25th Nov 2020 https://nfind.uk/lockdown_exit/index.php/newsletter=147 lockdown_exit

Lockdown Exit

Reuters Faced with one of the highest death tolls from the first wave of the coronavirus Boris Johnson pledged a worldbeating testandtrace system to prevent a resurgence this winter. A Reuters investigation reveals how that promise came unstuck. https://uk.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-britain-newwave/special-report-50000-covid-19-deaths-and-rising-how-britain-failed-to-stop-the-second-wave-idUSKBN28410Z 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

The Times It was a grim lifeless midwinter in shuttered Melbourne Australias second largest city and the nations cultural and gastronomic capital. As a second coronavirus outbreak took hold triggered by lapses in the citys mandatory hotel quarantine system for returning overseas travellers the southern state of Victoria and its capital entered another lockdown one of the Wests harshest. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/melbourne-s-brutal-coronavirus-lockdown-does-job-c02bv3hgq 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

Reuters UK The four nations of the United Kingdom have agreed to relax COVID19 restrictions for Christmas to allow up to three households to meet at home for five days. England Scotland Wales and Northern Ireland have taken differing approaches to handling the pandemic so far but the leaders of the devolved nations reached agreement with London on Tuesday on rules governing the festive period. Three households will be able to form a Christmas bubble allowing them to meet up at home places of worship and in outdoor public places but not at indoor hospitality or entertainment venues from Dec. 23 until Dec. 27 under the plans. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-britain-christmas/uks-four-nations-will-relax-covid-restrictions-to-save-christmas-idUKKBN2842N8 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

Channel NewsAsia Hong Kong will close bars nightclubs and other entertainment venues for the third time this year Health Secretary Sophia Chan said on Tuesday Nov 24 as authorities scramble to tackle a renewed rise in COVID19 cases. Authorities are also reopening a temporary COVID19 treatment hall near the citys airport. On Tuesday Hong Kong reported 80 new coronavirus cases taking the total since late January to 5782 COVID19 infections and 108 deaths. The financial hub has so far managed to avoid the widespread outbreak of the disease seen in many major cities across the world with numbers on a daily basis mostly in single digits or low double digits in the weeks prior to the spike. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/covid-19-hong-kong-shut-bars-nightclubs-cases-jump-travel-bubble-13629234 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

Mirror Online Mene Pangalos head of AstraZenecas nononcology research and development said a dosing mistake during latestage trials for the Oxford University vaccine got the team over the line https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/coronavirus-vaccine-boss-says-dosing-23057639 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

NPR As coronavirus cases continue to surge both in the U.S. and around the world theres promising news on the vaccine front. Pharmaceutical companies Pfizer Moderna and more recently AstraZeneca have all announced that their vaccines have shown betterthanexpected results. Dr. Peter Hotez codirector of the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Childrens Hospital says that a vaccine release could begin for selected populations by the middle of December and that a broader vaccination effort could soon follow. By the early part of next year were going to move pretty quickly I think in vaccinating a significant percentage of the U.S. population Hotez says. https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/11/24/938375308/vaccine-expert-once-a-covid-vaccine-is-available-dont-overthink-it-dont-wait 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

HeraldScotland Key workers including transport staff and people from deprived areas should be among those included in the priority list for the Covid19 vaccine experts involved in health inequalities have said. Nicola Sturgeon this week set out the Scottish Governments plan to vaccinate 4.4million Scots over the age of 18. There are hopes that around 1million people could receive the jag before the end of January. Frontline health and social care staff care home residents and staff and all those aged 80 and over will be the first to receive the vaccine. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/18888564.coronavirus-vaccine-transport-staff-teachers-prioritised/ 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

The Mirror on MSN.com A volunteer who took part in the Oxford coronavirus vaccine trial has opened up about what it was like to take the injection and said that he noticed a very limited amount of side effects. Appearing on Lorraine today volunteer Jack Sommers spoke about his experience on the trial. On Monday it was revealed that the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine was revealed to have 70 efficacy. Speaking to host Lorraine Kelly via video link from Shropshire Jack opened up about the minimal side effects he had experienced from the injection. https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/oxford-coronavirus-vaccine-volunteer-explains-minimal-side-effect-from-injection/ar-BB1bj4Pq 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

Daily Mail Modernas chief medical officer Tal Zaks told Axios the firm does not have data that shows whether their vaccine prevents people from spreading the virus. Moderna announced earlier this month its shot is 94.5 effective at preventing people from getting sick or severely ill from coronavirus in trials. But because the company did not test asymptomatic participants it doesnt know whether vaccinated people can be silent carriers and spreaders Zaks said. He added that he believes the vaccine should prevent viral spread but doesnt have the data to prove it https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-8982747/Modernas-covid-vaccine-NOT-block-covid-positive-spreading-it.html 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

Reuters Elderly residents and staff in nursing homes will be the first to get vaccinated against the coronavirus in Spain starting as early as January Health Minister Salvador Illa said on Tuesday unveiling a national vaccination plan. Other healthcare workers will be next in line with a total of 18 groups of citizens being one after the other allowed to get the vaccine in one of 13000 local public health centers. Spain expects to cover a substantial part of the population within the first six months of 2021. The COVID19 vaccine will be free Illa told a news conference adding vaccination would not be compulsory. Were convinced that a vaccine is better accepted if its voluntary. https://uk.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-spain-vaccine/nursing-homes-will-be-first-to-get-covid-19-vaccine-in-spain-idUKKBN2841VQ 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

BBC A father with motor neurone disease is calling for the government to prioritise those with clinical vulnerabilities for the rollout of the vaccine. Shaan has motor neurone disease and has been shielding with his family since March meaning his fiveyearold son has not been able to go to school or socialise with his friends. Shaan and his wife Jessica from Walthamstow in east London are calling on the government to prioritise people who are clinically vulnerable in the rollout of any future Covid19 vaccination programme. https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-london-55024057 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

AlJazeera Workers at automotive assembly plants are considered essential in most US states but are not at the top of the list for early vaccine distribution. Ford Motor Co said on Tuesday that it has ordered a dozen ultracold freezers that can safely store Pfizer Incs COVID19 vaccine a move aimed at ensuring the United States automakers workers have access to vaccines when they are rolled out nationally. Fords purchase mirrors efforts by US states and cities to buy equipment to store millions of doses of Pfizers vaccine at temperatures of 70C 94F significantly below the standard for vaccines of 28C 3646F. https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2020/11/24/ford-orders-a-dozen-ultra-cold-freezers-for-pfizer-covid-vaccine 24th Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

The Guardian Dan McAteer describes his reaction more as a sense of relief than elation when his phone pinged on Monday morning with a push alert reporting that the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine has up to 90 efficacy. Several months on from becoming one of thousands of volunteers in trials of the Covid19 vaccine the 23yearold student is trying to comprehend the news that people could be vaccinated as early as next month https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/23/great-day-oxford-coronavirus-vaccine-volunteers-react-trial-data-astrazeneca-covid 23rd Nov 2020

Lockdown Exit

The Guardian Statesponsored hackers from China Russia Iran and North Korea are engaged in concerted attempts to steal coronavirus vaccine secrets in what security experts describe as an intellectual property war. They accuse hostilestate hackers of trying to obtain trial results early and seize sensitive information about mass production of drugs at a time when a range of vaccines are close to being approved for the public. Previously the hackers primary intention was to steal the secrets behind the design of a vaccine with hundreds of drug companies research labs and health organisations from around the world targeted at any one time. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/22/hackers-try-to-steal-covid-vaccine-secrets-in-intellectual-property-war 22nd Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

BBC France will begin to ease its strict coronavirus restrictions this weekend allowing nonessential shops to reopen President Emmanuel Macron has said. People will also be able to share moments with the family over the Christmas period Mr Macron announced. But he said bars and restaurants would have to remain closed until 20 January. France has reported more than 2.2 million cases and more than 50000 confirmed coronavirusrelated deaths since the start of the pandemic. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-55062393 25th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

Reuters UK Britains failure to stockpile key pieces of personal protective equipment PPE before the coronavirus pandemic left supplies dangerously low and forced the government to pay five times the normal price to meet demand the public spending watchdog said. About a third of doctors and nurses including those working in the riskiest areas of hospitals with COVID19 patients complained they were given inadequate protective equipment as the pandemic swept across Britain earlier this year. There were insufficient supplies of gowns and visors despite warnings from some of the governments top scientific advisers last year that they should be increased the National Audit Office NAO said in a report. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-britain-ppe/watchdog-criticises-poor-planning-that-left-uk-without-enough-ppe-as-covid-19-struck-idUKKBN285007 25th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

The Guardian on MSN.com James English has 74000 to figure out how to distribute the worlds first ultracold storage drug to a staff of skeptical and wornout healthcare workers as the major sources of supports to contain Covid19 so far come to an end. English is the regional operations chief and health branch director for Covid19 in Washoe county Nevada and is one of the hundreds of local public health directors across the US who will eventually help distribute Covid19 vaccines. English faces difficulties likely to be encountered nationally as the nation undertakes the most logistically challenging vaccination campaign in its history. The largest hurdle we have as a small health department is we do multiple roles said English. Our funding is very minimal. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-e2-80-98daunting-e2-80-99-hurdles-of-distributing-covid-19-vaccines-in-america/ar-BB1bjjZj 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

Daily Mail Hundreds lined up outside COVID testing facilities Tuesday morning before they even opened their doors. In Brooklyn dozens flocked to CityMD facilities in the early hours with long lines snaking through Flatbush Williamsburg and Bushwick. Wealthy New Yorkers are avoiding the wait by paying linewaiters 80 an hour to line up on their behalf. Gov. Cuomo warned New Yorkers in a press conference Tuesday not to be fooled by one negative test result. Americans across the country are clamoring to get COVID tests as they ignore the pleas of public health experts to cancel Thanksgiving travel plans https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8982329/Hundreds-NYC-line-tested-COVID-19-ahead-Thanksgiving.html 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

BBC Scotlands local Covid19 alert levels are to remain unchanged with Nicola Sturgeon saying the government must follow a cautious approach. Where each local authority area sits in the fivelevel system of measures is reviewed every Tuesday. The first minister said restrictions were having an impact but that no changes would be made this week. She said case numbers may be declining across Scotland but it was important to keep the virus at bay. And Ms Sturgeon said she was hopeful that a deal will be agreed later on Tuesday to ease curbs over Christmas in a temporary and limited way to allow more people to meet up. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-55042383 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

BBC People arriving in England from abroad will be soon able to reduce their quarantine by more than half if they pay for a Covid test after five days the transport secretary has announced. The rules will come into force from 15 December and the tests from private firms will cost between 65 and 120. Grant Shapps said the scheme would bolster international travel while keeping the public safe. The travel industry welcomed the policy but described it as long overdue. It follows Boris Johnsons announcement that England will come under toughened threetiered regional restrictions when the lockdown ends on 2 December. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55052381 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

DW (English) Tighten the screws in a bid to salvage some semblance of normalcy at Christmas That seems to be the essence of a new COVID strategy for December reportedly developed by Germanys regional leaders. https://www.dw.com/en/coronavirus-germany-lockdown-covid/a-55699925 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

Reuters UK Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has warned Italians not to ski during the Christmas holidays to help curb a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 50000 people in Italy. He also called on other European countries to agree on common rules for the sector to prevent cases being imported from abroad if Italy keeps its slopes closed although neighbouring Austria has already expressed its reservations about the idea. Italys ski resorts earn annual revenues of about 11 billion euros 13.06 billion a third of which comes from the days Italians usually spend in the Alps and Dolomites at Christmas and New Year. https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-italy-ski/italy-seeking-eu-rules-for-christmas-skiing-to-limit-covid-19-risk-idUKKBN28416P 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

FRANCE 24 English France will begin easing its Covid19 lockdown this weekend so that by Christmas shops theatres and cinemas will reopen and people will be able to spend the holiday with the rest of their family French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday. In a televised address to the nation Macron said the worst of the second wave of the pandemic in France was over but that restaurants cafs and bars would have to stay shut until January. We must do everything in our power to avoid a third wave and a third lockdown the French president said. https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20201124-live-macron-addresses-the-nation-on-path-out-of-lockdown 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

The Guardian Crowds of up to 4000 people will be allowed to return to sporting events in England from next week and grassroots sport will also resume as part of an easing of coronavirus restrictions announced by the prime minister. The changes were greeted with widespread relief after weeks of concerted pressure from sporting bodies and the public who had both argued the importance of being able to participate in sport during the pandemic and also of the ability to watch it safely. England is to return to a system of tiered restrictions from 2 December but gyms pools golf courses and leisure facilities will now be allowed to open in all tiers after the government accepted their positive impact on physical and mental health https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/nov/23/crowds-of-up-to-4000-and-grassroots-sport-to-return-once-lockdown-ends 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

Reuters British Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out new measures on Monday to replace a COVID19 lockdown in England from Dec. 2 reinforcing a previous regional approach to try to reopen businesses in areas where infection rates are lower. Just over two weeks after Johnson introduced a national lockdown in England to try to tame a spiralling increase in new coronavirus cases he said the measures had reduced COVID infection rates and would be eased on Dec. 2 as promised. Johnson has been under pressure to scrap the lockdown from lawmakers in his Conservative Party where many have threatened to vote against any new restrictions without more evidence of their effect in stemming infections. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-newmeasures-tough/pm-johnson-sets-out-new-measures-to-replace-covid-lockdown-idUKKBN28324H 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

Reuters UK British health minister Matt Hancock said that test and trace can not control coronavirus in the way that an effective system of mass testing can as he defended the performance of the heavily criticised contacttracing system. The test and trace system was inefficient and slow Reuters found after speaking to tracers and analysing the data making it inadequate to avoid a second wave and a new English national lockdown which started on Nov 5. The test and trace programme ahead of the second lockdown was functioning to reduce transmission enormously Hancock told lawmakers. By the time of the second lockdown it had already broken the chains of transmission hundreds of thousands of times. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-britain-testing/uk-health-minister-says-test-and-trace-cant-control-covid-19-alone-idUKKBN2841HP?il=0 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

Reuters UK In the beginning there was Stay at Home. Protect the NHS. Save Lives. That was the British governments simple slogan for its countrywide lockdown that began in March to try to stem the COVID19 pandemic and avoid a collapse of the National Health Services hospital system. Nothing has been simple ever since. In the ensuing months the original slogan has been replaced by a series of new catchphrases the Rule of Six a Tiers alert system and everchanging regulations for different parts of the United Kingdom that even British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently called confusing. I like to follow the rules says Joinal Abdin 41 who lives near Oldham in northern England. Does he understand them No. Half of the time Im confused to be honest with you. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-britain-newwave-ru/riding-the-coronacoaster-of-uk-rules-idUKKBN28411N 24th Nov 2020

Exit Strategies

AlJazeera We have repeatedly heard about how COVID19 disproportionately affects women. While men are more likely to die from the virus in many other respects women are bearing the brunt of the pandemics impact. The effects on women have been multiple violence against women has increased with incidents of domestic violence soaring. School closures overburdened healthcare systems and social distancing measures have significantly increased many womens unpaid care and domestic loads at home which in turn has made them less able to balance these responsibilities with paid work. https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2020/11/24/making-headlines-covid-19-and-gender-inequality/ 24th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

bnnbloomberg President Vladimir Putin told fellow world leaders last week that both of Russias Covid19 vaccines including one he championed as the worlds first inoculation against the disease are safe and effective. That doesnt mean hes taken a jab. We have not yet begun widespread vaccination and the head of state cant take part in vaccination as a volunteer. Its impossible Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Tuesday in response to a question on whether Putin had been inoculated. The president cant use an uncertified vaccine. Russia has the worlds fifthhighest number of cases globally passing 2 million last week. https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/putin-can-t-take-russia-s-safe-covid-19-vaccine-kremlin-says-1.1526963 25th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

Vatican News Angela Merkel fears a global race between richer and poorer nations to access COVID19 vaccines. She urged government leaders at an online meeting of the G20 to ensure a fair distribution of coronavirus vaccines among impoverished countries. To halt the pandemic every country needs to have access to and be able to afford the vaccine. The funds pledged so far are not yet enough to achieve this. I therefore appeal to you all of you to support this important initiative she said. The chancellor made clear she would raise the issue with the global vaccine alliance GAVI. This shortterm assistance is in the interest of us all. And it is also in our interest to improve global pandemic preparedness in the long term. To this end we need to sustainably strengthen the World Health Organization. https://www.vaticannews.va/en/world/news/2020-11/germany-warns-of-coronavirus-vaccine-race-between-rich-and-poor.html 25th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

The Washington Post In the US if offered a coronavirus vaccine free of charge fewer than half of Black people and 66 percent of Latino people said they would definitely or probably take it according to a surveybased study that underscores the challenge of getting vaccines to communities hit hard by the pandemic. The survey released Monday is one of the largest and most rigorous to date. Other recent studies have also pointed to vaccine hesitancy in communities of color but Mondays survey delved deeper into the reasons polling respondents on a spectrum of questions to get at the roots of their distrust. https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/11/23/covid-vaccine-hesitancy/ 25th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

U.S. News & World Report A German government official warned Tuesday that antiSemitism is emerging as a common position among people protesting pandemic lockdown measures who otherwise come from widely differing political backgrounds. Felix Klein who was appointed in 2018 to head the governments efforts to combat antiSemitism said that hatred against Jews in Germany has increased during the coronavirus pandemic. https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-11-24/germany-warns-of-anti-semitism-among-lockdown-protests 24th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

Daily Mail Sir David Spiegelhalter suggested the Government tried to manipulate Britons. Cherrypicked worstcase scenarios to instill a certain emotional reaction. No10 lambasted for its apocalyptic graphs and spurious data shown to public https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8979123/Number-10-used-apocalyptic-Covid-19-graphs-frighten-public-lockdown-statistician.html 24th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

The Independent People in France may be able to go back to their favorite shops and attend religious services again next week after a month of partial virus lockdown but theyll probably have to wait until next year to savor wine and cheese in a local cafe President Emmanuel Macron is expected to lay out new rules Tuesday in Frances virus strategy after he imposed nationwide restrictions last month as virus infections hospitalizations and deaths surged around Europe. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/french-shop-owners-pressure-macron-to-lighten-virus-lockdown-emmanuel-macron-services-shops-people-cheese-b1761058.html 24th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

Australian Broadcasting Corporation A pizza bar worker whose alleged deception sent South Australia into coronavirus lockdown has expressed extreme remorse but the mans lawyer says some of the information provided by authorities has been inaccurate and unfair. Last week SA health authorities said the Spanish national told contact tracers he had only ordered a pizza from the Woodville Pizza Bar when in fact he had worked there. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-11-24/pizza-worker-sorry-over-south-australia-coronavirus-lockdown/12914144 24th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

Evening Standard These are just some of the things Londoners said to me when I asked them if theyd take a Covid vaccine. Perhaps theyve joined the small but vocal minority claiming that the vaccine is a plot to insert surveillance microchips into the population or maybe like many thousands more they simply worry the development of the jab has been rushed. We will probably never know but while its easy to dismiss as ridiculous some of the more extreme antivaccine sentiment out there like anyone repeating the rumour spread by Russian bots that the vaccine will turn us into chimpanzees the number of vaccine hesitant people is growing. Most of them are not cranks just cautious and in a climate of fear and confusion their trust in what they read in the papers or hear in government briefings is diminishing. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/health/covid-vaccine-misinformation-b77756.html 24th Nov 2020

Partisan Exits

POLITICO.eu When two COVID19 vaccines were announced within a week of each other everyone cheered that the end to the global pandemic was now in sight. Everyone that is except Russia. Since the summer Moscow has conducted a global disinformation campaign aimed at both undermining vaccines produced in the West and promoting its own rival product particularly to countries across the developing world according to interviews with four national and European Union disinformation experts and a review of Kremlinbacked media outlets by POLITICO. https://www.politico.eu/article/covid-vaccine-disinformation-russia/ 24th Nov 2020

Continued Lockdown

BBC In England a hair salon owner is now facing 27000 in fines for repeatedly opening in breach of Covid19 lockdown rules. Sinead Quinn was working at Quinn Blakey Hairdressers in Oakenshaw Bradford on Saturday when Kirklees Council officers issued a 4000 fine. The council found the salon open again on Monday and Tuesday and issued two further 10000 fines. It had 1000 and 2000 fines for previous breaches. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-55057700 24th Nov 2020

Continued Lockdown

BBC Animals have been a lifesaver for people struggling during Covid lockdown according to retailer Pets at Home which has seen sales rise sharply. Chief executive Peter Pritchard said pets had played an incredibly important role through a period of social loneliness. He added that during the early days of lockdown one of the few reasons people could go out was to walk your dog. In the six months to 8 October Pets at Home saw revenues rise by 5.1. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55055609 24th Nov 2020

Continued Lockdown

The Independent Child protection referrals have surged in the months following the UKs first lockdown as local councils report an increase in demand for mental health and family services The Independent can reveal. New data shows more than 630 vulnerable young people a day were being referred to councils childrens services in July August and September marking an increase of 15 per cent or 7518 referrals compared to the three previous months when schools and services. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/child-protection-referrals-lockdown-abuse-b1746017.html 24th Nov 2020

Continued Lockdown

Forbes In the US as Covid19 cases continue to rise by the day hitting new mindboggling heights new dinein ordinances are being introduced on state and countrywide levels and more states report considering closures by the day. Without bold Congressional action restaurant and bar owners are left to their own devices to finagle new business approaches in an attempt to survive a challenging winter ahead. Northern hemisphere restaurants would be wise to take a page from the playbook of some of their southern hemisphere counterparts Juan Garcia founder of restaurant rating and review site Foodporn tells me. In Melbourne Australia for example the entire winter months of July to October were spent in stagefour lockdown meaning restaurants cafes and bars were completely closed to dinein customers. This forced a transformation never before seen in Melbourne hospitality. https://www.forbes.com/sites/eveturowpaul/2020/11/23/restauranteurs-look-to-australia-for-a-guide-on-surviving-a-winter-lockdown/ 24th Nov 2020

Continued Lockdown

Reuters French health authorities on Monday reported 4452 new COVID19 infections over the past 24 hours down from Sundays 13157 with the daily increase decelerating for the fourth day in a row ahead of a possible loosening of the countrys second lockdown. The Monday figure tends to dip as there are fewer tests conducted on Sundays. The sevenday moving average of new infections which averages out weekly data reporting irregularities stands at 21918 dipping below the 22000 threshold for the first time since Oct. 17. That figure had peaked at 54440 on Nov. 7. https://uk.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-france-infections/frances-new-covid-19-cases-slow-again-before-possible-lockdown-loosening-idUSP6N2HA010 24th Nov 2020

Continued Lockdown

Reuters UK French business confidence dropped in November to a fivemonth low as the country entered a new coronavirus lockdown hitting the services sector particularly hard a survey showed on Tuesday. INSEE the official stats agency said its monthly business climate index fell to 79 from 92 in October the lowest reading since June when France was still emerging from its first lockdown. French President Emmanuel Macron is due to announce on Tuesday evening a relaxation of the second lockdown following a decline in new case numbers since it was imposed on Oct. 30. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-france-economy/french-business-morale-hits-five-month-low-on-new-lockdown-idUKKBN2840VK 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

Daily Mail Can viruses such as the one that causes Covid19 attack our brains and change our behaviour thereby prolonging an outbreak Thats the suggestion from U.S. researchers who say that the coronavirus may be manipulating the behaviour of infected people sometimes even before they show symptoms so they become more sociable. In fact such behaviourchanging effects of viruses socalled behavioural host manipulation are not new and have previously been reported for the flu and rabies viruses among others. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-8979219/How-viruses-colds-Covid-19-trick-spending-time-socialising.html 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

Aberdeen Evening Express The UK is trailing behind other countries in making use of data to better understand the spread and economic impact of the coronavirus a team of researchers have said. Aggregated and anonymised data from mobile networks on how people move around and payment transaction data already gathered by companies are just some of the ways that could help give a more accurate picture of the pandemic at national and local levels the Data Readiness Lessons from an Emergency report suggests. https://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/news/wealth-of-data-to-help-understand-covid-19-spread-not-being-utilised/ 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

Aberdeen Evening Express A coronavirus vaccine developed by Russia is up to 95 effective at stopping people developing Covid19 symptoms according to its developers. Second interim data from the Sputnik V vaccine appears to provide 91.4 protection 28 days after the first dose and the researchers say the figure is as high as 95 42 days after the first dose. https://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/news/russia-says-its-sputnik-v-covid-19-vaccine-is-up-to-95-effective/ 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

Daily Mail CDC Director Dr Robert Redfield said he sees the firsts coronavirus vaccine doses being rolled out the second week of December. HHS officials also announced Tuesday that 6.4 million doses of Pfizers shot would be released in their first distribution once it gets emergency approval. The FDAs advisory committee will meet to discuss whether to give emergency use authorization to Pfizers vaccine on December 10. Operation Warp Speed says it is ready to roll a vaccine within 24 hours of its emergency approval. Speaking on Foxs The Daily Briefing Dr Redfield also said that household gatherings are fueling the latest surge in coronavirus cases. Health and Human Services Secretary also said Tuesday that states will have the final say who should be first priority to get vaccinated. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-8983081/U-S-officials-plan-release-6-4-mln-COVID-19-vaccine-doses-distribution.html 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

Nature.com Early data indicate that the OxfordAstraZeneca jab is effective but dose makes a difference. Plus the scientific dilemma posed by emergency vaccine approvals and an AI that sums up papers in a sentence. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03328-8 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

CNET Bill Gates is feeling optimistic about coronavirus vaccine development. The first two vaccine candidates likely to receive FDA authorization one from Pfizer and the other from Moderna appear to be 95 percent effective against the virus. But the Microsoft cofounder and cofounder of the Bill Melinda Gates Foundation also has high hopes for vaccines that havent yet made big headlines including those developed by AstraZeneca Johnson Johnson and Novavax. Almost all the vaccines will work and with very high efficacy levels Gates told CNNs Fareed Zakaria in an interview on Sunday. Im optimistic that by February its very likely that theyll all prove very efficacious and safe. https://www.cnet.com/news/bill-gates-says-almost-all-coronavirus-vaccines-will-work-by-february-2021/ 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

The New York Times The call was tense the message discouraging. Moncef Slaoui the head of the Trump administrations effort to quickly produce a vaccine for the coronavirus was on the phone at 6 p.m. on Aug. 25 to tell the upstart biotech firm Moderna that it had to slow the final stage of testing its vaccine in humans. Modernas chief executive Stphane Bancel a French biochemical engineer recognized the implication. In the race to quell the pandemic he said every day mattered. Now his company which had yet to bring a single product to market faced a delay of up to three weeks. Pfizer the global pharmaceutical giant that was busy testing a similar vaccine candidate and promising initial results by October would take the obvious lead. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/21/us/politics/coronavirus-vaccine.html 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters UK Using blood plasma from COVID19 survivors to treat patients with severe pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus showed little benefit according to data released on Tuesday from a clinical trial in Argentina. The therapy know as convalescent plasma which delivers antibodies from COVID19 survivors to infected people did not significantly improve patients health status or reduce their risk of dying from the disease any better than a placebo the study published in The New England Journal of Medicine found. Despite limited evidence of its efficacy convalescent plasma which U.S. President Donald Trump touted in August as a historic breakthrough has been frequently given to patients in the United States. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-plasma/plasma-from-recovered-patients-shows-little-benefit-in-those-hospitalized-with-covid-19-study-idUKKBN2843AZ 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters U.S. officials said on Tuesday they plan to release 6.4 million COVID19 vaccine doses nationwide in an initial distribution after the first one is cleared by regulators for emergency use. Officials from the governments Operation Warp Speed program told reporters that states and other jurisdictions had been informed on Friday of their estimated vaccine allocations in the first shipments so they can begin planning for how to best distribute it to their highrisk populations. The officials had previously said they anticipate 40 million doses will be distributed by year end a number they reiterated on Tuesday. https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-usa-vaccine-idUSL1N2IA20C 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

AlJazeera Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi says providing the coronavirus vaccine is his governments national commitment and that the safety of all citizens will be assured. Each State and stakeholder has to work as a team to ensure that this mission is systematic smooth and a sustained effort Modi said during a meeting with state chief ministers on the COVID19 situation in which he told them national efforts would be in coordination with state governments. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/11/24/coronavirus-vaccination-governments-national-commitment-modi 24th Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

The Guardian AstraZeneca shares fell after the drugmaker announced efficacy results for its Covid19 vaccine that were below those reported by rivals PfizerBioNTech and Moderna. The shares ended the day 3.8 lower at 80. Results from the phase 3 trial showed the vaccine developed with the University of Oxford can protect 70.4 of people from becoming ill and in a surprise result up to 90 if a lower first dose is used. This is lower than the 95 efficacy reported for vaccines developed by the US drugmaker Pfizer and the German biotech BioNTech and the US biotech Moderna. Analysts said the AstraZenecaOxford results left some unanswered questions. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/nov/23/astrazeneca-shares-fall-after-efficacy-findings-for-covid-19-vaccine-results 23rd Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

CIDRAP In interim latestage study findings Oxford University today announced that the COVID19 vaccine it is developing with AstraZeneca is highly effective bringing the world promising news for the third time this month about a pandemic vaccine candidate. The latest vaccine news comes as COVID19 levels surge in the United States and Europe with fears that illness levels could jump again after Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday gatherings. https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/11/astrazeneca-covid-vaccine-latest-show-high-efficacy 23rd Nov 2020

Scientific Viewpoint

The Associated Press Drugmaker AstraZeneca said Monday that latestage trials showed its COVID19 vaccine is highly effective buoying the prospects of a relatively cheap easytostore product that may become the vaccine of choice for the developing world. The results are based on an interim analysis of trials in the U.K. and Brazil of a vaccine developed by Oxford University and manufactured by AstraZeneca. No hospitalizations or severe cases of COVID19 were reported in those receiving the vaccine. https://apnews.com/article/astrazeneca-vaccine-third-cheaper-oxford-c99d26eb2946f6fde45a1edc002ff028 23rd Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

Reuters The Kremlin said on Tuesday Russias healthcare system was under heavy strain as authorities reported a record 491 deaths linked to COVID19 and infections surged. Russia has resisted imposing national lockdown restrictions as it did earlier this year preferring targeted regional measures even as thousands of cases are reported each day with 24326 new infections on Tuesday. The healthcare system is working under heavy strain but with the exception of a few regions...the situation remains under control Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-russia-cases-idUSKBN2840Q3 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

MSN.com In the past seven days Minnesota has had the fifthmost new coronavirus cases per capita in the country behind only the Dakotas Wyoming and New Mexico according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The swell of new infections has pushed hospitals and perhaps more importantly the people who make them go to the brink. Dr. Shirlee Xie took care of five patients with Covid19 the last time she worked at her Minneapolis hospital. I cant prevent anyone from getting Covid all I can do is try to keep Covid from killing you she said. So we are not the front lines. We are the last line of defense and so what we need is for people to step up and to wear masks and to distance from people and just try to keep themselves safe and everybody else safe. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/minneapolis-doctor-wipes-away-tears-in-describing-covid-19-s-toll-on-hospital-workers/ar-BB1bjT2W?fbclid=IwAR22zY3QuQzQ38TB9nl3_99MqVDGkqX_81sqMAT8SGBPK_lqwRgXQ5VE70k 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

Reuters Turkeys daily death toll from the coronavirus hit a record high of 161 on Tuesday according to data from the Health Ministry after the country introduced nationwide measures last week amid a surge in cases. The data showed 7381 new COVID19 patients were recorded in the country while the overall death toll rose to 12672. Since July Ankara has only reported symptomatic COVID19 patients a move critics say hides the true scale of the outbreak. https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-turkey-idUSA4N29K026 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

CNN Nearly a third of the nurses whove died of coronavirus in the US are Filipino even though Filipino nurses make up just 4 of the nursing population nationwide. A recent report from the largest nurses union in the country revealed the disproportionate number of deaths. Its a jarring statistic researchers are working to understand and a tragedy families across the US and around the world are living with every day. https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/24/health/filipino-nurse-deaths/index.html 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

The Sydney Morning Herald When Boris Johnson announced Englands second national shutdown on October 31 my phone lit up as family friends and colleagues in Australia shared disbelief over Britains mounting death toll and expressed sympathy about facing another lockdown. They had good reason to raise the former in the 25 days since 8796 people have died from COVID19 in the UK and about 34000 were admitted to hospital. While deaths are not spiking as sharply as earlier this year they are high and likely to stay high for the next few months. But this lockdown has looked and felt nothing like the one in April and May. As cases climbed the public largely carried on with life. Something profound has happened rightly or wrongly most here no longer fear the virus. In the great balancing act between health and the economy the scales are now overwhelmingly lean towards jobs and social cohesion. https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe/resigned-to-the-pandemic-brits-are-now-indifferent-to-the-death-toll-20201123-p56haj.html 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

UPI.com A stricter level of physical distancing restrictions went into effect in the greater Seoul area on Tuesday as health officials scrambled to contain what they have described as a third wave of COVID19. The government raised its distancing level on its fivetier scale from Level 1.5 to Level 2 as new cases continue to linger at the highest levels since August. South Korea saw more than 300 cases on Tuesday most in the Seoul metropolitan region where roughly half of the countrys 52 million people live. https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2020/11/24/Stricter-COVID-19-measures-take-effect-in-South-Korea-amid-rise-in-cases/6251606207852/ 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

The New York Times AstraZeneca said its vaccine candidate was up to 90 percent effective suggesting that the world could eventually have at least three working vaccines. At the same time the virus is accelerating across the U.S. and officials are imposing new restrictions to flatten the curve. When infections began rising sharply in the U.S. in September the growth was driven largely by outbreaks in the Upper Midwest. States like North Dakota and Wisconsin soon became the hardest hit in the nation relative to their size and the region continues to struggle. Now though with the whole countrys daily average of new cases is as high as it has ever been over 171000 the most rapid growth is happening elsewhere. https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/11/23/world/covid-19-coronavirus 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

CIDRAP As some European countries see some promising signs that their latest lockdowns are slowing the pace of COVID19 the progress raises new questions about how to unwind the measures in a way that prevents a third wave of infections at the start of the new year. Over the weekend and through today the world added about 2 million cases putting the global COVID19 total just over the 59 million mark. The total today climbed to 59004131 cases and 1393736 people have died from their infections according to the Johns Hopkins online dashboard. https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/11/europe-weighs-covid-19-steps-global-total-tops-59-million 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

Bloomberg As Japan returned to work Tuesday following a holiday weekend regional and national authorities moved toward boosting restrictions designed to contain the spread of a coronavirus surge. A campaign to spur domestic travel which some have blamed for spreading infections will be partly suspended. The metropolitan region of Osaka where cases have spiked plans to ask bars and restaurants to close early while Tokyo was reported to be making plans for similar steps as serious cases jumped to a new high in the city. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike last week said that severe cases rather than sheer number of infections were her red line that would spur further action. Those cases which the area defines as those on a ventilator or ECMO machine jumped 24 overnight to a total of 51 the most Tokyo has seen during the pandemic. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-24/japan-eyes-tighter-regional-steps-to-contain-growing-virus-surge 24th Nov 2020

Coronavirus Resurgence

Reuters UK Japan paused its domestic Go To Travel promotion campaign in two cities following sharp rises in COVID19 infections a government minister said on Tuesday a blow to Prime Minister Yoshihide Sugas plan to help prop up regional economies. Critics of the programme had said it risked spreading the infection from major cities to the countryside. We have agreed to temporarily exclude trips destined for the cities of Sapporo and Osaka from the travel campaign Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on Tuesday. Although we have tried to balance both economic revitalization as well as virus containment we have made this decision at the local governors request Nishimura told reporters after a meeting with Prime Minister Suga and Tourism Minister Kazuyoshi Akaba. https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-japan-travel/japan-pauses-domestic-travel-push-in-two-cities-as-covid-spreads-idUKKBN2840TB 24th Nov 2020

New Lockdown

AlJazeera In a fivepart series made in lockdown Ali Rae explores the complexities of our global response to the Covid19 pandemic https://interactive.aljazeera.com/aje/2020/all-hail-the-lockdown/index.html 24th Nov 2020

New Lockdown

The Financial Express As the major Indian cities battle with the sharp rise in the fresh Covid19 infections Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held a virtual meeting with several Chief Ministers to formulate the strategy for the coming days. The meeting was attended by the Chief Ministers of Delhi West Bengal Maharashtra Gujarat and Chhattisgarh. The brainstorming session gains importance as it is not only a stocktaking meeting but more centred on making urgent plans to tackle the corona surges especially in urban areas. While nothing official has been communicated so far there is a buzz that the state as well as the Centre maybe thinking on something akin to a mini lockdown. https://www.financialexpress.com/lifestyle/health/amid-lockdown-worries-pm-modi-holds-key-meet-with-cms-on-corona-surge/2135207/ 24th Nov 2020

New Lockdown

India TV News In India putting speculations to rest the Maharashtra government has decided against imposing any lockdown in the state amid rising cases of the novel coronavirus. The decision was taken at a key cabinet meeting on Tuesday. The cabinet also ruled out clamping of a night curfew in the state. https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/maharashtra-lockdown-latest-news-uddhav-thackeray-night-curfew-final-decision-cabinet-meeting-667141 24th Nov 2020

New Lockdown

India.com Several states across India have reimposed the lockdown restrictions with a sudden spurt in coronavirus cases. While the Delhi government has raised the fine for not wearing face masks and reverted to the earlier cap on the number of wedding guests night curfews and Section 144 have returned in states like Rajasthan Madhya Pradesh and others. With these decisions the reimposition of the total shutdown has started doing the rounds. Speculations are rife that PM Modi after meeting the chief ministers on Tuesday might announce another lockdown in states where the cases are rising. https://www.india.com/news/india/lockdown-india-latest-news-lockdown-again-in-november-shutdown-in-states-lockdown-restrictions-continue-latest-updates-pm-modi-announcement-on-lockdown-pm-cm-meeting-maharashtra-delhi-4220232/ 24th Nov 2020