Your Coronavirus Update – Today, Aug. 24, 2020

NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL

The CDC has removed the 14-day quarantine requirement for those traveling out of the country or to/from other states with higher outbreaks. State regulations still must be followed.

President Trump’s press conference Sunday night: Emergency Use Authorization for treatment with convalescent plasma donations from recovering COVID19 patients was approved for treatments. This action will dramatically expand access to this treatment. 35% mortality reductions have been experienced. It is for patients under 80 who are not on ventilators. There is a great deal of demand, and blood centers are prepared to handle donations from those who have recovered. Go to coronavirus.gov for more info.

Kellyanne Conway is leaving the White House at the end of August, saying the role of parent has to come as a priority now – given home schooling, etc. Her husband is also stepping down from his position with the Lincoln Project. They have four children.

The WHO said that children aged 12 and over should wear masks to help tackle the COVID-19 pandemic under the same conditions as adults, while children between six and 11 should wear them on a risk-based approach. Children aged five years and under should not be required to wear masks based on the safety and overall interest of the child. More info here: https://bit.ly/34sftSv

Danbury, CT health officials are urging residents to limit their activities after the city has experienced a “serious outbreak” in coronavirus cases over the past two weeks, attributed to international and domestic travel. Those over 60 are being asked to stay home.

Virginia is planning ahead for a coronavirus vaccine – with legislation pending to make vaccines “mandatory” for all.

In France, a new coronavirus outbreak is circulating four times more among people under 40 in France than among over 65-year-olds

Italy is experiencing a secondary outbreak, not as severe as the initial, and the president says it will not consider a lockdown this time, that there are measures in place to control widespread infection.

Kentucky Derby – will be all virtual – no fans in the stands

Virtual Classroom Restriction for parents in Rutherford County, Tennessee – in parents and others are not allowed to “sit in” with virtual learning – they can request permission but cannot record anything.

Tony Awards will be online

77 NFL test results were false positives, including the New England Patriots

The CDC has published guidelines for congregate housing facilities such as group homes, dorms, nursing homes, and assisted living centers – share it, here:  https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/shared-congregate-house/guidance-shared-congregate-housing.html

Remdesivir – 3 trials have produced 3 different results – though there is reason to believe that it is effective in moderate cases.

At least 41 schools in Berlin have reported that students or teachers have become infected with the coronavirus not even two weeks after schools reopened in the German capital. Germany is determined not to shut down schools and has a plan in place to quarantine those exposed and continue on.

Parents of Big Ten players who are not playing protested the decision, demanded paperwork showing how the decision was made.

Lebanon has gone into a 2-week lockdown, following the explosion and demonstrations, with about 5,000 cases happening since that time.

Boston colleges have instituted a tip line to report parties for use by students or neighbors, as they warn students returning to school how dangerous this is to do and will not be tolerated.

1.8 million more “seriously late” mortgages are reported in the US, though late mortgages fell by 9% last month.

Two NY METS team members test positive – Subway Series has been postponed

Wall Street clawed back the last of the historic, frenzied losses unleashed by the new coronavirus, as the S& P 500 closed at an all-time high Tuesday.

Pizza Hut is closing up to 300 locations in an effort to focus more on carryout and delivery as people continue avoiding dine-in restaurants. The move comes as pizza sales continue heating up nationally.

Cargo only flights by major airlines such as American Airlines, who, before the pandemic, had run as few as one a year.

53 COVID-19 cases, one death found to be linked to Maine wedding reception

Mass. General Brigham extends work from home to end of June 2021.

An announcement on Opportunity Zones will come today with Ben Carson

Boston artists are losing their working-lofts as there is no eviction controls for these spaces

New Hampshire restaurants now allowed 100% capacity for indoor dining

DC Comics has laid off large amounts of its staff, just prior to their Comic Con

Currently, famotidine is being evaluated in a randomized clinical trial under an investigational new drug waiver in combination with either hydroxychloroquine or remdesivir. Famotidine is the live ingredient in Pepcid-AC acid reducer.

Oleandrin has also been studied in vitro as a possible anti-cancer medication, but it’s “unclear whether these effects can occur in the human body,” according to a Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center info page on oleandrin.    Juurlink told MedPage Today that oleandrin is “akin to digoxin. Too much can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but the main concern is arrhythmias, which can be fatal.”

The House of Representatives passed a post office relief bill – the president has said he will veto it.

HVAC filters in schools, buildings should be MERV13 to be most effective.

Great Barrier Reef in Cairns, Australia, is suffering from lack of travelers, even though their numbers have been low, and no cases are recorded there now.

A rapid COVID-19 test is being used in Europe and other countries, while only 63% effective.

In Vermont, jury trials are not being held and many court hearings are taking place online or over the phone

RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY

RI’s application for $300 extra unemployment benefits was approved – within 48 hours – and according to RI officials will showing up in people’s checks within a week or two. UPDATE: From our colleagues at WPRI, Ch. 12: RIDLT spokesperson, “Fontaine said Rhode Island cannot provide the optional $100 state contribution on top of the $300 being funded by FEMA. She said the payments would be retroactive to August 1. States may provide claimants a lost wages supplement of up to $400, composed of a $300 federal contribution from the Disaster Relief Fund and an additional amount up to $100 from state funds. The state-funded portion may be sourced from the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security fund allocation. The total lost wages supplemental payment may not exceed $400. States may instead provide claimants the lost wages supplement of $300 paid entirely from the $300 federal contribution and satisfy the match, with no additional state payout, by leveraging existing state funding used to pay regular state unemployment benefits. In this case, the state must demonstrate at the aggregate level that the total of its state-funded unemployment benefits to claimants receiving the lost wages supplement were at least 25 percent of the total lost wages assistance benefits paid in conjunction with all of the unemployment programs listed above.

RI’s total deficit could be as much as $877 million – without knowing what the feds will pay in the future.

Twin River has laid off 1,300 workers

The state’s arts sector lost more than 10,000 jobs and more than $436 million in sales from April until July

Brockton orders citywide curfew between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. to try and combat spread of COVID-19

Gov Raimondo on Fri, 8/21 – “I’m not inclined at this moment to go further a phase, to go to Phase 4.”

Brown University held a neighborhood ZOOM meeting to reassure neighbors about safety regarding students coming back to school. Brown is one of the few colleges coming back to full residential living.  Neighbors will also be able to make complaints about off-campus behavior by calling an anonymous hotline (877-318-9184) or filling out an incident report. And neighbors can always call the campus police, who will be deploying teams of officers to patrol nearby neighborhoods.

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management has closed Scarborough South State Beach a week earlier than usual this year so that beach employees who are college students can self-isolate before the start of school, The Scarborough South pavilion is now closed, but the pavilion at Scarborough North remains open, he wrote. The same parking capacity is available but is now consolidated into one lot. Beachgoers can still access the sand at Scarborough South, but must restrict swimming to the lifeguarded area off Scarborough North, he wrote.

If a child is experiencing mental health issues, Kids’ Link is available to you and your family 24/7 at 1-855-KID-LINK (1-855-543-5465). Kids’ Link is a hotline that families can call when their child is feeling excessive anger or sadness, lashing out, having severe worries, or hurting themselves or others.

Governor’s next address is Monday, Aug. 24, at 1pm

A rally will be held starting at 12:30pm today, around the Veterans Auditorium, by the #SafeReturnToSchool RI group