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Category: Health

Scientists say a now-dominant strain of the coronavirus appears to be more contagious than original

Scientists say a now-dominant strain of the coronavirus appears to be more contagious than original

The Los Angeles Times reports: Scientists have identified a new strain of the coronavirus that has become dominant worldwide and appears to be more contagious than the versions that spread in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study led by scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The new strain appeared in February in Europe, migrated quickly to the East Coast of the United States and has been the dominant strain across the world since mid-March,…

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No scientific evidence the coronavirus was made in or escaped from a Chinese lab, says Fauci

No scientific evidence the coronavirus was made in or escaped from a Chinese lab, says Fauci

National Geographic reports: Anthony “Tony” Fauci has become the scientific face of America’s COVID-19 response, and he says the best evidence shows the virus behind the pandemic was not made in a lab in China. Fauci, the director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, shot down the discussion that has been raging among politicians and pundits, calling it “a circular argument” in a conversation Monday with National Geographic. “If you look at the evolution of the…

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New study shows just how badly black people have been hit by Covid-19

New study shows just how badly black people have been hit by Covid-19

Politico reports: Counties across the country with a disproportionate number of African-American residents accounted for 52 percent of diagnoses and 58 percent of coronavirus deaths nationally, according to a new study released Tuesday. The study, conducted by epidemiologists and clinician-researchers at four universities in conjunction with the nonprofit AIDS research organization amFar and PATH’s Center for Vaccine Innovation and Access, attempts to fill in the blanks as states report piecemeal data on race and ethnicity. The Centers for Disease Control…

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Whistleblower alleges Trump administration ignored dire Covid-19 warnings

Whistleblower alleges Trump administration ignored dire Covid-19 warnings

The Daily Beast reports: The Trump administration was warned in late January that it had a critical shortage of surgical masks needed to combat coronavirus and that it needed to prioritize the development of a vaccine. But it failed to take action, a top administration health official alleges in a whistleblower complaint formally filed on Tuesday. The complaint from Dr. Rick Bright, who led the government’s efforts to find a vaccine for the coronavirus before being reassigned to a position…

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Draft report projects possibly 200,000 new Covid-19 cases a day and 3,000 deaths a day by June 1

Draft report projects possibly 200,000 new Covid-19 cases a day and 3,000 deaths a day by June 1

The Washington Post reports: A draft government report projects covid-19 cases will surge to about 200,000 per day by June 1, a staggering jump that would be accompanied by more than 3,000 deaths each day. The document predicts a sharp increase in both cases and deaths beginning about May 14, according to a copy shared with The Washington Post. The forecast stops at June 1, but shows both daily cases and deaths on an upward trajectory at that point. The…

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A steep toll of coronavirus deaths among the often-invisible army of employees who keep New York hospitals running

A steep toll of coronavirus deaths among the often-invisible army of employees who keep New York hospitals running

The New York Times reports: They did not treat patients, but Wayne Edwards, Derik Braswell and Priscilla Carrow held some of the most vital jobs at Elmhurst Hospital Center in Queens. As the coronavirus tore through the surrounding neighborhood, their department managed the masks, gloves and other protective gear inside Elmhurst, a public hospital at the center of the city’s outbreak. They ordered the inventory, replenished the stockroom and handed out supplies, keeping a close count as the number of…

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Pandemic provides Stephen Miller with yet another way to promote his xenophobic, white nationalist agenda

Pandemic provides Stephen Miller with yet another way to promote his xenophobic, white nationalist agenda

The New York Times reports: From the early days of the Trump administration, Stephen Miller, the president’s chief adviser on immigration, has repeatedly tried to use an obscure law designed to protect the nation from diseases overseas as a way to tighten the borders. The question was, which disease? Mr. Miller pushed for invoking the president’s broad public health powers in 2019, when an outbreak of mumps spread through immigration detention facilities in six states. He tried again that year…

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AOC: Isolated at the epicenter of the pandemic as much of Congress is far removed from the daily toll

AOC: Isolated at the epicenter of the pandemic as much of Congress is far removed from the daily toll

The New York Times reports on Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and New York’s 14th Congressional District: The wreckage in her community has made a darkly eloquent case, she said, for her agenda of universal health care and less income inequity. “This crisis is not really creating new problems,” she said. “It’s pouring gasoline on our existing ones.” But more personally, it has exposed the little-seen vulnerabilities and isolation of the most prominent new voice in Congress. A case in point: Ms….

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Lethargic global response to COVID-19: How the human brain’s failure to assess abstract threats cost us dearly

Lethargic global response to COVID-19: How the human brain’s failure to assess abstract threats cost us dearly

The Trump administration was not alone with its slow response to the COVID-19 crisis. Getty Images / White House Pool By Arash Javanbakht, Wayne State University and Cristian Capotescu, University of Michigan More U.S. citizens have confirmed COVID-19 infections than the next five most affected countries combined. Yet as recently as mid-March, President Trump downplayed the gravity of the crisis by falsely claiming the coronavirus was nothing more than seasonal flu, or a Chinese hoax, or a deep state plot…

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Amazon is ‘chickenshit’ for firing protesting workers, says VP as he quits

Amazon is ‘chickenshit’ for firing protesting workers, says VP as he quits

Motherboard reports: Tim Bray, a well known senior engineer and Vice President at Amazon has “quit in dismay” because Amazon has been “firing whistleblowers who were making noise about warehouse employees frightened of Covid-19.” In an open letter on his website, Bray, who has worked at the company for nearly six years, called the company “chickenshit” for firing and disparaging employees who have organized protests. He also said the firings are “designed to create a climate of fear.” Amazon’s strategy…

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Biden & Warren: Trump is using a $500 billion slush fund to reward his political friends and punish his political enemies

Biden & Warren: Trump is using a $500 billion slush fund to reward his political friends and punish his political enemies

Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren write: Sixty-four thousand dead. Thirty million people out of work. Small businesses collapsing. Communities of color hit exceptionally hard. Even the most ideological conservatives have been forced to acknowledge that government is an essential part of the COVID-19 solution. Government delivers best when its actions are fair, transparent and accountable. But President Donald Trump’s approach to this crisis doesn’t reflect these values. Without change, more lives will be lost and more families will go broke….

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Could ‘innate immunology’ protect us from the coronavirus?

Could ‘innate immunology’ protect us from the coronavirus?

Melinda Wenner Moyer writes: As the world waits for a coronavirus vaccine, tens of thousands of people could die. But some scientists believe a vaccine might already exist. Surprising new research in a niche area of immunology suggests that certain live vaccines that have been around for decades could, possibly, protect against the coronavirus. The theory is that these vaccines could make people less likely to experience serious symptoms — or even any symptoms — if they catch it. At…

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34 days of pandemic: Inside Trump’s reckless attempts to reopen America

34 days of pandemic: Inside Trump’s reckless attempts to reopen America

The Washington Post reports: The epidemiological models under review in the White House Situation Room in late March were bracing. In a best-case scenario, they showed the novel coronavirus was likely to kill between 100,000 and 240,000 Americans. President Trump was apprehensive about so much carnage on his watch, yet also impatient to reopen the economy — and he wanted data to justify doing so. So the White House considered its own analysis. A small team led by Kevin Hassett…

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Dr Birx decries Michigan protests: It’s ‘devastatingly worrisome’

Dr Birx decries Michigan protests: It’s ‘devastatingly worrisome’

Politico reports: Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said on Sunday she found it “devastatingly worrisome” that anti-quarantine protesters in Michigan had flocked in tight quarters to the state Capitol, defying social-distancing guidelines. Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” the doctor said the protesters at the rally were especially concerning because, “if they go home and infect their grandmother or their grandfather who has a comorbid condition, and they have a serious or an unfortunate outcome, they will…

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The months of magical thinking: As the coronavirus swept over China, some experts were in denial

The months of magical thinking: As the coronavirus swept over China, some experts were in denial

Helen Branswell writes: The response to the coronavirus pandemic in the United States and other countries has been hobbled by a host of factors, many involving political and regulatory officials. Resistance to social distancing measures, testing debacles, and longtime failures to prepare for the possibility of a pandemic all played a role. But a subtler, less-recognized factor contributed to the wasting of precious weeks in January and February, when preparations to try to stop the virus should have kicked immediately…

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Global backlash builds against China’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak

Global backlash builds against China’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak

The New York Times reports: Australia has called for an inquiry into the origin of the virus. Germany and Britain are hesitating anew about inviting in the Chinese tech giant Huawei. President Trump has blamed China for the contagion and is seeking to punish it. Some governments want to sue Beijing for damages and reparations. Across the globe a backlash is building against China for its initial mishandling of the crisis that helped loose the coronavirus on the world, creating…

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