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47 minutes ago
Curfew announced in Paris and other cities in France
By Eva Tapiero
(Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP) (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP via Getty Images)
Paris and other French cities will be subject to a nightly curfew starting Saturday to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus, President Emmanuel Macron announced on Wednesday.
The curfew, from 9 pm to 6 am, will also apply in Aix en Provence, Marseille, Grenoble, Montpellier, Toulouse, Saint Etienne, Lille and Lyon, he said.
It goes into effect from midnight on Friday until Saturday.
"The goal is to reduce private contacts, which are the most dangerous contacts," Macron said.
Violating the night curfew will carry a fine of 135 euros (about $ 160) for the first offense, and 1,500 euros ($ 1,760) if the offense is repeated, he said.
2 hours ago
Italy records its largest daily increase in cases since pandemic onset
By Zahid Mahmood and Nicola Ruotolo
(AP Photo / Luca Bruno)
Italy on Wednesday recorded its largest daily increase in coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic, the latest figures from the country's Ministry of Health show.
Italian health authorities said there had been 7,332 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to at least 372,799 since the pandemic began.
The number surpasses the previous record set during the first wave of the pandemic on March 21, when at least 6,557 cases were recorded over a 24-hour period.
During the last day, 43 people died from coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths in Italy to at least 36,289.
The number of patients in intensive care has increased by 25.
Some background: Italy was one of the worst affected countries in Europe during the first wave of the pandemic and is now struggling to contain another outbreak.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and Health Minister Roberto Speranza announced additional restrictions that make masks mandatory indoors, except at home, and urged people not to gather in groups of more than six in houses.
2 hours ago
Governor of Puerto Rico enters quarantine
By CNN Spanish
The governor of Puerto Rico, Wanda Vázquez, canceled her agenda this week "as a precaution" after it became known this Wednesday that the Secretary of Health, Lorenzo González Feliciano, tested positive for coronavirus.
González met with the governor on Tuesday, Michelle de la Cruz, press secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Health, confirmed to CNN.
"Responsibly, I will remain in isolation for the recommended time," González said in a statement and assured that he offered information about the people with whom he shared in recent days so that contact tracing can begin.
According to a statement from the governor's office, Vázquez took the last test for covid-19 on Tuesday after meeting with González, but before learning the positive result of the secretary's test.
Vázquez is asymptomatic and will continue to work remotely.
His office reported that he will be tested for coronavirus again in five days.
3 hours ago
More than 216,000 people have died in the United States.
By CNN
At least 7,864,910 cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the United States and at least 216,060 people have died from the virus, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
So far, Johns Hopkins has had 8,305 new cases and 173 reported deaths.
Totals include cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases.
4 hours ago
Juventus goes into self-isolation after a positive test
By Dan Wright and Nicola Ruotolo
(Photo by Jonathan Moscrop / Getty Images)
Juventus FC, one of Italy's top soccer teams, is going to self-isolate after player Weston McKennie tested positive for covid-19, the club announced on Wednesday.
«Juventus Football Club announces that, during the follow-up of the tests provided by the Serie A protocol, the player Weston McKennie tested positive for covid-19.
In accordance with regulations and protocol, the team will go into preventive isolation tonight, ”the club said in a statement.
“This procedure will allow all subjects who test negative to continue training regularly and play games with each other, but they will not be allowed any contact outside the team group.
The Company is in constant contact with the competent health authorities, ”the statement added.
5 hours ago
Cristiano Ronaldo flies to Italy after testing positive
By Vasco Cotovio
(Photo by CARLOS COSTA / AFP via Getty Images)
Portugal and Juventus soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is heading to Turin, Italy aboard a private air ambulance after testing positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday.
Portuguese media reports showed images of Ronaldo boarding the plane at Cascais Municipal Airport.
The state news agency Lusa reported that Ronaldo left on board the plane for Turin at around 1:30 p.m. (local time).
6 hours ago
Prime Minister of Portugal declares "state of calamity"
By Vasco Cotovio
The Prime Minister of Portugal, Antonio Costa, announced that the country will enter a "state of calamity" at midnight on Wednesday, saying that the COVID-19 situation in the country was "serious."
"We can classify the evolution of the pandemic in Portugal as serious," Costa told reporters when announcing the state of calamity at a press conference, following a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
The declaration gives the government exceptional powers to take additional measures to try to curb the spread of the virus.
Costa said additional restrictions would be imposed immediately, that is, limiting the number of meetings in public spaces, commercial or restaurants to no more than five people.
In schools and universities, celebrations and non-academic activities will be prohibited and family events, such as weddings and baptisms, will be limited to a maximum of 50 guests.
Costa went on to say that the authorities would be asked to increase vigilance and compliance with these rules in public places, that is, restaurants and shops, increasing fines of up to 10,000 euros for companies that do not enforce the rules.
“You need to relive the memory that you really need to follow these rules,” Costa said, adding that there had been some relaxation as time passed.
Costa also said the government would introduce a bill to make the use of masks mandatory in certain outdoor spaces.
The bill would also force the Portuguese to register with the Portuguese National Health Service's track and trace application.
The Portuguese prime minister emphasized differentiating the recently declared "state of calamity" from the "state of emergency" that the country declared in March, before entering the confinement.
He said government advice on working from home would remain the same and borders would remain open.
6 hours ago
Catalonia announces the closure of bars and restaurants for two weeks
By Pau Mosquera
Faced with the constant rise in people infected with covid-19 and an upward risk of outbreaks, the government of the Generalitat of Catalonia announced this Wednesday that it will close bars and restaurants in the region for the next two weeks.
The measure, which will take effect this Thursday night, will only allow companies in the restaurant sector to maintain take-out service.
"They are necessary measures if we do not want the pandemic to spread again and collapse the health system," justified the interim president of the region, Pere Aragonès.
To these restrictions on restaurant activity, the Catalan executive added the request to citizens to reduce mobility outside their home as much as possible, restrict social encounters and opt for teleworking whenever possible.
"Limiting activity is the only way to root out the risks in those spaces where social practice causes greater relaxation to occur, contributing to the spread of the pandemic," added Aragonès.
In order to help a sector hit by the pandemic, the Catalan government plans to approve measures to help restaurants next Tuesday, with an endowment equivalent to 47 million dollars.
These restrictions come when the region registers a positivity in diagnostic tests for covid-19 higher than 8%, while "the maximum recommended by the WHO (World Health Organization) is 5%," recalled Aragonès.
In addition, the cumulative incidence of infected in the last 14 days is around 279 infections per 100,000 inhabitants, 16 cases above the national average.
6 hours ago
"Herd immunity is another word for mass murder," says expert
By Naomi Thomas
William Haseltine, president and director of ACCESS Health International, said he is "extremely concerned that the president is being mentored by people talking about herd immunity."
“Herd immunity is another word for mass murder.
That's exactly what it is, ”Haseltine said on CNN's“ New Day ”Wednesday.
Haseltine went on to say that if the virus is allowed to spread, as the Trump administration allegedly advocates, "we anticipate two to six million Americans killed, not just this year, but every year."
"This is an absolute disaster for our country - to have people at the highest levels of our government countering our best public health officials," Haseltine said.
“We know that this epidemic can be controlled.
Other countries have.
We are doing the opposite.
Some background: A study published recently in The Lancet has shown that less than 10% of the US population has been exposed to COVID-19.
To essentially create a protective herd around other people, 60% to 70% of the population would have to become infected, Dr. Sanjay Gupta said later in "New Day."
“We know that with around 10% of the country infected, approximately 216,000 people have died.
So just do the math there, ”he said.
6 hours ago
Rare Hearing Loss Emerge After Covid-19
By Jacqueline Howard and Elizabeth Cohen
Health authorities around the world have reported loss of taste and smell as clear symptoms of a Covid-19 infection.
Research is now being conducted on the emergence of new cases of hearing loss with coronavirus infections.
Among them is a 45-year-old man in Great Britain.
The case study, published in the British Medical Journal's BMJ Case Reports on Tuesday, describes how the man, who also has asthma, saw an ENT specialist after a week of hearing loss while being treated in hospital for covid- 19.
The patient was treated with steroids for his hearing loss and completed a seven-day course, which resulted in partial improvement in his hearing, according to the magazine.
"This is the first reported case of sensorineural hearing loss after COVID-19 infection in the UK," the researchers wrote.
"Given the widespread presence of the virus in the population and the significant morbidity from hearing loss, it is important to investigate this further."
The researchers, from University College London and the Royal National Throat Nose and Ear Hospital, noted that some other cases of hearing loss have been reported after COVID-19 infection.
6 hours ago
Bill Gates Says It's "Awesome" That the US Trying to Silence Top Scientists
By Andrea Kane
Bill Gates lashed out at the Trump administration for trying to undermine infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci and other government scientists.
"We're in on something where we're attacking top government scientists, not talking about saving lives, but undermining the credibility of the person with the most knowledge," the philanthropist and Microsoft founder said Tuesday during a virtual discussion of Political Playbook.
“Experience is important, and the CDC is largely not allowed to speak.
Which is why, thankfully, Dr. Fauci has risen above the noise level when talking about masks and best practices.
And the fact that, for whatever reason, they are trying to undermine it… that's just amazing, ”he said.
Gates said, “America still has time to do a much, much better job, but first it has to admit that it is not doing a perfect job.
"Access to testing is not uniform across inner-city communities compared to other, so if you're willing to admit that you haven't been doing a perfect job, you could improve this very, very quickly," Gates said. .
"Right now the testing, the contact tracing, we are among the worst in any country," he said, calling the slow response time for test results "just insane."
7 hours ago
How to socialize safely as Halloween and Thanksgiving approaches
By Adrienne Vogt
(Xinhua / Lan Wei via Getty Images)
Small gatherings are driving the spread of the coronavirus, according to Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
So with the arrival of Halloween and Thanksgiving, how can people plan the holidays?
Dr. Megan Ranney, an emergency physician and researcher at Brown University, said her children still go trick-or-treating, but they wear their cloth masks and wash their hands before eating treats.
She hosted a Thanksgiving Zoom session with her parents.
“Even if you are sitting a foot away from other people without a mask, you can still infect, especially if you are in that very infectious period.
The fact that someone is a close family member does not mean they are safe, "he said on CNN's" New Day. "
Olga Khazan, a writer for The Atlantic, spoke with experts who gave advice on holding indoor events.
“One of the researchers I spoke to about this said that part of deciding… where you are going to risk covid is how important it is to you.
If Thanksgiving is a really important holiday for you, maybe you will take extra precautions, get tested, self-quarantine ahead of time, and maybe you can do something small, ”he said.
The researchers told Khazan that if you plan to host an event indoors, keep it small and keep an eye out for the infection rate in your city.
“What the experts really told me is that if you're going to have an indoor meeting, first of all, you have to keep it small.
It's going to be a risk, whatever happens, ”he said.
“But you want to make sure that the number of new cases in your immediate area is between 5 and 10 per 100,000 people.
And that the positivity rate of the test, that is the number of tests that give positive in all the tests that are taken, be less than 5%.
7 hours ago
New reports show immunity can last for months
By Maggie Fox
Three newly released reports show that immunity to the coronavirus can last for months, and maybe even longer.
The findings suggest that many, if not most, of the people who recover from coronavirus infections are protected for at least a period of time.
They also suggest that coronavirus vaccines can protect people for more than a few weeks.
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