Fake masks flood market, soldiers to staff vaccine centers. Find out the latest COVID-19 updates

Between the time the pandemic began and the year ended, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized over 14.6 million counterfeit face masks entering the US, the agency told CNN.

N95 masks are considered the gold standard for mask usage, but counterfeit doppelgängers may threaten Americans’ safety. Not meeting US safety standards means they may not filter out airborne particles effectively, the agency said.

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The Pentagon will deploy more than 1,100 troops to five vaccination centers in what will be the first wave of increased military support for the White House campaign to get more Americans vaccinated against COVID-19.

Meanwhile, tensions are running high in some U.S. state capitols over coronavirus precautions after this year’s legislative sessions began with an outbreak of COVID-19 cases.

Since the start of this year, more than 50 state lawmakers in roughly one-third of the states already have fallen ill with the virus, according to an Associated Press tally.

Elsewhere, New Orleans bars will be shut down, even for takeout service, throughout next week’s Mardi Gras weekend — usually among their busiest times of the year — in an attempt to slow the spread of coronavirus, Mayor LaToya Cantrell said Friday.

Many bars already were closed to indoor service. Cantrell’s Friday announcement means they won’t be able to sell drinks to go — a popular option year-round and especially during Mardi Gras.

In other developments:

• The Canadian government has extended a ban on cruise ships through February 2022, which is expected to block trips from visiting Alaska this year. The move comes as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tries to reassure Canadians his plan to vaccinate them is working despite what he calls are short term delays and criticism his government is not moving fast enough.
• As vaccinations slowly ramp up, some experts say turning to millions more rapid tests that are cheaper and faster but technically less accurate than the predominant genetic tests may improve the chances of identifying sick people during the early days of infection, when they are most contagious.
• Across the country, the pandemic has changed how people die as hospitals and long-term care facilities put restrictions in place to stem the spread of virus, leaving many with stories of saying farewell behind glass or during video calls. 
• The human loss from the pandemic isn’t going to be reflected in the U.S. population count used for divvying up congressional seats among the states. And that could save a congressional seat for New York but cost Alabama one.
• The European Union has chosen a careful route in its vaccine campaign to defeat the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, it has seen a slow rollout compared to neighbor Britain.

THE NUMBERS: According to data through Feb. 4 from Johns Hopkins University, the seven-day rolling average for daily new cases in the U.S. fell over the past two weeks, from about 187,728 on Jan. 21 to about 130,403 on Feb. 4. Over the same period, the seven-day rolling average for daily new deaths rose from about 3,095 to roughly 3,240.

QUOTABLE: “We’ve got to get this done. We’ve got to get people vaccinated so we can get this country moving again,” said 76-year-old nurse practitioner Sigrid Stokes. Stokes is carrying on a life-saving family tradition each time she administers COVID-19 vaccines to her fellow health care workers at a Northern California hospital. Her mother volunteered at a local hospital during the deadly 1918 Spanish flu pandemic.

ICYMI: Residents at an assisted living center near Denver have gotten a taste of sorts of what life was like before the pandemic. Thanks to a “hug tent” set up outside the suburban facility, residents could embrace and hold hands with their families this week. Visitors were separated by construction-grade plastic but could hug through built-in sleeves attached by embroidery hoops. It wasn’t ideal, but visitors and staff say the benefits are clear. A spokeswoman for the center says some residents haven’t had physical contact with their families in almost a year, and a simple hug was like “a huge weight off their shoulders.”

ON THE HORIZON: Coronavirus cases have dropped at U.S. nursing homes and other long-term care facilities over the past few weeks. The dip offers a glimmer of hope that health officials attribute to the start of vaccinations, an easing of the post-holiday surge and better prevention, among other reasons.

Statistics show that more than 153,000 residents of the country’s nursing homes and assisted living centers have died of COVID-19, accounting for 36% of the U.S. pandemic death toll. Although experts say the vaccination rollout may be contributing to the drop in cases, other factors are likely playing a larger role. And they caution that threats are still looming, including new strains of the virus.