Sanctions against Iran and Venezuela during a pandemic are cruel
Vijay Prashad | zcomm.org | 2020-03-18
Source: Independent Media Institute Swiftly moves the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), dashing across continents, skipping over oceans, terrifying populations in every country. The numbers of those infected rises, as do the numbers of those who have died. Hands are being washed, tests are being done, social distancing has become a new phrase. It is unclear how Read…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/sanctions-against-…

We're In A Recession, And It's Likely To Get Worse
Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-03-18
The coronavirus epidemic is creating an ongoing teachable moment that could be used to transform the US economy. COVID-19 and the oil war are triggers leading to a recession that has its roots in record corporate and personal debt, longterm low wages and an artificially-inflated stockmarket. The shortcomings of US economic policy, the healthcare system, and …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/03/were-in-a-rec…

When Available, COVID-19 Vaccines May be Hazardous to Human Health
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-18
In cahoots with government, Big Pharma is more concerned about profits than human health. | Drug companies see a potential bonanza by developing and marketing a COVID-19 vaccine once testing is completed

Biden's Health Care Plan Abandons Older Americans
Mark Weisbrot | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-18
Joe Biden has surged since the South Carolina primary, and the received wisdom is that this was mainly because of the perception by his voters that he was the most electable candidate against President Donald Trump. But there are some potential pitfalls that have not yet surfaced, and some of them concern voters who are…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/18/bidens-healt…

Spain Locks Down & Nationalizes Private Healthcare
María Carrión | zcomm.org | 2020-03-18
Europe is the epicenter of coronavirus, and Spain now has the second most cases in Europe, with more than 2,000 new cases in 24 hours and the number of deaths doubled…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/1030904/

Escapism or China-bashing? US now left without harsh coronavirus options, but with broken healthcare & federal disarray
rt.com | 2020-03-18
Washington's attempts to tackle Covid-19 appear to be bleak

S.C. County Issues Shelter-in-Place with No Shelter or Facilities for Those Outside
Robert Norse | indybay.org | 2020-03-18
Several hours ago the County of Santa Cruz Health Services Agency followed up on actions by San Francisco, Marin, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Mateo counties declaring much public assembly a misdemeanor. Meanwhile acting City czar Martin Bernal has declined to provide portapotties, open bathrooms, provide vacant hotel and motel rooms, or declare an eviction moratorium for folks outside and hard-pressed renters inside.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/16/1883159…

Sri Lankan government responds to COVID-19 by mobilising the military and helping the financial elite
wsws.org | 2020-03-18
There are concerns in ruling circles that the lack of health facilities and job security, along with wage cuts, will lead to major social struggles.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/18/sril…

Newborn baby tests positive for coronavirus in Norfolk
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-18
Another newborn baby has tested positive for Covid-19 in the UK.Health officials at the James Paget University Hospital in Gorleston, Norfolk, said a baby is among three new cases identified.All patients are now being treated in isolation, the trust said on Wednesday.(PA Graphics)A hospital spokesperson said: "An extensive 'contact tracing' exercise is now under way by Public Health England to trace anyone who might have had close (face-to-face) contact."Close contacts will be given health advice about symptoms and what to do if they become unwell in the 14 days after they had contact with the confirmed case."Tha…
thecanary.co/discovery/news-discovery/2020/03/18/newborn-baby-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-in-norfolk/

Close Australian schools to stave off coronavirus! Form action committees of teachers and school staff!
wsws.org | 2020-03-18
The Committee for Public Education insists that in the face of a public health emergency, the voices of teachers and education workers must be heard!
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/18/cfpe…

'You see a lot of suffering, but can do very little': Italian nurse bursts into tears describing coronavirus struggle to RT
rt.com | 2020-03-18
The battle against the coronavirus is tough on medical staffs, not only physically but emotionally as well, as they witness so much suffering, an Italian nurse told RT's Ruptly video agency. | The number of those infected keeps rising, which only increases pressure on the health workers, Francesca Rovati of Guglielmo Da Saliceto Hospital in Piacenza, the city at the heart of Italy's Covid-19 outbreak, said. | Rovati said she almost went deaf from the sound made by the oxygen cylinders for patients suffering from respiratory failure due to the disease. And there's not enough of this equipment for everybody who…
rt.com/news/483385-italy-piacenza-corona…

Disaster Capitalism and the Real Culprit in the Italian Covid-19 Catastrophe
John Buell | zcomm.org | 2020-03-18
The Coronavirus pandemic will provide another opportunity for neoliberal elites to impose more of their right wing agenda on a citizenry scared and confused by this mysterious and dangerous disease…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/disaster-capitalis…

Report from China: COVID-19 a tale of two systems
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-03-18
Guangdong, China – There is chaos in America right now surrounding COVID-19. Americans are receiving conflicting information every day about the virus, with no direction from the Trump administration. The Trump administration has decided that the best course of action is to do nothing, with Trump himself declaring "I don't take responsibility at all." When the Center for Disease Control (CDC) releases a report, Trump will directly contradict their findings in an attempt to downplay COVID-19's immediate threat and bolster his own image. The resulting pandemonium has left Americans without guidance on how they shou…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/3/17/report-c…

As UAW keeps plants open, Indiana Fiat Chrysler and Lear workers take action over deadly coronavirus
wsws.org | 2020-03-18
The UAW announced Tuesday night that it had agreed to keep the Big Three plants open on a "rotating partial shutdown" basis, as the COVID-19 disease continues to spread.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/18/tipt…

Iran Temporarily Frees 85,000 Inmates As Pandemic Worsens
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-18
Iran has temporarily freed about 85,000 people from jail in response to the coronavirus epidemic, a judiciary spokesman said Tuesday. | RELATED: | Senior Iranian Cleric Reported Dead After Coronavirus Infection | "So far, some 85,000 prisoners have been released … Also in the prisons we have taken precautionary measures to confront the outbreak," judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said. | Asked whether prisoners over so-called "political reasons" were among those free…
telesurenglish.net/news/Iran-Temporarily…

Russian senator calls for ALL unilateral SANCTIONS to be lifted to prevent coronavirus causing global economic crisis
rt.com | 2020-03-18
The spread of Covid-19 may send the global economy into a lengthy recession, but lifting sanctions that aren't backed by the United Nations may help avoid a total catastrophe. That's according to a senior Russian senator. | The drop in energy demand, unstable currency exchange rates, and the threat to people's safety have put humanity at risk of a major economic crisis which "won't spare anybody," Konstantin Kosachev, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Russian Senate, warned. | Developing vaccines and working towards new agreements on oil prices are good measures to deal with the difficult situa…
rt.com/russia/483391-sanctions-coronavir…

Gulf states register fresh coronavirus infections
yenisafak.com | 2020-03-18
Health authorities in all Gulf countries reported fresh coronavirus infections on Wednesday. | Kuwait's Health Ministry said 12 people were infected with the virus, bringing the country's total cases to 142. | Oman reported nine new cases from the disease, taking the total count in the country to 33. | In Saudi Arabia, the Health Ministry said the kingdom's total infections rose to 171 after 38 new cases were reported, according to the official SPA news agency. | Three new cases were also reported in Qatar, taking the country's total infections to 442, according to the Health Ministry. | In Bahrain, authorities s…
yenisafak.com/en/world/gulf-states-regis…

Coronavirus cases in South Africa jump to 116
yenisafak.com | 2020-03-18
The total number of coronavirus cases in South Africa has increased to 116, the country's Health Ministry said on Wednesday.In a statement, the Health Ministry said there was an increase of 31 new cases of the coronavirus over the past 24 hours.The majority of new cases are found in Gauteng province, which comprises the cities of Johannesburg the economic hub and Pretoria the capital, the statement said.Most cases of the COVID-19 have been brought into the country by people returning from trips overseas, especially from Europe.Meanwhile, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said over 100 South Africans recently repatriat…
yenisafak.com/en/world/coronavirus-cases…

EU drugs agency says no evidence ibuprofen worsens COVID-19
yenisafak.com | 2020-03-18
The European Union's healthcare regulator on Wednesday said there currently is no evidence which links anti-inflammatory medicines such as ibuprofen with the worsening of COVID-19.The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said www.ema.europa.eu/en/n… it was monitoring the situation and said patients and healthcare professionals should consider all treatment options including paracetamol and anti-inflammatory drugs to treat fever or pain in patients with COVID-19.The EMA's announcement…
yenisafak.com/en/life/eu-drugs-agency-sa…

Germany warned of 10M COVID-19 cases in 3 months
yenisafak.com | 2020-03-18
Nearly 10 million people in Germany could become infected with coronavirus within the next three months, if strict measures to stem its spread are not implemented, the country's disease control agency warned on Wednesday.Speaking at a news conference in the capital Berlin, Lothar Wieler , head of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) said the government's recent measures to limit social contact in public places, closure of all non-essential shops, bars and sport venues was extremely important to stem the spread of coronavirus, also known as COVID-19."If we don't succeed in effectively limiting social contact in the com…
yenisafak.com/en/world/germany-warned-of…

Bangladesh confirms first death from new coronavirus
yenisafak.com | 2020-03-18
Bangladesh on Wednesday confirmed its first death due to the coronavirus pandemic.Meerjady Sabrina Flora, head of Bangladesh's Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research, announced during a news conference that the patient was a 70-year-old woman who was suffering from cardiac problems, high-blood pressure, kidney diseases and diabetes.She got infected after getting in contact with a person who had just returned from abroad, said the official.Another 14 people have been infected with the virus which causes the disease known as COVID-19, she added.Flora said that the infection spread in the country du…
yenisafak.com/en/world/bangladesh-confir…

UK PM Boris Johnson Answers MPs Questions Amid Coronavirus Pandemic – Video
sputniknews.com | 2020-03-18
Earlier this week, the UK government unveiled a package of measures to aid the economy amid the coronavirus spread, including £330 billion for companies to access loans, support for airlines, a business rates holiday, and help for small firms without insurance.
sputniknews.com/europe/20200318107861065…

Selected Articles: Cuban Drug Could Save Thousands of Lives in Coronavirus Pandemic
Global Research News | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-18
Cuban Drug Could Save Thousands of Lives in Coronavirus Pandemic | By Steve Sweeney, March 17, 2020 | Cuban medicine could treat thousands of coronavirus patients as production of a "flagship" drug known to combat the disease is set to increase …
globalresearch.ca/selected-articles-cuban-drug-could-save-thousands-lives-coronavirus-pandemic/5706659

Coronavirus: Italy faces unprecedented emergency
Susan Price | greenleft.org.au | 2020-03-18
Europe Healthcare Daniele FulviIssue 1257 Italy COVID-19 AbruzzoMarch 18, 2020A spectre is haunting Europe. Not the spectre of communism, but of the…
greenleft.org.au/content/coronavirus-italy-faces-unprecedented-emergency

US ramps up sanctions devastating Venezuela's health sector as coronavirus spreads
Leonardo Flores | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-17
Promising to "smash" Venezuela's government during a "maximum pressure March," Trump has imposed crushing sanctions that force Venezuela to spend…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/17/us-sanctions-…

Brazil: Bolsonaro to Be Denounced for Risking the Population
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
The Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL) lawmaker Marcelo Freixo will denounce Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro before the World Health Organization (WHO) for putting the population at risk by promoting the concentration of people in a political act against of the National Congress and the Federal Supreme Court held in Brasilia on March 15. | RELATED: | Bolsonaro Claims His Second COVID-19 Test Was Negative | At an event called by those who long for the return to a military regime, Bolso…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-Bolsonaro…

Trump's Budget Proposal Reveals His Values
Lawrence Wittner | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-03-17
It is often said that government budgets are "an expression of values." Those values are clear in the Trump administration's $4.8 trillion budget proposal for 2021, unveiled early this February. The budget calls for deep cuts in major U.S. government programs, especially those protecting public health. The Department of Health and Human Services would be …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/03/trumps-budget…

US Indifference to Public Health: The Shame of the Nation
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
Both right wings of the US one-party state serve privileged interests exclusively at the expense of public health and welfare. | It's been this way throughout the nation's history, notably since the neoliberal 90s, especially post-9/11 when Republicans and undemocratic Dems …
globalresearch.ca/us-indifference-public-health/5706599

COVID-19 Updates: Latin American Cases Rise, Isolation Reigns
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Update 10: 19 pm. | The IMF rejects Venezuela's Request for US$5 Billion to Fight Coronavirus | The International Monetary Fund (IMF) rejected Tuesday Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's request for US$5 billion emergency funds in order to fight the coronavirus pandemic in the Latin American country. | Update 10: 10 pm. | Colombia declares state of emergency over coronavirus crisis | Colombia's President Ivan Duque declared Tuesday a state of emergency as the country intensifies measures to counter the coronavirus spreading in Latin America. Among the measures was an order for the elderly to stay home until th…
telesurenglish.net/news/Covid-Update-Chi…

The UK and Spain make coronavirus plans to use private healthcare, with one glaring difference
Tracy Keeling | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
Both the UK and Spain have made plans to use private healthcare facilities to help tackle the coronavirus pandemic. But there's a glaring difference between the policies. One that speaks volumes about the Conservative government. | Public good vs private profit: | The Spanish government announced that it was going to requisition private healthcare facilities and healthcare equipment suppliers and manufacturers. The government gave companies 48 h…
thecanary.co/discovery/analysis-discovery/2020/03/17/the-uk-and-spain-make-coronavirus-plans-to-use-private-healthcare-with-one-glaring-difference/

Together, Biden and Sanders COVID-19 plans provide immediate and systemic response
Mark Gruenberg | peoplesworld.org | 2020-03-17
WASHINGTON–If you want the global view of how the U.S. health care non-system is ill-equipped to help people cope with the coronavirus pandemic, Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders, Ind-Vt., has a solution for you. It's in his speech on March 12. If you want point-by-point, detail-by-detail proposals on what the federal government can and …
peoplesworld.org/article/together-biden-…

Meet 17-Year-Old Avi Schiffmann Who Runs Coronavirus Tracking Website Used by 40+ Million Globally
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-17
A teenager's website tracking coronavirus has become one of the most vital resources for people seeking accurate and updated numbers on the pandemic. The URL is nCoV2019.live. We speak with 17-year-old Avi Schiffmann, a high school junior from Mercer Island outside Seattle, who started the site in late December, when coronavirus had not yet been detected outside of China. Now the site has been visited by tens of millions, from every country on Earth. It tracks deaths, numbers of cases locally and globally, and provides an interactive map, information on the disease, and a Twitter feed. The resource updates every…
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/17/avi_schif…

The Detroit Organizers Long Demanding Water Justice
Negin Owliaei | commondreams.org | 2020-03-17
Ensuring access to water as a human right is crucial, especially given the number of localities across the United States grappling with privatized water during a public health emergency. (Photo: uusc4all/flickr/cc) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
commondreams.org/views/2020/03/17/detroi…

How to Talk to Someone You Believe Is Misinformed About the Coronavirus
Staff | truthdig.com | 2020-03-17
The medical evidence is clear: The coronavirus global health threat is not an elaborate hoax. Bill Gates did not create the coronavirus to sell more vaccines. Essential oils are not effective at protecting you from coronavirus. But those facts have not stopped contrary claims from spreading both on and offline.
truthdig.com/articles/how-to-talk-to-som…

Health secretary announces emergency measures for NHS Scotland
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
Scotland's NHS has been formally placed on an emergency footing to help it deal with a "substantial and sustained" increase in coronavirus cases.Health secretary Jeane Freeman revealed the move as she updated MSPs at Holyrood on the Covid-19 outbreak.Speaking after first minister Nicola Sturgeon warned "the next weeks and possibly months will be immensely difficult", the Health Secretary outlined some of the measures being implemented. | She also warned Scots more stringent steps might be needed to combat the spread of the virus

The Stop5GL Foundation Takes Netherlands Government to Court over 5G Rollout, Citing Health Concerns
telecompaper | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
The Stop5GNL Foundation has filed a suit summary proceedings against the Dutch government, to stop it from rolling out 5G. The foundation believes the deployment is unlawful because it does not protect citizens against the consequences of radiation exposure from …
globalresearch.ca/dutch-foundation-takes-government-court-5g-rollout-citing-health-concerns/5706502

Concerns over supply shortage of protective gear for frontline health workers
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
There are "critical" shortages of laboratory equipment, medical devices and protective equipment in some countries, European health leaders have said.The European branch of the World Health Organisation (WHO) said it was aware of some shortages and was also monitoring the potential risk of a disruption to medicine supplies.It comes after officials in Britain faced renewed calls to keep frontline staff healthy and ensure they have enough protective equipment to continue caring for patients. | "Health facilities have to have the necessary equipment to care for those seriously affected and to protect health workers…
thecanary.co/discovery/news-discovery/2020/03/17/concerns-over-supply-shortage-of-protective-gear-for-frontline-health-workers/

5G: "The End of All Things". The Health Impacts of Electromagnetic Radiation
Dr. Gary Null | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
We have become thoroughly accustomed and habituated to endless advertising by drug makers to buy into the promises of pharmaceutical drugs or to consent to the nutritional value of junk food. Yet the drug and food industries are completely indifferent …
globalresearch.ca/5g-end-all-things/5706587

With US Hospitals Unprepared for COVID-19, European Students Urged Home
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
The biggest college in Norway urged students to return from countries with "poorly developed" health systems

Cuba's Contribution to Combatting COVID-19
Helen Yaffe | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
COVID-19 surged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December 2019 and by January 2020 it had hit Hubei province like a tidal wave, swirling over China and rippling out overseas. The Chinese state rolled into action to combat the spread and care for those infected. Among the 30 medicines the Chinese National Health Commission selected to fight the virus was a Cuban anti-viral drug Interferon Alpha 2b. This drug has been produced in China since 2003, by the enterprise ChangHeber, a Cuban-Chinese joint venture.
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/cubas-contri…

Why America Can't Respond to the Current Crisis
Robert Reich | truthdig.com | 2020-03-17
Dr. Anthony S Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and just about the only official in the Trump administration trusted to tell the truth about the coronavirus, said last Thursday: "The system does not, is not really geared to what we need right now … It is a failing, let's admit it." | While we're at it, let's admit something more basic. The system would be failing even under a halfway competent president. The dirty little secret, which will soon become apparent to all, is that there is no real public health system in the United States. | The ad hoc response fashioned la…
truthdig.com/articles/why-america-cant-r…

Years of Austerity Weakened the Public Health Response to Coronavirus
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
Years of austerity at all levels of government, combined with profiteering in the health care sector and the Trump administration's bungled response, have severely weakened the nation's ability to combat the coronavirus outbreak and is putting public health workers on the front lines of the crisis in danger, according to experts and labor advocates. | Underfunded and overworked public health departments are tasked with tracking and stopping the spread of the disease. Hospitals and emergency rooms ar…
truthout.org/articles/years-of-austerity…

Ohio governor vows to delay primary vote over coronavirus emergency despite judge's ruling
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Dueling press reports and statements have created major confusion over the upcoming primary vote in Ohio

Brazil COVID-19: 2 Deaths, Bolsonaro Tests Negative
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Brazil confirmed two deaths in a single day Tuesday, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro declared a state of emergency while the right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro gave negative in his second test of coronavirus. | RELATED: | COVID-19 Updates: Latin American Cases Rise, Isolation Reigns | The South American country's first victim was a 62-year-old man with underlying health conditions who died Monday in Sao Paulo, authorities said. | The man had no recent history of international trave…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-Reports-T…

South-East Asian countries urged to 'do more' to fight COVID-19
news.un.org | 2020-03-17
With South-East Asia reporting more than 480 cases of COVID-19 and eight deaths, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday called for countries to "act now" and urgently scale-up "aggressive" measures to tackle the disease.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/03/1…

Africa Braces for Coronavirus as Epidemic Worsens Everywhere
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Countries in Africa are making every effort possible to avoid a possible spread of the novel coronavirus on the continent as the pandemic is currently ravaging the whole world with particularly violent outbreaks in China and Europe, Reuters reported Tuesday | RELATED: | Africans Accuse Europeans of Bringing in Coronavirus | After a passenger arriving Saturday from Brussels, Belgium, at Cameroon's Yaounde Nsimalen airport, was found with temperature, health officials said he was hurried…
telesurenglish.net/news/Africa-Braces-fo…

Insurance Industry Ramps Up Propaganda Against Medicare for All Amid Pandemic
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
As the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the United States, laying bare the myriad dysfunctions and inefficiencies of America's for-profit healthcare system, a powerful insurance industry front group is openly ramping up its campaign against systemic healthcare reforms that experts say would help mitigate the outbreak and guarantee essential care for all…
truthout.org/articles/insurance-industry…

Guyana: Vote Recount Suspended Once Again
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Guyana suspended the vote count again after the Electoral Commission's headquarters was sprayed with pesticides on Monday, Telesur's special envoy in the country Alejandro Kirk, said Tuesday. | RELATED: | Guyana: High Court Urges Recount in Largest Electoral District | "On Monday, Guyana's health ministry suddenly decided to spray the commission's headquarters with pesticides," Kirk said. | As a result, "the police were forced to evict the Caribbean Community of Nations (Caric…
telesurenglish.net/news/guyana-votes-rec…

The Senate Must Pass the Families First Coronavirus Response Act
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
The coronavirus pandemic has laid bare how ill-prepared the U.S. is to address basic human needs. Unlike every other wealthy nation, the U.S. fails to provide access to health care for everyone, paid time off for workers who are sick, safety standards to protect health workers, adequate payment to caregivers for people with disabilities, or financial support for businesses in times of natural disasters or widespread illness. | The House of Representatives, led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Representative R…
truthout.org/articles/the-senate-must-pa…

Cuba's Interferon Alpha 2B, Successful in Treating COVID-19
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
"The world has an opportunity to understand that health is not a commercial asset but a basic right," Cuban doctor Luis Herrera, the creator of the Interferon Alfa 2-B medication, one of the most successful medications in the fight against COVID-19 told teleSUR Tuesday. | RELATED: | Chile's Communist Mayor to Import Cuban Meds to Fight COVID-19 | Interferon has been known for more than 40 years: first, it was produced from original sources in local sites, then nationally and lat…
telesurenglish.net/news/Cubas-Interferon…