The latest In Philadelphia, there's a wide gap in the vaccination rates of residents who are White and of those who are Black. Fifty-two percent of White people in the city have received at least one dose of a vaccine, close to the 52 percent national average. But just 34 percent of Black people in the city have had one or more doses. At the request of The Post, one doctor documented her conversations with unvaccinated patients in the days leading up to the final mass community vaccination clinic run by Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. "I know these people don't have primary-care doctors. They tell me. People are using the ER as their primary care, so I have to step into that role, which is why I take the time to do it. I've had to explain to people what diabetes is, what their insulin is for. That covid, at this point, is a unifying factor, I think, is kind of poetic," said Chidinma Nwakanma, the emergency physician. Low vaccination rates are not unique to Philadelphia. The country will not meet the goal President Biden set to have 70 percent of American adults having received at least one dose by July 4. But deaths from the coronavirus continue to drop despite the slower-than-desired immunizations. The White House has argued this falling statistic supports its strategy of prioritizing older Americans. More than 85 percent of Americans 65 and up have had their first dose, White House covid task force coordinator Jeffrey Zients pointed out last week, paving the way for what he called "a summer of joy." Abroad, Australia and Israel offer two different examples of the ways countries are responding to the delta coronavirus variant. The variant has emerged in Australia, triggering a lockdown in Sydney and mask mandates and increased restrictions in other cities that had, till now, escaped the pandemic's worst. "We've been the victims of our own success so far because, to some degree, there's been a level of complacency and we've been living in a very gilded cage," as the vice president of the Australian Medical Association put it over the weekend. Incidents amid the Australia lockdown have already veered into the bizarre: Two naked sunbathers were fined for public health violations after they ran into the bushland, having been scared off a beach by a deer, and required rescue by helicopter. In Israel, the main defenses against delta will be the country's vaccinated population, not government-mandated precautions, officials say. One of Israel's final restrictions, an indoor mask mandate, was removed two weeks ago. There are no plans for it to return. Although there has been an uptick in people testing positive, public health experts in Israel say its immune shield should prevent the worst impacts of this variant. Other important news A black market for fraudulent vaccine certificates is booming in Moscow. Pandemic-era eviction bans have been lifted in Memphis and surrounding areas. The disputes between landlords and tenants there are previews of courtroom battles to come. Parents who relaxed screen-time rules during the pandemic have discovered it is difficult to reinstate kids' limits on YouTube and video games. Help calm the flood of passenger unruliness by following these flight attendants' rules of airplane behavior and etiquette. | 
Email 
