Corona disease: China extends Shanghai coronavirus lockdown as frustration mounts over strict "zero-COVID" policy

While most American cities are opening up and lifting COVID-19 restrictions, one of the biggest cities in the world has been shut back down. Shanghai, China's most populous city with some 25 million inhabitants, was largely at a standstill on Friday as China battles its worst wave of coronavirus infections since the start of the pandemic.

Read more at: China extends Shanghai coronavirus lockdown as frustration mounts over strict "zero-COVID" policy - CBS News

China - corona virus outbreak:Shanghai Covid: China announces largest city-wide lockdown

China has announced its biggest city-wide lockdown since the Covid outbreak began more than two years ago.

The city of Shanghai will be locked down in two stages over nine days while authorities carry out Covid-19 testing.

The important financial hub has battled a new wave of infections for nearly a month, although case numbers are not high by some international standards.

Read more at: Shanghai Covid: China announces largest city-wide lockdown - BBC News

Russia Crimes Against Humanity: Is Russia committing war crimes by bombing hospitals in Ukraine? - by Dr Amir Khan

Whether in times of peace or conflict, a set of medical ethics and principles guides the work of healthcare workers and hospitals – the commitment to save lives and reduce suffering.

In times of war, to maintain some humanity in armed conflict, certain rules and agreements have been made that mean targeting civilians and civilian buildings – including healthcare facilities – constitute a war crime.

Read more at: Is Russia committing war crimes by bombing hospitals in Ukraine? | Russia-Ukraine war | Al Jazeera

Corona Virus - lasting effects: They contracted COVID more than a year ago. How these 4 people are fighting lasting effects

He suffered two strokes, COVID-induced pneumonia, a medically induced coma and several months wiped from his memory. More than a year after his initial infection, he's still not back to the person he was before the coronavirus. That's the case for many so-called COVID-19 long-haulers in Horry County, South Carolina, and across the country.

Hardee's lung capacity is still only at 38%.

Michelle Ford can't taste or smell her food.

Robert Bellamy was diagnosed with diabetes.

Dr. Lisa Centilli felt depressed, frustrated and alone.

They attribute it all to the coronavirus.

Read more at https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-03-covid-year-people-effects.html

USA: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tells students to take off masks at event - by Zac Anderson

Irked by the sight of high school students wearing masks at his press conference Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis encouraged them to remove the facial coverings, calling their use “COVID theater.”

"You do not have to wear those masks,” DeSantis said in video captured by WFLA News Channel 8, Tampa’s NBC station. “Please take them off. Honestly, it's not doing anything. We've gotta stop with this COVID theater. So if you wanna wear it, fine, but this is ridiculous."

Read more at: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tells students to take off masks at event

Covid 19- Pfizer Covid vaccine may not protect against infection in kids - by Berkeley Lovelace Jr.

Two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine offer almost no protection against coronavirus infection in kids ages 5 to 11, according to new data posted online — a finding that may have consequences for parents and their vaccinated children.

Researchers from the New York State Department of Health found that the vaccine’s effectiveness dropped to 12 percent from 68 percent in the age group in December and January, when the omicron variant of the coronavirus began circulating widely in the United States.

Read more at:Pfizer Covid vaccine may not protect against infection in kids

The Netherlands: Covid: Netherlands to ease restrictions despite rising case numbers

Mr Rutte,DutchPM,who has faced growing calls for a relaxation of restrictions in recent weeks amid falling deaths and admissions to intensive care, added that the new rules will be effective until 8 March.

Cafes, bars and restaurants will be allowed to open until 10pm, though to gain entry patrons will be required to show a negative test result, prove they are vaccinated or have recently recovered from a coronavirus infection.

Read more at: Covid: Netherlands to ease restrictions despite rising case numbers - BBC News

USA - Covid : CDC wants to 'give people a break' from mask wearing - by John Bacon Jorge L.Ortiz Jeanine Santucc

COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations and deaths are all declining and federal health officials could ease guidance on masks soon, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, speaking at a White House briefing on COVID-19, said her agency was assessing data and "will soon put guidance in place" that encourages prevention measures while protecting public health and hospitals.

The CDC recommends indoor masking in areas with substantial or high transmission. That includes 97% of U.S. counties, Walensky said.

"We want to give people a break from things like mask wearing when these metrics are better," Walensky said. "And then have the ability to reach for them again should things worsen."

Read more at: CDC wants to 'give people a break' from mask wearing: COVID-19 updates

USA: California’s first surgeon general on Covid: ‘Greatest collective trauma’ of a generation

Burke Harris, who resigned this month, said the pandemic is “probably the greatest collective trauma of our generation,” and she, like all Californians she was sworn to serve – will have a long road ahead processing the last two years.

Reflecting on her three years as surgeon general of the most populous US state, Burke Harris warned that “the health consequences of this pandemic will continue, even after the virus itself is contained.”

Read more at: California’s first surgeon general on Covid: ‘Greatest collective trauma’ of a generation | California | The Guardian

Germany- Coronavirus restrictions: Germany announces end to most COVID restrictions on March 20

Germany's leaders on Wednesday announced plans to end most of the country's coronavirus restrictions by March 20, a decision that coincided with moves by neighboring Austria and Switzerland to drop many of their curbs sooner.

Read more at: Germany announces end to most COVID restrictions on March 20 - ABC News

USA - Covid Immunity: Nearly three-quarters of Americans have some Covid immunity, experts say

Almost three-quarters of Americans are now estimated to have some level of immunity to the Omicron Covid variant that created havoc after it emerged late last year just as people hoped the pandemic was finally waning.

The subsequent Omicron wave that assaulted the US this winter has, however, bolstered its defenses, leaving enough protection against the coronavirus that future surges will probably require much less – if any – dramatic disruption to society, experts reckon.

Read more at: Nearly three-quarters of Americans have some Covid immunity, experts say | Coronavirus | The Guardian

Health and the Olympics: Top 10 Health Concerns for Olympic Athletes

Janeiro, Brazil, and they’ve got more on their minds than just the competition. The first Olympic Games to be held in South America come with some unique challenges, along with the usual threats to health and safety that every Olympic Game presents.

“Approximately 10 percent of Olympians get hurt during their days at the games, either while training on site or in actual competition,” reports Scientific American. In addition to injuries, viral, and bacterial infections are creating a serious international buzz. Let’s look at 10 health concerns each athlete in attendance faces this year.

Read more at Top 10 Health Concerns for Olympic Athletes | University of Utah Health

Covid Test Cost: How much does a Covid test cost around the world?

In Australia, a federal scheme introduced at the end of January allows pensioners and concession card holders to access up to 10 free rapid antigen tests over three months through their chemist. But the scheme got off to a difficult start, with supply issues hampering attempts to procure the tests. In January the competition regulator raised concerns that rapid antigen tests often cost between A$20 and A$30 (£15-£20) per test and sometimes more than A$70 a test through smaller retail outlets, despite wholesale costs ranging from A$3.95 to A$11.45.

In Belgium the price of an antigen self-test sold in pharmacies is around €6-€8 (£5-£7), more expensive than in neighbouring countries, such as France and the Netherlands, although they are available in Belgian supermarkets for about €3. Prices have come down and are expected to fall further: one big pharmacy chain announced this week they had begun selling tests for €1.99. While a PCR test, which costs about €41, is free for people with symptoms, or may be reimbursed by health insurance, self-tests usually have to be funded by individuals. The Belgian consumer association Test-Achats/Test Aankoop estimated this week that a family of four could spend €250 a month on Covid tests, hand sanitiser and face masks.

Read more at: How much does a Covid test cost around the world? | Coronavirus | The Guardian

Big Pharma and Corona vaccinations: Putting big pharma in charge of global vaccine rollout was a big mistake : by Nick Dearden

Pfizer has had an exceptionally good pandemic. Today it announced that its Covid-19 vaccine brought in $37bn billion last year, making it easily the most lucrative medicine in any given year in history.

That isn’t all. For a company that was until recently the least trusted company in the least trusted industrial sector in the United States, Covid-19 has been a PR coup. Pfizer has become a household name over the last 12 months. The company was toasted on nights out in Tel Aviv, and there are cocktails named after its vaccine in bars across the world. The US president referred to Pfizer’s chief executive, Albert Bourla, as a “good friend”, and the great man parked his jet next to Boris Johnson’s at last year’s G7 summit in Cornwal

The global vaccine rollout has created levels of inequality so great that many call it a ‘vaccine apartheid’. Pharmaceutical corporations like Pfizer have led this rollout, setting the terms by which they sell vaccines and deciding who to prioritise. Ultimately, their approach affects who does, and does not, receive vaccines. Right from the start, Pfizer was clear that it wanted to make a lot of money from Covid. The company claims that its vaccine costs just under £5 per dose to produce. Others have suggested it could be much cheaper. Either way, the company is selling doses at a huge profit – the UK government paid £18 a shot for its first order, £22 for its most recent purchase. That means the NHS has paid a mark-up of at least £2bn – six times the cost of the pay rise the government agreed to give nurses last year.

It has been claimed that the company initially tried to pitch their medicine to the US government for an eye-popping $100 a dose. Tom Frieden, a former director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, accused the firm of “war profiteering”.

Pfizer has sold the vast majority of its doses to the richest countries in the world – a strategy sure to keep its profits high. If you look at its global distribution, Pfizer sells a tiny proportion of its vaccines to low-income countries. By last October, Pfizer had sold a measly 1.3% of its supply to Covax, the international body set up to try to ensure fairer access to vaccines.

Pfizer wasn’t selling many doses to poorer countries, but neither would it allow them to produce the life-saving vaccine on their own, through licensing or patent sharing..

Read more at: Putting big pharma in charge of global

USA: Why the CDC’s guidelines on isolation, boosters, and masks are so confusing - by Dylan Scott

The fierce backlash to the CDC’s recent decision to shorten the recommended isolation period for people who test positive for Covid-19 was the latest in a series of communications blunders so severe that they have now become a meme.

Communication is an essential part of any public health response. But US health agencies have struggled with it since the very beginning of the pandemic, when government officials initially advised against wearing masks in early 2020 before reversing themselves to recommend nearly

It appeared the initial guidance may have been issued in order to preserve enough masks for health care workers. Government officials were warning at the time that hospitals’ supplies could be depleted at a critical moment if there was a run on masks. It was the first of the pandemic’s “noble lies,” The Week’s Ryan Cooper wrote in a blistering essay on the paternalistic treatment of the US public that has undermined the country’s Covid-19 response.

America’s public health institutions have failed to communicate effectively with the US public throughout the pandemic for two reasons: either they have been left trying to defend poor policies, or the messaging has taken the place of creating any kind of coherent policy at all

Read more at: Why the CDC’s guidelines on isolation, boosters, and masks are so confusing - Vox

Covid and heart problems: Getting COVID-19 is much riskier for your heart than vaccination

The heart has played a central role in COVID-19 since the beginning. Cardiovascular conditions are among the highest risk factors for hospitalization. A significant number of patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 infections have signs of heart damage, and many recover from infection with lasting cardiovascular injury.

Perhaps the most common point of conflict concerning COVID-19 vaccines is the risk of myocarditis following immunization, particularly among young people.

It’s not surprising that debates over COVID-19 vaccines frequently centre around issues involving cardiovascular health. The high-profile collapse of Danish soccer player Christian Eriksen in June initiated a myth about the link between sudden cardiac death and vaccination among athletes that persists several months later.

Read More at: Getting COVID-19 is much riskier for your heart than vaccination | PBS NewsHour

USA: Health experts warn of new COVID variant already making its way across the country

"It looks like this new variant may be slightly more contagious than Omicron, but it does not appear to be more dangerous than Omicron. It does not seem to cause more serious disease," Bailey said.

Bailey said it's more important than ever to be wearing masks because Omicron, and now BA.2, are so easily transmitted from person to person.

"These new variants, because they are so contagious, we get such high viral loads," Bailey said. "It's much more helpful to use an N95 type mask than just a regular surgical type mask or cloth face covering."

Read more at: Health experts warn of new COVID variant already making its way across the country | WCHS

India: COVID: India′s economy battles widespread unemployment, inflation

turned violent, as groups protesting mass unemployment blocked roads and railway lines.

Protester Navin Kumar Jha, 28, told DW he was among 10 million applicants for roughly 36,000 total jobs being offered.

"The authorities had to finally suspend the recruitment. We wanted to draw attention to joblessness that is worsening in the country," Jha said.

Read more at: COVID: India′s economy battles widespread unemployment, inflation | Asia | An in-depth look at news from across the continent | DW | 31.01.2022

Canada: Omicron infections have peaked nationally, Canada's top doctor says - by John Paul Tasker

Canada's chief public health officer said Friday that cases of the Omicron variant have peaked nationwide and the number of new infections has dropped significantly over the past week.

Canada's molecular testing system has been hampered by constrained capacity and staffing issues that have made PCR tests unavailable to many. Dr. Theresa Tam pointed to other indicators — daily case counts, test positivity rates and wastewater surveillance trends — that she said suggest Canada is now through the worst of the Omicron wave.

But the number of people in hospitals with COVID-19 is still at a record high, putting Canada's health care system under severe strain.

Read more at: Omicron infections have peaked nationally, Canada's top doctor says | CBC News

Covid variant or ‘scariant’? Experts warn a future ‘Deltacron’ is possible

Health experts have cast doubt on reports of a possible Covid-19 mutation combining elements of both the Delta and Omicron variants. While the evidence on “Deltacron” remains scarce, French virologists warn that the emergence of such hybrid strains is a distinct possibility.

Talk of a possible new hybrid variant with a name from a Hollywood disaster B-movie spread like wildfire on social media at the weekend, leaving behind the now customary trail of conspiracy theories and black humour. While some prominent scientists rushed to warn against the risk of peddling disinformation, others have argued that rampant variants make the threat of such mutant strains all too real.

The controversy kicked off on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, currently roiled by Europe’s highest Covid-19 rate of infection, where a local team of scientists claimed last week to have discovered the new variant. Led by Leondios Kostrikis, a professor of biological sciences at the University of Cyprus, the scientists said the new strain presented Omicron-like genetic signatures within the Delta genomes – hence the name “Deltacron”.

Read more at: Covid variant or ‘scariant’? Experts warn a future ‘Deltacron’ is possible

The Netherlands: COVID-19 in Europe: Netherlands to allow bars, restaurants and cultural venues to reopen

The Dutch government has announced that bars, restaurants, museums, theatres and other venues are to be allowed to re-open under conditions, loosening some of the toughest COVID-19 restrictions in Europe.

For more than a month, bars, restaurants, and cultural venues have been closed, while strict quarantine rules have shut a quarter of primary school classes in the Netherlands.

The announcement by Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Tuesday evening comes despite record new coronavirus infection levels, as hospitalisations from the country's Omicron wave have been lower than initially feared.

Read more at: COVID-19 in Europe: Netherlands to allow bars, restaurants and cultural venues to reopen | Euronews

The Netherlands: Dutch cabinet to discuss COVID-19 rules as OMT advises further relaxations

The government’s decision to leave a number of lockdown measures in place at the last press conference was met with much controversy and various protests and demonstrations across the Netherlands. Now, however, less than two weeks later, the outlook appears to be more positive and Prime Minister Mark Rutte is optimistic about lifting various COVID-19 restrictions on Tuesday.

The OMT is also feeling more hopeful, with the latest report from medical experts advising the Dutch government to reopen the hospitality and cultural industries, albeit with an enforced closing time of 8pm.

Sources in The Hague have suggested that Rutte and Health Minister Ernst Kuipers will opt to open restaurants, museums, theatres, and cinemas, with an enforced closing time of 10pm. With these venues reopening, the government will also reintroduce the use of coronavirus certificates.

Read more at: Dutch cabinet to discuss COVID-19 rules as OMT advises further relaxations

The Netherlands: Inside the surreal Dutch lockdown - by Senay Boztas

Sitting respectfully in our ‘pews’, we put our hands together… and clap. This is not a service but a comedy night. And Amsterdam’s newest ‘church’ is really a theatre for debate and cultural centre in disguise. Incensed by the illogical nature of the current Dutch coronavirus restrictions, Yoeri Albrecht, director of De Balie, last week changed the statutes of his organisation and registered it with the chamber of commerce as a faith-based movement: overnight, The Philosophical Society; the Community of Reason was born.

It is unlikely to be the last. His example, a group of Dutch mayors predicted wryly in an open letter to the government, is likely to mark the start of “an unprecedented religious revival in the coming weeks”.

The Netherlands has been in partial or full lockdown since November, primarily due to the pressure of patients with the Delta variant on the hospital system and one of Europe’s least efficient booster campaigns. But just over a week ago, the restrictions were loosened — albeit in a strikingly surreal fashion.

Read More at: Inside the surreal Dutch lockdown - UnHerd

Covid 19: 3 U.S. studies suggest COVID-19 boosters improve Omicron protection

Three studies released Friday offered more evidence that COVID-19 vaccines are standing up to the Omicron variant, at least among people who received booster shots.

They are the first large U.S. studies to look at vaccine protection against Omicron, health officials said.

The papers echo previous research — including studies in Germany, South Africa and the U.K. — indicating available vaccines are less effective against Omicron than earlier versions of the coronavirus, but also that booster doses rev up virus-fighting antibodies to increase the chance of avoiding symptomatic infection.

Read more at: 3 U.S. studies suggest COVID-19 boosters improve Omicron protection | CBC News

Ireland: Nphet signals end to most restrictions including Covid certs and limits at events- by Cónal Thomas and Donal MacNamee

he National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) has recommended the ending of most Covid-19 restrictions in a letter to government this evening.

The team met earlier today and outlined its advice in a letter to Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly. It said the limit on attendance at events, the two-metre social distancing rule and restrictions on hospitality could end but has left it to government to decide on exact dates.

Read more at: Nphet signals end to most restrictions including Covid certs and limits at events | Business Post

WHO: : Travel bans ineffective, WHO says

The World Health Organization on Wednesday said international travel bans "do not provide added value and continue to contribute to the economic and social stress" of countries.

In a statement issued after a WHO meeting, the UN health agency said travel restrictions that were introduced to curb the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus demonstrated "the ineffectiveness of such measures over time."

Read more at: Coronavirus digest: Travel bans ineffective, WHO says | News | DW | 19.01.2022

Coronavirus: What's happening in Canada and around the world on Tuesday

You can also read more from the Public Health Agency of Canada, which provides a detailed look at every region — including seven-day average test positivity rates — in its daily epidemiological updates.

Read more at: Coronavirus: What's happening in Canada and around the world on Tuesday | CBC News

USA - Covid: Surgeon general on COVID: “Next few weeks will be tough.”- by Daniel Politi

Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy warned Sunday that COVID-19 infections are set to continue increasing in much of the country and the “next few weeks will be tough.” Speaking as the number of daily COVID-19 cases passed 800,000, Murthy said there was reason to be optimistic cases would decrease in some parts of the country but others are still set to see an increase. “The challenge is that the entire country is not moving at the same pace,” Murthy said on CNN’s State of the Union. “The Omicron wave started later in other parts of the country. We shouldn’t expect a national peak in the coming days.”

Read more at: Surgeon general on COVID: “Next few weeks will be tough.”

The Coronavirus Saga: Will omicron delay the end of the pandemic — or speed it up in 2022?

The good news is that it will end. Experts agree on that. We’re not going to totally eradicate Covid-19, but we will see it move out of the pandemic phase and into the endemic phase.

Endemicity means the virus will keep circulating in parts of the global population for years, but its prevalence and impact will come down to relatively manageable levels, so it ends up more like the flu than a world-stopping disease.

For an infectious disease to be classed in the endemic phase, the rate of infections has to more or less stabilize across years, rather than showing big, unexpected spikes as Covid-19 has been doing. “A disease is endemic if the reproductive number is stably at one,” Boston University epidemiologist Eleanor Murray explained. “That means one infected person, on average, infects one other person.”

Read more at Will omicron delay the end of the pandemic — or speed it up in 2022? - Vox

Germany: COVID and diplomacy will challenge the German government in 2022

The most important issue facing Germans as 2022 begins is the same as a year ago: the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there is one key difference: Back then, the upcoming vaccination campaign still gave hope that the end would soon be in sight.

But one year and well over 100 million vaccine doses later, the number of new infections in Germany is substantially higher than it was at the start of 2021.

In order to get more people to get vaccinated, the government could soon implement a universal vaccine mandate. That would mean politicians across the board would be guilty of breaking a promise, with former Christian Democrat Chancellor Angela Merkel, her Social Democrat successor Olaf Scholz and Free Democrat leader Christian Lindner, now finance minister, all previously ruling out such a move.

Read more art: COVID and diplomacy will challenge the German government in 2022 | Germany | News and in-depth reporting from Berlin and beyond | DW | 01.01.2022

Coronavirus - a communication disaster: How Communication around COVID Fuels a Mistrust of Science - by Joseph V. Sakran

Throughout the pandemic, we have seen how inconsistent messaging around COVID has fueled doubt around science, giving place to consistently messaged misinformation that has found its way into communities all across America. This has undermined our ability to implement data-driven policymaking.

Even before the pandemic, science has been under attack with debates over whether climate change is real, whether tobacco or vaping causes lung damage, whether guns are associated with gun violence, and whether mental illness is simply a chemical imbalance or more broadly related to a bio-psycho-social model.

We have seen anti-vaccine sentiment prevail after Andrew Wakefield’s work linking autism to vaccines was published. Dozens of peer-reviewed studies have found exactly the opposite. Wakefield’s paper was retracted, and he’s been resoundingly discredited as a scientist, but the damage is done. Prior to COVID-19, we saw measles outbreaks reach their highest numbers since measles was all but eliminated. Why? Pockets of American communities, fearing autism, simply refused vaccination. Children died of a preventable disease.

As the pandemic continues, our public health agencies, starting at the very top, need to be reliable, evidence-driven, and consistent sources of information. But the CDC is not alone. Our top drug regulatory agency, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has shown inconsistency that not only affects the general public, but everyone who is involved in health care delivery.

Read more at: How Communication around COVID Fuels a Mistrust of Science - Scientific American

Europe: COVID in Europe: UK deaths pass 150,000 as Germany plans to further restrict bars and restaurants

Europe is once again seeing a surge of COVID-19 cases — here is our summary of the measures being taken across the continent.

Several nations have been reporting record numbers of new daily cases, the increase compounded by the emergence of the new Omicron variant, first detected in South Africa.

Some countries have taken steps targeting the unvaccinated, while programmes are also being rolled out to vaccinate young children. United Kingdom

Read more at: COVID in Europe: UK deaths pass 150,000 as Germany plans to further restrict bars and restaurants | Euronews

WHO: Omicron is 'killing people' and should not be called 'mild', WHO warns

The head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned on Thursday against describing the Omicron variant as "mild" amid a "tsunami of cases" overwhelming health systems across the world.

"Last week, the highest number of COVID-19 cases were reported so far in the pandemic," Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters during a regular press briefing.

Read more at: Omicron is 'killing people' and should not be called 'mild', WHO warns | Euronews

Coronavirus: Caging the dragon: Research approach to COVID‐19–related thrombosis -

The incidence of venous thrombosis, mostly pulmonary embolism (PE), ranging from local immunothrombosis to central emboli, but also deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in people with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is reported to be remarkably high. The relevance of better understanding, predicting, treating, and preventing COVID-19–associated venous thrombosis meets broad support, as can be concluded from the high number of research, review, and guideline papers that have been published on this topic. The Dutch COVID & Thrombosis Coalition (DCTC) is a multidisciplinary team involving a large number of Dutch experts in the broad area of venous thrombosis and hemostasis research, combined with experts on virology, critically ill patients, pulmonary diseases, and community medicine, across all university hospitals and many community hospitals in the Netherlands. Within the consortium, clinical data of at least 5000 admitted COVID-19–infected individuals are available, including substantial collections of biobanked materials in an estimated 3000 people. In addition to considerable experience in preclinical and clinical thrombosis research, the consortium embeds virology-hemostasis research models within unique biosafety facilities to address fundamental questions on the interaction of virus with epithelial and vascular cells, in relation to the coagulation and inflammatory system. The DCTC has initiated a comprehensive research program to answer many of the current questions on the pathophysiology and best anticoagulant treatment of COVID-19–associated thrombotic complications. The research program was funded by grants of the Netherlands Thrombosis Foundation and the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development. Here, we summarize the design and main aims of the research program.

Read more at: Caging the dragon: Research approach to COVID‐19–related thrombosis - Kruip - 2021 - Research and Practice in Thrombosis and Haemostasis - Wiley Online Library

Covid - no end in sight: Governments Worldwide Continue Imposing COVID Measures, 2 Years After Pandemic's Start

Exactly two years after the World Health Organization issued an alert about "a cluster of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause" in the central Chinese city of Wuhan that evolved into the global COVID-19 pandemic, the world is now struggling under the weight of the fast-moving omicron variant of the coronavirus that sparked the disease.

In Brazil, a surge of new COVID-19 cases driven by the omicron variant has prompted authorities in Rio de Janeiro to cancel its iconic Carnival street festival for the second consecutive year. <

Read more at: https://www.voanews.com/a/governments-worldwide-continue-imposing-covid-19-measures-two-years-after-pandemic-s-start-/6384416.html

The Netherlands: Thousands gather to oppose Dutch virus measures despite ban

Thousands of people in the Netherlands defied a ban on assembling and demonstrated Sunday against the Dutch government’s coronavirus lockdown measures, gathering on a central square before marching toward a park in Amsterdam.

Read more at: Thousands gather to oppose Dutch virus measures despite ban | AP News

USA: Florida reports 56,865 new COVID cases, positivity rate continues to soar

After days of record-breaking COVID-19 cases in the Sunshine State, Florida reported 56,865 new cases on Saturday and the positivity rates in South Florida continue to soar.

According to the latest figures released, both Miami-Dade and Broward counties have positivity rates of 30%.

Public health experts don’t consider the virus to be under control in an area unless the positivity rate is under 5%.

Read more at: Florida reports 56,865 new COVID cases, positivity rate continues to soar