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Trump says daily briefings are not worth the effort, as the White House considers firing the health secretary.
Alex Azar, Secretary of Health and Human Services, center, during one of the daily briefings this month.Credit...Doug Mills/The New York Times On the first day in weeks that the White House did not hold a press briefing on the coronavirus, President Trump lashed out at the news media for asking “hostile questions” and suggested his daily appearances were no longer worth his time. “What is the purpose of having White House News Conferences when the Lamestream Media asks nothing but hostile questions, & then refuses to report the truth or facts accurately,” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter on Saturday night. “They get record ratings, & the American people get nothing but Fake News. Not worth the time & effort!” The tweet came two days after Mr. Trump suggested at a briefing that an “injection inside” the human body with a disinfectant could help combat the coronavirus. Despite a lack of scientific evidence, Mr. Trump has long trumpeted various ideas against the virus, like sunlight and warmer temperatures as well as an array of drugs, including the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which he has promoted as a “what have you got to lose” remedy. Medical experts have since stepped up warnings about the drugs’ possibly dangerous side effects.
The U.S. conducted 1.2 million tests in a week, but experts say that is not enough.
As governors weigh reopening their economies, they continue to be hampered by a shortage of testing capacity, leaving them without the information that public health experts say is needed to track outbreaks and contain them. And while the United States has made strides over the past month in expanding testing, its capacity is nowhere near the level President Trump suggests it is. There are numerous reasons. It has proved hard to increase production of reagents — sensitive chemical ingredients that detect whether the coronavirus is present — partly because of federal regulations intended to ensure safety and partly because manufacturers, who usually produce them in small batches, have been reluctant to invest in new capacity without assurance that the surge in demand will be sustained.
Fearing the virus, people with life-threatening emergencies are avoiding hospitals.
Medical workers outside Brookdale Hospital Medical Center in Brooklyn on Thursday.Credit...Marian Carrasquero for The New York Times Bishnu Virachan was a bicycle deliveryman for a grocery store in Queens. With New York City locked down, he was busier than ever. But in early April, as he was watching television, he said he felt a pain in his heart. It frightened him, but he did not go to the emergency room. Mr. Virachan, 43, was even more afraid of that. “What can I do? What can I do?” he asked. “Everywhere, the coronavirus.” Mr. Virachan’s hesitancy almost cost him his life. And he is not the only patient taking grave chances. Doctors across the country say that fear of the coronavirus is leading many people in the throes of life-threatening emergencies, like a heart attack or stroke, to stay home when ordinarily they would have rushed to an emergency room. Without prompt treatment, many suffer permanent damage or die. Many hospitals report that heart and stroke units are nearly empty. Some medical experts fear more people are dying from untreated emergencies than from the coronavirus itself.
U.S. scientists join W.H.O. in calling for better coronavirus antibody tests.
The municipality of Cisliano, outside Milan, conducted tests to help determine how many people had developed antibodies against the coronavirus.Credit...Alessandro Grassani for The New York Times Scientists in the United States and abroad are cautioning leaders against overreliance on coronavirus antibody tests, even as the tests have come to be seen as an essential tool for getting workers back to their jobs. The World Health Organization warned against using antibody tests as a basis for issuing “immunity passports” to allow people to travel or return to work. Countries like Italy and Chile have proposed the permits as a way to clear people who have recovered from the virus to return to work.
The Metropolitan Opera put on a live concert gala with a worldwide relay of performances via smartphones.
A screen capture of members of the Metropolitan Opera’s orchestra and chorus, which are performing in the opera’s At-Home Gala.Credit...Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera’s At-Home Gala — a worldwide relay of live streamed performances that, in contrast to opera’s usual grandeur, was filmed using only household devices — was presented at metopera.org and will remain available until Sunday evening Eastern time. It has an only-in-opera level of aspiration and difficulty: a roster of more than 40 of the company’s starriest singers, plus members of the orchestra and chorus, performing live across nine time zones. Among them are Lisette Oropesa, in Baton Rouge, La.; Anna Netrebko, in Vienna; and Piotr Beczala, in what he described to Peter Gelb, the Met’s general manager, as a village at the end of the earth in Poland.
China says all hospitalized coronavirus patients in Wuhan have been dischargedFrom Alexandra Lin in Hong Kong
All hospitalized coronavirus patients in Wuhan, the original epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, have been discharged from hospitals, Mi Feng, a spokesperson for China’s National Health Commission (NHC) said on Sunday. “With joint effort of medical professionals from Wuhan and from around the country, by April 26, all hospitalized Covid-19 patients in Wuhan have been cleared,” Mi said. As of Saturday, 46,452 total cases have been confirmed in Wuhan, according to a statement from NHC on Sunday. Wuhan was the first city in the world to go into lockdown due to the virus. It has been slowly returning to something that might be described as normal, after months of fear and anxiety. But the scars of the viral outbreak, which for 76 days shut down the Chinese city and much of the surrounding Hubei province, lie just beneath the surface. Many citizens are worried about a second outbreak and businesses are struggling to get back on their feet. The first known cases of the virus were detected in Wuhan in mid-December. In the weeks that followed, case numbers spiked and from January 23 until April 8, residents were unable to leave the city as the Chinese government attempted to contain the outbreak. But despite the attempts to halt the spread of the virus, it has now infected more than 2.6 million people worldwide.
Spain's children are allowed out of their homes for the first time since lockdown
Spanish citizens could be allowed to go outside to play sports and walk with family members in early May Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images Spain's children are finally allowed to leave their homes for the first time in over six weeks after the government announced a relaxation of the strictest confinement measures in Europe. In the capital Madrid, parents were seen by CNN venturing out with their children in tow on Sunday morning. Kids up to the age of 14-years-old will now be able to play outside for one hour a day while accompanied by an adult, according to a decree by Spain’s Official State Gazette (BOE). The guidelines also stressed that children should be in groups no larger than three alongside one adult, and should not venture further than one kilometer (0.62 miles) from their home. They are also allowed to bring their toys. This comes as the daily coronavirus death rate has dropped in the country, which also has the world’s second-highest number of coronavirus cases (223,759), after the United States, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
New Delhi hospital closed after a nurse tests positive for coronavirusFrom CNN's Rishabh Pratap in New Delhi
An ambulance passes through a disinfecting tunnel at the Hindu Rao Hospital in New Dehli on April 12. Sanjeev Verma/Hindustan Times/Getty Images Hindu Rao, one of the largest hospitals in the Indian capital New Delhi, has been closed for a deep clean, after a nurse there tested positive for coronavirus. "Since she has been on duty in various locations within the campus over the last two weeks, we are closing down the hospital till we fully sanitize and complete contact tracing," said Varsha Joshi, commissioner for the North Delhi Municipal Corporation. He added that a thorough inquiry will be conducted. The hospital will only be functional again after the sanitization work finishes, per Health Ministry guidelines, she added. Delhi has reported 3,424 positive coronavirus cases, including 53 deaths.
India's Modi says "all of us are soldiers" in fight against coronavirusFrom CNN's Rishabh Pratap in New Delhi
An Indian policeman walks past an art work displayed on a road urging people to stay home during lockdown in Hyderabad. Mahesh Kumar A./AP Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the country's battle against coronavirus a "people-driven" movement and urged citizens to join the government in the struggle. "People of our country are fighting this war along with the administration. We are also fighting poverty," Modi said Sunday, in his monthly radio broadcast. "I am proud that all of us are part of it. All of us are soldiers in this fight." Modi said that demonstrations of solidarity, such as clapping and lighting candles, have lifted the morale of frontline workers. He also lauded workers of different sectors, saying "be it in cities or a village, everywhere we can see people getting involved in this fight against the pandemic." "While some are feeding the poor, some are making masks, others are selling their lands to raise money for this fight. Some are even contributing their pensions. Our hardworking farmers are also ensuring no one is hungry," he added. Referring to how coronavirus is altering life in India, and around the world, Modi said the most prominent change had been mask-wearing.
Social distancing in 100 square feet: Hong Kong's cage homes make coronavirus control difficultFrom CNN's Joshua Berlinger in Hong Kong
A handout photograph from the Society for Community Organization shows the inside of one of Hong Kong's "cage homes." Benny Lam/Society for Community Organization Before the pandemic, Lum Chai used to go to the park and drink beers with friends to escape his tiny living quarters. Now the 45-year-old walks the city's streets alone to kill time and keep away from his neighbors. Vigilantly practicing social distancing at home isn't an option for Lum. He lives in one of Hong Kong's "cage homes," subdivided apartments that often have space for only a bed and some clothes. His closest neighbor is just a few feet away, inside the same room. Cage homes are usually smaller than 100 square feet, only 25 square feet larger than most of the city's prison cells. Bathrooms are mostly communal and often there are no kitchens -- just plug-in hot plates. Units are mostly divided by makeshift or removable walls.
Hawaii governor extends stay-at-home and quarantine orders until May 31From CNN's Hollie Silverman
The statewide stay-at-home order for Hawaii has been extended until May 31, Gov. David Ige announced during a press conference Saturday. It had been set to expire on April 30. Travelers arriving to the state must quarantine for 14 days until the end of May.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/coronavirus-pandemic-04-26-20-intl/index.html
Hundreds of thousands take part in government-decreed civic labor in Belarus
Hundreds of thousands of state employees in Belarus, including doctors and nurses, took part in a government-decreed national day of civic labor Saturday despite worries about the country’s sharply rising coronavirus infections, AP reports.
People during a government-decreed national day of civic labor in Minsk, Belarus. Photograph: Natalia Fedosenko/TASS The work, including painting, tree-planting and general clean-ups, was ordered by President Alexander Lukashenko, who has dismissed concerns about the virus even though Belarus has recorded more cases than neighbouring Ukraine, a county with four times as many people. Lukashenko, a former collective farm manager, has retained many Soviet-era practices during his quarter-century in power, including the day of civic labor known as a subbotnik from the Russian word for Saturday. |
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Medicine
