Today’s In Crisis headlines

(NEW YORK) — Here are today’s In Crisis headlines:

House approves creation of January 6 Capitol attack investigation commission
The House of Representatives on Wednesday evening approved a measure creating an independent commission to investigate the January 6 Capitol attack, with some rank-and-file Republicans voting with Democrats in defiance of their party leaders, who warned against the effort.  The bill passed 252-175, with 35 Republicans, roughly one in six, voting with Democrats.   The measure now heads to the Senate, where it faces an uphill battle.  As House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy opposed the measure in the House, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has also stated he opposes the measure. 

Biden to sign Asian hate crimes bill into law today
President Biden is scheduled today to signs the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law.  The measure, a response to the rise in violence against Asian Americans during the coronavirus pandemic, tasks the Justice Department with designating a point person to expedite the review of COVID-related hate crimes.  The measure passed with broad support in the House and Senate.

New unemployment benefit claims hit pandemic low number
Figures released Thursday by the Department of Labor show the number of people filing for unemployment benefits reached a pandemic low last week.  Some 444,000 claims were filed in the week ending May 8 – the lowest number since March 14, 2020, just before the start of the pandemic, when 256,000 claims were filed.  Last week’s numbers are a decrease of 34,000 from the previous week’s level, which itself was revised up by 5,000, from 473,000 to 478,000 claims.  A total of 15,975,448 people are currently claiming unemployment through all government programs.  That number is down from nearly 21 million at this time last year.

COVID-19 numbers
Here’s the latest data on COVID-19 coronavirus infections, deaths and vaccinations.

Latest reported COVID-19 numbers globally per Johns Hopkins University
Global diagnosed cases: 164,981,323
Global deaths: 3,419,700.  The United States has the most deaths of any single country, with 587,875.
Number of countries/regions: at least 192

Latest reported COVID-19 numbers in the United States per Johns Hopkins University
There are at least 33,027,220 reported cases in 50 states + the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam.  This is more than in any other country.
U.S. deaths: at least 587,875.  California has the greatest number of reported deaths in the U.S., with 62,765.
U.S. total people tested: 455,000,070

The greatest number of reported COVID-19 cases in the U.S. is in California, with 3,772,702 confirmed cases out of a total state population of 39.51 million.  This ranks third in the world after England, which has 3,887,954 cases, and Maharashtra, India, which leads the world with 5,467,537 reported cases.  Texas is second in the U.S., with 2,936,673 confirmed cases out of a total state population of 29 million.

Latest reported COVID-19 vaccination numbers in the United States
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports a total of 349,210,095 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been distributed in the U.S.  Of those, 277,290,173 doses have been administered, with 159,174,963 people receiving at least one dose and 125,453,423 people fully vaccinated, representing 47.9% and 37.8% of the total U.S. population, respectively. The Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines each require two doses to be effective.  The Johnson & Johnson vaccine requires a single dose to be effective.

Now more than 33 million COVID-19 cases in US; CDC updates deaths forecast
The U.S. on Wednesday reported a total of more than 33 million COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began.  According to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, as of Thursday morning there were at least 33,027,220 total cases in the U.S., which continues to be more than any other nation, accounting for 20% of global infections.  The news comes as new cases continue to decline in the U.S.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also updated its forecast for COVID-19 deaths in the U.S., estimating a total of 594,000 to 604,000 COVID-19 deaths by the week ending June 12.  The U.S. currently reports at least 587,875 deaths, representing 17% of global coronavirus fatalities, also more than any other country.

Thirty blood clot cases now confirmed after Johnson & Johnson vaccine
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has updated its site to note that 30 blood clotting cases have now been confirmed following the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, noting that “nearly all” of the cases occurred in adult women younger than 50.  The CDC and Food and Drug Administration recommended use of the vaccine resume in the U.S. after a recent temporary pause prompted by six cases of the rare blood clot, saying the overall benefits outweighed the risks to a statistically small number of recipients.  The CDC notes that as of May 18, “more than 9.6 million doses of the J&J/Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine have been given in the United States.”  Healthcare workers have been briefed on symptoms to watch out for three weeks after the vaccine, which could indicate a blood clot issue.  Those symptoms include “severe headaches, shortness of breath, chest pain, leg swelling, persistent abdominal pain or easy bruising or tiny blood spots under the skin,” according to the CDC.

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