(2021-02-07). States Are Poised to Cut Mental Health Care Despite Rising Demand Under COVID. truthout.org 
Helena, Montana — When the pandemic hit, health officials in Montana's Beaverhead County had barely begun to fill a hole left by the 2017 closure of the local public assistance office, mental health clinic, chemical dependency center and job placement office after the state's last budget shortfall. | Now, those health officials worry more cuts are coming, even as they brace for a spike in demand for substance abuse and mental health services. That would be no small challenge in a poor…
(2021-02-07). Change Is Not Scary — The Present System Is. zcomm.org Improved Medicare for All would do away with the need for supplemental coverage and expand the services covered…
(2021-02-07). On Contact: People's History Of West Virginia. popularresistance.org On the show this week, Chris Hedges talks to filmmaker and journalist, Eleanor Goldfield about her documentary, "Hard Road of Hope". | Goldfield's documentary, "Hard Road of Hope", revisits West Virginia's long tradition of radicalism and militant unionism, including the famed 1921 armed uprising, the largest since the Civil War, by some 10,000 coal miners at Blair Mountain who fought the repressive coal owners and their hired coal company gun thugs and militias. In 2018, the state's 20,000 public school teachers and employees carried out a strike over low pay and high health-care costs, shutting down every publi…
(2021-02-07). Newsom, Stop The Executions! Rally & Caravan to End the COVID Deaths in Prisons. indybay.org Activists in Oakland caravanned across the Bay Bridge to San Francisco on January 31, calling on Gov. Gavin Newsom to grant the mass release of incarcerated individuals. They said that Gov. Newsom and the California Department of Corrections (CDC) are responsible for the deaths of at least 180 people in prisons since the start of the COVID pandemic.
(2021-02-07). Covid-19: Israel begins exit from third virus lockdown. middleeasteye.net 
Covid-19: Israel begins exit from third virus lockdown | Despite a vaccination campaign, the country has been registering a daily average of 6,500 new Covid-19 cases
| Sun, 02/07/2021 – 15: 48 | While a third of Israelis have received the vaccine, Palestinians living in the occupied territories have been left out of the roll-out (AFP) | Israeli barbershops and some other businesses…
(2021-02-07). "The burdens of the pandemic must not be passed on to the working class" peoplesdispatch.org The pandemic has exposed the inadequacy of the Austrian public health system, the failure of the federal government, and led to the acceleration of the economic crisis, writes Tibor Zenker, chairman of the Party of Labor of Austria…
(2021-02-07). Can the Super Bowl end the Toxic season of Trumpism in Sports? juancole.com 
By Robert Lipsyte | — ( Tomdispatch.com ) — Overwhelmed by the intertwined plagues of Covid-19 and Trumpism, sports didn't stand a chance in 2020. No wonder I'm weirded out by the strange, metaphorical moments of that last disastrous year and the first days of this one. To mention just three among so many: Dr. …
(2021-02-07). Ten people have died after coronavirus outbreak at a care home. thecanary.co Ten people have died after contracting coronavirus (Covid-19) following an outbreak at a care home. | NHS Fife said 25 residents and 43 staff tested positive for the virus at Mossview Care Home in the town of Lochgelly. | The care home was closed to new admissions but has since reopened as it's now 14 days since the last positive test. | The health board said its health protection team and Fife Health and Social Care Partnership worked closely with Fife Council's environmental health service to support the management of the care home and offer advice. | NHS Fife said: NHS Fife is aware of a recent cluster of confi…
(2021-02-07). Mosque turned into pop-up vaccination centre to encourage take-up from Muslim community. thecanary.co A mosque has been turned into a pop-up coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccination centre. The move is intended to help ease mistrust in the Muslim community about getting the jab. | Misinformation: | The makeshift clinic has been set up at the London Muslim Centre. Young children attended with their grandparents and relatives aged over 68 in the bitter winter chill to get the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine. | It comes just days after local medical officials in Tower Hamlets said only three out of 200 people who'd been contacted had turned up for an appointment. This was according to Asad Jaman of the East London Mosq…
(2021-02-07). Afghanistan gets 1st doses of COVID vaccine from India. yenisafak.com Afghanistan on Sunday received 500,000 doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine from India, health officials said.The India-made vaccine, locally known as Covishield, is the first to reach Afghanistan. It is being produced by the Serum Institute for mid- and low-income countries.Talking to reporters at Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport after receiving the consignment, Ghulam Dastagir Nazari, head of the immunization drive at the Health Ministry, said frontline health care staff, followed by security forces and civil servants, will be the first to be inoculated after emergency approval from the Worl…
(2021-02-07). Rich countries at risk of their own vaccine nationalism. yenisafak.com The world's richest countries would do well to hurry in supplying and distributing vaccines against the novel coronavirus, as failing to do so would eventually harm their economies more severely than projected by earlier studies, experts say.As the world tries to free itself from the COVID-19 pandemic, the issue of making vaccines universally available has taken center stage.Despite pledges by donor countries to aid the global inoculation effort, there is still uncertainty about when jabs will reach vulnerable populations."No economy can bounce back fully until vaccines are distributed fairly, equally, quickly, a…
(2021-02-07). South Africa records 3,184 new COVID-19 infections. yenisafak.com South Africa recorded 3,184 new coronavirus infections, taking the country's total to 1,473,700, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said late Saturday. | "Regrettably, we report a further 278 COVID-19 related deaths," Mlkhize said, adding that it brings the number of fatalities to 46,180. | The coastal city of Kwa-Zulu Natal had the highest death toll Saturday with 109, followed by the tourism province of Western Cape which recorded 57 deaths. | Gauteng province, which includes the capital of Pretoria and the largest city, Johannesburg, registered 50 deaths. While the remaining six provinces each have less than 47 deat…
(2021-02-07). Iran to receive next shipment of Russian vaccine in mid-Feb. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Feb. 07 (MNA) — Iranian Ambassador to Russian Federation said that Tehran will receive the next shipments of Russian COVID-19 vaccine in mid-February, March, and April.
(2021-02-07). Tehran ,Moscow to finalize tie on joint vaccine production. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Feb. 07 (MNA) — An Iranian delegation, who just arrived in Moscow, will finalize a joint cooperation agreement for the production of the Sputnik V vaccine between Iran and Russia.
(2021-02-07). Three-Part Protest in Mountain View. indybay.org In a California statewide day of action, health care professionals and activists rallied to enact a single-payer health care plan for the state–California Guaranteed Health Care for All, known as CalCare.
(2021-02-06). What's Not Being Said About the Pfizer Coronavirus Vaccine. "Human Guinea Pigs"? globalresearch.ca The Pharma giant Pfizer use an experimental technology known as gene editing, specifically mRNA gene-editing, something never before used in vaccines. Before we rush to get jabbed in hopes of some immunity, we should know more about the radical experimental technology and its lack of precision.
(2021-02-06). 501 Deaths + 10,748 Other Injuries Reported Following COVID Vaccine, Latest CDC Data Show. globalresearch.ca The numbers reflect the latest data available as of Jan. 29 from the CDC's Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System website. Of the 501 reported deaths, 453 were from the U.S. The average age of those who died was 77, the …
(2021-02-06). Experts warn Hawaii on the brink of major COVID-19 outbreak and hospital overcrowding catastrophe. wsws.org With hospitalization rates rising, health officials have warned that zero percent ICU capacity could be reached in the next two weeks.
(2021-02-06). Military Metaphors in Health Care Are Harmful — Especially During the Pandemic. truthout.org 
As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to sweep through the U.S., many have noticed the coupling of military and health. There's been an ongoing conversation amongst oncologists for years about the use of war metaphors in cancer research and treatment. In fact, many public health concerns are framed in these terms — "war on drugs" or "war on poverty," for example. It's argued the use of these metaphors help make it easier for our society to better understand health. But herein lies a follow…
(2021-02-06). Vaccine Passports and Health Passes: Is Showing Your "Papers" the "New Normal?" globalresearch.ca First published on December 17, 2021 | Life cannot return to normal until there is a vaccine for COVID 19. | At least, that is what governments, corporations, and their mainstream propaganda media outlets have been incessantly arguing. Interestingly, the development of …
(2021-02-06). The COVID-19 Pandemic as a Psychological Coup d'Etat. globalresearch.ca We have almost reached a full year since the spread of SARS-Cov2 was proclaimed a pandemic. If we are to believe the World Health Organization's and individual governments' official statistics, the number of confirmed cases is reaching 100 million with …
(2021-02-06). Biden Aims for US to Produce Millions of At-Home COVID Tests by End of Summer. truthout.org 
President Biden's pandemic response team announced plans on Friday to use the Defense Production Act to help Pfizer manufacture more of its COVID vaccine, produce 61 million rapid at-home COVID tests over the next six months, and address shortages of personal protective equipment for health care workers. | The Defense Production Act gives the president emergency powers to compel private companies to prioritize supply lines and manufacturing for the benefit of national defense, in this case…
(2021-02-06). Incarcerated and at COVID's mercy: New York must do more for elderly imprisoned people. mronline.org 
COVID-19 is now raging uncontrolled throughout the United States. New variants that are more easily transmitted have entered the country from the U.K., Brazil and South Africa. Vaccine is scarce.
(2021-02-06). Big Pharma and Big Profits: The Multibillion Dollar Vaccine Market. globalresearch.ca First published on January 27, 2016. | Of relevance to an understanding of the Covid Vaccine Initiative | The business of vaccines is soon to become a major source of profits for the world's largest pharmaceutical corporations. A press release (Business Wire, …
(2021-02-06). Moscone Center Open for SF Vaccine Appointments. indybay.org The Moscone Convention Center at 747 Howard Street, San Francisco, allows everyone in San Francisco to book an appointment or if none is available, get on the mailing list. The City is partnering with Kaiser to do the COVID19 vaccine.
(2021-02-06). UK's BoJo reportedly plans to give health secretary more control by reversing 2012 NHS policies as coronavirus pandemic continues. rt.com 
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is reportedly planning to reverse the controversial NHS reforms introduced in the 2012 Health and Social Care Act, returning elements of the public service to the control of the Secretary of Health. | According to
(2021-02-06). Denmark to Roll Out a 'Digital' Vaccine Passport in 3-4 Months. anti-empire.com 
The exact practical applications of the digital documentation are still under consideration, but its primary purpose is to facilitate a reopening of society. | "We are taking the first steps so that, before the end of February, you will be able to see your vaccination on (online health services platform) Sundhed.dk," acting finance minister Morten Bà∏dskov said. | "In three to four months, the digital corona passport will be ready for use for things like business trips," Bà∏dskov added. | The government and business representatives will decide on the exact applications of the vaccination 'passport' once…
(2021-02-06). There Are Still 14 Million Americans on Federal Unemployment, Down Just 2 Million From Shutdown High. anti-empire.com 
Initial claims for regular state unemployment insurance totaled 847,000 for the week ending January 23, down 67,000 from the previous week's upwardly revised tally of 914,000 (see first chart). Claims have been above 800,000 for three consecutive weeks, in the 700,000 to 1 million range for 22 consecutive weeks, and well above the pre-pandemic level of 212,000 in early 2020 for 45 weeks. | The four-week average rose again, up 16,250 to 868,000. The four-week average has drifted higher since hitting a low of 740,500 for the week of November 28, rising in eight of the last ten weeks. Persistent initial claims at su…
(2021-02-06). Biden Says He's Ending The Yemen War. popularresistance.org The February 4 announcement by National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan that President Biden would end U.S. support for "offensive operations" in Yemen was understandably met with celebration by those opposed to the war. Almost six years of the U.S.-Saudi‚ÄëU.A.E. war on Yemen have left the country devastated by humanitarian disaster and famine. Anti-war activists have spent these years‚Äâ—‚Äâfirst during the Obama-Biden administration, then the Trump-Pence administration, and now the Biden-Harris administration‚Äâ—…
(2021-02-06). [Perspectives] Tahmeed Ahmed: new leader of icddr,b. thelancet.com It was back in 1985 when Tahmeed Ahmed joined the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, today known as icddr,b, in Dhaka. On Feb 1, 2021, he became icddr,b's new Executive Director, its first leader from within Bangladesh. Before his new role, he was Director of Nutrition and Clinical Services at icddr,b, where he also led the organisation's response to COVID-19. As a distinguished clinician and research leader, Ahmed's career has been defined by public health developments in his country, notably in the areas of cholera treatment and in confronting malnutrition.
(2021-02-06). [Correspondence] Avoiding shoulder injury from intramuscular vaccines. thelancet.com With the roll-out of COVID-19 vaccination programmes to tens of millions of people, some individuals might receive vaccines, which have received rigorous safety checks and approval from regulatory bodies, via intramuscular injection. However, the safety around the technique used and the site of injection, in particular, has received little attention. As recommended by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), adults aged 16 years or older will be the main population receiving the intramuscular vaccine.
(2021-02-06). China approves Sinovac jab for public use. laprensalatina.com Beijing, Feb 6 (efe-epa).- The National Medical Products Administration of China has approved the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Sinovac, the company said Saturday in a statement. The vaccine is safe for people from 18 years of age and is to be applied in two doses of 0.5 milliliters each at an interval of between 14 …
(2021-02-06). Iran to begin COVID-19 vaccination rollout this week. yenisafak.com The announcement comes amid fears of a fourth wave of the coronavirus that was first reported in Iran February last year, marking one year of the pandemic.The first shipment of Sputnik V vaccine, the only foreign vaccine to be registered and approved in Iran, arrived by Iran's Mahaan Airlines on Thursday.In the first phase of vaccination, Rouhani said high-risk groups including healthcare workers on the frontline, followed by elderly and those with critical ailments, will be administered the vaccine.He said the vaccination program for the entire population of 80 million will take around eight months, as the secon…
(2021-02-06). MN labor movement rallies in support of locked out Marathon refinery workers. fightbacknews.org St. Paul Park, MN – On February 4, with wind chill readings below zero, members of a wide collection of unions gathered for an evening rally at the Marathon Refinery picket line, where Teamsters who work at the refinery have been locked out for two weeks after a 24-hour strike. | Union leaders took to the stage and spoke in solidarity with the locked out workers, including several leaders from Teamsters 120, which represents the refinery workers, along with speakers from the Minnesota Nurses Association, SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, Laborers Local 563, The Awood Center, AFSCME Local 3800, UFCW 1189 and others. Memb…
(2021-02-06). [Editorial] Genomic sequencing in pandemics. thelancet.com Advanced genetic sequencing techniques have undoubtedly provided valuable information on the biology and evolution of SARS-CoV-2. Never have the nearly 30‚Äà000 nucleotides of a virus been so closely considered by scientists, public health experts, and politicians alike. But the use and application of genetic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 has varied, risking an insufficient response to a rapidly changing pandemic.
(2021-02-06). [World Report] Hopes for trachoma control in South Sudan. thelancet.com Conflict has hampered trachoma control in South Sudan, but there are new plans to map and treat the disease. Jacqui Thornton reports.
(2021-02-06). [Correspondence] Time to revise the strategy for Gavi funding of rabies vaccine? thelancet.com The Global Burden of Disease cause and risk summary on rabies shows the 13‚Äà700 deaths worldwide in 2019, close to the estimated 12‚Äà700 furious rabies cases in India alone.1 Figure 4 of this summary is misleading, especially the key. As there is no surveillance in many of the poorest countries, the global annual deaths quoted by WHO2 of 59‚Äà000 is derivedfrom extensive extrapolation. Rabies encephalomyelitis is always fatal in Asia and Africa. Although prevention of infection by correct vaccination after dog bites is extremely effective, vaccines are often…
(2021-02-06). [Correspondence] Universal health coverage for the poorest billion: justice and equity considerations — Authors' reply. thelancet.com As co-chairs of The Lancet NCDI Poverty Commission,1 we thank Jordan Jarvis and Belinda Townsend, and Michelle Amri for their thoughtful comments. Jarvis and Townsend highlight the role of global power arrangements that perpetuate the existence of extreme poverty. Specifically, they refer to the examples of tax avoidance by multinational corporations that starve the poorest countries of potential revenue, and the influence of billionaires on a global health agenda that has excluded non-communicable disease and injury (NCDI) poverty.
(2021-02-06). [Correspondence] Pooled public financing is the route to universal health coverage. thelancet.com The recent report1 by the Global Burden of Disease 2019 Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Collaborators is a very valuable contribution about whether the world is moving towards UHC and how it is getting there. The report's index of effective coverage is an excellent measure of whether people are actually using the health services available to them and whether these services are effective.
(2021-02-06). [World Report] Relocated Rohingya face uncertain health-care provision. thelancet.com Bangladesh is moving refugees to an uninhabited island, but non-governmental organisations warn of the lack of health-care provision and coordination. Udani Samarasekera reports.
(2021-02-06). [Correspondence] Universal health coverage for the poorest billion: justice and equity considerations. thelancet.com The Lancet NCDI Poverty Commission report by Gene Bukhman and colleagues makes a compelling case that the needs of people affected by non-communicable disease and injury (NCDI), and poverty have been largely neglected.1 The Commission report lays out crucial evidence and health sector interventions, and calls for increased solidarity and development assistance to redress these health inequities. However, what will it take to convince global actors and national governments to act on this issue?
(2021-02-06). [Department of Error] Department of Error. thelancet.com Tonin V. Young people seeking mental-health care. Lancet 2007; 369: 1239—40—In this Comment, the text has been amended at the author's request. This correction has been made to the online version as of Feb 4, 2021.
(2021-02-06). Scientists Warn of 'Ghastly Future' Unless Policymakers Act Now. zcomm.org 17 scientists called for a World War II-type mobilization to prevent a future of mass extinction, declining health, climate-disruption upheavals and resource conflicts…
(2021-02-06). '1 dose of vaccine for virus survivors will save jabs for millions more'. yenisafak.com In a new study published on Monday, researchers from Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York observed that participants who were previously infected with the coronavirus gave an equal or higher antibody response after they were administered the first dose of the mRNA-based vaccine than those did not catch the virus and received two doses of the same vaccine.The study — yet to be peer-reviewed — also found that people who had previously contracted the virus reported unpleasant side effects such as headache, fever, and muscle or joint pain more frequently than those who never had the virus a…
(2021-02-06). New coronavirus variants cause concern in Spain. yenisafak.com While the peak of Spain's third wave appears to have passed, new variants are causing unease as Madrid confirmed Spain's first ever case of the Brazil variant on Friday.Spain has now detected all three of the variants that have alarmed health officials worldwide.The mutant virus was detected in a 44-year-old man who had flown into the Madrid airport from Brazil. He presented a negative PCR test upon arrival on Jan. 29, but officials gave him a rapid test and discovered he was contagious.After sequencing the virus, scientists can now confirm that he was carrying the variant, which some studies suggest increases th…
(2021-02-06). There are multiple coronavirus vaccines available. Is any one of them better?>. salon.com Americans may soon have four different coronavirus vaccines; experts weigh in on how they compare…
(2021-02-06). The Super Bowl super-spreader. wsws.org By any rational standard that takes public health into account, Sunday's Super Bowl game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Kansas City Chiefs should not be held at all.
(2021-02-06). Vaccination's Dilemma: Unsafe at Any Dose. globalresearch.ca This incisive article first published in May 2016 analyses the issue of mandatory vaccination. | The CDC and advocates for mandatory vaccination consistently repeat a dangerous mantra that finds no warranted basis in medical science. This monolithic industry, now a massive …
(2021-02-06). Can We Trust the World Health Organization (WHO)? globalresearch.ca First published on May 6, 2020 | Many more questions are being raised than there are answers being discovered concerning the recent strains of coronavirus. Where and how did it originate? Was it the result of human engineering and manipulation or …
(2021-02-06). Experts warn Hawaii on the brink of major outbreak and hospital overcrowding catastrophe. wsws.org With hospitalization rates rising, health officials have warned that zero percent ICU capacity could be reached in the next two weeks.