| CDC's 'disease detectives' are on the coronavirus case Posted: 01 Apr 2020 04:00 AM PDT  While the Washington State Department of Health had prepared a plan for the arrival of the virus in January, it assumed it still had weeks before the disease would reach the U.S. "In three days, the plan was trashed. We went through every step," Marcia Goldoft, a clinical epidemiologist with the Washington State DOH, told Yahoo News. "I don't think anyone involved has ever seen anything go this fast."
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| Shenzhen becomes first Chinese city to ban eating cats and dogs Posted: 02 Apr 2020 07:54 AM PDT  The ruling is a tougher version of China's ban of wildlife meat, after it was linked to the virus.
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| Latest on the spread of the coronavirus around the world Posted: 01 Apr 2020 10:43 PM PDT  "In the next few days, we will reach 1 million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths worldwide," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. * Mexico's economy is forecast to contract by as much as 3.9% in 2020, the finance ministry said on Wednesday, in an annual economic report used to guide the budget, adding that the numbers incorporated a "drastic" impact from coronavirus.
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| American Airlines crammed the only 11 passengers on a flight into 3 rows because they only bought basic economy, report says Posted: 02 Apr 2020 09:15 AM PDT  American Airlines has risked the health of flight attendants and passengers by enforcing rules about riding in coach, it is alleged.
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| Chinese Doctor Disappears after Blowing the Whistle on Coronavirus Threat Posted: 01 Apr 2020 01:20 PM PDT  Wuhan doctor Ai Fen, who expressed early concerns about the coronavirus to the media, has disappeared and is believed detained by Chinese authorities.Fen, the head of emergency at Wuhan Central Hospital, was given a warning after she disseminated information about the coronavirus to several other doctors. She recounted the reprimand in an essay titled, "The one who supplied the whistle," which was published in China's People (Renwu) magazine. The article has since been removed.The reprimand from her boss came after Fen took a photo of a patient's positive test results and circled the words 'SARS coronavirus' in red.She brought several cases of coronavirus to the attention of her colleagues, eight of whom were later called in by police for revealing information about the respiratory illness, according to Radio Free Asia. One, opthalmologist Li Wenliang, warned fellow med school grads to wear protective clothing, an early warning that was condemned by authorities as "rumormongering." Wenliang eventually died from the virus himself.Fen's social media account on the Chinese platform Weibo has been updated several times since her disappearance, although Chinese authorities have been known to update detainees' social media accounts or order them to do so themselves. On Wednesday, a post appeared on her account reading "Happy April Fools Day," with a picture of her in a lab coat and mask.About two weeks ago, a post appeared on Fen's account reading, "Thank you for your care and love. I'm fine at the moment and I'm still working."However, Fen's whereabouts are now unknown, 60 Minutes Australia reported Monday.China has confirmed a total of 81,554 infections and 3,312 deaths from the coronavirus.However, the U.S. intelligence community concluded in a classified report Wednesday that China deliberately provided incomplete public numbers for coronavirus cases and deaths resulting from the infection. In December, local and national officials issued a gag order to labs in Wuhan after scientists there identified a new viral pneumonia, ordering them to halt tests, destroy samples, and conceal the news.
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| 5 ways that the coronavirus will change college admissions this fall Posted: 02 Apr 2020 05:32 AM PDT  Editor's note: The new coronavirus is spreading across the United States just as many high school seniors were applying to colleges or awaiting acceptance letters. Here, Robert Massa, who teaches about higher education at the University of Southern California and is a former admissions dean from Johns Hopkins University and Dickinson College, offers insights into five ways the COVID-19 pandemic could affect a student's quest to attend the school of their choice. 1\. More timeDue to the uncertainties surrounding the health and financial implications of the pandemic, many colleges will not have filled their classes by the traditional May 1 deadline. Colleges that are concerned about not meeting their numerical enrollment goals will likely be flexible in allowing students to apply, even at this late date.To give students more time to visit and consider other factors, a number of colleges have pushed back their deposit deadline to June 1. For the most part, these are schools that historically have not filled their class by May 1. The more selective institutions are keeping the May 1 candidates reply date.If you have a deposit deadline from one school that is May 1 and another that is June 1, and you need more time to decide, appeal to the May 1 school to give you more time. Depending on how close that college is to filling its class, it may be flexible. 2\. A better shotIf a student has applied to one of the most selective, strongest universities – which represent less than 4% of the four-year public and nonprofit private colleges in the U.S. – they will be just as hard to get into, at least initially, as they've been in the past. Those schools are, however, likely to have longer wait lists this year, primarily because of the uncertainty surrounding international students and whether they will be able to travel to the U.S. And if they can't, more students may be admitted from the waitlist than in past years.But, if students have applied to one of the vast majority of the other selective colleges - including the 16% that admit between a fifth and half of their applicants – it is likely to be somewhat easier to get in for several reasons.Because of the economic consequences of coronavirus, as many as a fifth of students think they may have to abandon their first choice college to attend a school that is more affordable, according to a survey conducted in March. In addition, that survey found that a college closer to home would be a more viable choice than a first-choice institution for 35% of students. Taking these factors into consideration, colleges are likely to admit more students than they did last year because they expect that more of their admitted students will ultimately opt to stay closer to home or to attend a more affordable school. 3\. Bigger scholarshipsColleges are worried that the health calamities and concerns and the economic fallout from the pandemic will result in more students declining admission offers. For this reason, I believe colleges will be likely to offer students more money in an effort to get them to enroll. The competition for student enrollments will be intense.Schools may offer bigger scholarships to students who decline an opportunity to enroll. That's because last September, the National Association of College Admissions Counseling settled an antitrust lawsuit with the Department of Justice, thereby allowing colleges to recruit students who had already committed to attend another institution by awarding them more money. Previously, the association's ethics code had forbidden this kind of poaching.Consequently, students may have to decide whether to stick with the original school they selected, even if it doesn't offer as much tuition help. 4\. More need-based aid may be availableIf a family is affected by the economic fallout from COVID-19, they may appeal for additional need-based financial aid. The financial aid system estimates parents' ability to pay on income that was earned two years ago. Due to COVID-19, income earned in the first quarter of 2020 may not predict a family's total 2020 income. For that reason, it will be important for families to work with the financial aid office of the colleges on their list to help them take a lower family income into account when calculating the family's eligibility for financial aid. It is important for families to explain the need for more financial aid during the application process or certainly pre-deposit – not after a paying an enrollment deposit. 5\. More virtual visitsIn the past, I always advised students to schedule a day to visit the campus of a school they might attend. Among other things, I would tell them to request a meeting with a faculty member in major they might consider, sit in on at least one class and to meet with an admissions officer and a financial aid adviser if appropriate. The big open houses for admitted students are great, because you get to meet potential classmates, but they are not the same as visiting campus during a school day.Visiting a campus may not be feasible since so many colleges have shut down for the rest of the spring semester. But many colleges are now hosting virtual visits complete with live tour guides and interactive Q&A sessions. Some have also built upon existing social network platforms to encourage engagement with members of their campus community. In addition to these staged visit programs, you can also request to meet with a professor on a video chat. You can even ask to visit an online class.The visit really isn't about the buildings or the beauty of the physical space. It's about the people with whom you will live and learn. Hopefully you can get a good feel for that through the virtual version. Final decisionsWhether to stray from a top college choice in these uncertain times is a decision that students and their families must make. At some point – likely long before this entering class graduates from college – the pandemic will be over and life as we knew it will return. Parents and students should make this decision carefully, of course, and should consider what is in the student's best interest going forward in a post-COVID world.[Our newsletter explains what's going on with the coronavirus pandemic. Subscribe now.]This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts.Read more: * COVID-19 could shrink the earnings of 2020 graduates for years to come * Here's why colleges are being forced to close their doors - and what they can do to stay openRobert Massa does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
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| 'Ventilators' donated by Elon Musk can't be used on coronavirus patients, health officials say Posted: 02 Apr 2020 08:00 AM PDT  Elon Musk's ventilator giveaway may do more harm than good.After weeks of brushing off the COVID-19 pandemic as "dumb," the billionaire Tesla founder earlier this week announced he had 1,000 "FDA-approved ventilators" and ended up donating 40 to New York City's hospital system. Except the devices Musk gave away aren't powerful enough to use in the ICU, and health officials have actually warned against using them on COVID-19 patients because they could spread the virus further.What Musk purchased and gave to New York's hospitals were BiPAP machines made by ResMed, a photo shared by the hospital system reveals. ResMed CEO Mick Farrell later confirmed Musk's purchase of 1,000 5-year-old "bi-level, non-invasive ventilators" known as BiPAPs to CNBC, and said it was "fantastic" that Tesla could transport ResMed's product like it did.But hospitals are far more desperate for ventilators more invasive than BiPAP and CPAP machines, which are usually used to treat sleep apnea — many doctors don't even call them "ventilators," the Los Angeles Times' Russ Mitchell reports. In fact, CPAP machines may have only helped spread COVID-19 through the nursing home outside Seattle that was the center of the U.S.'s initial coronavirus outbreak, NPR reports. These machines can "possibly increase the spread of infectious disease by aerosolizing the virus," NPR writes. Health officials in King County, Washington, have since warned against using CPAP machines on coronavirus patients, as did the American Society of Anesthesiologists back in February.What would actually help, Farrell added to CNBC, is if Musk's Tesla could produce and donate lithium ion batteries — ResMed can use them to make invasive ventilators that hospitals actually need.More stories from theweek.com The Secret Service signed an 'emergency order' this week — for 30 golf carts There are now over 1 million confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide Navy removes aircraft carrier captain who sounded alarm over COVID-19 outbreak on board his ship
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| Russian plane with supplies for virus fight lands in US Posted: 01 Apr 2020 08:25 PM PDT  A Russian military plane carrying medical supplies arrived in the United States on Wednesday, the Russian mission to the UN said, as the Kremlin flexes its soft power during the coronavirus pandemic. The Antonov-124, landed at JFK Airport in New York -- the epicenter of America's coronavirus outbreak -- pictures and video posted on the mission's Twitter page showed. Russia's defense ministry had earlier announced that the plane "with medical masks and medical equipment on board," left for the US overnight, without providing further details.
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| What you need to do to get your government stimulus check Posted: 02 Apr 2020 12:48 PM PDT  The IRS and the Treasury Department say Americans will start receiving their economic impact checks within the next few weeks. The government urged them to file taxes and then later reversed course for certain groups. The IRS and Treasury have updated their guidance on how to ensure you get paid.
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| India PM plans staggered exit from vast coronavirus lockdown Posted: 02 Apr 2020 01:40 AM PDT  India will pull out of a three-week lockdown in phases, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday, as officials battle to contain the country's biggest cluster of coronavirus infections in the capital, New Delhi. Modi ordered India's 1.3 billion people indoors to avert a massive outbreak of coronavirus infections, but the world's biggest shutdown has left millions without jobs and forced migrant workers to flee to their villages for food and shelter. India has had 2,069 confirmed infections, of whom 53 have died, low figures by comparison with the United States, China, Italy and Spain.
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| Chinese government rejects allegations that its face masks were defective, tells countries to 'double check' instructions Posted: 02 Apr 2020 12:58 PM PDT  The Chinese government told other countries to "double-check" the instructions for using the defective face masks.
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| A small Georgia city is facing hundreds of coronavirus cases after residents flocked to a beloved janitor's funeral Posted: 02 Apr 2020 07:57 AM PDT  Atlanta's Dougherty County has reported 490 confirmed cases of COVID-19, that all emerged after two funerals were held in the town of Albany.
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| Angry Wuhan next-of-kin seek answers over virus handling Posted: 02 Apr 2020 12:42 AM PDT  Zhang took his elderly father to a Wuhan hospital for a surgical procedure in January, just as coronavirus was consuming the central Chinese city. Devastated and angry, Zhang is now demanding answers from a government that he accuses of incompetence and lying about the extent of the virus. Zhang says he has linked online with dozens of other people whose grief over lost loved ones is paired with anger.
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| How coronavirus has halted Central American migration to the US Posted: 02 Apr 2020 03:32 AM PDT  Border closures and strict lockdowns have led to a steep decline in the number of migrants coming from Central AmericaWhen Angelica turned 30, she realized there was no future for her in Honduras.Although she had a college degree, she was still living paycheck to paycheck and was stuck in a neighborhood of the capital Tegucigalpa ruled by violent gangs.So, after years contemplating migration to the US where she has relatives, she finally made arrangements to depart."I didn't want to stay in a neighborhood where there are massacres or where the people lock themselves in their homes at six at night because the gangs impose a curfew," she said. "I realized I was more surviving than living."But by the time she was due to start her journey north, Honduras had closed its borders and declared a state of emergency. She could no longer leave her city – much less take a bus to northern Guatemala, to meet a coyote who would guide her through Mexico."I had thought that only a hurricane could stop me," she said. "But I hadn't thought of a pandemic."Border closures and strict lockdowns prompted by the Covid-19 crisis have disrupted the migrant trail through Central America and Mexico, forcing some would-be migrants to postpone their journeys – and stopping many others in their tracks.The result has been a deterrent more effective than any wall Donald Trump could build.Activists across the region have reported a steep decline in the number of migrants coming from Central America since the restrictions were implemented. One Mexican shelter near the Guatemalan border said it hadn't received a new arrival in a week."The crisis has facilitated Trump's policies because [Central American] migrants can't even leave their countries," said Sister Nyzella Juliana Dondé, coordinator of a Catholic migrant aid organization in Honduras.El Salvador closed its borders on 11 March, and the governments of Guatemala and Honduras quickly followed suit. All three countries in the so-called northern triangle have since announced internal lockdowns of differing strictness.The three nations had recently signed "safe third country agreements" with the US government under which they agreed to increase enforcement on their borders, and receive migrants who had transited their country on the way to the US.Only Guatemala had begun to implement the new measures, but it announced on 17 March that it would suspend the deportations of Hondurans and Salvadorans from the US to its territory.But Guatemala and Honduras continued to receive deportation flights bringing their own citizens from the US – despite concerns that the practice could accelerate the spread of the virus. In the past week, a migrant who was deported from the US to Guatemala was diagnosed with Covid-19 and a group of deportees to Honduras escaped from the shelter where they were to be quarantined. Guatemala has now requested that the US suspend deportation flights.Meanwhile, migrants who were already en route have been left exposed by the closure of shelters and the difficulties facing humanitarian organizations which would normally attend to them."They are in a vulnerable situation because the guidance is to stay at home – but the migrants don't have homes," said Dondé, who mentioned a case of a large group of Haitian and African migrants who were detained after crossing into Guatemala from Honduras amid the lockdown. "Neither Honduras or Guatemala wanted to offer them a place to stay."Migrants who already had arrived to Mexico have been left in limbo by the US government's decision to immediately return all migrants from Mexico and Central America who cross into the country irregularly along the south-west border.When restrictions are eventually eased, a fresh surge in migration seems likely: multiple would-be migrants who spoke with the Guardian said it was only a question of when, not if, they would set out for the US.And the economic impact of the crisis may in turn cause others to migrate.. "Before many people migrated because they lacked work and a dignified life," said Silva de Souza. "Now there will be many more."Migrants who have come from even farther afield, have no choice but to try to push on. Mohamed left Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, in 2018, following the well-trodden migrant path via Ecuador, Colombia and the jungles of Panama. He was burning through his savings and racking up debt, but making steady progress north.But he reached Guatemala just before the government announced a state of emergency which has made moving on impossible."Travel has become very difficult," he said in a brief exchange via Facebook Messenger. But he was still determined to reach the US – even if he now has to move more carefully – traveling at night and avoiding large caravans. "With God's will, I'll get there. I will build a life of opportunity." * Additional reporting by Joe Parkin Daniels
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| One nursing home offers grim advice: Take your loved ones home Posted: 02 Apr 2020 04:59 PM PDT  Coronavirus cases are increasing so rapidly that one New York nursing home CEO is advising families to take their loved ones home if possible.
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| Another US-Mexico border tunnel has been discovered – with nearly $30 million worth of drugs, officials say Posted: 01 Apr 2020 07:40 AM PDT  Federal agents uncovered a tunnel used to smuggle drugs between warehouses in San Diego, California, and Tijuana, Mexico.
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| Frozen and desolate Antarctica once boasted warm, swampy rainforests Posted: 01 Apr 2020 01:24 PM PDT  Antarctica is now a harsh land of ice and snow, but has not always been that way. Earth's southernmost continent long ago was home to temperate, swampy rainforests teeming with life, scientists said on Wednesday based on pristinely preserved forest soil they retrieved by drilling under the seafloor off Antarctica's coast. The sediment core obtained by scientists working aboard the research icebreaker RV Polarstern in the Amundsen Sea near the Pine Island Glacier dated to about 90 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period when dinosaurs were the dominant land animals.
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| New research sheds light on how the coronavirus travels through the air — you probably won't walk through virus 'clouds,' but healthcare workers are at risk Posted: 02 Apr 2020 12:21 PM PDT  The World Health Organization says the coronavirus is not airborne. But some research suggests otherwise.
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| Iran warns of months of crisis as virus deaths reach 3,160 Posted: 02 Apr 2020 04:18 AM PDT  Iran on Thursday reported 124 new deaths from the coronavirus, raising its total to 3,160, as President Rouhani warned that the country may still battle the pandemic for another year. Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour announced the latest toll in a news conference and confirmed 3,111 new infections over the past 24 hours, bringing Iran's total to 50,468. Iran has been scrambling to contain the COVID-19 outbreak since it reported its first cases on February 19.
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| ‘We Didn’t Know That Until the Last 24 Hours’: Georgia Gov. Says He Just Found Out People without Symptoms Can Spread Coronavirus Posted: 02 Apr 2020 05:21 AM PDT  While announcing a statewide shelter-in-place order on Wednesday, Georgia governor Brian Kemp, a Republican, said that he had just been informed that asymptomatic individuals could spread the coronavirus.The illness "is now transmitting before people see signs….Those individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt [symptoms]," Kemp said at a press conference. "We didn't know that until the last 24 hours."It has been widely known for months that the coronavirus can spread through asymptomatic transmission. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently updated its guidelines for outbreak mitigation regarding asymptomatic transmission, leading Georgia health officials to change their projections for an outbreak in the state."It's a combination of recognizing there's a large number of people out there who are infected and who are infected, who are asymptomatic, who never would have been recognized under our old models, but also seeing the community transmission that we're seeing," said Dr. Kathleen Toomey, head of Georgia's Department of Public Health.Governor Kemp had initially resisted signing a shelter-in-place order due to the effect it would have on the state's economy. However, in recent days the governors of Florida, Texas, and South Carolina all introduced limitations on residents' mobility to combat coronavirus spread. Georgia has 4,748 confirmed cases, with Florida at 7,773, Texas at 4,607, and South Carolina at 1,293, according to Johns Hopkins University's coronavirus tracker.With the extent of coronavirus spread across the U.S. becoming clearer, Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday said the outbreak in the U.S. was increasingly comparable to that of Italy, one of the worst outbreaks in the western hemisphere.
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| Bill Gates explains 3 steps the U.S. should take now to make up for lost time on COVID-19 Posted: 31 Mar 2020 10:37 PM PDT  Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates says there is "no question the United States missed the opportunity to get ahead of the novel coronavirus," and there are three steps that must be taken now in order to soften the blow to the economy and slow the number of deaths.In an op-ed for The Washington Post published Tuesday, Gates said there has to be "a consistent nationwide approach to shutting down." In some states, restaurants are still serving diners and beaches are open, which is a "recipe for disaster," Gates said. "Because people can travel freely across state lines, so can the virus. The country's leaders need to be clear: Shutdown anywhere means shutdown everywhere." It could take at least 10 weeks to get the number of COVID-19 coronavirus cases down, he said, and until then, "no one can continue business as usual or relax the shutdown."The federal government also needs to do more testing, with the results aggregated "so we can quickly identify potential volunteers for clinical trials and know with confidence when it's time to return to normal," Gates said. Health care workers and first responders should have priority, followed by "highly symptomatic people who are at most risk of becoming seriously ill and those who are likely to have been exposed."There has to be a "data-based approach to developing treatments and a vaccine," Gates said, and politicians need to stay quiet and stop spreading rumors about both. Once there is a safe and effective vaccine, billions of doses will need to be manufactured, he said, and facilities where they will be made can be built now. The country has "a long way to go," Gates said, but he still believes "if we make the right decisions now, informed by science, data, and the experience of medical professionals, we can save lives and get the country back to work."More stories from theweek.com The Trump administration is adding an extra barrier for Social Security recipients to get their stimulus check Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is what real coronavirus leadership looks like China is bracing for a second wave of coronavirus
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| 'This is just so anti-consumer': Southwest early-boarding fee policy reversed after coronavirus backlash Posted: 02 Apr 2020 03:41 PM PDT  Southwest Airlines wasn't offering refunds or credit for some EarlyBird fees, but the airline announced a temporary change Thursday.
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| Russian plane with coronavirus medical gear lands in U.S. after Trump-Putin call Posted: 01 Apr 2020 03:08 PM PDT  A Russian military transport plane left an airfield outside Moscow and arrived at New York's John F. Kennedy airport in late afternoon on Wednesday.
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| 10 Great Deals on Apparel From REI’s 25% off Sale Posted: 02 Apr 2020 08:23 AM PDT |
| Elderly to be evacuated en masse from ultra-Orthodox Israeli town hit by coronavirus Posted: 02 Apr 2020 09:50 AM PDT |
| Iran parliament speaker, Israeli health minister have virus Posted: 01 Apr 2020 10:02 PM PDT  Iran's parliament speaker has contracted the new coronavirus, the country's highest-ranking government figure yet to catch the disease, while in Israel, several top officials entered quarantine when the health minister tested positive on Thursday. Iran's parliament announced Ali Larijani's illness on its website, saying he was receiving treatment in quarantine. Iran, the regional epicenter of the virus, has been fighting one of the world's worst outbreaks.
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| Mike Pence just said the US is 'most comparable' to Italy now after the White House downplayed the coronavirus threat for weeks Posted: 01 Apr 2020 10:17 AM PDT  The White House announced on Tuesday that it predicts between 100,000 to 240,000 people could die in the US from the coronavirus.
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| 3 people who survived the coronavirus describe what it's like and what they wish they would have known Posted: 02 Apr 2020 09:01 AM PDT  Three Americans told Insider what it feels like to be diagnosed with the coronavirus and recover. Here's what we can learn from them.
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| Trump says he doesn’t want a nationwide stay-at-home order because some states don’t have a high number of coronavirus cases Posted: 01 Apr 2020 04:42 PM PDT  At the coronavirus task force briefing, President Trump said he didn't want to issue a nationwide stay-at-home order to fight the pandemic because there are some states that don't have a large number of positive coronavirus cases.
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| Las Vegas airport shuts down all gates at two concourses amid COVID-19 travel decline Posted: 02 Apr 2020 09:26 AM PDT  Las Vegas' McCarran International Airport announced Wednesday that it is shutting down two concourse as demand for travel dwindles due to COVID-19.
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| Pelosi forming House committee to investigate the coronavirus outbreak Posted: 02 Apr 2020 11:42 AM PDT  The panel will investigate the pandemic and ensure that the funding Congress has already approved, and may approve in the future, is spent wisely.
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| Oil rockets as Trump signals end to price war Posted: 02 Apr 2020 01:10 PM PDT  Oil prices rocketed Thursday, posting the largeset percent increase ever, after US President Donald Trump said Russia and Saudi Arabia planned to end their price war by slashing output. After Trump tweeted that Saudi and Russia could slash production by up to 15 million barrels, Brent hit $36.29 a barrel, up almost 46 percent, and West Texas Intermediate soared around 35 percent to $27.39.
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| Dutch PM prefers a 'gift' to a loan for European coronavirus support Posted: 01 Apr 2020 08:59 AM PDT  Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday said he would prefer to make a "gift" to European countries in financial distress as a result of the coronavirus outbreak rather than issue joint bonds or tap the Eureopean Union's bailout fund. In a debate in the Dutch parliament, Rutte said he hoped to repair diplomatic ties with Italy and Spain after drawing criticism for a perceived lack of empathy during EU crisis conversations last week. Rutte repeated that the Netherlands opposed the idea of "coronabonds" as a form of debt-sharing among EU members in response to the crisis.
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| Letters to the Editor: Withholding ventilators from older COVID-19 patients harms young people too Posted: 02 Apr 2020 03:00 AM PDT  All the ethical problems with prioritizing ventilator use based on age in the coronavirus pandemic.
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| Pakistan court overturns conviction in death of Daniel Pearl Posted: 01 Apr 2020 11:49 PM PDT  A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction of a British Pakistani man found guilty of the 2002 kidnapping and killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. Instead, the court found Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and sentenced him to seven years in prison. Pearl disappeared Jan. 23, 2002 in Karachi while researching links between Pakistani militants and Richard C. Reid, who became known as the "shoe-bomber" after he was arrested on a flight from Paris to Miami with explosives in his shoes.
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| Uber promised to pay drivers who couldn't work because of the coronavirus. But drivers say Uber has been closing their accounts after they seek sick pay, and then ignoring or rejecting their claims. Posted: 01 Apr 2020 04:36 PM PDT  Multiple drivers tell Business Insider that Uber has rejected their requests for sick pay, despite doctors' notes telling them to self-quarantine.
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| Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte orders police to 'shoot dead' any 'troublemakers' who break quarantine Posted: 02 Apr 2020 07:34 AM PDT  Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the police and military to "shoot dead" any "troublemakers" who cause disturbances during the coronavirus quarantine in the Philippines, The Philippine Star reports. The move comes after protestors staged demonstrations over the lack of food and financial aid they've received from the government since the lockdown began in the country on March 17."I will not hesitate [to tell] my soldiers to shoot you. I will not hesitate to order the police to arrest and detain you," said Duterte in his address, adding: "Instead of causing trouble, I'll send you to the grave." The president is infamous for his alleged violations of human rights, previously drawing the fury of the international community over his order for vigilante hit squads to murder suspected drug dealers without due process.Amnesty International condemned Duterte's new statements. "The abusive methods used to punish those accused of breaching quarantine and the vast number of mass arrests that have been carried out to date, against mainly poor people, are further examples of the oppressive approach the government takes against those struggling with basic needs," said the organization's local section director, Butch Olano.The human rights NGO added that more than 17,000 people have already been arrested for violations of the lockdown and curfew in the Philippines, and that "reports have also appeared of inhumane punishments those breaching quarantine have been made to endure, including sitting for hours in the hot sun or being detained in dog cages."More stories from theweek.com The Secret Service signed an 'emergency order' this week — for 30 golf carts There are now over 1 million confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide Navy removes aircraft carrier captain who sounded alarm over COVID-19 outbreak on board his ship
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| Justice Department will send seized medical supplies to New York, New Jersey Posted: 02 Apr 2020 09:22 AM PDT  The FBI located the supplies on March 30, as part of its work under the department's Covid-19 hoarding and price gouging task force.
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| Trump Administration Has Turned Immigration Court Into ‘Public Health Hazard’ Posted: 02 Apr 2020 01:30 AM PDT  In a country ground to a standstill by the coronavirus pandemic, there is one place normalcy reigns: immigration courts.Overburdened judges oversee packed proceedings; attorneys shuttle clients and paperwork from room to room, often with interpreters in tow; aspiring legal citizens, or at least residents, follow closely, sitting through hearings famously described as death-penalty cases held in a traffic court.The courts, along with visa applications, detention hearings and other immigration related bureaucracy, are seemingly the lone part of the federal government still expected to function as if a global pandemic hasn't upended nearly every facet of American life. But those tasked with keeping the machine running say that they have received little guidance about how to keep the system running in the era of social isolation, and even less protection despite fears that immigration proceedings put some of the most vulnerable people in the country in the impossible position of choosing between their health or their home.The Trump administration has refused to allow immigration courts and visa hearings to comply with the same social isolation standards followed by nearly every other civil aspect of government, and has not allowed for previously scheduled hearings to be postponed. The administration has also issued little in the way of guidance for judges, immigration attorneys or immigrants, whose hearings—which often take years to schedule—directly conflict with stay-at-home orders across the county."The immigration court's refusal to adopt policies that protect the health of respondents, lawyers, judges and immigration court staff during the current pandemic forces immigrant families and their lawyers to make an impossible decision: endanger public health or risk being deported," said Nadia Dahab, senior litigation attorney at Innovation Law Lab, one of half a dozen immigrants-rights groups that on Friday filed an emergency order challenging the operation of immigration courts despite the crisis."We are in the middle of a global pandemic, but the immigration court system is continuing to operate as if it's business as usual," said Melissa Crow, senior supervising attorney with the Southern Poverty Law Center's Immigrant Justice Project. "The government has turned the court system into a public health hazard."Is ICE's 'Risk Tool' Sentencing Innocents to COVID-19 Death?A similar dilemma faces individuals who are up against imminent deadlines to apply for or renew their visas. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service has so far declined to extend deadlines for the filing of key documents, putting visa hopefuls in the difficult position of running afoul of shelter-in-place mandates, not to mention risking their own and others' health, in order to get everything in on time. Failing to do so could do long-term damage for a person's eligibility for legal residence or put them in another dilemma—figuring out how to get back to another country in a time of unprecedented travel restriction."These are not trivial issues," said León Rodríguez, who ran USCIS during the Obama administration. "They're not bureaucratic issues. These issues have a lot to do with what a person's future is, their ability to do business, so people are doing what they need to do. They're being careful. But right now, people are going to the office where they otherwise wouldn't need to, in an effort to get their fillings done the right way and on time. If we're in a national emergency… that means it's time to protect as many people as we can."In a Wednesday letter to USCIS acting Director Ken Cuccinelli, Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, urged "immediate action" to extend the deadlines, saying that the failure to do so forces "families to take unnecessary risks to their health and the health of our communities.""I would hope now, if ever, this administration would find some compassion and patience to serve the totality of the people of this country," Pocan said in a statement to The Daily Beast. The Trump administration has eased up some visa procedures; current biometrics, like a fingerprint scan, are no longer required for applicants on account of health concerns. USCIS is also implementing a 60-day extension for individuals to respond to some items, like requests for additional evidence to support an application. But the agency is still urging applicants to submit information "on time and in accordance with existing instructions" so as to "prevent a lapse in immigration status."A spokesperson for USCIS said: "We continue to monitor this evolving pandemic and remain prepared to take necessary steps in order to protect the health and safety of our employees, applicants and the nation." But the apparent reluctance to take additional steps—or the failure to provide specific guidance in some cases—stands in stark contrast to swift action from the Trump administration to, for example, push back Tax Day or extend Securities and Exchange Commission filing deadlines. To immigrants and their advocates, the evident lack of concern for those who are put at risk by the lack of uniform social distancing in immigration proceedings is just the latest in a long line of indignities."For whatever reason, USCIS has become an outlier," said Jesse Bless, director of federal litigation for the American Immigration Lawyers Association. "Every federal agency is stopping time, and yet USCIS, who may have the largest population of people they serve, they have said it's business as usual."What little guidance there has been has largely put the onus of properly preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus on immigration judges—already the "sacrificial lamb" of the American immigration system. Last Wednesday, Executive Office of Immigration Review Director James McHenry issued a policy memo saying that it was effectively up to individual judges to make the decision to allow attorneys to appear by phone for proceedings and reduce the number of attendees "on a case-by-case basis," and allowing—but not requiring—judges to wave the presence of undocumented immigrants during proceedings and to conduct hearings by teleconference.Immigration proceedings, the National Association of Immigration Judges said in response, are an epidemiologist's worst nightmare for coronavirus transmission, with judges and court staff working "shoulder-to-shoulder," interpreters flying around the country to attend different proceedings, and people in immigration detention being moved in large groups with almost zero chance of proper social distance. The analogue nature of the paper-based immigration court system, too, makes the risk of transmission of infectious disease particularly acute."EOIR's refusal to close detained courts causes a cascade of social interaction that puts all of us at risk," the union said in a statement. "The immigration courts are in the midst of a crisis created by EOIR."One member stated that the crisis demonstrates that the office needs "to be gutted and rebuilt from the ashes.""I've never witnessed an utter lack of concern for people like I have here," the judge said. "In my former life, we treated captured Taliban and ISIS with more humanity. Moreover, I've never seen worse leadership. A crisis usually brings good and bad to the light. We have nothing but darkness."According to immigration advocates, the guidance actually heightens the risk of infection for migrants, as well as their families, attorneys, and the immigration judges presiding over the proceedings."McHenry should reinstate previously rescinded guidelines for telephonic appearances and allow all advocates to appear telephonically for court," said Laura Rivera, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Southeast Immigrant Freedom Initiative.Democratic lawmakers say they are keeping close watch on the situation. "Coronavirus has exposed how the most vulnerable experience the most injustice during a crisis," Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX), chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus told The Daily Beast. "Instead of listening to CDC guidelines on social distancing, and state and local stay-at-home orders, several immigration courts remain open. This is not only risking the lives of judges, attorneys, and immigrants, but also their loved ones and entire communities."Immigration lawyers describe a similarly difficult and muddled situation for those who are attempting to apply for visas or get them renewed. Thousands of foreign nationals currently in the U.S. will see their legal status expire in coming months, and making those deadlines requires individuals to be in close cooperation with lawyers, as well as workplace H.R. departments, to navigate a complicated and paper-intensive process.That USCIS has not yet extended key deadlines due to the coronavirus emergency forces a set of difficult choices on applicants and their lawyers. Attorneys, said AILA's Bless, are in a Catch-22: meeting their clients in person and gathering evidence may help them make a deadline, but it also puts them in violation of shelter-in-place mandates in effect in many states—and risks spreading the virus.And if applicants, meanwhile, miss deadlines while remaining in the U.S., it can negatively impact their eligibility for legal status down the road. But leaving the country is currently difficult, not to mention dangerous. "From a practical standpoint, how can individuals protect themselves when they can't leave the U.S. and they can't file applications and get evidence to their employer or attorney right now?" asked Bless. "Whether you're an attorney or an individual, the USCIS position is, if nothing else, ramping up and contributing to what is a once in a lifetime stressful situation." The agency's decision to waive the need for new biometrics—and its decision to extend deadlines on some forms of documentation—has been interpreted by advocates as a signal that the administration is aware of the new problems the COVID-19 outbreak is posing for their normal functioning. USCIS has halted all face-to-face engagement with applicants at their offices through at least May 3. Some watchdogs are anticipating that USCIS will end up leaning on existing exceptions for "natural catastrophes and other extreme situations" to provide wiggle room to migrants on a case-by-case basis, according to a congressional source. But advocates are baffled that isn't translating into a broader extension for the many people impacted by the public health emergency. Rodríguez, the former USCIS director, told The Daily Beast that the administration doesn't "have to do anything magical" to make this happen."They have legal tools to do it," Rodríguez said. "I'd think that a global pandemic is an extraordinary circumstance—probably one of most compelling I can think of."Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Trump says Florida will evacuate stranded cruise ships Posted: 01 Apr 2020 06:29 PM PDT  President Donald Trump said Wednesday that US authorities will evacuate passengers from a stranded cruise ship due to dock in Florida after being barred from several South American countries because of a coronavirus outbreak aboard. Both the cruise ship Zaandam, where dozens of people have fallen ill, and its sister ship Rotterdam are due to enter US waters early Thursday ahead of their expected docking in Fort Lauderdale. Trump said the US was "sending medical teams on board the ships" and taking people off, with foreigners sent home.
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| Indonesia virus death toll rises to highest in Asia outside China Posted: 01 Apr 2020 11:18 PM PDT  Indonesia's coronavirus death toll rose to 170 on Thursday as the world's fourth most populous nation passed South Korea as the country with the highest number of recorded fatalities in Asia after China. Indonesia reported a further 13 deaths and 113 new cases, taking its total number of infections to 1,790. South Korea has reported 169 deaths and 9,976 infections, according to the latest figures released there.
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