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"COVID-19 Lockdown Exit Analysis" 15th Sep 2021

One Minute Overview

Covid: Significant return to office could see ‘rapid’ rise in hospitalisations, UK Sage warns - It is “highly likely” that a decrease in the number of people working from home in the next couple of months would lead to a “rapid” rise in hospital admissions for Covid, scientific advisers to the government have warned. Millions of Britons have been heading back to the office this month, coinciding with the return of schools and universities. Last week, London saw its busiest morning rush-hour since the pandemic hit, with hundreds of thousands of journeys made across the city, according to official data. But modelling published on Tuesday by a sub-group of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) suggests there is the “potential” for another large wave of hospitalisations in the coming months.

WHO Says India May Resume Covid-19 Vaccines to Africa This Year - The World Health Organization said talks are underway with India for a resumption of Covid-19 vaccine exports to African countries following a pause during a deadly wave of infections earlier this year. “Be assured the conversation is ongoing, be assured that supply will restart this year,” Bruce Aylward, a senior WHO official, said at a briefing Tuesday. “We are hoping we can get assurance it can start even faster than later this year and in the coming weeks.”

Biden gathers support for global pandemic summit - Yesterday, President Biden invited world leaders to a virtual summit on ending the pandemic, with a goal of vaccinating at least 70% of the world by next September, according to the Washington Post. At a World Health Organization (WHO) briefing today, health officials—including several from African groups—welcomed the partnership, but said there are urgent steps countries can take now to free up more vaccine doses for countries that don't have enough access.

Johnson Doubles Down on Vaccine Strategy as His Popularity Wanes -  When Prime Minister Boris Johnson fumbled his initial response to the coronavirus pandemic, his political fortunes faltered, only to rebound quickly thanks to Britain’s surprisingly effective vaccine rollout. With his popularity now waning again — this time following a broken promise not to raise taxes — Mr. Johnson is hoping that history will repeat itself. On Tuesday, he announced a campaign to offer vaccine booster shots to people aged 50 and over, as well as first shots to three million children, aged 12 to 15 — all while reiterating his vow to avoid future lockdowns.

Ukrainian government announces vaccine passports - The Ukrainian government has decided to introduced COVID-19 'vaccine passports' verifying citizens' vaccination status, the health ministry said. The passports will allow businesses such as cinemas, gyms, theatres and swimming pools to operate without social distancing requirements if all visitors and at least 80% of staff at the venues are at least partially vaccinated, the ministry said in a statement.

Dutch expected to ease COVID-19 measures, introduce 'corona' pass - The Dutch government is expected to ease COVID-19 restrictions on Tuesday, mirroring other countries in Europe, and introduce a 'corona' pass, showing proof of vaccinations, that will allow eating out and admission to cultural events. Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Cabinet is expected to lift social distancing requirements from Sept. 25. Likely remaining in place are a mask requirement for public transportation and schools, and a recommendation that people work from home when possible

Zimbabwe Bars Unvaccinated Civil Servants From Reporting to Work - Zimbabwe’s cabinet has barred unvaccinated civil servants from reporting to work with immediate effect. Only workers who have taken the coronavirus vaccine will be allowed to report for duty, Minister of Information Monica Mutsvangwa told reporters at a post-cabinet briefing in the capital, Harare on Tuesday.  The country is slowly opening up economic and social activity after a third wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Only vaccinated people are allowed to attend church gatherings and sit-in at restaurants.

WHO-backed vaccine hub for Africa to copy Moderna COVID-19 shot - Efforts to develop an African base for COVID-19 vaccine production will focus on trying to replicate Moderna’s shot, but a lack of progress in talks with the US company mean the project will take time, a senior World Health Organization (WHO) official has said. The drive to produce vaccines in Africa is designed to help more developing countries access COVID-19 shots after rich nations bought up most of this year’s supply.

83% of stem cell recipients produce antibodies after 2 COVID-19 vaccine doses - Stem cell transplant recipients with cancers like leukemia had an antibody response rate of 83% to the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, with almost two-thirds having very strong responses, an observational, single-center study today in JAMA Network Open finds. Researchers from Nantes University Hospital in France studied 117 coronavirus-naïve adults who received a donor stem cell transplant for the treatment of hematologic cancer and were given two doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine from Jan 20 to Apr 17. The median interval between the two doses was 22 days.

CureVac slashes COVID-19 vaccine production plans - German biotech firm CureVac said on Tuesday it cancelled contract manufacturing deals for its experimental COVID-19 vaccine with two prospective partners, after rivals with approved shots have boosted production. Agreements with Celonic Group of Switzerland and Germany's Wacker would be terminated but existing production deals with Rentschler Biopharma and Novartis would remain unchanged, CureVac said in a statement. CureVac fell far behind rivals BioNTech, a partner of Pfizer, and Moderna, in trying to develop an mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine.

Kids' COVID-19 cases continue to rise in US - The American Academy of Pediatrics' (AAP's) latest numbers on US pediatric COVID-19 cases once again show a significant rise in confirmed cases in patients under 18. More than 243,000 child COVID-19 cases were reported from Sep 2 to Sep 9, representing 28.9% of weekly reported US COVID-19 cases, the second highest weekly total for pediatric cases in the pandemic. 'After declining in early summer, child cases have increased exponentially, with nearly 500,000 cases in the past 2 weeks,' the AAP said. Children represent 15.5% of all US COVID-19 cases.

Philippines to test localised lockdowns in capital region - The Philippines' capital region will exit wide-scale coronavirus restrictions from Thursday, as the government launches a pilot test of localised lockdowns, amid efforts to balance reopening the economy and containing the spread of the coronavirus.

Lockdown Exit
England Unveils Winter Covid Strategy
Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain announced a plan on Tuesday to offer all those age 50 and older a booster vaccine as part of a winter coronavirus strategy — plunging Britain into a growing debate over whether lower-income countries should get shots first. The prime minister is taking the step to try to prevent a new surge in cases from overwhelming the National Health Service, and to avoid another lockdown in a country wearied by the pandemic and earlier measures that included some of the strictest restrictions in the world.
Johnson Doubles Down on Vaccine Strategy as His Popularity Wanes
When Prime Minister Boris Johnson fumbled his initial response to the coronavirus pandemic, his political fortunes faltered, only to rebound quickly thanks to Britain’s surprisingly effective vaccine rollout. With his popularity now waning again — this time following a broken promise not to raise taxes — Mr. Johnson is hoping that history will repeat itself. On Tuesday, he announced a campaign to offer vaccine booster shots to people aged 50 and over, as well as first shots to three million children, aged 12 to 15 — all while reiterating his vow to avoid future lockdowns.
WHO Says India May Resume Covid-19 Vaccines to Africa This Year
The World Health Organization said talks are underway with India for a resumption of Covid-19 vaccine exports to African countries following a pause during a deadly wave of infections earlier this year. “Be assured the conversation is ongoing, be assured that supply will restart this year,” Bruce Aylward, a senior WHO official, said at a briefing Tuesday. “We are hoping we can get assurance it can start even faster than later this year and in the coming weeks.”
Biden gathers support for global pandemic summit
Yesterday, President Biden invited world leaders to a virtual summit on ending the pandemic, with a goal of vaccinating at least 70% of the world by next September, according to the Washington Post. At a World Health Organization (WHO) briefing today, health officials—including several from African groups—welcomed the partnership, but said there are urgent steps countries can take now to free up more vaccine doses for countries that don't have enough access.
UK would not have approved Valneva COVID vaccine, health secretary says
Britain cancelled its contract for about 100 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by France's Valneva (VLS.PA) in part because it was clear it would not be approved for use in the country, UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid said on Tuesday. "There are commercial reasons that we have cancelled the contract, but what I can tell her is that it was also clear to us that the vaccine in question that the company was developing would not get approval by the MHRA here in the UK," he said in response to a question from a Scottish lawmaker.
Covid: Significant return to office could see ‘rapid’ rise in hospitalisations, Sage warns
It is “highly likely” that a decrease in the number of people working from home in the next couple of months would lead to a “rapid” rise in hospital admissions for Covid, scientific advisers to the government have warned. Millions of Britons have been heading back to the office this month, coinciding with the return of schools and universities. Last week, London saw its busiest morning rush-hour since the pandemic hit, with hundreds of thousands of journeys made across the city, according to official data. But modelling published on Tuesday by a sub-group of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) suggests there is the “potential” for another large wave of hospitalisations in the coming months.
Exit Strategies
Biden’s Vaccine Mandate Risks Overwhelming U.S. Testing Capacity
The U.S. may not have enough tests to keep pace with the Biden administration’s tightened workplace Covid-19 mitigation measures.
Trump says he likely WON'T get coronavirus booster shot because he's in 'good shape' after getting vaccinated
Donald Trump said he 'doesn't think' he'll get a coronavirus booster shot because he feels he is in 'good shape' after getting vaccinated.
UK health secretary signals the end of PCR COVID-19 tests for travel
Britain's Health Secretary Sajid Javid signalled on Tuesday that a requirement for expensive PCR tests for COVID-19 for international travellers arriving in Britain would be dropped in favour of cheaper lateral-flow-tests. Asked by a lawmaker if lateral flow tests could be used for initial screening, with the small proportion of positive cases then needing a PCR test, Javid said: "I don't want to pre-empt the statement of my right honourable friend the transport secretary but I believe when he makes that statement that my honourable friend will be pleased."
Schools will need vaccine mandates for in-person classes to last, expert says
As kids return for a new school year and Covid-19 cases rise among younger age groups, vaccine mandates in schools may become the only way forward, a vaccine expert said. "So far, we've not seen a lot of Covid vaccine mandates, even for the teenagers," vaccinologist and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine Dr. Peter Hotez told CNN. "It's gonna have to happen if we're going to get kids through the school year." Cases have risen "exponentially" among children, with the weekly count of 243,373 new cases showing about a 240% increase compared with the week of July 22-29, data from the American Academy of Pediatrics shows.
Travel vaccine mandate could segregate society, experts warn
Experts have warned mandating vaccines for travel could be problematic and promote segregation, as the Federal Government prepares to trial vaccine passports for international travel. A new study published by the Medical Journal of Australia found mandatory vaccines must be backed by strong justification before being rolled out by the government. Championing the research, a string of leading health professionals found a general population mandate could cause resentment and mistrust in government and public health agencies.
Nadhim Zahawi: patients could get Covid jab each year with flu vaccine
Patients in England could get routine annual Covid jabs at the same time as their flu vaccinations, the vaccines minister, Nadhim Zahawi, has said, as the government prepares to start the booster programme in the coming days. Scientists have warned that the NHS is likely to be under significant pressure from other seasonal illnesses as well as Covid-19 infections. Zahawi said he hoped the booster programme would be the “last piece of the jigsaw” to allow society to continue through the winter without lockdowns.
India under pressure to resume coronavirus vaccine exports with cases down
India is facing growing pressure to lift its ban on exporting coronavirus vaccines, months after curbs were imposed to tackle a massive domestic outbreak that has since relented. Officials in the United States and with Covax hope a more stable health situation will persuade the country to resume exports. The pressure comes as wealthy nations, including the U.S., move to offer coronavirus booster shots to their own vaccinated residents. But Indian officials have not committed to a firm date. Instead, mixed messaging has clouded production forecasts, even as President Biden plans to call on global leaders to make new commitments to fight the pandemic, including fully vaccinating 70 percent of the world’s population by next September
Covid: Sajid Javid unveils winter plan to tackle coronavirus
The health secretary has unveiled the government's plan for tackling Covid during autumn and winter in England. Sajid Javid said it included offering booster jabs to those most at risk from the virus and maximising uptake among those who have not yet had the vaccine. Ministers have also prepared a "Plan B" if measures are needed to prevent "unsustainable pressure" on the NHS. This could include compulsory face coverings in certain settings and asking people to work from home. But "more harmful economic and social restrictions would only be considered as a last resort", the government's winter plan says.
Dutch expected to ease COVID-19 measures, introduce 'corona' pass
The Dutch government is expected to ease COVID-19 restrictions on Tuesday, mirroring other countries in Europe, and introduce a "corona" pass, showing proof of vaccinations, that will allow eating out and admission to cultural events. Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Cabinet is expected to lift social distancing requirements from Sept. 25. Likely remaining in place are a mask requirement for public transportation and schools, and a recommendation that people work from home when possible
UK recommends COVID-19 booster shots for over 50s
The U.K. said it will offer a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine to everyone over age 50 and other vulnerable people after an an expert panel said the boosters were needed to protect against waning immunity this winter. Health Secretary Sajid Javid told lawmakers that the government had accepted the recommendation of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization and would start offering booster shots next week. The World Health Organization has asked wealthy nations to delay booster shots until every country has vaccinated at least 40% of their populations.
New Zealand looks to boost COVID-19 vaccinations as new cases ease
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has asked New Zealanders to get vaccinated as soon as possible, as it was the only way to beat the spread of coronavirus and see curbs lifted in the biggest city of Auckland. Tuesday's 15 new infections in New Zealand were a drop from Monday's figure of 33, but about 1.7 million people will stay in lockdown in Auckland until next week, as the government battles to hold down a cluster of the highly infectious Delta variant. "The vaccine is the best tool we have in our toolbox and our ticket to greater freedom," Ardern told a news conference. "The more people who are vaccinated, the fewer restrictions you have to have."
Covid-19 hotel quarantine could last 'three or four years' in Australia
Covid-19 hotel quarantine could be in place for three or four years but Australians returning from overseas may be allowed to isolate at home by Christmas. Jane Halton, a former public servant who conducted a review of the quarantine system last year, said hotel quarantine could last even longer if a new Covid-19 variant evades vaccines. 'In three or four years' time I'll be quite surprised if we're using these kinds of arrangements unless for example there's a very nasty new variant,' she told ABC radio
Asia’s Covid-19 Success Stories Warily Ponder Post-Vaccination Moves
Earlier this month, Singapore reached a Covid-19 milestone: The fully vaccinated portion of the population crossed 80%. But instead of moving ahead with a planned reopening pegged to the achievement, the government put on the brakes. That is because cases were rising to several hundred each day after an earlier relaxing of some restrictions, raising fears of a hospital-bed shortage.
Covid-19 vaccine rollout to start in NI for 12 to 15 year olds
Young people aged 12 to 15 years old in Northern Ireland are to be offered a first dose of a Covid-19 jab shortly, the Department of Health has said. It follows unanimous advice to ministers from the UK's four chief medical officers. There are approximately 98,000 12 to 15 year olds in Northern Ireland. They will be offered one dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine with parental consent sought prior to vaccination. Health Minister Robin Swann said the move will help to protect young people from catching the virus.
Ukrainian government announces vaccine passports
The Ukrainian government has decided to introduced COVID-19 "vaccine passports" verifying citizens' vaccination status, the health ministry said. The passports will allow businesses such as cinemas, gyms, theatres and swimming pools to operate without social distancing requirements if all visitors and at least 80% of staff at the venues are at least partially vaccinated, the ministry said in a statement.
U.S. to buy 1.4 mln additional doses of Regeneron's COVID-19 therapy
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Tuesday the U.S. government will buy 1.4 million additional doses of its COVID-19 antibody cocktail, REGEN-COV. The cocktail, a combination of antibodies casirivimab and imdevimab, was authorized in November for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Covid vaccine: Over 30 million people to be offered booster jab as rollout extended to over-50s
More than 30 million people are to be offered a Covid booster jab as part of government plans for "living with the virus" throughout the winter. Following final recommendations provided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, all over-50s, clinically vulnerable individuals and healthcare workers will be offered a third dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine in the weeks ahead – regardless of what jabs they received earlier in the year.
Partisan Exits
Eight New Orleans Saints personnel test positive for COVID-19: report
Eight members of the New Orleans Saints including six coaching staff, a team nutritionist and a player have tested positive for COVID-19, two sources told
How Science in India Became a 'Political Weapon' Under Modi
The forecast was mathematically based, government-approved and deeply, tragically wrong. In September 2020, eight months before a deadly Covid-19 second wave struck India, government-appointed scientists downplayed the possibility of a new outbreak. Previous infections and early lockdown efforts had tamed the spread, the scientists wrote in a study that was widely covered by the Indian news media after it was released last year. The results dovetailed neatly with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two main goals: restart India’s stricken economy and kick off campaigning for his party in state elections that coming spring.
Zimbabwe Bars Unvaccinated Civil Servants From Reporting to Work
Zimbabwe’s cabinet has barred unvaccinated civil servants from reporting to work with immediate effect. Only workers who have taken the coronavirus vaccine will be allowed to report for duty, Minister of Information Monica Mutsvangwa told reporters at a post-cabinet briefing in the capital, Harare on Tuesday. The country is slowly opening up economic and social activity after a third wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Only vaccinated people are allowed to attend church gatherings and sit-in at restaurants.
‘The virus is painfully real’: vaccine hesitant people are dying – and their loved ones want the world to listen
Matt Wynter, a 42-year-old music agent from Leek, Staffordshire, was working out in his local gym in mid-August when he saw, to his great surprise, that his best friend, Marcus Birks, was on the television. He jumped off the elliptical trainer and listened carefully. The first thing he noticed was that Birks, who was also from Leek and a performer with the dance group Cappella, looked terrible. He was gasping for breath and his face was pale. “Marcus would never usually have gone on TV without having done his hair and had a shave,” Wynter says.
Conservative Colorado radio host and pastor dies from COVID-19 after railing against vaccines
The anti-vax radio host died on Monday after contracting COVID on September 1 He had called for his listeners to boycott the vaccines made by 'child killers' and was notorious for his ruthless stance against LGBT relations and abortions. In October 2020, Enyart filed a lawsuit against the state that reduced the number of people allowed at religious gatherings. Enyart said people have a 'God-given right to worship him, our creator, without the government interfering.' It comes days after Howard Stern mocked a slew of anti-vax radio hosts who died from Covid and described their deaths as 'really funny'
Nicki Minaj Met Gala vaccine tweets highlight struggle against covid-19 misinformation
Nicki Minaj sparked a social media storm on Monday night after she tweeted about her cousin’s hesitancy to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, setting off a slew of critiques that she was spreading coronavirus misinformation. Minaj tweeted that her cousin in Trinidad, where the singer and rapper is from, “won’t get the vaccine cuz his friend got it & became impotent. His testicles became swollen.” Medical experts have said that claims about infertility linked to vaccinations are unsubstantiated.
Boris Johnson risks backlash over face masks after packed Cabinet meeting
Boris Johnson hosted a meeting of his Cabinet in 10 Downing Street this morning. The packed Cabinet meeting saw the PM's ministers ditch their face masks. The PM later told nation to 'consider wearing a face covering in crowded places'
Canada’s Trudeau pledges to crack down on hospital protests
Justin Trudeau has promised that if re-elected his party would crack down on protests outside healthcare facilities, as demonstrations denouncing coronavirus-related public health measures have taken place outside hospitals in recent weeks. Trudeau, whose Liberal Party is currently in a tight federal election race with the Conservatives, said on Monday that the Liberals would make it an offence to obstruct access to any building providing health services, such as hospitals, testing centres, pharmacies and abortion clinics.
Scientific Viewpoint
Emergent to make Providence Therapeutics' potential COVID-19 vaccine
Emergent BioSolutions Inc signed a five-year agreement with Canadian biotechnology company Providence Therapeutics to develop and manufacture its COVID-19 vaccine candidate for about $90 million.
CureVac slashes COVID-19 vaccine production plans
German biotech firm CureVac said on Tuesday it cancelled contract manufacturing deals for its experimental COVID-19 vaccine with two prospective partners, after rivals with approved shots have boosted production. Agreements with Celonic Group of Switzerland and Germany's Wacker would be terminated but existing production deals with Rentschler Biopharma and Novartis would remain unchanged, CureVac said in a statement. CureVac fell far behind rivals BioNTech, a partner of Pfizer, and Moderna, in trying to develop an mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine.
COVID-19: Deputy Chief Medical Officer says winter could be ‘bumpy at times’
Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Professor Jonathan Van-Tam says booster vaccines will be offered to people aged 50 and over, those in care homes, and frontline health and social care workers in order to manage what could be a ‘bumpy winter’ for the UK
83% of stem cell recipients produce antibodies after 2 COVID-19 vaccine doses
Stem cell transplant recipients with cancers like leukemia had an antibody response rate of 83% to the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, with almost two-thirds having very strong responses, an observational, single-center study today in JAMA Network Open finds. Researchers from Nantes University Hospital in France studied 117 coronavirus-naïve adults who received a donor stem cell transplant for the treatment of hematologic cancer and were given two doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine from Jan 20 to Apr 17. The median interval between the two doses was 22 days.
A conversation with Bill Gates on how public health has fared in the midst of the pandemic
The foundation’s 2021 Goalkeepers report, published late Monday, shows an additional 10 million children around the globe didn’t get key childhood vaccines this past year, because of public health service disruptions. Another 31 million people were pushed into extreme poverty by the pandemic. And employment among women is expected to remain 13 million jobs lower around the world this year than it was in 2019.
WHO-backed vaccine hub for Africa to copy Moderna COVID-19 shot
Efforts to develop an African base for COVID-19 vaccine production will focus on trying to replicate Moderna’s shot, but a lack of progress in talks with the US company mean the project will take time, a senior World Health Organization (WHO) official has said. The drive to produce vaccines in Africa is designed to help more developing countries access COVID-19 shots after rich nations bought up most of this year’s supply.
Coronavirus Resurgence
Singapore reports 607 new COVID-19 cases
Singapore's health ministry reported 607 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, the highest since August last year. The country's COVID-19 cases have hit a one-year high in the recent days as it entered a phased reopening after more than 80% of its population was fully vaccinated.
A California couple died of Covid-19 weeks apart, orphaning 5 young children including a newborn
The couple was unvaccinated and died on August 26 and September 9, respectively, leaving behind children ranging in age from 3 weeks to 8 years old, Macias told CNN on Monday. "It wasn't that they didn't want to be vaccinated -- they planned on it," she said. She was adamant that this was a personal choice and each wanted to learn more about its safety prior to being inoculated.
Russia's Vladimir Putin self-isolates after COVID-19 found in entourage
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday he was self-isolating after several members of his entourage fell ill with COVID-19, including someone he worked with in close proximity and had been in close contact with all of the previous day.
Third wave of Covid-19 in the UK: What are the latest numbers?
Covid-19 patient numbers and deaths in the UK are continuing to rise slowly, although both remain well below levels seen during the last wave of the virus, latest figures show. The Government is on Tuesday setting out its plan for tackling Covid-19 during the autumn and winter, including offering more than 30 million people a booster dose of vaccine.
COVID-19 cases in southeast China more than double as Delta spreads
New local COVID-19 infections more than doubled in China's southeastern province of Fujian, health authorities said on Tuesday, prompting officials to quickly roll out measures including travel restrictions to halt the spread of the virus.
Sydney COVID-19 infections ease, but unclear if they have peaked
Sydney's COVID-19 cases rose at the slowest pace in nearly two weeks on Tuesday, but officials said they needed to see a steady drop in daily cases before deciding whether infections had peaked after 12 weeks in lockdown.
Kids' COVID-19 cases continue to rise in US
The American Academy of Pediatrics' (AAP's) latest numbers on US pediatric COVID-19 cases once again show a significant rise in confirmed cases in patients under 18. More than 243,000 child COVID-19 cases were reported from Sep 2 to Sep 9, representing 28.9% of weekly reported US COVID-19 cases, the second highest weekly total for pediatric cases in the pandemic. "After declining in early summer, child cases have increased exponentially, with nearly 500,000 cases in the past 2 weeks," the AAP said. Children represent 15.5% of all US COVID-19 cases.
School-based COVID outbreak in China’s Fujian grows
An outbreak of the Delta variant of COVID-19 that is thought to have begun in a primary school in Putian in China’s southeast continues to grow, prompting authorities to impose measures, including travel restrictions and school closures, to curb the spread of the virus. Putian, a city of 3.2 million in coastal Fujian province, ordered the testing of all residents on Tuesday after cases linked to a man who returned from Singapore ballooned into a province-wide outbreak of more than 100 people.
ICUs Are Filled With Covid — And Regret
It’s a struggle for Joe Gammon to talk. Lying in his bed in the intensive care unit at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, this month, he described himself as “naive.” “If I would have known six months ago that this could be possible, this would have been a no-brainer,” said the 45-year-old father of six, who has been in critical condition with covid-19 for weeks. He paused to use a suction tube to dislodge some phlegm from his throat. “But I honestly didn’t think I was at any risk.”
New Lockdown
Philippines to test localised lockdowns in capital region
The Philippines' capital region will exit wide-scale coronavirus restrictions from Thursday, as the government launches a pilot test of localised lockdowns, amid efforts to balance reopening the economy and containing the spread of the coronavirus.