China clamps down in hidden hunt for coronavirus origins

‘The government is handing out hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants to scientists researching the virus’ origins in southern China and affiliated with the military, the AP has found. But it is monitoring their findings and mandating that the publication of any data or research must be approved by a new task force managed by China’s cabinet, under direct orders from President Xi Jinping, according to internal documents obtained by the AP. A rare leak from within the government, the dozens of pages of unpublished documents confirm what many have long suspected: The clampdown comes from the top.’

Read here (AP, Dec 31, 2020)

The autopsy, a fading practice, revealed secrets of Covid-19

‘The COVID-19 pandemic has helped revive the autopsy. When the virus first arrived in U.S. hospitals, doctors could only guess what was causing its strange constellation of symptoms: What could explain why patients were losing their sense of smell and taste, developing skin rashes, struggling to breathe and reporting memory loss on top of flu-like coughs and aches?

‘At hospital morgues, which have been steadily losing prominence and funding over several decades, pathologists were busily dissecting the disease’s first victims — and finding some answers. “We were getting emails from clinicians, kind of desperate, asking, ‘What are you seeing?’” said NYU Langone’s Dr. Amy Rapkiewicz. ‘Autopsy,’ she pointed out, means to see for yourself. “That’s exactly what we had to do.”

Read here (AP News, Dec 24, 2020)

A pandemic atlas: How Covid-19 took over the world in 2020

‘Journalists from The Associated Press around the world assessed how the countries where they are posted have weathered the pandemic — and where those countries stand on the cusp of year two of the contagion.’ Wonderful pictures...

View here (Associated Press, Dec 16, 2020)

Counties with worst virus surges overwhelmingly voted Trump

‘US voters went to the polls starkly divided on how they see President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. But in places where the virus is most rampant now, Trump enjoyed enormous support. An Associated Press analysis reveals that in 376 counties with the highest number of new cases per capita, the overwhelming majority — 93% of those counties — went for Trump, a rate above other less severely hit areas.

‘The US broke another record in the 7-day rolling average for daily new cases, hitting nearly 90,000. The tally for new cases Thursday was on track for another day above 100,000, with massive numbers reported all around the country, including a combined nearly 25,000 in Texas, Illinois and Florida. Iowa and Indiana each reported more than 4,000 cases as well.

‘Thirty-six percent of Trump voters described the pandemic as completely or mostly under control, and another 47% said it was somewhat under control, according to AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of more than 110,000 voters conducted for the AP by NORC at the University of Chicago. Meanwhile, 82% of Biden voters said the pandemic is not at all under control.

‘The pandemic was considered at least somewhat under control by slim majorities of voters in many red states, including Alabama (60%), Missouri (54%), Mississippi (58%), Kentucky (55%), Texas (55%), Tennessee (56%) and South Carolina (56%).’

Read here (AP, Nov 6, 2020) 

Scientist defends Sweden’s hotly debated virus strategy

‘Sweden’s chief epidemiologist on Wednesday defended his country’s controversial coronavirus strategy, which avoided a lockdown but resulted in one of the highest per capita COVID-19 death rates in the world... “We still believe that our strategy is good, but there is always room for improvement. ... You can always get better at this job,” [Anders] Tegnell told a news conference in Stockholm.

‘According to the national health agency, Sweden, a nation of 10.2 million people, has seen 4,542 deaths linked to COVID-19, which is far more than its Nordic neighbors and one of the highest per capita death rates in the world. Denmark has had 580 coronavirus deaths, Finland has seen 320 and Norway has had 237, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.’

Read here (Associated Press, June 3, 2020)

Nearly 26,000 COVID deaths in nursing homes spur inspections

‘Nearly 26,000 nursing home residents have died from COVID-19, the government reported Monday, as federal officials demanded states carry out more inspections and vowed higher fines for facilities with poor infection control.

“This is not a nursing home problem; this is a health system problem,” said Terry Fulmer, president of the John A. Hartford Foundation, which works to improve care for older adults. “Every system produces the outcome it is set up for. If you set up a system where the sickest and frailest people are in locations that are forgotten about and ignored, where the staff is paid less, why should that surprise anyone?”

Read here (Associated Press, June 3, 2020)

China delayed releasing coronavirus info, frustrating WHO

‘Throughout January, the World Health Organization publicly praised China for what it called a speedy response to the new coronavirus. It repeatedly thanked the Chinese government for sharing the genetic map of the virus “immediately,” and said its work and commitment to transparency were “very impressive, and beyond words.”

‘But behind the scenes, it was a much different story, one of significant delays by China and considerable frustration among WHO officials over not getting the information they needed to fight the spread of the deadly virus, The Associated Press has found.’

Read here (Associated Press, June 3, 2020)

Not all or nothing: Anti-virus lockdowns could lift slowly

“While we may yearn for a clear timeline for when life will return to normal, scientists say that isn’t exactly the right question. Routines won’t resume exactly as they were for several months, or longer – but that doesn’t mean we’ll all be stuck in total lockdowns until then.”

Read here (Associated Press, March 27, 2020)