockdown this week amid a stubborn surge in coronavirus cases. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the announcement in a televised speech Sunday.

Beginning Friday, the eve of the Jewish New Year, schools, restaurants, malls and hotels among other businesses will shut down and restrictions on movement will be imposed. The lockdown is expected to last at least three weeks, when measures may be eased depending on morbidity.

Israel has seen a spike in cases over recent weeks that more tempered measures failed to bring down. It now has one of the world's worst outbreaks, adjusted for population.

Two-third of Americans distrust Trump's COVID-19 response; say he acted too slowly to quell pandemic: POLL

A new poll released Sunday puts President Donald Trump's approval rating for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic at 35%,

Roughly two-thirds of the nation think the president acted too slowly and distrust what he has said about the coronavirus, the new ABC News/Ipsos poll finds.

Coronavirus America, six months in: Disarray, dismay, disconnect

On Friday, March 13, 2020, a COVID curtain descended upon the United States. Now we are half a year into it - accustomed in some ways, resistant in others, grieving at what is gone, wondering with great trepidation what will be.

Teachers union push for reopening delay

There's renewed concern from the United Federation of Teachers about the reopening of New York City schools after several staff members test positive for COVID.

Spike in cases at the University of Albany

The University of Albany is watching a concerning spike in cases that could lead to shutting down in-person classes. There have been 40 positives cases among SUNY Albany students since the semester started. The school says it is working with the county health department to isolate and quarantine impacted students. Health officials say if the outbreak is not brought under control, the school will have to cancel all in-person activities.

COVID-positive student goes to school in CT

A school district in Connecticut is dealing with a potential COVID-19 nightmare after a student with the virus went to school. The child in Meriden was tested but didn't have the results before going to class, and he turned out to be positive. School officials say the parents broke the district's rules, and now, the student's entire class must quarantine for 14 days.

Breakout star of 'Jagged Little Pill' gets creative during Broadway shutdown

This week marks a full six months since theaters went dark. It's unprecedented, and those who make their living on Broadway have had to get creative to stay busy. For Lauren Patten, the breakout star of "Jagged Little Pill," her show had to go dark at the moment she was finally making her mark after years of learning her craft. While she hopes to go back on stage next year as "Jo," right now she is no longer hearing the sound of applause every night.

MORE NEWS: Watch Eyewitness to a Pandemic

The sense of doom grew, especially after March 1, when the first confirmed case arrived in Manhattan. Soon, there was a hotspot in New Rochelle, and small curfews and containment zones across the area offered a hint of a frightening future we still thought we could avoid.