thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-10--Video Showing Florida Police Attempting To Handcuff 8-Year-Old Draws Outrage

The arrest of an 8-year-old boy at a Florida school in 2018 has sparked an outcry after civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump , who is representing the boy ’ s family , posted online footage of police attempting to handcuff the child .
Crump shared police body camera footage on Sunday night of the incident , which had been viewed more than 1.5 million times as of Monday evening .
He said in an emailed news release that the boy ’ s mother , Bianca N. Digennaro , had retained him .
The arrest took place at Gerald Adams Elementary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dec. 14 , 2018 , after the boy reportedly punched a teacher in the chest , according to an arrest report obtained by the Miami Herald .
The child was arrested on a felony battery charge , according to the report .
He is not named due to his age .
“ Instead of honoring and fulfilling that plan , the school placed him with a substitute teacher who had no awareness or concern about his needs and who escalated the situation by using her hands to forcibly move him , ” Crump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the teacher called the police , who threatened him with jail and tried to put him in handcuffs , which fell off because he was too little.
” The video shows police officers first telling the child he ’ s going to jail and then asking him to place his hands up against a cabinet so they can attempt to handcuff him .
They stop when the boy ’ s hands prove too small to be cuffed .
They then walk him out of the school with his hands in front of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , one officer has a word with the child .
Unbelievable !
!
@ KWPOLICE used “ scared straight ” tactics on 8yo boy with special needs .
He 's 3.5 ft tall and 64 lbs , but they thought it was appropriate to handcuff and transport him to an adult prison for processing !
!
He was so small the cuffs fell off his wrists !
pic.twitter.com/iSTlXdKas6 — Ben Crump ( @ AttorneyCrump ) August 10 , 2020 “ You understand this is very serious , OK ?
” the officer says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that you put me in this position that I have to do this .
The thing about it is , you made a mistake .
Now it ’ s time to learn from it and grow from it , not repeat the same mistake again.
” Crump called the incident a “ heartbreaking example of how our educational and policing systems train children to be criminals by treating them like criminals.
” If convicted , the child would have become a convicted felon at just eight years old , he noted .
Crump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor ― and civil rights attorney Devon Jacob , will file a federal lawsuit against the officers , school officials , the city of Key West and the Monroe County School District , the statement said .
“ Police should have no role in punishing our kids or pulling traumatic stunts like this in our schools , ” he said .

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The arrest of an 8-year-old boy at a Florida school in 2018 has sparked an outcry after civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who is representing the boy’s family, posted online footage of police attempting to handcuff the child.
Crump shared police body camera footage on Sunday night of the incident, which had been viewed more than 1.5 million times as of Monday evening. He said in an emailed news release that the boy’s mother, Bianca N. Digennaro, had retained him.
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The arrest took place at Gerald Adams Elementary in Key West, Florida, on Dec. 14, 2018, after the boy reportedly punched a teacher in the chest, according to an arrest report obtained by the Miami Herald. The child was arrested on a felony battery charge, according to the report. He is not named due to his age.
In a statement, Crump said the boy had an individual education plan in place to assist with a disability.
“Instead of honoring and fulfilling that plan, the school placed him with a substitute teacher who had no awareness or concern about his needs and who escalated the situation by using her hands to forcibly move him,” Crump said.
“When he acted out, the teacher called the police, who threatened him with jail and tried to put him in handcuffs, which fell off because he was too little.”
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The video shows police officers first telling the child he’s going to jail and then asking him to place his hands up against a cabinet so they can attempt to handcuff him. They stop when the boy’s hands prove too small to be cuffed. They then walk him out of the school with his hands in front of him. When they reach the exit, one officer has a word with the child.
Unbelievable!! @KWPOLICE used “scared straight” tactics on 8yo boy with special needs. He's 3.5 ft tall and 64 lbs, but they thought it was appropriate to handcuff and transport him to an adult prison for processing!! He was so small the cuffs fell off his wrists! pic.twitter.com/iSTlXdKas6 — Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) August 10, 2020
“You understand this is very serious, OK?” the officer says in the footage. “I hate that you put me in this position that I have to do this. The thing about it is, you made a mistake. Now it’s time to learn from it and grow from it, not repeat the same mistake again.”
Crump called the incident a “heartbreaking example of how our educational and policing systems train children to be criminals by treating them like criminals.” If convicted, the child would have become a convicted felon at just eight years old, he noted.
“This little boy was failed by everyone who played a part in this horrific incident,” he said.
Crump ― who is also representing the families of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor ― and civil rights attorney Devon Jacob, will file a federal lawsuit against the officers, school officials, the city of Key West and the Monroe County School District, the statement said.
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Key West Police Chief Sean T. Brandenburg told the Miami Herald Monday that his officers did nothing wrong.
“Based on the report, standard operating procedures were followed,” he said.
A spokesperson for the Monroe County School District said in an email to HuffPost that the district has not been involved in any litigation about the incident in question. “Due to the possibility of this matter becoming a legal issue in the future, we have been advised not to make further comment about the incident at this time,” the statement said.
HuffPost has reached out to City of Key West for comment on the lawsuit.
The video drew condemnation from advocacy groups and many others online, including former Housing Secretary Julián Castro, who called the footage “unbelievable.”
“Police should have no role in punishing our kids or pulling traumatic stunts like this in our schools,” he said.
The American Civil Liberties Union called for an end to police presence in schools, as did the Southern Poverty Law Center.
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“Violent interactions like this between children with disabilities and police cause long lasting harm and trauma to kids and their families,” the SPLC tweeted.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-10--Baltimore Gas Explosion Kills 1, Levels Homes

One woman was killed and several others were injured in what authorities described as a major gas explosion Monday in a northwest Baltimore neighborhood that sparked a search for people who may be trapped .
Four people were transported to a hospital in serious condition following the blast involving three row homes , the city fire department said in a statement posted on Twitter .
Fire department personnel “ continue to search for any possible additional occupants , ” the statement said .
The local firefighters union earlier reported that at least five people , including children , had become @ @ @ @ @ @ @ homes that were destroyed in a gas explosion Monday at Boxhill Road and Reisterstown Road in Northeast Baltimore .
Video shows several residential lots covered with piles of scattered debris , the homes completely flattened .
Neighboring homes were seen with broken windows and damaged walls .
“ It was a major gas explosion so you have homes that pretty much crumbled , ” fire department public information officer Blair Adams said at a news conference .
The exact cause of the blast , which took place just before 10 a.m. , was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Adams said he couldn ’ t confirm that children remained missing , but said search efforts were ongoing .
Residents said they could feel the explosion at least four blocks away .
“ I heard a kaboom and I thought it was a car or something , ” a woman told station WJZ-TV , “ and when I came out , I seen the debris and something ’ s gone , totally gone.
” A representative with the American Red Cross , speaking to reporters at the scene , said the organization is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blast by providing hotel transportation , food , and mental health and financial assistance .
“ Right now we ’ re providing a safe place for residents to stay , ” said Paul Carden , director of emergency and international services for the Red Cross , who described it as a “ long , complex recovery process.
” Representatives from the city fire and police departments did not immediately respond to requests for comment .
A Baltimore County Fire Department spokesperson confirmed that its personnel and equipment were assisting .

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One woman was killed and several others were injured in what authorities described as a major gas explosion Monday in a northwest Baltimore neighborhood that sparked a search for people who may be trapped.
Four people were transported to a hospital in serious condition following the blast involving three row homes, the city fire department said in a statement posted on Twitter.
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Fire department personnel “continue to search for any possible additional occupants,” the statement said.
The local firefighters union earlier reported that at least five people, including children, had become trapped.
Firefighters search what remains of homes that were destroyed in a gas explosion Monday at Boxhill Road and Reisterstown Road in Northeast Baltimore. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Video shows several residential lots covered with piles of scattered debris, the homes completely flattened. Neighboring homes were seen with broken windows and damaged walls.
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“It was a major gas explosion so you have homes that pretty much crumbled,” fire department public information officer Blair Adams said at a news conference.
The exact cause of the blast, which took place just before 10 a.m., was not immediately determined, Adams said.
Adams said he couldn’t confirm that children remained missing, but said search efforts were ongoing.
Baltimore firefighters say a natural gas explosion leveled several homes in the city. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Residents said they could feel the explosion at least four blocks away.
“I heard a kaboom and I thought it was a car or something,” a woman told station WJZ-TV, “and when I came out, I seen the debris and something’s gone, totally gone.”
A representative with the American Red Cross, speaking to reporters at the scene, said the organization is working to help residents affected by the blast by providing hotel transportation, food, and mental health and financial assistance.
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“Right now we’re providing a safe place for residents to stay,” said Paul Carden, director of emergency and international services for the Red Cross, who described it as a “long, complex recovery process.”
Representatives from the city fire and police departments did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A Baltimore County Fire Department spokesperson confirmed that its personnel and equipment were assisting.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-11--New York's True Nursing Home Death Toll From Coronavirus Cloaked In Secrecy

ASSOCIATED PRESS In this June 15 , 2020 , file photo , New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo removes a mask as he holds a news conference in Tarrytown , N.Y. ( AP Photo/Mark Lennihan , File ) New York ’ s coronavirus death toll in nursing homes , already among the highest in the nation , could actually be a significant undercount .
Unlike every other state with major outbreaks , New York only counts residents who died on nursing home property and not those who were transported to hospitals and died there .
That statistic that could add @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care home death toll of just over 6,600 .
But so far the administration of Democratic Gov .
Andrew Cuomo has refused to divulge the number , leading to speculation the state is manipulating the figures to make it appear it is doing a better than other states and to make a tragic situation less dire .
How big a difference could it make ?
Since May , federal regulators have required nursing homes to submit data on coronavirus deaths each week , whether or not residents died in the facility or at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after the height of New York ’ s outbreak , the available data is relatively small .
According to the federal data , roughly a fifth of the state ’ s homes reported resident deaths from early June to mid July — a tally of 323 dead , 65 percent higher than the state ’ s count of 195 during that time period .
Another group of numbers also suggests an undercount .
State health department surveys show 21,000 nursing home beds are lying empty this year , 13,000 more than expected — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state nursing home death tally .
While some of that increase can be attributed to fewer new admissions and people pulling their loved ones out , it suggests that many others who aren ’ t there anymore died .
Nearly every time Cuomo is questioned about New York ’ s nursing home death toll , he brushes off criticism as politically motivated and notes that his state ’ s percentage of nursing home deaths out of its overall COVID-19 death toll is around 20 % , far less than Pennsylvania ’ s 68 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New Jersey ’ s 44 % .
“ Look at the basic facts where New York is versus other states , ” Cuomo said during a briefing Monday .
“ You look at where New York is as a percentage of nursing home deaths , it ’ s all the way at the bottom of the list.
” In another briefing last month , he touted New York ’ s percentage ranking as 35th in the nation .
“ Go talk to 34 other states first .
Go talk to the Republican states @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — ask them what is happening in nursing homes .
It ’ s all politics.
” For all 43 states that break out nursing home data , resident deaths make up 44 % of total COVID deaths in their states , according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation .
Assuming the same proportion held in New York , that would translate to more than 11,000 nursing home deaths .
To be sure , comparing coronavirus deaths in nursing homes across states can be difficult because of the differences in how states conduct @ @ @ @ @ @ @ several states that include probable COVID-19 deaths as well as those confirmed by a test .
Some states don ’ t count deaths from homes where fewer than five have died .
Others don ’ t always give precise numbers , providing ranges instead .
And all ultimately rely on the nursing homes themselves to provide the raw data .
“ Everybody is doing it however they feel like doing it .
We don ’ t have very good data .
It ’ s just all over the place , all over the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Center for Medicare Advocacy , a nonprofit representing nursing home residents .
New York health chief Zucker explained during the legislative hearing that New York only counts deaths on the nursing home property to avoid “ double-counting ” deaths in both the home and the hospital .
And while he acknowledged the state keeps a running count of nursing home resident deaths at hospitals , he declined to provide even a rough estimate to lawmakers .
Zucker promised to provide lawmakers the numbers as soon as that doublechecking is complete .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also been denied access to similar nursing home death data despite filing a public records request with the state health department nearly three months ago .
Dr. Michael Wasserman , president of the California Association of Long Term Care Medicine , said it is unethical of New York to not break out the deaths of nursing home residents at hospitals .
“ From an epidemiological and scientific perspective , there is absolutely no reason not to count them .
”

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NEW YORK (AP) — Riverdale Nursing Home in the Bronx appears, on paper, to have escaped the worst of the coronavirus pandemic, with an official state count of just four deaths in its 146-bed facility.
The truth, according to the home, is far worse: 21 dead, most transported to hospitals before they succumbed.
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“It was a cascading effect,” administrator Emil Fuzayov recalled. “One after the other.”
New York’s coronavirus death toll in nursing homes, already among the highest in the nation, could actually be a significant undercount. Unlike every other state with major outbreaks, New York only counts residents who died on nursing home property and not those who were transported to hospitals and died there.
That statistic that could add thousands to the state’s official care home death toll of just over 6,600. But so far the administration of Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo has refused to divulge the number, leading to speculation the state is manipulating the figures to make it appear it is doing a better than other states and to make a tragic situation less dire.
“That’s a problem, bro,” state Sen. Gustavo Rivera, a Democrat, told New York Health Commissioner Howard Zucker during a legislative hearing on nursing homes earlier this month. “It seems, sir, that in this case you are choosing to define it differently so that you can look better.”
In this June 15, 2020, file photo, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo removes a mask as he holds a news conference in Tarrytown, N.Y. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File) ASSOCIATED PRESS
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How big a difference could it make? Since May, federal regulators have required nursing homes to submit data on coronavirus deaths each week, whether or not residents died in the facility or at a hospital. Because the requirement came after the height of New York’s outbreak, the available data is relatively small. According to the federal data, roughly a fifth of the state’s homes reported resident deaths from early June to mid July — a tally of 323 dead, 65 percent higher than the state’s count of 195 during that time period.
Even if half that undercount had held true from the start of the pandemic, that would translate into thousands more nursing home resident deaths than the state has acknowledged.
In this April 17, 2020, file photo, emergency medical workers arrive at Cobble Hill Health Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File) ASSOCIATED PRESS
Another group of numbers also suggests an undercount. State health department surveys show 21,000 nursing home beds are lying empty this year, 13,000 more than expected — an increase of almost double the official state nursing home death tally. While some of that increase can be attributed to fewer new admissions and people pulling their loved ones out, it suggests that many others who aren’t there anymore died.
However flawed New York’s count, Cuomo has not been shy about comparing it to tallies in other states.
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Nearly every time Cuomo is questioned about New York’s nursing home death toll, he brushes off criticism as politically motivated and notes that his state’s percentage of nursing home deaths out of its overall COVID-19 death toll is around 20%, far less than Pennsylvania’s 68%, Massachusetts’ 64% and New Jersey’s 44%.
“Look at the basic facts where New York is versus other states,” Cuomo said during a briefing Monday. “You look at where New York is as a percentage of nursing home deaths, it’s all the way at the bottom of the list.”
In another briefing last month, he touted New York’s percentage ranking as 35th in the nation. “Go talk to 34 other states first. Go talk to the Republican states now — Florida, Texas, Arizona — ask them what is happening in nursing homes. It’s all politics.”
Boston University geriatrics expert Thomas Perls said it doesn’t make sense that nursing home resident deaths as a percentage of total deaths in many nearby states are more than triple what was reported in New York.
“Whatever the cause, there is no way New York could be truly at 20%,” Perls said.
A running tally by The Associated Press shows that more than 68,200 residents and staff at nursing homes and long-term facilities across the nation have died from the coronarivus, out of more than 163,000 overall deaths.
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For all 43 states that break out nursing home data, resident deaths make up 44% of total COVID deaths in their states, according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation. Assuming the same proportion held in New York, that would translate to more than 11,000 nursing home deaths.
To be sure, comparing coronavirus deaths in nursing homes across states can be difficult because of the differences in how states conduct their counts. New York is among several states that include probable COVID-19 deaths as well as those confirmed by a test. Some states don’t count deaths from homes where fewer than five have died. Others don’t always give precise numbers, providing ranges instead. And all ultimately rely on the nursing homes themselves to provide the raw data.
“Everybody is doing it however they feel like doing it. We don’t have very good data. It’s just all over the place, all over the country,” said Toby Edelman of the Center for Medicare Advocacy, a nonprofit representing nursing home residents.
New York health chief Zucker explained during the legislative hearing that New York only counts deaths on the nursing home property to avoid “double-counting” deaths in both the home and the hospital. And while he acknowledged the state keeps a running count of nursing home resident deaths at hospitals, he declined to provide even a rough estimate to lawmakers.
“I will not provide information that I have not ensured is absolutely accurate,” Zucker said. “This is too big an issue and it’s too serious an issue.”
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Zucker promised to provide lawmakers the numbers as soon as that doublechecking is complete. They are still waiting. The AP has also been denied access to similar nursing home death data despite filing a public records request with the state health department nearly three months ago.
Dr. Michael Wasserman, president of the California Association of Long Term Care Medicine, said it is unethical of New York to not break out the deaths of nursing home residents at hospitals. “From an epidemiological and scientific perspective, there is absolutely no reason not to count them.”
Nursing homes have become a particular sore point for the Cuomo administration, which has generally received praise for steps that flattened the curve of infections and New York’s highest-in-the-nation 32,781 overall deaths.
But a controversial March 25 order to send recovering COVID-19 patients from hospitals into nursing homes that was designed to free up hospital bed space at the height of the pandemic has drawn withering criticism from relatives and patient advocates who contend it accelerated nursing home outbreaks.
Cuomo reversed the order under pressure in early May. And his health department later released an internal report that concluded asymptomatic nursing home staffers were the real spreaders of the virus, not the 6,300 recovering patients released from hospitals into nursing homes.
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But epidemiologists and academics derided the study for a flawed methodology that sidestepped key questions and relied on selective stats, including the state’s official death toll figures.
“We’re trying to find out what worked and what didn’t work and that means trying to find patterns,” said Bill Hammond, who works on health policy for the nonprofit Empire Center think tank. “You can’t do that if you have the wrong data.”
___


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-11--Coronavirus Breaks Out Again In New Zealand After 102 Days

WELLINGTON , New Zealand ( AP ) — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Tuesday that authorities have found four cases of the coronavirus in one Auckland household from an unknown source , the first reported cases of local transmission in the country in 102 days .
Ardern said Auckland , the nation ’ s largest city , will be moved to Alert Level 3 from midday Wednesday through midnight Friday , meaning that people will be asked to stay at home , while bars and many other businesses will be closed .
“ These three days will give @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gather information , make sure we have widespread contact tracing so we can find out more about how this case arose and make decisions about how to respond to it once we have further information , ” Ardern said at a hastily called news conference late Tuesday .
“ I know that this information will be very difficult to receive , ” Ardern said .
“ We had all hoped not to find ourselves in this position again .
But we had also prepared for it .
And as a team , we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that traveling into Auckland will be banned unless people live there and are traveling home .
She said the rest of the country will be raised to Level 2 through Friday , meaning that mass gatherings will be limited to 100 attendees and people would need to socially distance themselves from each other .
Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said the infections were confirmed after a person in their 50s went to their doctor on Monday with symptoms and was swabbed twice , testing positive both times .
Six other people in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tested , with three more positive results .
Until Tuesday , the only known cases of the virus in New Zealand were 22 travelers who had recently returned from abroad and were being held in quarantine at the border .
New Zealand initially got rid of the virus by imposing a strict lockdown in late March when only about 100 people had tested positive for the disease .
That stopped its spread .
Life had returned to normal for many people in the South Pacific nation of 5 million , as they attended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down in bars and restaurants without fear of getting infected .
But some had warned that the country had become complacent .
New Zealanders have never routinely worn masks , but authorities have been urging people to buy them just in case .
The outbreak comes less than six weeks before New Zealanders are due to go to the polls in a general election .

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WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Tuesday that authorities have found four cases of the coronavirus in one Auckland household from an unknown source, the first reported cases of local transmission in the country in 102 days.
Ardern said Auckland, the nation’s largest city, will be moved to Alert Level 3 from midday Wednesday through midnight Friday, meaning that people will be asked to stay at home, while bars and many other businesses will be closed.
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“These three days will give us time to assess the situation, gather information, make sure we have widespread contact tracing so we can find out more about how this case arose and make decisions about how to respond to it once we have further information,” Ardern said at a hastily called news conference late Tuesday.
“I know that this information will be very difficult to receive,” Ardern said. “We had all hoped not to find ourselves in this position again. But we had also prepared for it. And as a team, we have also been here before.”
She said that traveling into Auckland will be banned unless people live there and are traveling home.
She said the rest of the country will be raised to Level 2 through Friday, meaning that mass gatherings will be limited to 100 attendees and people would need to socially distance themselves from each other.
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Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said the infections were confirmed after a person in their 50s went to their doctor on Monday with symptoms and was swabbed twice, testing positive both times. Six other people in the person’s household were then tested, with three more positive results.
“Importantly, the person has no history of overseas travel,” Bloomfield said, adding that the source of the infections remains unknown.
Until Tuesday, the only known cases of the virus in New Zealand were 22 travelers who had recently returned from abroad and were being held in quarantine at the border.
The country has been praised globally for its virus response.
New Zealand initially got rid of the virus by imposing a strict lockdown in late March when only about 100 people had tested positive for the disease. That stopped its spread.
Life had returned to normal for many people in the South Pacific nation of 5 million, as they attended rugby games at packed stadiums and sat down in bars and restaurants without fear of getting infected. But some had warned that the country had become complacent.
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New Zealanders have never routinely worn masks, but authorities have been urging people to buy them just in case.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-11--School In Thailand Uses Plastic Pens To Separate Students During Pandemic

A school in Bangkok , Thailand , is using plastic pens to socially distance children during the coronavirus pandemic .
In pictures taken by photojournalist Lauren DeCicca , kindergarteners at Wat Khlong Toey School play alone in the individual pens , which are closed on three sides .
The photos were released by Getty Images on Monday : The school reopened to 250 students in July after its forced closure in March .
“ When schools closed ... teachers and school administrations immediately started looking for ways to keep their students safe upon reopening and embraced the changes that needed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who has covered Southeast Asia for almost eight years , told HuffPost via email on Tuesday .
DeCicca said she was “ quite impressed to see temperature scans at the entry , new sinks in front of every classroom and social distancing partitions for each student.
” “ To me it showed how seriously the virus was being taken and that the school cared deeply for the safety of their students and teachers , ” she added .
“ The students seemed quite happy to get back to class and see friends even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Elsewhere in Thailand , students at Ban Pa Muad School in Chiang Mai are wearing face shields and hats with long plastic bars to help them maintain distance from each other : Some 3,351 cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed in Thailand .
The country , which has a population of 69 million people , reported no new cases on Monday or Tuesday , according to the Bangkok Post .
The United States , meanwhile , now accounts for more than a quarter of 20 million cases worldwide .
Some 5 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and more than 160,000 people have died .

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A school in Bangkok, Thailand, is using plastic pens to socially distance children during the coronavirus pandemic.
In pictures taken by photojournalist Lauren DeCicca, kindergarteners at Wat Khlong Toey School play alone in the individual pens, which are closed on three sides. The photos were released by Getty Images on Monday:
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Lauren DeCicca via Getty Images
Lauren DeCicca via Getty Images
Older students are pictured sitting at school desks, separated by similar dividers:
Lauren DeCicca via Getty Images
Lauren DeCicca via Getty Images
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Other images show designated areas for students to stand in class:
Lauren DeCicca via Getty Images
And hand sanitizer stations located around the school’s buildings:
Lauren DeCicca via Getty Images
Lauren DeCicca via Getty Images
The school reopened to 250 students in July after its forced closure in March.
“When schools closed ... teachers and school administrations immediately started looking for ways to keep their students safe upon reopening and embraced the changes that needed to be made,” DeCicca, who has covered Southeast Asia for almost eight years, told HuffPost via email on Tuesday.
DeCicca said she was “quite impressed to see temperature scans at the entry, new sinks in front of every classroom and social distancing partitions for each student.”
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“To me it showed how seriously the virus was being taken and that the school cared deeply for the safety of their students and teachers,” she added. “The students seemed quite happy to get back to class and see friends even with distancing measures put in place.”
Elsewhere in Thailand, students at Ban Pa Muad School in Chiang Mai are wearing face shields and hats with long plastic bars to help them maintain distance from each other:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Some 3,351 cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed in Thailand.
COVID-19 has killed 58 people nationwide, per data from Johns Hopkins University.
The country, which has a population of 69 million people, reported no new cases on Monday or Tuesday, according to the Bangkok Post.
The United States, meanwhile, now accounts for more than a quarter of 20 million cases worldwide. Some 5 million people have tested positive for the virus, and more than 160,000 people have died.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-11--Will America Let COVID-19 Become The Next HIV?

Over the last two months , coronavirus cases have surged in the most marginalized neighborhoods of the poorest states .
Latinx people account for 18 % of the population but 33 % of infections .
Black Americans are nearly twice as likely to die and three times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 .
Prisoners , farmworkers and meatpackers — all of whom are disproportionately likely to be poor and minorities — have the highest infection rates .
As of 2018 , people of color accounted for 69 % of new HIV infections .
Black and Latinx Americans are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , respectively , to die of AIDS than whites .
The cities with the highest rates of new HIV infections in 2016 included Baton Rouge , Louisiana ; Jackson , Mississippi ; and Memphis , Tennessee .
In 2018 , San Francisco had roughly half as many new HIV infections as New Orleans despite having twice as many residents .
“ If you put a map of the HIV epidemic over a map of the worst coronavirus hotspots , they look almost identical , ” said Jared Baeten , the vice dean of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Public Health and an HIV epidemiologist for more than a decade .
“ COVID is becoming just another disease that travels along the fault lines of the disparities in our society.
” This disparity arises from the same inequalities that are now appearing as important vectors for COVID-19 .
The average person with HIV waits three years before getting diagnosed , a delay primarily due to a lack of access to health care .
After diagnosis , many patients delay getting antiretroviral treatment because of the astronomical cost .
Even after starting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lose health insurance or are too far from a clinic to make it to regular checkups .
COVID-19 Is Starting To Look Like Other Diseases Of Inequality Racial minorities are more likely to be infected with COVID-19 due to their disproportionate representation in poor neighborhoods and in service jobs .
COVID-19 testing sites are more likely to be in affluent and white neighborhoods , as are high-quality hospitals .
If they ’ re infected with the virus , patients of color are less likely to have their symptoms taken seriously .
America ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ biological explanations for the pandemic ’ s disparities .
In the early days of the outbreak , researchers speculated that people of color may be disproportionately affected due to higher rates of underlying conditions , such as diabetes and asthma .
But in a study published in May , Millett and his co-authors found that overcrowded living conditions and the lack of health insurance were better predictors of Black COVID-19 rates than any pre-existing health conditions .
In another parallel with HIV , the development of COVID-19 treatments may not alleviate these disparities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccine , it could cost patients thousands of dollars out of pocket .
Distribution may be limited to those with health insurance .
Or , like the flu vaccine , coronavirus prevention drugs may require regular booster shots .
All of these barriers would keep poor and minority populations from receiving adequate treatment .
The good news about syndemics , though , is that they can be alleviated by policies that attack their root causes .
It may not have seemed like an HIV intervention , but the Affordable Care Act increased testing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to expand their Medicaid programs , an effect that was most pronounced for Black patients .
In the years after the ACA ’ s passage , the number of people with HIV on Medicaid nationwide increased by 33 % .

isabella carapella ILLUSTRATION: ISABELLA CARAPELLA/HUFFPOST; PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES
COVID-19 is settling into the cracks of American inequality.
Over the last two months, coronavirus cases have surged in the most marginalized neighborhoods of the poorest states. Latinx people account for 18% of the population but 33% of infections. Black Americans are nearly twice as likely to die and three times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19. Prisoners, farmworkers and meatpackers — all of whom are disproportionately likely to be poor and minorities — have the highest infection rates.
For many epidemiologists, this pattern has a tragic precursor: HIV.
Before the development of antiretroviral therapy, the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS was concentrated in cities, ravaging gay men and drug users from a relatively wide range of races and incomes. Since the late 1990s, however, AIDS has become a disease that almost exclusively affects the rural poor and people of color.
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As of 2018, people of color accounted for 69% of new HIV infections. Black and Latinx Americans are 550% and 80% more likely, respectively, to die of AIDS than whites. The cities with the highest rates of new HIV infections in 2016 included Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Jackson, Mississippi; and Memphis, Tennessee. In 2018, San Francisco had roughly half as many new HIV infections as New Orleans despite having twice as many residents.
“If you put a map of the HIV epidemic over a map of the worst coronavirus hotspots, they look almost identical,” said Jared Baeten, the vice dean of the University of Washington’s School of Public Health and an HIV epidemiologist for more than a decade. “COVID is becoming just another disease that travels along the fault lines of the disparities in our society.”
America’s policies are almost entirely responsible for HIV falling into these fault lines. As epidemiologists look toward likely scenarios for the future of the coronavirus, they are already seeing the same decisions — and the same outcomes — on the horizon.
“A lot of HIV researchers are exasperated,” said Greg Millett, the vice president and director of public policy for amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research. “We’re old enough to have lived through the HIV response, and we’re watching the same mistakes taking place with COVID.”
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Activist organization ACT UP held protests against the Food and Drug Administration's drug approval processes throughout the 1980s. Some of the shortcuts installed in response to the protests are now being used to develop COVID-19 treatments. ASSOCIATED PRESS
American Health Care Is Failing To Treat HIV
In the early days of the AIDS epidemic, researchers saw the virus as a problem of individual behavior, said Steffanie Strathdee, an epidemiologist at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine and author of “The Perfect Predator.” Men who had sex with men, went the conventional wisdom, refused to wear condoms, and drug users refused to use clean needles.
Over time, however, social scientists discovered that these behaviors were the product of larger economic and social forces. Many gay and bisexual men didn’t have access to HIV testing and went years without knowing their status. Many drug users couldn’t afford clean needles or lacked safe places to shoot up. Police harassment drove sex workers deeper into the shadows.
“You can’t just tell people to reduce their risks,” Strathdee said. “You have to change the conditions that put them at risk.”
But despite epidemiologists’ recommendations to adopt a harm-reduction approach, American politicians have refused to change the broader social conditions that increase HIV risk — and it shows. In 2018, the United States had 15,820 HIV-related deaths, 10 times more than Britain, Germany and France combined. The entire European Union, with a population one-third larger than the United States, had just 2,900 AIDS deaths.
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This disparity arises from the same inequalities that are now appearing as important vectors for COVID-19. The average person with HIV waits three years before getting diagnosed, a delay primarily due to a lack of access to health care. After diagnosis, many patients delay getting antiretroviral treatment because of the astronomical cost. Even after starting treatment, many patients stop because they lose health insurance or are too far from a clinic to make it to regular checkups.
These barriers have created a medical system that leaves an alarming percentage of patients without care. In much of Western Europe, over 95% of HIV-positive adults have a suppressed viral load, meaning that they can expect to have a lifespan roughly the same as the general population. In the United States, the rate is just 53%.
And this shortfall has nothing to do with a lack of treatment options. Effective antiretroviral medications have been available since the mid-1990s. Pre-exposure prophylaxis, a pill that prevents HIV infection if taken regularly, has been on the market since 2012. But many Americans don’t have access to those treatments.
“It’s the nature of our society,” Baeten said. “As soon as a disease goes from being a biological problem to a human problem, that’s when you start to see the disparities.”
After shelter residents tested positive for COVID-19 in Las Vegas, the city moved its homeless population to parking lots. Damairs Carter/MediaPunch/IPx
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COVID-19 Is Starting To Look Like Other Diseases Of Inequality
The coronavirus pandemic is already starting to replicate HIV’s transition from a generalized epidemic to one experienced mostly at the margins.
Racial minorities are more likely to be infected with COVID-19 due to their disproportionate representation in poor neighborhoods and in service jobs. COVID-19 testing sites are more likely to be in affluent and white neighborhoods, as are high-quality hospitals. If they’re infected with the virus, patients of color are less likely to have their symptoms taken seriously.
America’s political shortcomings are beginning to overshadow biological explanations for the pandemic’s disparities. In the early days of the outbreak, researchers speculated that people of color may be disproportionately affected due to higher rates of underlying conditions, such as diabetes and asthma. But in a study published in May, Millett and his co-authors found that overcrowded living conditions and the lack of health insurance were better predictors of Black COVID-19 rates than any pre-existing health conditions.
“It’s the same as HIV,” Millett said. “We spent years asking, ‘What are these communities doing that’s putting them at higher risk?’ We eventually found that infection disparities by race were not because of individual behavior but because of social determinants.”
In another parallel with HIV, the development of COVID-19 treatments may not alleviate these disparities. Even if researchers develop an effective vaccine, it could cost patients thousands of dollars out of pocket. Distribution may be limited to those with health insurance. Or, like the flu vaccine, coronavirus prevention drugs may require regular booster shots. All of these barriers would keep poor and minority populations from receiving adequate treatment.
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“People used to say that if we had effective treatments for HIV, we could end the epidemic,” Millett said. “But we have the treatment and the epidemic is still with us.”
Tackling COVID-19 Means Tackling Health Care Disparities
Numerous other conditions, from maternal mortality to hypertension to opioid addiction, trace the contours of America’s economic disparities. Many of the conditions killing Americans at elevated rates are related to what researchers call “syndemics”: overlapping, self-reinforcing health deficits that concentrate in poor and minority populations.
The opioid epidemic, to pick just one example, is actually a cluster of interrelated epidemics that include mental illness, drug addiction, hepatitis C and HIV. Cities with syndemic diseases typically have high poverty rates, lower-quality health care and more aggressive policing.
The good news about syndemics, though, is that they can be alleviated by policies that attack their root causes. It may not have seemed like an HIV intervention, but the Affordable Care Act increased testing rates in states that used the law to expand their Medicaid programs, an effect that was most pronounced for Black patients. In the years after the ACA’s passage, the number of people with HIV on Medicaid nationwide increased by 33%.
Other social policies can also affect syndemic diseases. A global review of 33 studies found that workers who received larger welfare payments reported fewer mental health problems after losing a job. In America, laid-off workers in states with generous unemployment benefits were more likely to see doctors and get cancer screenings during the Great Recession. Various studies have found that raising the minimum wage could reduce suicide rates, prevent premature births and decrease smoking.
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Social policies, such as the availability of unemployment benefits and food banks, have profound implications for disease risk. ASSOCIATED PRESS
All of this indicates that America may be limited in what it can achieve by fighting the coronavirus without addressing the country’s underlying inequalities. As the last 25 years of HIV research demonstrates, interventions aimed at a specific disease may eventually stall as patients confront the insurmountable barriers of access to health care and the cost of treatment.
That’s why, said Boston University epidemiologist Julia Raifman, the most urgent interventions to halt the spread of COVID-19 may not look like they have anything to do with infectious disease.
“The policies that will have the greatest implications for health will be renter relief, food assistance and unemployment insurance,” Raifman said. “If people are kicked out of their homes and receiving less financial assistance, they’re going to end up homeless and potentially exposed to COVID because it’s difficult for shelters to maintain distancing.”
Just as America has repeated the mistakes of its HIV response, it could also repeat its successes. The HIV epidemic revolutionized public health campaigns; the lessons learned from condom distribution efforts could be applied to face masks. In the 1990s, queer activists lobbied the Food and Drug Administration to speed up approval processes for lifesaving drugs. Many of those processes are now being used to fast-track COVID-19 treatments.
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“I’m heartened and I’m disappointed,” Baeten said. “I’m heartened by the fact that the epidemiologists and researchers at the forefront of HIV are at the forefront of COVID. We’ve seen this beast before.”
“But at the same time,” he added, “I’m disappointed because we keep having to fight the same fights.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-11--What We Know About COVID-19 Antibodies Is Changing. Here's What's New.

So much has changed since the first cases of the coronavirus emerged in the United States earlier this year , with masks and social distancing now becoming the norm of everyday life ( or they should be , anyway ) .
But perhaps the most fluid part of the pandemic has been in trying to understand and predict the virus ’ life span to begin with .
One of the areas that ’ s been confusing most recently is COVID-19 antibodies ― proteins found in the blood that signal if you ’ ve had a past infection and therefore have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Here , experts explain how the knowledge around antibodies has changed , how accurate tests are and what the latest research behind antibodies tells us about a future vaccine .
Many who may have been ‘ reinfected ’ with coronavirus likely never recovered in the first place Antibody testing seems like a good idea in theory , but may not be entirely accurate There are a few flaws in antibody testing that are now coming to light .
First , there were a number of antibody tests that shipped to labs and medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration .
Results of the tests varied , making it impossible to confidently tell patients whether they had antibodies .
“ A majority of antibody tests are checking for B cell types , specifically the antibodies immunoglobulins G ( IgG ) and M ( IgM ) , ” Bishara said .
“ Those are the ones that usually appear after an infection , but they take some time to do so .
Part of the problem comes from when an antibody test is given , because if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ antibodies yet , the test may come back as a false negative.
” Those who are asymptomatic may also have an issue when it comes to testing because the body isn ’ t launching as big of an immune response as someone who presents with more severe symptoms .
A small study from China published in the journal Nature Medicine found that 40 % of patients who were asymptomatic or had very mild symptoms and tested positive for the virus did not show any antibodies in the blood .
Decreased antibody levels in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efficacy of a vaccine Vaccines in general have a sliding scale of longevity depending on the type of disease it ’ s for , Bishara said .
Diseases like smallpox and polio have been essentially eradicated with a single vaccine dose , while the flu vaccine is required every year .
Just because the coronavirus antibody levels may decrease over time doesn ’ t mean a vaccine won ’ t be effective .
It all comes down to whether the virus is able to mutate .

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So much has changed since the first cases of the coronavirus emerged in the United States earlier this year, with masks and social distancing now becoming the norm of everyday life (or they should be, anyway). But perhaps the most fluid part of the pandemic has been in trying to understand and predict the virus’ life span to begin with.
“This is such a complex disease that even immunologists can’t fully know everything about it,” said Christine Bishara, an internal medicine physician and founder of From Within Medical in New York.
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One of the areas that’s been confusing most recently is COVID-19 antibodies ― proteins found in the blood that signal if you’ve had a past infection and therefore have built up immunity from the virus. Here, experts explain how the knowledge around antibodies has changed, how accurate tests are and what the latest research behind antibodies tells us about a future vaccine.
Antibodies do disappear, but it’s completely normal
“When our body is exposed to a virus, it goes through a very complex immune response, which includes different types of cells including B cells and T cells,” Bishara said. T cells help regulate the activity of B cells, while it’s the B cells that produce the antibodies that attach to cells that have been infected by a virus.
However, these antibodies take time to appear once you’ve been infected with any virus, including the coronavirus.
“It typically takes one to three weeks to see antibodies,” said Steven Schnur, a cardiologist and internist at Mount Sinai Medical in Miami and founder of Imhealthytoday.org, a doctor-designed program for helping workplaces reopen from the pandemic safely. “Once they do appear, antibodies tend to wane after three months.”
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But this doesn’t mean that once antibodies start vanishing you’re no longer immune to the coronavirus. That’s because those B cells and T cells that have been created in response to the virus have long-lasting memory and immunity, regardless of what your antibody levels drop to, Schnur said.
F.J. Jimenez via Getty Images Experts say it's unlikely you can catch COVID-19 again after you've recovered.
Many who may have been ‘reinfected’ with coronavirus likely never recovered in the first place
Right now, experts say it’s pretty unlikely that you can catch the virus again after you’ve recovered.
“There are a lot of anecdotal stories, but research has not found any individuals that have been truly reinfected,” Schnur said. “When people get sick again after six weeks or two months it’s really the same virus and same initial infection that has lingered longer than 10 days.”
Viruses can tend to be dormant for a bit, which can make them more drawn out symptomatically, Bishara added. This is supported even further in the characteristics behind those T cells and B cells.
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“When the body generates an immune response [to a virus], T cells remember in case of a possibility of future reinfection, so that if presented with the virus again your body recognizes it and knows how to handle it,” Bishara said.
Antibody testing seems like a good idea in theory, but may not be entirely accurate
There are a few flaws in antibody testing that are now coming to light. First, there were a number of antibody tests that shipped to labs and medical offices in the U.S. without any review from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Results of the tests varied, making it impossible to confidently tell patients whether they had antibodies.
But even antibody tests currently on the market aren’t as accurate as the medical community would like to see.
“A majority of antibody tests are checking for B cell types, specifically the antibodies immunoglobulins G (IgG) and M (IgM),” Bishara said. “Those are the ones that usually appear after an infection, but they take some time to do so. Part of the problem comes from when an antibody test is given, because if the body hasn’t developed these antibodies yet, the test may come back as a false negative.”
Those who are asymptomatic may also have an issue when it comes to testing because the body isn’t launching as big of an immune response as someone who presents with more severe symptoms. A small study from China published in the journal Nature Medicine found that 40% of patients who were asymptomatic or had very mild symptoms and tested positive for the virus did not show any antibodies in the blood.
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“For someone to think that they can walk around without proper precautions because they have antibodies is inaccurate,” Schnur said. “Whether or not you think you have antibody levels, you still need to social distance and wear a mask.”
However, if you’re still set on getting an antibody test, Schnur recommends one done as a finger stick (and double-check that it’s not on the FDA’s “removed” list). If you get a positive test, do another one at a different lab to confirm.
“Only if you have two positive results from two different labs is the positive predictive value over 90 or 95%,” he said.
FotoDuets via Getty Images Experts say the coronavirus doesn't appear to mutate as fast as some other viruses, meaning a vaccine would be effective longer.
Decreased antibody levels in the body won’t affect the efficacy of a vaccine
Vaccines in general have a sliding scale of longevity depending on the type of disease it’s for, Bishara said. Diseases like smallpox and polio have been essentially eradicated with a single vaccine dose, while the flu vaccine is required every year. Just because the coronavirus antibody levels may decrease over time doesn’t mean a vaccine won’t be effective. It all comes down to whether the virus is able to mutate.
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“When it comes to the flu, someone may still get the flu even if they’ve gotten their flu shot because of its ability to change,” Schnur said, “though that person may not suffer symptomatically the same as someone who didn’t get the vaccine at all.”
Since the coronavirus is still so new, it’s impossible to know how much it will modify itself. But Schnur said as of right now it looks like it doesn’t mutate as fast or as often as something like influenza, meaning a vaccine would be effective longer.
“A vaccine may not give us lifetime immunity, but it will probably last several years,” he said.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-11--Fauci Fact-Checks Trump's Big Coronavirus Claim, Warns Of 'Difficult Winter'

President Donald Trump has claimed repeatedly that the coronavirus will one day simply “ disappear , ” but infectious diseases expert Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that ’ s not going to happen .
“ No , it ’ s not , ” Fauci told ABC ’ s David Muir .
“ All you ’ ve got to do is look at the data , David .
The virus is telling us what it can and will do if we don ’ t confront it properly.
” Fauci , who is director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a big difference in what happens next .
“ We could get it to be under control if we do the things that we ’ re talking about , ” he said , referring to social distancing , masks and other measures .
“ I believe it ’ s achievable to get to a level that ’ s quite controlled so that we can open up the country and get the economy back , ” he said .
Muir also noted that Dr. Robert Redfield , director of the federal Centers for Disease @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the coming flu season could converge with the coronavirus .
Redfield warned it could lead to “ probably one of the most difficult times that we ’ ve experienced in American public health.
” “ I totally agree with Dr. Redfield , ” he said .
“ That as we get into the winter and fall , with the likelihood that we ’ d have a convergence of two respiratory diseases , we could have a very difficult time.
” But , as with the coronavirus , Fauci said the public can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ things that we can do that will get the level down , ” he said .
Fauci also spoke about the coming school year , calling conditions around the nation a “ mixed bag , ” with some regions in a better position to return to in-class instruction than others .
And when kids do return to schools , he called for wearing masks , social distancing , constant hand-washing and regular use of hand sanitizer ― and called images of a crowded Georgia school hallway “ disturbing.
” See his full conversation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ latest on vaccines ― below :

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President Donald Trump has claimed repeatedly that the coronavirus will one day simply “disappear,” but infectious diseases expert Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that’s not going to happen.
“No, it’s not,” Fauci told ABC’s David Muir. “All you’ve got to do is look at the data, David. The virus is telling us what it can and will do if we don’t confront it properly.”
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Fauci, who is director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, added that public action can make a big difference in what happens next.
“We could get it to be under control if we do the things that we’re talking about,” he said, referring to social distancing, masks and other measures.
“I believe it’s achievable to get to a level that’s quite controlled so that we can open up the country and get the economy back,” he said.
Muir also noted that Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said last month that the coming flu season could converge with the coronavirus. Redfield warned it could lead to “probably one of the most difficult times that we’ve experienced in American public health.”
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Fauci didn’t dispute that.
“I totally agree with Dr. Redfield,” he said. “That as we get into the winter and fall, with the likelihood that we’d have a convergence of two respiratory diseases, we could have a very difficult time.”
But, as with the coronavirus, Fauci said the public can turn it around.
“There are things that we can do that will get the level down,” he said.
Fauci also spoke about the coming school year, calling conditions around the nation a “mixed bag,” with some regions in a better position to return to in-class instruction than others.
And when kids do return to schools, he called for wearing masks, social distancing, constant hand-washing and regular use of hand sanitizer ― and called images of a crowded Georgia school hallway “disturbing.”
See his full conversation with Muir ― which also included the latest on vaccines ― below:


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-10--Coronavirus Live Updates: COVID-19 Cases Top 20 Million Worldwide

HuffPost reporters around the world are tracking the pandemic and its effects .
Read the latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic below .
( To see the latest updates , you may need to refresh the page .
All times are Eastern .
For earlier updates on the pandemic , go here . )
Local Transmission Of Virus Breaks Out Again In New Zealand After 102 Days — 8/11/20 , 7:30 a.m .
ET New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Tuesday that four coronavirus cases have been found in an Auckland household with no history of overseas travel , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Associated Press reports .
Auckland , the country ’ s largest city , will go into lockdown until Friday , with people asked to stay at home and bars and many other businesses closed .
The rest of the country will be banned from gatherings of more than 100 and people will need to social distance from each other .
“ We had all hoped not to find ourselves in this position again .
But we had also prepared for it .
And as a team , we have also been here @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Claims Vaccine Is Ready For Use Despite Lack Of Phase 3 Testing — 8/11/20 , 6 a.m .
ET Russia has registered a coronavirus vaccine and declared it safe for use , despite international skepticism about the testing of it , the Associated Press reported .
President Vladimir Putin said one of his two daughters had participated in the experiment and received the vaccine.
“ I would like to repeat that it has passed all the necessary tests , ” he said .
“ The most important thing is to ensure full safety @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Scientists have voiced concern about Russia potentially rushing a vaccine before the end of Phase 3 trials , which typically take months and involve thousands of people .
Russia has recorded over 890,000 cases of coronavirus and reported nearly 15,000 deaths .
There are now more than 20 million COVID-19 cases worldwide , a tally by Johns Hopkins University reported Monday .
More than one-quarter of those cases are in the United States .
Brazil and India trail the U.S. , with 3 million and 2.2 million cases , respectively .
Almost @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In Last 2 Weeks Of July — 8/10/20 , 7:42 a.m .
ET More than 97,000 children in the U.S. tested positive for the coronavirus in the last two weeks of July , according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children ’ s Hospital Association , as schools around the country grapple with if or how they can safely reopen this fall .
The report included data from 49 states , Washington D.C. , Puerto Rico and Guam .
But it didn ’ t include complete data @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , so the number of confirmed cases involving children could be much higher .
Dr. Sonia Angell , the head of California ’ s public health department , resigned late Sunday , the Associated Press reports .
While she didn ’ t give a reason , her departure comes days after the state announced a fix to a technical glitch that was causing coronavirus test data to become backlogged .
Some 300,000 records had become backlogged in the system , which is used to make decisions about reopening businesses and schools .
Not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , though .
Trump Adviser Calls Testing In U.S. ‘ A Miracle ’ Despite Long Waits ― 8/9/20 , 12 p.m .
ET White House national security adviser Robert O ’ Brien praised the Trump administration ’ s coronavirus testing apparatus , calling it “ a miracle , ” despite widespread reports of test results taking days or even weeks to process .
In his first TV interview since recovering from COVID-19 , O ’ Brien was asked how long before the average American is able to access speedy , asymptomatic testing like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Well , we ’ re working on testing , ” O ’ Brien told CBS News ’ “ Face the Nation.
” “ I think what ’ s happening with testing in America is really a miracle .
I mean we haven ’ t ― there ’ s no country in the world that comes close to what America is doing on testing .
But we ’ re working on getting more testing out there.
” The country ’ s coronavirus testing systems have been overwhelmed in recent weeks by a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
For some workers , the delays are causing them to miss paychecks as they await results so they can return to work .

HuffPost reporters around the world are tracking the pandemic and its effects.
Read the latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic below. (To see the latest updates, you may need to refresh the page. All times are Eastern. For earlier updates on the pandemic, go here.)
Italy Imposes First New Restrictions Since Reopening — 8/17/20, 6 a.m. ET
Italy will shut discos and clubs and make it compulsory to wear a mask outdoors in some areas during the night in the first reimposition of restrictions as cases of coronavirus pick up across the country, especially among younger people.
New cases in the past week in Italy, the first European country to be hit hard by the coronavirus, were more than double those registered three weeks ago and the median age of people contracting the virus has dropped below 40, data showed.
The new rules will start on Monday — two days after an Italian holiday when many young Italians go out dancing — and will run until early September.
Masks will be required between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. in areas close to bars and pubs and where gatherings are more likely.
HuffPost Italy reports (in Italian) that the twin factors of the continuous increase in new positives (3,351 in the last week, with daily peaks not recorded since May) and increases in neighboring European countries forced the government to act.
“We cannot nullify the sacrifices made in past months. Our priority must be that of opening schools in September, in full safety,” Health Minister Roberto Speranza said on Facebook.
Since its outbreak came to light on Feb. 21, Italy has recorded more than 35,000 deaths.
— James Martin
New Zealand Postpones General Election — 8/17/20, 5:30 a.m. ET
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced a four-week delay to the general election in New Zealand as the country tackles a new coronavirus outbreak.
“Ultimately, the 17th of October ... provides sufficient time for parties to plan around the range of circumstances we will be campaigning under,” Ardern said in a news conference. The election had been scheduled to be held Sept. 19.
Pressure had been mounting on Ardern to postpone the vote amid the resurgence of COVID-19 infections in New Zealand’s biggest city, Auckland, after the country had been free of coronavirus cases for 102 days.
The main opposition National Party had called for a delay after it was forced to cancel campaign events due to restrictions on movement and crowds. It has accused Ardern of using the crisis to shore up support.
New Zealand law requires the election to be held before Nov. 21, however Ardern added she did not intend to change the election date again.
Read more
— Carly Williams
FDA Approves Yale’s Saliva Test For Emergency Use — 8/16/20, 8:55 a.m. ET
The Food and Drug Administration has granted emergency use authorization to Yale School of Public Health’s saliva test to detect COVID-19, after a trial on NBA players and staff.
SalivaDirect, the fifth saliva test approved by the FDA for the disease, requires no swab or collection device and uses spit from people suspected of having the coronavirus, the agency said in a statement Saturday.
FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn called the test “groundbreaking” in its efficiency and in being unaffected by crucial component shortages.
Read more from Reuters.
― Hayley Miller
CDC Clarifies Guidance On The Protections Recovered COVID-19 Patients Have — 8/15/20, 6:25 p.m. ET
People who have recovered from COVID-19 do not need to quarantine or get tested for the virus for up to three months after recovery so long as they do not develop symptoms again, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said earlier this month.
The guidance suggested that recovered patients are likely protected to some degree from the virus in that time span.
But the agency was forced to issue a clarification Friday to point out explicitly that does not mean recovered COVID-19 patients are immune from the virus in the months after their illness. “This science does not imply a person is immune to reinfection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in the three months following infection,” the CDC said in a statement.
“The latest data simply suggests that retesting someone in the three months following initial infection is not necessary unless that person is exhibiting the symptoms of COVID-19 and the symptoms cannot be associated with another illness.”
Recovered patients who are not infectious to others can nevertheless continue to test positive for months, the CDC said.
— Sara Boboltz
Museums, Other Cultural Centers To Reopen In New York City — 8/15/20, 11:50 a.m. ET
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Friday that museums, aquariums and other cultural centers in New York City will reopen in the coming weeks.
“Low-risk cultural activities, museums, aquariums, other low risk cultural arts can reopen in New York City Aug. 24 so they can get their protocols in place,” Cuomo said on a conference call with reporters.
The newly reopened centers will operate at 25% capacity and will issue timed ticketing with staggered entry. Face masks will be required inside.
Bowling alleys will open on Monday, operating at 50% capacity. Cuomo said he will also lay out plans to reopen gyms on Monday.
Once the epicenter of the virus in the U.S., New York has seen a dramatic decrease in coronavirus cases and deaths in the last few months thanks to practices including social distancing and wearing masks in public.
— Sebastian Murdock
PPE, Testing Supplies, Ventilators And More On FDA’s Shortages List ― 8/14/20, 6:35 p.m. ET
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration released a list Friday of all the medical devices the country is running low on.
On that list are various types of personal protective equipment needed during the COVID-19 pandemic, including masks, surgical gowns and gloves. Other items in short supply include ventilators, respirators, sterile swabs and other testing supplies.
The FDA is not saying who manufactures each item because doing so “will adversely affect the public health by increasing the potential for hoarding or other disruptions in device availability to patients.”
This is the first time the FDA has published such a list. Releasing it became mandatory under the CARES Act signed into law in March.
― Lydia O’Connor
New Jersey Election To Be Done Primarily Through Mail-In Votes — 8/14/20, 12:00 p.m. ET
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) said everyone in the state will get a mail-in ballot for the November presidential election in an effort to keep people safe from the coronavirus.
“It doesn’t matter what party you’re in, everybody gets a ballot,” Murphy told CNN on Friday.
Murphy suggested that in-person voting will only be done with provisional ballots, meaning voters will have to go to one of a reduced number of polling places to cast a vote, according to The Associated Press.
This year, a record 76% of all Americans will be eligible to vote by mail in the upcoming election due to the virus, The New York Times reported. That hasn’t stopped President Donald Trump from attempting to stop mail-in voting, falsely claiming the practice leads to voter fraud even as the president himself has taken advantage of voting by mail.
Earlier this week, Trump seemingly admitted to sabotaging the United States Postal Service in an attempt to stop mail-in voting by cutting its funding and removing mail sorting machines.
“Now they need that money in order to make the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots,” Trump said Thursday in an interview on Fox Business. “But if they don’t get those two items, that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting.”
— Sebastian Murdock
Fresh Blow For Europe’s Struggling Tourism Industry — 8/14/20, 6:45 a.m. ET
Attempts to revive tourism in Europe have been dealt a fresh blow after the British government added France, the Netherlands and Malta to a growing list of countries requiring returning holidaymakers to quarantine for 14 days.
The decision comes a month after ministers announced that travelers arriving in the U.K. from Spain would have to quarantine, essentially blocking holidays to the two most popular destinations for British tourists.
The decision to add France will cause dismay for thousands of British holidaymakers currently in the country. It was made in response to the spread of the virus, with the latest 14-day cumulative figures showing 32.1 Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people in France, compared with 18.5 in the U.K.
The move will come as a bitter blow to the hard-pressed French tourism industry which relies heavily on visitors from the U.K., and could lead to “reciprocal measures” from France against British tourists.
An estimated 160,000 holidaymakers are expected to look to return to the U.K. from France before the quarantine deadline on 4 a.m. Saturday.
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— Jasmin Gray
Joe Biden Calls For Nationwide Mask Mandate ‘Immediately’ — 8/13/20, 6:25 P.M. ET
Joe Biden called for a nationwide mask mandate on Thursday and urged all Americans to wear protective face masks for at least the next three months as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take lives.
“Every single American should be wearing a mask when they’re outside for the next three months, at a minimum,” the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee told reporters in Wilmington, Delaware.
“This is not about Democrats, Republicans or independents. It’s about saving Americans’ lives,” he said. “Let’s institute a mask mandate, nationwide, starting immediately, and we will save lives.”
Biden and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) were in Wilmington to hold their second public appearance together since he announced the senator as his running mate.
The federal government’s response to the pandemic is sure to be a hot topic as Biden moves closer to accepting the Democratic presidential nomination next week and becoming President Donald Trump’s official opponent.
Back in June, Biden said that, as president, he “would do everything possible” to require people to wear masks in public.
— Carla Russo
U.K. To Test New Contact-Tracing App — 8/13/20, 12 p.m. ET
The U.K. is set to begin trials of a new contact-tracing app after ditching efforts to develop its own technology in June amid accuracy issues and concerns about privacy.
The app will include alerts based on postcode, QR check-in at venues, a symptom checker and a way to book tests, using Google- and Apple-developed technology.
Trials will begin Thursday on the Isle of Wight and with volunteer health workers across England, followed shortly by people in the London borough of Newham ― one of the most diverse and densely populated communities in Europe. The second version adopts an Apple and Google-developed system ― already used in several countries around the world ― that handles data in a more privacy-friendly manner, using Bluetooth to keep an anonymous log of people a user has been close to that they may not know, such as a stranger on a bus.
It will log the time and distance a user has spent near anyone, even if they don’t know them, so it can alert them if necessary if that person later tests positive for COVID-19.
Read more on HuffPost U.K.
— Ned Simons and Rachel Wearmouth
AMC Theaters To Reopen Some Locations Next Week — 8/13/20, 8:42 a.m. ET
AMC, the nation’s largest movie theater chain, is set to reopen about one-sixth of its U.S. locations next Thursday, offering 15-cent tickets to entice moviegoers, the company said Thursday.
Regal, the second-largest movie theater chain, is also reopening some of its locations next Friday. Both companies have said they will enact COVID-19 safety measures, such as requiring face masks and reducing capacity.
But it’s unclear to what degree movie theaters can reopen nationwide. Large indoor spaces are among those at highest risk for spreading the virus.
Read more from the Associated Press.
— Marina Fang
U.S. Reports Highest Single-Day Death Toll Since May — 8/13/20, 2:30 a.m. ET
The U.S. saw its highest one-day death toll from the novel coronavirus since May on Wednesday. According to figures released by Johns Hopkins University, more than 1,500 people died in the past 24 hours from COVID-19.
The death toll in a 24-hour period hasn’t been that high since May 27 when such rates began to decline due to a spate of lockdown measures across the country. Fatalities have risen in recent weeks, however, as the country reopened and cases surged, forcing some regions to scale back such measures.
Despite the bleak milestone on Wednesday, President Donald Trump once again spent the day urging schools and businesses across the country to reopen, noting he wanted to watch college football this fall.
“We’ve got to open up our schools and open up our businesses,” Trump said at the White House. “All schools should be making plans to resume in-person classes as soon as possible.”
— Nick Visser
3 In 10 Laid-Off Americans Worried About Food And Housing: Poll — 8/12/20, 4:15 p.m. ET
Three in 10 Americans who lost their jobs during the coronavirus crisis this year said they will have “a very difficult time meeting basic needs,” including paying for groceries or rent, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.
Half of those surveyed said they were financially stressed but will be able to make ends meet.
Results of the poll, conducted Monday and Tuesday, come nearly two weeks after a $600 weekly enhanced unemployment benefit was allowed to expire with no replacement plan in sight. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said earlier Wednesday that Democrats and Republicans are “miles apart” on reaching a deal on a fresh round of pandemic relief.
Respondents pinned blame fairly evenly on all parties involved in the negotiations.
— Sara Boboltz
Fauci Expresses Doubt About Safety Of Russian Vaccine — 8/12/20, 7 a.m. ET
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that having a vaccine and proving that it’s safe and effective are two different things, casting doubts on Russia’s claim on Tuesday that it has a vaccine ready for use.
In a preview of an interview for National Geographic released Tuesday, Fauci said the U.S. had more than half a dozen vaccines in development, and could start administering them as soon as “next week” if “we wanted to take the chance of hurting a lot of people, or giving them something that doesn’t work. But, that’s not the way it works.”
“So, I hope, but I haven’t heard any evidence to make me feel that’s the case, I hope that the Russians have actually, definitively proven that the vaccine is safe and effective,” Fauci continued. “I seriously doubt that they’ve done that.”
Read more here.
— Lee Moran
Florida, Georgia Both Surpass Daily Coronavirus Death Toll Records — 8/11/20, 7 p.m. ET
Florida and Georgia both set new records for their daily death tolls due to the coronavirus pandemic, health officials said Tuesday.
Florida, one of the nation’s ongoing epicenters of the COVID-19 crisis, said 276 people had died in a 24-hour period ending Tuesday, higher than the previous death toll record set on July 31. The state has seen more than 542,000 cases and 8,500 deaths.
Georgia, which was one of the first states to reopen under orders from Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, said 137 people had died, surpassing the state’s record that was set just last week. More than 4,200 people have died in Georgia due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Cases of COVID-19 are still rising in some states and territories, and health officials have long warned that while other states may have seen surges decrease, the number of deaths attributed to infections lags just behind such peaks.
— Nick Visser
Local Transmission Of Virus Breaks Out Again In New Zealand After 102 Days — 8/11/20, 7:30 a.m. ET
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Tuesday that four coronavirus cases have been found in an Auckland household with no history of overseas travel, the first cases in 102 days, the Associated Press reports.
Auckland, the country’s largest city, will go into lockdown until Friday, with people asked to stay at home and bars and many other businesses closed. The rest of the country will be banned from gatherings of more than 100 and people will need to social distance from each other.
“We had all hoped not to find ourselves in this position again. But we had also prepared for it. And as a team, we have also been here before,” Ardern said.
— Liza Hearon
Russia Claims Vaccine Is Ready For Use Despite Lack Of Phase 3 Testing — 8/11/20, 6 a.m. ET
Russia has registered a coronavirus vaccine and declared it safe for use, despite international skepticism about the testing of it, the Associated Press reported.
President Vladimir Putin said one of his two daughters had participated in the experiment and received the vaccine.“I would like to repeat that it has passed all the necessary tests,” he said. “The most important thing is to ensure full safety of using the vaccine and its efficiency.”
Scientists have voiced concern about Russia potentially rushing a vaccine before the end of Phase 3 trials, which typically take months and involve thousands of people.
Russia has recorded over 890,000 cases of coronavirus and reported nearly 15,000 deaths.
— Liza Hearon
Coronavirus Cases Top 20 Million Worldwide — 8/10/2020, 8:35 p.m. ET
There are now more than 20 million COVID-19 cases worldwide, a tally by Johns Hopkins University reported Monday. More than one-quarter of those cases are in the United States. Brazil and India trail the U.S., with 3 million and 2.2 million cases, respectively.
— Lydia O’Connor
California Governor Won’t Say Why State’s Public Health Director Resigned ― 8/10/2020, 4:35 p.m. ET California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) remained tightlipped when asked Monday to explain the sudden resignation of the state’s public health director, Dr. Sonia Angell. “I try not to have personnel discussions in public,” he said when a reporter asked him if he requested she step down. Angell resigned Sunday night after news broke that a series of data failures had led to a backlog of around 300,000 coronavirus test results in California. “Forgive me for being human here,” Newsom said when another reporter pressed him to elaborate. “I’m governor; the buck stops with me,” he added, noting he wanted to maintain respect for Angell, whom he said he considers to be a friend. He offered slightly more clarity when a third reporter challenged him, saying Californians deserved to know the circumstances of Angell’s departure. Newsom hinted Angell had to take the fall for the data glitch. “We’re all accountable for our respective roles, for what happened underneath us,” he said. Newsom also noted that the state had seen a 19% decrease in hospitalizations related to COVID-19 in the last two weeks. — Lydia O’Connor
Almost 100,000 U.S. Children Tested Positive For COVID-19 In Last 2 Weeks Of July — 8/10/20, 7:42 a.m. ET
More than 97,000 children in the U.S. tested positive for the coronavirus in the last two weeks of July, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association, as schools around the country grapple with if or how they can safely reopen this fall.
The report included data from 49 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico and Guam. But it didn’t include complete data from Texas, currently a virus hotspot, so the number of confirmed cases involving children could be much higher.
Read more here.
— Marina Fang
California Public Health Director Resigns — 8/10/20, 5:50 a.m. ET
Dr. Sonia Angell, the head of California’s public health department, resigned late Sunday, the Associated Press reports. While she didn’t give a reason, her departure comes days after the state announced a fix to a technical glitch that was causing coronavirus test data to become backlogged.
Some 300,000 records had become backlogged in the system, which is used to make decisions about reopening businesses and schools. Not all of the records were coronavirus cases, though.
— Liza Hearon
Trump Adviser Calls Testing In U.S. ‘A Miracle’ Despite Long Waits ― 8/9/20, 12 p.m. ET
White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien praised the Trump administration’s coronavirus testing apparatus, calling it “a miracle,” despite widespread reports of test results taking days or even weeks to process.
In his first TV interview since recovering from COVID-19, O’Brien was asked how long before the average American is able to access speedy, asymptomatic testing like White House officials or professional athletes can.
“Well, we’re working on testing,” O’Brien told CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” “I think what’s happening with testing in America is really a miracle. I mean we haven’t ― there’s no country in the world that comes close to what America is doing on testing. But we’re working on getting more testing out there.”
The country’s coronavirus testing systems have been overwhelmed in recent weeks by a surge in demand, creating multiday backlogs. For some workers, the delays are causing them to miss paychecks as they await results so they can return to work.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-10--Trump Schooled Online After Claiming '1917' Flu Pandemic 'Probably Ended' WWII

President Donald Trump got history wrong on multiple counts Monday when he claimed that the “ 1917 ” Spanish flu pandemic likely led to the end of World War II ― which began more than two decades later .
“ The closest thing is in 1917 , they say , the great pandemic .
It certainly was a terrible thing where they lost anywhere from 50 to 100 million people , ” Trump said during his White House press briefing .
“ Probably ended the Second World War , all the soldiers were sick.
” Leading up to that comment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s response to the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 160,000 people in the U.S. , claiming without evidence that without his ban on foreign travelers , millions more would be dead .
Trump has incorrectly referred to the year of the 1918 pandemic dozens of times , even though his own grandfather Frederick Trump died of it in New York City in 1918 .
The Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-1919 overlapped with the final months of World War I , which is ostensibly what the president intended to refer to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Control and Prevention , it was first identified in military personnel in the spring of 1918 before spreading to an estimated 500 million people worldwide .
It continued until the following year .
The spread was likely exacerbated by the widespread deployment of troops , crowded wartime living conditions and other effects of the war , the CDC states .
Given the Trump campaign ’ s repeated efforts to frame presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden as lacking mental acuity , Twitter users did not allow Trump ’ s gaffe to slide .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It ’ s cruel for @ DonaldJTrumpJr and family to let @ realDonaldTrump stand out there like this .
https : //t.co/E0v9VAcBWX — Rep. Eric Swalwell ( @ RepSwalwell ) August 10 , 2020 Trump : In 1917 , the great pandemic , where they lost 50 to 100 million people , probably ended the Second World War .
1 .
The pandemic happened in 1918 , not 1917 .
2 .
About 37 million people died in WWI , not 50 to 100 million .
3 .
The Second World War @ @ @ @ @ @ @ https : //t.co/EEsnVUkXcE — Keith Boykin ( @ keithboykin ) August 10 , 2020 The president thinks the Spanish Flu probably ended World War Two ( ! )
because “ all the soldiers were sick.
” The atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki fell 75 years ago yesterday , bringing a long and devastating war to a shattering , violent end .
Remember history .
Don ’ t distort it .
— George Takei ( @ GeorgeTakei ) August 10 , 2020 By the way the 1918 flu pandemic started in 1918 , not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1945 .
And for some reason it 's the Trump Campaign that 's trying to run on mental fitness .
— The Lincoln Project 🏴☠ ( @ ProjectLincoln ) August 11 , 2020 If anyone says anything about Joe Biden flubbing a line ever again , just post the clip of Trump saying the 1917 pandemic ended the Second World War over and over again .
— Nick Jack Pappas ( @ Pappiness ) August 11 , 2020 Trump says the Spanish Flu in 1917 `` probably '' ended the Second World War @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and WWII ended in 1945 .
It 's `` probably '' a good thing the Secret Service cut that press conference short .
pic.twitter.com/sHQj2Uqov6 — Amee Vanderpool ( @ girlsreallyrule ) August 10 , 2020 '' The closest thing is , uh , in 1917 , they say , uh , The Great- the Great Pandemic ; & it certainly was a terrible thing where they lost anywhere from 50 to 100 million ppl ; probably ended the Second World War , all the soldiers were sick . ''
-The US President just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ JohnFugelsang ) August 10 , 2020 The genius MAGA crowd who worships and defends the guy who can ’ t pronounce “ Yosemite ” or “ Thailand ” and says the 1917 pandemic probably ended WW2 thinks Joe Biden is mentally compromised .
https : //t.co/xt2KY8l1kQ — Richard Marx ( @ richardmarx ) August 11 , 2020 Obama fought WWII but was forced to concede defeat because of the pandemic of 1917 and since then the cupboards have been bare .
They could n't even test for it because there were n't @ @ @ @ @ @ @ soldiers did n't have any bullets .
No bullets .
Could you imagine ?
No bu — Brian Tyler Cohen ( @ briantylercohen ) August 11 , 2020 If you were wondering why President Drink Bleach has botched the response for 7 straight months : In 1917 `` the great pandemic certainly was a terrible thing where they lost anywhere from 50 to 150 million people .
Probably ended the second world war .
All the soldiers were sick . ''
pic.twitter.com/R9YRAcvCZj — Andrew Bates ( @ AndrewBatesNC ) August 10 , 2020 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some sort of brain problem or dementia ?
He has repeatedly , on numerous occasions , claimed the Spanish flu was in 1917 , not 1918 .
He must have been corrected dozens of times .
He still says 1917 .
It ’ s not some sort of politically useful lie .
Why do it ?
https : //t.co/EEFifIJxjg — Mehdi Hasan ( @ mehdirhasan ) August 10 , 2020

LOADING ERROR LOADING
President Donald Trump got history wrong on multiple counts Monday when he claimed that the “1917” Spanish flu pandemic likely led to the end of World War II ― which began more than two decades later.
“The closest thing is in 1917, they say, the great pandemic. It certainly was a terrible thing where they lost anywhere from 50 to 100 million people,” Trump said during his White House press briefing. “Probably ended the Second World War, all the soldiers were sick.”
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Leading up to that comment, Trump had been praising his administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 160,000 people in the U.S., claiming without evidence that without his ban on foreign travelers, millions more would be dead.
Trump has incorrectly referred to the year of the 1918 pandemic dozens of times, even though his own grandfather Frederick Trump died of it in New York City in 1918.
The President says the “1917 pandemic” ended the Second World War pic.twitter.com/jSltuSYim2 — Acyn Torabi (@Acyn) August 10, 2020
The Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-1919 overlapped with the final months of World War I, which is ostensibly what the president intended to refer to. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it was first identified in military personnel in the spring of 1918 before spreading to an estimated 500 million people worldwide. It continued until the following year. The spread was likely exacerbated by the widespread deployment of troops, crowded wartime living conditions and other effects of the war, the CDC states.
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World War II began in 1939.
Given the Trump campaign’s repeated efforts to frame presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden as lacking mental acuity, Twitter users did not allow Trump’s gaffe to slide.
Critics, including Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), former White House ethics chief Walter Shaub and conservative group The Lincoln Project joined the fray:
The Second World War ended in 1945. It’s cruel for @DonaldJTrumpJr and family to let @realDonaldTrump stand out there like this. https://t.co/E0v9VAcBWX — Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) August 10, 2020
The President of the United States of America is the stupidest man in the world. https://t.co/O1CSD5eAIy — Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) August 11, 2020
Trump: In 1917, the great pandemic, where they lost 50 to 100 million people, probably ended the Second World War.
1. The pandemic happened in 1918, not 1917.
2. About 37 million people died in WWI, not 50 to 100 million.
3. The Second World War ended in 1945, not in 1917. https://t.co/EEsnVUkXcE — Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) August 10, 2020
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A significant part of Trump’s (and the Trump campaign’s) message against Biden has been that Biden gets confused and makes speaking mistakes. https://t.co/pfNGzsQYt2 — Daniel Dale (@ddale8) August 11, 2020
The president thinks the Spanish Flu probably ended World War Two (!) because “all the soldiers were sick.”
The atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki fell 75 years ago yesterday, bringing a long and devastating war to a shattering, violent end.
Remember history. Don’t distort it. — George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) August 10, 2020
By the way the 1918 flu pandemic started in 1918, not 1917.
World War 2 ended in 1945.
And for some reason it's the Trump Campaign that's trying to run on mental fitness. — The Lincoln Project 🏴☠ (@ProjectLincoln) August 11, 2020
The republicans are worried about Joe Biden’s mental acuity https://t.co/NpmQGSqcjp — Molly Jong-Fast🏡 (@MollyJongFast) August 10, 2020
If anyone says anything about Joe Biden flubbing a line ever again, just post the clip of Trump saying the 1917 pandemic ended the Second World War over and over again. — Nick Jack Pappas (@Pappiness) August 11, 2020
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Trump says the Spanish Flu in 1917 "probably" ended the Second World War.
The Spanish Flu was in 1918 and WWII ended in 1945. It's "probably" a good thing the Secret Service cut that press conference short. pic.twitter.com/sHQj2Uqov6 — Amee Vanderpool (@girlsreallyrule) August 10, 2020
"The closest thing is, uh, in 1917, they say, uh, The Great- the Great Pandemic; & it certainly was a terrible thing where they lost anywhere from 50 to 100 million ppl; probably ended the Second World War, all the soldiers were sick."
-The US President just spoke this sentence — John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) August 10, 2020
The genius MAGA crowd who worships and defends the guy who can’t pronounce “Yosemite” or “Thailand” and says the 1917 pandemic probably ended WW2 thinks Joe Biden is mentally compromised. https://t.co/xt2KY8l1kQ — Richard Marx (@richardmarx) August 11, 2020
Obama fought WWII but was forced to concede defeat because of the pandemic of 1917 and since then the cupboards have been bare. They couldn't even test for it because there weren't any tests. All the while our soldiers didn't have any bullets. No bullets. Could you imagine? No bu — Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) August 11, 2020
If you were wondering why President Drink Bleach has botched the response for 7 straight months:
In 1917 "the great pandemic certainly was a terrible thing where they lost anywhere from 50 to 150 million people. Probably ended the second world war. All the soldiers were sick." pic.twitter.com/R9YRAcvCZj — Andrew Bates (@AndrewBatesNC) August 10, 2020
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