Exactly 4 months ago, President Trump said this:
"You have 15 people, and the 15 within a couple of days is going to be down to close to zero."
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) June 26, 2020
We did it, America. We flattened the curve. pic.twitter.com/kiyKecXt37
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) June 25, 2020
Factbox: Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus https://t.co/xL62q6gBOh pic.twitter.com/BtLqSymDWP
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
A World Health Organization-led coalition fighting the COVID-19 pandemic is asking government and private sector donors to help raise $31.3 billion in the next 12 months to develop and deliver tests, treatments and vaccines for the disease.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* More than 9.66 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 489,398 have died, a Reuters tally showed as of 1600 GMT on Friday.* For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread, open tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser.
* For a U.S.-focused tracker with state-by-state and county map, open tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T in an external browser…
The rate of confirmed cases [on the x-axis] against the rate of testing [on the y-axis].
• A country that gets the pandemic under control stops moving to the right.
• If it tests widely it moves up.The US stayed on very low testing and moved far to the right. pic.twitter.com/eWWtnwcAMD
— Max Roser (@MaxCRoser) June 26, 2020
According to Johns Hopkins University's tally of cases in the United States, at least 125,045 people have died in the U.S. from coronavirus.
The US has under 5% of the world’s population and per official numbers more than 25% of the world’s COVID-19 deaths.
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) June 27, 2020
“We have made truly remarkable progress in moving our nation forward” – @VP at @WhiteHouse COVID-19 briefing pic.twitter.com/b1Aubgf6dW
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) June 26, 2020
Pretty sharp rebound in concern around coronavirus, which I think has to count as good news if it makes people more careful going forward. https://t.co/2iE3Axzsbk
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) June 26, 2020
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?? The E.U. will bar most travelers from the U.S. and Russia, which have been excluded from a list of countries deemed to have curbed the virus, via ?@nytimes? https://t.co/bIhr0gir7y
— Dylan Byers (@DylanByers) June 26, 2020
… Although travel between the United States and Europe has been severely limited by lockdown restrictions, exceptions have been made. A regular flight between Newark and Amsterdam, for example, is limited to essential travelers such as diplomats and health care professionals, and for repatriating Europeans from the United States…
EU holds off decision on borders, Americans set to be excluded https://t.co/RvxDmgkEUG pic.twitter.com/O3Pd7Mf7wF
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
A lot of the delay seems to be bickering about which European nations will/won’t be allowed to visit their ‘neighbors’. But then there’s this:
… Despite pressure from U.S. airlines and unions, the White House has not committed to mandating fresh air travel safety measures in the wake of the pandemic. Discussions between airlines and government officials including Vice President Mike Pence on Friday over temperature checks ended without an agreement.
In a statement, Pence’s office said the parties also discussed “the best path forward for allowing Americans to safely travel internationally again.” …
FREEEEEDUMB!
We have some company in the Waiting Room of Shame…
Coronavirus: Sweden says WHO made 'total mistake' by including it in warning https://t.co/RugctiSNQp
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) June 26, 2020
Swedish state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell has rejected a warning from the World Health Organization that included Sweden among countries in Europe at risk of a Covid-19 resurgence…
Sweden’s response to the pandemic has been very different to other European countries. There has been no lockdown, with schools and cafes staying open, but large gatherings have been banned and most Swedes observe social distancing.
It has seen 5,230 deaths in a population of 10 million – a far higher mortality rate than its neighbours. This week Sweden reported its highest number of daily infections since the outbreak began, with 1,610 on Wednesday.
Dr Tegnell told SVT on Friday that Sweden was seeing a rising number of infections because it was testing far more than before. It was “unfortunate”, he said, that the WHO was “confusing Sweden” with countries at the start of their epidemic…
Other Nordic countries have been slow to allow Swedes over their borders. Swedes will only be allowed into Denmark from Saturday if the region where they live meets the level of just 20 infections per 100,000 over a week, far lower than the WHO’s current national figure for Sweden of 155.
Earlier this month, Dr Tegnell acknowledged that Sweden had seen too many deaths. However, he has repeatedly defended the strategy of not locking down, saying it is too early to make a definitive judgement.
"Now, thank God, the epidemic is in retreat"
President Vladimir Putin says coronavirus cases are decreasing in Russia https://t.co/WXM4wNzX93 pic.twitter.com/NIrjUFq2i8
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) June 26, 2020
China sees uptick in new COVID-19 cases, including 17 in Beijing https://t.co/31ITRhQVhM pic.twitter.com/C6fFPm3sLk
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
India’s confirmed coronavirus cases cross half a million with another record 24-hour jump of 18,552 infections. The Health Ministry also reports 384 new deaths, raising the total to 15,685. https://t.co/gDv1eB8DnP
— The Associated Press (@AP) June 27, 2020
Epidemiologist advising Indian government says that #coronavirus infections are rising rapidly in India, & the low death rate could be misleading.
“The epidemic is growing very rapidly. “https://t.co/xIPI7qoYnQ #COVID19
— Microbes&Infection (@MicrobesInfect) June 26, 2020
France reports more than 1,500 new coronavirus cases, a first since end-May https://t.co/mfXTWQ2khb pic.twitter.com/MCb5LR0XgQ
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
In Lisbon, the unspoken reality is that it’s minority communities that are being hit hardest by coronavirus https://t.co/n4TNlEJrnz
— Bloomberg Economics (@economics) June 27, 2020
‘I’ve taken it off because it felt like a sauna underneath it.’ Italians on wearing a mask in the heat pic.twitter.com/UAGbP8a2lm
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
Brazil registers 46,860 additional coronavirus cases, 990 deaths https://t.co/qfkRtmmr1q pic.twitter.com/4j3j0cuPwl
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
Coronavirus, spreading in Brazil’s interior, threatens to ‘boomerang’ back to major cities https://t.co/tIW2XFN12V pic.twitter.com/o9cmQjS05R
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
Mexico reports 5,441 new coronavirus cases, 719 more deaths https://t.co/ZBep6f7G72 pic.twitter.com/2nK8WKcBLs
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
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Three big partners — @WHO, @CEPIvaccines & @gavi — have launched a plan to buy 2B doses of #Covid19 by the end of 2020. Countries will buy into a shared-risk pool, with $$ help for low-income countries. Aim: Vaccinate the world's highest risk folks. https://t.co/4lnELZNP43
— Helen Branswell (@HelenBranswell) June 26, 2020
Coronavirus traces found in March 2019 sewage sample, Spanish study shows https://t.co/brJyefKqtV pic.twitter.com/Xs52vHvQU2
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
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Hard-hit U.S. states ‘surge’ hospital intensive care beds as ICU wards fill up https://t.co/vcAk1oH9yW pic.twitter.com/toY1TZbVk9
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
‘The positivity rate has begun to increase,’ California Governor Gavin Newsom said while talking about the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the state pic.twitter.com/9esKJxQgFw
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
California has seen a 32% increase in hospitalizations of patients with confirmed COVID-19 disease, and a 19% jump in ICU patients with verified infections, over the past 14 days. https://t.co/tZaT8A8HY0
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) June 26, 2020
“Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, is recording as many as 2,000 cases a day, eclipsing the New York City boroughs even on their worst days…Arizona is facing more per-capita cases than recorded by any country in Europe or even by hard-hit Brazil.” https://t.co/1cGgC3KHcu
— Dan Zak (@MrDanZak) June 26, 2020
‘What’s going on in this country is now frightening and revealing at the same time’: New York Governor Cuomo says states that followed guidance from the White House are now seeing a spike in COVID-19 cases and have made a mistake https://t.co/uMv2kdSGQI pic.twitter.com/wSaxsPAkgV
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
Texas and Florida reversed their reopening plans and imposed tighter restrictions as a resurgence of new coronavirus cases test the strength of any broader economic rebound in the U.S. https://t.co/ZoDcvnxAhH pic.twitter.com/P2LB32Gbum
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 27, 2020
On the single worst day in New York City, back in mid-April, we had under 8,000 new cases. https://t.co/YBN1QKVqWs
— Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) June 26, 2020
Good news, not-so-good news:
New York City reports no protest-related upticks in Covid-19 https://t.co/DZzWGX0sYP
— Geoffrey P. Johnston??? (@GeoffyPJohnston) June 26, 2020
People who attended Trump’s Tulsa rally came from at least 44 counties spread across 12 states. Covid-19 is on the rise in 33 of them. https://t.co/mNL8qTunjH by @andretartar @racheladhe @kessler @akesslerdc pic.twitter.com/f0nHzdPm5W
— Melinda Grenier (@mpgrenier731) June 26, 2020
satby
I’m seriously wondering if red-state Indiana is falsifying it’s numbers. Considering the rising cases elsewhere and the non-compliance with masks I see in at least 50% of the people, I don’t believe that case rates aren’t going up here.
Heading into the sea of denial that is the farmer’s market today, but at least the majority of customers wear masks. I just stay away from the other vendors, keep my door open, and keep a fan behind me blowing air away from me.
Plus, my oldest son and his partner are visiting, and I haven’t seen him since February, so I’m excited. Plus, it’s Pride day at the market, so I’m wearing my beautiful rainbow mask ?
Amir Khalid
Malaysia’s daily numbers. 10 new cases: six from local infection consisting of four Malaysians and two non-Malaysians; four cases of imported infection, comprising of one Malaysian and three non-Malaysians. Cumulative total 8,516 cases.
14 more patients recovered and were discharged from hospital, total 8,308 recovered or 96.4% of the cumulative total. 187 active cases remain in hospital for isolation/treatment. Two are in ICU, neither of them is on a ventilator.
No new deaths; this is Malaysia’s second 13-day run without fatalities. Total is still at 121 deaths. Infection fatality rate is 1.40%, case fatality rate is 1.44%.
satby
@Amir Khalid: Wow, a functional country. I remember when we had one ?
Amir Khalid
@satby:
I was about to compare the American management of the pandemic to a headless chicken, but then you just made me remember that a headless chicken doesn’t tell lies.
WereBear
@satby: Sounds like a bunch of good precautions. May you stay safe!
We’ve cancelled all summer festivals. Which is a big deal, since we are kind of like the beach town in Jaws that way…
WereBear
@Amir Khalid: It’s sad and true, Amir.
NYC got overwhelmed by a flood of people from Europe into the densest city in the US. Just what is Arizona’s excuse?
And are they going to handle it as well? At least NY created temporary hospital spaces but I don’t see that in Florida, Texas, Arizona, Missouri, and all the other hard hit states.
Baud
We should make COVID an honorary firearm.
terben
From the Australian Dept of Health:
‘As at 3pm on 27 June 2020, a total of 7,641 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Australia, including 104 deaths and 6,979 have been reported as recovered from COVID-19.
46 new cases today, 40 in Victoria. 6 cases in NSW, all but 1 in quarantine. In my state, South Australia, the last case was 32 days ago. That run is expected to end soon as a group of 260 Australian travellers arrived at Adelaide Airport on a flight from Mumbai this morning. It is expected that up to 10% of them will test positive during their 14 day quarantine.
In positive news, e-scooters were back in the Adelaide CBD today and the state football competition commenced for 2020 with limited numbers of spectators.
prostratedragon
@Amir Khalid:
Our new national anthem? Not much harder to sing for most people than the present one.
OzarkHillbilly
Mexicans, SATSQ.
YY_Sima Qian
Yesterday, Beijing reported 17 new domestic confirmed and 4 new asymptomatic cases, with case summaries for 16 of the 17 confirmed cases also published. 14 of the 16 cases were vendors at the meat/seafood trading hall of the Xinfadi wholesale produce exchange, all of whom went into centralized quarantine on 6/12 (1 on 6/16), tested positive on 6/24 (1 on 6/26), all confirmed on 6/26. Therefore, the slight uptick in cases appears to be an artifact of the overall schedule of quarantine and testing for at risk persons, rather than a change in the epidemiological mechanics. One of the remaining cases from yesterday shopped at Xinfadi twice before it was shut down, has been under self-quarantine since 6/13. The other case has close contact to several colleagues and family members who visited Xinfadi. Summary for the previously undisclosed case from 6/25 is a bit more concerning. The case is in the northern suburbs of the capital, with no known direct or indirect connection to Xinfadi or other clusters seeded by Xinfadi. Like the mysterious case in Tianjin, we will have to see what further epidemiological investigation uncovers.
Unfortunately, some of the people ordered to self-quarantine have not consistently done so. The confirmed case with multiple close contacts with direct exposure to Xinfadi still managed to visit public services, supermarkets, and dinner party at a colleague’s home. He tried unsuccessfully to self medicate after onset of symptoms on 6/23. Beijing is now placing electro-magnetic locks and alarms on the doors of those under self-quarantine. (When someone is under self-quarantine, the entire household is under quarantine.)
Unlike cities with previous outbreaks, Beijing has not been publishing summaries for asymptomatic cases.
WereBear
@OzarkHillbilly: Mr WereBear showed me that Arizona Republican official who was on video wearing a mask, mockingly saying “I can’t breathe” and then taking it off with a flourish. FREE-DUMB!
They keep digging.
Amir Khalid
@WereBear:
There’s no magic secret to managing the pandemic properly. What Vietnam and Malaysia and New Zealand, among others, have managed to do is all down to competent, professional health authorities, and to the public’s social discipline in continuing to observe the proper precautions.
OzarkHillbilly
@WereBear: I’ve seen this video out of Florida in a number of places:
I can’t bring myself to turn on the sound, but he certainly appears to be acting like a mad dog and I would bet he sounds like one too. I most certainly would put a muzzle on him, or at least a mask and if he refused I’d toss his covid ass out in the street.
Mary G
So freaking insane. Orange County changed its website, removing historical charts and graphs, because the numbers of cases, deaths, and hospitalizations are shooting up. It’s like when the cat hides her head behind the curtain, sure I can’t see her. We still have a lot of Republicans in lower level offices, and that will have to change.
OzarkHillbilly
WASF.
Amir Khalid
@OzarkHillbilly:
I turned on the sound; the man is full of angry nonsense. You were wise not to.
YY_Sima Qian
It should be disconcerting for me to see some of the local, state and even federal authorities pulling shenanigans that one would normally accuse the CCP regime of. Then, I remember who is president, and what the modern GOP has turned into. Then, I am still dismayed as I did not expect the technocratic public health bureaucracy to be so easily corroded by Trump and other Republicans.
Pompeo and other Trump toadies are eager to turn the emerging Cold War with China into an ideological struggle, even though China’s challenge is not really ideological. However, the US’ COVID-19 is not exactly casting liberal democracy in a good light. Yes, the US’ failure here is because the US has been straying from the liberal democratic path (some of the foundations laid decades ago), and there are other liberal democracies whose performance have ranged from reasonably well to excellent. Nevertheless, many people in developing countries will not see it that way. It will take an 8-year Biden administration to repair just some of the damage, and a lot will depend on what the voters do (will many of the mushy middle quickly return to ignorant apathy, as they did in 2010).
Geminid
@satby: Glad to hear most of the folks at the farmer’s market are wearing masks. And I wish you and yours a happy visit.
New Deal democrat
While cases are back to increasing exponentially in the Deep South, plus CA, AZ, and Utah, deaths have not increased. Is it just a delay, or are there other fundamental reasons that will prevent such an increase?
Well, in between diagnoses and deaths comes hospitalizations. The problem there is, about a dozen States including a couple of large ones, aren’t reporting those.
But Conor Kelly is keeping track of the roughly 40 States that do. The result? Hospitalizations are flat in the Northeast and Midwest, rising in the West, and skyrocketing in the Deep South.
Deaths are going to follow shortly.
rikyrah
@satby:
That’s how I feel when I read his daily report
rikyrah
Protect yourself EU.
Ban America
rikyrah
@WereBear:
I, too, have been wondering.
Where are the temporary hospitals in Florida, Arizona, Texas, California?
YY_Sima Qian
Interesting new development, Chinese importers of meat and seafood products (at the behest of Chinese government) are asking their export counter parties across the world to sign Assurance documents that their products (including packaging) are COVID-19 free. A number of US and Brazilian exporters have already signed such document, while others are temporarily withdrawing from the Chinese market.
I am sure the decision is motivated by samples from the environment where imported salmon is processed testing positive at Xinfadi. Furthermore, the viral genetic sequence of Xinfadi outbreak is identical to an older strain from Europe that was prevalent several generations ago, not ones that is currently prevalent on the continent (thus recent importation, or previous importation with lengthy undetected domestic spread, are unlikely). Although there is no evidence yet that the Xinfadi is caused by imported foodstuff (or its packaging), and the China CDC has clarified that it believes fomite transmission to be low probability, global cold chain logistics has been placed under the spotlight in China.
It is possible that this is merely anti-COVID theater. However, China imports a large amount of beef, chicken, pork and seafood. Meat prices has already been rising due to culling of 30 – 50% of the pig herd in China due to African Swine Flu in 2019. With Australian abattoirs under sanction, the US/Brazil/Russia being COVID-19 epicenters, meat prices in China is set to inflate further before the new regulation, directly hitting the pocket books of Chinese consumers at a time of economic weakness. The request applies to all suppliers, so it is probably not a geopolitical maneuver (like the sanctions on Australian abattoirs).
One positive second order effect of the new Chinese regulation might be that the American, Brazilian and European companies will finally take serious measures to contain and prevent COVID-19 outbreaks at their meat packing plants.
WereBear
@YY_Sima Qian:
They won’t. We’ll have to MAKE them.
YY_Sima Qian
@WereBear: Signing the assurance documents means if any product (including packaging) tests positive for SARS-CoV-2, the exporter/producer is in the hook for damages. That might be incentive enough. The companies may decide to simply disinfect the outer packaging before shipping, but how would they deal with sick workers contaminating the surfaces of the raw meats they work with, unless to prevent the workers from getting sick to begin with? Any measures employed to prevent the workers from contaminating the meat should also minimize transmission among workers.
dr. bloor
Nice to see Tegnell moving beyond his brief moment of humility and back into standard “I’m right because fuck you” operating mode.
MoCA Ace
@WereBear: I saw that video too and I just can’t anymore.
I yell at the TV and bitch about those idiots in front of my wife all the time (so does she sometimes). When I saw the clip I just said I hope that fucker ends up on a ventilator and some nurse gets in his face and mocks him with “I can’t breath, I can’t breath”. I looked over and my wife is looking at me with a mix of horror and sadness on her face. I vent and yell and joke a lot but she knew I meant it. I actually apologized to her for being such a horrible person.
Sometimes I am shocked how much hate I have in my heart for these people.
leeleeFL
@MoCA Ace: As things progress, I feel less and less shame in wishing terrible fates on the stupid people I see and hear. I am really frightened here in Flori-duh! I have to work, I am in the service industry, and I am 69 with HBP. These past 8 weeks have gotten more and more scary. Couple of fellow young colleagues went to a party, you’ll never guess what happened. Now guests are letting us know they have it or have been exposed. ????
Feathers
@New Deal democrat: The new cases are skewing much younger. Older and vulnerable people are following the guidelines and not getting sick. It’s the young and foolish, who are filling the hospitals, but not dying. So no funerals, but undoubtedly a large cohort of people facing a lifetime of serious disability.
Sorry for no link, went back through my twitter feed, but couldn’t find the article.
Brachiator
@OzarkHillbilly:
Says person frothing at the mouth like a mad dog.
It’s just sad. Again, I think that these people should be quarantined in their own separate area and wear bracelets agreeing to forego treatment if they come down with the virus.
Brachiator
@Feathers:
I think it’s more that younger people are just socializing more. So there’s more community spread, including families with children. It may be, however, that many people are still taking steps to shield elderly family members even as they themselves return to work or socialize more.
Here’s what’s happening in LA County:
New Deal democrat
@Feathers:
It is absolutely true that cases have been skewing younger. But at some point the median age of new cases stops declining and stabilizes at e.g., 35 years old. Once that happens, cases and deaths move together with a lag.
The increase in hospitalizations in the past week – really, skyrocketing in the Deep South – tells us that we have already reached or are now reaching that point.
Manxome Bromide
@rikyrah: I can’t speak for all of California, but my county (Santa Clara) has about 2000 regular hospital beds and about 450 ICU beds, according to its own daily COVID stats, and we have about 30% of the former empty and 50% of the latter. Actual hospitalizations for COVID, including non-ICU, are under a hundred, and often significantly under it.
Their stat reports include a separate tab for “surge capacity”, which lists 1,200 additional beds on top of the normal hospital beds, but also lists their utilization as zero.
If we’re typical here in Silicon Valley, they’re in mothballs but waiting to activate.
(Our testing numbers are very good; 150 tests/100k residents and positive rates well below 3%. Our tracing capabilities are extremely bad, though, and while our rates are below 3%, they’re rising, and one of the state’s major outbreaks – the San Joaquin Valley – is on our doorstep.)