Puerto Ricans Cannot Claim SSI Disability Benefits: Supreme Court

Politico: Supreme Court Rejects Disability Payments For Puerto Rico Residents 
The Supreme Court on Thursday turned down a bid to allow Puerto Rico residents to claim benefits under the federal government’s main disability insurance program, ruling that the Constitution does not require Congress to offer such payments to residents of the island even though people born there are U.S. citizens. The only dissenter from the high court’s ruling was Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who was born in New York and is of Puerto Rican descent. (Gerstein, 4/21 )

The Washington Post: Supreme Court Rules That Congress Can Exclude Puerto Ricans From SSI Aid Program 
SSI benefits are available to U.S. citizens living in any of the 50 states, District of Columbia and the Northern Mariana Islands. Along with Puerto Ricans, those in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam are excluded. Sotomayor said a program that is designed to help the poorest citizens should not depend on location. “In my view, there is no rational basis for Congress to treat needy citizens living anywhere in the United States so differently from others,” she wrote. (Barnes, 4/21)

In global covid news —

Fox News: COVID Cases Declined Again Last Week Worldwide: WHO
The World Health Organization (WHO) said in a weekly report that the number of new COVID-19 cases around the world fell by nearly a quarter last week. The agency said that nearly 5.59 million cases were reported between April 11 and April 17, which is 24% less than the previous week. Additionally, the number of newly reported deaths dropped by 21% to 18,215. While new cases declined in every region, the Americas only saw a 2% decrease. The countries with the highest reported case numbers last week were South Korea, France and Germany. (Musto, 4/21)

AP: UK Patient Had COVID-19 For 505 Days Straight, Study Shows 
A U.K. patient with a severely weakened immune system had COVID-19 for almost a year and a half, scientists reported, underscoring the importance of protecting vulnerable people from the coronavirus. There’s no way to know for sure whether it was the longest-lasting COVID-19 infection because not everyone gets tested, especially on a regular basis like this case. (Ungar, 4/21)

Press Association: England Covid-19 Infections: 70% Of Country Has Been Hit 
Around seven in 10 people in England are likely to have had coronavirus since the early months of the pandemic, new figures suggest. An estimated 38.5 million people in private households - or 70.7% of the population - have had at least one infection since the end of April 2020. The figures have been compiled by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) using data from its long-running Covid-19 infection survey. The survey began in England on April 27 2020, which means the estimates do not cover most of the initial wave of the virus that began in early March. (Jones, 4/22)

Bloomberg: Thailand Scraps Covid Testing Mandate To Lure More Tourists
Thailand will scrap a mandatory Covid test on arrival as the Southeast Asian nation rolls back some of the pandemic-era measures seen as deterring global tourists. The RT-PCR tests will be replaced with a voluntary self-administered antigen tests for those entering via air and land borders from May 1, Taweesilp Visanuyothin, a spokesman for the nation’s main virus task force, told reporters after a meeting on Friday. (Nguyen, 4/22)

Bloomberg: Pfizer’s Covid Pill Gets WHO Endorsement For High-Risk Patients
The World Health Organization endorsed Pfizer Inc.’s antiviral pill Paxlovid for Covid-19 patients who are most at risk, saying that it “strongly recommends” the drug for people who aren’t severely ill. People who are older, not vaccinated or immuno-suppressed should take the medicine as soon as possible if they get ill to reduce the risk of hospitalization, according to a guideline published in the BMJ by a group of experts advising the health agency. (Hernanz Lizarraga, 4/21)

In news about the opioid crisis in Canada —

The Globe and Mail: Some Parents Are Losing Not One, But Two Children To Drug Overdoses, As Canada’s Opioid Crisis Worsens
Most of us have a hard time conceiving what it must be like to have a child die from a drug overdose. But two children? A growing number of parents are going through this unfathomable experience. Though experts can’t point to any figures or studies on the phenomenon, they say that it is no longer rare. “It’s happening more than you would think,” says Leslie McBain, one of the founders of the advocacy group Moms Stop the Harm, whose only child, Jordan Miller, succumbed to an overdose at the age of 25. The double deaths underline the awful toll that is being taken by Canada’s “other epidemic.” (Gee, 4/20)