March 12, 2020

As afterschool programs (click here) face threat of federal funding cuts, Mott Foundation renews support for YouthQuest program at 15 local sites

The Flint, Michigan, (click here) pediatrician who first connected the city's water to high lead levels in children tells 60 Minutes early results from extensive neuropsychological assessments of 174 kids have found 80% will require services for a language, learning or intellectual disorder. Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha speaks to Sharyn Alfonsi for a report on the lead crisis in Flint to be broadcast on 60 Minutes, Sunday, March 15 at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.

Mismanagement following a switch in the city's water supply in 2014 caused lead in old pipes to enter the drinking water. Despite complaints by residents of discolored water, Michigan and Flint officials insisted there was no threat to public health. When Dr. Hanna-Attisha heard that independent testing detected lead in the water, she searched for the truth by examining her patients' medical records. In 2015, she found the percentage of kids with elevated blood lead levels had increased since the water switch. Two weeks later, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder ordered Flint to switch back to the Great Lakes water source.

"There is no safe level of lead… It is an irreversible neurotoxin. It attacks the core of what it means to be you, and impacts cognition-- how children think," Hanna-Attisha says. "[Lead] actually drops IQ levels. It impacts behavior, leading to things like developmental delays." She estimated that 14,000 Flint children under the age of six were exposed.

Last year, Hanna-Attisha began the Flint Registry to track them, part of a state and federally funded program to assess those exposed and get them help....

WRITE YOUR CONGRESSPERSONS TO CONTINUE THE MEDICAID PROGRAM FOR THESE PEOPLE!

Health Care Coverage for People Impacted by Flint Water (click here)

I wonder how the communists are doing? Bad joke. Very bad joke.

I understand now how everything with Trump is personal, even a national emergency.

Good news, HHS can now issue Medicaid to all those contracting the lousy virus to receive treatment after the FREE testing.

March 13, 2020

By Teo Armus, Rick Noack, Katie Mettler, Marisa Lati and Miriam Berger

A top government official from Australia (click here) said that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus, just days after he returned from a visit to Washington where he interacted with Ivanka Trump, U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr and U.S. acting homeland security secretary Chad Wolf.

On Friday, Australia’s home affairs minister, Peter Dutton, woke up with a fever and sore throat and was immediately tested for coronavirus, he said in a statement. After the test was returned, he checked into the hospital in compliance with Queensland’s health protocols.

Dutton visited Justice Department headquarters on March 5 for a news conference about an initiative to fight online sexual exploitation of children. He was one of six government officials who spoke at the news conference, including Barr and Wolf.

With counterparts from Britain, New Zealand and Canada, the officials stood together on a dais for about 45 minutes to discuss the initiative. Given the number of countries involved in the announcement, there were scores of people who attended the gathering.

The group also met that day with White House officials, and Dutton was photographed standing directly next to Ivanka Trump, President Trump’s daughter, and a few feet from Barr....

...Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau emerged from quarantine in his family home in Ottawa on Friday to reassure Canadians that he is in good health and to announce new measures aimed at stalling the spread of the novel coronavirus causing covid-19.

Trudeau said his government would propose a “significant” fiscal stimulus within the next few days to combat the economic slowdown caused by the pandemic. He also urged Canadians to cancel or postpone any nonessential travel and for employees to work from home whenever able.

The prime minister additionally announced a temporary ban on cruise ships carrying more than 500 people docking in Canada and said overseas flights to Canada would now be concentrated at several airports to limit possible transmission points.

“We have to do this,” he said. “Because we have to protect our neighbors and friends. Especially our more vulnerable seniors and people with preexisting conditions.”

Trudeau’s wife announced Thursday night that she had tested positive for coronavirus shortly after Trudeau said he would go into self-isolation for two weeks....

Trump sounds a little nasal to me, no? (click here) South Korea is a real hero country in this emergency. They took China's reporting very seriously and jumped into action.

March 13, 2020
By Rachel Eddie

Major airlines (click here) are not offering refunds for all international flights, despite Australians being warned against all overseas travel as the government ramps up its response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Level 3 travel advice was implemented for all countries on Friday, meaning all non-essential overseas travel should be avoided. It is just one step below the highest Level 4 "do not travel" warning.

"This is done to protect their health and to limit their exposure, given we have so many countries now that are affected by the coronavirus," Prime Minister Scott Morrison said.

Qantas only considers giving refunds on international flights when a Level 4 warning is issued, like the one in place for China. At this stage, travellers will not be offered full refunds for all international flights because the federal government only advised against going overseas, rather than banning it....

So, trip insurance will cover it, right? Ahhhh, not so much.

March 10, 2020

AIG Travel is closely monitoring the Coronavirus (COVID-19), (click here) and its potential impact on travel.  While we will continue to provide periodic updates regarding travel safety, travelers should consult the World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) websites for the most up-to-date information on the Coronavirus outbreak.

If you are considering canceling your trip due to the Coronavirus, please read your insurance policy thoroughly.  Generally, fear of travel is not a covered event under most of our policies.

Nonetheless, there may be additional options available to travelers whose plans have been impacted.   Travelers planning to re-book their travel for later in the year may be able to modify their current insurance policy to apply to future travel....

Then airline travel must be extremely safe, except for those cancelled flights, right? Hm? Not sure about that though.

March 22, 2020
By Jessica Puckett

As the new coronavirus outbreak (click here) continues to grow, airlines are doing their part to help travelers, from offering flexible change policies to taking precautions to sanitize and prevent the virus from spreading.

Airlines usually clean plane cabins to varying degrees when turning around the aircraft between each flight. Usually, this can entail picking up trash, switching out linens, and wiping down surfaces with an EPA-approved disinfectant. When the aircraft is done flying at the end of the day, crews usually give the plane a deeper scrub so it’s refreshed for the next day (for example, Southwest says it spends six hours on a final clean of each aircraft every night).

On international flights, the cleaning might be a bit more rigorous since there’s more time between flights to spend on tidying the cabin. American Airlines, for instance, says its aircraft operating international flights routinely receive a “detailed 30-point cleaning package each day.” Most airlines say they periodically remove aircraft from flight rotations for a thorough detailed clean....

It isn't as though pilots and flight attendants are getting sick, right?

March 9, 2020
By Sinead Baker

A Japan Airlines flight attendant (click here) has tested positive for the coronavirus, the airline said on Monday.

Tokyo health officials believe the unnamed woman, who is in her 50s, had shown symptoms on February 24.

The following day she worked on flight JL 009 from Chicago to Tokyo's Narita airport on February 25.

The airline said 104 passengers were on that flight.

The cabin crew were wearing gloves and masks during the flight and the plane has since been disinfected, according to the airline....

Better and quicker than the bus, right? This is capitalism at it's best. OMG.

March 6, 2020
By Amy McKeever

Chinese airlines (click here) have been selling tickets for as low as $4 during the coronavirus outbreak, according to a report in the South China Morning Post on Wednesday.

When an outbreak strikes, (click here) it is natural to become leery of hopping on an airplane. It is even more alarming when two serious viruses are circulating at once.

The world is gripped by a new coronavirus that started in China and has since moved into more than 85 countries, including the United States. Meanwhile, it is also flu season, which so far has caused 18,000 deaths in the U.S.

Major airports have begun screening passengers for the coronavirus, and more than three dozen airlines—including Delta, American, and United—have cut their flights to China and other places affected by the crisis. But those measures may not provide much solace to anyone who has to board a flight.

After all, you can avoid the person who is sneezing in line at Cinnabon, but you’re more or less left to fate once you’ve strapped on that seatbelt inside a flying metal canister.

While there is still much to learn about the Wuhan outbreak, scientists do know a bit about similar coronaviruses and other respiratory illnesses like influenza. So how do those viruses spread—and specifically on airplanes? And how serious is the coronavirus threat compared to the likes of influenza? Let’s take a look....

13 March 2020

2017 was the 25th year of the Pasifika Festival (click here)

Pasifika Festival (click here) has been cancelled as a precautionary measure to reduce the risk of the spread of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus).

The decision was made after discussions between Mayor Phil Goff and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern yesterday and again this morning.

Overnight, the COVID-19 Cabinet Committee met and considered the issue, and its advice, based on concerns from MFAT and MBIE, was to cancel. 

“While the latest Ministry of Health advice is that New Zealand does not have a community outbreak of COVID-19 and the risk of a community outbreak remains low, council and the Cabinet Committee’s specific concerns are about the risk of possibly being transmitted to the Pacific Islands by attendees of the Festival,” Mayor Goff said.

“The history of the spread of contagious infections from New Zealand to Samoa, with last year’s measles epidemic which took 82 lives, weighed heavily on our decision. 

“It is disappointing for all of us as Aucklanders, and particularly for our Pacific communities, that the festival will not be going ahead this weekend,” said Phil Goff.

“It’s unfortunate to have to cancel an event enjoyed by tens of thousands which celebrates our vibrant Pacific community in Auckland and our multiculturalism.

“However, Aucklanders will understand the council taking commonsense steps to reduce the risk of the virus spreading....

Another to add to the list of closures.

March 11, 2020
By Bob D'Angelo

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, (click here) a massive event that stretches over several weekends, is shutting down due to coronavirus concerns, rodeo officials said Wednesday.

The annual event routinely draws more than 100,000 visitors to NRG Park on Saturdays and Sundays, the Houston Chronicle reported.

In a statement, rodeo officials said they were “saddened” by the decision, announced by the Houston Health Department and Mayor Sylvester Turner at a Wednesday afternoon news conference....

I agree with her 100 percent.

March 12, 2020

Michigan's governor (click here) is ordering the closure of all K-12 school buildings to students starting Monday, March 16 through Sunday, April 5.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer's office issued the following release Thursday night:

LANSING, Mich. -- Today, Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced that in order to slow the spread of Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan, she is ordering the closure of all K-12 school buildings, public, private, and boarding, to students starting Monday, March 16 until Sunday, April 5. School buildings are scheduled to reopen on Monday, April 6....

It is absolutely impossible to institute "social distancing" in Michigan's schools. These schools are where Michigan children socialize a great deal. They learn, but, they also make friends, join the band, become basketball players and the list is long. No one can ask children to "social distance" in any practical way while still in school.

Today, all of a sudden students became aware of a serious issue facing them and all others; how do we protect from a disease that could cause us a lot of illness? The best and quite frankly the only way is to separate them into their homes to have parents help them understand that their safety is very important. 

The schools around Michigan are closing. Let me say that again. The school buildings in Michigan are closing, BUT, SCHOOL IS STILL NOT OUT. Children all over Michigan will experience how to attend classes online. The school teachers have already prepared classroom lectures, exercises and homework for their students. 

GOOGLE CLASSROOM is going to get the test of endurance over the next few weeks when teachers all over the state will be logging on to present their material and receive student work. This measure already exists in schools. This is not a new skill for Michigan students, but, the online schooling AT A DISTANCE, is new to many Michigan children.

Teachers are looking forward to the success of every student to learn online and excel. I teach part time and was with a class today to help with the new ideas and an exciting challenge.