Rhode Island’s COVID-19 data reporting will go into effect next week. We will be transitioning from reporting COVID-19 data Monday through Friday to reporting data weekly, on Thursday afternoons. Other states have already moved in this direction. (For example, Massachusetts transitioned to weekly reporting in early July.) And the CDC is on a weekly reporting cadence for its assessment of community risk levels by county. This change is reflective of the larger shift Rhode Island has made from a pandemic response to endemic management, informed by COVID-19 data trends over a period of weeks. However, our data team and COVID-19 leadership team will still be reviewing hospitalization trends and other key metrics daily to monitor for any significant shifts. We have the ability to move back to daily reporting, should it be warranted at any point in the future.    

 

One last note on these monkeypox vaccination clinics this weekend. Pre-registration is required. All appointments have been taken. There is no vaccine at these clinics for walk-ups. Eligible people can get on a notification list for when additional vaccine comes into Rhode Island through a link on this page: health.ri.gov/monkeypox

 

Joseph Wendelken | Public Information Officer

Rhode Island Department of Health

 

 

Donald Trump is back in a Manhattan courtroom this morning for his criminal hush money trial. Jurors will hear more testimony from former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, who explained this week how he protected Trump from negative stories. Trump's lawyers will also be in Washington, DC to try to convince the U.S. Supreme Court that the former president shouldn't face charges for his alleged election interference.        The head of the FBI says the bureau is working with colleges to warn of antisemitic threats of violence. Thousands of students have been protesting across the U.S. over Israel's bombing of the Gaza Strip. FBI Director Christopher Wray told NBC News on Wednesday that the bureau doesn't directly track university protests, but is giving schools information on potential threats.        Arizona's House of Representatives has voted to repeal a Civil War-era abortion law. State Democrats on Wednesday successfully pushed through a bill that repeals the 1864 law that banned nearly all abortions. The bill now heads to the state Senate where it is expected to be passed early next month.       Parts of the Central U.S. are bracing for severe weather today. Large hail, heavy downpours and isolated tornadoes are possible today from the Texas Panhandle to southern Nebraska, with wind gusts reaching 85 miles per hour. More dangerous weather is forecast on Friday and Saturday from Oklahoma to Iowa.        Shares of Facebook company Meta dropped Wednesday in after-hours trading after an underwhelming first quarter earnings report. While the report beat expectations, the company's capital expenditure outlook for the year was increased. Stock fell 15-percent after market close, after rising 39-percent so far this year.       Tupac Shakur's estate is threatening legal action against Drake after he used the late rapper's AI-generated vocals in a new Kendrick Lamar diss track. Billboard obtained a copy of a cease-and-desist letter that was sent to Drake on Wednesday. The letter claims that neither the family nor Tupac himself would ever approve of the track.