Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Brazilian Journalists To File Lawsuit Against President For Face Mask Removal; Serbia Likely Emerging As New Hot Spot
NPR: Brazil's Bolsonaro Sued For Unmasking As He Announced Positive Test For COVID-19
A group representing Brazilian journalists says it will file suit against the country's president, Jair Bolsonaro, after he took off a protective mask as he spoke with reporters about his COVID-19 diagnosis. The Brazilian Press Association, or ABI, said in a statement that Bolsonaro had unnecessarily endangered a small group of journalists who interviewed him at his official residence. (Neuman, 7/8)
AP: Serbia Eyes Restrictions; Virus Spreads In US, Brazil, India
The European nation of Serbia mulled how to curb accelerating coronavirus infections following two nights of clashes involving anti-lockdown demonstrators, while the virus showed no sign of slowing Thursday in the countries with the highest caseloads — the United States, India and Brazil. The three nations on separate continents are accounting for more than 60% of new confirmed cases, according to recent tallies from Johns Hopkins University. India on Thursday reported 25,000 new cases; the United States on Wednesday reported just short of the record 60,000 cases set a day earlier, and Brazil reported nearly 45,000. (Gec and Perry, 7/9)
Politico: American, United Stop Flying To Hong Kong Amid Crew Testing Requirements
United Airlines and American Airlines have temporarily halted flights to Hong Kong after its government imposed coronavirus testing requirements for airline crews, the latest twist in a simmering scuffle between the U.S. and China over access to aviation markets. (Mintz and Gurciullo, 7/8)
AP: The Latest: Tokyo Sees Most New Virus Infections Since April
The Japanese capital has confirmed more than 220 new coronavirus infections, exceeding its previous record.The number reported Thursday exceeds 206 daily cases recorded on April 17 when Tokyo’s infections were at their peak. (7/9)
AP: Burial Traditions Clash With Coronavirus Safety In Indonesia
The mob of over 150 people who forcefully took Muhammad Yunus’ cadaver from a hospital in eastern Indonesia thought it was impossible that the 49-year-old Islamic preacher could have died from the coronavirus. He had always washed his hands, worn a mask and followed health protocols issued by the government, according to local residents. (Karmini and Milko, 7/9)
CNN: Localized Lockdowns Show That We're In The Most Complex Phase Of Coronavirus Yet
From English cities to the Spanish seaside and Australian housing estates, local lockdowns are cropping up all over the world as countries ease restrictions only to encounter new coronavirus outbreaks. After months of closures, governments are eager to reopen schools and businesses to allow people to get on with their lives. But fresh clusters of infection have seen leaders forced to reimpose restrictions in some hotspots, even as rules are eased elsewhere in the same country. (Reynolds, 7/9)
CIDRAP: Korean Nightclub-Goers Linked To 246-Person COVID-19 Outbreak
At least 246 COVID-19 cases have been tied to reopened nightclubs in Seoul, South Korea, after the April 30 to May 5 Golden Week holiday, with 61% among contacts of nightclub revelers, according to a research letter published yesterday in Emerging Infectious Diseases. Coronavirus cases in South Korea had plateaued in April, and nightclubs reopened on April 30. People from around the country visited the Itaewon neighborhood, known for its diversity and home to a US Army base and several embassies, in downtown Seoul over the holiday. On May 6, several COVID-19 cases were confirmed among nightclub visitors. (7/8)
The Washington Post: Robots Are Being Reimagined In The Time Of Social Distancing
As the coronavirus pandemic rewrites the rules of human interaction, it also has inspired new thinking about how robots and other machines might step in. The stuff of the bot world — early factory-line automation up to today's artificial intelligence — has been a growing fact of life for decades. The worldwide health crisis has added urgency to the question of how to bring robotics into the public health equation. (Denyer, Kashiwagi and Joo Kim, 7/8)
In other global health news —
AP: WHO Says Sri Lanka And Maldives Eliminate Measles, Rubella
Sri Lanka and Maldives have become the first two countries in the World Health Organization’s South-East Asia region to eliminate both measles and rubella ahead of a 2023 target, the U.N. health agency announced Wednesday. (Mallawarachi, 7/8)
AP: UK Report: Medical Treatments Caused Many 'Avoidable Harm'
Hundreds of women and their babies suffered “avoidable harm” because Britain’s healthcare system ignored serious concerns raised about some medical treatments, a scathing review into three National Health Service scandals found Wednesday. (Kirka, 7/8)
