The problem with stories about dangerous coronavirus mutations

‘There’s no clear evidence that the pandemic virus has evolved into significantly different forms—and there probably won’t be for months...

‘As if the pandemic weren’t bad enough, on April 30, a team led by scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory released a paper that purportedly described “the emergence of a more transmissible form” of the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. This new form, the team wrote, “began spreading in Europe in early February.” Whenever it appeared in a new place, including the U.S., it rapidly rose to dominance. Its success, the team suggested, is likely due to a single mutation, which is now “of urgent concern.”

‘The paper has not yet been formally published or reviewed by other scientists. But on May 5, the Los Angeles Times wrote about it, claiming that “a now-dominant strain of the coronavirus could be more contagious than [the] original.” That story quickly went … well … viral.

‘But “the conclusions are overblown,” says Lisa Gralinski of the University of North Carolina, who is one of the few scientists in the world who specializes in coronaviruses. “To say that you’ve revealed the emergence of a more transmissible form of SARS-CoV-2 without ever actually testing it isn’t the type of thing that makes me feel comfortable as a scientist.” She and other virologists I’ve spoken with who were not involved in the Los Alamos research agree that the paper’s claims are plausible, but not justified by the evidence it presents. More important, they’re not convinced different strains of the coronavirus exist at all.’

Read here (The Atlantic, May 6, 2020)

These are the ‘10 plain truths’ about the coronavirus pandemic, according to former CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden

1. “It’s really bad” in New York City
2. It’s “just the beginning”
3. Data is a “very powerful weapon against this virus”
4. We need to “box the virus in”
5. We must find the balance
6. Protect the “frontline heroes”
7. Protect our most vulnerable people, too
8. Governments and private companies need to work together
9. We must not neglect non-Covid health issues
10. Preparedness is paramount

Read here (CNN, May 6, 2020)

Singaporeans to be given improved reusable masks in third nationwide mask distribution exercise

‘Singaporeans will receive improved reusable masks soon, with the Government embarking on a third mask distribution exercise towards the end of this circuit breaker period. The new cloth masks will have higher protective qualities and also be more comfortable to wear for a long period of time, said Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing on Wednesday (May 6). Over the last few weeks, the Government has been working with local manufacturers and A*Star to improve on the materials used for the reusable cloth masks.’

Read here (Straits Times, May 6, 2020)

The coming post-Covid anarchy: Kevin Rudd

‘As with other historical inflection points, three factors will shape the future of the global order: changes in the relative military and economic strength of the great powers, how those changes are perceived around the world, and what strategies the great powers deploy. Based on all three factors, China and the United States have reason to worry about their global influence in the post-pandemic world.

Read here (Foreign Affairs, May 6, 2020)

From Hong Kong to Britain, governments ranked poorly for their response to Covid-19

‘From Hong Kong to Britain, governments ranked poorly for their response to Covid-19. Survey of 23 economies finds ‘major cracks’ in self-belief across the Western world. China, Vietnam and India have impressed with their responses to Covid-19, while Hong Kong and Japan languish at the bottom.’

Read here (South China Morning Post, May 6, 2020)

When did Covid-19 first appear in the US?

‘A US mayor claims he had COVID-19 last November, over one month before China reported its initial cases. If this was really the case, how did he get it and from where? How long ago did the virus start spreading in the US? In this episode of Getting to the Point, CGTN anchor Liu Xin asks the big question.’

View here (CGTN, Youtube, May 6, 2020)

Six flaws in the arguments for reopening

Leana S. Wen, an emergency physician and visiting professor at George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, debunks the six reasons offered by the US government to open up the economy. She says: “Most states are reopening to some degree this week, even as public-health experts warn that it’s too soon.”

Read here (Washington Post, May 6, 2020)

We can beat the virus only by protecting human rights

‘Perhaps the ultimate threat is from governments that assume excessively broad “emergency” powers. International human rights law recognizes that certain rights — such as our right to travel or congregate during an infectious-disease outbreak — must give way in time of crisis, so long as restrictions are lawful, necessary and proportionate. Yet leaders around the world are using the pandemic to strengthen their rule, dismantle checks and balances, and escape accountability at the expense of our rights. All of these behaviors run counter to effective health-care policy and can easily backfire.’

Read here (Washington Post, May 6, 2020)

Experts differ over states’ CMCO non-compliance

‘Law experts differ on the refusal of some states to implement the conditional movement control order (conditional MCO) based on various interpretations of Article 81 of the Federal Constitution.

‘While lawyer Derek Fernandez said the states have a constitutional obligation to follow what has been gazetted as law by the Federal Government (if the states have yet to have their own laws on Covid-19), former judge Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram said it is not so simple.’

Read here (The Star, May 6, 2020)

National action plan for expanding and adapting the healthcare system for the duration of the Covid pandemic

This 24-page report by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security offers answers and recommendations related to the following problems, for which there are tractable solutions:

• How can we improve infection prevention in hospitals and maintain a robust supply chain for personal protective equipment (PPE)?
• What approach should we take to restarting deferred healthcare services?
• What financial support is needed for hospitals and healthcare providers?
• How should the healthcare workforce be sustained and augmented?
• How can we provide mental health support for healthcare workers in this crisis?
• How can we provide medical care and sick leave for all people in the United States?
• How can we make telemedicine a new normal?
• How can we reduce the number of undiagnosed infectious diseases in our hospitals?
• How can we better protect emergency medical services (EMS) personnel from infectious diseases?
• How can we better coordinate the healthcare response to COVID and the next pandemic?

Read and download here (Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, May 5, 2020)

S’pore’s youngest Covid-19 casualty was declared virus-free a week before she died

‘The husband and three children of Ms Salha Mesbee - the youngest patient here to die from the coronavirus - gathered at her bedside in the intensive care unit (ICU) at the Ng Teng Fong General Hospital just hours before her death.

‘Ms Salha, 58, had been declared virus-free nine days earlier, but the infection had already taken a toll on her body, her daughter told The Straits Times. Her vital organs, including her kidneys and liver, were failing and she was in a bad shape.’

Read here (Straits Times, May 5, 2020)

Sympathy for the epidemiologists: Paul Krugman

‘...the White House probably likes IHME [University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation] less today than it did yesterday: the institute just drastically revised its projected death total upward, from 72,000 to 134,000. Documents obtained by The New York Times suggest that modelers within the U.S. government have also revised death projections sharply upward...

‘So let me give a shout-out to the hard-working, much-criticized epidemiologists trying to get this pandemic right. You may take a lot of abuse when you get it wrong, which you unavoidably will on occasion. But you’re doing what must be done. Also, welcome to my world.’

Read here (New York Times, May 5, 2020)

Yuval Noah Harari talks about governance, surveillance, misinformation and the significance of Covid-19

The coronavirus pandemic has presented humanity with an almighty shock. Our evermore interconnected and technologically advanced societies are now in lockdown and we are fearful for our health and economic futures thanks to an invisible virus. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to the Israeli historian and best-selling author Yuval Noah Harari. What 21st century lesson can we draw from the spread of Covid-19?

View here (BBC, Youtube, May 5, 2020)

What Covid-19 antibody tests can and cannot tell us

‘Dozens of antibody tests for the novel coronavirus have become available in recent weeks. And early results from studies of such serological assays in the U.S. and around the world have swept headlines. Despite optimism about these tests possibly becoming the key to a return to normal life, experts say the reality is complicated and depends on how results are used.

‘Antibody tests could help scientists understand the extent of COVID-19’s spread in populations. Because of limitations in testing accuracy and a plethora of unknowns about immunity itself, however, they are less informative about an individual’s past exposure or protection against future infection.’

Read here (Scientific American, May 5, 2020)

Shocking draft FEMA report sees 200,000 Covid-19 cases, 3,000 deaths daily by June 1

‘The shocking numbers come just as dozens of states begin to drop strict social distancing requirements and open businesses to workers and customers at President Donald Trump’s urging. A rate of 3,000 deaths a day would be about 90,000 deaths a month. That death toll rate would be a 70% increase from the current average of 1,750 a day. The number of current cases of COVID-19 in the nation is about 25,000 daily.’

Read here (Huffington Post, May 5, 2020). Download here

Argentina responds boldly to coronavirus crisis

‘Despite Argentina’s fiercely divisive politics, the new President insisted on standing with leaders from across the political spectrum in a rare display of unity to announce the 19 March lockdown. The national government is working closely with state governors as well as all health providers, securing private sector cooperation without nationalization.

‘Meanwhile, the armed forces are building triage centres in case of a surge in infections while social, religious and business groups work together to deliver food to more than two million in the greater Buenos Aires area alone.’

Read here (IPS News, May 5, 2020)

Paul Garner: For 7 weeks I have been through a roller coaster of ill health, extreme emotions, and utter exhaustion

‘In mid March I developed covid-19. For almost seven weeks I have been through a roller coaster of ill health, extreme emotions, and utter exhaustion. Although not hospitalised, it has been frightening and long. The illness ebbs and flows, but never goes away. Health professionals, employers, partners, and people with the disease need to know that this illness can last for weeks, and the long tail is not some “post-viral fatigue syndrome”—it is the disease. People who have a more protracted illness need help to understand and cope with the constantly shifting, bizarre symptoms, and their unpredictable course.

‘The aim of this piece is to get this message out: for some people the illness goes on for a few weeks. Symptoms come and go, are strange and frightening. The exhaustion is severe, real, and part of the illness. And we all need support and love from the community around us.’

Read here (BMJ Opinion, May 5, 2020)

The invisible pandemic: Our most important task is not to stop spread but to concentrate on giving the unfortunate victims optimal care

‘COVID-19 is a disease that is highly infectious and spreads rapidly through society. It is often quite symptomless and might pass unnoticed, but it also causes severe disease, and even death, in a proportion of the population, and our most important task is not to stop spread, which is all but futile, but to concentrate on giving the unfortunate victims optimal care.’

Read here (The Lancet, May 5, 2020)

Why has eastern Europe suffered less from coronavirus than the west?

‘Veronica Anghel, a Romanian political scientist currently at Stanford University, said some countries in the region “are being given more credit than they should” for their responses. “Timing of lockdown is a blunt instrument, and a bad measure for authorities’ success,” said Anghel. She praised the response of some countries, including Czech Republic and Slovakia, both of which have comparatively well-funded healthcare systems. “But Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria are on the edge; any increase in cases will tip the system over,” she said.’

Read here (The Guardian, May 5, 2020)

Cook County searching for overlooked COVID-19 deaths as far back as November just ‘to cover our bases’

‘The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office is planning to review a “handful” of cases dating as far back as November to determine whether some earlier coronavirus deaths were overlooked. “We don’t anticipate having [coronavirus] cases from November, but if we found that we had cases in November, we might want to look even earlier,” Derevyanny said. “Again, we don’t anticipate that, we just want to cover our bases and make sure that we have the most complete data we can for COVID-19.”

Read here (Chicago Sun Times, May 5, 2020)

Preparing for post-COVID-19 from the lens of sustainable development goals (SDGs): Insight from Malaysia

The Malaysian Social Science Association made five proposals for a post-COVID-19 Malaysia, all of which we feel are vital to hasten Malaysia’s recovery and increase resilience. They are:

1. Disaster preparedness: Build on the strengths of the Malaysian public healthcare system which has shown tremendous robustness and resilience in this crisis. Raise the level of disaster preparedness (SDG 3.d) through the use of Big Data for predictions and alerts, and maintain a ready stockpile of emergency supplies.  Ensure that the provision of public goods like healthcare remains the responsibility of the government (SDG 3.8)
2. Culture of civic responsibility: Keep up campaigns to promote personal hygiene, public cleanliness, and health and safety awareness as mutual responsibilities (SDG 4). Ensure an efficient system of participation and involvement by non-government organisations to alleviate the negative impacts on all people and ensure a better quality of life (SDG 16& SDG 17).
3. Sustainable risk-resilient game plan: Business and the broader economy need increased resiliency. In the short term, the Malaysian government needs to develop a comprehensive and sustainable social protection system to help the M/SMEs to cope with unprecedented economic situations (SDG10.4). Going forward, the country needs a people-centred economic policy; for instance, better policies on flexible work for both women and men...
4. High-speed cost-effective connectivity: Many daily activities have moved online – business functions, school, and university classes, and purchasing food and other essentials – but gaps do exist. We need to identify the gaps in our preparedness and connectivity so that all organisations are fully prepared for this eventuality (SDG 9.1). Connectivity needs to be cost-effective and available even in remote areas (SDG 9.c).
5. Research & innovation: Research and innovation are crucial for Malaysia to progress in this highly competitive world. Funding for high-quality research and innovation is a key part of that and the COVID-19 crisis makes such research and development more imperative and urgent. While financial resources are not easy to come by with the looming global economic recession, Malaysia should at least maintain its present level of R&D expenditure (1.44% of GDP) and increase it later when the situation allows ( SDG 4.7 and SDG 9.5).

Read here (United Nations University, May 5, 2020)

State v Federal impasse over lockdown relaxation order

‘Under the Federal Constitution (Article 81), state governments are obliged to make sure that states comply with federal law. Further, their action does “not impede or prejudice” the federal government’s authority.  In short, they must comply with regulations as these are part of federal law. Else it will be a violation of the state’s constitutional obligation. So, any abridgement of the federal law’s reach, or orders that are inconsistent with it, will constitute non-compliance.’

Read here (The Edge, May 5, 2020)

As some countries ease up, others are reimposing lockdowns amid a resurgence of coronavirus infections

As many parts of the world, including the United States, explore ways to ease restrictions aimed at containing the spread of the coronavirus, countries that had already opened up are closing down again after renewed spikes in infections. [Lebanon, South Korea, China, Iran, Germany]

Such a resurgence of cases had been widely predicted by experts, but these increasing numbers come as a sobering reminder of the challenges ahead as countries chafing under the social and economic burdens of keeping their citizens indoors weigh the pros and cons of allowing people to move around again.

Read here (Washington Post, May 5, 2020)

Preparing a safe return to work

As businesses prepare to reopen amid the Covid-19 outbreak, employers face the challenge of ensuring a safe environment for their workforce. Social purpose organisation Think City has some guidelines. To access the full guide, please visit http://thinkcity.com.my/workplace-guides/⁣

Read here (The Edge, May 5, 2020)

Chow: No feedback was collected from the states on CMCO

‘No feedback was collected from the states on how the conditional movement control order (MCO) and standard operating procedure (SOP) should be done, the Penang Chief Minister has claimed. Chow Kon Yeow said as a result, the state government decided not to allow businesses to resume operations yesterday.’

Read here (The Star, May 5, 2020)

Defiance of the 9 States – The whirling wheels of Malaysian federalism

‘On 1st May 2020, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced that the MCO would be substantially lifted come 4th May 2020. The MCO will hence be superceded by a Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO).

‘In a stunning development, as many as 9 states have said they will not be following or complying fully with the Federal Government’s ease of movement and resumption of businesses at 100% capacity under the CMCO.

‘Is it unconstitutional for these States to not follow or fully comply with the Federal Government’s CMCO?’

Read here (Malaysian Public Law, May 2, 2020)

MITI urges state governments to follow Putrajaya's decision to relax the MCO

‘The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) today urged state governments to cooperate with the federal government's decision to implement the Conditional Movement Control Order or CMCO that allows almost all sectors of the economy to resume operations after almost two months of suspension under the MCO.

‘Failure to do so may result in the state governments facing the possibility of legal action from various parties, particularly industry players, Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali cautioned in a statement today.

‘As it is, Mohamed Azmin said various industry associations, including the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers and the Malay Chamber of Commerce of Malaysia, have issued statements calling for state governments not to stop companies from resuming their operations from today, the first day of the CMCO.’

Read here (The Edge, May 4, 2020)

See how a cough travels without a mask and with

A lab at Florida Atlantic University is simulating a human cough to understand how far and fast cough droplets can spread. The droplets travel as far as 12ft in 30 to 40 seconds.

View here (CNN, May 4, 2020)

UN humanitarian chief: After COVID-19, it’s in everyone’s interest to help the world's poorest countries

‘Our best estimate is that the cost of protecting the most vulnerable 10 per cent of people in the world’s poorest countries from the very worst impacts of the pandemic is approximately $90 billion. $90 billion is a lot of money. But it is an affordable sum of money. It is equivalent to just 1 per cent of the global stimulus package the world’s richest countries have put in place to save the global economy...

‘Some may be sceptical that additional resources of that magnitude can be generated in the current circumstances. That is not my experience. After the financial crisis of 2008 fundraising for UN-coordinated humanitarian appeals had increased by more than 40 per cent by 2010. That was a result of human generosity and empathy – but also a calculation of national interest in the donor countries.’

Read here (OCHA, May 4, 2020)

Govt needs a U-turn on conditional MCO

‘Yes, it is conditional, but it is physically impossible to ensure everyone complies. You need to give businesses more time to prepare for this, especially the smaller businesses – the small and medium enterprises or SMEs which employ about 70% of workers.

‘This is where infection is most likely – the most number of people are there and the ones most likely to ignore SOPs. They include all sorts of businesses – food and beverage, services, shops, workplaces – virtually all can reopen except for those that involve close contact and mass gatherings.’

Read here (FocusMalaysia, May 4, 2020)

‘Advance market commitment for Covid-19 vaccine’ by Gavi, the vaccine alliance

‘If the world is to beat COVID-19, we will need to develop one or more vaccines to protect us from it. And with thousands of people dying each week, not to mention an estimated US$ 2 trillion per year in lost economic activity, the pressure to protect the population and return life to normal has never been greater.

‘The positive news is that the global response in terms of vaccine development has been historic. Today, over 80 preclinical candidates are in development and seven have already progressed to human trials. This could well give us a better chance of getting more than one COVID-19 vaccine introduced in record-breaking time. However it also shines a light on another critical challenge: how to ensure that once a vaccine is available, it is accessible to everyone that needs it. We can only stop the pandemic if it is under control everywhere.’

Read here (Gavi, May 4, 2020)

Read more about Gavi here

Inventive routes back to normal life

‘Across the world, countries are embarking on enormous experiments in ending coronavirus lockdown measures - and others are looking on nervously, asking themselves what's the best way back to normality.

‘All these novel schemes, and many more, may help a return to some form of normality. But Ngaire Woods, professor of global economic governance at Oxford University, says easing lockdown requires us all to rethink our lives. "We have got to get testing tracing and isolating up and running fantastically well," she told Radio 4's Briefing Room. "We have to start thinking about preventative measures in public spaces and schools. We have got to manage the import of cases - so think about travel restrictions. That's a clear checklist in order to safely start lifting the lockdown."

‘Prof Woods says thinking will have to go far beyond just re-opening closed-down businesses. We may need to split workforces by age group - an example could be that older teachers must take their classes by video link. "Those are the questions we have to ask - they are not insurmountable problems. The alternative is to stay in a total lockdown."

Read here (BBC, May 4, 2020)

The next Apple Watch could be a powerful COVID-19 early warning system

‘The Apple Watch already has a number of sensors that could effectively detect early signs of COVID-19, and the most important one—a pulse oximeter—may be on the way.

‘Toward the end of his life, one of Steve Jobs’s hopes for Apple was that it could play a role in helping people stay healthy. After he died, that ambition was most clearly expressed in the Apple Watch. The company has always pushed to make its wearable something more than a fitness tracker—a more powerful, clinically relevant device.’

Read here (Fast Company, March 4, 2020)

Historic financial decline hits doctors, dentists and hospitals — despite covid-19 — threatening overall economy

‘Most elective surgeries nationwide were postponed beginning in mid-March. Dentists offices were closed. Physicians stopped seeing all but the sickest patients in their offices. Stay-at-home orders didn’t just prevent people from dining in restaurants — they led people to avoid medical services, too, amid concerns about the disease the virus causes, covid-19. More than 200 hospitals, including Children’s National Hospital in Washington, have furloughed workers, according to a tally by Becker’s Hospital Review.’

Read here (Washington Post, May 4, 2020)

French doctors say they found a Covid-19 patient from December

‘There's new evidence that the coronavirus may have been in France weeks earlier than was previously thought. Doctors at a Paris hospital say they've found evidence that one patient admitted in December was infected with Covid-19. If verified, this finding would show that the virus was already circulating in Europe at that time -- well before the first known cases were diagnosed in France or hotspot Italy.’

Read here (CNN, May 4, 2020)

FDA steps up scrutiny of coronavirus antibody tests to ensure accuracy

‘The action was the latest about-face in the administration’s coronavirus response as it seeks to fix a flawed testing response that has been criticized as either too restrictive or too lenient. Earlier this year, the FDA agency was hammered for moving too slowly in allowing academic medical centers and others to develop diagnostic tests for the virus that might have made them more widely available. Then, critics say, it swung too far in the other direction in allowing the antibody tests to go unvetted.

‘The result, they complained, was a flood of products of dubious quality that confused hospitals, doctors and consumers — “a wild, wild West” environment, said Scott Becker, chief executive officer of the Association of Public Health Laboratories, which represents state and local public laboratories.’

Read here (Washington Post, May 4, 2020)

The coronavirus pandemic is pushing America into a mental health crisis

‘Three months into the coronavirus pandemic, America is on the verge of another health crisis, with daily doses of death, isolation and fear generating widespread psychological trauma. Federal agencies and experts warn that a historic wave of mental health problems is approaching: depression, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide. Just as the initial coronavirus outbreak caught hospitals unprepared, the country’s mental health system — vastly underfunded, fragmented and difficult to access before the pandemic — is even less prepared to handle this coming surge.’

Read here (Washington Post, May 4, 2020)

Malaysia is beating all these brutal COVID-19 expectations

‘To the casual observer, Malaysia’s handling of the COVID-19 outbreak may seem bungled. Media reports highlighted a mass religious gathering later linked to thousands of infections and the Ministry of Women’s advice that wives maintain a presentable appearance and avoiding nagging and sarcasm under lockdown. But Malaysia’s response deserves greater recognition as a meaningful example for countries that have insecure borders, significant mobile and vulnerable populations, larger households in denser living conditions and less than ideal political situations.’

Read here (Channel News Asia, May 4, 2020)

UrbanFutures: Building a trust economy

‘In a time of crisis, trust is a key currency. Not just trust in the system, but as a foundation for economic recovery. Here, we look at the essence of what makes an economy tick, how this relates to the current Covid-19 crisis and its impact on the most vulnerable, and the role of government in building a bounce-back economy based on trust.

‘Developing the trust economy involves three key aspects: (1) An enhanced role for government (2) Hyperlocalism and digital infrastructure (3) Protecting the welfare of the people.’

Read here (The Edge, May 4, 2020)

Nurses are playing a crucial role in this pandemic — as always

‘Nursing’s contributions to improving the public’s health during times of crisis dates back to the days of Nightingale, modern nursing’s founder. In 1918 during the disastrous influenza pandemic, nurses were steadfast in modeling the teachings of Nightingale, a staunch supporter of good handwashing, proper sanitation and sound preventive measures. Members of the Visiting Nurses Associations made home visits to patients providing critical nursing care as one of the only treatment measures available during that time. Nurses were vigilant in promoting the benefits of being exposed to fresh air, practicing good hand hygiene and maintaining social isolation while conducting home visits to patients.’

Read here (Scientific American, May 4, 2020)

In The NYTimes, only white leaders stand out

‘The New York Times recently published a list of “true leaders” in the fight against COVID-19. They spend exactly one sentence on Asia and the rest on white leaders that mostly did worse than Iran. The structural racism is mind-boggling, and it’s getting people killed.

‘According to the NYTimes, Iran Completely and Utterly Botched Its Response to the Coronavirus, but countries with higher mortality rates like Germany, Italy, Sweden, and Denmark are listed as true leaders. It makes no sense. It’s just racism, so structural that the Editorial Board can’t even see it. It’s built into the edifice of the paper itself.’

Read here (Medium, May 4, 2020)

The curse of ‘The Lucky Country’: In search of economic antidotes to Covid-19

‘The human tragedy and the knock-on economic effects of the COVID-19 crisis have sparked intense emotions. The past few months have triggered fear and uncertainty in even the most rational Australians. In McKinsey’s weekly sentiment polling, the majority of respondents say they are very or extremely concerned with all strands of the COVID‑19 situation—from the economy to their health to the length of the shutdown (and these figures are increasing each week) (Exhibit 1). This has coalesced into an arresting statistic: almost 80 percent of Australians say they are unsure or pessimistic about the country’s economic recovery.’

Read here (McKinsey & Co, May 4, 2020)

Roche's serology test with ‘specificity greater than 99.8% and sensitivity of 100%’ gets FDA approval

‘Roche intends to provide tens of millions of tests worldwide by the end of May, and the company is working to expand production capacity. The Roche test requires a blood draw instead of a finger prick. The test takes approximately 18 minutes to run and is fully automated, and the testing system can perform as many as 300 tests per hour.’

Read here (Roche press release, May 3, 2020)

Threatened, maligned, jailed: Journalism in the coronavirus pandemic

‘What we are currently seeing is not the arrival of new authoritarian regimes or attacks on freedom of the press, but rather an increase in tendencies that already existed before the pandemic hit. One could say the crisis has hardened the approach many authoritarian or dictatorial governments have taken against journalists.

‘We will not be able to say with certainty just how many journalists have disappeared or been jailed since the coronavirus pandemic began until the end of the year. However, we can report that as of today at least 231 professional journalists and 115 so-called citizen journalists and bloggers — that is, people disseminating information on authoritarian governments via YouTube or Facebook — are currently behind bars. Another 14 media professionals (photographers, camera operators, editors, etc.) are in jail as well.’

Read here (DW, May 3, 2020)

Why are some people testing positive more than once?

Dr Maria Van Kerkhove of the World Health Organisation (WHO) says some people are testing positive more than once for coronavirus - but it doesn't mean they have been reinfected.

Speaking on The Andrew Marr Show, she said doctors were finding instances where "dead cells" that emerged during the healing process of the lungs were testing positive for Covid-19, but the individuals themselves were not reinfected.

View here (BBC, May 3, 2020)

Vienna Airport to offer coronavirus tests to avoid quarantine

‘Vienna Airport will offer onsite coronavirus testing from Monday to enable passengers entering Austria to avoid having to be quarantined for 14 days. Passengers arriving at the airport have been required to present a health certificate showing a negative COVID-19 result which is no older than four days, or go into quarantine. From Monday passengers can have a molecular biological (polymerise chain reaction or PCR) COVID-19 test at the airport, and get the result in two to three hours, the airport said.’

Read here (Reuters, May 3, 2020)

Coronavirus poses a tough question: Did NYC essential workers die in the line of duty?

‘Not since Sept. 11 has an outside threat so swiftly devastated the city’s ranks, and as the virus continues its onslaught, it is likely to leave more municipal employees in its wake. This is forcing city and state officials to confront an ethical dilemma of untold proportions: Did employees who came to work during a pandemic-induced quarantine die as a direct result? What responsibility does the government have to their surviving families if the virus cannot be traced to their time on the clock? And with a death toll still climbing, what is the financial cost to the city’s coffers as a recession looms?’

Read here (Politico, May 3, 2020)

SARS-COV-2 was already spreading in France in late December 2019

Summary of the report:

• Covid-19 was already spreading in France in late December 2019, a month before the official first cases in the country.
• Early community spreading changes our knowledge of covid-19 epidemic.
• This new case changes our understanding of the epidemic and modeling studies should adjust to this new data.

Read here (Science Direct, May 3, 2020)

The Covid-19 riddle: Why does the virus wallop some places and spare others?

This article delves into areas like age, cultural factors, heat and light, and early and strict interventions.

‘Time may still prove the greatest equalizer: The Spanish flu that broke out in the United States in 1918 seemed to die down during the summer only to come roaring back with a deadlier strain in the fall, and a third wave the following year. It eventually reached far-flung places like islands in Alaska and the South Pacific and infected a third of the world’s population.

“We are really early in this disease,” said Dr. Ashish Jha, the director of the Harvard Global Health Research Institute. “If this were a baseball game, it would be the second inning and there’s no reason to think that by the ninth inning the rest of the world that looks now like it hasn’t been affected won’t become like other places.”

Read here (New York Times, May 3, 2020)

Covid-19’s race and class warfare

‘America has never been comfortable discussing the inequalities that America created, let alone addressing them. America loves a feel-good, forget-the-past-let’s-start-from-here mantra. But, this virus is exploiting these man-made inequalities and making them impossible to ignore. It is demonstrating the incalculable callousness of wealth and privilege that would willingly thrust the less well off into the most danger for a few creature comforts.’

Read here (New York Times, May 3, 2020)

MCO and the failure to follow the rule of law

‘We are now told that we can go back to work on Monday by no less than the PM himself.  The National Security Council has issued SOP’s for businesses to open. MITI also appears to be approving the opening of businesses on terms imposed by them.

‘All this in the face of existing PCID-MILA Regulations and the provisions of the PCIDA which expressly confers power only upon the Minister of Health to formulate and enforce regulations relating to activities and movement in infected areas. And so, the confusion and uncertainties continue whilst little is known of what the Ministry of Health has to say about all this.’

Read here (FocusMalaysia, May 3, 2020)

Covid-19 and the harsh reality of empathy distribution

‘Empathy has a substantial genetic contribution, about half as much as height, a group of researchers found in 2018. Inevitably, some individuals inherit more pro-empathy genes than average. Moreover, since they are likely to be born from empathic parents, such children will also witness empathic behaviors and be rewarded for performing them. Thus, learning and family values reinforce the pro-social neural circuitry. Such individuals are likely to become professional caregivers.’

Read here (Scientific American, May 2, 2020)

Expert report predicts up to two more years of pandemic misery

‘The new coronavirus is likely to keep spreading for at least another 18 months to two years—until 60% to 70% of the population has been infected, a team of longstanding pandemic experts predicted in a report released Thursday. They recommended that the US prepare for a worst-case scenario that includes a second big wave of coronavirus infections in the fall and winter. Even in a best-case scenario, people will continue to die from the virus, they predicted.’

Read here (CNN, May 2, 2020)

It’s unfair to blame China for coronavirus pandemic, Lancet editor tells state media

‘The editor-in-chief of The Lancet has said it is “not helpful” and “unfair” to blame China for being the source of the Covid-19 pandemic in an interview with Chinese state media. Richard Horton said the international community should instead work with the Chinese authorities in dealing with the outbreak.

‘His comments came after the US top spy agency said that the intelligence community did not believe the virus had been man-made or genetically modified, but said it will continue to examine whether the outbreak “began through contact with infected animals or if it was the result of an accident at a laboratory in Wuhan”.’

Read here (South China Morning Post, May 2, 2020)

The pieces of the puzzle of covid-19’s origin are coming to light

‘Many scientists think that with so many biologists actively hunting for bat viruses, and gain-of-function work becoming more common, the world is at increasing risk of a laboratory-derived pandemic at some point. “One of my biggest hopes out of this pandemic is that we address this issue—it really worries me,” says Dr Pilch. Today there are around 70 bsl-4 sites in 30 countries. More such facilities are planned...

‘The question of whether they really are [unrecognised zoonoses], and how those threats may stack up, needs attention. That attention needs laboratories. It also needs a degree of open co-operation that America is now degrading with accusations and reductions in funding, and that China has taken steps to suppress at source. That suppression has done nothing to help the country; indeed, by supporting speculation, it may yet harm it.’

Read here (The Economist, May 2, 2020)

The British charlatan style has been sent packing by too much reality

‘[The present administration's] time has gone. I am not saying we are about to enter a better age of competent government. Hard times are rarely good times for the centre left and it looks as if we are heading into the hardest of times. Angry people cling to what they have in a slump. They blame foreigners and turn to shop-soiled saviours. Who knows, after populism with a smirk on its face could come populism with the authentic snarl.

‘What’s over is the glib, deceitful spirit of 2016 with its false promise that bills need never be paid. The Brexit right has attempted a final rally. It dismissed warnings about public health as “over the top” just as it dismissed warnings about Brexit as “Project Fear” and assured us that “German carmakers” or some other knight on a shining unicorn would make everything all right.’

Read here (The Guardian, May 2, 2020)

Singapore: New safe distancing guidelines, standards for workplaces after Covid-19 circuit breaker

‘When workplace activities gradually resume after the circuit breaker lifts, the Government will need to put in place new guidelines and standards to ensure that they remain safe from potential Covid-19 outbreaks, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said on Friday (May 1).Speaking at a virtual press conference, Mr Wong said these guidelines will build upon existing measures to ensure safe distancing in workplaces for workers in essential services, such as wearing masks at work or not having workers socialise among themselves.

‘These guidelines... will also be complemented by a testing regimen as well as some form of technology that can ensure better tracking and monitoring should a confirmed case emerge in the workplace.’

Read here (Straits Times, May 1, 2020)

US officials crafting retaliatory actions against China over coronavirus as President Trump fumes

‘Senior US officials are beginning to explore proposals for punishing or demanding financial compensation from China for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, according to four senior administration officials with knowledge of internal planning. The move could splinter already strained relations between the two superpowers at a perilous moment for the global economy.’

Read here (Washington Post, May 1, 2020)

Coronavirus concerns are not a carte blanche to snoop: Europe Human Rights Commissioner

‘As more and more countries resort to using digital tools to monitor and track their citizens, those measures must comply with privacy laws, writes Dunja Mijatovic, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights. She calls for a balance between privacy and health measures:

• ‘First of all, digital devices must be designed and used in compliance with privacy and non-discrimination norms. They must be anonymous, encrypted, decentralized, function on open source and be available to the largest number of people possible, thus bridging the digital divide. Their use must be voluntary, based on informed consent, restricted to the purposes of health protection, contain a clear time limit and be fully transparent. Users should be able to opt-out at any moment, deleting all their data, and be able to challenge intrusions into their private sphere through effective measures.
• ‘Secondly, laws must comply strictly with the right to privacy as protected by the laws of national constitutions and of the European Court of Human Rights.
• ‘Thirdly, government operations must be subject to judicial review, as well as monitoring by parliament and national human rights institutions to ensure accountability. Independent data protection authorities must test and approve technological devices before they are used.’

Read here (DW, May 1, 2020)

MMA: Public now the ‘frontliners’ in Covid-19 fight

‘Members of the public will now play the most important role in combating the Covid-19 pandemic, says the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA). Its president Dr N. Ganabaskaran said with the announcement of the conditional movement control order (MCO) by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the public must remain vigilant as the health crisis continues.

“As most businesses will resume operations on Monday (May 4), the public will now play the most important role in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic... The general public must now take on the role as frontliners, in battling the pandemic in public places by being disciplined in observing social distancing, personal hygiene and comply with the standard operating procedures (SOP) at all times or we can easily slip back into the ‘old norm’.’’

Read here (The Star, May 1, 2020)

Conditional MCO might cause third wave of infections, say health experts

Health experts are voicing concern over the move to ease the movement control order (MCO) by allowing businesses to reopen starting next week, warning that this might lead to new waves of Covid-19 infections.

Azrul Mohd Khalib, the executive director of the Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy, said people might be confused over the standard operating procedures (SOP) given the short time frame for preparation, warning also of non-compliance by others.

Read here (Free Malaysia Today, May 1, 2020)

List of banned activities during conditional MCO

The government has decided to reopen the economy from May 4 but some sectors will either still be barred from resuming business or subject to many conditions and a conditional movement control order (MCO) will be imposed.

This story contains (1) the list and (2) a number of related news stories pertaining to the conditional MCO announced by the Prime Minister on May 1, 2020.

Read here (Malaysiakini, May 1, 2020)

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister calls on developed countries to help Africa through Covid-19

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed calls on developed countries to help Africa through the coronavirus pandemic. The continent has low levels of healthcare spending and will struggle to implement social distancing measures. Ahmed calls for debt relief measures and additional financial aid packages from the IMF.

Read here (Project Syndicate, May 1, 2020)

Beijing-based company finds Covid-19 shot protects monkeys

‘For the first time, one of the many COVID-19 vaccines in development has protected an animal, rhesus macaques, from the new coronavirus. The vaccine, an old-fashioned formulation consisting of a chemically inactivated version of the virus, produced no obvious side effects in the monkeys; human trials began on 16 April. And encouraging monkey results for other vaccines are close behind.

‘Researchers from Sinovac Biotech, a privately held Beijing-based company, gave two different doses of their COVID-19 vaccine to a total of eight rhesus macaques. Three weeks later, the group introduced SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, into the monkeys' lungs. None developed a full-blown infection, and the monkeys given the highest dose of vaccine had the best response: Seven days after the animals received the virus, researchers could not detect it in their pharynx or lungs. Some of the lower dosed animals had a “viral blip” but also appeared to have controlled the infection, the Sinovac team reports in a paper published on 19 April on the preprint server bioRxiv.’

Read here (Science, May 1, 2020)

Can gut microbes predict Covid-19 severity?

‘COVID-19 is notorious for striking harder at older patients, often landing them in bed, hooked up to a ventilator. Once that happens, the odds get grim: according to one report, only one in seven intubated patients survived. No one knows exactly why some patients are affected more than others, but a new study from China (that has not yet been peer-reviewed) makes a provocative assertion: the health of the gut microbiome may predict the severity of the disease. The healthier the gut, the better the outcome. That may be something to cheer about, because you can improve your microbiome in a matter of days just by changing your diet. It could save your life.’

Read here (Psychology Today, May 1, 2020) and here (Medrxiv, April 25, 2020)

Famed HIV researcher on the race to find a Covid-19 treatment

‘David Ho is in a race against time to find a treatment for COVID-19. Fortunately it's the kind of race he's run before. Ho, the famed virologist and director and CEO of the Aaron Diamond AIDS research center at Columbia University, rose to prominence decades ago with his HIV research. Now he's working to develop a drug that can interrupt the coronavirus' ability to replicate, which, if successful, could lead to a treatment for COVID-19. His team is also studying antibody responses to the virus and is among dozens of labs racing to develop treatments.

‘The Jack Ma Foundation recently gave Ho and other researchers at Columbia University a $2.1 million grant to support their efforts to identify antiviral drugs and antibodies that can be used to fight the coronavirus.

‘Ho: My group is not so much working on a vaccine. We're trying to discover small-molecule drugs or develop antibodies that can be used either as prophylactics or therapeutics. We think the timeline for antibodies in particular can be much faster. We know we have the technology to fish out and construct very powerful antibodies that can be used to treat the infection, as well as prevent the infection.’

Read here (NBC News, May 1, 2020)

The rise of ‘health entertainment’ to convey lifesaving messages in the Covid-19 pandemic

‘An unprecedented global crisis demands unprecedented creativity in the health communication field. The world’s most trusted voices in public health urgently need to be heard by meeting their audiences on social media and capturing their attention through innovative message design. We’ll never come up with impactful, innovative solutions if we stay inside our comfort zone.’

Read here (Scientific American, May 1, 2020)

The post-pandemic future of work

‘Some work must be done to keep society functioning—the work, as social reproduction theorists have it, of life-making and sustaining—but what are the conditions under which people do it? If everyone had the right to live, to a home and health care regardless of whether or how much they worked, what would the incentives be for people to take up that socially necessary work? Would we distribute it equally, perhaps, rather than deciding that certain people are “essential” workers and the rest of us something else entirely? This moment, this crisis, is showing the brutality inherent in so many kinds of labor, and showing how unnecessary other work is. Perhaps it can also be an opportunity to question our most basic assumption: that work itself should be at the center of our lives.’

Read here (The New Republic, May 1, 2020)

Government researchers changed metric to measure coronavirus drug remdesivir during clinical trial

‘Government clinical trial investigators changed the primary metric for measuring the success of Gilead’s experimental drug remdesivir as a coronavirus treatment two weeks before Anthony S. Fauci’s announcement that the drug would be the new “standard of care.”

‘Instead of counting how many people taking the drug were kept alive on ventilators or died, among other measures, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said it would judge the drug primarily on a different outcome: how long it took surviving patients to recover.’

Read here (The Washington Post, May 1, 2020)

Major challenges remain in Covid-19 testing

‘The phrase “when we have adequate testing” has become the siren song within many conversations around return, namely in reopening the economy. Unfortunately, many of these conversations do not fully consider some critical issues around availability, test characteristics, and — importantly — test strategy. These issues suggest a need to rapidly consider other methods of protecting the population during reentry that can be implemented to complement testing. Such protective methods could include physical barriers, universal masking (while acknowledging supply-chain issues with personal protective equipment), and physical distancing in public spaces.’

Read here (Mckinsey & Co, May 2020)

Coronavirus vaccine: Where profit and public health collide

‘When it comes to developing medicines available for all populations in the world, the image of Big Pharma has long been tarnished. Supply bottlenecks for some specific drugs are often the result of the pricing policies pursued by major drugmakers, says Wasem [Jürgen Wasem, a professor for healthcare management at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany] — a claim, which is nonetheless "difficult to prove in most cases," he says. Sometimes, companies strive to keep supply artificially low, he says, to achieve higher market prices. Moreover, certain treatments are often never developed because there isn't a "commercial incentive" to undertake the effort, he adds.’

Read here (DW, May 1, 2020)

From surviving to thriving: Reimagining the post-COVID-19 return

‘In this article, we suggest that in order to come back stronger, companies should reimagine their business model as they return to full speed. The moment is not to be lost: those who step up their game will be better off and far more ready to confront the challenges—and opportunities—of the next normal than those who do not. There are four strategic areas to focus on: recovering revenue, rebuilding operations, rethinking the organization, and accelerating the adoption of digital solutions.’

Read here (McKinsey & Co, May 1, 2020)

How life in our cities will look after the coronavirus pandemic

‘Cities are at the center of this pandemic, as they have been during so many plagues in history. The virus originated in a crowded city in central China. It spread between cities and has taken the most lives in cities. New York has become the world’s saddest, most dismal viral hotspot...

‘Cities thrive on the opportunities for work and play, and on the endless variety of available goods and services. If fear of disease becomes the new normal, cities could be in for a bland and antiseptic future, perhaps even a dystopian one. But if the world’s cities find ways to adjust, as they always have in the past, their greatest era may yet lie before them.

‘To help us make sense of urban life after the pandemic, Foreign Policy asked 11 leading thinkers from around the world to weigh in with their predictions. One of the contributors is Maimunah Mohd Sharif from Penang, Malaysia.’

Read here (Foreign Policy, May 1, 2020)

Resolve to Save Lives releases a colour-coded

‘Resolve to Save Lives released a color-coded COVID-19 alert system to signify the risk of transmission in communities and recommend appropriate levels of individual precautions. Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the US CDC, likened this system to wildfire risk level signs on hiking trails or ocean hazard flags on beaches; it is up to individuals reading these signs to understand the risk level around them and act accordingly. This system includes four levels ranging from “new normal” to “high alert,” with corresponding measures that communities and individuals can take at each level to mitigate transmission risk.’

Download here (Resolve to Save Lives, May 2020)

Three potential futures for Covid-19: recurring small outbreaks, a monster wave, or a persistent crisis

‘What all three scenarios agree on is this: There is virtually no chance Covid-19 will end when the world bids good riddance to a calamitous 2020. The reason is the same as why the disease has taken such a toll its first time through: No one had immunity to the new coronavirus.

“This pandemic is not going to settle down until there is sufficient population immunity,” slightly above 50%, epidemiologist Gabriel Leung of the University of Hong Kong told a New York Academy of Sciences briefing.

‘Since the world “is far from that level of immunity,” said Osterholm (he estimates that no more than 5% of the world population is immune to the new coronavirus as a result of surviving their infection), “this virus is going to keep finding people. It’s going to keep spreading through the population.” And that, he said, “means we’re in for a long haul”.’

Read here (STAT News, May 1, 2020)

US launches SPHERES consortium to monitor, conduct genomic research and share information on the Coronavirus

CDC is leading the SARS-CoV-2 Sequencing for Public Health Emergency Response, Epidemiology and Surveillance (SPHERES), a new national genomics consortium to coordinate SARS-CoV-2 sequencing across the United States. Large-scale, rapid genomic sequencing of the virus that causes COVID-19 will allow public health experts to:

• Monitor important changes in the virus as it continues to circulate.
• Gain important insights to support contact tracing.
• Provide crucial information to aid in identifying diagnostic and therapeutic targets.
• Advance public health research in the areas of transmission dynamics, host response, and evolution of the virus.

Read here (US CDC, April 30, 2020)

Under pressure, airlines begin mandating passenger face masks

‘Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and United Airlines on Thursday mandated that passengers must wear face masks on board planes, and more are likely to follow, following intense pressure from airline unions and some lawmakers.

‘Flight attendant unions and Democratic lawmakers have been pressing the federal government to mandate masks on planes. Regulators have so far resisted the pressure, but the airline industry is beginning to turn toward implementing mask requirements piecemeal anyway.’

Read here (Politico, April 30, 2020)

Trump’s ‘Operation Warp Speed’ aims to rush coronavirus vaccine

‘The Trump administration is organising a Manhattan Project-style effort to drastically cut the time needed to develop a coronavirus vaccine, with a goal of making enough doses for most Americans by year’s end.

‘Called “Operation Warp Speed,” the program will pull together private pharmaceutical companies, government agencies and the military to try to cut the development time for a vaccine by as much as eight months, according to two people familiar with the matter.’

Read here (Bloomberg, April 30, 2020)

Six political philosophies in search of a virus: Critical perspectives on the coronavirus pandemic

 ‘The Coronavirus (Covid-19) poses interesting questions for social and political thought. These include the nature and limits of the ethical responsibility of the state, personal liberty and collective interests, human dignity, and state surveillance. As many countries throughout the world declared states of emergency, some of the major questions in political philosophy become suddenly highly relevant. Foucault’s writings on biopolitical securitization and Agamben’s notion of the state of exception take on a new reality, as do the classical arguments of utilitarianism and libertarianism. In this paper, I discuss six main philosophical responses to the pandemic, including provocative interventions made by Agamben, Badieu, and Zizek, Latour on the governance of life and death as well as the Kantian perspective of Habermas on human dignity...

‘If there is a single conclusion to be drawn from these philosophies, it is that the Coronavirus is more than a pathogen that threatens the lives of many people, but democracy is also in danger from the recent experiments with emergency government. These may not result in a permanent state of exception or the suspension of democracy – letting aside the Anthropocene scenario of extreme climate change requiring long-term states of exception – and the solution is not a simple restoration of individual liberty. Perhaps then more significant in the long-term will be new technologies of emergency governance that are now taking shape in large-scale societal experimentation with the technocratic management of populations in rapidly changing circumstances. Governments have acquired considerable technocratic power over their populations, which have been disciplined in the late Foucauldian sense of the term to desire safety over liberty.’

Download here (LSE European Institute, May 2020)

Three major concerns over Covid-19 and the MCO

‘Despite the overall good efforts by the government... there are three concerns at least which need to be addressed by this government to the satisfaction of the public.

1. One, there are excessive detentions following the movement control order or MCO which has raised legitimate concerns over police highhandedness, extreme sentencing, and the possibility of actually exacerbating Covid-19 instead of controlling it.
2. Two, the limited 1-day sitting of Parliament, in name only, on May 18 does not allow Parliamentary sanction, legitimacy and debate of the moves taken by the new backdoor government.
3. And three, this shortened parliamentary session raises issues over the lack of legitimacy of moves taken and the inability to raise more funds to deal with the economic effects of the pandemic.’

Read here (FocusMalaysia, April 30, 2020)

Covid-19 in rural America – Is there cause for concern?

‘Less densely populated rural areas initially saw slower spread of the new coronavirus, and both cases and deaths remain lower in non-metro areas than metro areas. However, there are troubling signs that the rates of growth in both cases and deaths are increasing more rapidly in rural areas, where the population tends to be older, younger people are more likely to have-risk health conditions, and hospitals have fewer ICU beds per capita.’

Read here (KFF, April 30, 2020)

We need smart solutions to mitigate the coronavirus’s impact. Here are 30

‘The coronavirus crisis has upended American life, and fresh ideas are needed for dealing with the problems it’s creating. Here is a collection of smart solutions. We are expanding this list as we receive more ideas.’

Read here (The Washington Post, April 30, 2020)

Tests in recovered patients found false positives, not reinfections, experts say

‘South Korea’s infectious disease experts said Thursday that dead virus fragments were the likely cause of over 260 people here testing positive again for the novel coronavirus days and even weeks after marking full recoveries.

‘Oh Myoung-don, who leads the central clinical committee for emerging disease control, said the committee members found little reason to believe that those cases could be COVID-19 reinfections or reactivations, which would have made global efforts to contain the virus much more daunting. “The tests detected the ribonucleic acid of the dead virus,” said Oh, a Seoul National University hospital doctor, at a press conference Thursday held at the National Medical Center.’

Read here (The Korea Herald, April 29, 2020)

Long-term care industry calls for expanded testing and funding for nursing homes and assisted-living communities

‘The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), representing more than 14,000 nursing homes, assisted living communities and other long term care facilities across the country that provide care to approximately five million people each year, today called on state and federal government agencies to provide expanded and priority testing for nursing homes and assisted living communities and emergency funding to help the profession respond to the deadly outbreak of COVID-19 in long term care facilities across the country.

‘Despite recent data and reports showing the outsized impact of the novel coronavirus on long term care residents, particularly those with underlying health conditions, industry leaders say nursing homes and assisted living communities have not been a priority for supplies, testing or resources.’

Read here (AHCA, April 29, 2020)

FEMA prepares to send protective gear to nursing homes

‘The Federal Emergency Management Agency is preparing to send personal protective equipment to nursing homes, which have struggled to obtain gear weeks into the pandemic as the death toll climbs. A FEMA spokesperson told CNN the agency is preparing to coordinate shipments of PPE, like surgical masks, gowns and gloves, to nursing homes across the nation.

‘The move comes weeks into the coronavirus response and targets facilities hardest hit by the pandemic. Nursing homes have been particularly vulnerable to coronavirus in part because of the slice of the population they serve: elderly residents who, data suggests, may be at higher risk of the illness.’

Read here (CNN, April 29, 2020)

Did China cover-up the Covid-19 outbreak?

As the global effort to control Covid-19 continues so arguments about culpability for the spread of the pandemic intensify. At the centre of the story is China, where the outbreak began. Did the Chinese government’s impulse to cover up the truth cost the world dear? Or did China respond with admirable determination? HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to the veteran Chinese Ambassador in London Liu Xiaoming. Is China the villain or the hero of this pandemic?

View here (BBC, Youtube, April 29, 2020)

Dr Anthony Fauci says Gilead’s remdesivir will set a new ‘standard of care’ for coronavirus treatment

• White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday that data from a coronavirus drug trial testing Gilead Sciences’ antiviral drug remdesivir showed “quite good news” and sets a new standard of care for Covid-19 patients.
• Fauci said the median time of recovery for patients taking the drug was 11 days, compared with 15 days in the placebo group. 
• The results suggested a survival benefit, with a mortality rate of 8% for the group receiving remdesivir versus 11.6% for the placebo group, according to a statement from the National Institutes of Health released later Wednesday.

Read here (CNBC, April 29, 2020)

Third of UK Covid-19 patients taken to hospital die, study finds. ‘On par with Ebola’

‘A third of patients admitted to hospital in the UK with Covid-19 are dying, according to a major study whose authors said the observed death rates put the illness on a par with Ebola. The study tracked the outcomes of nearly 17,000 patients – around one-third of all those admitted to hospital in the UK – and found that 33% had died, 49% were discharged and 17% were still receiving treatment after two weeks. The figures present a stark picture of outcomes for those whose illness escalates to the point of needing medical help.’

Read here (The Guardian, April 29, 2020)

ILO: As job losses escalate, nearly half of global workforce at risk of losing livelihoods

‘The continued sharp decline in working hours globally due to the COVID-19 outbreak  means that 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy – that is nearly half of the global workforce – stand in immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed, warns the International Labour Organization.’

Read here (ILO, April 29, 2020)

US and Chinese researchers team up for hunt into Covid origins

‘Professor Ian Lipkin, director of the Centre for Infection and Immunity at the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, said he was working with a team of Chinese researchers to determine whether the coronavirus emerged in other parts of China before it was first discovered in Wuhan in December. The effort relies on help from the Chinese Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).’

Read here (Financial Times, April 29, 2020)

The ‘terrible moral choice’ of reopening

‘Coming to terms with the new normal is hard. Our actions will reshape relationships, as we’ll no doubt be more inclined toward quick judgments if we think our friends and relations are acting out of self-interest rather than the greater good. We’re all living in a science experiment—and a political and social-science experiment as well.’

Read here (The Atlantic, April 29, 2020)

Pandemic shakes France’s faith in a cornerstone: Strong central government

‘Critics blame France’s poor showing, at least in part, on the excessive centralization of the French state, embodied by a president, Emmanuel Macron, who has spoken of his belief in the “top-down’’ exercise of power and has employed martial language in describing the fight against the virus.

‘Like many leaders, Mr. Macron initially derived a boost from the crisis, but that has begun to fade. Nearly 60 percent of respondents described him as a “bad president” in one recent poll, while another poll showed confidence in the government’s management of the crisis declining steadily to 39 percent from 55 percent in the past month.’

Read here (New York Times, April 29, 2020, updated May 5)

Coronavirus spreads anti-Chinese feeling in Southeast Asia, but the prejudice goes back centuries

‘The coronavirus pandemic has triggered a wave of anti-Chinese sentiment throughout Southeast Asia, with some businesses refusing to accept Chinese customers and authorities conducting surprise health checks on foreign workers. Islamic State affiliates in Indonesia are using the coronavirus to stoke resentment towards Chinese Indonesians, while in Bukittinggi, on the island of Sumatra, several hundred people marched to a Novotel hotel to demand that Chinese tourists return home. In the Philippines, Adamson University in Manila openly called for its “Chinese” students to stop attending classes.’

Read here (South China Morning Post, April 29, 2020)

There is no exit from coronavirus, only containment: A perspective from India

‘Devi Sridhar, the chair of global public health at Edinburgh Medical School and director of the Global Health Governance program, recently tweeted on the three options open. Sridhar wrote: “There are few short-term options. 1: Let the virus go and thousands die. 2: Lockdown and release cycles which will destroy economy and society. 3: Aggressive test, trace, isolate strategy supported with soft physical distancing.”

‘Having said that, the horrifying twin-reality still remains to be that an end to lockdown will by no means represent a return to normality, and, equally, a second, far more destructive wave is virtually an unavoidable possibility, notwithstanding the infection-reducing social distancing as a “new normal” in our daily life.’

Read here (Indian Punchline, April 29, 2020)

Managing expectations on Covid exit is the new challenge

“Exit strategy” is a complete misnomer. Without a vaccine or a proven therapy there is no exit from coronavirus, only containment. And there is no settled strategy. Governments across the world are either persisting in lockdown or pulling themselves out in different ways and at different speeds.

Read here (Irish Times, April 29, 2020)

Dogs are being trained to sniff out coronavirus cases

‘As some states move to reopen after weeks of shutdowns, infectious disease experts say the prevention of future coronavirus outbreaks will require scaling up testing and identifying asymptomatic carriers. Eight Labrador retrievers — and their powerful noses — have been enlisted to help.

‘The dogs are the first trainees in a University of Pennsylvania research project to determine whether canines can detect an odor associated with the virus that causes the disease covid-19. If so, they might eventually be used in a sort of “canine surveillance” corps, the university said — offering a noninvasive, four-legged method to screen people in airports, businesses or hospitals.’

Read here (Washington Post, April 29, 2020)

Dare to imagine the best possible new normal

‘We are at such a point in time again, when we are forced to think of ourselves as a species, and in fact, to institutionalise that fact even more thoroughly than before.

‘The added difference between 1945 and 2020 is that the pandemic should make us realise more deeply the fact that we are merely a species among other species and how species relate to each other cannot continue to be haphazard, and that the environment that supports us and that we all share is fragile. The environment has to be respected and cared for. And our existence is a shared one — within the species and among species.’

Read here (The Edge, April 29, 2020)

Learning how to dance - Part 3: How to do testing and contact tracing. Tomas Pueyo

‘Thankfully, a set of four measures can dramatically reduce the epidemic. They are dirt cheap compared to closing the economy. If many countries are enduring the Hammer today, these measures are the scalpel, carefully extracting the infected rather than hitting everybody at once. These four measures need each other. They don’t work without one another:

• With testing, we find out who is infected
• With isolations, we prevent them from infecting others
• With contact tracing, we figure out the people with whom they’ve been in contact
• With quarantines, we prevent these contacts from infecting others

‘Testing and contact tracing are the intelligence, while isolations and quarantines are the action. We’ll dive into the first two today — testing and contact tracing — and the next two will be covered next.’

Read here (Medium, April 28, 2020)

Strengthening preparedness for Covid-19 in cities and urban settings

‘This document is to support local authorities, leaders and policy-makers in cities and other urban settlements in identifying effective approaches and implementing recommended actions that enhance the prevention, preparedness and readiness for COVID-19 in urban settings, to ensure a robust response and eventual recovery. It covers factors unique to cities and urban settings, considerations in urban preparedness, key areas of focus and preparing for future emergencies.’

Beyond traditional recommendations—such as multisectoral collaboration, protecting vulnerable populations, and evidence-based policy decisions—the guidance also addresses 4 focus areas in the context of COVID-19 preparedness:

1. Coordinated local plans to address unique issues, characteristics, and capacities of individual cities; 
2. Risk communication and education to promote compliance with recommended actions, using media that can effectively reach target audiences; 
3. Contextually and culturally appropriate approaches to public health, including social distancing, enhanced hygiene, and respiratory etiquette; and 
4. Adequate access to care for COVID-19 and other essential health services, including prevent services like vaccination. The document also includes an annex with more specific details, considerations, and recommendations under each focus area.

Read and download here (WHO, April 28, 2020)

Germany's Covid-19 infection rate rises after lockdown lifted

‘The rate at which the coronavirus is spreading in Germany has increased following the easing of lockdown restrictions. Authorities say the “R” factor, which measures the average number of people that an infected person contaminates, is now close to the limit of target levels. It had been at around 0.7 on April 20th when Germany eased restrictions on movement and economic activity. Now it is at 0.96, said Lothar Wieler, the head of the Robert Koch Institute.’

Read here (Euronews, April 28, 2020)

India cancels order for ‘faulty’ China rapid test kits

’India has cancelled orders for about half a million coronavirus rapid testing kits from China after they were found to be “faulty“. Delhi has also withdrawn the kits that were already in use in several states. The kits take around 30 minutes to deliver a result and are supposed to detect antibodies in the blood of people who may have had the infection. They help officials quickly understand the scale of infection in a particular area. China disputes India's claims.’

Read here (BBC, April 28, 2020)

In race for a Coronavirus vaccine, an Oxford group leaps ahead

‘In the worldwide race for a vaccine to stop the coronavirus, the laboratory sprinting fastest is at Oxford University. Most other teams have had to start with small clinical trials of a few hundred participants to demonstrate safety. But scientists at the university’s Jenner Institute had a head start on a vaccine, having proved in previous trials that similar inoculations — including one last year against an earlier coronavirus — were harmless to humans. That has enabled them to leap ahead and schedule tests of their new coronavirus vaccine involving more than 6,000 people by the end of next month, hoping to show not only that it is safe, but also that it works.’

Read here (New York Times, April 28, 2020)

Trump unveils testing blueprint

As part of a plan to open up America, President Trump has unveiled a “Testing Blueprint” with the stated goal of performing 2 million tests per week by the end of May. According to the plan, state, tribal, and local governments are largely responsible for procuring tests and “overcom[ing] barriers to efficient testing”; however, the federal government will “act as a supplier of last resort” and coordinate with private sector suppliers to increase production and testing capacity. A number of private sector companies announced plans to increase testing capacity to support these efforts.

Download here (Whitehouse, April 2020)

Covid-19 — A reminder to reason

‘Thus far in the Covid-19 pandemic, we’ve observed that therapeutic management has often been initiated and altered on the basis of individual case reports and physician opinion, rather than of randomized trials. In these uncertain times, physicians fall prey to cognitive error and unconsciously rely on limited experiences, whether their own or others’, instead of scientific inquiry. We believe that physicians should be acting in concert with clinical equipoise. We should be skeptical of any purported therapeutic strategy until enough statistical evidence is gathered that would convince any “open-minded clinician informed of the results” that one treatment is superior to another.

‘We are living through an unprecedented biopsychosocial crisis; physicians must be the voice of reason and lead by example. We must reason critically and reflect on the biases that may influence our thinking processes, critically appraise evidence in deciding how to treat patients, and use anecdotal observations only to generate hypotheses for trials that can be conducted with clinical equipoise. We must act swiftly but carefully, with caution and reason.’

Read here (New England Journal of Medicine, April 28, 2020)

Unified in coronavirus lockdown, India splinters over reopening

‘For five weeks, Indians of all stripes have united to zealously conduct a nationwide lockdown, the largest and one of the most severe anywhere. But as the central government has started lifting restrictions in areas with few or no known cases of the coronavirus, officials are now facing a new challenge: persuading fearful residents, and their leaders, to consider a partial reopening.’

Read here (New York Times, April 28, 2020)

New antibody test ‘with 99 per cent accuracy’ approved for use across Europe

‘Global diagnostics specialists Abbott, which has a UK base in Maidenhead, has said it is expecting to have shipped millions of the laboratory based lab tests across Europe by the end of May.

‘The company’s diagnostic test has been given a CE mark showing it complies with EU safety rules and can now be used in labs across the UK to test for antibodies created when a person has been infected with Covid-19.’

Read here (The Independent, April 28, 2020?)

‘Calamitous’: Domestic violence set to soar by 20% during global lockdown

‘At least 15m more cases of domestic violence are predicted around the world this year as a result of pandemic restrictions, according to new data that paints a bleak picture of life for women over the next decade. The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) has also calculated that tens of millions of women will not be able to access modern contraceptives this year, and millions more girls will undergo female genital mutilation or be married off by 2030. Natalia Kanem, the fund’s executive director, called the findings “totally calamitous”.’

Read here (The Guardian, April 28, 2020)

Are you and your office ready for post-MCO? 18 questions from Dr Amar-Singh

We need to behave and act as though everyone around us is Covid-19 positive. We need to behave and act as though we have an asymptomatic infection of Covid-19 and can infect others. We need to protect all older persons as if they are our parents and all those vulnerable to Covid-19 as our sisters and brothers.

As you plan to return to the office, here is a checklist of some of the things you need to consider and prepare for:

1. How are you going to manage public transport?
2. Has your office prepared a clear standard operating policy (SOP) or checklist to minimise the risk of staff getting the virus or spreading it?
3. How is the office building going to limit the number of people who enter and leave when coming to work and going home?
4. Has your office thought about staggered working hours or work from home?
5. How is the office building going to handle lifts?
6. What are you going to do about the office air-conditioning?
7. How can we modify the open office environment?
8. How will you modify the office meeting?
9. How to avoid contamination of common used items?
10. How are you going to deal with the pantry, prayer areas and common staff areas?
11. Have you a plan for mask safety and changing masks?
12. What is the plan to limit staff socialising?
13. What is the policy for the toilets?
14. What is the new cleaning routine for the office?
15. How will we use gloves optimally?
16. What is the policy if someone is unwell?
17. How do we deal with travelling, site visits, conferences, etc?
18. Do you have a plan to minimise virus transmission to your family?

Read here (The Malay Mail, April 28, 2020)

How the face mask became the world’s most coveted commodity

‘No object better symbolises the pandemic than the mask, and no object better explains the world into which the pandemic arrived. Social distancing, at first, felt like a strange notion: the inaction of it, the vagueness of it. But the mask sang out to our deepest consumeristic impulses. In the absence of a drug or a vaccine, the mask is the only material protection we can buy; it’s a product, and we’ve been trained like seals to respond to products. As a result, in every corner of every country, the humble face mask – this assembly of inexpensive plastic – has been elevated into a fetishised commodity. One mask broker described it as “a madhouse”, another as “the craziest market I’ve ever seen”...

‘Whatever the new normal is after this pandemic, everyone I spoke with agreed on one thing: there will be masks. Lots and lots of masks. They’ll be handed out on airlines and at hotels; they’ll be stacked next to the till at Boots; they’ll be stashed in sock drawers and linen closets in practically every home. Every country will produce and stockpile its own supply, unwilling to rely any more on the vagaries of the international market; Germany, forever ahead of the curve, has already begun.’

Read here (The Guardian, April 28, 2020)

‘Very worried’: Britain issues alert as possible new coronavirus syndrome emerges in children

‘Health officials in Britain warn that a potential new coronavirus-related syndrome is emerging in children, with a rise in cases prompting an urgent alert to doctors across the country. The alert revealed an "apparent rise in the number of children of all ages presenting with a multi-system inflammatory state requiring intensive care across London and also in other regions of the United Kingdom".’

Read here (The Sydney Morning Herald, April 28, 2020)

CDC confirms six coronavirus symptoms showing up in patients over and over

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added six symptoms of the novel coronavirus to its list, suggesting health experts are learning more about the growing number of ways physicians see the virus affecting patients. The symptoms, which the CDC reports could appear two to 14 days after exposure to the virus, are: (1) chills (2) repeated shaking with chills (3) muscle pain (4) headache (5) sore throat (6) new loss of taste or smell. Previously, the CDC listed just three known symptoms: shortness of breath, cough and fever.

Read here (Washington Post, April 28, 2020)

All-of-government, whole-of-society involvement needed to fight virus

‘To enhance efficacy and minimise disruptions, an ”all of government“ approach at all levels needs to be developed, involving much more than public health and police enforcement authorities. Human resource, social protection, transport, education, media, industry, fiscal and other relevant authorities need to be appropriately engaged to develop the various required transitions and to plan for the post-lockdown “new normal”.

‘Another condition for success is “whole of society” mobilisation and support. Government transparency and explanations for various measures undertaken are important for public understanding, cooperation, support and legitimacy. The authorities must also realise how measures will be seen. Singapore’s apparent early success, for example, was not what it seemed as it had overlooked official disincentives for possibly infected migrant workers to cooperate...’

Read here (IPS News, April 28, 2020)

Businesses allowed to operate during MCO can go full capacity tomorrow (April 29)

‘All economic sectors that have been allowed to operate during the movement control order (MCO) period can ramp up their operations to full capacity starting tomorrow, said International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali. In a statement, Mohamed Azmin said this was decided in the National Security Council meeting today, which discussed the recommendations of the Economic Action Council following the latter's own meeting yesterday. The meeting yesterday reviewed the studies and recommendations by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), Bank Negara Malaysia and national sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd.’

Read here (The Edge, April 28, 2020)

Health and economy will suffer if MCO lifted too soon

‘Noor Hisham is straight forward about what is required to lift the MCO – six conditions to be fulfilled of which three have already been satisfied. The Academy of Medicine Malaysia concurs with him...

‘Detailed guidelines for a return to the workplace are necessary as well as the readiness of both employers and employees to abide by them. If, for instance, it is a crowded workplace, social distancing of a minimum one metre will be impossible to achieve unless, say only half the workforce or less, goes to work. As many people as possible still need to work from home...

‘Premature lifting of the lockdown can be disastrous. Let us spend some thought and effort into deciding what the new norm is, set clear unambiguous guidelines by professionals with no political doublespeak, announce them, and wait for feedback before implementation.’

Read here (FocusMalaysia, April 28, 2020)

Whose coronavirus strategy worked best? Scientists hunt most effective policies

‘Working out the effectiveness of the unprecedented measures implemented worldwide to limit the spread of the coronavirus is now one of scientists’ most pressing questions... But untangling cause and effect is extremely challenging, in part because circumstances differ in each country and because there is uncertainty over how much people adhere to measures, cautions Rosalind Eggo, a mathematical modeller at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). “It’s really hard but it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try,” she adds.

‘Efforts to tackle these questions will get a boost in the coming weeks from a database that brings together information on the hundreds of different interventions that have been introduced worldwide. The platform, being prepared for the World Health Organisation (WHO) by a team at the LSHTM, gathers data collected by ten groups already tracking interventions — including teams at the University of Oxford, UK, the Complexity Science Hub Vienna (CSH Vienna), and public-health organisations and non-profit organisations such as ACAPS, which analyses humanitarian crises.’

Read here (Nature, April 28, 2020)

Nurses are trying to save us from the virus, and from ourselves

‘We’re in this together, but some of us are more in this than others. People keep saying that nurses are on the front lines, but they are actually behind enemy lines, surrounded on all sides. They are trying to save us, and save us from ourselves. Nurses are protesting protesters, standing in their scrubs and masks to glare at “freedom-loving” citizens who spew insults as they rally for the economy to reopen. Nurses are taking to social media to convey the extremity of their situations: They talk about war zones, about titrating a dozen IV drips while troubleshooting fluky ventilators, all without reliable stockpiles of supplies.’

Read here (The Washington Post, April 28, 2020)

How India will play a major role in a Covid-19 vaccine

‘US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last fortnight that India and the US were working together to develop vaccines against the coronavirus. Mr Pompeo's remark didn't entirely come as a surprise. The two countries have run an internationally recognised joint vaccine development programme for more than three decades.

‘India is among the largest manufacturer of generic drugs and vaccines in the world. It is home to half a dozen major vaccine makers and a host of smaller ones, making doses against polio, meningitis, pneumonia, rotavirus, BCG, measles, mumps and rubella, among other diseases.’

Read here (BBC, April 27, 2020)

We are living in a failed state: The coronavirus didn’t break America; it revealed what was already broken

'When the virus came here, it found a country with serious underlying conditions, and it exploited them ruthlessly. Chronic ills—a corrupt political class, a sclerotic bureaucracy, a heartless economy, a divided and distracted public—had gone untreated for years. We had learned to live, uncomfortably, with the symptoms. It took the scale and intimacy of a pandemic to expose their severity—to shock Americans with the recognition that we are in the high-risk category...

‘We can learn from these dreadful days that stupidity and injustice are lethal; that, in a democracy, being a citizen is essential work; that the alternative to solidarity is death. After we’ve come out of hiding and taken off our masks, we should not forget what it was like to be alone.’

Read here (The Atlantic, June 2020, preview issue)

Higher transmission rate among household contacts and individuals traveling with infected people

‘The researchers found that household contacts of COVID-19 cases and individuals traveling with cases were both at elevated risk of infection. Additionally, the secondary “attack rate” (percentage of contacts who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection) among household contacts was at least 11.2%. While attack rates were higher among older adults, the value for children—7.4% and 7.1% for children aged 0-9 years and 10-19 years, respectively—was higher than in younger and middle-aged adults—4.9%-6.1% for adults aged 20-29 years, 30-39 years, and 40-49 years. Individuals aged 0-39 years exhibited lower risk of severe COVID-19 than adults aged 40 years and older.’

Read here (The Lancet, April 27, 2020)

US deaths soared in early weeks of pandemic, far exceeding number attributed to covid-19

‘In the early weeks of the coronavirus epidemic, the United States recorded an estimated 15,400 excess deaths, nearly two times as many as were publicly attributed to covid-19 at the time, according to an analysis of federal data conducted for The Washington Post by a research team led by the Yale School of Public Health.

‘The excess deaths are not necessarily attributable directly to covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. They could include people who died because of the epidemic but not from the disease, such as those who were afraid to seek medical treatment for unrelated illnesses, as well as some number of deaths that are part of the ordinary variation in the death rate. The count is also affected by increases or decreases in other categories of deaths, such as suicides, homicides and motor vehicle accidents.’

Read here (Washington Post April 27, 2020)