Pandemic rising tide how to play

The World Health Organization ( WHO ) is to determine whether monkeypox is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on Thursday. WHO body the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee will convene experts at the meeting—which will take place at 12 p.m. CEST in Geneva, Switzerland—to discuss the rapidly spreading virus. The virus , only seen in areas of central and western Africa before now, has not yet caused any deaths in newly affected countries. However, people have died in previous outbreaks. If the outbreak is declared an emergency of international concern, it will require an internationally coordinated response to stop the spread. PHEIC status is only ever considered when a disease becomes "serious, sudden, unusual or unexpected." Could Monkeypox Be Declared a Pandemic? Currently, many have drawn their own conclusions that the monkeypox outbreak is at an epidemic level. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( … [Read more...] about Pandemic or epidemic: WHO monkeypox announcement set for today

The number of new coronavirus cases rose in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe last week, while the number of deaths globally dropped by 16%, according to the World Health Organization's latest weekly pandemic report issued on Wednesday. The WHO said there were 3.3 million new COVID-19 infections last week, marking a 4% decrease, with more than 7,500 deaths. But cases jumped by about 45% in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and by about 6% in Europe. Southeast Asia was the only region to report a slight 4% increase in deaths, while figures fell elsewhere. Globally, the number of new COVID-19 cases has ben falling after peaking in January. Salim Abdool Karim, an epidemiologist and vice-chancellor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, said the recent fall in COVID-19 numbers had reached “trough” levels and had not been seen much in the last two and a half years. He warned, however, that some countries, including Britain, were starting to see a slight … [Read more...] about COVID-19 cases rise in Southeast Asia, Middle East and Europe

Rail strikes have caused disruption as unions and bosses clash over issues like pay, jobs and conditions. The Government has urged the strikes to end while unions continue to push for guarantees for their members in a key industry which was among those severely affected by the pandemic. – When are strikes being held and how many are left? The second 24-hour strike was held on Thursday, with another walkout planned for Saturday. – Who is striking? Recommended Russia says EU sanctions that prompted transit ban ‘unacceptable’ Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) on Network Rail and 13 train operators are involved in the dispute. – What is the dispute about? Pay, jobs and conditions. Jobs are going to be cut and working conditions changed under an efficiency drive, while unions are seeking a pay rise to reflect the cost-of-living crisis. – What are the unions’ pay demands and how much have they been offered? … [Read more...] about What is the state of play in the rail dispute as industrial action resumes?

The number of new coronavirus cases rose in Southeast Asia , the Middle East and Europe last week, while the number of deaths globally dropped by 16%, according to the World Health Organization 's latest weekly pandemic report issued Wednesday. The WHO said there were 3.3 million new COVID-19 infections last week, marking a 4% decrease, with more than 7,500 deaths. But cases jumped by about 45% in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and by about 6% in Europe. Southeast Asia was the only region to report a slight 4% increase in deaths, while figures fell elsewhere. Globally, the number of new COVID-19 cases has ben falling after peaking in January. Salim Abdool Karim, an epidemiologist and vice-chancellor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, said the recent fall in COVID-19 numbers had reached “trough” levels and had not been seen much in the last two and a half years. He warned, however, that some countries, including Britain, were starting to see a … [Read more...] about COVID cases rise in Southeast Asia, Middle East and Europe

ROME, June 22 (Xinhua) -- COVID-19 cases are again surging in Italy, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday, fueling fears of a fresh wave of the pandemic during the summer tourist season. The government reported on Wednesday nearly 54,000 new infections over the previous 24 hours. A day earlier, there were 62,704 new infections. Accordingly, the past two days produced the highest back-to-back figures in the country since late April. Italy's seven-day case count is set to increase for the third consecutive week after eight weeks of decline. The daily infection figures are still far below the peaks of more than 200,000 cases registered in January. The country recorded 50 new deaths from COVID-19 on Wednesday, down from 62 on Tuesday. Despite the recent increase in infections, health officials said they do not expect mortality or intensive-care patient rates to shoot higher given that Italy's vaccination campaign has been largely successful. As of Wednesday, 90.1 percent of … [Read more...] about Italy fears summer COVID-19 wave as cases rise

ROME, June 24 (Xinhua) -- The coronavirus reproduction number (RT) was on the rise in Italy, along with the bed occupancy rate in both normal wards and emergency units, according to data released on Friday. The assessment came with the latest monitoring survey carried out by the country's National Health Institute (ISS) in the first half of June. Their report showed the average RT grew to 1.07 between June 1 and June 14, above the pandemic threshold (RT 1), and up from 0.83 registered in the previous monitoring report related to the period from May 25 to June 7. This was the first time the RT exceeded the value of 1 in over two and a half months, according to the institute. The RT at 1 or above is an indication that the virus is spreading, meaning that one infectious individual would averagely transmit the infection to more than one other person. The average bed occupancy registered on June 23 was 2.2 percent in intensive care units and 7.9 percent in normal COVID-19 wards, … [Read more...] about Roundup: Italy’s COVID-19 reproduction number, hospitalizations on rise

Inflation is a tough problem for any president to tackle. Unfortunately, President Biden has thus far proven unwilling to take any meaningful actions that would help alleviate the problem, instead preferring to take up politically-motivated policies that would do next to nothing for taxpayers struggling with rising prices. Most recently, Biden announced his intention to ask Congress for a three-month suspension of the federal gas tax. But even in the unlikely event that Congress should prove amenable, the policy that former President Barack Obama correctly called a “gimmick” would do very little to solve the underlying problems. At the most basic level, prices are determined by the interaction between supply and demand. The current spike in gas prices is the result of constricted supply — in part due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but gas prices were rising even before then. During the pandemic, people traveled less, almost wholly abandoning vacation plans and often … [Read more...] about WILFORD: Biden’s Gas Tax Holiday Comes At Rising Prices All Wrong

The flood situation in Assam further deteriorated as over 22 districts have been affected, especially in the lower and middle regions of the state. In the newly-formed Bajali district of lower Assam, where the severity of flood has been intense, charging mobile handsets has been a major concern for the affected people. With no electric supply for last couple of days as flood water submerged electric poles and entered power stations, people stuck in villages are facing a harrowing using their mobile phones. A local youth in a remote marooned hamlet of Bajali has risen above the situation by helping villagers charge their mobile phones for Rs 20. Villagers are now thronging to this particular house to get their mobile handset charged. In a video that has gone viral, the youth has used a portable generator set to charge mobile handsets. The generator is to charge more than 50 mobiles phones plugged into extendable charge points at a given point of time. People are given a numbered … [Read more...] about Rs 20 for Charging Phone, Essentials in Plantain Raft: Assam Rises Above Adversity Amid Severe Floods

Wedged into a recliner in the corner of her assisted-living apartment in Portland, Oregon, the United States, Skylar Freimann, who has a terminal heart condition and pulmonary illness, anxiously eyed her newly arrived hospital bed on a recent day and worried over how she would maintain independence as she further loses mobility. There to guide her along the journey was Rev Jo Laurence, a hospice and palliative care chaplain. But rather than invoking God or a Christian prayer, she talked of meditation, chanting and other Eastern spiritual traditions: "The body can weigh us down sometimes,” she counselled. "Where is the divine or the sacred in your decline?” An ordained Sufi minister and practising Zen Buddhist who brings years of meditation practice and scriptural training to support end-of-life patients, Laurence is part of a burgeoning generation of Buddhist chaplains who are increasingly common in hospitals, hospices and prisons, where the need for their services rose … [Read more...] about Why Buddhist chaplains are on the rise in US

The 2022 Asian Games which were scheduled to take place in Hangzhou in September have been postponed until an unspecified date. The Chinese state media reported the development on Friday, citing the Olympic Council of Asia as no reason was specified. IPL 2022 – FULL COVERAGE | SCHEDULE | RESULTS | ORANGE CAP | PURPLE CAP | POINTS TABLE “The Olympic Council of Asia has announced that the 19th Asian Games, originally scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China from September 10 to 25, 2022, will be postponed,” said a statement on the official Games website, first posted on Chinese state media. The new dates for the sporting contest “will be announced at a later date”, the statement added. China had previously hosted the Asian Games in Guangzhou in 2010. The OCA also said that the Asian Youth Games Shantou 2021, which had been postponed earlier, will be cancelled now. “Additionally, the OCA EB also studied the situation of the 3rd Asian Youth Games, which was … [Read more...] about Asian Games 2022 Postponed Amid Rising Covid-19 Cases and Lockdowns In China