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COVID-19 news update May/17
source:WTMF 2020-05-17 [Medicine]

 

Country,
Other

Total
Cases

New
Cases

Total
Deaths

World

4,717,010

+95,600

312,902

USA

1,507,773

+23,488

90,113

Spain

276,505

+2,138

27,563

Russia

272,043

+9,200

2,537

UK

240,161

+3,450

34,466

Brazil

233,142

+14,919

15,633

Italy

224,760

+875

31,763

France

179,365

 

27,625

Germany

176,244

+545

8,027

Turkey

148,067

+1,610

4,096

Iran

118,392

+1,757

6,937

India

90,648

+4,864

2,871

Peru

88,541

+4,046

2,523

China

82,941

+8

4,633

Canada

75,864

+1,251

5,679

Belgium

54,989

+345

9,005

Saudi Arabia

52,016

+2,840

302

Mexico

45,032

+2,437

4,767

Netherlands

43,870

+189

5,670

Chile

41,428

+1,886

421

Pakistan

38,799

+1,581

834

Ecuador

32,763

+1,296

2,688

Qatar

30,972

+1,547

15

Switzerland

30,572

+58

1,879

Sweden

29,677

+470

3,674

Portugal

28,810

+227

1,203

Belarus

28,681

+951

160

Singapore

27,356

+465

22

Ireland

24,048

+92

1,533

UAE

22,627

+796

214

Bangladesh

20,995

+930

314

Poland

18,257

+241

915

Ukraine

17,858

+528

497

Indonesia

17,025

+529

1,089

Romania

16,704

+267

1,094

Israel

16,608

+19

268

Japan

16,237

+34

725

Austria

16,201

+92

629

Colombia

14,939

+723

562

South Africa

14,355

+831

261

Kuwait

13,802

+942

107

Philippines

12,305

+214

817

Dominican Republic

12,110

+371

428

Egypt

11,719

+491

612

S. Korea

11,037

+19

262

Denmark

10,858

+67

543

Serbia

10,496

+58

228

Panama

9,268

+150

266

Czechia

8,455

+49

296

Norway

8,237

+18

232

Argentina

7,805

+326

363

Australia

7,036

+17

98

Malaysia

6,872

+17

113

Algeria

6,821

+192

542

Bahrain

6,747

+164

12

Morocco

6,741

+89

192

Afghanistan

6,402

+349

168

Finland

6,286

+58

297

Moldova

5,934

+189

207

Kazakhstan

5,850

+161

34

Ghana

5,735

+97

29

Nigeria

5,621

+176

176

Oman

5,029

+404

21

Source: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

 

 

 

Nigerian fraud ring is implicated in a vast attack on U.S. unemployment agencies.

 

With states scrambling to pay out unemployment claims to tens of millions of Americans, a vast attack flooding unemployment agencies with fraudulent claims appears to have already siphoned millions of dollars in payments.

Investigators from the Secret Service said that they had information implicating a well-organized Nigerian fraud ring and that stolen information like social security numbers had allowed the network to file claims on behalf of people who in many cases had not lost their jobs.

Most of the fraudulent claims have so far been concentrated in Washington State, but evidence also pointed to similar attacks in Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and Wyoming.

The challenge of pre-empting fraudulent claims has increased as the pressure to get money into the hands of unemployed workers has grown. Unemployment offices accustomed to dealing with jobless claims in the thousands have been inundated with over a million claims during recent months in more populous states.

The attacks, which the Secret Service warned could conceivably target every state, could result in “potential losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars,” according to a memo obtained by The New York Times.

The discovery has added to concerns that jury-rigged efforts to rapidly dispense economic relief could be easily exploited by fraudsters. The I.R.S. last month documented losses of at least $16.9 billion because of identity theft as it raced to dole out trillions of dollars in economic stimulus checks.

 

 

In Brazil, national confusion helped fuel the virus’s spread.

The New York Times

 

Thronged banks. Packed subway cars. Buses full of President Jair Bolsonaro’s supporters, heading to rallies that call on Brazilians to brush aside local stay-at-home orders and instead follow the president’s directive to get back to work.

Scenes like these reflect Brazil’s contradictory response to the pandemic, a factor on glaring display on Friday as the health minister resigned — weeks after his predecessor was fired following clashes with Mr. Bolsonaro. And the confusion has contributed to making Brazil an emerging center of the pandemic, with a daily death rate second only to that of the United States.

The crisis stands in stark contrast to Brazil’s track record for innovative and nimble responses to health care challenges that made it a model in the developing world in past decades.

After a surge in H.I.V. infections in the 1990s, Brazil offered free universal treatment and pushed the pharmaceutical industry to lower costs. It threatened to disregard a Swiss drugmaker’s patent for an H.I.V. drug in 2001, and did so in 2007, manufacturing its own generic version and greatly reducing H.I.V. in the country.

In 2013, Brazil vastly expanded access to preventive health care in poorer areas by hiring thousands of foreign doctors, most of them Cuban. And to combat a Zika outbreak in 2014, Brazil created genetically modified mosquitoes that helped decrease the insect’s population, a tactic soon to be deployed in Florida and Texas.

 

 

U.S. roundup: Barack Obama criticized the virus response in two virtual commencement speeches.

 

Former President Barack Obama delivered two commencement addresses on Saturday to students who will miss graduation ceremonies because of the coronavirus outbreak.Credit...Bing Guan/Reuters

Former President Barack Obama delivered two virtual commencement addresses on Saturday, mixing inspirational advice to graduates with pointed criticism of the nation’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.

“More than anything, this pandemic has fully, finally torn back the curtain on the idea that so many of the folks in charge know what they’re doing,” Mr. Obama said in the first address streamed online. “A lot of them aren’t even pretending to be in charge.”

Read the full transcripts of Mr. Obama’s commencement speeches to high school seniors and graduates of historically black colleges and universities.

The speeches came as more than two-thirds of states have significantly relaxed restrictions, leaving the nation at a perilous moment. The United States already has the world’s largest outbreak, with more than 1.4 million cases and more than 88,000 deaths.

Supporters of the reopenings say they might ease the nation’s economic pain: More than 36 million people have filed unemployment claims in the past two months. But in testimony before Congress last week, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said that relaxing restrictions too soon could prompt another uncontrollable outbreak.

As experts continue to warn that testing needs to be more widely available, the Food and Drug Administration on Saturday granted emergency clearance for a coronavirus testing kit that will enable individuals to take a nasal sample at home and send it to a laboratory. It was the second such approval the F.D.A. had made.

 

 

Wuhan’s ‘bat woman,’ the target of an unproven theory, re-emerges with new virology research.

 

Shi Zhengli, the Chinese virologist whose research made her a target of unsubstantiated theories that the coronavirus escaped from a government lab in the city of Wuhan, has published new findings after weeks of largely staying out of the public eye.

Dr. Shi, a prominent researcher at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, has rejected accusations that the virus emerged from her lab. The Trump administration has pushed American intelligence officials to hunt for evidence to support this unproven theory as it escalates a public campaign to blame China for the pandemic. Intelligence agencies are skeptical that such evidence can be found and scientists say it most likely leapt from animal to human in a non-laboratory setting.

Dr. Shi has been called “the bat woman” by the Chinese news media because of her years of experience studying the links between bats and viruses. As the new coronavirus outbreak erupted, she helped establish that the new virus had most likely come from a bat. But she came under scrutiny both in China and abroad as people questioned whether the virus had come from her laboratory — either intentionally or accidentally.

In an interview with Scientific American in March, Dr. Shi said she had searched her lab’s records and found that the genetic sequence of the new coronavirus did not match any that the facility had previously studied. She has otherwise mostly kept a low profile, surfacing once on social media this month to debunk rumors that she had defected from China.

Dr. Shi’s latest research was published on Thursday on the website Biorxiv.org as a preprint, or a scientific paper that has not yet been peer-reviewed. It explores the “evolutionary arms race” between viruses and their hosts, which Dr. Shi and her colleagues say encourages genetic diversity in viruses. The publication of the new paper was first reported by The South China Morning Post.

The findings bolster the idea that the Chinese horseshoe bat is the natural host of coronaviruses like the ones that cause SARS and Covid-19, the paper said. “Continued surveillance of this group of viruses in bats is necessary for the prevention of the next SARS-like disease.”

 

 

Many in Europe celebrate easing lockdowns, but Germany sees pockets of protest.

 

Euphoric Greeks and French headed to reopened beaches, keeping their umbrellas apart. Players in Germany’s national soccer league competed in deserted stadiums. Italy offered its pulverized tourism industry a lifeline with plans to lift some travel restrictions.

On Saturday, many in Europe cautiously rejoiced after months of debilitating confinement as even countries hardest hit by the virus continued to gradually ease restrictions.

But relief that life was moving slowly toward some semblance of normalcy was tempered by continuing protests in Germany, where, for the fourth weekend in a row, small groups that added up to thousands took to the street across the country to protest measures imposed by the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The protesters, who include conspiracy theorists and right-wing extremists but also ordinary people concerned about their jobs, remain a small but noisy minority, as seven in 10 Germans back Ms. Merkel’s handling of the pandemic.

The coronavirus, which has sickened more than 4.5 million people around the world and killed at least 310,000, has plunged Europe into an economic downturn not seen since the end of World War II. It has also forced European leaders to find a delicate balance between opening up their countries without inviting new waves of infections.

Italy began easing its restrictions on May 4, and announced on Saturday that it would lift travel restrictions beginning June 3 to open the door to renewed tourism. If there are fresh outbreaks of the coronavirus, the government warned, restrictive measures could return. The country has clawed itself out of one of Europe worst outbreaks, and its latest daily death toll was 153, the lowest since it went under a strict lockdown on March 9.

Italy’s shops, bars, restaurants, hairdressers and other businesses are to reopen on Monday, with stringent social distancing and hygiene rules. Religious services will also be allowed to restart on Monday, and Mass can again be offered at St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.

Also on Monday, residents of Budapest, Hungary’s throbbing capital, will be able to enjoy outdoor terraces and shopping, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Saturday. Much of the rest of the country has had such freedom for nearly two weeks.

 

 

As many as 1,000 babies may become stranded in Ukraine after surrogate births.

 

A nurse in Kyiv, Ukraine, taking care of babies born to surrogate mothers for foreign clients of BioTexCom, a large surrogate company.Credit...Sergey Dolzhenko/EPA, via Shutterstock

The babies lie in cribs, sleeping, crying or smiling at nurses, swaddled in clean linens and apparently well cared for, but separated from their parents as an unintended consequence of coronavirus travel bans.

Dozens of babies born into Ukraine’s booming surrogate motherhood business have become marooned in the country as their biological parents in the United States and other countries cannot travel to retrieve them after birth. For now, the agencies that arranged the surrogate births care for the babies.

The authorities say that at least 100 babies are stranded already and that as many as 1,000 may be born before Ukraine’s travel ban for foreigners is lifted.

“We will do all we can to unite the children with their parents,” Albert Tochilovsky, director of BioTexCom, the largest provider of surrogacy services in Ukraine, said in a telephone interview.

Mr. Tochilovsky said doctors and caregivers now live at a company-owned hotel in Kyiv together with the babies, feeding them formula, taking them for walks and showing them to parents in video calls, all while in quarantine to protect against infection.

Ukraine does not tally statistics on surrogacy, but it may lead the world in the number of surrogate births for foreign biological parents, Mr. Tochilovsky said.

A human rights official in the presidential administration, Nikolai Kuleba, has demanded an end to the practice. “Ukraine is just turning into an online store for little ones,” he said.

 

Source : https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/17/world/coronavirus-news.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-coronavirus-world&variant=show®ion=TOP_BANNER&context=storylines_menu

 

 

Spain to reopen some public areas and hotels under strict social distancing measures

From CNN's Helena DeMoura

 

Hotels and some public spaces in Spain will be allowed to reopen by Monday, the Spanish government said.

Saturday’s government communiqué spelled out the how provinces, cities and autonomous regions are allowed to reopen business according to a classification system of "phases" outlined by the Health Ministry which is leading and guiding other government agencies in this transition period.

 

A woman opens her store in Palma de Mallorca during phase one of Spain's reopening. Isaac Buj/Europa Press/Getty Images

Most of the nation will remain on phase one, meaning that gatherings may not include more than 10 people. Hotels and public spaces may open but with caveats, including limited occupancy and closed common areas.

The biggest change comes for regions in Spain that will be classified as phase 2. Sporting and outdoor activities will be allowed to take place freely except during hours reserved for the elderly. That includes the Balearic Islands of Formentera and La Graciosa, and La Gomera and El Hierro, two islands that are part of the Canary Islands.

Densely populated areas, including the cities of Madrid and Barcelona, will remain under lockdown.

 

 

New York Racing Association applauds governor's decision to allow horse racing

From CNN's Kevin Dotson

 

The New York Racing Association welcomed the decision from Gov. Andrew Cuomo to reopen horse racing tracks by June 1 without fans.

"This is a reasoned and responsible decision by Governor Cuomo that will enable horse racing to resume in a way that prioritizes health and safety while recognizing that NYRA is the cornerstone of an industry responsible for 19,000 jobs and $3 billion in annual economic impact," NYRA President/CEO Dave O'Rourke said in a statement.

O'Rourke says the group has developed a comprehensive safety plan to protect the community and plans to announce race dates for the 2020 spring/summer meet at Belmont Park in the "very near future."

Some context: Belmont Park hosts the Belmont Stakes, traditionally the third leg of horse racing's Triple Crown. The event was originally scheduled for June 6. 

The NYRA had not officially postponed the event and it's unclear whether the organization will keep the same schedule for the race. 

The other two Triple Crown races, the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, were postponed. The Kentucky Derby has been rescheduled for September 5 and organizers for the Preakness Stakes announced on Saturday that it will be held on October 3.

 

 

Spanish government to reopen some airports to international travel

From CNN’s Helena de Moura

 

 

The interior of Tenerife Sur Airport in Spain on April 8. Sabine Jacob/NurPhoto/Getty Images

The Spanish government will re-open some airports on several islands and in the southern part of the country to international travel, the country’s Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos, announced on Saturday

More details are expected Sunday, Abalos said.

"Tomorrow [Sunday] I will sign a resolution so the airports of Tenerife Sur, Alicante-Elche, Sevilla, Menorca and Ibiza to also become designated points of entry, capable of handling international public health emergencies," Abalos tweeted. “Little by little, other centers will be opened.” 

Some context: The announcement from the Transport Ministry comes as roughly 70% of Spaniards enter either phase one or two of de-escalation, as the government eases coronavirus restrictions in some areas.

The remaining 30% of people live in or around the two largest Spanish cities, Barcelona and Madrid, and will remain in phase zero.

Spain limited the points of entry for international travel as it imposed a strict nationwide lockdown to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Government restrictions of non-emergency travel will continue until June 15, according to Spain's official government bulletin.  

 

 

Disney Springs in Florida is requiring guests to wear face coverings

From CNN’s Natasha Chen 

 

Disney Springs shopping areas on March 23. Alex Menendez/Getty Images

Three Disney owned business will reopen on May 27, one week after Disney already announced that third-party operators can reopen at Disney Springs in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. 

Beginning with the initial reopenings on May 20, Disney has now updated its guest policy to include temperature screenings and face coverings upon arrival to Disney Springs.

All guests age 3 and older will be required to wear appropriate face coverings on the property. In addition, they will also institute temperature screenings, and any guests showing a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher will not be admitted, nor will their party.

More details: On May 27, three Disney-owned and operated stores and venues will reopen: World of Disney, D-Luxe Burger for mobile orders and the Marketplace Co-Op. 

 

 

Decision to reopen schools is based on "best scientific advice," UK government says

From CNN's Lindsay Isaac and Nada Bashir

 

Children walk home from school in Altrincham, England, on March 20. Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Britain is planning for some students to return to school as early as next month, as long as rates of infection continue to decrease, United Kingdom Education Secretary Gavin Williamson

“We can now start the planning for a very limited return to school for some pupils, potentially as early as next month,” Williamson said during a daily government news briefing. 

Only those in kindergarten, grade one and grade six will return but only with smaller class sizes, he said. High schoolers in grades 10 and 12 will go back on a “limited basis” in order to have face to face contact with teachers, Williamson added.

Those students are being prioritized because they have the “most to lose” by staying out of school, he said. 

“We’re asking schools to adopt a number of strict protective measures. This includes reducing class sizes, making sure pupils stay with these small groups, creating a protective and small bubble around them," he said.

Williamson emphasized that schools will be “rigorous about hygiene, cleaning and hand washing.” 

“This approach is based on the very best scientific advice, with children at the heart of everything we do," Williamson added.

 

 

Study of hydroxychloroquine showed "no benefit or adverse harm," NY health commissioner says

From CNN's Kristina Sgueglia

 

New York Health Department Commissioner Howard Zucker said a study of hospitalized patients that had hydroxychloroquine administered showed “there was no benefit or adverse harm.”

“It was clearly known that there was an issue with a potential of abnormal heart rhythms when you gave that drug along with azithromycin,” Zucker said.

“The drug was tested in hospital trials for the FDA,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said, adding, “the tests suggested not to go ahead with the drug.”

 

 

Pence to travel for first time since press secretary tested positive for coronavirus

From CNN's Jason Hoffman

 

After spending the past week in Washington largely out of sight, Vice President Mike Pence will hit the road next week, traveling to Florida.

This will be the vice president’s first trip outside of Washington since his press secretary Katie Miller tested positive for coronavirus on May 8. 

Pence will travel to Orlando on Wednesday where he will meet with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to discuss Florida’s phased economic reopening.

He will also deliver personal protective equipment to a nursing home and hold a roundtable with hospitality and tourism industry leaders to discuss their plans for reopening, according to a news release from the vice president's office.

 

 

Madrid regional government chief criticizes delay in re-opening city

From CNN’s Laura Perez Maestro in Madrid, Claudia Dominguez in Atlanta and Vasco Cotovio in London

 

The president of the Madrid regional government has criticized the Spanish government's decision to delay the easing of anti-coronavirus restrictions in the country’s capital, she said in a statement on Saturday. 

Isabel Diaz Ayuso, elected from the Popular Party (PP), said the Socialist government’s decision to postpone Madrid’s re-opening a "political attack towards the community of Madrid,” calling the decision arbitrary and saying that no reason was given for the postponement. 

She also announced that a formal request will be sent to the Ministry of Health “to know the criteria used to deny Madrid from starting the next phase,” assuring that Madrid complies with all criteria needed to reopen the city. 

The Spanish government, led by the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE), has been at odds with opposition parliamentarians and regional governments over the de-escalation strategy in recent weeks. 

Madrid remains the region most affected by the novel coronavirus in Spain with 8,826 deaths and a total of 66,210 diagnosed cases. 

Source: https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/coronavirus-pandemic-05-16-20-intl/index.html

 

 

Summary - the latest developments at a glance

 

Jedidajah Otte

  • Italy’s prime minister Giuseppe Conte announced the easing of a series of lockdown restrictions, including the reopening of all shops, bars, restaurants and hairdressers, from 18 May, and free travel to Italy for people coming from EU countries from 3 June without having to undergo quarantine.

  • Nepal has reported its first coronavirus death late on Saturday, a 29-year-old woman who recently gave birth, as the total number of people infected in the country reached 281.

  • Ireland recorded 92 more cases, the lowest daily number in nine weeks, with the total now at 24,048. A further 15 people with Covid-19 have died in Ireland, which brings the country’s official death toll to 1,533.Turkey records lowest death toll since end of March

  • Turkey’s health ministry said 41 more people have died from Covid-19 in the 24 hours to Saturday, bringing the death toll to 4,096. The daily death toll is the lowest registered since the end of March.

  • Dozens of people were detained in the Polish capital of Warsaw during a protest by business owners against coronavirus restrictions. 19 protesters were arrested in London, and police dispersed rallies in several German cities.

  • Tens of thousands of India’s migrant workers on the move, as impoverished workers are leaving cities and walking on highways and railway tracks towards their home communities as they see themselves forced to leave cities and towns after they were abandoned by their employers amid the nationwide coronavirus lockdown.

  • Schoolchildren and their families will be tested for coronavirus if they develop symptoms, the British education secretary Gavin Williamson announced on Saturday in a bid to reassure parents and appease unions, as some children in England are set to go back to school on 1 June.

  • The Israeli government has approved the resumption of school for all grades in areas that are not considered coronavirus hotspots, starting on Sunday. Beaches will officially open on Wednesday.

  • The Spanish government will seek to extend its coronavirus state of emergency for the last time until late June, as the country’s daily death toll reached a near eight-week low.

  • Lockdown easing is driving up infections in New York, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, said on Saturday. The state’s new confirmed Covid-19 cases are predominantly coming from people who left their homes to go shop, exercise or socialise, and not from essential workers. The state’s daily death toll was 157 and half the regions in the state are now in the process of reopening.

Source : https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2020/may/16/coronavirus-live-news-us-deaths-headed-for-100000-by-june-brazil-health-minister-resigns