Here come COVID-19 tracing apps – and privacy trade-offs
Many governments eager to reopen their societies are starting to bet on smartphone apps to help stanch the coronavirus pandemic. But their decisions on which technologies to use highlight some uncomfortable trade-offs between protecting privacy and public health. The first such apps collect user data and sometimes their location history to warn people about possible exposure to COVID-19. Such information could help authorities detect new outbreak hot spots, but it could also potentially be abused by police or immigration agents. By contrast, Apple and Google are offering new software designed to support apps that will alert individuals directly about exposure, an approach increasingly popular in Europe.
___
As US piles up debt to aid economy, even usual critics cheer
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government has opened the spigots and let loose nearly $3 trillion to try to rescue the economy from the coronavirus outbreak — a river of debt that would have been unthinkable even a few months ago. And yet the response, even from people who built careers as skeptics of federal debt, speaks to the gravity of the crisis: Almost no one has blinked. Not yet, anyway. With the U.S. economy in a frightening free-fall, they say, the government has no choice but to pour trillions into an emergency rescue operation. Doing less would risk a catastrophe — a recession that could devolve into a full-fledged depression.
___
Production shutdowns shrink meat supplies at stores
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. meat supplies are dwindling due to coronavirus-related production shutdowns. As a result, some stores like Costco and restaurants like Wendy’s are limiting sales. U.S. beef and pork processing capacity is down 40% from last year. On Monday night, nearly 20% of U.S. Wendy’s didn’t have beef available on their online menus, according to an analysis by Stephens, an investment bank. Wendy’s confirms it’s seeing temporary shortages. Meat production plants are gradually reopening. In the meantime, some alternative meat companies like Impossible Foods are hoping to fill the void.
NEW YORK (AP) — Texas regulators are relaxing rules about where companies can store oil underground. That’s raising concern among environmentalists about potential groundwater contamination and other dangers. The members of the Railroad Commission of Texas voted Tuesday to allow companies to store liquid hydrocarbons underground in places other than salt caverns, which are considered better at preventing leaks than other geological formations. The shift aimed to help oil producers whose wells are spewing out far more oil than the world can use after the coronavirus pandemic gutted global demand for jet fuel and gasoline.
___
Detroit automakers push for restart of plants within 2 weeks
DETROIT (AP) — Major U.S. automakers are planning to reopen North American factories within two weeks, potentially putting thousands of workers back on the assembly line as part of a gradual return to normality. Fiat Chrysler CEO Mike Manley said Tuesday that his company plans to start reopening factories on May 18, but that requires an easing of government restrictions. For now, Michigan’s shelter-at-home order remains in effect until May 15. Detroit automakers will likely be on the same timetable because their workers are represented by the same union. The United Auto Workers union on Tuesday appeared to be onboard.
___
Disney profit sinks amid shuttered parks, movies and sports
NEW YORK (AP) — Disney reported a steep decline in profit as many segments of its media and entertainment offerings ground to a standstill during the coronavirus pandemic. Its second quarter profit dropped 91% to $475 million. Overall, the company said costs related to COVID-19 cut Disney’s pretax profit by $1.4 billion. One bright spot was its Disney Plus streaming service, which contributed to an almost $3 billion revenue increase for direct-to-consumer and international business. Overall revenue rose 21 per cent to $18.01 billion, just short of the $18.06 billion analysts expected.
___
US trade gap rises to $44.4 billlion as virus slams commerce
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. trade deficit rose in March as the coronavirus outbreak battered America’s trade with the world. The gap between what the United States sells and what it buys abroad rose 11.6% in March to $44.4 billion from $39.8 billion in February. U.S. exports fell 9.6% to $187.7 billion, and imports fell 6.2% to $232.2 billion. .
___
Coronavirus cuts ‘deep scars’ through meatpacking cities
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The coronavirus is devastating the nation’s meatpacking communities — places like Waterloo and Sioux City in Iowa, Grand Island, Nebraska, and Worthington, Minnesota. Within weeks, the outbreaks around slaughterhouses have turned into full-scale disasters. The virus is killing, sickening and frightening workers and devastating their extended families.
___
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks closed higher on Wall Street but gave up about half of their early gains in a late-afternoon bout of selling. The S&P 500 rose 0.9% Tuesday after being up 2% earlier. Overseas markets also rose as more countries relaxed restrictions on businesses and stay-at-home orders, raising hopes for a recovery from the historic plunge sweeping the global economy. Crude oil closed sharply higher, continuing its mini-rally after falling to record lows late last month.
___
The S&P 500 index gained 25.70 points, or 0.9%, to 2,868.44. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 133.33 points, or 0.6%, to 23,883.09. The Nasdaq climbed 98.41 points, or 1.1%, to 8,809.12. Smaller-company stocks in the Russell 2000 index rose 9.54 points, or 0.8%, to 1,273.51.
The Canadian government says it will donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to fight the mpox outbreak in Congo and other African countries.
It says the donated doses of Imvamune will come from Canada’s existing supply and will not affect the country’s preparedness for mpox cases in this country.
Minister of Health Mark Holland says the donation “will help to protect those in the most affected regions of Africa and will help prevent further spread of the virus.”
Dr. Madhukar Pai, Canada research chair in epidemiology and global health, says although the donation is welcome, it is a very small portion of the estimated 10 million vaccine doses needed to control the outbreak.
Vaccine donations from wealthier countries have only recently started arriving in Africa, almost a month after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
A few days after the declaration in August, Global Affairs Canada announced a contribution of $1 million for mpox surveillance, diagnostic tools, research and community awareness in Africa.
On Thursday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said mpox is still on the rise and that testing rates are “insufficient” across the continent.
Jason Kindrachuk, Canada research chair in emerging viruses at the University of Manitoba, said donating vaccines, in addition to supporting surveillance and diagnostic tests, is “massively important.”
But Kindrachuk, who has worked on the ground in Congo during the epidemic, also said that the international response to the mpox outbreak is “better late than never (but) better never late.”
“It would have been fantastic for us globally to not be in this position by having provided doses a much, much longer time prior than when we are,” he said, noting that the outbreak of clade I mpox in Congo started in early 2023.
Clade II mpox, endemic in regions of West Africa, came to the world’s attention even earlier — in 2022 — as that strain of virus spread to other countries, including Canada.
Two doses are recommended for mpox vaccination, so the donation may only benefit 100,000 people, Pai said.
Pai questioned whether Canada is contributing enough, as the federal government hasn’t said what percentage of its mpox vaccine stockpile it is donating.
“Small donations are simply not going to help end this crisis. We need to show greater solidarity and support,” he said in an email.
“That is the biggest lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic — our collective safety is tied with that of other nations.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.
The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.
Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.
“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”
The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.
A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.
Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.
“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.
Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.
The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.
“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.
Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.
The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.
“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.
Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.
A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
