| In the coronavirus pandemic, carbon emissions have fallen, but climate change remains an existential threat Posted: 28 Mar 2020 07:00 AM PDT  In a world desperate for good news about the coronavirus, a dip in global carbon emissions caused by the outbreak's economic downturn might be seen as a silver lining. But climate scientists and policy experts aren't encouraged.
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| Mnuchin: Virus task force unanimously shunned Trump's quarantine idea Posted: 29 Mar 2020 07:21 AM PDT  Public health experts have criticized the idea of instituting statewide quarantines in "hot spots" like New York.
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| Serial killer dubbed Grim Sleeper dies in California prison Posted: 29 Mar 2020 02:34 PM PDT  Lonnie Franklin, the convicted serial killer known as the "Grim Sleeper" who preyed on the women of South Los Angeles for more than two decades, has died in prison. California corrections officials said Franklin was found unresponsive in his cell at San Quentin State Prison on Saturday evening. An autopsy will determine the cause of death; however, there were no signs of trauma, corrections spokeswoman Terry Thornton said in a statement.
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| Australia government says growth rate of coronavirus infection slows Posted: 28 Mar 2020 05:59 PM PDT  Australia's health minister said on Sunday there were "early, positive signs" of a slowdown in the growth rate in new coronavirus infections in the country, with the growth rate approximately halving over the past week. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the slower growth in new inflections showed social distancing measures were working. "This time last week the rate of increase on cases was up around 25% to 30% a day," Morrison told a press conference.
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| Tom Coburn, GOP ‘Dr. No’ to Senate Democrats, Dies at 72 Posted: 28 Mar 2020 01:25 PM PDT |
| Detainees in US immigration jails living in fear as coronavirus spreads Posted: 28 Mar 2020 11:00 PM PDT  Recordings obtained by Guardian reveal people in Ice centers in the south concerned they are not being properly cared forDetainees at immigration detention centers across the American south have alleged heavy-handed crackdowns amid increasing panic and protest over the coronavirus pandemic, according to advocates and recordings of detainees obtained by the Guardian.A number of detainees have expressed concern they are not being properly cared for in packed detention centers. Former senior immigration officials and attorneys have called for the release of nonviolent detainees. Judges in New Jersey, New York and California have ordered the release of small numbers, based on health concerns."People are terrified for their lives and think that they're going to die there," said Phoebe Lytle, a law student volunteer who has spoken with detainees at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) facilities in Louisiana. "I don't think anyone is saying it in a light or flippant way."Jaclyn Cole, an outreach paralegal at the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), said she was called on Tuesday by a Cuban asylum seeker who said officers dressed in riot gear were shooting rubber bullets and using chemical agents on detainees after a dispute with guards.During the five-minute call to Pine Prairie Ice processing center, Cole said she heard between 10 and 15 shots.Ice spokesperson Bryan D Cox did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He has previously denied that the privately operated facility possesses rubber bullets, after detainees have reported their use. Cox did confirm to Mother Jones that seven people at Pine Prairie were pepper-sprayed on Tuesday.Elsewhere in Louisiana, guards at the LaSalle Ice center allegedly sprayed a man with what he called "toxic gas" on Monday after two other detainees cautioned detainees to forgo meals because food could carry Covid-19. The man was hospitalized, said Verónica Fernández, a project coordinator with the SPLC's Southeast Immigrant Freedom Initiative.Cox did not respond to a request for comment on that incident. He did confirm a separate use of force at LaSalle on Wednesday to Buzzfeed News.Since Covid-19 started spreading through the US, health and immigration experts have expressed concern that Ice is unequipped to deal with the crisis. The US runs the largest immigration detention system in the world and there is a well-documented record of infections ballooning into outbreaks in such facilities. Now, coronavirus has infected some of the agency's employees and detainees, which experts said was inevitable.Two detainees in New Jersey Ice facilities and five employees at four facilities in Texas, Colorado and New Jersey have confirmed coronavirus cases, according to Ice. No cases have been publicly announced in southern states.The Trump administration has massively expanded the use of immigration detention facilities, with hardline policies that have driven the detention population to record highs. States in the deep south have opened more new facilities than anywhere else.Advocates say immigrants held in Louisiana suspect Covid-19 has reached their facilities as the state becomes a major virus hotspot. At Ice's South Louisiana center, a woman alleged she saw officers in hazmat suits feeding someone through a slot in a door, Cole said. At LaSalle, Fernández said, a dorm has reportedly been quarantined, and detainees believe two people have the disease."They're not giving people what they need to protect themselves, and that is social distancing," said Fernández. "That's not something people can do in detention."Ice has said detainees' "health, welfare and safety … is one of the agency's highest priorities"."Since the onset of reports of Covid-19, Ice epidemiologists have been tracking the outbreak, regularly updating infection prevention and control protocols, and issuing guidance to Ice Health Service Corps (IHSC) staff for the screening and management of potential exposure among detainees," according to the agency's website.Some detainees believe they will not receive fair treatment in government care. In a recorded call from Richwood correctional center in Louisiana, released by the Southeast Immigrant Rights Network and the New Orleans Workers' Center for Racial Justice and shared with the Guardian, one detainee said: "They're not going to take a facemask from anyone, from any American, to put it on an immigrant. This means we are going to die."Advocates say anyone in detention is likely to have a compromised immune system, but some also have pre-existing conditions. Lytle said she spoke to a 61-year-old asthmatic at Jackson Parish correctional center, another facility used by Ice in Louisiana, whom she said was "very, very worried" and called to tell her people in his dorm were refusing meals.A woman named Denisse, whose husband is at Stewart detention center in Georgia, feared what might happen as new detainees arrived and guards came and went."It's just spreading rapidly, you know?" Denisse said. "And his immune system is already weak."Her husband has a pre-existing condition that has become worse since he arrived at the facility in September, she said, adding that he recently underwent a procedure and uses a catheter. She shook with relief when she learned he would be released on Monday. The reason for his release was unclear.Hilda Jorge Perez, whose husband is at Richwood, said he had heart problems and high blood pressure. She worried that if he got infected, she would not be able to see him.Perez's husband was among at least 60 people who staged a hunger strike earlier this week. The protesters were forced to end the strike after officials told them they would be put in Ice's version of solitary confinement and have phone and television privileges removed, Perez said.Detainees at Stewart planned a similar strike. They demanded they either be released or deported instead of waiting to be infected, according to recordings of calls provided by a North Carolina advocacy group."We're not going to eat until Ice comes here and gives us answers, and gives us a solution," one man said.A spokesperson for Ice accused advocates of circulating rumors about a hunger strike at Stewart, which she said never happened.
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| Tapper Brutally Grills NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio for Delayed Coronavirus Response Posted: 29 Mar 2020 08:06 AM PDT  New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio was left flailing on Sunday morning when CNN anchor Jake Tapper repeatedly pressed him on his delayed response to the coronavirus pandemic and whether the mayor's assurances to New Yorkers that their lives would go on normally led to a more rapid spread of the virus.Appearing on CNN's State of the Union, de Blasio was first asked about his calls to the Trump administration to provide more ventilators and other life-saving medical supplies to his city, which has become the epicenter of the pandemic. After the mayor sounded the alarm on the "sharp escalation" of cases the city may see in the days ahead, Tapper brought up de Blasio's previous downplaying of the pandemic.Playing a series of video clips of the Democratic mayor telling city residents to "go about your lives" over the past couple of months, Tapper noted that de Blasio delivered that message to the city as recent as March 13. "In retrospect, is that message, at least in part, to blame for how rapidly the virus has spread across the city?" Tapper wondered aloud."Jake, we should not be focusing, in my view, on anything looking back on any level of government right now," de Blasio deflected. "This is just about how we save lives going forward."The mayor went on to say that it was a "very different world just a short time ago" and that "none of us have time to look backwards," prompting Tapper to remind de Blasio that he has been critical of others over their lack of preparedness."Mr. Mayor, you say you don't think you should look backwards, but you've criticized President Trump for 'actions that are far, far behind the curve,'" the State of the Union host pressed. "I mean, Mr. Mayor, weren't your actions in this outbreak also far, far behind the curve?"De Blasio, however, was still unwilling to take any personal responsibility for his own actions, saying that he had criticized the lack of COVID-19 testing early on and that it could be a "very different reality" if the country had more robust testing from the beginning. "But there's no time to go back over that," he added. "There's only time to focus on getting through the next week and the week after that."At the same time, de Blasio acknowledged that Tapper's questions were "fair" but told the CNN anchor that those questions were best left for "after this war is over" because New York City is currently in a "wartime environment."Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Fact check: Is the coronavirus being spread 'quickly' via gas pumps? Posted: 28 Mar 2020 09:54 AM PDT  A Facebook post warned users to be careful at the gas station because coronavirus is spreading "quickly" via pumps. This claim is partly false.
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| Coronavirus: Trump 'considering quarantine on New York' Posted: 28 Mar 2020 11:57 AM PDT  The president says he is considering quarantining the state, but its governor expresses concern.
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| Tornado tears through Arkansas city, prompting curfew and National Guard response Posted: 28 Mar 2020 06:14 PM PDT  "I know there is property damage," Gov. Asa Hutchinson said. "Just praying all is safe."
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| Off to the cafe: Sweden is outlier in virus restrictions Posted: 29 Mar 2020 01:13 AM PDT  People still sit at outdoor cafes in the center of Sweden's capital. Swedish authorities have advised the public to practice social distancing and to work from home, if possible, and urged those over age 70 to self-isolate as a precaution. Standing at bars has been banned in Sweden, but restaurant customers can still be served at tables instead of having to take food to go.
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| Saudi intercepts missiles in attacks claimed by Yemen's Houthis Posted: 28 Mar 2020 02:00 PM PDT |
| Mexico's president shifts tone on coronavirus, urges people to stay home, warns of dire consequences Posted: 29 Mar 2020 01:48 AM PDT  Critics said Mexico's president was downplaying the coronavirus threat. But he has now shifted his tone.
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| Trump asks why reporter doesn't act 'a little more positive' Posted: 29 Mar 2020 04:17 PM PDT  President Trump on Sunday asked why a White House reporter does not act "a little more positive" in covering the administration's coronavirus response.
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| Coronavirus Comes to the Kremlin Posted: 27 Mar 2020 06:04 PM PDT  After months of denials, Russia is facing a new reality with respect to the rapid spread of the coronavirus in the country. Friday's statistics officially acknowledge 1,036 diagnosed cases of COVID-19, including four deaths. The real numbers are undoubtedly much higher, as testing for the potentially deadly disease is only starting to pick up steam and some coronavirus deaths are being attributed to other causes.The highly contagious virus has already penetrated the walls of the Kremlin. Russian media reported that two Kremlin officials may have tested positive for the coronavirus. President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed he was aware of one of those cases, but claimed no knowledge of the second. State media outlet TASS speculated that one of the infected persons may have been a staffer responsible for awards, who traveled to Spain and later attended Putin's presidential awards ceremony in occupied Crimea.Putin's own spokesman couldn't avoid the handshake of the disease, having been present at a star-studded birthday party attended by pop singer Lev Leshchenko, who recently tested positive for coronavirus. Peskov claimed that attendees at the fancy affair maintained proper distancing and "barely even shook hands" in light of the coronavirus advisories. However, video clips aired by the Russian state media TV show 60 Minutes demonstrated that celebrity partiers hugged, kissed and made silly gestures mocking the coronavirus precautions. Peskov denied interacting with the infected singer at the party.Russia Swore It Whipped the Virus, and Fox and CNN Bought ItRussia's State Duma, the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia that consists of 450 members, said it will require all of its deputies to take coronavirus tests on Monday.Putin expressed near certainty that Russia could defeat the coronavirus "in two or three months time… maybe even earlier." Taking an obvious jab at the United States, he added: "In some countries, it is said that the war with the virus (they call it a 'war') will be a very long one."State media outlet RT hinted at the upcoming unrest in the United States: predicting that "a people deprived of their myths will not remain complacent forever." RT opined: "With no brawls or ballgames to watch, and the fear of potential hunger gnawing at their bloated bellies and brains… Americans will now find it harder and harder to ignore the truth about their country and its deplorably corrupt media, financial, government, education and health care systems… The crisis is going to get worse before it gets better… America, on the other hand, will only get much worse, with no hope that it is ever going to get better."Moscow's Mayor Sergey Sobyanin expressed his hope that Russia's fight against the coronavirus will be "more smooth and painless than in other countries." He ordered Moscow's restaurants and most stores to shut down for eight days and noted: "The restrictions introduced today are unprecedented in the modern history of Moscow and will create many inconveniences for the everyday life of every person," but argued that "they are absolutely necessary in order to slow the spread of coronavirus infection and reduce the number of cases."Meanwhile, during his Thursday telephone call with reporters, Peskov insisted that in Russia "there is de facto no epidemic" and the Kremlin hopes "to be able to avoid one."Kremlin-controlled Russian state media are using the crisis to promote the view that democratic, progressive countries' inability to curtail the pandemic demonstrated the superiority of Russia's paternalistic government. Russian state media argued that the failure of the United States to prepare for coronavirus, even with a two-month advance notice, also demonstrates the loss of America's global leadership.Appearing on The Evening with Vladimir Soloviev, Political scientist Sergey Mikheyev said that he was very happy to report: "Things are better in Russia than in Europe or America." Mikheyev pointed out that the United States failed to extend a helping hand to Europe, after decades of transatlantic solidarity. He attributed the failure of the Trump administration to help America's European allies to "stupidity, greed," or the overt manifestation of total disregard.The host, Vladimir Soloviev, asserted that overcoming the pandemic "with minimal losses" would cement Putin's success in securing the upcoming nationwide vote on the constitutional amendments designed to maintain the Russian leader's grip on power. In anticipation of the inevitable suffering, Russian state media have been promoting outlandish conspiracy theories that blame the United States—and even their alleged "secret bio-laboratories in Ukraine"—for the creation of the coronavirus.Fiona Hill: Trump's Coronavirus Talk Sounds a Lot Like Russia'sThe ongoing spread of the coronavirus in Russia will be accompanied by the inevitable escalation of anti-Western propaganda. When push comes to shove, the Kremlin frequently resorts to its traditional methods of assigning the blame to evil external forces (most frequently, the United States) and portraying Putin as Russia's only hope and savior of the Motherland.The scope of the pandemic, suddenly extending to the Russian president's inner circle, caused obvious nervousness on Russian state television. Appearing on Russia's 60 Minutes, unsettled pundits traded insults and practically screamed at each other. In spite of the Kremlin's initial claims of successfully controlling the spread of the virus, many are realizing that the worst is yet to come.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Venezuelan ex-general surrenders to US on drug trafficking charges Posted: 28 Mar 2020 09:12 PM PDT  A retired Venezuelan general who was charged by the United States with "narco-terrorism" along with President Nicolas Maduro and other officials has surrendered in Colombia to US authorities, prosecutors said Saturday. "The national Attorney General learned that Mr Cliver Alcala surrendered to US authorities," the Colombian prosecutor said in a statement, adding there was no arrest warrant when he gave himself up. Alcala turned himself in on Friday to the Colombians, who in turn handed him over to US authorities, the El Tiempo de Bogota newspaper said.
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| Trump boosts virus aid, tells governors to be 'appreciative' Posted: 28 Mar 2020 08:40 AM PDT  After days of pleas from governors across the country, President Trump took steps to expand the federal government's role in helping produce critically needed supplies to fight the coronavirus pandemic and warned the leaders of hard-hit states not to cross him.
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| The Trump administration sent California 170 ventilators to help in coronavirus battle — but none of the equipment worked Posted: 29 Mar 2020 01:08 PM PDT  Instead of "complaining," California Governor Gavin Newsom said "broken" ventilators were sent to a local company to be repaired.
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| North Korea test fires missiles amid worries about outbreak Posted: 28 Mar 2020 04:40 PM PDT  North Korea on Sunday fired two suspected ballistic missiles into the sea, South Korea and Japan said, continuing a streak of weapons launches that suggests leader Kim Jong Un is trying to strengthen domestic support amid worries about a possible coronavirus outbreak in the country. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the projectiles flying from the North Korean eastern coastal city of Wonsan into the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan on Sunday morning.
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| Coronavirus: India's PM Modi seeks 'forgiveness' over lockdown Posted: 29 Mar 2020 07:00 AM PDT  Narendra Modi apologises for sweeping restrictions that have left many jobless and hungry.
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| Iran extends prison furloughs as coronavirus death toll rises Posted: 29 Mar 2020 03:16 AM PDT  Iran's coronavirus death toll has risen to 2,640, a health ministry official said on Sunday, as the Middle East's worst-hit country grapples with the fast-spreading outbreak. "In the past 24 hours we had 123 deaths and 2,901 people have been infected, bringing the total number of infected people to 38,309," Alireza Vahabzadeh, an adviser to the health minister, said in a tweet. Health ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur told state TV that 3,467 of those infected were in "critical condition".
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| A New York nurse shared a chilling photo of coronavirus victims to show 'the ghastly reality of what' medical workers deal with on frontlines Posted: 29 Mar 2020 02:18 PM PDT  The harrowing image shows the bodies of deceased COVID-19 patients being stored in a refrigerated truck outside the ambulance bay.
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| One Battle Boris Johnson Is Clearly Winning Posted: 28 Mar 2020 12:30 AM PDT  (Bloomberg Opinion) -- As recently as a few weeks ago, it seemed as though U.K. politics could not possibly talk about anything besides Brexit, even after the country's formal departure from the EU. Business as usual was expected to return at some unspecified point in the future.As elsewhere, the coronavirus has turned British politics on its head. Unlike Brexit, which continues to divide opinion fairly evenly, the coronavirus crisis has prompted an outbreak of recently unfamiliar unity. Number Cruncher polling (excusive to Bloomberg) finds personal ratings for Boris Johnson -- himself now diagnosed with coronavirus -- that have not been seen for a British Prime Minister since the early days of Tony Blair's premiership in 1997.Fully 72% of eligible voters are satisfied with Johnson's performance as Prime Minister, with 25% dissatisfied. Ninety-one per cent of those currently supporting the Conservatives count themselves as satisfied, along with about half of Labour voters and those voting for other parties and a large majority of undecided voters. Johnson's government gets similar approval ratings, both overall (73% to 24%) and on its handling of the Coronavirus outbreak (72% to 25%).The 1,010 interviews were conducted Tuesday through Thursday, following Johnson's televised address on Monday, but completed before Johnson himself revealed that he had tested positive for the virus. There is some evidence in our data to suggest that these figures were higher in the immediate aftermath of the pre-recorded broadcast, which was watched by around half of the adult population.The strongest numbers of all are for the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak (77% satisfaction). Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose successor will be named on April 4, remains in negative territory (with 54% dissatisfied).While wartime metaphors are now commonplace, this pandemic is not, of course, a war in literal sense -- people are being killed by a disease, not each other. But it does share many of the same characteristics and a similar "rally around the flag" sense. The most obvious of these is the unity against a common enemy, with a lot of agreement across parties and across the public. There is also clear sense of "national effort," and some extremely large government spending on its way.That's not to say that there have been no controversies — there have been debates over strategy and the policy response — though these can easily be drowned out by the enormity of the wider situation.This is not unique to the U.K. Polling elsewhere has shown that the crisis has helped incumbents in other countries too. Emmanuel Macron in France, Italy's Giuseppe Conte and Canada's Justin Trudeau have also seen their ratings improve. Even in the strongly polarized U.S., Donald Trump's approval ratings have seen gains.But what is specific to the U.K. is the perfect storm providing the tailwind to the Conservatives. The post-election bounce for Johnson and his party was still very much in evidence when the coronavirus became the dominant story, and was likely boosted by Brexit on Jan. 31st. Labour has been less visible than it might normally be, and when it is visible it's via its unpopular leader, who remains in place more than three months after his election defeat.Coupled with the rally-round-the-flag effect, it is not hard to see why records are being broken. Of likely voters, 54% would choose Conservatives, up nine points from the December election (excluding Northern Ireland). No Conservative government has ever had such a strong poll rating, according to records compiled by author Mark Pack beginning in 1943.Labour has dropped five points to 28%, giving the Tories their biggest lead while in office since Margaret Thatcher's peak during the Falklands war in 1982. The Liberal Democrats — who this week postponed their leadership election until 2021 — also fall five points to 7%.Of course, no U.K. election is imminent, with even the local elections scheduled for May having been postponed until next year. What's more, being hugely popular in a war or war-like situation can still end in electoral defeat, as it did for Winston Churchill and George H.W. Bush. And that's before we consider likely economic damage of the coronavirus, which is in the very early stages of being felt.But these numbers are significant for another reason. The immediate task for Johnson and other leaders is to convince their citizens to comply with personal restrictions that would be unthinkable in normal times. Irrespective of the wider politics, having the public united behind him can only help. For now, the U.K. feels strangely united.This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.Matt Singh runs Number Cruncher Politics, a nonpartisan polling and elections site that predicted the 2015 U.K. election polling failure.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinionSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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| 273 Americans stuck in Central America flown back to U.S. on ICE deportation flights Posted: 27 Mar 2020 07:47 PM PDT  Americans were brought back on the return legs of three ICE removal flights to Central America, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.
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| France steps up coronavirus evacuations from packed hospitals Posted: 29 Mar 2020 12:17 PM PDT  France on Sunday staged its largest evacuation of coronavirus patients to date from hospitals in the hard-hit east, increasing efforts to free up intensive care units as officials warned of an influx of serious cases in the coming days. Two specially equipped high-speed trains carried 36 patients from Mulhouse and Nancy toward hospitals along France's western coast, where the outbreak has been limited so far. Dozens of hospital workers, flanked by police and soldiers standing guard, spent hours installing four patients in each wagon in an operation that began before dawn.
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| Inmate dies after contracting coronavirus at Louisiana federal prison Posted: 29 Mar 2020 08:08 AM PDT  The death of Patrick Jones marks the first COVID-19 related death of an inmate in the federal prison system, a Bureau of Prisons spokesperson said.
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| Cuomo threatens to sue Rhode Island if it doesn't ease up on New Yorkers during coronavirus pandemic Posted: 29 Mar 2020 04:55 AM PDT  The New York area has been the hardest-hit region in the United States during the novel coronavirus pandemic, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) doesn't want his state singled out.After President Trump said he was considering quarantining New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut on Saturday, Cuomo pushed back, calling the idea "preposterous" and a "federal declaration of war," while noting he didn't think it was even legal. Eventually, Trump said it wasn't necessary, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel advisory, urging tri-state residents to refrain from non-essential travel for the next 14 days.But Cuomo isn't completely satisfied — he said he still may sue Rhode Island if the state doesn't halt its new policy of stopping vehicles with New York license plates and collecting information about people who have traveled between the two states. Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo (D) issued an order Friday empowering law enforcement to conduct those searches, and the National Guard will be stationed at airports and train stations for similar purposes. The National Guard will also knock on doors in coastal communities to identify anyone who has been in New York in recently to make sure they self-quarantine for 14 days. Cuomo, though, thinks those precautions are "reactionary" and "illegal," but he is confident he and Raimondo can work out their differences "amicably" before getting the courts involved. Read more at CNN and The Hill.More stories from theweek.com Once coronavirus infects a human body, what happens next? Elton John to host 'Living Room Concert for America' with stars performing from home Trump brags about his television ratings as pandemic intensifies
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| Saudi forces destroy missile fired over capital Riyadh Posted: 28 Mar 2020 03:23 PM PDT |
| A company is marketing trendy N95 masks on Facebook and Instagram, flouting bans against ads for personal masks on the platforms Posted: 28 Mar 2020 05:23 AM PDT  N95 masks are crucial for protecting medical staff treating patients with coronavirus, and some hospitals are running dangerously low.
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| South Korean coronavirus test kit makers win U.S. FDA pre-approval Posted: 27 Mar 2020 06:38 PM PDT  Three Korean coronavirus test-kit makers have won preliminary approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), paving the way for kits to be exported to the United States to help it battle the largest outbreak of the virus. South Korea's foreign ministry said that winning the preliminary approval under emergency use authorization will allow the products to be sold in the United States. U.S. President Donald Trump this week asked his Korean counterpart to supply the medical devices and promised to help Korean firms gain U.S. regulator approval.
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| Police break up 'illegal' house party that violated N.J.'s stay-at-home order Posted: 28 Mar 2020 04:01 PM PDT  The party's organizer was charged, the governor said.
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| Coronavirus: Airlines ‘entering danger zone’ Posted: 29 Mar 2020 05:02 AM PDT  A group of 38 MPs calls on the chancellor to support airlines during the coronavirus crisis.
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| Should travelers cancel their vacation to Mexico? Travel experts discuss the options. Posted: 28 Mar 2020 07:44 AM PDT  Travel agents say tourists should consider rebooking their trips to Mexico for later in the year rather than asking for a refund. Here's why.
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| Iran warns of lengthy 'new way of life' as virus deaths rise Posted: 29 Mar 2020 04:20 AM PDT  President Hassan Rouhani warned Sunday that "the new way of life" in Iran was likely to be prolonged, as its declared death toll from the novel coronavirus rose to 2,640. The Islamic republic is one of the countries worst-hit by the virus, which first originated in China. Iran announced its first infection cases on February 19, but a senior health official has acknowledged that the virus was likely to have already reached Iran in January.
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| Shop in upstate N.Y. sells doughnuts starring Dr. Fauci's face Posted: 28 Mar 2020 02:07 PM PDT  A doughnut shop in Rochester, N.Y., is featuring the likeness of the doctor leading the country's battle with coronavirus on its treats. Donuts Delite began selling hundreds of doughnuts with Dr. Anthony Fauci's face on Monday.
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| Russia Claimed It Created a Coronavirus Cure, but It’s an American Malaria Drug Posted: 29 Mar 2020 02:16 AM PDT  The headline of the Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti read, "Russia Created the Treatment for Coronavirus." The article went on to boast about the remedy based on the drug mefloquine, an antimalarial drug created in fact at the U.S. Army's Walter Reed Medical Center shortly after the Vietnam War and widely known as Lariam. Fiona Hill: Trump's Coronavirus Talk Sounds a Lot Like Russia'sMefloquine was created to replace chloroquine, another anti-malarial, which was President Donald Trump's recent drug of choice in his dubious battle against COVID-19. It is still prescribed in many countries to prevent and treat malaria, but it is known to have severe and sometimes shocking side effects. A study conducted from 2001-2003 "confirmed mefloquine's potential for causing psychological illness."Facing a wave of ridicule in social media, Russian state media changed the headline, which now reads: "Russia Offered a Drug for Treating the Coronavirus."It should be noted that there is no known cure or approved treatment for the coronavirus. Multiple clinical trials for potential medical treatments are still underway.The purpose of all this is less pharmacological than propagandistic. While Kremlin-controlled media outlets propagate conspiracy theories blaming the United States (and even Ukraine) for creating and spreading the coronavirus, Russia is presented as the potential savior of all of humanity. At a time when the Kremlin's cynical effort to hide the extent of the pandemic in Russia is becoming ever more apparent, state media are criticizing American and European tactics for containing the pandemic. Virologist Mikhail Shchelkanov, head of the Laboratory of Ecology of Microorganisms, FEFU School of Biomedicine, described the Western approach as "18th-century tactics." In contrast, he claimed that, "Russia, since the days of the Soviet Union, has had the world's best biological safety system."After Putin's Big Fail, Russia Braces for COVID-19 OnslaughtRussian coronavirus measures recommended by the government agency to the general public indeed seem more stringent than those offered in the United States. For example, everyday use of face masks in public is recommended for all individuals. Single-use masks are to be replaced every 2-3 hours. The risk to younger individuals is not being downplayed. To the contrary, parents are being advised to keep their children at home or in the yard of their own home. When in public, children are to be prevented from touching any surfaces or interacting with others. There is public guidance with respect to the disinfection of store-bought food and merchandise.During his state TV show, The Evening with Vladimir Soloviev, the host described Russia's approach to the pandemic as superior to that of Europe and the United States. "They're behaving in an uncivilized manner," Soloviev said, "They are being amoral. Our people unite and want to help others. Americans are just buying up guns." Speaking to RIA Novosti, Shchelkanov praised China's response to the pandemic and condemned the United States and Western Europe for their lack of coordinated actions, predicting that coronavirus "can easily spread like fire—and is spreading to neighboring countries." He claimed that "the Russian Federation continues to be a bulwark of European stability."In reality, the true numbers of coronavirus infections in Russia are grossly understated due to the lack of testing and creative approach to recording the number of deaths. Some quarantined Russians report receiving negative test results, in spite of not being tested. The cause of death for coronavirus patients in Russia is being determined posthumously through an autopsy, and sometimes attributed to other causes, such as pulmonary thromboembolism—therefore being excluded from the official statistics.The aid supplied to Western countries by China and Russia has been criticized as largely defective and mainly useless. But Russian state media claim such support as the manifestation of "soft power." Appearing on Soloviev's show, political scientist Dmitry Evstafiev noted, "Every country is using the coronavirus pandemic as cover, trying to achieve their own goals."One of the Kremlin's most pressing aims is the removal of U.S. and European sanctions against Russia and its informal allies: Iran, Venezuela, and North Korea. Experts on Russian state television repeatedly suggest that the Kremlin should bring up the removal of sanctions at every opportunity, especially while offering coronavirus aid to Western countries.During his state TV show, Soloviev expressed frustration that Trump "didn't understand anything" and ignored President Vladimir Putin's proposal at the recent G-20 summit calling for the immediate removal of all sanctions.Soloviev opined that the first country that is able to create the coronavirus vaccine would acquire an instrument of enormous political pressure. Russia is actively seeking to develop such a lever of global influence, but the unproven panacea it is currently touting was made in the USA.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Column: China rises as Trump cedes leadership in coronavirus crisis Posted: 29 Mar 2020 04:00 AM PDT  For decades, the world relied on the U.S. to help in a crisis. But with Trump's blunders on coronavirus, China is stepping up instead. It's a historic shift.
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| Plane catches fire at Manila airport, killing all 8 aboard Posted: 29 Mar 2020 07:57 AM PDT  A plane carrying eight people, including an American and a Canadian, burst into flames Sunday while attempting to take off from Manila's airport on a flight bound for Japan, killing all those on board, officials said. The Westwind 24 plane, which was carrying six Filipino crew members and the American and Canadian passengers, was bound for Tokyo on a medical mission when it caught fire near the end of the main runway, Manila airport general manager Ed Monreal said. The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said the aircraft apparently encountered an unspecified "problem which resulted in a fire" as it rolled to take off, adding its chief investigator was on the way to the scene.
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| Coronavirus deaths fall again in Italy but lockdown extension looms Posted: 29 Mar 2020 11:11 AM PDT  The number of deaths from coronavirus in Italy fell for the second consecutive day on Sunday but the country still looked almost certain to see an extension of stringent containment measures. The Civil Protection department said 756 people had died in the last day, bringing the total to 10,779 - more than a third of all deaths from the virus worldwide. "The measures that were due to expire on April 3 inevitably will be extended," Regional Affairs Minister Francesco Boccia told Sky TG24 television.
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| Prime Minister Boris Johnson is spending £5.7 million to write to all 66 million people in the UK, urging them to stay at home to fight coronavirus Posted: 28 Mar 2020 03:00 PM PDT  "The more we all follow the rules, the fewer lives will be lost and the sooner life can return to normal," Johnson said in a letter
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| Coronavirus: Rhode Island forces all travelers from other states into self-quarantine Posted: 29 Mar 2020 11:23 AM PDT  New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo had threatened to sue over Rhode Island's quarantine order, which initially only applied to New York residents.
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| 'Merkel is back': virus crisis boosts Germany's centre-right Posted: 29 Mar 2020 03:10 AM PDT  Angela Merkel's long-struggling conservatives have rebounded in the polls thanks to the government's handling of the coronavirus crisis and widespread faith in the outgoing German chancellor's ability to manage the upheaval. Shaking off years of record-low popularity, Merkel's centre-right CDU/CSU bloc is now enjoying approval ratings of around 32 to 35 percent, some six to seven points higher than just a few weeks ago. It's a surprise turn of events for Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) which as recently as last month was riven by internal turmoil and debate over who would be the party's chancellor candidate when Merkel bows out in 2021.
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| Rats swarm New Orleans' streets as coronavirus precautions leave them empty Posted: 29 Mar 2020 10:34 AM PDT  With restaurants closed save for take-out service, far less food waste is being discarded in the city's alleyways, driving the local rodent population out into the open to search for scraps.
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| Coronavirus: Trump extends restrictions beyond Easter Posted: 29 Mar 2020 05:01 PM PDT  The US president extends measures to 30 April, saying casualties are likely to peak in two weeks.
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| Silent Coronavirus Spreaders Could Unleash Second Wave of Disaster Posted: 29 Mar 2020 02:02 AM PDT  A burst of fresh data on the prevalence of "silent," or asymptomatic, carriers of the 2019 novel coronavirus points to the looming danger of ending America's national shutdown early.Classified Chinese government data suggest "silent carriers" could make up at least one-third of the country's positive cases of the 2019 novel coronavirus, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post recently reported. Approximately 43,000 people in China who had tested positive for COVID-19 last month had no immediate symptoms. And those cases were not included in the official national tally of confirmed cases, which had hit 80,000 at the end of February, the paper said.Last week, China reported no new local infections for the first time since the outbreak started in December. And after weeks of lockdown, the city of Wuhan—where the global pandemic originated—said on Tuesday that public transportation was reopening and that residents would be allowed to leave the city itself starting on April 8.But as extensive testing continues, authorities in Wuhan have found new cases of asymptomatic—or mildly symptomatic—infection, sparking concerns about how many contagious people have been circulating freely. Fresh data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Friday about a nursing home in Washington state only served to compound those fears.Four Ways Experts Say Coronavirus Nightmare Could End"Almost everybody thinks there's the potential of a second wave after we relax the restrictions," said Irwin Redlener, director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University and an expert on U.S. readiness for pandemics. "There's no good timeframe—it's certainly not by Easter—that we'll be starting to loosen up," he continued, referring to President Donald Trump's suggested finish line. "But once we do, people who did not have coronavirus will be going out to spaces where silent spreaders might be."With Americans still getting acclimated to a quasi-national shutdown, and Trump repeatedly suggesting restrictions might ease in a matter of days or weeks, the prospect of silent spreaders wreaking epidemiological havoc looms large."The biggest danger here is that this is like a stealth attack in that you have no idea that the person you have come into contact with is contagious," said Dr. Adrian Hyzler, the chief medical officer for Healix International, which provides medical information to organizations whose clients travel internationally. "It makes it so much more difficult to try to contain the spread of the virus."For obvious reasons, silent carriers are not nearly as notorious in the public imagination as "super-spreaders," or patients who are extra contagious. A possible super-spreader in the United Kingdom may have transmitted the virus to nearly a dozen people before realizing he was sick earlier this year. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization previously claimed that pre-symptomatic or asymptomatic transmission of the new coronavirus was "relatively rare." But newer studies—out of Japan, Italy, South Korea, and now Washington state—have called that assertion into question. And research suggests that silent spreaders can be just as dangerous to a community.The CDC released a study on Friday of the outbreak's spread—specifically via asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic patients—in a long-term care facility in King County, Washington. The report found that "approximately half of all residents with positive test results did not have any symptoms at the time of testing, suggesting that transmission from asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic residents—who were not recognized as having [the coronavirus] infection and therefore not isolated—might have contributed to further spread.""These findings have important implications for infection control," according to the CDC, since "current interventions" for preventing the virus's transmission, in part because of the shortage of tests, primarily rely on the presence of "signs and symptoms to identify and isolate residents or patients who might have COVID-19." Patients were cohorted, or separated, according to which ones had symptoms. But that method of intervention no longer makes sense if there are asymptomatic—or silent—spreaders within a community, especially one that is at high risk of severe infection.Researchers previously published a study in the journal Science on March 16, finding that 86 percent of all infections in China before Jan. 23—when the government there instituted severe travel restrictions—were undocumented because they were mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic."They may, for the most part, have experienced some symptoms at some point," Jeffrey Shaman, a professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia University who worked on the study, explained to WBUR radio. "But it didn't keep them home, didn't stop them from getting on public transportation, going to work, going to school, getting on airplanes and going on business trips."Because those individuals didn't feel sick—or didn't know they were sick—and kept traveling through the community, the researchers found that this group of people "contributed to the vast majority of the spread" of the virus, added Shaman, who called the phenomenon "stealth transmission."In a letter to the International Journal of Infectious Diseases in February, a group of Japanese experts led by epidemiologist Hiroshi Nishiura at Hokkaido University wrote that the growing data outside of China "indicates that a substantial number of cases are underdiagnosed." Nishiura's group estimated—based on the number of asymptomatic Japanese patients who were evacuated from the epicenter of the outbreak in Wuhan, China—that about 30.8 percent of cases were asymptomatic.Of course, American authorities know even less than their foreign counterparts about how many cases there are, period. The same goes for silent spreaders. "This is partly because health systems are just overrun with sick people, as well as a scarcity of testing kits," said Hyzler, adding that a trial in a small Italian town where all 30,000 people were tested revealed that asymptomatic or very mildly symptomatic people represented a whopping 70 percent of all cases, of which an unknown number were able to transmit the virus to others.Redlener noted that, while much is still unknown, "the vast majority of Americans with the virus will be mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic, and we really have to be careful not to relax our stringent requirements too soon." The U.S. health system has generally not tested individuals without symptoms unless they are especially wealthy or well-connected—like NBA players or Sen. Rand Paul—or else health workers with known exposure. And in many places in the U.S., authorities are discouraging testing except in the case of severe symptoms, meaning American officials have limited data on the number of asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic cases, with few exceptions.Hyzler said there were two key assumptions that likely went into the decision to begin opening up Wuhan again: that there are very few unidentified silent spreaders transmitting the infection throughout the community, and that the incubation period is 14 days.If authorities are correct on both points, it might well be safe to resume public transportation and to allow travel to and from the city. But if they're incorrect, Hyzler cautioned: "We will certainly start to see a second wave of cases" emerge in China.Fortunately for Wuhan and its surrounding province, China's zealous testing means that authorities would likely detect a new wave "right away" before it spread very far, according to Arnold Monto, a professor of epidemiology and global health at the University of Michigan who has advised both the World Health Organization and the Defense Department on communicable diseases.But unless the U.S. rapidly expands its testing—and zealously tracks individuals who've had contact with confirmed cases—Americans won't have that same advantage. Both Hyzler and Monto said they hoped the U.S. government could learn from its weeks of delays, as well as failures abroad. But there's no guarantee.Vice President Mike Pence took heat this past week for claiming that federal officials may soon recommend that critical workers—even those who've been exposed to the virus—return to work, as long as they wear a mask."It's premature to try to put a time limit on this," said Monto, who emphasized the importance of continued social distancing throughout the country to control the surge of cases from overwhelming hospitals."From an epidemiological standpoint, one lockdown would be better than waves of lockdown," he said. "With waves, all you'd be doing is letting it up again and then you're back where you started. I think if we're still seeing an overwhelming number of cases in hospitals, it's too early to lift a lockdown."Ultimately, Hyzler argued, there are two main ways that authorities can try to ensure that an end to social distancing isn't premature. One is so-called herd immunity, or, as he put it, "if a good percentage, maybe as many as 70 percent of people... have been infected and therefore, we assume, have an immunity against a re-infection." The other is what's called antibody testing, or, as Hyzler explained, "once you can show that someone has had the virus, and they no longer need to self-isolate and can return to work." (To be clear, the jury's still out on whether some patients who already had coronavirus can be re-infected.)But without enough tests, Monto said, "we have no idea at this point" how many people may be mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic. "After the dust settles," he said, scientists will likely make an effort to collect blood samples, which can detect antibodies for the virus after a person has recovered. "We'll know the numbers only after the fact," he added.Redlener was more optimistic: "The hope is that we get to a point where mass testing will be possible."Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? 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