CORONA Main Coronavirus thread

[marsh]

Hydroxychloroquine helped save coronavirus patients, study shows; Trump campaign hails 'fantastic news'

Researchers at the Henry Ford Health System in Southeast Michigan have found that early administration of the drug hydroxychloroquine makes hospitalized patients substantially less likely to die -- a finding that conservatives say validates President Trump's early statements on the drug, even as...

www.foxnews.com

Hydroxychloroquine helped save coronavirus patients, study shows; Trump campaign hails 'fantastic news'
Drug touted by Trump was mocked by media

By Gregg Re | Fox New

Hydroxychloroquine lowers COVID-19 death rate, Henry Ford Health study finds 4:32 min

Hydroxychloroquine lowers COVID-19 death rate, Henry Ford Health study finds

Researchers analyzed the health outcomes of 2,451 patents over a six month period; analysis from cardiologist Dr. Ramin Oskoui, CEO of Foxhall Cardiology.
Researchers at the Henry Ford Health System in Southeast Michigan have found that early administration of the drug hydroxychloroquine makes hospitalized patients substantially less likely to die.

The study, published in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases, determined that hydroxychloroquine provided a "66% hazard ratio reduction," and hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin a 71 percent reduction, compared to neither treatment.

In-hospital mortality was 18.1 percent overall; 13.5 percent with just hydroxychloroquine, 22.4 percent with azithromycin alone, and 26.4 percent with neither drug. "Prospective trials are needed" for further review, the researchers note, even as they concluded: "In this multi-hospital assessment, when controlling for COVID-19 risk factors, treatment with hydroxychloroquine alone and in combination with azithromycin was associated with reduction in COVID-19 associated mortality."

"Our results do differ from some other studies," Dr. Marcus Zervos, who heads the hospital's infectious diseases unit, said at a news conference. "What we think was important in ours ... is that patients were treated early. For hydroxychloroquine to have a benefit, it needs to begin before the patients begin to suffer some of the severe immune reactions that patients can have with COVID."

A statement from the Trump campaign hailed the study as "fantastic news."

"Fortunately, the Trump Administration secured a massive supply of hydroxychloroquine for the national stockpile months ago," a statement read. "Yet this is the same drug that the media and the Biden campaign spent weeks trying to discredit and spread fear and doubt around because President Trump dared to mention it as a potential treatment for coronavirus."

It added: "The new study from the Henry Ford Health System should be a clear message to the media and the Democrats: stop the bizarre attempts to discredit hydroxychloroquine to satisfy your own anti-Trump agenda. It may be costing lives."

The findings, conservatives said, highlighted efforts by media partisans to undermine confidence in the drug simply to undercut the president.

"So fewer people died because they took the drug @realDonaldTrump suggested.... Thank you, POTUS for doing the right thing even in the face of a DC culture attacking you no matter what you do," wrote former Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell.

The Federalist's Sean Davis added: "Media and incompetent corrupt government officials lied to you about social distancing. They lied to you about hydroxychloroquine. They lied to you about risks to children and the general population. They lied not to help you, but to control you, and they’re not going to stop."

At a March 19 White House briefing, Trump had remarked: "Now, a drug called chloroquine, and some people would add to it, hydroxychloroquine, so chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine ... [has] shown very encouraging, very, very encouraging early results." The president acknowledged that the drug may not "go as planned" and that more testing was needed, but that "we’re going to be able to make that drug available almost immediately."

https://twitter.com/RichardGrenell?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1279053982975971329%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fpolitics%2Fhydroxychloroquine-helped-save-coronavirus-study

That statement prompted immediate mockery from journalists.
"Trump peddles unsubstantiated hope in dark times," read a March 20 "analysis" by CNN's Stephen Collinson. Saying Trump was "adopting the audacity of false hope" and embracing "premature optimism," Collinson charged that "there's no doubt he overhyped the immediate prospects for the drug" because the FDA had not provided an explicit timeline on approving the drug to treat coronavirus.

The media onslaught continued. "Trump is giving people false hope of coronavirus cures. It’s all snake oil," read one Washington Post headline. Added the Post's editorial board: "Trump is spreading false hope for a virus cure -- and that’s not the only damage."

"The most promising answer to the pandemic will be a vaccine, and researchers are racing to develop one," the paper insisted, although it is not staffed with medical experts. "Mr. Trump’s inappropriate hype has already led to hoarding of hydroxychloroquine and diverted supplies from people with other maladies who need it. His comments are raising false hopes. Rather than roll the dice on an unproven therapy, let’s deposit our trust in the scientists."

President Donald Trump speaks during a visit to Fincantieri Marinette Marine, Thursday, June 25, 2020, in Marinette, Wis. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

USA Today's editorial board was similarly aggressive and mocking, writing, "Coronavirus treatment: Dr. Donald Trump peddles snake oil and false hope."

"There are no approved therapies or drugs to treat COVID-19 yet, but the president hypes preliminary chloroquine trials at White House briefing and unproven remedies on Twitter," the paper wrote, just days before the FDA would approve the drug.

Communications strategist Drew Holden flagged these and numerous other examples of media misinformation on the matter in a lengthy Twitter thread.

Salon, Holden noted, called Trump's hope in the new treatment his "most dangerous flim-flam: False hope and quack advice."

The New Yorker pondered "The Meaning of Donald Trump’s Coronavirus Quackery," observing that Trump's "pronouncements are a reminder, if one was needed, of his scorn for rigorous science, even amid the worst pandemic to hit the U.S. in a century."

https://twitter.com/seanmdav?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1279071283582550016%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fpolitics%2Fhydroxychloroquine-helped-save-coronavirus-study

Michael Cohen, a Boston Globe columnist, urged networks to stop airing Trump's coronavirus press briefings because he was spreading "misinformation" about a potential cure.

And, NBC News complained, "Trump, promoting unproven drug treatments, insults NBC reporter at coronavirus briefing."

The New York Times' Kurt Eichenwald reported that a "Louisiana MD" on the "front lines of the COVID-19 fight" had told him that "Hydroxychloroquine doesn't work" and that "amateurs who dont [sic] understand research" were driving up demand for the drug. ("Count me skeptical of your source here, Kurt," Holden wrote.)

Vox mocked Trump's "new favorite treatment" for the drug and said the evidence is "lacking" that it works.


The media retreated somewhat from this narrative as more positive evidence emerged.

"Malaria Drug Helps Virus Patients Improve, in Small Study," The New York Times reported in April, adding: "A group of moderately ill people were given hydroxychloroquine, which appeared to ease their symptoms quickly, but more research is needed."

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, went from threatening doctors who prescribed the drug with "administrative action" to requesting that the federal government ship her state some. Other state leaders have followed suit, including Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak, also a Democrat.

And, an international poll of thousands of doctors rated hydroxychloroquine the “most effective therapy” for coronavirus.

The Food and Drug Administration halted the emergency use authorization for the drug earlier this month, saying preliminary data showed it wasn't effective. Research into its possible applications to treat coronavirus, however, has continued.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

'We need to live with it': White House readies new message for the nation on coronavirus

The effort to craft a clearer response comes after months of Trump downplaying the health crisis and mixed signals from the administration.

www.nbcnews.com

(fair use applies)

'We need to live with it': White House readies new message for the nation on coronavirus
The effort to craft a clearer response comes after months of Trump downplaying the health crisis and mixed signals from the administration.
July 3, 2020, 5:28 PM EDT / Updated July 3, 2020, 5:34 PM EDT
By Carol E. Lee, Kristen Welker and Monica Alba

WASHINGTON — After several months of mixed messages on the coronavirus pandemic, the White House is settling on a new one: Learn to live with it.

Administration officials are planning to intensify what they hope is a sharper, and less conflicting, message of the pandemic next week, according to senior administration officials, after struggling to offer clear directives amid a crippling surge in cases across the country. On Thursday, the United States reported more than 55,000 new cases of coronavirus and infection rates were hitting new records in multiple states.

At the crux of the message, officials said, is a recognition by the White House that the virus is not going away any time soon — and will be around through the November election.

As a result, President Donald Trump's top advisers plan to argue, the country must figure out how to press forward despite it. Therapeutic drugs will be showcased as a key component for doing that and the White House will increasingly emphasize the relatively low risk most Americans have of dying from the virus, officials said.

For nearly six months the administration offered a series of predictions and pronouncements that never came to fruition. From Trump promising that "the problem goes away in April" and predicting "packed churches all over our country" on Easter Sunday to Vice President Mike Pence's claim that "by Memorial Day weekend we will have this coronavirus epidemic behind us" to Jared Kushner's pronouncement the country would be "really rocking again" by July because Americans were "on the other side of the medical aspect of this."

This all followed the White House's initial message in January that the virus wasn't a threat at all. Asked if he was worried about a pandemic, Trump said at the time, "It's one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. It's going to be just fine."

The message then morphed to the idea that the virus would be swiftly crushed by a robust federal response. "WE WILL WIN THIS WAR," Trump tweeted in March.

Soon after, the president demanded governors open up their states and said he had the authority to force them to do so. "LIBERATE MICHIGAN!" and "LIBERATE MINNESOTA!" and "LIBERATE VIRGINIA," he wrote on Twitter in April. Within days he decided to shift responsibility for the pandemic to the governors, saying, "The federal government will be watching them very closely and will be there to help in many different ways."

In recent weeks, the message has been that the country is back, face coverings and social distancing are optional, even as the number of coronavirus cases across the country surged.

"We have to get back to business. We have to get back to living our lives. Can't do this any longer," Trump said in an interview with Axios last month before his campaign rally in Tulsa, where almost no one socially distanced and few wore masks. "And I do believe it's safe. I do believe it's very safe." A number of Trump’s own campaign staffers and Secret Service agents contracted COVID-19 in Tulsa.

Eager to move forward and reopen the economy amid a recession and a looming presidential election, the White House is now pushing acceptance.

"The virus is with us, but we need to live with it," is how one official said the administration plans to message on the pandemic.

As often is the case with plans crafted for Trump by his aides, the question hanging over this effort is whether he will stick to the script. Trump said this week that he's "all for masks," after months of resisting pressure for him to embrace face coverings. Yet in that same interview with Fox Business on Wednesday, the president said the virus will "just disappear, I hope."

That's not the message senior administration officials said they're preparing, and some of the president's allies have cringed when he's talked in the past about the virus disappearing, only to then see it further spread.

Next week administration officials plan to promote a new study they say shows promising results on therapeutics, the officials said. They wouldn't describe the study in any further detail because, they said, its disclosure would be "market-moving."

Officials also plan to emphasize high survival rates, particularly for Americans who are within certain age groups and don't have underlying conditions. The overall death rate from COVID-19 in the U.S. has been on the decline. More than 130,000 Americans have died of the virus.

Trump is expected to be briefed by Dr. Deborah Birx, one of the most visible members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, before Monday on her assessment of new hot spots that she's visited this week, including what governors have said they need and how the new surge is affecting minority communities, officials said. Birx was in Florida, Texas and Arizona this week.

One of the officials indicated that coronavirus task force meetings and public briefings will be more frequent — a shift already underway this week. Those meetings and briefings were daily for much of March and April, but they tapered off when Trump pivoted to focusing on the need to reopen the economy. Nearly 20 million Americans are now jobless and the unemployment rate remains in the double digits, despite a record drop in the past month.

Recent public briefings from the task force, so far, have taken place outside the White House complex. Members of the coronavirus task force, led by Pence, have taken questions from reporters five times in five different places, ranging from the Department of Health and Human Services to various Sun Belt coronavirus hot spots.

One official said moving the briefing locations is an attempt to minimize questions from the White House press corps. Another said it was also designed to prevent Trump from being tempted to take over the briefings.

Some of Trump's allies had lamented that he was hurting himself politically by spending sometimes two hours at the podium sparring with reporters and often veering off topic, rather than conveying a specific message about the pandemic.

In recent days, however, Trump personally asked the task force to resume briefings but decided he would not participate in them, according to three White House officials.

The change comes as multiple recent national polls show Trump trailing presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

On Thursday, the president claimed that when Pence held a recent call with governors and asked the state executives what they might need, none of them requested federal assistance.

"Not one governor needed anything. They don't need anything. They have all the medical equipment they can have. Thank you, U.S. government," Trump said.

But as Pence has crisscrossed the country this week, visiting places with virus outbreaks such as Dallas, Phoenix and Tampa, he has been quick to note several requests from the governors of those states in real time. For example, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday expressed a desire to continue federal funding for testing sites in his state that was set at the end of June.

Pence agreed and promised to extend "that every bit as long as Texas wants us to," noting that "this is all hands on deck" during a press briefing with other members of the coronavirus task force.

In Arizona on Wednesday, Pence noted Gov. Doug Ducey requested additional medical personnel during their meeting and the vice president subsequently "instructed the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security to move out immediately on providing the additional doctors and nurses and technical personnel."

Throughout his travels, Pence has been accompanied by Birx, a trend that is expected to continue in the coming weeks, according to a person close to the task force.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, for his part, has been issuing dire warnings on the future of the pandemic from other perches. He testified on Capitol Hill this week that if current trends continue, Americans could see as many as 100,000 new cases daily.

In an interview with BBC Radio on Thursday, Fauci said: "What we've seen over the last several days is a spike in cases that are well beyond the worse spikes that we've seen. That is not good news, we've got to get that under control or we risk an even greater outbreak in the United States."

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Watching Pres Trump's event tonight I was wondering why Don Jr wasn't there. Now I see why:

Kimberly Guilfoyle, Top Fund-Raising Official for Trump Campaign, Tests Positive for Coronavirus (Published 2020)

She is the third person in proximity of President Trump known to have contracted the virus.

www.nytimes.com

(fair use applies)

Kimberly Guilfoyle, Top Fund-Raising Official for Trump Campaign, Tests Positive
She is the third person in proximity of President Trump known to have contracted the virus.
By Maggie Haberman
July 3, 2020 | Updated 10:32 p.m. ET

Kimberly Guilfoyle, the girlfriend of President Trump’s eldest son and a top fund-raising official for the Trump re-election campaign, tested positive for the coronavirus on Friday before a Fourth of July event at Mount Rushmore, a person familiar with her condition said.

Ms. Guilfoyle traveled to South Dakota with Mr. Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr., in anticipation of attending a huge fireworks display where the president was set to speak. They did not travel aboard Air Force One, according to the person familiar with her condition, and she was the only person in the group who tested positive.

As a routine precaution, people who come in close contact with Mr. Trump are screened for the virus.

Ms. Guilfoyle is the third person in possible proximity to Mr. Trump known to have contracted the virus. A personal valet who served Mr. Trump his food and the press secretary for Vice President Mike Pence tested positive for the virus in May.Ms. Guilfoyle was not experiencing symptoms, the person familiar with her condition said. She and the younger Mr. Trump never met up with the president’s entourage, the person said. Out of caution, the couple plans to drive back from South Dakota to the East Coast, the person said.

Still, that another person who was expected to be near Mr. Trump tested positive — and someone who most staff aides consider a member of the Trump family — is likely to renew attention around potential risks to the president.

Ms. Guilfoyle attended Mr. Trump’s indoor rally last month in Tulsa, Okla. Before and since then, some campaign staff and Secret Service personnel have tested positive for the coronavirus. Herman Cain, a former Republican presidential candidate who was also at the rally, said this week that he had been hospitalized with the virus.

Even as outbreaks have emerged in the South and West and as states across the country report a record number of cases each day, White House officials — and Mr. Trump in particular — have minimized their focus on the virus in public appearances. In an interview on Wednesday, the president indicated that he believed the virus was “going to sort of just disappear.”

The president’s aides recently modified protocols for people entering the White House grounds, abandoning routine temperature checks, for instance. They have counseled people experiencing symptoms typical of the coronavirus to stay away.

But people who come in proximity to Mr. Trump and Mr. Pence are still tested for the coronavirus.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Global coronavirus cases hit single-day record – latest updates

The global coronavirus pandemic has infected more than 11.4 million people and claimed over 533,000 lives. Here are updates for July 4:

cms.trtworld.com

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US marks record 57,683 new cases in 24 hours – latest updates
1 hour ago

The global coronavirus pandemic has infected more than 11.1 million people and claimed over 528,000 lives. Here are updates for July 4:

Saturday, July 4

US marks record 57,683 new cases in 24 hours

The US notched 57,683 Covid-19 cases in 24 hours, a tally by Johns Hopkins University showed, the third consecutive day with record numbers of new infections.

The Baltimore-based university's tracker showed the total number of cases since the pandemic reached the US at 2,793,022 as of 8:30 pm (0030 Saturday GMT).

The university also recorded a further 728 fatalities, bringing the total US death toll to 129,405.

The new record case count came as infections surge in southern and western states, and as the United States – the hardest-hit country in the world in the coronavirus pandemic – heads into the July Fourth holiday weekend.

Brazil surpasses 1.5 million cases

Brazil registered 42,223 additional coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the Health Ministry said, bringing the total tally to 1,539,081, the second-worst outbreak in the world behind the United States.

The number of coronavirus deaths rose by 1,290 to 63,174, according to the ministry.

Mexico registers 6,740 more infections

Mexico's health ministry reported 6,740 new confirmed coronavirus infections and 654 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 245,251 cases and 29,843 deaths.

The number of new cases was just one less than the record number reported on Thursday.

The government has said the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher than the confirmed cases.

Afghan president's top aide dies of Covid-19

Afghanistan's top presidential aide Yosuf Ghazanfar died of coronavirus on Friday night, an official confirmed.

Ghazanfar, who is also a leading businessman, was unwell for some time, said presidential spokesman Shah Hussein Murtazawi.

Earlier this year, local media reported that many people close to President Ashraf Ghani had tested positive for Covid-19.

These reports were not confirmed publicly by officials.

However, the presidential spokesman confirmed Ghani and the first lady had tested negative for the virus.

The death toll from Covid-19 has hit 807 in Afghanistan, with more than 32,000 cases and above 16,000 recoveries.

WHO urges focus on first wave of coronavirus

The World Health Organization’s emergencies chief says “we need to put up a fight now” during a peak in the current wave of the coronavirus pandemic — rather than focusing on when a second wave might come.

Dr. Michael Ryan said the world will be much better at fighting a second wave, if people can learn the lessons of fighting the first wave.

WHO officials emphasized mask-wearing, social distancing, and hygiene by individuals, along with contact-tracing and tracking of cases by health authorities as key strategies to fight the virus. They say governments and individuals should contour their policies and behaviour based on the outbreak’s status in their countries.

Ryan said the world was experiencing a “second peak in the first wave” — a situation in which the virus hasn’t been suppressed enough to quell transmission to end the first one.

Johnson 1st NASCAR driver to test positive

Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson has tested positive for the coronavirus and will miss this weekend's race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The 44-year-old Johnson is the first driver in any NASCAR series to test positive and the news Friday evening cast a shadow over the historic NASCAR-IndyCar doubleheader races coming up Saturday and Sunday. There was no indication any races would be affected.

Hendrick Motorsports said Johnson will not return until he is cleared by a physician.

He was tested earlier Friday after his wife, Chani, tested positive after experiencing allergy-like symptoms.

Father of MMA star Nurmagomedov dies

Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, the father and former trainer of Russian Mixed Martial Arts star Khabib Nurmagomedov has died at 57 after contracting coronavirus, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov announced.

The fighter's father was first hospitalised in April in his native North Caucasus region of Dagestan and was later transferred to a Moscow clinic.

Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov trained numerous champions in judo and the Russian martial arts discipline sambo.

He began teaching his son fighting moves from the age of three, Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid reported.

In 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin had a televised meeting with Khabib Nurmagomedov and his father, saying that the fighter did not deserve harsh punishment for a post-fight brawl.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

New Orleans sees most new COVID-19 cases since April 20

The Louisiana Department of Health announced 1,728 new COVID-19 cases on Friday. The number in Orleans Parish passed 8,000 (8,031).

www.fox8live.com

(fair use applies)

New Orleans sees most new COVID-19 cases since April 20
By Chris Finch
July 3, 2020 at 12:41 PM CDT - Updated July 3 at 12:56 PM

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - The Louisiana Department of Health announced 1,728 new COVID-19 cases on Friday. The number in Orleans Parish passed 8,000 (8,031).

City leaders said 71 cases is the most in one day since April 20.

“We’re very concerned,” the city said in a text message update.

Most new cases in today’s report are from the following parishes:

Lafayette: 173
Jefferson: 162
East Baton Rouge: 153
Calcasieu: 148
Caddo: 78
Livingston: 77
Orleans: 71
St. Tammany: 69
Tangipahoa: 68
Rapides: 56

Hospitalization number have gone up for the past eight days. There were 12 new ones on Friday. This is the longest consecutive increase of hospitalizations in the state since April.

The report of 1,728 cases out of 16,768 tests is a 10.3% positive rate - a rate that hasn’t been seen in Louisiana since May 8, before Phase 1. The seven day average is about 8.5%.

“The vast majority of cases are from the past week and 98% of these cases are connected to spread in communities, rather than congregate settings like nursing homes,” Gov. John Bel Edwards said.

The state said there will not be an update on July 4.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Washington sees second-highest growth in COVID-19 cases one day after setting record

Just one day after setting a new single-day record in COVID-19 cases health officials reported Washington's second-highest growth as the state continues its upward trend. The Washington State Department of Health reported an additional 627 COVID-19 cases, marking the state's second-highest mark...

komonews.com

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Washington sees second-highest growth in COVID-19 cases one day after setting record
by KOMO News Staff
Friday, July 3rd 2020

Just one day after setting a new single-day record in COVID-19 cases health officials reported Washington's second-highest growth as the state continues its upward trend.

The Washington State Department of Health reported an additional 627 COVID-19 cases, marking the state's second-highest mark over a one day period.

There are 34,778 cases and 1,352 deaths, up 10 from Thursday, due to the deadly virus, according to the state's newest numbers.

Washington has now reported over 600 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 each of the past four days. Prior to June, the state never exceeded over 600 confirmed cases in a day.

State health officials said 21 more people were hospitalized with a COVID-19 infection in the past 24 hours, putting the state's total at 4,263.

Governor Jay Inslee announced a series of new steps Thursday designed to curb a resurging coronavirus, including expanding an order that will allow businesses statewide to refuse service to customers who are not wearing face coverings.

"It is a reasonable expectation for businesses to enforce this law," Inslee said. "This order gives employers an added measure of protection."

The governor had earlier issued a no mask, no service order, but it had only applied to Yakima County, which has been struggling to contain the coronavirus. His new order will now apply statewide, he said, but customers who have an underlying medical condition that could be worsened by wearing a face mask will be exempt from the order.

State officials have tested 599,975 people for COVID-19, with a positive test registering six percent of the time.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Houston hospitals forced to transfer patients out of city as COVID-19 cases soar

Houston has become so overwhelmed by new coronavirus cases that its hospitals are reportedly shipping patients to facilities outside the city. With infections soaring across the state, Harris Healt…

nypost.com

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Houston hospitals forced to transfer patients out of city as COVID-19 cases soar
By Vincent Barone
July 2, 2020 | 8:29pm | Updated

Houston has become so overwhelmed by new coronavirus cases that its hospitals are reportedly shipping patients to facilities outside the city.

With infections soaring across the state, Harris Health Systems, the operators of Houston’s Ben Taub and LBJ hospitals, have had to transfer 33 of its patients to a network of other care centers over the course of 24 hours Tuesday, ABC News reports.

The transfers include COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients. And at least another 15 patients were slated to be transferred Wednesday, with patients according to the outlet.

“We’re running out of ICU beds,” Bryan McLeod, a spokesman for Harris Health Systems, told ABC News.

Texas has the third-most coronavirus cases in the country as officials there grapple with a dramatic spike in infections and hospitalizations that began in mid-June, after the state started reopening May 1.

The state documented more than 9,300 new coronavirus cases Wednesday, a new record, after setting new daily highs nearly every day since June 16.

More people are also getting severely ill, too, with 7,382 coronavirus-related hospitalizations reported statewide — more than quadruple the number hospitalized at the end of May.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott had pushed an aggressive reopening and insisted on carrying ahead with those plans last month as cases started to climb.

Abbott had at first resisted a face mask requirement and had blocked cities from issuing their own mandates when he began reopening the state, arguing that government couldn’t force people to wear masks.

But the governor reversed course Thursday, signing an executive order mandating face coverings must be worn in public settings across most of the state.

“We are now at a point where the virus is spreading so fast, there is little margin for error,” Abbott said.

The order requires “all Texans to wear a face covering over the nose and mouth in public spaces in counties with 20 or more positive COVID-19 cases, with few exceptions.”

Violators of the order can be fined up to $250. Exceptions are made for those with medical conditions or disabilities; people who are exercising outdoors, or anyone participating in a religious service or voting in an election.

Abbott, who has faced harsh criticism from both Republicans and Democrats over his handling of the virus, last week ordered bars to close again and limited indoor dining to half-capacity of establishments.

“We have the ability to keep businesses open and move our economy forward so that Texans can continue to earn a paycheck, but it requires each of us to do our part to protect one another — and that means wearing a face covering in public spaces,” Abbott said.

If residents follow the rules, “more extreme measures may be avoided,” he added.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

1 in 4 Houston Residents Testing Positive for COVID-19 Amid Texas Outbreak

Houston's test-positivity ratio for the novel coronavirus reached nearly 25 percent on Thursday, according to data published by the city's health department.

www.newsweek.com

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1 in 4 Houston Residents Testing Positive for COVID-19 Amid Texas Outbreak
By Emily Czachor
7/3/20 at 12:45 PM EDT

Houston's Health Department reported Friday that nearly 1 in 4 residents are now testing positive for the novel coronavirus, as Texas sees an ongoing surge in new cases and subsequent hospitalizations related to the respiratory illness.

According to data released by the health department, Houston's test-positivity ratio reached nearly 25 percent on Thursday, July 2, up from 15 percent reported one month earlier. Test positivity rates measure the number of diagnostic COVID-19 tests confirming presence of infection against the total number of tests administered during a designated period of time. The ratio offers a clearer picture of virus transmission in a given area than standalone case counts do, since health officials across the country have ramped up distribution of diagnostic tests since regions began to reopen.

Newsweek reached out to the Houston Health Department for comments but did not receive a reply in time for publication.

STEADY INCREASE The percentage of Houstonians testing positive for #COVID19 continues to climb. ​

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Together, we can reverse the trend by wearing masks, social distancing, washing hands and getting tested. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Updates – City of Houston Emergency Operations Center #StopTheSpread #ProtectTheH pic.twitter.com/bbv7nEDbLf​

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— Houston Health Dept (@HoustonHealth) July 2, 2020​

Harris County, where Houston is located, has reported the highest concentration of COVID-19 cases compared to all other Texas regions. Additional data published by the Texas Medical Center, an expansive hospital network based in Houston, shows its latest test-positivity ratio is higher than those seen previously during the pandemic.

Figures released by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) note a slight decrease in statewide test-positivity rates since June 27, when its 7-day average ratio showed 14 percent of tests distributed returned positive. That statistic marked Texas' highest test-positivity rate to date.

Most cities currently reporting COVID-19 spikes saw milder outbreak statistics during the first three months of the pandemic, prompting earlier economic recovery strategies that, in some areas, were rolled back recently. New York—and New York City, in particular—was considered the United States' viral epicenter throughout March, April and May. During an especially severe stretch of April, now regarded as the peak of its outbreak curve, New York confirmed thousands of new virus cases and hundreds of deaths per day. The majority were confirmed within New York City's five boroughs.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has warned that his state's outbreak statistics foreshadowed others that would surface later in different parts of the U.S. While that would eventually prove true, the latest data from hard-hit cities like Houston, which is currently experiencing its peak of COVID-19 infections, show fewer people are testing positive for the virus than they were in New York City two months ago.

Of cities across the U.S. currently reporting peaks, Texas metro areas have reported the nation's highest test-positivity rates, according to Austin-based ABC affiliated news station KVUE. Still, they remain considerably lower than test-positivity figures seen in New York City during the height of its outbreak.

Ongoing test-positivity data published by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene shows ratios between 30 and 66 percent reported daily throughout the first three weeks of April. The largest portion of tests administered citywide returned positive on March 28, with 71 percent confirming presence of COVID-19 infections. New York City's daily test-positivity rate fell to 19 percent by May 1 and has steadily declined since then. Most recent figures published by the health department indicate daily rates were below 3 percent positive throughout June.


Close to 178,000 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus throughout Texas as of Friday, July 3. Nearly 33,000 of them were diagnosed within the boundaries of Harris County, according to the Texas DSHS. More than 100,000 of the state's total cases were diagnosed over the past month, as Texas health officials recorded several record daily increases in new infections. Its latest record was confirmed on Wednesday, June 1, with more than 8,000 new cases.

Texas' overall virus count is the nation's third-highest total, behind New York and California. As of Friday, July 3, New York had diagnosed close to 400,000 cases, according to Johns Hopkins University's tracker. Roughly half of them were diagnosed within New York City, according to the city's health department.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Iowa coronavirus cases jump 389; total approaches 30,500 to date

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- State health officials say the number of confirmed positive coronavirus cases identified in Iowa increased by 389 Friday, bringing the state's total known positive cases to nearly 30,500. Three more COVID-19 deaths also were reported Friday, bringing the state's total to...

ktvo.com

(fair use applies)


Iowa coronavirus cases jump 389; total approaches 30,500 to date
by Associated Press
Friday, July 3rd 2020

State health officials say the number of confirmed positive coronavirus cases identified in Iowa increased by 389 Friday, bringing the state's total known positive cases to nearly 30,500.

Three more COVID-19 deaths also were reported Friday, bringing the state's total to 720 since the outbreak began.

Iowa Department of Public Health data indicates positive case numbers had been in decline since peaking in early May but began a slow climb again around mid-June.

That's about two weeks after Gov. Kim Reynolds reopened bars and restaurants and relaxed other restrictions on social activities.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

https://www.centredaily.com/news/business/article243986392.html

(fair use applies)

Kansas sees worst 2-week COVID-19 spike since pandemic began
By JOHN HANNA
July 03, 2020 07:19 PM

Kansas reported another big increase in confirmed coronavirus cases Friday, capping its worst two-week spike since the pandemic began and coming as a statewide mask mandate from the governor took effect.

The state Department of Health and Environment reported that Kansas has had 15,919 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, up 929, or 6.2% since only Wednesday. Kansas also has reported 277 COVID-19-related deaths, up five in two days.

Gov. Laura Kelly issued an executive order Thursday requiring people to wear masks in public and in their workplaces because of a surge in cases, and it took effect at 12:01 a.m. Friday. She and her top public health administrator said that if the state doesn’t reverse the surge, it won’t be safe to reopen public schools for the state’s 519,000 K-12 students in August.

Kansas reported an average of 276 new coronavirus cases a day over the past two weeks — the largest 14-day average since the state confirmed its first case March 7. The previous peak was 271 on May 11.

Kelly called the surge in cases in Kansas and across the nation “alarming," adding in an emailed statement, “Until there is a vaccine, masks are our best defense to help keep our families and neighbors healthy and keep Kansas open for business.”

The state released its latest figures shortly before the City Council in Wichita, Kansas’ largest city, met to consider a mask requirement. It voted 4-3 to impose a mandate.

Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple pushed for rule for the city a day after its home county rejected a mandate. The Sedgwick County Commission voted 3-2 on Thursday to strongly recommend but not require that local residents follow Kelly’s order.

“I would have been a bad mayor if we didn't do everything we could to protect our city," Whipple said as the council's nearly four-hour meeting concluded.

Kansas has reported an increase of 6,701, or nearly 73% in confirmed coronavirus cases since Kelly lifted statewide restrictions on businesses and public gatherings on May 26. The Democratic governor's decision left the decision on the rules to the state's 105 counties and came after weeks of complaints from the Republican-controlled Legislature that she was moving too slowly to reopen the state's economy.

Kelly's mask order comes with no criminal penalties for people who don't wear masks, but violators face a potential civil fine of up to $2,500 if local prosecutors decide to go to court. She and other state officials don't expect the order to be vigorously enforced but hope it will encourage people to wear masks.

Whipple was a Democratic Kansas House member before being elected mayor last year. Among the biggest critics of Kelly's mask order are two conservative Republican legislative leaders from Wichita, Senate President Susan Wagle and House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins.

During their meeting Thursday afternoon, several Sedgwick County commissioners questioned whether a mask mandate could be enforced and suggested that educating residents about the importance of wearing masks would be the better tactic.

“No one wants to be the mask police,” said Commissioner David Dennis, a Republican.

Johnson County and Wyandotte counties in the Kansas City area are mandating mask wearing, as is Douglas County in northeast Kansas, home to the main University of Kansas campus.

Counties can opt out of Kelly's mask order under a new pandemic law that took effect in June and resulted from a compromise between Kelly and lawmakers. But the state constitution gives cities broad power to set their own policies, independent of counties or the state.

Nearly 76% of Sedgwick County’s 516,000 residents, some 399,000 people, live in Wichita. The county’s confirmed coronavirus cases have nearly tripled since May 26, from 537 to 1,564, with 196 new reported cases in the past two days alone.

The governor’s order says Kansas residents must wear masks in indoor public spaces, while seeking health care or using public transportation. It also says people must wear them outdoors in public when they can’t remain at least 6 feet (1.8 meters) from others.

Businesses must require employees to wear masks in places frequented by the public or if they prepare food.

The requirement would not apply to children under 6, the deaf, or people with medical conditions that make breathing through a mask difficult or who can’t remove a mask without assistance.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

119 positive cases of coronavirus reported at Idaho State Correctional Center

The Idaho Department of Correction says there have been a total of 119 positive cases of coronavirus at the Idaho State Correctional Center after a mass testing event. Prison officials say there are 12 inmates who are positive and have symptoms of COVID-19. The remaining 107, have been...

idahonews.com

(fair use applies)


119 positive cases of coronavirus reported at Idaho State Correctional Center
by CBS2 News Staff
Friday, July 3rd 2020

The Idaho Department of Correction says there have been a total of 119 positive cases of coronavirus at the Idaho State Correctional Center after a mass testing event.

Prison officials say there are 12 inmates who are positive and have symptoms of COVID-19. The remaining 107, have been asymptomatic positive. The final testing results are expected by Monday.

A total of 36 staff members have also tested positive. IDOC says it's planning a testing event for all employees.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

July 3 data: 5 deaths, 596 new cases of COVID-19 in Utah ahead of July Fourth weekend

Five more people have died from coronavirus in Utah as the state recorded 596 new cases on Friday. The Utah Department of Health reports 10,250 tests were administered, bringing the total number to 356,636 since the pandemic began in mid-March. With almost 600 new cases, the state's daily...

kutv.com

(fair use applies)

July 3 data: 5 deaths, 596 new cases of COVID-19 in Utah ahead of July Fourth weekend
by McKenzie Stauffer
Friday, July 3rd 2020

Five more people have died from coronavirus in Utah as the state recorded 596 new cases on Friday.

The Utah Department of Health reports 10,250 tests were administered, bringing the total number to 356,636 since the pandemic began in mid-March. With almost 600 new cases, the state's daily positive test rate is set at 5.8% Twenty-four more people were hospitalized.

Of the 23,866 confirmed cases in the state, 13,408 are considered recovered.

Utah's coronavirus data, as of Friday:

181 deaths
1,529 hospitalizations
356,636 tests
23,866 cases
13,408 recovered

As the Fourth of July nears, local leaders have urged Utahns to continue to practice physical distancing and wear face coverings.

Gov. Gary Herbert urged the community to celebrate safely.

"While we celebrate this weekend, let's do so safely. COVID-19 has changed how we interact & celebrate," he posted on Twitter.

Gather in smaller groups, hold events outside, practice physical distancing, and use masks. Be especially careful around older family members and those at higher risk.​

Many firework displays and parades are canceled across the U.S. heading into the Fourth of July weekend as authorities warn that this will be a crucial test of Americans' self-control that could determine the trajectory of the surging coronavirus outbreak, the Associated Press reported.

With 40 out of 50 states have confirmed rising cases, governors have ordered the wearing of masks in public. Families have been urged to celebrate Independence Day at home and to keep their backyard cookouts small.

Health experts say this weekend will be a pivotal moment in determining if the nation slides into a deeper mess, fearing crowded pool parties, picnics and parades will fuel the surge.

The U.S. set another record Friday with 52,300 newly reported cases, according to Johns Hopkins University. Arizona, California, Florida and Texas have been hit especially hard.

The U.S. has the most cases of coronavirus than any other country, recording 2,753,754. Brazil is second with 1,496,858 and Russia is third with less than 700,000 cases.

More than 552,000 people have died worldwide from COVID-19. America is also leading the world with the highest death toll of 128,871. Brazil is second with 61,884 lives lost.

UTAH CUMULATIVE COVID-19 CASES BY WEEK -- WEEKLY INCREASE

Sun., March 15 — 28 -- 28
Sun., March 22 — 181 -- 153
Sun., March 29 — 719 -- 538
Sun., April 5 — 1,605 -- 886
Sun., April 12 — 2,303 -- 698
Sun., April 19 — 3,069 -- 766
Sun., April 26 — 3,948 -- 879
Sun., May 3 — 5,175 -- 1,227
Sun., May 10 — 6,251 -- 1,076
Sun., May 17 – 7,238 -- 987
Sun., May 24 – 8,392 -- 1,154
Sun., May 31 – 9,797 -- 1,405
Sun., June 7 – 12,066 -- 2, 269
Sun., June 14 - 14,313 -- 2,247
Sun., June 21 — 17,462 — 3,149
Sun., June 28 – 21,100 – 3,638

UTAH CUMMULATIVE COVID-19 CASES BY DAY

Fri. March 13 — 5
Sat. March 14 — 12
Sun., March 15 — 28
Mon., March 16 — 39
Tue., March 17 — 51
Wed., March 18 — 63
Thur., March 19 — 78
Fri., March 20 — 112
Sun., March 22 — 181
Mon., March 23 — 257
Tue., March 24 — 298
Wed., March 25 — 346
Thurs., March 26 — 402
Fri., March 27 — 480
Sat., March 28 — 602
Sun., March 29 — 719
Mon., March 30 — 806
Tue., March 31 — 887
Wed., April 1 — 1,012
Thurs., April 2 — 1,074
Fri., April 3 — 1,246
Sat., April 4 — 1,428
Sun., April 5 — 1,605
Mon., April 6 — 1,675
Tue., April 7 — 1,738
Wed., April 8 — 1,846
Thur., April 9 — 1,976
Fri., April 10 — 2,102
Sat., April 11 — 2,206
Sun., April 12 — 2,303
Mon., April 13 — 2,363
Tues., April 14 — 2,412
Wed., April 15 — 2,542
Thur., April 16 — 2,683
Fri., April 17 — 2,805
Sat., April 18 — 2,931
Sun., April 19 — 3,069
Mon., April 20 — 3,213
Tues., April 21 -- 3,296
Wed., April 22 — 3,445
Thur., April 23 — 3,612
Fri., April 24 — 3,782
Sat., April 25 — 3,948
Sun., April 26 — 4,123
Mon., April 27 — 4,233
Tue., April 28 — 4,343
Wed., April 29 — 4,495
Thurs., April 30 — 4,672
Fri., May 1 — 4,828
Sat., May 2 — 4,981
Sun., May 3 — 5,175
Mon., May 4 — 5,317
Tue., May 5 — 5,449
Wed., May 6 — 5,595
Thur., May 7 — 5,724
Fri., May 8 – 5,919
Sat., May 9 – 6,103
Sun., May 10 – 6,251
Mon., May 11 — 6,362
Tue., May 12 — 6,432
Wed., May 13 — 6,620
Thur., May 14 — 6.749
Fri., May 15 — 6,913
Sat., May 16 – 7,068
Sun., May 17 – 7,238
Mon., May 18 — 7,384
Tue., May 19 — 7,518
Wed. May 20 — 7,710
Thur., May 21 — 7,874
Fri., May 22 —8,057
Sat. May 23 — 8,260
Sun. May 24— 8,392
Mon. May, 25 —8,521
Tue. May, 26 —8,6,20
Wed., May 27 — 8,706
Thurs., May 28 -- 8,921
Fri., May 29 -- 9,264
Sat., May 30 -- 9,533
Sun., May 31 -- 9,797
Mon., June 1 -- 9,999
Tue., June 2 — 10,202
Wed., June 3 -- 10,497
Thurs., June 4 -- 10,813
Fri., June 5 — 11,252
Sat., June 6 — 11,798
Sun., June 7 — 12,066
Mon. June 8 — 12,322
Tue., June 9 — 12,559
Wed., June 10 -- 12,864
Thurs., June 11 -- 13,252
Fri., June 12 -- 13,577
Sat., June 13 -- 13,981
Sun., June 14 -- 14,313
Mon., June 15 -- 14,608
Tue., June 16 -- 14,937
Wed., June 17 — 15,344
Thur., June 18 — 15,839
Fri., June 19 — 16,425
Sat., June 20 — 17,068
Sun., June 21 — 17,462
Mon., June 22 — 17,906
Tue., June 23 — 18,300
Wed., June 24 —18,784
Thur., June 25 — 19,374
Fri., June 26 — 20,050
Sat., June 27 — 20,628
Sun., June 28 — 21,100
Mon., June 29 — 21,664
Tues., June 30 -- 22,217
Wed., July 1 — 22,716
Thur. July 2 — 23,270
Fri. July 3 -- 23,866

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Oregon records second day of 300-plus coronavirus cases

It was the second-highest daily count. The state set a record Thursday with 375 daily cases.

www.oregonlive.com

(fair use applies)

Oregon records second day of 300-plus coronavirus cases
By Margaret Haberman
Updated Jul 03, 2020; Posted Jul 03, 2020

New daily coronavirus cases in Oregon topped 300 Friday for the second consecutive day, fueled by infections in Multnomah, Umatilla, Washington and Marion counties.

The Oregon Health Authority reported 344 new confirmed and presumptive cases, bringing the state total to 9,636.

It was the second-highest daily count since the state’s outbreak began in February. The state set a record Thursday with 375 daily cases, eclipsing 281 the day before. The health authority reported no new deaths, with the toll remaining at 209.

Twenty-eight of Oregon’s 36 counties reported new cases: Benton (7), Clackamas (22), Clatsop (1), Columbia (3), Coos (1), Crook (1), Deschutes (9), Douglas (1), Jackson (9), Jefferson (5), Josephine (3), Klamath (2), Lake (1), Lane (16), Lincoln (18), Linn (2), Malheur (20), Marion (32), Morrow (10), Multnomah (59), Polk (5), Sherman (1), Tillamook (1), Umatilla (49), Union (8), Wasco (10), Washington (46) and Yamhill (1).

Gov. Kate Brown on Friday also identified eight rural counties as hot spots and placed them on a “watch list”: Jefferson, Lake, Lincoln, Malheur, Morrow, Umatilla, Union, Wasco. State and local health officials will monitor them and send additional unspecified resources to try to stop spread of the disease, the health authority said in a statement.

Those counties have recorded the state’s highest rates of “sporadic” transmission from mid-June through the beginning of July, the health authority said. That means cases that don’t have a clear link to other cases or outbreaks “and therefore indicate that the virus is spreading uncontained in a community,” the agency said in a statement.

Umatilla County has been hit particularly hard. About 240 county residents caught the virus from an unknown source in that period state data shows. While Multnomah County had more such cases with about 290, its rate per 100,000 people was far lower: 37 “sporadic spread” cases per 100,000 people to Umatilla County’s 313.

More than half of the state’s new cases for the week ending June 27 have no clear link to other cases, according to state data.

Despite the rising case counts and concern that health officials don’t know how the virus is spreading in some of the counties, Oregon still has lower per capita coronavirus case and death counts than most states, according to a New York Times database.

Only Vermont, Alaska, West Virginia and Montana have reported fewer cases per 100,000 people than Oregon, and only Wyoming, Montana, Alaska and Hawaii have reported fewer deaths, according to The Times.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Ohio sees third-straight day of more than 1,000 daily COVID-19 cases

Ohio is continuing a streak of more than 1,000 daily cases as the Ohio Department of Health reported 1,091 new COVID-19 cases Friday, bringing the total number of cases in the state to 55,257.

www.news5cleveland.com

(fair use applies)

Ohio sees third-straight day of more than 1,000 daily COVID-19 cases
By: News 5 Staff
Posted at 3:50 PM, Jul 03, 2020 | updated 3:50 PM, Jul 03, 2020



Ohio is continuing a streak of more than 1,000 daily cases as the Ohio Department of Health reported 1,091 new COVID-19 cases Friday, bringing the total number of cases in the state to 55,257.

The surge in cases has now been over 1,000 each day for the last three days. The 21-day average now sits at 706.

There have been a total of 2,903 COVID-19-related deaths to date with 17 new deaths reported Friday, slightly under the 21-day average of 19.

Both hospitalizations and ICU admissions were down significantly from the 21-day averages. On Friday, 46 new COVID-19 hospitalizations were reported, down from the 21-day average of 60. There were 9 new ICU admissions across the state, down from the 21-day average of 14.

To date, there have been 8,084 hospitalizations and 2,044 ICU admissions across the state of Ohio.

Of those who have tested positive for COVID-19 in Ohio, 13% have been healthcare workers.

Additional Coronavirus information and resources:

The Ohio Department of Health released the number of presumed recoveries in the state, with 39,423 people recovered from COVID-19 to date.

On Thursday, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted said the state would be adding the recovery metric to its database. He said to get that number, the state takes the total number of cases and subtracts the number of deaths and bases that on data over the last 21 days. Husted said that after working with the data and health officials, they have deemed that to be an accurate number based on those factors.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

July 3 COVID-19 update: Tennessee reports record-breaking one-day increase in cases

The Tennessee Department of Health has reported 1,822 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the state's total to 48,712.

www.newschannel5.com

(fair use applies)

July 3 COVID-19 update: Tennessee reports record-breaking one-day increase in cases
By: Laken Bowles
Posted at 9:38 AM, Jul 03, 2020 | updated 3:09 PM, Jul 03, 2020

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Tennessee Department of Health has reported 1,822 additional cases of COVID-19, making it a record-breaking one-day increase in cases.

The previous record was set two days ago when the state added 1,806 new cases. Friday's numbers brings the state's total number of cases to 48,712.

Of those total cases, 48,344 are confirmed and 368 are probable. TDOH officials said 633 deaths have been reported, with 608 of those being confirmed and 25 being probable.

The total COVID-19 case count for Tennessee is now 48,712 as of July 3, 2020 including 633 deaths, 2,825 hospitalizations and 29,591 recovered. For additional data, go to Novel Coronavirus. pic.twitter.com/pIlJwv1RZB​

— TN Dept. of Health (@TNDeptofHealth) July 3, 2020​

The department reported 2,825 hospitalizations and said 29,591 have recovered.

Earlier in the day, Metro Public Health officials reported 358 additional cases in the past 24 hours.

Including both confirmed and probable cases, MPHD officials announced a total of 11,114 cases. Of those, 11,101 are confirmed cases and 13 are probable.

Probable cases refer to those that do not test positive in a diagnostic test but might have tested positive in a different form of test like an antibody or serologic test. Probable cases also could refer to cases that were never tested but exhibited the factors consistent with a COVID-19 infection, like symptoms and close contacts of confirmed cases.

Metro officials said an additional confirmed death has been reported, a 59-year-old woman with underlying health conditions.

As of Friday, 109 people in Davidson County have died after a confirmed case of COVID-19. Including both confirmed and probable cases, 112 deaths have been attributed to the virus.

The cases range in age from 1 month to 102 years. So far, 7,604 individuals have recovered.

Metro Health officials also released the following data:

Available hospital beds: 22 percent
Available ICU beds: 19 percent

The MPHD COVID-19 Hotline received 258 calls on Thursday, July 2, 2020.

Total number of cases: 11,114
Cases reported in the past 24 hours: 358

Cases by sex
Male: 5,820
Female: 5,051
Unknown: 243

Total cases by age
Unknown 1,323
0-10 482
11-20 960
21-30 2,548
31-40 2,048
41-50 1,520
51-60 1,094
61-70 596
71-80 321
81+ 222
Total 11,114
Recovered 7,604
Deaths 112
Total active cases 3,398

On Thursday, Metro reported 608 additional cases, marking its highest single-case count. Nashville Mayor John Cooper said the city would return to a modified Phase Two.

Latest update from @TNDeptofHealth: 660 Tennesseans currently hospitalized with confirmed #COVID19 - more than any other time during the pandemic and the growth is dramatic. @NC5 pic.twitter.com/BfKHAxgz3z​

— Phil Williams (@NC5PhilWilliams) July 3, 2020​

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Georgia reporting more than 2,500 new COVID-19 cases, nearly 80 additional deaths in 1 day

The Department of Public Health in Georgia is now reporting nearly 198,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state.

www.wjcl.com

(fair use applies)


CORONAVIRUS IN GEORGIA: State passes 90,000 cases as nearly 3,000 new cases reported
The Department of Public Health in Georgia is now reporting more than 90,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state.
Graham Cawthon
July 3 2020

The Department of Public Health in Georgia is now reporting more than 90,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state.

As of Thursday afternoon, there were 90,493 reported cases in the state. That's an increase of 2,784 new cases in the past day.

Georgia is also reporting 2,856 deaths, and 11,653 hospitalizations.

Gwinnett County has the most positive cases in the state with 9,085. That's followed by Fulton with 7,913 and DeKalb County with 6,381 cases. See the list here.

As of 3 p.m., July 3rd, there have been 3,424 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in residents of the Coastal Health District and 54 deaths.

Cases by county:

Bryan: 147 cases, 5 deaths
Camden: 170 cases, 2 deaths
Chatham: 1,647 cases, 37 deaths
Effingham: 175 cases, 1 death
Glynn: 1,040 cases, 6 deaths
Liberty: 139 cases, 1 death
Long: 51 cases, 1 death
McIntosh: 55 cases, 1 death

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[Heliobas Disciple]

65 New Cases of COVID-19 in North Dakota

The North Dakota Department of Health has released updated COVID-19 numbers for the state.

www.valleynewslive.com

(fair use applies)

65 New Cases of COVID-19 in North Dakota
21 new cases in Burleigh County
Published: Jul. 3, 2020 at 12:11 PM EDT|Updated: 12 hours ago

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - The North Dakota Department of Health is reporting 65 new cases of COVID-19 in the state.

The majority of the new cases were found in Burleigh County, who reported 21 positive test results.

Cass County reported 18 while Grand Forks County had 7.

No new deaths have been linked to the illness, meaning that the death toll still sits at 80.

There are currently 20 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 while 3,266 people are listed as recovered.

There are 376 active cases in the state.

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[Heliobas Disciple]

Alabama adds staggering 1,758 coronavirus cases since yesterday

The latest coronavirus case numbers.

www.al.com

(fair use applies)

Alabama adds staggering 1,758 coronavirus cases since yesterday
Leada Gore
Updated Jul 03, 2020; Posted Jul 03, 2020

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Alabama continues to skyrocket.

The Alabama Department of Public Health’s July 3 10 a.m. numbers show 41,362 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 1,758 per day, a record high. The 7-day average of cases is now a record 1,092. Hospitalizations rose to their highest level, too, reaching 843.

There have been 983 deaths, up 22 from yesterday. ADPH said 430,128 people have been tested with 22,082 recoveries.

The following are the county-by-county case totals. The number in parenthesis is the increase from the previous report:

Autauga – 560 (+7)

Baldwin – 828 (+93)

Barbour – 345 (+12)

Bibb – 186 (+10)

Blount – 226 (+8)

Bullock – 367 (+3)

Butler – 623 (+16)

Calhoun – 322 (+42)

Chambers – 612 (+12)

Cherokee – 85 (+6)

Chilton – 228 (+13)

Choctaw – 195 (+3)

Clarke – 272 (+4)

Clay – 62 (+1)

Cleburne – 36 (+5)

Coffee – 370 (+11)

Colbert – 383 (+6)

Conecuh – 197 (+11)

Coosa – 58 (+1)

Covington – 343 (+11)

Crenshaw – 125 (+1)

Cullman – 435 (+24)

Dale – 268 (+6)

Dallas – 868 (+27)

DeKalb – 694 (+53)

Elmore – 864 (+28)

Escambia – 332 (+39)

Etowah – 707 (+63)

Fayette – 67

Franklin – 878 (+15)

Geneva – 78 (+8)

Greene – 183 (+5)

Hale – 306 (+7)

Henry – 131 (+1)

Houston – 461 (+15)

Jackson – 263 (+11)

Jefferson – 4,802 (+270)

Lamar – 75 (+4)

Lauderdale – 473 (+16)

Lawrence – 105 (+5)

Lee – 1,302 (+57)

Limestone – 466 (+37)

Lowndes – 463 (+5)

Macon – 181 (+4)

Madison – 1,271 (+167)

Marengo – 300 (+1)

Marion – 214 (+8[LG1] )

Marshall – 1,680 (+58)

Mobile – 3,904 (+107)

Monroe – 231 (+26)

Montgomery – 3,947 (+72)

Morgan – 1,047 (+27)

Perry – 162 (+8)

Pickens – 222 (+5)

Pike – 417 (+10)

Randolph – 201 (+13)

Russell – 519 (+16)

St. Clair – 347 (+28)

Shelby – 1,176 (+67)

Sumter – 284 (+4)

Talladega – 300 (+18)

Tallapoosa – 583 (+11)

Tuscaloosa – 2,188 (+81)

Walker – 905 (+34)

Washington – 104 (+2)

Wilcox – 289 (+5)

Winston – 247 (+9)

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[Heliobas Disciple]

NEW: State reports nearly 1K additional COVID-19 cases, new record set for daily testing

State reports nearly 1K additional COVID-19 cases, new record set for daily testing

www.8newsnow.com

(fair use applies)

NEW: State reports nearly 1K additional COVID-19 cases, new record set for daily testing
Posted: Jul 3, 2020 / 09:20 AM PDT | Updated: Jul 3, 2020 / 09:59 AM PDT

Nevada is reporting nearly 1,000 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.

The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is reporting 985 new COVID-19 cases and three new COVID-19-related deaths across the state. This is the second-highest, single-day increase in cases for Nevada, according to DHHS data.

There are now 20,718 confirmed cases and 528 deaths in the state.

Nevada has reported its five largest single-day increases for COVID-19 case in the past week. Its biggest jump was 1,099 on Friday, June 26, now followed by 985 on July 2, and 821 on June 27, 734 on June 28 and 645 on June 30.

While cases increased, so did testing, with 11,792 tests conducted statewide in the last day. This is the highest single-day increase in testing. Nevada’s cumulative test positivity rate is up for the 16th day in a row, at 7.1% percent.

According to the hospitalizations data provided by the state, Nevada is up 704 confirmed and suspected cases. Hospitalizations have been ticking up since mid-June when they averaged in the mid-300’s.

Of Nevada’s 985 new cases, 848 of them were reported in Clark County on Thursday, according to data released by the Southern Nevada Health District (SNHD) Friday. This is the second-largest increase in COVID-19 cases in a single day in Clark County.

The health district is reporting three new COVID-19-related deaths and 25 new hospitalizations.

There is now a total of 435 deaths, 17,028 confirmed cases and 2,058 hospitalizations, according to the Southern Nevada Health District dashboard that updates daily.

SNHD data shows that 4,484 positive cases were reported in the county over the past seven days.

Nearly half (47.2%) of the positive cases reported in Clark County are in the age group of 25 to 49.

The Southern Nevada Health District says it’s concerned that people have become complacent.

Gov. Steve Sisolak issued an emergency directive Wednesday, June 24, making face masks mandatory in Nevada effective Thursday at at 11:59 p.m. Sisolak pointed to the increasing number of cases and said the state is not ready to move to Phase 3. He said any discussion of that is tabled for the time being.

The state transitioned into Phase 2 of reopening on Friday, May 29, after a directive in mid-March that forced all non-essential businesses to close to avoid the spread of the coronavirus.

Nevada Health Response officials noted Tuesday, June 9, that Nevada’s COVID-19 data is showing an above-average daily increase in COVID-19 cases throughout the state. They are reminding Nevadans of precautionary measures that can be taken to minimize the spread of the virus such as staying at home when possible, wearing a face-covering in public, maintaining six feet of social distancing and keeping up with proper hand hygiene.

While it appears there has been an upward trend in cases, experts think it is partially due to an increase in easily accessible testing statewide.

As of Friday, a total of 353,255 tests have been conducted in Nevada, that’s up 11,792 from the previous day.

The state’s health experts say as more testing sites open and more COVID-19 tests are conducted, the state will see a rise in cases.

The health district has revised the way it reports deaths, recovered cases and hospitalizations. In its most recent report, SNHD states that 18.7 people have died for every 100,000 people in Clark County.

A total of 2,058 hospitalizations have been reported in Clark County since the pandemic began. Hospitalizations increased by 25 in the past 24 hours.

The number of people who have recovered from the virus in Clark County continues to increase. There is a total of 10,402 recovered cases; that’s 61.1% of all reported cases in the county, according to SNHD’s latest report.

The health district is now providing a daily map with the number of positive tests in each ZIP code in Clark County.

.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

Brazil set to pass 1.5 million coronavirus cases, cities reopen anyway

Brazil was set to pass 1.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases on Friday, as the virus continues to ravage Latin America's largest country even as cities reopen bars, restaurants and gyms sparking fears infections will keep rising.

www.reuters.com

(fair use applies)

Brazil set to pass 1.5 million coronavirus cases, cities reopen anyway
July 3, 2020 1:40 PM / Updated 10 hours ago

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil was set to pass 1.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases on Friday, as the virus continues to ravage Latin America’s largest country even as cities reopen bars, restaurants and gyms sparking fears infections will keep rising.

Brazil has the world’s second largest outbreak after the United States and the virus has killed over 60,000 people in the country.

In Rio de Janeiro, crowds gathered to drink on the sidewalk of an upscale beach-side neighborhood on Thursday night, the first evening bars in the city were allowed to reopen.

Pictures of the revelry in Leblon, where few were wearing face masks and people were huddled close together, went viral on social media drawing condemnation and concern.

“A tragedy foretold,” David Miranda, a federal congressman for Rio, wrote on Twitter above a picture of the crowded sidewalk. He criticized the city’s mayor Marcelo Crivella.

“Crivella’s decision to throw open the doors of business will come with a high cost,” he added.

In an emailed statement, Crivella’s office said local law enforcement had asked several establishments to close on Thursday as public health rules prohibit the gathering of crowds drinking outside bars. It said enforcement would be ramped up over the weekend.

In Rio alone, more than 6,600 people have died of COVID-19 in the past four months. Only 14 countries in the world have a death toll higher than the city. Intensive care units in public hospitals are at 70% capacity.

Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest and worst hit city, is expected to open bars and restaurants next week.

President Jair Bolsonaro has been widely criticized by health experts for downplaying the severity of the virus which he has dismissed as just “a little flu.” Bolsonaro has pressured governors and mayors for months to reverse lockdown measures and reopen the economy.

On Friday, Bolsonaro vetoed parts of a law that would have made wearing a face mask obligatory in enclosed spaces where large groups gather - such as churches and schools.

Bolsonaro has regularly flouted social distancing guidelines advised by most health experts, shaking hands and embracing supporters. He has said publicly that his past as an athlete makes him immune to the worst symptoms of the virus.

Brazil surpasses 1.5 million coronavirus cases, with over 63,000 deaths

Brazil registered 42,223 additional coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the Health Ministry said on Friday, bringing the total tally to 1,539,081, the second-worst outbreak in the world behind the United States.

www.reuters.com

(fair use applies)

Brazil surpasses 1.5 million coronavirus cases, with over 63,000 deaths
July 3, 2020 / 5:56 PM / Updated10 hours ago

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazil registered 42,223 additional coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the Health Ministry said on Friday, bringing the total tally to 1,539,081, the second-worst outbreak in the world behind the United States.

The number of coronavirus deaths rose by 1,290 to 63,174, according to the ministry.

.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

31 MLB players, 7 staff test positive for COVID-19, or 1.2%

The positive tests occurred among 19 of the 30 teams, according to results of the samples sent to the Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory in South Jordan, Utah. There were 3,185 samples collected and tested through the first week of intake testing.

www.foxla.com

(fair use applies)

31 MLB players, 7 staff test positive for COVID-19, or 1.2%
By Ronald Blum
Published 6 hours ago

NEW YORK - Thirty-one Major League Baseball players and seven staff members tested positive for COVID-19 during intake for the resumption of training, a rate of 1.2%.

MLB and the players' association announced the results Friday as teams resumed workouts for the first time since the coronavirus interrupted spring training on March 12, two weeks before the season was to start. Opening day has been reset for July 23, the latest in baseball history, and the regular season has been reduced to 60 games in the shortest schedule since 1878.

The positive tests occurred among 19 of the 30 teams, according to results of the samples sent to the Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory in South Jordan, Utah. There were 3,185 samples collected and tested through the first week of intake testing.

Individual players who test positive are not identified by MLB or the union. Cleveland outfielder Delino DeShields Jr. gave the Indians permission to say he tested positive.

“I think he’s getting frustrated because he’s starting to feel better and he wants to get back here," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "He seems to be feeling much better, which is good news. There’s just the protocols that you have to follow and he’s going to have to do that, and he understands that.”

MLB and the union established a COVID-19 related injured list with no specific minimum days. There are three reasons specified for placement on that IL: a positive test, exposure to coronavirus or symptoms that require isolation or additional assessment.

Philadelphia put infielder Scott Kingery and pitchers Hector Neris, Ranger Suarez and Tommy Hunter on the 10-day IL with no specified injuries on Thursday. The Phillies had seven players test positive for COVID-19 last month, but manager Joe Girardi couldn’t answer whether any of the players were among them because of medical privacy.

New Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke said on a Boston call there have been “some positive tests” but didn’t give any names.

.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

I ended the posting the other night with the new pig flu in China. I think I'll end my posting for tonight with this disease along the Russian/Mongolian border.

Bubonic Plague Fears Lead to Quarantine in Russia-Mongolia Border

The outbreak is said to have affected only two people so far.

interestingengineering.com

(fair use applies)

Bubonic Plague Fears Lead to Quarantine in Russia-Mongolia Border
So far, the bacterial infection has hospitalized two individuals.
By Loukia Papadopoulos
July 03, 2020

Mongolia has quarantined its western region near the border with Russia after fears surfaced of the bubonic plague spreading, said health officials. The two suspected cases so far have been linked to the consumption of marmot meat and are now being hospitalized in the Khovd province in western Mongolia.

One is said to be in critical condition. The two infected individuals were confirmed to have the “marmot plague” by lab tests, Mongolia’s National Center for Zoonotic Disease (NCZD) said in a statement.

The NCZD also announced that it had quarantined the provincial capital and one of the region’s districts about 500 kilometers south of the southern Siberian republics of Tyva and Altai.

The organization is now tracking the individuals that came in contact with the two infected cases. It has so far found 504 second-contact individuals and has analyzed samples from 146 people.

The bubonic plague is an extremely dangerous bacterial infection that can kill its victims within 24 hours. It is spread by fleas living on wild animals.

This is not the first incident of the plague in Mongolia and specifically on the Russian border. In May of 2019, Mongolia also closed a key border over fears of spreading the plague after a husband and wife died from eating marmot meat.

The plague is said to kill about 2,000 people a year and is believed to be of the same strain that killed 50 million people in the 14th century.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

Yep, we’re just getting started by the looks of things.

I was talking about the virus today with a family member. I likened it to a hurricane sitting off the coast, but in a hypothetical where there is no radar or satellite imaging available to the general public so people have to rely on experts who use those and other advanced scientific tools that the average person doesn't have access to or understand. Those respected experts in weather warn that its out there and that it appears to be huge and is about to make landfall. Because they are 'experts' and have 'respect', people listen, they board up, get the sandbags ready, gets their preps in order, evacuate at great expense to them and their families, etc. But the hurricane only skirts the coast for few hours; some people die, but it moves back off out to sea. People are pissed, they think it's a conspiracy, that the experts have a hidden agenda (and maybe some of them do, but that doesn't change the fact the hurricane is out there); they take down the hurricane shutters, go about their business. Now if the 'experts' try to warn them, they ignore them, scoff at them, tell them to shut up, no one is interested. They make fun of people who put their shutters back up, tell them they are sheeple and no one is going to tell them what to do with their houses. But what they can't see is the hurricane is just sitting there off the coast, building in size and intensity. It's not a category 5, it's way off the charts. It's stationary, but it's heading back onto land. It's not 'gone'. And no one is ready. That's just how I view it, I don't have any more info than the next person who reads all the posts on this thread. Everyone has to draw their own conclusion, make up their own mind.

HD

 

[Hfcomms]

People are rebelling against more lockdowns and further restrictions will kill what is already an economy on life support. There are no good policy choices out there, only choices. I hope people have used the little lull over the last six weeks to fill holes in their preps because round two is here. Second wave or continuation of the first.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

People are rebelling against more lockdowns and further restrictions will kill what is already an economy on life support. There are no good policy choices out there, only choices. I hope people have used the little lull over the last six weeks to fill holes in their preps because round two is here. Second wave or continuation of the first.

I agree. I look at it as a bio-weapon because that's what I believe it is, and I also believe it's an act of war. When you are war, bad things happen, especially to the economy. And I agree about the lull, which isn't going to stay a lull for much longer - everyone should be upping their preps. Not only for COVID, for the election and all the other uncertainties going on as well. Stores are starting to stock toilet paper again; now is the time to buy some more, even if you're set for 'now'. Things are not going back to normal for a while. imho.

HD

 

[marsh]

Farmworker housing outbreak: 188 test positive for COVID-19

The farmworkers at the center of the COVID-19 outbreak worked for three farm labor contractors. Some were about to go home when the outbreak began.

www.vcstar.com

Farmworker housing outbreak: 188 test positive for COVID-19
Erin Rode, Ventura County StarPublished 6:33 p.m. PT July 3, 2020


The US surpassed its highest single-day total of new coronavirus cases on Wednesday. Health departments recorded a combined total of more than 36,000 new coronavirus cases. The previous single-day record was on April 25 with 34,203 cases, reports Business Insider. The bulk of the new cases come from California, Texas, and Florida. California also reported 7,149 new coronavirus cases, a record number of new confirmed cases. Wochit

One day last week, dozens of farmworkers on H-2A visas staying at Villa Las Brisas were packing their things to leave the country the following day.
Instead, county health workers arrived and tested all 216 people staying at the farmworker housing facility after two people there tested positive for the coronavirus. By Tuesday, 176 workers had tested positive in one of the largest coronavirus outbreaks among farmworkers in the state. As of Friday, 188 workers were positive for the virus, according to Ventura County Public Health Director Rigoberto Vargas.

Villa Las Brisas is owned and managed by berry company Reiter Affiliated Cos. and houses temporary migrant farmworkers in the H-2A visa program in dorm-style accommodations. Each room has a capacity of about nine people, although a maximum of five people slept in each room at the time of the outbreak, according to Vargas.

The workers are employed by three separate farm labor contractors, not by Reiter. Under the H-2A program, employers are required to provide housing for temporary agricultural workers.

Elkhorn Packing Co. LLC, Venegas Farming LLC and Royal Oak Ag Services leased space at Villa Las Brisas for their H-2A workers. Information about where the farmworkers worked has not been made available.

Villa Las Brisas provides dorm-style housing for farmworkers on H-2A visas. (Photo: Contributed Photo: Villa Las Brisas/ AL Photography)

According to Erica Vela, a human resources employee at Elkhorn Packing, about 35 of the company's workers are staying at Villa Las Brisas and initially planned to return home June 26.

Vela declined to say which fields the farmworkers worked at, what crops they harvested or which cities they worked in. She only said that they worked at "various work sites" throughout Ventura County.

Vargas said that he believes the Villa Las Brisas workers were not working alongside other farmworkers in the county.

"My understanding is that they were not working with others; these individuals were working as a unit. Even between the three growers there might not have been much mixing, but certainly from my understanding they didn't work with others outside of those in Villa Las Brisas," Vargas said.

Since the outbreak began, advocacy groups have warned of a potential surge among farmworkers in Ventura County, as farmworkers continued working as essential workers during the pandemic and crowded housing conditions left them vulnerable to the virus's spread.

"I absolutely think this was preventable, and it speaks back to these things we've been asking for that haven't been moved on," said Genevieve Flores-Haro, associate director of the Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project.

Villa Las Brisas provides dorm-style accommodations to temporary agricultural workers on H-2A visas. (Photo: Contributed Photo: Villa Las Brisas/ AL Photography)

In a joint statement on Thursday, MICOP and the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy pointed to their previous calls for COVID-19 information in Spanish and Indigenous languages, health and safety standards for farms and more accountability for farm labor contractors.

MICOP and CAUSE say they frequently brought up these issues in meetings with the agricultural industry and county public health officials.

"Amid these asks, the farmworker community was hit with the first outbreak of COVID-19 at the Calavo packinghouse. Despite our repeated asks, we saw no movement and months later, the second outbreak of COVID-19 among agricultural workers hit Ventura County hard," reads the statement.

MICOP and CAUSE are now calling on the farm labor contractors to pay the farmworkers for the days they spend in quarantine, to pay for all housing and meals until workers can return to their home country, and to pay for all medical costs necessary for workers with COVID-19, among other asks.

"Even with their contract ending, the fact is that they got sick during the contract time, so they still need to be compensated because they're unable to work anywhere else because they have to isolate," said Flores-Haro.

The groups also say that Reiter has some responsibility for the outbreak, even if the workers were not employed by Reiter. The statement calls on Reiter to develop health and safety standards for their farmworker housing, to adjust current housing to ensure workers can socially distance, and to donate $10 million for permanent farmworker housing projects.

In a statement Thursday, Reiter said that the company "proactively engaged" with county Public Health in early April to review the facility's safety and hygiene protocols, and that the county "did not amend any of our protocols" after visiting the property.

Vargas confirmed that his team toured Villa Las Brisas but said that it wasn't in an oversight capacity.

"My team did go out there and tour the site, and it looked good to us, but we're not doing a formal approval of sites with these plans. They asked us to go out there as a partner and review it and it looked good to us, but again it wasn't an oversight authority that we had to officially approve the site," he said.

Reiter also notes several safety protocols that have been in place since April, when Villa Las Brisas reopened after renovations. These include cleaning and disinfecting bathrooms and showers twice daily, cleaning all high-touch areas daily, providing a cleaning and disinfecting kit in each dorm and setting up social distancing protocols in common areas.

"Although the individuals currently staying at Villa Las Brisas are not employed by Reiter and have not worked within our Reiter network of ranches, as their housing provider, we are committed to their safety and wellbeing. We have been operating at a 46% approved occupancy and the county is directing the care of the guest workers including rooming and quarantine practices on site," says the statement.


CAUSE and MICOP are also asking the Ventura County Board of Supervisors to direct Public Health and the agricultural commissioner to take a number of actions aimed at protecting farmworkers. These include educating farmworkers on their right to sick leave if they get the virus, developing an inspection program to make sure farms have adequate sanitation and providing mobile COVID-19 testing at work sites.

Additionally, the statement says that the Ventura County Board of Supervisors should "address H-2A housing problems exposed by the outbreak," such as discouraging housing with more than 20 workers at one site.

According to county spokesperson Ashley Bautista, the county has a number of efforts aimed at assisting farmworkers during the outbreak. These include clinics with free care and telehealth for anything related to the coronavirus, and the county's backpack medicine team, which has gone into fields to provide education and answer questions.

"There's a tremendous amount of outreach to farmworkers, to growers, and to the farm labor contractors in multiple formats: going to the field directly, video messaging, radio, putting messaging in paychecks, with outreach in Spanish and Indigenous languages; it has been a full-court press to reach out to our farmworkers and to the ag community as a whole," said county CEO Mike Powers.

The county has also provided over one million masks to agriculture producers and farmworkers for COVID-19 protection, and the county's Farmworker Resource Program has conducted outreach to farmworker communities through videos, social media, WhatsApp messages and flyers. The Farmworker Resource Program has also conducted site visits to ranches with information on COVID-19 in Spanish and Mixteco.

Powers says the Farmworker Resource Program, which launched in 2019, demonstrates the county's commitment to farmworker communities.

"Supporting our farmworkers was a priority for our board and our county before the pandemic. We didn't just start building these programs because of COVID, we had them in place beforehand, and that allowed us to really provide that support up front in terms of access to information, services, and testing," he said.

 

[Weft and Warp]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-NZeaEKRng
15:32 min
ICU Doctor: Top 10 Things I learned Treating Coronavirus Patients | COVID-19
•Jul 2, 2020


Doctor Mike Hansen
ICU Doctor: Top 10 Things I learned Treating Coronavirus Patients | COVID-19 Some intensive care units in various hospitals throughout this county have designated units for COVID-19 patients. As an intensive care doctor, I’ve been seeing a lot of COVID-19 patients in our designated COVID ICU. .........
..........

........And what is the ideal level of vitamin D for the population, especially when it comes to COVID-19? Should we be targeting the current general recommendation for everyone, irrespective of COVID, with a goal of 20 ng/ml? or should we aim for higher, like 30, or perhaps 40? No one knows for sure the answers to these questions. But there are studies being done on this. And as we speak there are 3 RCT for vitamin D and COVID.

Should we be targeting the current general recommendation for everyone, irrespective of COVID, with a goal of 20 ng/ml? or should we aim for higher, like 30, or perhaps 40? No one knows for sure the answers to these questions. But there are studies being done on this. And as we speak there are 3 RCT for vitamin D and COVID.

He's on the right track with the vitamin D, but doesn't seem to know that "a goal of 20 ng/ml" as he mentioned, is still considered a deficient level and not the optimum level. If you have a vitamin D Level under 20 ng/ml , you are considered deficient and if your levels are between 21ng/ml and 29 ng/ml , you are considered insufficient--- so with that in mind------30 and above should be the goal and not anything under that.

 

[Trivium Pursuit]

I add my thanks as well to everyone who continues to contribute to the thread. Most have moved on from following the topic, either for political reasons or just because our attention span in the modern technological world is very short, there's always something else to click on and focus on and it doesn't 'excite' the way it did at first. Honey badger virus doesn't care about our attention span, just like it doesn't care about politics. It keeps keeping on, growing, finding new victims, finding new ways to spread. It's here, it's not going away. Imho, anyone who is still following the story is ahead of the curve, just as we were in March and April. Now is definitely not the time to let our guard down or walk away and say, "all done... next?"

HD

.

This is worth repeating:
Honey badger virus doesn't care about our attention span.

 

[Jubilee on Earth]

I was talking about the virus today with a family member. I likened it to a hurricane sitting off the coast, but in a hypothetical where there is no radar or satellite imaging available to the general public so people have to rely on experts who use those and other advanced scientific tools that the average person doesn't have access to or understand. Those respected experts in weather warn that its out there and that it appears to be huge and is about to make landfall. Because they are 'experts' and have 'respect', people listen, they board up, get the sandbags ready, gets their preps in order, evacuate at great expense to them and their families, etc. But the hurricane only skirts the coast for few hours; some people die, but it moves back off out to sea. People are pissed, they think it's a conspiracy, that the experts have a hidden agenda (and maybe some of them do, but that doesn't change the fact the hurricane is out there); they take down the hurricane shutters, go about their business. Now if the 'experts' try to warn them, they ignore them, scoff at them, tell them to shut up, no one is interested. They make fun of people who put their shutters back up, tell them they are sheeple and no one is going to tell them what to do with their houses. But what they can't see is the hurricane is just sitting there off the coast, building in size and intensity. It's not a category 5, it's way off the charts. It's stationary, but it's heading back onto land. It's not 'gone'. And no one is ready. That's just how I view it, I don't have any more info than the next person who reads all the posts on this thread. Everyone has to draw their own conclusion, make up their own mind.

HD

The boy who cried wolf. Great post there...

 

[Mixin]

I'm still following several of the Indiana counties with high numbers. Since Elkhart is gaining, I started following it, too, on 6/28.

Numbers are from 6.17, 6.18, 6.19, 6.20, 6.21, 6.22, 6.23, 6.24, 6.25, 6.26, 6.27, 6.28, 6.29, 6.30

The first 2 lines of numbers are from the Indiana dashboard, the other 4 lines are from Regenstrief.
Lake
4222, 4297, 4326, 4356, 4400, 4437, 4489, 4525, 4596, 4650, 4696, 4741, 4781, 4847, Cases
231, 232, 233, 234, 234, 235, 238, 238, 238, 238, 239, 239, 239, 239, Deaths
832, 835, 843, 848, 854, 860, 866, 869, 869, 871, 873, 878, 880, 883, Hospitalizations
1056, 1059, 1069, 1077, 1093, 1101, 1107, 1086, 1094, 1104, 1109, 1118, 1132, 1138, ER Visits
143, 143, 146, 145, 145, 146, 146, 141, 143, 146, 145, 147, 146, 150, ICU
206, 209, 213, 213, 215, 216, 216, 173, 174, 175, 176, 176, 175, 177, Hospital Deaths

Elkhart: Mandatory Masks 6.30
2976, 3003, 3041, C
42, 42, 43, D
138, 139, 144, H
263, 264, 267, E
2, 2, 2, ICU
21, 21, 21, HD

Allen
2277, 2324, 2331, 2368, 2414, 2427, 2436, 2466, 2507, 2547, 2575, 2598, 2621, 2649, C
90, 91, 91, 91, 91, 95, 97, 97, 97, 100, 104, 104, 106, 110, D
273, 281, 352, 347, 352, 356, 359, 365, 365, 372, 383, 382, 383, 384, H
439, 446, 534, 548, 558, 561, 575, 581, 596, 600, 601, 605, 611, 618, E
11, 11, 58, 37, 37, 39, 36, 35, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 37, ICU
58, 58, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 51, 53, 53, 53, 55, 55, 56, HD

Hamilton
1371, 1349, 1359, 1365, 1369, 1374, 1393, 1398, 1411, 1417, 1428, 1432, 1447, 1463, C
96, 96, 96, 97, 97, 97, 97, 97, 97, 97, 97, 97, 98, 100, D
194, 198, 204, 204, 207, 207, 208, 000, 206, 208, 208, 208, 209, 212, H
345, 353, 361, 362, 364, 364, 367, 000, 365, 366, 369, 371, 373, 376, E
32, 34, 35, 35, 35, 35, 34, 00, 32, 33, 32, 32, 32, 34, ICU
67, 69, 70, 69, 69, 69, 69, 00, 52, 52, 52, 52, 53, 53, HD

Hendricks
1283, 1286, 1296, 1307, 1318, 1320, 1327, 1337, 1346, 1348, 1356, 1358, 1361, 1366, C
93, 93, 94, 94, 94, 94, 94, 95, 97, 97, 99, 99, 99, 99, D
172, 173, 173, 173, 174, 174, 175, 176, 177, 177, 178, 178, 178, 177, H
244, 246, 246, 247, 249, 250, 251, 250, 252, 253, 255, 258, 258, 257, E
36, 36, 36, 36, 38, 38, 39, 38, 38, 36, 37, 36, 36, 37, ICU
61, 61, 62, 62, 63, 63, 63, 38, 39, 39, 39, 40, 40, 40, HD

Marion
10862, 10852, 10885, 10904, 10945, 10962, 10977, 10996, 11042, 11104, 11182, 11236, 11279, 11329, C
657, 661, 665, 667, 668, 669, 669, 673, 675, 676, 677, 677, 677, 679, D
2293, 2305, 2312, 2322, 2323, 2330, 2331, 2323, 2327, 2334, 2341, 2341, 2347, 2359, H
3708, 3727, 3737, 3751, 3763, 3774, 3790, 3767, 3775, 3795, 3812, 3819, 3831, 3859, E
429, 430, 431, 435, 434, 430, 428, 426, 423, 424, 424, 422, 424, 422, ICU
637, 645, 652, 654, 663, 665, 666, 471, 472, 472, 472, 473, 473, 473, HD

Indiana COVID-19 Home Dashboard

www.coronavirus.in.gov

COVID-19 Dashboard - Regenstrief Institute

www.regenstrief.org

 

[bev]

About the senses of smell and taste...

I had sinus surgery twice back in the late ‘80’s. After the second time, I couldn’t taste or smell anything.

My sense of taste returned pretty quickly, within 6 months or so, but I still couldn’t smell anything. I can clearly remember cooking spaghetti - after almost 10 years! - and telling my DH that I could actually smell it.

Even though the cause is different, I think it’s WAY too early to speculate that these senses ”might never come back.”

 

[Advocations]

He's on the right track with the vitamin D, but doesn't seem to know that "a goal of 20 ng/ml" as he mentioned, is still considered a deficient level and not the optimum level. If you have a vitamin D Level under 20 ng/ml , you are considered deficient and if your levels are between 21ng/ml and 29 ng/ml , you are considered insufficient--- so with that in mind------30 and above should be the goal and not anything under that.

50-70 ng/ml is even better.

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob2GcGUUUxM
23:47 min
COVID 19 and Obesity
•Jul 4, 2020


Dr. John Campbell
Happy 4th July to all liberated viewers. COVID 19 and Obesity. Firstly, of course vitamin A, D E and K are fat soluble. https://covid.joinzoe.com/post/covid-... People who are very overweight (obese) Greater risk of severe symptoms Ending up in hospital Even if they are young https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.11...

UK Obesity 28.7% of adults in the UK are classified as obese A further 35% are overweight 63.7 obese or overweight 36.3% health weight https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/.... Potentially putting the majority at increased risk

US obesity https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adul... CDC Common, serious, costly disease US prevalence = 42.4%, 2017 - 2018 Overweight = 32.5% Normal weight = 25% https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-info... BMI, 30 or more = obese BMI, 25.0 to 29.9 = overweight BMI calculator, https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-...

Obesity-related conditions include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer Leading causes of preventable, premature death Annual medical cost of obesity, $1,429 Ethnicity Non-Hispanic blacks, 49.6% Hispanics, 44.8% Non-Hispanic whites, 42.2% Non-Hispanic Asians, 17.4% Age Young adults, 40% aged 20 to 39 years Middle-aged adults, 44.8% aged 40 to 59 years 60 years + 42.8% Stigmatisation It’s vital not to further stigmatise those who are overweight or obese as they may already suffer from poorer healthcare https://www.thelancet.com/journals/la...

Study from China People who developed critical COVID and died had a higher average BMI than people developing only mild disease https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32120... Study from the US https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/... Younger age group patients hospitalized more likely to be obese People from the UK admitted to CCU, 73% were overweight or obese https://www.icnarc.org/Our-Audit/Audi...

COVID symptom tracker https://covid.joinzoe.com/about 2.6m people, data taken on height, weight, medical conditions, daily health report People who are obese about 20% more likely to be hospitalised with COVID symptoms

Compared with people with lower BMI More likely to need respiratory support such as ventilation Across all the age groups, including younger people. https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.11... Obesity affects health and immunity Increases the chances of developing chronic health problems, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, some cancers Increases risk of infections https://www.obesityaction.org/communi... Impaired immune response https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16790... Easier for bacteria and viruses to invade the body and set up an infection Makes severe COVID complications from infections more likely, e.g. acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) More likely to catch seasonal flu Suffer for longer More risk of severe outcomes More likely to transmit infection to others https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

Why so much obesity? Combined interaction between physical, social, and environmental factors Tips for obesity in the current pandemic Social distancing, hygiene guidelines, face covering Move towards a normal weight Good nutrients Consider vitamin D Regular outdoor physical activity Consider mental health Ask about a flu jab

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7Zmt9PDi1g
8:26 min

China’s New Swine Flu Has “Pandemic Potential”

•Jul 4, 2020


China Uncensored

Chinese scientists have discovered a strain of swine flu in China with "pandemic potential." And Dr. Anthony Fauci says it shares genetic traits of the 2009 Swine Flu and the 1918 Spanish Flu that killed 50 million. But is the new flu really that big a danger?

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78TfHUkzXEs
LIVE
War Room Pandemic Ep 264* - Rebroadcast
•Started streaming 5 hours ago


Bannon WarRoom - Citizens of the American Republic

Hydroxychloroquine authorization

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSW45_qcm04
3:36 min
Coronavirus cases surge in 40 states as U.S. braces for holiday weekend

•Jul 4, 2020


CBS This Morning

Coronavirus is surging in 40 states across the U.S., with more than 2.5 million confirmed cases nationwide. The death toll is rising to more than 129,000. Cities and states, like California, have shut beaches ahead of the July 4 holiday weekend in an effort to control the rising COVID-19 infection rates. Michael George reports from Rockaway Beach in New York.

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW8KbRGUsIs
5:20 min
A Fourth of July unlike any other as COVID-19 cases keep rising
•Jul 3, 2020


ABC News
Up to 80% of fireworks displays across the country reportedly have been canceled. Hospitalizations are rising in 26 states, including Texas, which hit a record high Friday.

 

[TheSearcher]

I was talking about the virus today with a family member. I likened it to a hurricane sitting off the coast, but in a hypothetical where there is no radar or satellite imaging available to the general public so people have to rely on experts who use those and other advanced scientific tools that the average person doesn't have access to or understand. Those respected experts in weather warn that its out there and that it appears to be huge and is about to make landfall. Because they are 'experts' and have 'respect', people listen, they board up, get the sandbags ready, gets their preps in order, evacuate at great expense to them and their families, etc. But the hurricane only skirts the coast for few hours; some people die, but it moves back off out to sea. People are pissed, they think it's a conspiracy, that the experts have a hidden agenda (and maybe some of them do, but that doesn't change the fact the hurricane is out there); they take down the hurricane shutters, go about their business. Now if the 'experts' try to warn them, they ignore them, scoff at them, tell them to shut up, no one is interested. They make fun of people who put their shutters back up, tell them they are sheeple and no one is going to tell them what to do with their houses. But what they can't see is the hurricane is just sitting there off the coast, building in size and intensity. It's not a category 5, it's way off the charts. It's stationary, but it's heading back onto land. It's not 'gone'. And no one is ready. That's just how I view it, I don't have any more info than the next person who reads all the posts on this thread. Everyone has to draw their own conclusion, make up their own mind.

HD

The real issue is that the experts keep telling us we're in the hurricane NOW, and we're looking at blue skies, wondering what they're talking about...

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnKsrKuUfBc
10:05 min
Covid-19: what will happen to the global economy? | The Economist
•Jul 3, 2020


The Economist

The covid-19 pandemic has caused economic chaos and uncertainty. Zanny Minton Beddoes, our editor-in-chief, and Edward Carr, our deputy editor, answer your questions about the global economy

 

[marsh]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r8hOHxp8Pc
16:27 min
Six Flags already had problems before coronavirus. How will it surive?
•Jul 4, 2020


CNBC Television

2019 was bad for Six flags and there were fears the coronavirus pandemic would make 2020 even worse. The company has halted international expansion plans and questions remain as to whether the growth management promised will ever materialize. Now the company appears to be refocusing on its core business back at home, figuring out how to operate in an era of social distancing, and hopefully, drawing pandemic-weary customers back in.