Monthly Archives: May 2020

2020-05-17: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these 'POSTEES' on social media! (Copy the text of the postee below, then paste it on social media and the story images will also appear.)

Trump and GOP Oppose New House Economic Stimulus Measure
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-17
On Friday, the Dem-controlled House narrowly passed a new $3 trillion stimulus package

Trump and GOP Oppose New House Economic Stimulus Measure
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-17
On Friday, the Dem-controlled House narrowly passed a new $3 trillion stimulus package

Bloomberg changes headline YET AGAIN amid backlash over article on why Covid-19 'didn't kill more Russians'
rt.com | 2020-05-17
Bloomberg has yet again had to correct the title of an article, after rolling out a report about why Covid-19 hasn't "killed more Russians." Moscow has argued that Western media distort Russia's fight against the disease. | US-based Bloomberg News had published the story, originally titled "Experts Want to Know Why Coronavirus Hasn't Killed More Russians," on Wednesday. The news piece was ostensibly about how Russia's relatively low death toll from Covid-19 "puzzles health experts," especially since the nation has the second-highest number of officially-recorded cases of the disease, trailing only behind the…
rt.com/news/488893-bloomberg-story-russi…

Latin America Sees Rise in COVID-19 Cases as Economies Reopen
teleSUR-la | telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-17
Latin American countries on Saturday reported a further increase in COVID-19 cases and deaths, as some are gradually reopening their economies. | RELATED: | Puebla Group Discusses Peace in Colombia and Pandemic Crisis | Brazil reported a total of 15,633 deaths from COVID-19 and 233,142 confirmed cases, after 816 more patients died of the disease and 14,919 infections were detected in the past 24 hours, according to the Health Ministry. | Sao Paulo, the most populous state, was h…
telesurenglish.net/news/Latin-America-Se…

Latin America Sees Rise in COVID-19 Cases as Economies Reopen
teleSUR-la | telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-17
Latin American countries on Saturday reported a further increase in COVID-19 cases and deaths, as some are gradually reopening their economies. | RELATED: | Puebla Group Discusses Peace in Colombia and Pandemic Crisis | Brazil reported a total of 15,633 deaths from COVID-19 and 233,142 confirmed cases, after 816 more patients died of the disease and 14,919 infections were detected in the past 24 hours, according to the Health Ministry. | Sao Paulo, the most populous state, was h…
telesurenglish.net/news/Latin-America-Se…

[Commentary] The imperative for universal healthcare to curtail the COVID-19 outbreak in the USA
Alison P. Galvani, Alyssa S. Parpia, Abhishek Pandey, Charlotte Zimmer, James G. Kahn, Meagan C. Fitzpatrick | thelancet.com | 2020-05-17
The COVID-19 outbreak in the United States is growing steeply and spreading widely. As of March 26, national incidence surpassed every other country, and as of April 28 has reported over a million cases. The COVID-19 crisis is exposing the systemic frailties in our healthcare system. More than 78 million people in America do not have access to adequate health insurance [1]. Given that health insurance in the US is typically provided by employers, millions more are at risk of losing their healthcare coverage as unemployment surges.
thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PI…(20)30124-3/fulltext?rss=yes

United We Dream: Immigrants, COVID-19, Jobs & Healthcare Virtual Town Hall
United We Dream | indybay.org | 2020-05-17
Online…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/16/1883308…

Coronavirus begins spiralling out of control in Colombia's major cities
Adriaan Alsema | colombiareports.com | 2020-05-17
Colombia's third largest city, Cali, and port city Cartagena rang the alarm as the country's healthcare system appears to slowly be falling apart because of the coronavirus pandemic. An explosive…
colombiareports.com/coronavirus-begins-s…

Chinese Ambassador to Israel Found Dead Inside Home
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-17
The Chinese ambassador to Israel Du Wei passed away in Tel Aviv Sunday, official sources said. | RELATED: | China: 5 Five Vaccines to Go Into Large-Scale Testing by July | The preliminary judgment is that Du died unexpectedly of health reasons, but the details need to be further confirmed, sources told China's Xinhua News Agency. | The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the authenticity of press reports that revealed Sunday the body of the Chinese ambassador to Israel…
telesurenglish.net/news/Chinese-Ambassad…

Missouri GOP Votes to Gut Anti-Gerrymandering Reform Approved by Voters
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-17
This article was produced by Sludge, an independent, ad-free investigative news site covering money in politics. Click here to support Sludge. | While most people are focused on their health and livelihoods amid the pandemic, Republican legislators in Missouri are working to overturn a voter-approved measure meant to make legislativ…
truthout.org/articles/missouri-gop-votes…

Iran coronavirus updates: 1,806 new coronavirus cases, 51deaths
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-17
TEHRAN, May 17 (MNA)

If You Think the Coronavirus Lockdown Is Worse Than the Disease, You Don't Understand the Disease
ahtribune.com | 2020-05-17
It's no accident that one of the world's great morons–he who thinks injecting disinfectants and shining bright lights into bodily cavities will save the world from COVID-19–should be cheering on one the world's most moronic public health policy choices. | The novel coronavirus–aptly dubbed the stealth virus–is highly infectious, if not peerlessly contagious. People can be infected by the virus–and spread the disease to others–for up to two weeks before showing symptoms. Or they can experience symptoms so mild that they're not aware they're ill. If we believe it's now safe to…
ahtribune.com/world/covid-19/4163-lockdo…

People of Shiraz observe Night of Decree in personal cars amid pandemic
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-17
SHIRAZ, May 17 (MNA)

Rally At Tesla: Jail Musk! Workers Health & Safety First & Lives Over Profit
Workers Solidarity Action Network | indybay.org | 2020-05-17
Tesla North Gate | Industrial Dr & Fremont Blvd, Fremont, CA 94538 | www.google.com/maps/place/Tesla+factory/…: 0x86cfbef39088e346!8m2!3d37.5039468!4d-121.9622337?hl=en…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/15/1883304…

Coronavirus to burn out 'naturally' BEFORE vaccine? Former WHO oncologist says there's 'REAL chance' of that
rt.com | 2020-05-17
Covid-19 could be "petering out by itself" before the world comes up with any vaccine, a leading academic, formerly the World Health Organization's (WHO) top oncologist has said. | "There's a real chance that the virus will burn out naturally before any vaccine is developed," Karol Sikora, the dean of the University of Buckingham's medical school, wrote on Twitter. | We're seeing a roughly similar pattern everywhere

Jail Tesla Billionaire Elon Musk & Defend Health & Safety: Workers Speak Out At Tesla
Labor Video Project | indybay.org | 2020-05-17
Workers spoke out against the bullying and intimidation of billionaire Elon Musk who has started his Tesla factory violating a shelter in place law. He challenged the Fremont police and Governor Newsom to arrest him but they are allowing him to open without any CA-OSHA inspections. Newsom has continued the destruction of CA-OSHA and there are less than 200 inspectors for the 18 million workers in California and only 1 doctor and 1 nurse at CA. OSHA.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/16/1883308…

Coronavirus to burn out 'naturally' BEFORE vaccine? Former top WHO oncologist Karol Sikora says there's 'REAL CHANCE' of that
rt.com | 2020-05-17
Covid-19 could be "petering out by itself" before the world comes up with any vaccine, a leading academic, formerly the World Health Organization's (WHO) top oncologist has said. | "There's a real chance that the virus will burn out naturally before any vaccine is developed," Karol Sikora, the dean of the University of Buckingham's medical school, wrote on Twitter. | We're seeing a roughly similar pattern everywhere

World Health Assembly Wrestles with Coronavirus
Kate Zeller | indybay.org | 2020-05-17
As the global coronavirus death toll tops 300,000 people, the leaders of the World Health Organization (WHO) prepare to hold their leadership meetings virtually from May 18th – 19th.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/15/1883305…

ExxonMobil Seeks to Restart Three Platforms Idled After Refugio Oil Spill
Dan Bacher | indybay.org | 2020-05-17
"On the anniversary of this deadly oil spill, in the middle of a public health crisis, Santa Barbara should embrace a clean energy future," said Kristen Monsell, oceans legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "We need to end offshore drilling, not bring it back to life with another dirty oil pipeline."
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/15/1883305…

'Guard of dishonor': VIDEO shows nurses & doctors giving ICY welcome to Belgian PM over govt's Covid-19 response
rt.com | 2020-05-17
Belgium's PM Sophie Wilmes has visited one of the nation's hospitals battling the pandemic

BMJ damns UK government for mishandling coronavirus outbreak and ignoring science
Tom Coburg | thecanary.co | 2020-05-17
An editorial in the prestigious British Medical Journal (BMJ) condemns the Johnson-led government for the way it has handled the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic and for ignoring the science. It amounts to possibly the most damning criticism of the government's management of the pandemic so far. | Moreover, a set of slides seen by The Canary reveals that the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) referenced a document, issued in 2019, that provided detailed projections for a major UK epidemic. Yet, this doesn't seem to have informed the government's response to the crisis. | Early failings: | The…
thecanary.co/discovery/2020/05/17/bmj-damns-uk-government-for-mishandling-coronavirus-outbreak-and-ignoring-science/

How a Lobbying Campaign Pushed the CDC to Relax Protective Gear Guidelines
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-17
This story was originally published by Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting, a nonprofit news organization based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Learn more at revealnews.org and subscribe to the Reveal podcast, produced with PRX, at revealnews.org/podcast. | Rick Lucas' cellphone chimed, alerting him to an emergency in the acute care unit. He wondered whether it would be another case of COVID…
truthout.org/articles/how-a-lobbying-cam…

How a Lobbying Campaign Pushed the CDC to Relax Protective Gear Guidelines
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-17
This story was originally published by Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting, a nonprofit news organization based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Learn more at revealnews.org and subscribe to the Reveal podcast, produced with PRX, at revealnews.org/podcast. | Rick Lucas' cellphone chimed, alerting him to an emergency in the acute care unit. He wondered whether it would be another case of COVID…
truthout.org/articles/how-a-lobbying-cam…

COVID-19 vaccine secures new government investment
imperial.ac.uk | 2020-05-17
Imperial researchers have received a further £18.5 million in government support as they develop a coronavirus vaccine.
imperial.ac.uk/news/197573/covid-19-vaccine-secures-government-investment

Prophetic? EU once paid for a comic book that showed how it BOTCHED response to PANDEMIC (yet took all the credit anyway)
rt.com | 2020-05-17
A pandemic has claimed a million lives despite a vaccine sent from the future, yet EU officials are patting themselves on the back for a good job and mull even more bureaucracy. That is how a comic book published by the EU ends. | …
rt.com/news/488902-eu-pandemic-comic-boo…

The COVID-19 Chronicles: China
Ulson Gunnar | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-17
With the US spiraling downward, a downward trajectory merely steepened by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, we'd expect other nations to suffer likewise. | But China, where we are told the virus first appeared, has already bounced back. While it …
globalresearch.ca/covid-19-chronicles-china/5713169

Covid-19 Outbreak Reported in Bolivia's Largest Prison
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-17
Authorities from the Santa Cruz department in eastern Bolivia confirmed an outbreak of coronavirus in the Palmasola prison on Saturday, reporting that 25 inmates tested positive for the disease. | RELATED: | Bolivia: Añez Backs Down, Annuls Decree Against Speech Freedom | "A total of 25 people deprived of liberty have tested positive for Covid-19. Having an epidemiological outbreak inside the Palmasola prison, we are going to establish two isolation centers: one for suspects and…
telesurenglish.net/news/Covid-19-Outbrea…

Why East Beat West on COVID-19
Andrey Areshev | strategic-culture.org | 2020-05-17
East Asia has handled and contained the pandemic far better than the West on nearly all metrics | Andrew SALMON | Perhaps the most startling trend visible in the global Covid-19 pandemic is the vast differential separating East Asia from the West when it comes to the disease's impact. | The chasm is visible

Global Capitalism, "World Government" and the Corona Crisis
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-16
The COVID-19 crisis is marked by a public health "emergency" under WHO auspices which is being used as a pretext and a justification to triggering a Worldwide process of economic, social and political restructuring.
globalresearch.ca/global-capitalism-world-government-and-the-corona-crisis/5712312

2009 H1N1 Vaccine Caused Brain Damage in Children. Dr. Anthony Fauci on "Vaccine Safety" Issues
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-16
In 2009, NIAID Director Anthony Fauci was firmly in support of a multibillion dollar H1N1 vaccine project | Today he is an avid supporter of a COVID-19 vaccine. | What he fails to acknowledge is that the 2009 H1N1 Vaccine caused brain …
globalresearch.ca/video-dr-anthony-fauci-on-the-2009-h1n1pandemic-the-2009-h1n1-vaccine-caused-brain-damage-in-children/5711540

Exploiting Pandemic, Trump Admin Weighs Banning Immigration Indefinitely
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-16
Earlier this week, the Trump administration started hinting that the president's "temporary" ban on immigration, rushed into effect in late April as a part of the pandemic response, was about to be extended indefinitely. | With the country entirely preoccupied by the public health and economic catastrophes, and with protest all but impossible given the dangers of congregating in large crowds, Tr…
truthout.org/articles/exploiting-pandemi…

Exploiting Pandemic, Trump Admin Weighs Banning Immigration Indefinitely
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-16
Earlier this week, the Trump administration started hinting that the president's "temporary" ban on immigration, rushed into effect in late April as a part of the pandemic response, was about to be extended indefinitely. | With the country entirely preoccupied by the public health and economic catastrophes, and with protest all but impossible given the dangers of congregating in large crowds, Tr…
truthout.org/articles/exploiting-pandemi…

[World Report] In the aftermath: the legacy of measles in Samoa
Jacqui Thornton | thelancet.com | 2020-05-16
As Samoa recovers from a devastating measles outbreak, Jacqui Thornton reports on how the epidemic is having long-lasting effects on the country's health system.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)31137-5/fulltext?rss=yes

[Perspectives] Computer vision's potential to improve health care
Arnold Milstein, Eric J Topol | thelancet.com | 2020-05-16
Artificial intelligence (AI) research for medical applications has largely focused on image pattern recognition or electronic health record (EHR) data. EHR data inputs include what clinicians order and what they document that they did. But the physical actions that comprise what clinicians actually did for patients can differ: one study showed almost half of physician medical record entries documenting the extent of their physical examinations of emergency room patients were not substantiated by an independent physician observer.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)31090-4/fulltext?rss=yes

[Editorial] Reviving the US CDC
The Lancet | thelancet.com | 2020-05-16
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to worsen in the USA with 1 ∑3 million cases and an estimated death toll of 80‚Äà684 as of May 12. States that were initially the hardest hit, such as New York and New Jersey, have decelerated the rate of infections and deaths after the implementation of 2 months of lockdown. However, the emergence of new outbreaks in Minnesota, where the stay-at-home order is set to lift in mid-May, and Iowa, which did not enact any restrictions on movement or commerce, has prompted pointed new questions about the inconsistent and incoherent national response to the COVID-19…
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)31140-5/fulltext?rss=yes

[Articles] Adjuvant nivolumab plus ipilimumab or nivolumab monotherapy versus placebo in patients with resected stage IV melanoma with no evidence of disease (IMMUNED): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 2 trial
Lisa Zimmer, Elisabeth Livingstone, Jessica C Hassel, Michael Fluck, Thomas Eigentler, Carmen Loquai, Sebastian Haferkamp, Ralf Gutzmer, Friedegund Meier, Peter Mohr, Axel Hauschild, Bastian Schilling, Christian Menzer, Felix Kieker, Edgar Dippel, Alexander Rà∂sch, Jan-Christoph Simon, Beate Conrad, Silvia Kà∂rner, Christine Windemuth-Kieselbach, Leonora Schwarz, Claus Garbe, Jàºrgen C Becker, Dirk Schadendorf, Dermatologic Cooperative Oncology Group | thelancet.com | 2020-05-16
Adjuvant therapy with nivolumab alone or in combination with ipilimumab increased recurrence-free survival significantly compared with placebo in patients with stage IV melanoma with no evidence of disease. The rates of grade 3–4 treatment-related adverse events in both active treatment groups were higher than the rates reported in previous pivotal trials done in advanced melanoma with measurable disease.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)30417-7/fulltext?rss=yes

[Comment] Offline: Don't let COVID-19 divert us completely
Richard Horton | thelancet.com | 2020-05-16
Dr Robert Spencer, a trustee of Dr Edward Jenner's House, Garden and Museum in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, UK, wrote to me last week on the 40th anniversary of the eradication of smallpox (May 8). He was polite but disappointed: "On this day in 1980 the WHO announced the eradication of smallpox from the world. This infection, which probably caused more deaths than any other disease, was finally condemned to the history books. Sorry to see you had no space in this week's edition of The Lancet to commemorate this milestone, especially at a time of COVID-19 pandemic." Dr Spencer was right to admonish me.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)31130-2/fulltext?rss=yes

telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-16
Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro Saturday appointed General Eduardo Pazuello as Acting Health Minister amidst the crisis prompted by the resignation of the last two health ministers, both of whom disagreed with the President's vision on how to fight the pandemic. | RELATED: | Brazil Second Health Minister Quits, Deepening COVID-19 Crisis | "Gene…
telesurenglish.net/news/A-Paratrooper-Ge…

Brazilian Workers' Party Ask for Impeachment Against Bolsonaro
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-16
The Workers' Party (PT) of Brazil will present a formal petition to initiate an impeachment against the far-right President Jair Bolsonaro for his mismanagement in the face of the health crisis that the country is going through due to COVID-19. | RELATED: | Brazil Second Health Minister Quits, Deepening COVID-19 Crisis | In a statement, the left-wing party reported that its executive commission "decided to submit to the Chamber of Deputies a collective impeachment petition agai…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazilian-Worker…

14 Dead in Sixth Day of Fighting in South Yemen
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-16
Fourteen combatants died in Yemen Saturday, as fighting between pro-government troops and separatist forces of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) entered a sixth day in the southern province of Abyan, according to sources on both sides. | RELATED: | COVID-19 Spreads in Yemen With Health System in Shambles | "Fourteen fighters, including ten pro-government soldiers, were killed on Saturday," a government military official told AFP on condition of anonymity. | The toll was confirm…
telesurenglish.net/news/14-Dead-in-Sixth…

14 Dead in Sixth Day of Fighting in South Yemen
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-16
Fourteen combatants died in Yemen Saturday, as fighting between pro-government troops and separatist forces of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) entered a sixth day in the southern province of Abyan, according to sources on both sides. | RELATED: | COVID-19 Spreads in Yemen With Health System in Shambles | "Fourteen fighters, including ten pro-government soldiers, were killed on Saturday," a government military official told AFP on condition of anonymity. | The toll was confirm…
telesurenglish.net/news/14-Dead-in-Sixth…

ExxonMobil Seeks to Restart Three Platforms Idled After Refugio Oil Spill
Dan Bacher | indybay.org | 2020-05-16
"On the anniversary of this deadly oil spill, in the middle of a public health crisis, Santa Barbara should embrace a clean energy future," said Kristen Monsell, oceans legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "We need to end offshore drilling, not bring it back to life with another dirty oil pipeline."
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/15/1883305…

Once Again Hysterical Media Is Complicit in the Needless Deaths of Tens of Thousands (So Far)
Brendan O'Neill | anti-empire.com | 2020-05-16
The media in this country have no shame. For two months they've been ramping up fear and hysteria over Covid-19. They predicted apocalypse. They reported the daily death tolls like gleeful grim reapers. They said hospitals would be overwhelmed. They interviewed doctor after doctor and nurse after nurse who told us in tearful tones that the health service was at breaking point. They painted a picture of a nation falling apart, of a plague visiting death upon every community, of institutions collapsing under the sheer weight of this mini Black Death. | And now, after all that, after pumping out 24-hour rolling d…
anti-empire.com/once-again-hysterical-me…

Iran's COVID-19 cases surpass 118,000
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-16
TEHRAN, May 16 (MNA)

Once Again the Screeching, Do-Gooder Media Is Complicit in the Needless Deaths of Tens of Thousands (So Far)
Brendan O'Neill | anti-empire.com | 2020-05-16
The media in this country have no shame. For two months they've been ramping up fear and hysteria over Covid-19. They predicted apocalypse. They reported the daily death tolls like gleeful grim reapers. They said hospitals would be overwhelmed. They interviewed doctor after doctor and nurse after nurse who told us in tearful tones that the health service was at breaking point. They painted a picture of a nation falling apart, of a plague visiting death upon every community, of institutions collapsing under the sheer weight of this mini Black Death. | And now, after all that, after pumping out 24-hour rolling d…
anti-empire.com/once-again-hysterical-me…

Iran's COVID-19 cases surpass 118,000 with recovery rate at 78%
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-16
TEHRAN, May 16 (MNA)

Rally At Tesla: Jail Musk! Workers Health & Safety First & Lives Over Profit
Workers Solidarity Action Network | indybay.org | 2020-05-16
Tesla North Gate | Industrial Dr & Fremont Blvd, Fremont, CA 94538 | www.google.com/maps/place/Tesla+factory/…: 0x86cfbef39088e346!8m2!3d37.5039468!4d-121.9622337?hl=en…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/15/1883304…

Eid al-Fitr prayers to be held all across Iran: Rouhani
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-16
TEHRAN, May 16 (MNA)

World Health Assembly Wrestles with Coronavirus
Kate Zeller | indybay.org | 2020-05-16
As the global coronavirus death toll tops 300,000 people, the leaders of the World Health Organization (WHO) prepare to hold their leadership meetings virtually from May 18th – 19th.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/15/1883305…

Checkpoint Closure By South Dakota Governor An Attack On Tribal Sovereignty
Staff | therealnews.com | 2020-05-16
Governor Kristi Noem publicly issued a letter to the Cheyenne River and Oglala Sioux Tribes on May 8 ordering them to remove health checkpoints on roads crossing their reservations but did not directly deliver it to OST–"a sign of "disrespect," according to OST President Julian Bear Runner.
therealnews.com/columns/checkpoint-closu…

2020-05-16: News Headlines

Staff (2020-05-16). Checkpoint Closure By South Dakota Governor An Attack On Tribal Sovereignty. therealnews.com Governor Kristi Noem publicly issued a letter to the Cheyenne River and Oglala Sioux Tribes on May 8 ordering them to remove health checkpoints on roads crossing their reservations but did not directly deliver it to OST—"a sign of "disrespect," according to OST President Julian Bear Runner.

Glen Ford (2020-05-16). Leftists jump the Corporate Democratic ship, leaving Sanders behind. mronline.org History may record that the corporate duopoly dike was finally broken in the Time of Plague, with the defection of Bernie's former sheep from the Democratic Party.

Arnold Milstein, Eric J Topol (2020-05-16). [Perspectives] Computer vision's potential to improve health care. thelancet.com Artificial intelligence (AI) research for medical applications has largely focused on image pattern recognition or electronic health record (EHR) data. EHR data inputs include what clinicians order and what they document that they did. But the physical actions that comprise what clinicians actually did for patients can differ: one study showed almost half of physician medical record entries documenting the extent of their physical examinations of emergency room patients were not substantiated by an independent physician observer.

Jacqui Thornton (2020-05-16). [World Report] In the aftermath: the legacy of measles in Samoa. thelancet.com As Samoa recovers from a devastating measles outbreak, Jacqui Thornton reports on how the epidemic is having long-lasting effects on the country's health system.

The Lancet (2020-05-16). [Editorial] Reviving the US CDC. thelancet.com The COVID-19 pandemic continues to worsen in the USA with 1 ∑3 million cases and an estimated death toll of 80‚Äà684 as of May 12. States that were initially the hardest hit, such as New York and New Jersey, have decelerated the rate of infections and deaths after the implementation of 2 months of lockdown. However, the emergence of new outbreaks in Minnesota, where the stay-at-home order is set to lift in mid-May, and Iowa, which did not enact any restrictions on movement or commerce, has prompted pointed new questions about the inconsistent and incoherent national response to the COVID-19…

Lisa Zimmer, Elisabeth Livingstone, Jessica C Hassel, Michael Fluck, Thomas Eigentler, Carmen Loquai, Sebastian Haferkamp, Ralf Gutzmer, Friedegund Meier, Peter Mohr, Axel Hauschild, Bastian Schilling, Christian Menzer, Felix Kieker, Edgar Dippel, Alexander Rà∂sch, Jan-Christoph Simon, Beate Conrad, Silvia Kà∂rner, Christine Windemuth-Kieselbach, Leonora Schwarz, Claus Garbe, Jàºrgen C Becker, Dirk Schadendorf, Dermatologic Cooperative Oncology Group (2020-05-16). [Articles] Adjuvant nivolumab plus ipilimumab or nivolumab monotherapy versus placebo in patients with resected stage IV melanoma with no evidence of disease (IMMUNED): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 2 trial. thelancet.com Adjuvant therapy with nivolumab alone or in combination with ipilimumab increased recurrence-free survival significantly compared with placebo in patients with stage IV melanoma with no evidence of disease. The rates of grade 3—4 treatment-related adverse events in both active treatment groups were higher than the rates reported in previous pivotal trials done in advanced melanoma with measurable disease.

Richard Horton (2020-05-16). [Comment] Offline: Don't let COVID-19 divert us completely. thelancet.com Dr Robert Spencer, a trustee of Dr Edward Jenner's House, Garden and Museum in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, UK, wrote to me last week on the 40th anniversary of the eradication of smallpox (May 8). He was polite but disappointed: "On this day in 1980 the WHO announced the eradication of smallpox from the world. This infection, which probably caused more deaths than any other disease, was finally condemned to the history books. Sorry to see you had no space in this week's edition of The Lancet to commemorate this milestone, especially at a time of COVID-19 pandemic." Dr Spencer was right to admonish me.

en.mehrnews (2020-05-16). Eid al-Fitr prayers to be held all across Iran: Rouhani. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 16 (MNA) — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced on Saturday that the Eid al-Fitr prayers (on May 24) will be held in all mosques across the country by observing health protocols.

Staff (2020-05-16). Cuba's Resilience Through Economic Crisis Prepared It for COVID Health Crisis. truthout.org In times of crisis, who we are is revealed. That is true of people and of nations. What COVID-19 has exposed — not created — is a deeply flawed and inequitable society. The truths of how race and class intersect to shorten the existence of some in our society are now laid bare for all to see. The collapse of structures that were barely holding on have revealed how inadequate they were to begin with. The failure of many states to prevent, protect against and help contain an illness…

Dan Bacher (2020-05-16). ExxonMobil Seeks to Restart Three Platforms Idled After Refugio Oil Spill. indybay.org "On the anniversary of this deadly oil spill, in the middle of a public health crisis, Santa Barbara should embrace a clean energy future," said Kristen Monsell, oceans legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "We need to end offshore drilling, not bring it back to life with another dirty oil pipeline."

en.mehrnews (2020-05-16). Iran's COVID-19 cases surpass 118,000. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 16 (MNA) — More than 118,000 people have contracted the novel coronavirus in Iran with the death toll exceeding 6,900, a senior health official said.

Kate Zeller (2020-05-16). World Health Assembly Wrestles with Coronavirus. indybay.org As the global coronavirus death toll tops 300,000 people, the leaders of the World Health Organization (WHO) prepare to hold their leadership meetings virtually from May 18th – 19th.

Workers Solidarity Action Network (2020-05-16). Rally At Tesla: Jail Musk! Workers Health & Safety First & Lives Over Profit. indybay.org Tesla North Gate | Industrial Dr & Fremont Blvd, Fremont, CA 94538 | www.google.com/maps/place/Tesla+factory/…: 0x86cfbef39088e346!8m2!3d37.5039468!4d-121.9622337?hl=en…

WSWS (2020-05-16). Workers point to health risk in early reopening of North American auto plants. wsws.org As the Detroit-based auto companies prepare to restart their North American factories, opposition is growing among workers to a deadly return to work.

Ryan Cristián (2020-05-16). Trump Appoints Gates-Tied Pharma Exec As Vaccine Czar & Florida's Mandatory COVID Vaccination Order. thelastamericanvagabond.com Welcome to The Daily Wrap Up, a concise show dedicated to bringing you the most relevant independent news, as we see it, from the last 24 hours (5/15/19). As always, take the information discussed in the video below and research it for yourself, and come to your own conclusions. Anyone telling you what the truth …

WSWS (2020-05-15). Starving Bolivian workers clash with troops deployed by coup regime. wsws.org Amid the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic in Bolivia, Jeanine àÅñez's self-proclaimed "interim government" is escalating state repression.

RT (2020-05-15). Brazilian Health Minister Teich resigns after just weeks in job. rt.com Brazilian Health Minister Nelson Teich resigned on Friday after just weeks in the job. President Jair Bolsonaro had criticized Teich as being too timid in the push to reopen the economy and to advocate the use of anti-malarial drugs. | Military members of the Brazilian cabinet are pushing for deputy health minister Eduardo Pazuello, an army general on active duty, to become the new health minister, making permanent his interim role, Reuters reported, citing a government source. | Teich is the second health minister to resign amid the pandemic in Brazil. He replaced Nelson Mandetta, who was fired on April 16 fo…

RT (2020-05-15). MILLIONS of Americans dead from Covid-19? 85k jobs lost? What? Joe Biden commits gaffe after gaffe in confusing broadcast. rt.com Joe Biden has once again caught flak for his creative and often confusing oratory, this time after the former VP and presumptive Democratic nominee struggled to relay how many Americans have died from coronavirus. | Speaking during a "virtual round table," Biden argued that playing the "blame game" during the ongoing health crisis would be counterproductive. But when it came time to relaying exactly what politicians might blame each other for, the presidential candidate faltered. | "We're in the middle of a pandemic that has cost us more than 85,000 jobs as of today. Lives of millions of people, millions of pe…

John Wojcik (2020-05-15). Whistleblower Dr. Rick Bright testifies winter could be 'darkest in modern history'. peoplesworld.org Dr. Rick Bright, the top Health and Human Services official dumped by Trump for blowing the whistle on the administration's disastrous response to the coronavirus pandemic, testified to Congress Thursday that essentially everything the president is saying about his administration's response to the pandemic is a lie. One of the most damaging of those lies, …

Raul Diego (2020-05-15). Massachusetts Contact Tracing Program Handed to Clinton-Linked NGO with Questionable Past. mintpressnews.com A new contact tracing program was recently unveiled in Massachusetts in partnership with Partners in Health, an NGO with links to US regime change operations, big pharma and the Clinton Foundation.

Adriaan Alsema (2020-05-15). One week after promising health supplies to southeast Colombia, government vows aid to bury the dead. colombiareports.com Colombia's government vowed to send cement to build repositories of Covid-19 deaths in the southeastern Amazonas province after promised health supplies never arrived. The situation in Colombia's most remote province…

Chauncey K. Robinson (2020-05-15). Seeking justice for Breonna Taylor: Essential health worker killed by police. peoplesworld.org The actual suspect was already in police custody, but that didn't stop officers from allegedly opening fire and shooting Breonna Taylor eight times. It was March 13 in Louisville, Kentucky when the young Black woman Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician (EMT), was shot and killed. The police who raided her home were executing a …

Janine Jackson (2020-05-15). Foreign Policy Sees 'Repression' in Vietnam's Fight Against Coronavirus – In the US, government may surveill you, but at least it doesn't protect your health. fair.org Foreign Policy ( A recent piece in Foreign Policy (

Paul Street (2020-05-15). Dark Winter? Honey Badger Trump Don't Care. counterpunch.org "This coalition of the business elite, right-wing Christian evangelicals, and white nationalists and other white supremacists is very dangerous. Fascism is ultimately a death cult." — Jason Stanley , May 11, 2020 From the Annals of "The Most Dangerous Criminal in Human History" Despite timely alerts given by senior public health experts and warnings from

RT (2020-05-15). Czech Republic to allow gatherings of up to 300 people. rt.com The Czech Republic will take major steps to relax its coronavirus lockdown measures from May 25, as the government seeks to jump-start the economy, health officials said on Friday. | The central European country of 10.7 million people has reported fewer than 100 new cases a day throughout May. As of Friday morning, it had recorded a total of 8,352 cases of which 5,249 have recovered. It has reported 293 deaths, Reuters said. | Indoor dining and hotel stays could resume on May 25 under strict hygiene rules, Health Minister Adam Vojtech said. "After May 25, there won't be establishments in retail which would be…

Conn Hallinan (2020-05-15). War and Plagues: Military Spending During a Pandemic. counterpunch.org Welcome to the world of the hypersonic weapons, devices that are not only superfluous, but which will almost certainly not work, They will, however, cost enormous amounts of money. At a time when countries across the globe are facing economic chaos, financial deficits and unemployment at Great Depression levels, arms manufacturers are set to cash in big.

RT (2020-05-15). Define 'distribute'! Trump mobilizing MILITARY to deliver Covid-19 vaccine 'assuming we get it,' sparks conspiracy frenzy. rt.com US President Donald Trump said the military is gearing up to distribute a coronavirus vaccine when one is ready, unleashing a torrent of takes from conspiracy-minded netizens, many sounding alarms over mandatory inoculations. | American GIs are already being mobilized to parcel out a future vaccine to "most of the population," Trump told Fox Business' Maria Bartiromo in an interview on Thursday, giving a highly optimistic end-of-the-year time frame even as many experts suggest a remedy won't be ready for mass distribution for another 12 to 18 months. | "We're mobilizing our military on the basis that we do hav…

RT (2020-05-15). Trump says govt will work at 'WARP SPEED' to deliver vaccine BEFORE year's end. rt.com President Donald Trump has promised to deliver a coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year or earlier, saying that the government will invest in potential candidates. He added that, vaccine or no vaccine, America will reopen. | Speaking to reporters in the White House Rose Garden on Friday, Trump unveiled "Operation Warp Speed," a public-private partnership aimed at accelerating the development of a vaccine for Covid-19, the deadly virus that has infected more than 4.5 million people worldwide and killed more than 300,000. | "This is an endeavor unlike anything our country has seen since the Manhattan Project…

Winslow Wheeler (2020-05-15). Do the Most Severe Lockdowns Coincide to the Highest COVID-19 Death Rates? counterpunch.org The organization Our World in Data is running an article on the severity of government lockdown policies used to deal with the Covid-19 disease, "How Are Governments Responding to the Coronavirus Pandemic?". It is shows rankings of the severity ("stringency") on nine measures of lockdown policies throughout the world; it also addresses testing and tracking.

Jeffrey A. Tucker (2020-05-15). No Lockdowns: The Terrifying Polio Pandemic of 1949-52. anti-empire.com World War II had ended four years earlier and the U.S. was trying to return to peace and prosperity. Price controls and rationing were ended. Trade was opening. People were returning to normal life. The economy started humming again. Optimism for the future was growing. Harry Truman became the symbol of a new normacy. From Depression and war, society was on the mend. | As if to serve as a reminder that there were still threats to life and liberty present, an old enemy made its appearance: polio. It's a disease with ancient origins, with its most terrifying effect, the paralysis of the lower extremities. It mai…

Eve Ottenberg (2020-05-15). The Covid-19 Testing Fiasco. counterpunch.org From the start, testing for Covid-19 in the U.S. has been abysmal. Experts agree that without adequate testing, the disease cannot be stopped. Poor testing means no idea how many are infected or how to trace and quarantine their contacts or how to prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed. There has been speculation that the Trump

RT (2020-05-15). First child dies in France from rare Kawasaki-like disease unwisely linked to Covid-19. rt.com A nine-year-old boy in France has died from the mysterious Kawasaki-like disease, which some medics link to Covid-19. It's the first such case in that country, but similar child fatalities were earlier recorded in the US and UK. | The cause of the boy's death was "neurological injury related to a cardiac arrest," Fabrice Michel, head of the pediatric intensive care unit at La Timone hospital in Marseille, said. | The child was rushed to hospital with heart problems in early May. Doctors have been fighting for his life for a whole week, but the young patient passed away on Saturday. | While in hospital, the bo…

Jeffrey St. Clair (2020-05-15). Roaming Charges: Unmasked and Anonymous. counterpunch.org I'm hyped for some ObamaGate action, as long as its about things that matter: health care plan designed by Heritage Foundation, bailing out Wall Street, failing to close Gitmo, droning US citizens, Afghan surge, the jailing of whistleblowers and legal harassment of journalists, the Libyan and Honduran coups, mass surveillance, the funding and arming of proxy wars in Yemen and Syria, record deportations, Deepwater Horizon, new nukes (both power plants and weapons), etc…

RT (2020-05-15). Quarantined & lonely? Find a 'SEX BUDDY,' Dutch government advises. rt.com Dutch authorities have decided that sex is a necessity, even in times of lockdown. Ever the pragmatists, they suggest that quarantined singletons "make arrangements" with a willing partner. | With more than 43,000 people infected with the coronavirus and a death toll of 5,600, the Netherlands has been on lockdown since late March. Citizens are allowed to have up to three visitors in their homes, provided they keep a distance of 1.5 meters from each other. Naturally, this precludes most sexual activity. | However, the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) has admitted that two se…

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2020-05-15). Video: Coronavirus: Economic and Social Collapse: Mass Unemployment, Bankruptcy, Poverty and Despair. globalresearch.ca First published on April 16, 2020 | There is a serious health crisis which must be duly resolved. But there is another important dimension which has to be addressed. | Millions of people have lost their jobs, and their lifelong savings. In …

Fight Back (2020-05-15). Minnesota Governor Walz decision to end many stay-at-home restrictions endangers public health. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN — Jess Sundin, a Minnesota leader of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) condemned Governor Walz's decision to allow many statewide stay-at-home restrictions to lapse, May 13. | Sundin stated, "Against the advice of scientists, he's opening up before infection rates have dropped. Against his own promises, he's opening up when there are still widespread reports of PPE shortages for healthcare workers. Minnesota is still behind with testing, and contact tracing is unheard of. Grimly, the only benchmark the governor has met is expanding the number of ICU beds available for thos…

Stephen Lendman (2020-05-15). Trump's "Operation Warp Speed" for Mass Vaxxing. "Big Bucks for Big Pharma" globalresearch.ca Big Pharma is poised to cash in big from mass COVID-19 vaxxing — at the expense of human health and welfare. | Author of "Pharma: Greed, Lies, and the Poisoning of America" Gerald Posner explained that drug companies "view Covid-19 …

Peoples Dispatch (2020-05-15). Massive protests in El Salvador against President Nayib Bukele. peoplesdispatch.org Salvadorans are protesting over the lack of food and economic aid to poor and unemployed people, the shortage of personal protection equipment for health workers, and the delay in the return of people stranded abroad…

teleSUR (2020-05-15). Ecuador: Human Rights Organizations Denounce Police Brutality. telesurenglish.net Ecuador's Human Rights organizations Thursday denounced that police force abuse against pacific protesters in Guayaquil. Claimers denounced the negligence of health authorities in corpses counting and handling. | RELATED: | Protesters gathered at Centenary Park for a sit-in demonstration against both President Lenin Moreno's budget cuts and lack of economic aid for those in need. | "We are mourning and resisting," was their protest's maxim. Cit…

teleSUR (2020-05-15). Puebla Group Discusses Peace in Colombia and Pandemic Crisis. telesurenglish.net The Puebla Group today is discussing the peace process in Colombia, the health crisis, and the regional economy, during a new virtual meeting that brings together progressive leaders from Latin America. | RELATED: | Colombia is the host of the new virtual meeting, in the voices of former President Ernesto Samper and former Minister of Labor Clara Lopez Obregon. | "Peace measures are the level of civilization of a country," sa…

Diane Archer (2020-05-15). The Best Way to Ensure Unemployed Workers Get Health Care? Pay for It Through Medicare. commondreams.org The Medicare Crisis program offers far more generous benefits than the COBRA proposal, the Worker Health Coverage Protection Act. Still, according to the economists at PERI, the cost to the federal government of the Medicare Crisis program based on coverage for 38.7 million people is $22.3 billion less than the full cost of care under the COBRA proposal, $47.5 billion vs. $69.8 billion for three months of coverage. (Photo: @AngryVoters / Twitpic) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

commondreams (2020-05-15). Physicians' group responds to Emergency Health Care Guarantee Act. commondreams.org ______________________________…

WSWS (2020-05-15). The 2003 SARS epidemic: How Canada's elite squandered the chance to prepare for the COVID-19 pandemic. wsws.org Canada's disastrous response to the pandemic is all the more criminal given the impact of SARS and the repeated government vows that the country's health system would be well-prepared for any future novel virus.

Staff (2020-05-15). Essential Sanitary Workers Strike for Hazard Pay and PPE in New Orleans. truthout.org The severe outbreak of COVID-19 in southern Louisiana was the last straw for a group of sanitation workers who pick up trash in eastern New Orleans. Last week, they walked off the job and went on strike, demanding hazard pay and a $15 living wage. | Without "hoppers," as the workers are known, garbage would pile up on the streets and contribute to the spread of disease and other public health problems. However, the group of hoppers in New Orleans say their employers did not provide them with hazar…

newsnetwork.mayoclinic (2020-05-15). FDA issues emergency use authorization for algorithm designed to improve detection of heart failure during COVID-19. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org The FDA granted Emergency Use Authorization to Eko, a digital health company, for the heart screening algorithm developed by Mayo Clinic. The AI-driven algorithm can detect weak heart pump, which is commonly detected by echocardiogram, a test that is not normally conducted during a physical exam, requires specially trained technicians to record, and requires prolonged contact with …

WSWS (2020-05-15). Malnutrition is leading cause of death and ill-health worldwide. wsws.org A recent report confirms that various forms of malnutrition are the result of inequities in food distribution and health care systems but only hints at the criminal indifference of all national governments to these issues…

Macdonald Stainsby (2020-05-15). Socialism and Collective Responses: Attacking Venezuela in a Pandemic. counterpunch.org That feeling of international solidarity. This pandemic has brought terror in daily life to many, including this home where a 79 year old with COPD resides. Global calls of "we are all in this together" have served to blunt the bleakness in the face of unprecedented threats to our collective health. However, the initial rush

newsnetwork.mayoclinic (2020-05-15). Mayo Clinic expands in-person care on all campuses. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org Mayo Clinic will expand in-person care on all of its campuses as COVID-19 executive orders are lifted for elective procedures by governors in Arizona, Florida, Minnesota and Wisconsin. "Our patients' health and safety is always our top priority," says Amy Williams, M.D., Mayo Clinic Executive Dean for Practice. "We have taken several extra precautions to …

commondreams (2020-05-15). Congress Must Guarantee Health Coverage During Pandemic. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-05-15). Sanders, Gillibrand, Booker, Warren, Markey, Merkley, Harris Introduce Emergency Health Care Guarantee Act. commondreams.org ______________________________…