COVID-19 Up

2021-02-25 07:06:30 The Jimmy Dore Show: Cuomo Says Don't Trust "Experts" on COVID-19 to Distract From Scandal.

@G3News: Jimmy Dore highlights the hypocrisy in mainstream news media coverage of COVID-19 when it comes to Andrew Cuomo and Donald Trump.
SOURCE | SUPPORT G3 Open / Comment

2021-02-25 06:42:24 Researchers Identify New SARS-CoV-2 Variant in New York

@COVID19Up: A new SARS-CoV-2 variant that shares some similarities with a more transmissible and intractable variant discovered in South Africa is on the rise in New York City.

The new variant, known as B.1.526, was first identified in samples collected in New York in November, and by mid-February represented about 12% of cases, researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, said on Wednesday.

The variant was also described in research published online this week by the California Institute of Technology. Neither study has been reviewed by outside experts.

The Columbia study found that B.1.526 shares some worrying characteristics with B.1.351, the variant first identified in South Africa, and P.1., which was first identified in Brazil. Several studies have suggested that those new variants are more resistant to some existing vaccines than earlier versions of the coronavirus.

The researchers said the main concern is a change in one area of the virus’ spike protein, called E484K, that is present in all three variants. The E484K mutation is believed to weaken the body’s immune response to the virus.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 23:37:28 France's Dunkirk Set for Weekend Lockdown Amid "Alarming" COVID-19 Cases Spike

@COVID19Up:

France’s government on Wednesday ordered a weekend lockdown in the Dunkirk area to arrest an “alarming” rise in COVID-19 cases, signaling extra curbs might also be needed elsewhere as daily cases nationwide hit their highest since November.

Unlike some of its neighbors, France has resisted a new national lockdown to control more contagious coronavirus variants, hoping a curfew in place since Dec. 15 can contain the pandemic.

But it reported 31,519 new infections on Wednesday, up from 25,018 a week ago and the most since mid-November.

Government spokesman Gabriel Attal said the national situation was deteriorating, and “a source of worry in about 10 regional departments." Some required “rapid and strong” containment measures.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 22:48:32 Greece to Continue Athens Lockdown as COVID-19 Cases Rise

@COVID19Up: Greece will not be able to lift lockdown restrictions in the wider Athens area next Monday as planned following a sharp increase in coronavirus infections, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday.

Athens metropolitan area, where half of Greece’s population lives, has been under strict lockdown restrictions that had been set to expire at the end of the month.

“There has been a steep rise in infections yesterday, particularly in Athens, which pushes back our plan...for a gradually reopening on March 1,” Mitsotakis told a cabinet meeting.

Although it has suffered more than 6,000 deaths, Greece has fared better than much of Europe in containing the pandemic and protecting its health service, badly damaged by years of financial crisis.

However, state hospitals have been overwhelmed in recent days with intensive care units operating at more than 80% capacity. There was no specific identifiable cause for the rise.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 21:54:57 New ‘Finnish’ Strain of SARS-CoV-2 "Difficult to Detect" in Some WHO-Recommended PCR Tests

@COVID19Up: Scientists fear a new ‘Finnish’ mutation of the coronavirus is going undetected.

The discovery was made by Helsinki-based Vita Laboratories who say it’s unlikely the variant emerged in Finland, given the country’s low rate of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Dubbed “Fin-796H” the mutation is different from the strains in South Africa and the United Kingdom, the lab said in a statement.

"Vita Laboratoriot Oy and the Institute of Biotechnology at the University of Helsinki have detected a previously unknown variant of the coronavirus in a sample from southern Finland."

“Mutations in this variant make it difficult to detect in at least one of the WHO-recommended PCR tests. This discovery could have a significant impact on determining the spread of the disease," the laboratory said.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 21:24:57 Czech Leader: "Hellish Days Await Us" as COVID-19 Cases Stress Hospitals

@COVID19Up:The Czech Republic faces "hellish" days ahead as the country faces a surge of hospitalizations resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, its prime minister said Wednesday.

Andrej Babis told reporters that residents should expect further COVID-19 restrictions in the coming days as health officials attempt to gain control over the virus's spread.

Nearly 1,400 people are hospitalized with COVID-19 and in serious condition in the Czech Republic, stressing the country's health system and forcing the government to consider asking to transfer patients to German hospitals, according to the news service.

“Hellish days await us,” Babis said Wednesday, according to Reuters, while adding that plans to resume in-person learning for some grades had been halted due to the virus surge.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 20:54:57 Vaccinated Israelis to Enjoy Bars and Hotels With "Green Pass"

@COVID19Up: Israel is splitting in half, with the government creating a new privileged tier in society: the vaccinated.

Nearly 50% of the population who have chosen to be inoculated against COVID-19 are being provided with a “green pass” a week after their second shot, as will those with presumed immunity after contracting the disease.

The pass grants access to gyms, hotels, swimming pools, concerts, and places of worship. Restaurants and bars will be included from early March.

For the rest, including children under 16 who are not eligible for coronavirus shots, many of the activities shut down during the year-long crisis will remain off-limits, although some will be available if they provide a negative coronavirus test.

“This is how the first stage will look in the return to your almost normal lives,” the health minister, Yuli Edelstein, said. The pass is being launched on a mobile app that businesses must scan on entry, and many Israelis are excited.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 20:24:56 University Study Suggests SARS-CoV-2 Can Survive on Fabric for Up to Three Days

@COVID19Up: A new study has revealed that SARS-CoV-2 can linger on fabric, such as clothing or upholstery, for up to three days.

Between polyester, a poly-cotton blend and 100% cotton fabrics, the polyester posed the greatest risk, even after 72 hours; on full-cotton samples, the virus lasted one day, while the poly-cotton blend remained contaminated by viral droplets—designed to mimic human saliva—for just six hours.

The breakthrough finding could be especially dangerous when it comes to clothing worn by health-care workers, said Dr. Katie Laird, a microbiologist and author of the study.

If not frequently washed, the fabrics could help transmit the virus from patient to patient.

“When the pandemic first started, there was very little understanding of how long coronavirus could survive on textiles,” said Dr. Laird, a leading infectious disease researcher at De Montfort University in Leicester, United Kingdom.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 19:54:56 New Yorkers Should Double Mask Until at Least June, Mayor de Blasio Says

@COVID19Up: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) said at a press conference Tuesday that New Yorkers should wear two masks until at least June as the city works to control the spread of COVID-19.

The mayor said that the city would consider changing mask guidance once it reaches an initial target of vaccinating 5 million residents against the novel coronavirus.

"Through June, keep doing exactly what you are doing," the mayor said. "Not just wear a mask, wear two."

"It may be that we continue that guidance for quite a while depending on what is going on," he added.

De Blasio's remarks come as the country's top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, made similar recommendations weeks earlier while also saying that Americans could still be wearing masks into 2022.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment

2021-02-24 19:24:56 Germany Approves SARS-CoV-2 Home Tests to Ease Way Out of Lockdown

@COVID19Up: Germany approved three SARS-CoV-2 tests for home use as part Health Minister Jens Spahn’s strategy to help Europe’s biggest economy emerge from a lockdown that has been in place since mid-December.

The infection rate in Germany fell steadily in the first weeks of the year but has stagnated in recent days, making it more difficult for leaders to ease restrictions when they meet next week to consider lockdown rules that run to March 7.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has told lawmakers in her conservative party that making rapid tests more available and boosting testing capacity could make a return to normality more durable, two sources at the meeting told Reuters on Tuesday.

The government expects such tests will cost it up to 810 million euros ($985 million) a month for 30 million to 45 million tests, according to documents obtained by Reuters.
SOURCE | TIP

Join the discussion:
➔ @COVID1984chat Open / Comment