npr--2020-05-09--Coronavirus World Map: Tracking The Spread Of The Outbreak

Coronavirus World Map : Tracking The Spread Of The Outbreak Since the new coronavirus was first reported in Wuhan , China , in December , the infectious respiratory disease COVID-19 has spread rapidly within China and to neighboring countries and beyond .
The first confirmed coronavirus cases outside China occurred on Jan. 20 , in Japan , Thailand and South Korea .
On Jan. 21 , the first case in the U.S. was identified in Washington state .
On Jan. 24 , the first two European cases were confirmed in France .
By Feb. 1 , eight European nations had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ month later that count had risen to 24 countries with at least 2,200 cases , most of them in Italy .
On March 11 , Italy eclipsed 10,000 cases and the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a pandemic — the first since H1N1 in 2009 .
That 's also when China , the original epicenter , began seeing drops in daily counts of new cases .
March also saw exponential spread of the virus throughout the U.S. , with all 50 states reporting cases by March 17 .
This particular virus , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the third strain of coronavirus known to frequently cause severe symptoms in humans .
The other two strains cause Middle East respiratory syndrome and severe acute respiratory syndrome .
Click here to see the state-by-state breakdown of cases in the United States .
This story was originally published on March 30 , 2020 .

Coronavirus world map: We've now passed the 600 million mark for infections
Editor's note: This page is no longer being updated. The last update was Sept. 5, 2022. For current data about COVID-19 cases and deaths around the world, Johns Hopkins University and Our World in Data are useful resources.
In late January 2020 only a few dozen COVID-19 infections had been identified outside of China. A year later, the world tallied its first 100 million cases. It took the globe just 7 more months to pass the 200 million mark— then another 5 months to hit 300 million, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University. Now the virus has spread to every corner of the globe and has been blamed for more than 6 million deaths.
The United States, India and Brazil in that order have had the most COVID cases and the three nations collectively account for almost half of all recorded infections so far in the pandemic.
Explore the chart below to find a country-by-country breakdown of new and total cases since January 2020.
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Explore how the number of coronavirus cases have shifted in different parts of the world over time. The first chart compares each continent to each other, while the next charts highlight the number of cases in select countries by region.
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This story was originally published on March 30, 2020.


npr--2020-05-09--Tracking The Pandemic: How Quickly Is The Coronavirus Spreading State By State?

Tracking The Pandemic : How Quickly Is The Coronavirus Spreading State By State ?
Since the first coronavirus case was confirmed in the United States on Jan. 21 , over one million people in the U.S. have confirmed cases of COVID-19 .
On April 12 , the U.S. became the nation with the most deaths globally , but there are early signs that the U.S. case and death counts may be leveling off , as the growth of new cases and deaths plateaus .
The pattern is n't consistent across the country , as new hot spots emerge and others @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state 's case count is growing , click here .
Click here to see a global map of confirmed cases and deaths .
In response to mounting cases , state and federal authorities have emphasized a social distancing strategy , widely seen as the best available means to slow the spread of the virus .
Most states have put in place measures such as closing schools and nonessential businesses and ordering citizens to stay home as much as possible .
It 's not clear how long such measures need to be in place @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wuhan , the city in China where the virus originated , a strictly enforced lockdown and widespread testing have slowed the outbreak dramatically , enough to bring an end to the 76-day lockdown .
A large portion of U.S. cases are centered on New York City .
Since March 20 , New York state , Connecticut and New Jersey have accounted for around 50 % of all U.S. cases .
As of April 9 , nearly 60 % of all deaths from COVID-19 have been in these three states .
While New York @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as seen below , it notched between 8,000 and 10,000 new cases each day between March 31 and April 12 .
To understand how one state 's outbreak compares with another 's , it 's helpful to look at not just the daily counts but the rate of change day over day .
In the following chart , we display cases on a logarithmic scale , meaning that every axis line is 10 times greater than the previous one .
This type of scale emphasizes the rate of change .
When case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's curve trends sharply upward , as New York 's does over the first 15 days past 100 cases .
Generally , this is evidence of unbridled community transmission of the disease .
As new cases slow , the curve bends toward horizontal , showing that the state 's outbreak may be leveling off .
This does n't mean the number of cases has stopped growing , but the rate of growth has slowed , which could signify that social distancing measures are having an effect .
In some areas , there are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the earliest outbreaks — such as California and Washington — seem to be having success at suppressing the disease .
The outlook in Washington has improved to the point that the state has returned unused Army hospital beds it had received in preparation for a peak in cases .
Elsewhere , limited access to testing may make the number of cases look smaller than it really is .
As testing becomes more readily available , we are likely to see the number of confirmed cases continue to grow , even if not at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ used here are compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University from several sources , including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ; the World Health Organization ; national , state and local government health departments ; 1point3acres ; and local media reports .
The JHU team automates its data uploads and regularly checks them for anomalies .
State-by-state testing and hospitalization data are still being assessed for reliability .
State-by-state recovery data are unavailable at this time .
There may be discrepancies between what you see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local health department 's website .
Stephanie Adeline , Alyson Hurt , Connie Hanzhang Jin , Ruth Talbot and Thomas Wilburn contributed to this story .

Tracking the coronavirus around the U.S.: See how your state is doing
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Note: This page was last updated on Feb. 1, 2023. It will no longer be updated. For current data on COVID cases and deaths, demographics, and hospitalizations, consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As of Feb. 1, there have been more than 101 million confirmed coronavirus infections in the U.S. and more than 1 million people have died of COVID-19. In the graphics below, explore the trends in your state.
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The above charts show average new cases per 100,000 people for each state over the last 12 months.
Note: Actual cases may be substantially higher, since many who test positive with at-home tests don't report their cases.
For additional data about COVID-19 in the U.S, including cases and deaths, demographics, and hospitalizations, consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.
To show trends, the table below shows the change in average new cases per day in each state, week over week for the last 28 days. States marked in shades of red have growing outbreaks; those in shades of green, are declining.
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Methodology
The graphics on this page pull from data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University from several sources, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the World Health Organization; national, state and local government health departments; 1point3acres; and local media reports.
The JHU team automates its data uploads and regularly checks them for anomalies. This may result in occasional data discrepancies on this page as the JHU team resolves anomalies and updates its feeds. There may be discrepancies between what you see here and what you see on your local health department's website. Figures shown do not include cases on cruise ships.
Fluctuations in the numbers may happen as health authorities review old cases, process testing backlogs or update their methodologies. The JHU team maintains a list of such changes.
This story was originally published on March 16, 2020. Elena Renken was a co-author on that version. Sean McMinn and Audrey Carlsen contributed to this story. Carmel Wroth edited this story.


npr--2020-05-09--How The Approval Of The Birth Control Pill 60 Years Ago Helped Change Lives

How The Approval Of The Birth Control Pill 60 Years Ago Helped Change Lives Updated at 9:44 a.m .
ET As a young woman growing up in a poor farming community in Virginia in the 1940 and '50s , with little information about sex or contraception , sexuality was a frightening thing for Carole Cato and her female friends .
`` We lived in constant fear , I mean all of us , '' she said .
`` It was like a tightrope .
always wondering , is this going to be the time [ I get pregnant ] ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Columbia , S.C. She grew up in the years before the birth control pill was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , on May 9 , 1960 .
She said teenage girls in her community were told very little about how their bodies worked .
`` I was very fortunate ; I did not get pregnant , but a lot of my friends did .
And of course , they just got married and went into their little farmhouses , '' she said .
`` But I just felt I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ At 23 , Cato married a widower who already had seven children .
They decided seven was enough .
By that time , Cato said , the pill allowed the couple to avoid having more babies — and she eventually was able to go on to college .
`` It was just like going from night to day , as far as the freedom of it , '' Cato said .
`` And to know that I had control , that I had choice , that I controlled my body .
It gave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
Loretta Ross , an activist and visiting women 's studies professor at Smith College , was among the first generation of young women to have access to the birth control pill throughout their reproductive years .
Ross , now 66 , said by the time she came of age around 1970 , the pill was giving young women more control over their fertility than previous generations had enjoyed .
`` We could talk about having sex – not without consequences , because there were still STDS ... but at the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ foremothers had , '' Ross said .
`` So it changed the world . ''
For all it 's done for women , Ross said that the pill has a complex and controversial history ; it was first tested on low-income women in Puerto Rico .
Ross said the pill also has limitations ; she 'd like to see it made available over the counter , as it is in some countries – not to mention , a pill for men .
When the pill was approved in 1960 , women had few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pill offered more reliability and convenience than methods like condoms or diaphragms , said Dr. Eve Espey , chair of the Department of Ob/Gyn and Family Planning at the University of New Mexico .
`` There was a huge , pent-up desire for a truly effective form of contraception , which had been lacking up to that point , '' Espey said .
By 1965 , she said , 40 % of young married women were on the pill .
For Pat Fishback , now 80 and living in Richmond , Va. , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ having children in her early 20s until she 'd been married for a couple of years .
`` It also made having children a positive experience , '' Fishback said .
`` Because we had actually , emotionally and intellectually , gotten to the point where we really desired to have children . ''
It took a bit longer for unmarried women to gain widespread access to the pill and other forms of contraception : Linda Gordon , 80 , a historian at New York University , remembers the stigma around single women @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When I was in college , a number of women had a wedding ring – a gold ring –that we would pass around and use when we wanted to go see a doctor to get fitted for a diaphragm , '' Gordon said .
`` In other words , there were people finding their way to do that , even then . ''
The pill also gave rise to a variety of other forms of hormonal contraception , many of which are popular today , Gordon said .
According to the Centers for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % of American women of reproductive age use the pill — making it the second most popular form of contraception , after female sterilization .
Gordon said that 60 years after the pill 's approval , contraception remains a contentious political issue .
Just this week , the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a case involving the birth control mandate in the Affordable Care Act .
A decision on whether some institutions with religious or moral objections can deny contraceptive coverage to their employees is expected in the months to come .

How The Approval Of The Birth Control Pill 60 Years Ago Helped Change Lives
Enlarge this image toggle caption Bettmann/Getty Images Bettmann/Getty Images
Updated at 9:44 a.m. ET
As a young woman growing up in a poor farming community in Virginia in the 1940s and '50s, with little information about sex or contraception, sexuality was a frightening thing for Carole Cato and her female friends.
"We lived in constant fear, I mean all of us," she said. "It was like a tightrope. always wondering, is this going to be the time [I get pregnant]?"
Cato, 78, now lives in Columbia, S.C. She grew up in the years before the birth control pill was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, on May 9, 1960. She said teenage girls in her community were told very little about how their bodies worked.
"I was very fortunate; I did not get pregnant, but a lot of my friends did. And of course, they just got married and went into their little farmhouses," she said. "But I just felt I just had to get out."
At 23, Cato married a widower who already had seven children. They decided seven was enough.
By that time, Cato said, the pill allowed the couple to avoid having more babies — and she eventually was able to go on to college.
"It was just like going from night to day, as far as the freedom of it," Cato said. "And to know that I had control, that I had choice, that I controlled my body. It gave me a whole new lease on life."
Loretta Ross, an activist and visiting women's studies professor at Smith College, was among the first generation of young women to have access to the birth control pill throughout their reproductive years.
Ross, now 66, said by the time she came of age around 1970, the pill was giving young women more control over their fertility than previous generations had enjoyed.
"We could talk about having sex – not without consequences, because there were still STDs ... but at the same time, with more freedom than our foremothers had," Ross said. "So it changed the world."
For all it's done for women, Ross said that the pill has a complex and controversial history; it was first tested on low-income women in Puerto Rico. Ross said the pill also has limitations. She'd like to see it made available over the counter, as it is in some countries — not to mention, a pill for men.
When the pill was approved in 1960, women had few relatively few contraceptive options, and the pill offered more reliability and convenience than methods like condoms or diaphragms, said Dr. Eve Espey, chair of the Department of Ob/Gyn and Family Planning at the University of New Mexico.
"There was a huge, pent-up desire for a truly effective form of contraception, which had been lacking up to that point," Espey said.
By 1965, she said, 40% of young married women were on the pill.
For Pat Fishback, now 80 and living in Richmond, Va., the newly available pill allowed her to delay having children in her early 20s until she'd been married for a couple of years.
"It also made having children a positive experience," Fishback said. "Because we had actually, emotionally and intellectually, gotten to the point where we really desired to have children."
It took a bit longer for unmarried women to gain widespread access to the pill and other forms of contraception: Linda Gordon, 80, a historian at New York University, remembers the stigma around single women and contraception at the time.
"When I was in college, a number of women had a wedding ring — a gold ring — that we would pass around and use when we wanted to go see a doctor to get fitted for a diaphragm," Gordon said. "In other words, there were people finding their way to do that, even then."
The pill also gave rise to a variety of other forms of hormonal contraception, many of which are popular today, Gordon said. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 13% of American women of reproductive age use the pill — making it the second-most popular form of contraception, after female sterilization.
Gordon said that 60 years after the pill's approval, contraception remains a contentious political issue.
Just this week, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a case involving the birth control mandate in the Affordable Care Act. A decision on whether some institutions with religious or moral objections can deny contraceptive coverage to their employees is expected in the months to come.


npr--2020-05-10--The People Flying During The Pandemic And How Airlines Are Trying To Protect Them

The People Flying During The Pandemic And How Airlines Are Trying To Protect Them In recent years , airlines have been cramming more seats onto planes and squishing passengers ever closer to one another .
The entire airport experience is n't much better , with overcrowded eateries and book shops , as well as tightly packed lines of people queuing up at check-in counters , security checkpoints and on the jet-bridge for boarding .
But that 's not the case anymore .
`` Airports are empty .
The flights are empty , '' said physician Frank Garcini after stepping off @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's O'Hare airport .
`` I was traveling on a small airplane with probably 40-something seats and there were only six passengers on the flight , '' he said .
`` I think life as we know it has changed '' because of the coronavirus , Garcini said , adding that airlines will need to adapt .
`` I anticipate that the standard operating procedures in the future will change because of our new reality . ''
Few industries have been hit as hard by the coronavirus pandemic as the airlines .
With @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than 90 % since the beginning of March , U.S. airlines have slashed their flight schedules and parked half of their fleets , more than 3,000 planes in all .
The few planes that are flying are almost empty , averaging just 17 passengers per domestic flight , according to the industry group Airlines for America .
And now , to try and ensure the safety of the passengers they do have , airlines are making changes .
Most U.S. carriers are requiring passengers and crew members to wear masks or facial coverings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In the terminals , airports are taking other steps to protect passengers and employees , such as putting tape or markings on floors to help people remain at least 6-feet apart when waiting in line .
`` We put up sneeze guards throughout the terminal between customers and employees [ and ] at the gate when you scan your boarding pass , '' said Mike Hanna , vice president of operations for United Airlines at O'Hare Airport .
`` We 're encouraging customers to scan their own boarding pass as well , so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ We 're also limiting the number of people going down a jet bridge at one time so they can also separate and socially distance themselves , '' Hanna explained .
On a recent day at O'Hare , passengers arrive free of traffic jams , with none of the usual chaos at the curb .
Inside the terminal , there are no mobs of people dragging roller bags while they try to figure out which interminable line to get into .
It 's just a sea of empty check-in kiosks and counters , with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ employees milling about , no passengers to assist .
There are so few people in the airport , social distancing is easy .
Normally packed gate areas have scores of empty seats .
There are no lines to worry about , and if there were , tape on the floors mark how to space six feet apart .
It 's eerily quiet in the terminal , the normal frantic bustle replaced by an unsettling calm .
`` I feel like I 'm in a Twilight Zone episode , kinda , it 's like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Scannell , who was living in Madagascar but had to leave as the borders there closed .
Other travelers include students who were studying abroad , people going to visit ill or anxious family members and those whose work is essential .
Among them is Kension Edwards , 47 , a medical equipment service technician from Raleigh , N.C. '' What we 're workin ' on , it 's important for lots of people , so , my way of doing my part , I guess , '' Edwards said .
With no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out , there are fewer headaches for him in traveling now .
`` It 's nice having the extra room but it 's still a little bit scary because I think [ the coronavirus is ] a little bit worse than people thought at first , '' he said .
`` As much separation as possible '' United is more thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting airplane interiors by using electrostatic cleaning , a process in which electrostatically charged cleaning fluids are sprayed throughout the cabins .
The disinfectant `` then begins to wrap around @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , throughout the aircraft and that helps to expand our coverage when we actually spray disinfectant , '' Hanna said .
`` Some people call it a fogger but it 's not really a fogger , '' he added .
`` But it really covers very , very well . ''
Like most airlines , United is also taking steps to create physical distancing on planes .
`` We definitely are blocking out middle seats and where we have two seats on an aisle , we 're doing them alternating window , aisle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as much separation as possible , '' Hanna said .
Even with middle seats blocked off , a recent flight from Los Angeles to Detroit was the most crowded plane frequent travelers like Johannes Pulst-Korenberg had seen in weeks .
`` Planes were ghost towns as of the past couple weeks that I 've been traveling and now it 's like a third of seats [ are full ] ?
A fourth ? ''
he asked .
Pulst-Korenberg is a neurologist splitting his time between L.A. and Philadelphia , something he says sounded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` And now with COVID , it 's a little more awkward , although I still feel fundamentally safe because I wear a good mask and I know how to use it , '' he said .
`` I am a little concerned though .
I definitely do n't trust the average person to not fly when they 're sick , and if you have the sniffles it 's not going to prevent you from getting on a plane .
On this flight , nobody dares to sniffle , and everyone wears a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ passes out a snack pack , a strange thing happens : passengers eagerly dig past the Cheez-Its to get to the coveted Purell wipe inside .
Jabar Akbar has a surgical mask he picked up on the job .
`` I 'm a nurse from Los Angeles , headed to Connecticut to help with the coronavirus epidemic , '' Akbar said .
He 's been traveling constantly since March , volunteering to work at hospitals hard-hit by COVID-19 .
`` I want to be on the front line .
I think that 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' he said .
Social distancing on planes right now is relatively easy because air travel demand is next to nothing .
But what about when large numbers of people start flying again ?
`` In the long term that 's a business model that can not be sustained , '' said Nick Calio , president of the group Airlines for America , in a Senate Commerce Committee hearing this week on the impact of the coronavirus on the aviation industry .
Aviation industry analyst Marisa Garcia explains that blocking out or removing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seats airlines could sell by about one third , sharply reducing revenue or forcing the airlines to raise prices on other seats to make up the difference .
`` It would force a reduction of capacity on all aircraft to the point where air fares would probably skyrocket , increasing as much as , over 50 % , '' Garcia said .
Airlines and airplane manufacturers are looking at other ways to protect passengers from the spread of the coronavirus and other communicable diseases .
Some suggest plexiglass dividers between seats or turning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rear of the plane .
The Italian aircraft interior design company Avio Interiors has drawn up plans to combine those ideas with a kind of plastic capsule that would surround each seat .
`` So , you might still have three passengers seated together , '' Garcia says.
`` But there would be a plastic bubble between you , if you will , that still allows you to feel comfortable but it would protect you in addition to a mask you might wear or if you were to remove the mask to eat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would cost the airlines plenty and right now , the U.S. airlines are burning through cash at a rate of $ 10 billion a month .
But there are less expensive changes , like using touchless technology so passengers and employees do n't interact as much , temperature scanning of travelers as they go through security or board the plane , and requiring `` immunity passports '' that would indicate if a passenger had recently been tested for the virus and cleared .
But regardless of which changes are adapted , it 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be coming to air travel and it will be unlike anything we 've experienced before .

The People Flying During The Pandemic And How Airlines Are Trying To Protect Them
Enlarge this image toggle caption David Schaper/NPR David Schaper/NPR
National Some People Are Still Taking Flights Despite The Coronavirus Pandemic Some People Are Still Taking Flights Despite The Coronavirus Pandemic Listen · 4:56 4:56
Business Passengers Face New Reality As Airlines Adapt To Pandemic Restrictions Passengers Face New Reality As Airlines Adapt To Pandemic Restrictions Listen · 3:50 3:50
In recent years, airlines have been cramming more seats onto planes and squishing passengers ever closer to one another. The entire airport experience isn't much better, with overcrowded eateries and bookshops, as well as tightly packed lines of people queuing up at check-in counters, at security checkpoints and on the jet bridge for boarding.
But that's not the case anymore.
"Airports are empty. The flights are empty," said physician Frank Garcini after stepping off a recent flight from Phoenix at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.
"I was traveling on a small airplane with probably 40-something seats, and there were only six passengers on the flight," he said.
"I think life as we know it has changed" because of the coronavirus, Garcini said, adding that airlines will need to adapt. "I anticipate that the standard operating procedures in the future will change because of our new reality."
Social distancing in the airport
Few industries have been hit as hard by the coronavirus pandemic as the airlines. With the number of people flying having plummeted more than 90% since the beginning of March, U.S. airlines have slashed their flight schedules and parked half their fleets, more than 3,000 planes in all.
The few planes that are flying are almost empty, averaging just 17 passengers per domestic flight, according to the industry group Airlines for America. And now, to try to ensure the safety of the passengers they do have, airlines are making changes.
Most U.S. carriers are requiring passengers and crew members to wear masks or facial coverings in gate areas and on flights.
In the terminals, airports are taking other steps to protect passengers and employees, such as putting tape or markings on floors to help people remain at least 6 feet apart when waiting in line.
"We put up sneeze guards throughout the terminal between customers and employees [and] at the gate when you scan your boarding pass," said Mike Hanna, vice president of operations for United Airlines at O'Hare airport.
"We're encouraging customers to scan their own boarding pass as well, so we're not handling their documents. We're also limiting the number of people going down a jet bridge at one time so they can also separate and socially distance themselves," Hanna explained.
"Like I'm in a Twilight Zone episode"
On a recent day at O'Hare, passengers arrive free of traffic jams, with none of the usual chaos at the curb. Inside the terminal, there are no mobs of people dragging roller bags while they try to figure out which interminable line to get into. It's just a sea of empty check-in kiosks and counters, with a dozen or so airline and airport employees milling about, with no passengers to assist.
With so few people in the airport, social distancing is easy. Normally packed gate areas have scores of empty seats. There are no lines to worry about, and if there were, tape on the floors mark how to space 6 feet apart.
It's eerily quiet in the terminal, the normal frantic bustle replaced by an unsettling calm.
"I feel like I'm in a Twilight Zone episode, kinda. It's like, super-eerie" says 21-year-old Quinn Scannell, who was living in Madagascar but had to leave as the borders there closed.
Enlarge this image toggle caption David Schaper/NPR David Schaper/NPR
Other travelers include students who were studying abroad, people going to visit ill or anxious family members and those whose work is essential.
Among them is Kension Edwards, 47, a medical-equipment service technician from Raleigh, N.C.
"What we're workin' on, it's important for lots of people, so my way of doing my part, I guess," Edwards says. With no long lines and with airplane middle seats blocked out, there are fewer headaches for him in traveling now.
"It's nice having the extra room, but it's still a little bit scary because I think [the coronavirus is] a little bit worse than people thought at first," he says.
"As much separation as possible"
United is more thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting airplane interiors by using electrostatic cleaning, a process in which electrostatically charged cleaning fluids are sprayed throughout the cabins. The disinfectant "then begins to wrap around armrests, chairs, tables, etc. throughout the aircraft, and that helps to expand our coverage when we actually spray disinfectant," Hanna said.
"Some people call it a fogger, but it's not really a fogger," he added. "But it really covers very, very well."
Like most airlines, United is also taking steps to create physical distancing on planes.
"We definitely are blocking out middle seats, and where we have two seats on an aisle, we're doing them alternating window, aisle, window, aisle, to drive as much separation as possible," Hanna said.
Even with middle seats blocked off, a recent Delta flight from Los Angeles to Detroit was the most crowded plane that frequent travelers like Johannes Pulst-Korenberg had seen in weeks.
"Planes were ghost towns as of the past couple weeks that I've been traveling, and now it's like a third of seats [are full]? A fourth?" he said.
With airlines cutting so many flights from their schedules, some of the few flights that remain have been getting fuller in recent weeks.
Pulst-Korenberg is a neurologist splitting his time between LA and Philadelphia, something he says sounded like an OK plan before COVID-19.
"And now with COVID, it's a little more awkward, although I still feel fundamentally safe because I wear a good mask and I know how to use it," he says. "I am a little concerned though. I definitely don't trust the average person to not fly when they're sick, and if you have the sniffles, it's not going to prevent you from getting on a plane.
On this flight, nobody dares to sniffle, and everyone wears a face covering. When a flight attendant passes out a snack pack, a strange thing happens: Passengers eagerly dig past the Cheez-Its to get to the coveted Purell wipe inside. Jabar Akbar has a surgical mask he picked up on the job.
"I'm a nurse from Los Angeles, headed to Connecticut to help with the coronavirus epidemic," Akbar says. He has been traveling constantly since March, volunteering to work at hospitals hard hit by COVID-19.
"I want to be on the front line. I think that's where my skills are best served," he says.
Plexiglass, touchless technology and "immunity passports"
Social distancing on planes right now is relatively easy because air travel demand is next to nothing. But what about when large numbers of people start flying again?
"In the long term, that's a business model that cannot be sustained," said Nick Calio, president of Airlines for America, in a Senate commerce committee hearing on Wednesday on the impact of the coronavirus on the aviation industry.
Aviation industry analyst Marisa Garcia explains that blocking out or removing middle seats would reduce the number of seats airlines could sell by about one-third, sharply reducing revenue or forcing the airlines to raise prices on other seats to make up the difference.
Enlarge this image toggle caption David Schaper/NPR David Schaper/NPR
"It would force a reduction of capacity on all aircraft to the point where air fares would probably skyrocket, increasing as much as, over 50%," Garcia said.
Airlines and airplane manufacturers are looking at other ways to protect passengers from the spread of the coronavirus and other communicable diseases. Some suggest plexiglass dividers between seats or turning the middle seat around to face the rear of the plane. The Italian aircraft-interior design company Aviointeriors has drawn up plans to combine those ideas with a kind of plastic capsule that would surround each seat.
"So, you might still have three passengers seated together," Garcia says. "But there would be a plastic bubble between you, if you will, that still allows you to feel comfortable, but it would protect you in addition to a mask you might wear or if you were to remove the mask to eat or drink."
Any such solution would cost the airlines plenty, and right now U.S. airlines are burning through cash at a rate of $10 billion a month. But there are less expensive changes, such as using touchless technology so passengers and employees don't have contact during interactions and transactions, temperature scanning of travelers as they go through security or board the plane, and requiring "immunity passports" that would indicate if a passenger had recently been tested for the virus and cleared.
But regardless of which changes are adopted, it's safe to say a new normal will be coming to air travel and it will be unlike anything we've experienced before.


npr--2020-05-10--VIDEO: What Is Contact Tracing And How Does It Stop The Pandemic?

VIDEO : What Is Contact Tracing And How Does It Stop The Pandemic ?
You may have never heard the phrase `` contact tracing '' before .
Now it 's a part of the daily conversation about the coronavirus pandemic .
Dr. Robert Redfield , the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , has said contact tracing is key to halting the spread of the disease .
It 's not a new idea .
In fact , contact tracing is used all over the world .
It 's based on the knowledge that someone with a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of people .
With coronavirus , it 's likely two or three .
So the goal is to track down anyone in recent contact with a newly diagnosed patient , then monitor the health of these contacts while they stay at home for the period of time when they might become infected – roughly two weeks – or are held in an isolation facility .
You can read our article on contact tracing or get the essential details from our video above .
As the U.S. hires potentially hundreds of thousands of contact @ @ @ @ @ @ @ departments could look to models from such regions as Africa , South Asia and Latin America on how these teams will do their work .
Partners in Health , which is known for its work in Haiti , Rwanda and Peru , is helping to set up a coronavirus contact tracing program in Massachusetts .
In West Africa contact tracing was crucial in bringing the 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak to a close .
Raj Panjabi 's organization Last Mile Health helped set up contact tracing teams in Liberia during that crisis .
`` We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and drive the epidemic down to zero cases in Liberia without contact tracing , '' says Panjabi , a physician at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women 's Hospital .
In the remote part of Liberia where Panjabi 's group was working , contact tracers were hired to investigate each Ebola case and track down all the `` contacts '' of those diagnosed cases .
`` The contact tracers got hired and chosen from within the community , '' says Panjabi — and that kind of community knowledge offers a tremendous advantage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contact because they know the community .
They have trust with the community , '' he says .
`` And they 'd identify any additional contacts who were missed in the initial investigation . ''
Panjabi says having social connections and being good with people is more important in this job than a medical degree .
Most of the people doing this work for Last Mile Health were not medical professionals , but the teams reported to nurses and public health officials .
As the U.S. looks to contain the coronavirus so that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Raj Panjabi says contact tracing could be a win-win .
`` Where are the hundreds of thousands of American [ contact tracers ] going to come from ? ''
Panjabi asks .
`` One possible way is to actually hire Americans who 've been unemployed by this pandemic and put them to work . ''

VIDEO: What Is Contact Tracing And How Can It Stop The Pandemic?
NPR YouTube
You might have never heard the phrase "contact tracing" until recently.
Now it's a part of the daily conversation about the coronavirus pandemic. Dr. Robert Redfield, the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has said that contact tracing is key to halting the spread of the disease.
It's not a new idea. In fact, contact tracing is used all over the world. It's based on the knowledge that someone with a contagious disease will infect a certain number of people. With the coronavirus, it's likely two or three. So the goal is to track down anyone in recent contact with a newly diagnosed patient, then monitor the health of these contacts while they stay at home for the period of time when they might become infected — roughly two weeks — or are held in an isolation facility.
You can read our article about contact tracing or get the essential details from our video above.
As the U.S. hires potentially hundreds of thousands of contact tracers to contain the coronavirus, health departments could look to models from such regions as Africa, South Asia and Latin America on how these teams will do their work.
Partners in Health, which is known for its work in Haiti, Rwanda and Peru, is helping to set up a coronavirus contact tracing program in Massachusetts.
In West Africa, contact tracing was crucial in bringing the 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak to a close.
Raj Panjabi's organization Last Mile Health helped set up contact tracing teams in Liberia during that crisis.
"We couldn't break the chain of transmission and drive the epidemic down to zero cases in Liberia without contact tracing," says Panjabi, a physician at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital.
In the remote part of Liberia where Panjabi's group was working, contact tracers were hired to investigate each Ebola case and track down all the "contacts" of those diagnosed cases.
"The contact tracers got hired and chosen from within the community," says Panjabi — and that kind of community knowledge offers a tremendous advantage. "They'd locate the listed contact because they know the community. They have trust with the community," he says. "And they'd identify any additional contacts who were missed in the initial investigation."
Panjabi says having social connections and being good with people is more important in this job than a medical degree. Most of the people doing this work for Last Mile Health were not medical professionals, but the teams reported to nurses and public health officials.
As the U.S. looks to contain the coronavirus so that the economy can start to reopen, Raj Panjabi says contact tracing could be a win-win.
"Where are the hundreds of thousands of American [contact tracers] going to come from?" Panjabi asks. "One possible way is to actually hire Americans who've been unemployed by this pandemic and put them to work."
Renee Klahr, Ben de la Cruz, Marc Silver


npr--2020-05-10--In Time For Mother's Day, Belgium Will Allow Up To 4 Guests At Home

In Time For Mother 's Day , Belgium Will Allow Up To 4 Guests At Home The games some people have been playing on social media — choosing who they 'd want to be quarantined with — have become real life in Belgium .
Under strict lockdown since March 18 , including home confinement except for essential journeys , Belgium 's controls have been some of the tightest in Europe .
But it 's worked — after hitting one of the highest death rates in the world , the nation 's infection rate and death toll have dropped steadily since @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decline led Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès to announce this past week that along with letting all stores reopen on May 11 , certain social distancing guidelines will be relaxed .
Beginning on Sunday for Mother 's Day , Wilmès said , each household will be allowed to host up to four other people , preferably all within the same family , as long as social distancing is maintained .
These groups can not have contact with anyone else .
Authorities describe it as kind of a `` contract '' between two households that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of COVID-19 .
Of course , choosing can be a delicate process ; no one wants to hurt the feelings of a friend or relative if they do n't make the cut .
Seventeen-year-old music student Carla Vandersteen says her friends started texting immediately about getting together .
She 's made her `` list , '' consisting of the three friends who live closest to her , but still thinks it 's smartest not to go out .
`` At least [ to protect ] your parents ! ''
she urges .
She @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see her best friends and not hug them .
She fears many young people will now act like restrictions are completely lifted .
Many Belgians have expressed confusion about whether there 's any flexibility in the new rules .
As the parents of three young children , Daniel and Marie Bach joke that as a family of five , they 're mathematically ruled out of being any other household 's significant others .
`` I think they mean 'more or less four , ' '' Marie suggests with a laugh .
`` You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — it ca n't be so . ''
While they are looking forward to some company , Daniel acknowledges `` it 's a gamble '' for authorities to allow social bubbles to expand .
`` A pretty big one , really . ''
Then there 's the dilemma of Mother 's Day : visit with mom on Sunday and have her locked in as one of your `` four , '' or save that spot for someone else ?
Veronique Petit says she and her husband will do some creative counting so that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and they can still visit their parents .
`` It 's impossible '' to follow these rules , Petit says in exasperation .
`` So we 're going to cheat a little .
I think all Belgians are going to cheat . ''
Police have admitted they wo n't be able to verify whether visitations are being carried out correctly , but authorities say if infections spike , restrictions will have to be tightened again .

In Time For Mother's Day, Belgium Will Allow Up To 4 Guests At Home
Enlarge this image toggle caption Francisco Seco/AP Francisco Seco/AP
The games some people have been playing on social media — choosing who they'd want to be quarantined with — have become real life in Belgium.
Under strict lockdown since March 16, including home confinement except for essential journeys, Belgium's controls have been some of the tightest in Europe. But it's worked — after hitting one of the highest death rates in the world, the nation's infection rate and death toll have dropped steadily since a peak in early April.
The decline led Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès to announce this past week that along with letting all stores reopen on May 11, certain social distancing guidelines will be relaxed.
Beginning on Sunday for Mother's Day, Wilmès said, each household will be allowed to host up to four other people, preferably all within the same family, as long as social distancing is maintained. These groups cannot have contact with anyone else. Authorities describe it as kind of a "contract" between two households that will serve to limit any potential spread of COVID-19.
Of course, choosing can be a delicate process; no one wants to hurt the feelings of a friend or relative if they don't make the cut.
Seventeen-year-old music student Carla Vandersteen says her friends started texting immediately about getting together. She's made her "list," consisting of the three friends who live closest to her, but still thinks it's smartest not to go out.
"At least [to protect] your parents!" she urges. She says it would be so hard to see her best friends and not hug them. She fears many young people will now act like restrictions are completely lifted.
Many Belgians have expressed confusion about whether there's any flexibility in the new rules.
As the parents of three young children, Daniel and Marie Bach joke that as a family of five, they're mathematically ruled out of being any other household's significant others.
"I think they mean 'more or less four,'" Marie suggests with a laugh. "You can't just abandon your last child — it can't be so."
While they are looking forward to some company, Daniel acknowledges "it's a gamble" for authorities to allow social bubbles to expand. "A pretty big one, really."
Then there's the dilemma of Mother's Day: visit with mom on Sunday and have her locked in as one of your "four," or save that spot for someone else?
Veronique Petit says she and her husband will do some creative counting so that their two adult children can visit them and they can still visit their parents.
"It's impossible" to follow these rules, Petit says in exasperation. "So we're going to cheat a little. I think all Belgians are going to cheat."
Police have admitted they won't be able to verify whether visitations are being carried out correctly, but authorities say if infections spike, restrictions will have to be tightened again.


npr--2020-05-09--Top Health Officials Enter Self-Quarantine After Exposure To Coronavirus

Three members of the White House 's coronavirus task force , including Dr. Anthony Fauci , are quarantining themselves after coming into contact with someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus .
Stephen Hahn , commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration , and Robert Redfield , the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , have decided to self-quarantine for two weeks .
Fauci , the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases , is beginning a `` modified quarantine '' after he made a `` low risk '' contact with a White @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the coronavirus , NPR has confirmed .
`` Dr. Fauci has tested negative for COVID-19 , and he will continue to be tested regularly , '' a NIAID spokesperson said in a statement to NPR .
`` He is considered to be at relatively low-risk based on the degree of his exposure .
Nevertheless he is taking appropriate precautions to mitigate risk to any of his personal contacts while still allowing him to carry out his responsibilities in this public health crisis . ''
Fauci told CNN that he will mostly telework from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Commissioner Stephen Hahn announced his decision to self-quarantine — in accordance with guidelines issued by the CDC — in an internal message to staff on Friday , according to an FDA spokesperson .
Hahn has not tested positive himself .
The commissioner `` immediately took a diagnostic test and tested negative for the virus , '' said Stephanie Caccomo , an FDA press officer , in a statement to NPR on Saturday .
Also on Saturday , the CDC confirmed to The Washington Post Redfield 's decision to place himself in quarantine after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a person at the White House who has COVID-19 , '' but has shown no symptoms .
During their quarantines , Redfield and FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn will testify before a Senate committee on Tuesday by video conference , rather than in person , Sen. Lamar Alexander , R-Tennessee , said in a statement .
NPR has n't confirmed Fauci 's plan for when he 's expected to testify before the Senate .
The three senior public health officials are latest members of President Trump 's orbit to be exposed to the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ press secretary , Katie Miller , tested positive for the virus on Friday — `` out of the blue , '' Pence said , with no obvious symptoms .
She is married to Stephen Miller , a senior adviser to Trump .
Her diagnosis followed the news that a U.S. military aide who works in the White House also tested positive .
Still , it remains unclear to whom Hahn , Redfield and Fauci had been exposed .
Both Trump and Pence have drawn criticism for breaking with CDC recommendations and appearing in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of face covering .
Earlier this week , Trump announced that testing around the White House would be undertaken daily rather than weekly and that valets working around him will now be required to wear face masks .

Top Health Officials Enter Self-Quarantine After Exposure To Coronavirus
Enlarge this image toggle caption Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
Updated at 2:05 p.m. ET Sunday
Three members of the White House's coronavirus task force, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, are quarantining themselves after coming into contact with someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus.
Stephen Hahn, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, and Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have decided to self-quarantine for two weeks.
Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is beginning a "modified quarantine" after he made a "low risk" contact with a White House staff member who tested positive for the coronavirus, NPR has confirmed.
"Dr. Fauci has tested negative for COVID-19, and he will continue to be tested regularly," a NIAID spokesperson said in a statement to NPR. "He is considered to be at relatively low-risk based on the degree of his exposure. Nevertheless he is taking appropriate precautions to mitigate risk to any of his personal contacts while still allowing him to carry out his responsibilities in this public health crisis."
Fauci told CNN that he will mostly telework from home during his 14-day quarantine.
Hahn announced his decision to self-quarantine — in accordance with guidelines issued by the CDC — in an internal message to staff on Friday, according to an FDA spokesperson.
Hahn has not tested positive himself. The commissioner "immediately took a diagnostic test and tested negative for the virus," said Stephanie Caccomo, an FDA press officer, in a statement to NPR on Saturday.
Also on Saturday, the CDC confirmed to The Washington Post Redfield's decision to place himself in quarantine after his "low-risk" exposure to "a person at the White House who has COVID-19," but has shown no symptoms.
During their quarantines, Redfield, Hahn and Fauci — along with a fourth witness — will testify before a Senate committee on Tuesday by video conference, rather than in person, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said in a statement on Sunday.
The three senior public health officials are latest members of President Trump's orbit to be exposed to the virus this week.
Vice President Pence's press secretary, Katie Miller, tested positive for the virus on Friday — "out of the blue," Pence said, with no obvious symptoms. She is married to Stephen Miller, a senior adviser to Trump. Her diagnosis followed the news that a U.S. military aide who works in the White House also tested positive.
Still, it remains unclear to whom Hahn, Redfield and Fauci had been exposed.
Both Trump and Pence have drawn criticism for breaking with CDC recommendations and appearing in public settings recently without donning some form of face covering. Earlier this week, Trump announced that testing around the White House would be undertaken daily rather than weekly and that valets working around him will now be required to wear face masks.


npr--2020-05-10--Betty Wright, Soul Icon Who Sang 'Clean Up Woman,' Has Died At Age 66

Betty Wright , Soul Icon Who Sang 'Clean Up Woman , ' Has Died At Age 66 Betty Wright , a luminary R & B singer known for her hits `` Clean Up Woman '' and `` Tonight is the Night , '' has died at the age of 66 .
Steve Greenberg , president of S-Curve Records , confirmed the singer 's death on Sunday , saying it came after a battle with cancer .
Greenberg , who collaborated on several recordings with Wright , called her `` one of the most significant women in the history of R @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wright is perhaps best known for her 1971 hit song `` Clean Up Woman , '' a funky and soulful complaint about a woman who `` cleans up '' the men of women who neglect them .
The song 's signature guitar riff would go on to be a favored sample used by the likes of Afrika Bambaataa , Sublime and Chance the Rapper .
The song 's rise to number six on the Billboard singles charts prefaced years of successes for the singer that included a Grammy win for `` Where is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over a decade after her Grammy win , Wright would net another achievement — becoming the first woman to have a record on her own label achieve gold status .
Wright proved herself to be a consummate collaborator .
Working with a roster of artists long and varied , the singer ended up teaming up with such artists as Marvin Gaye , Bob Marley , Lil Wayne and The Roots .
In recent decades , she also found herself serving in a mentor role to younger artists , including Jennifer Lopez and Joss @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coaching younger singers to NPR in 2011 , saying it was her way of protecting the integrity of popular music , in a productive rather than competitive way .
`` I believe in legacy , '' Wright said at the time .
`` And I believe in making the radio sound better .
If I got ta listen to it , I want it to sound good .
So I 'm tired of people disturbing the peace , getting on the radio and sounding a hot mess .
If I can tell what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them go to the note they think it is ?
I 've got that mama vibe .
I do n't look at it with an ego . ''

Betty Wright, Soul Icon Who Sang 'Clean Up Woman,' Has Died At Age 66
Enlarge this image toggle caption Gabriel Bouys /AFP via Getty Images Gabriel Bouys /AFP via Getty Images
Betty Wright, a luminary R&B singer known for her hits "Clean Up Woman" and "Tonight is the Night," has died at the age of 66.
Steve Greenberg, president of S-Curve Records, confirmed the singer's death on Sunday, saying it came after a battle with cancer. Greenberg, who collaborated on several recordings with Wright, called her "one of the most significant women in the history of R&B music, period."
Wright is perhaps best known for her 1971 hit song "Clean Up Woman," a funky and soulful complaint about a woman who "cleans up" the men of women who neglect them. The song's signature guitar riff would go on to be a favored sample used by the likes of Afrika Bambaataa, Sublime and Chance the Rapper.
YouTube
The song's rise to No. 6 on the Billboard singles charts prefaced years of successes for the singer that included a Grammy win for "Where is the Love" in 1975.
Just over a decade after her Grammy win, Wright would net another achievement — becoming the first woman to have a record on her own label achieve gold status.
Wright proved herself to be a consummate collaborator. Working with a roster of artists long and varied, the singer ended up teaming up with such artists as Marvin Gaye, Bob Marley, Lil Wayne and The Roots.
In recent decades, she found herself mentoring younger artists, including Jennifer Lopez and Joss Stone.
She discussed her reasons for coaching younger singers to NPR in 2011, saying it was her way of protecting the integrity of popular music, in a productive rather than competitive way.
"I believe in legacy," Wright said at the time. "And I believe in making the radio sound better. If I gotta listen to it, I want it to sound good. So I'm tired of people disturbing the peace, getting on the radio and sounding a hot mess. If I can tell what the note really is, why let them go to the note they think it is? I've got that mama vibe. I don't look at it with an ego."


npr--2020-05-10--Unemployment Numbers 'Will Get Worse Before They Get Better' Mnuchin Says

Unemployment Numbers 'Will Get Worse Before They Get Better ' Mnuchin Says The worst of the nation 's historic job losses are yet to come , according to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin , who told Fox News Sunday that `` the reported numbers are probably going to get worse before they get better . ''
Mnuchin 's comments followed Friday 's report from the Labor Department showing the U.S. lost a staggering 20.5 million jobs in April , bringing the jobless rate to its highest level since the Great Depression — 14.7 % .
But even that figure fails to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have stopped searching for jobs or those considered `` underemployed . ''
Asked by host Chris Wallace whether the nation 's true unemployment rate was close to 25 % , Mnuchin responded , `` we could be . ''
`` This is no fault of American business , this is no fault of American workers , this is a result of a virus , '' he said before warning , `` You 're going to have a very , very bad second quarter . ''
Two weeks ago , Mnuchin 's outlook was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the economy would reopen through June and `` bounce back '' over the summer .
On Sunday , he said the economy would `` have a better third quarter , '' followed by `` a better fourth quarter , and next year is going to be a great year . ''
The Trump Administration is considering additional stimulus measures , including a payroll tax cut , according to Mnuchin , who also said on Sunday , `` We 're not gon na do things just to bail out states that were poorly managed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House would wait a `` few weeks '' before considering another relief bill .

Unemployment Numbers 'Will Get Worse Before They Get Better,' Mnuchin Says
Enlarge this image toggle caption Alex Brandon/AP Alex Brandon/AP
The worst of the nation's historic job losses are yet to come, according to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who told Fox News Sunday that "the reported numbers are probably going to get worse before they get better."
Mnuchin's comments followed Friday's report from the Labor Department showing the U.S. lost a staggering 20.5 million jobs in April, bringing the jobless rate to its highest level since the Great Depression — 14.7%.
But even that figure fails to account for the millions of workers who have stopped searching for jobs or those considered "underemployed."
Asked by host Chris Wallace whether the nation's true unemployment rate was close to 25%, Mnuchin responded, "we could be."
"This is no fault of American business, this is no fault of American workers, this is a result of a virus," he said before warning, "You're going to have a very, very bad second quarter."
Two weeks ago, Mnuchin's outlook was more optimistic — he told Wallace that the economy would reopen through June and "bounce back" over the summer. On Sunday, he said the economy would "have a better third quarter," followed by "a better fourth quarter, and next year is going to be a great year."
The Trump administration is considering additional stimulus measures, including a payroll tax cut, according to Mnuchin, who also said on Sunday, "We're not gonna do things just to bail out states that were poorly managed." But he said the White House would wait a "few weeks" before considering another relief bill.


npr--2020-05-10--Sen. Bill Cassidy On Reopening Schools: Children Are Paying A High Price At Home

Sen. Bill Cassidy On Reopening Schools : Children Are Paying A High Price At Home Sen. Bill Cassidy , a Republican of Louisiana and also a medical doctor , is thinking a lot about what it will take for schools to reopen .
Cassidy sits on the Senate 's Health , Education , Labor and Pensions Committee , which will hear from public health officials this week about how to safely reopen U.S. businesses and schools .
Cassidy has proposed `` aggressive '' testing and contact tracing as part of any reopening .
He says the U.S. has enough testing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ children and schools , it means a `` sophisticated strategy . ''
`` Children are at low risk for complications and high risk for asymptomatically carrying the disease and spreading it to teachers , '' he said in an interview Sunday with NPR 's Weekend Edition .
`` So there has to be what I call an 'if-and-then-but ' strategy .
If they 're a child , then they are likely safe .
But if they get infected , they can still infect the teacher . ''
Most states , including Louisiana , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number of daily tests needed to reopen schools and businesses , according to estimates from researchers at Harvard .
But Cassidy says that `` with the testing we have , if we match it with the need , then we can have an appropriate response .
... Children , they are paying the highest price relative to their risk of having a complication from coronavirus .
The highest price .
`` Particularly kids from disadvantaged backgrounds for whom that enriched environment is important , '' he says .
`` Particularly kids from potentially @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that report abuse .
I could go down the list .
So we have to find a way to match our testing capacity , which is adequate for this , with where people are beginning to congregate once more .
Both to screen those who are positive , but to protect those who are negative . ''
On Tuesday , the Senate committee is expected to hear from members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force about the administration 's efforts around testing and contact tracing , but Cassidy cautioned that any benchmarks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ word .
`` The final word has to be implementation .
It 's one thing to have high principles , they 're very important .
Next , the application of those principles .
But you actually have to do it , '' he says .
When considering how to reopen schools , Cassidy says , the screening of faculty , staff and students should be `` baseline . ''
`` Those who are negative can come in , '' he says .
`` You 'd also like to check antibodies , because the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protective .
And then you screen on a periodic basis .
`` But you do n't stop there .
Those who are positive on subsequent testing , you would then employ contact tracing to take them back to their house or their neighborhood .
That would be true of the student , the staff and the teacher .
Now we can actually reopen , but use the need to reopen as an opportunity to contact trace .
So I think ultimately , if we apply this in a granular level , we will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
Listen to the full interview with NPR 's Lulu Garcia-Navarro here .

Sen. Bill Cassidy On Reopening Schools: Children Are Paying A High Price At Home
Enlarge this image toggle caption Andrew Harnik/AP Andrew Harnik/AP
Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican of Louisiana and also a medical doctor, is thinking a lot about what it will take for schools to reopen.
Cassidy sits on the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which will hear from public health officials this week about how to safely reopen U.S. businesses and schools.
Cassidy has proposed "aggressive" testing and contact tracing as part of any reopening. He says the U.S. has enough testing if it's targeted appropriately.
For children and schools, it means a "sophisticated strategy."
"Children are at low risk for complications and high risk for asymptomatically carrying the disease and spreading it to teachers," he said in an interview Sunday with NPR's Weekend Edition. "So there has to be what I call an 'if-and-then-but' strategy. If they're a child, then they are likely safe. But if they get infected, they can still infect the teacher."
Most states, including Louisiana, have been falling short of the recommended number of daily tests needed to reopen schools and businesses, according to estimates from researchers at Harvard.
But Cassidy says that "with the testing we have, if we match it with the need, then we can have an appropriate response. ... Children, they are paying the highest price relative to their risk of having a complication from coronavirus. The highest price.
"Particularly kids from disadvantaged backgrounds for whom that enriched environment is important," he says. "Particularly kids from potentially abusive households where teachers are often those that report abuse. I could go down the list. So we have to find a way to match our testing capacity, which is adequate for this, with where people are beginning to congregate once more. Both to screen those who are positive, but to protect those who are negative."
On Tuesday, the Senate committee is expected to hear from members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force about the administration's efforts around testing and contact tracing, but Cassidy cautioned that any benchmarks they offer will not be the final word.
"The final word has to be implementation. It's one thing to have high principles, they're very important. Next, the application of those principles. But you actually have to do it," he says.
When considering how to reopen schools, Cassidy says, the screening of faculty, staff and students should be "baseline."
"Those who are negative can come in," he says. "You'd also like to check antibodies, because the science is pointing that antibodies will be protective. And then you screen on a periodic basis.
"But you don't stop there. Those who are positive on subsequent testing, you would then employ contact tracing to take them back to their house or their neighborhood. That would be true of the student, the staff and the teacher. Now we can actually reopen, but use the need to reopen as an opportunity to contact trace. So I think ultimately, if we apply this in a granular level, we will have accomplished what we need to accomplish."
Listen to the full interview with NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro here.


npr--2020-05-10--South Korea Records Spike In New Coronavirus Cases After Nightclub Outbreak

South Korea Records Spike In New Coronavirus Cases After Nightclub Outbreak South Korea reported 34 new coronavirus infections Sunday , its highest daily tally in about a month , following an outbreak tied to several nightclubs and bars .
Korean health officials said that 24 of the new cases originate from Seoul 's Itaewon neighborhood .
Authorities had recently identified a 29-year-old man who tested positive for the virus after visiting five nightclubs and bars in the commercial district .
Authorities believe as many as 1,500 people were in attendance during the time the man said he visited those clubs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Overall , at least 54 cases have been linked to that outbreak including 43 nightclub patrons and another 11 people acquainted with the club goers .
In response , Seoul closed bars and nightclubs this weekend as authorities worked to contain the outbreak .
The spike of new infections is the highest South Korea has seen since reporting 39 new cases on April 9..
In the subsequent weeks , infections originating within the country declined drastically with health authorities at one point reporting zero new domestic cases .
Global health experts credit South @ @ @ @ @ @ @ curtailing the outbreak in the early hot spot .
In total , the country has seen at least 10,874 infections and 256 deaths due to the coronavirus , according to Johns Hopkins University .
In a speech on Sunday , President Moon Jae-in warned South Koreans that they were in for a `` prolonged war '' against COVID-19 .
`` It will be a long time before the COVID-19 outbreak has ended completely .
We should also brace for the pandemic 's second wave , which many experts are predicting , '' Moon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ praised his country 's response , saying South Korea had set the `` global standard '' in handling the COVID-19 pandemic and had managed to transition to `` a new normal in which safety precautions against the virus and daily lives can be simultaneously maintained . ''
`` We have firmly defended the frontlines of the quarantine based on the strength of our people and have been winning the war against the virus , '' Moon said .

South Korea Records Spike In New Coronavirus Cases After Nightclub Outbreak
Enlarge this image toggle caption Ahn Young-joon/AP Ahn Young-joon/AP
South Korea reported 34 new coronavirus infections Sunday, its highest daily tally in about a month, following an outbreak tied to several nightclubs and bars.
Korean health officials said that 24 of the new cases originate from Seoul's Itaewon neighborhood. Authorities had recently identified a 29-year-old man who tested positive for the virus after visiting five nightclubs and bars in the commercial district.
Authorities believe as many as 1,500 people were in attendance during the time the man said he visited those clubs over the weekend of May 1.
Overall, at least 54 cases have been linked to that outbreak, including 43 nightclub patrons and another 11 people acquainted with the clubgoers. In response, Seoul closed bars and nightclubs this weekend as authorities worked to contain the outbreak.
The spike of new infections is the highest South Korea has seen since reporting 39 new cases on April 9. In the subsequent weeks, infections originating within the country declined drastically, with health authorities at one point reporting zero new domestic cases.
Global health experts credit South Korea's rapid and thorough response in curtailing the outbreak in the early hot spot. In total, the country has seen at least 10,874 infections and 256 deaths because of the coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins University.
In a speech on Sunday, President Moon Jae-in warned South Koreans that they were in for a "prolonged war" against COVID-19.
"It will be a long time before the COVID-19 outbreak has ended completely. We should also brace for the pandemic's second wave, which many experts are predicting," Moon said during his address.
Moon also praised his country's response, saying South Korea had set the "global standard" in handling the COVID-19 pandemic and had managed to transition to "a new normal in which safety precautions against the virus and daily lives can be simultaneously maintained."
"We have firmly defended the front lines of the quarantine based on the strength of our people and have been winning the war against the virus," Moon said.


npr--2020-05-10--Why A Historic Wave Of Latino Prosperity Is Under Threat Now

Why A Historic Wave Of Latino Prosperity Is Under Threat Now It was just a few months ago when things were looking up for Latinos .
Wages were rising and unemployment had hit a record low .
As the U.S. economy marked its longest expansion on record , Latino families marked better times with milestone purchases .
They bought more homes than any ethnic group , including whites .
Another positive : a record number of Hispanics started attending college with enrollment nearly tripling in the last two decades .
Now , that historic wave of Latino prosperity appears to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The devastation in job losses is widespread in America , as the unemployment rate has climbed to 14.7 % , the highest level since the Great Depression .
But the latest U.S. jobs report shows that Latinos are the worst hit , with a record jobless rate of 18.9 % , higher than any other ethnic group .
Research shows that minority communities are especially vulnerable in economic downturns .
During the Great Recession just over a decade ago , Latino fortunes were harmed far more than whites , and the damage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to regain lost jobs and wages .
And it 's especially hard for immigrants .
`` Migrants are not only the first ones to lose their job but will be the last ones to regain it , '' Manuel Orozco , a director at the Inter-American Dialogue and also a senior fellow at Harvard University 's Center for International Development of the Inter-American Dialogue .
This time , the pain could be far worse .
In the span of just two months , millions of jobs have evaporated , particularly from businesses that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hotels , restaurants , bars , building services .
No one is traveling or going out to eat during the lockdowns and that has sliced 5.5 million jobs from restaurants and bars and another 839,000 from hotels in April alone .
And with offices shut down , it 's led to another 259,000 job losses from building services — an industry with over 40 % Hispanic employees .
Workers like Anabel , from El Salvador , who has lived in Los Angeles for 12 years .
Until recently , Anabel worked two jobs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Beverly Hills designer store and one day a week at an office building — making $ 14 an hour .
But the store closed a few weeks ago and she still has the the building job , but that 's just four hours of work , and she makes barely enough to make ends meet .
Anabel says she did n't pay her May rent — it was the first time she was delinquent .
`` All of us here in the apartment building have gone to the manager and said we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ NPR .
`` How can we pay without jobs ? ''
She says the apartment building manager has warned renters not to fall too far behind , otherwise they 'll be evicted once the statewide moratorium on evictions is lifted .
Anabel says she picks up food from the local church and a food pantry .
She 's sewing masks to try and make some money .
Anabel asked NPR to use only her first name , since she is undocumented .
Activists and economists who track the Latino community worry that Anabel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workers who are undocumented have also lost income in large numbers .
This largely hidden workforce is more than 2.5 million strong , according to the National Domestic Workers Alliance .
Many of them are out of work because of social distancing .
They include workers like house cleaners , cooking , laundry and caring for dependents .
More than half of them identify as Hispanic or Latina , more than 90 % are women , and most of them are primary breadwinners for their families , according to a survey titled the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Among the country 's lowest paid jobs , these workers have very little savings , they do n't qualify for federal or state relief programs , and have few places to go for help .
The Hispanic population has more than doubled in the past two decades .
They have made enormous strides during the economic recovery of the last decade , but they are still very vulnerable .
Hispanics still earn about 25 % less than white workers do .
And even though their poverty rate fell to an all-time low @ @ @ @ @ @ @ double the rate of non-Hispanic whites .
The hope was that the recent wins would continue , and lift the community from out of America 's underclass .
The coronavirus has arrested that march forward with no end in sight , for now .

Why A Historic Wave Of Latino Prosperity Is Under Threat Now
Enlarge this image toggle caption Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images
It was just a few months ago when things were looking up for Latinos. Wages were rising and unemployment had hit a record low.
As the U.S. economy marked its longest expansion on record, Latino families marked better times with milestone purchases. They bought more homes than any ethnic group, including whites. Another positive: a record number of Hispanics started attending college with enrollment nearly tripling in the last two decades.
Now, that historic wave of Latino prosperity appears to be at risk from the coronavirus pandemic. The devastation in job losses is widespread in America, as the unemployment rate has climbed to 14.7%, the highest level since the Great Depression. But the latest U.S. jobs report shows that Latinos are the worst hit, with a record jobless rate of 18.9%, higher than any other ethnic group.
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Research shows that minority communities are especially vulnerable in economic downturns. During the Great Recession just over a decade ago, Latino fortunes were harmed far more than whites, and the damage endured. It took longer for them to regain lost jobs and wages. And it's especially hard for immigrants.
"Migrants are not only the first ones to lose their job but will be the last ones to regain it," Manuel Orozco, a director at the Inter-American Dialogue and also a senior fellow at Harvard University's Center for International Development of the Inter-American Dialogue.
This time, the pain could be far worse.
In the span of just two months, millions of jobs have evaporated, particularly from businesses that employ a large number of Hispanics — hotels, restaurants, bars, building services.
No one is traveling or going out to eat during the lockdowns and that has sliced 5.5 million jobs from restaurants and bars and another 839,000 from hotels in April alone.
And with offices shut down, it's led to another 259,000 job losses from building services — an industry with over 40% Hispanic employees. Workers like Anabel, from El Salvador, who has lived in Los Angeles for 12 years.
Until recently, Anabel worked two jobs — four days as a cleaner at a Beverly Hills designer store and one day a week at an office building — making $14 an hour. But the store closed a few weeks ago and she still has the the building job, but that's just four hours of work, and she makes barely enough to make ends meet.
Anabel says she didn't pay her May rent — it was the first time she was delinquent.
"All of us here in the apartment building have gone to the manager and said we can't pay," Anabel told NPR. "How can we pay without jobs?"
She says the apartment building manager has warned renters not to fall too far behind, otherwise they'll be evicted once the statewide moratorium on evictions is lifted.
Anabel says she picks up food from the local church and a food pantry. She's sewing masks to try and make some money. Anabel asked NPR to use only her first name, since she is undocumented.
Activists and economists who track the Latino community worry that Anabel's plight is widespread. Many domestic workers who are undocumented have also lost income in large numbers. This largely hidden workforce is more than 2.5 million strong, according to the National Domestic Workers Alliance. Many of them are out of work because of social distancing. They include workers like house cleaners, cooking, laundry and caring for dependents.
More than half of them identify as Hispanic or Latina, more than 90% are women, and most of them are primary breadwinners for their families, according to a survey titled the Invisible and Unregulated World of Domestic Work. Among the country's lowest paid jobs, these workers have very little savings, they don't qualify for federal or state relief programs, and have few places to go for help.
The Hispanic population has more than doubled in the past two decades. They have made enormous strides during the economic recovery of the last decade, but they are still very vulnerable. Hispanics still earn about 25% less than white workers do. And even though their poverty rate fell to an all-time low recently, it was still more than double the rate of non-Hispanic whites.
The hope was that the recent wins would continue, and lift the community from out of America's underclass. The coronavirus has arrested that march forward with no end in sight, for now.
NPR's Carrie Kahn contributed reporting for this story.


npr--2020-05-10--Too Much Alone Time? Tips To Connect And Find Joy While Social Distancing

Too Much Alone Time ?
Tips To Connect And Find Joy While Social Distancing We are social creatures .
So it 's no surprise that quarantine fatigue has begun to set in .
`` Humans are wired to come together physically , '' says psychologist Judith Moskowitz of Northwestern University .
But , loneliness has become widespread in modern life .
And , social distancing has just exacerbated the problem , '' Moskowitz says .
Finding ways to connect is essential to our well-being , since prolonged isolation can increase the risk of depression and anxiety , says Dr. Sandro @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Public Health .
`` We know from other events , the longer the isolation , the more risk , '' Galea says .
Social distancing recommendations will remain in place for months to come , and until there 's a vaccine , limits on big gatherings will likely continue .
For the elderly or those who live alone , the isolation can be particularly grueling .
But , people are finding new ways to interact with each other , even under extraordinary circumstances .
Here are some strategies to connect with others .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ sadness or anxiety that interferes with day-to-day life , consider seeing a therapist ( which you can do online , too ) .
1 .
Do n't scroll , but do connect online , with real-time activities When it comes to our emotional health , social media platforms can be a double-edged sword .
Simply scrolling through a Facebook , TikTok or Instagram feed may not help you connect with other people in a meaningful way .
So instead of cultivating that empty FOMO ( fear of missing out ) feeling , use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more intentionally , more deeply .
Start by asking yourself : What matters to you ?
Do you have a hobby you 'd like to resurrect , or take up for the first time ?
A whole world of online , live-streamed classes has opened up , from ceramics to languages to bread-making .
Always wanted to play the banjo ?
`` Find a banjo class , '' says Judith Moskowitz , a psychologists at Northwestern University .
The face-to-face , real time connections allow us to pick up on facial expressions and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
A live , synchronous class , Moskowitz says , `` is one way to get to know people and to broaden your social network . ''
Outside of classes , if you use social media to stay in touch with friends , instead of just commenting on posts , make the effort to interact one-on-one , says Joe Walther , who directs the Center for Information Technology & Society at the University of California Santa Barbara .
`` It 's the intimacy of the messages , and the depth of the interactive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he says .
2 .
Making art is a social act : Express yourself and share .
Looking for a place to connect with others who use art to express themselves ?
The UnLonely Project has created a community through its Stuck At Home Together initiative .
You can watch a short film , then participate in an online conversation .
You can view others ' art or share your own .
And for motivation to get started , the group has designed creative challenges , like crafting a self-portrait from objects around @ @ @ @ @ @ @ initiatives includes physicians and researchers who document how the creative processes can help people maintain good health and fend off disease .
`` When you make art , you are in the moment — you are with [ your ] thoughts and feelings , '' says Jeremy Nobel , who founded the program and is also on the faculty at Harvard Medical School .
And by sharing what you create , it 's as if you 're sharing a `` representation of your thoughts and feelings , whether it 's a painting , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or a garden , '' Nobel says .
He says loneliness is n't just about lacking companionship .
`` Often loneliness starts with a sense of estrangement or disconnection from who you are .
How do you fit into the world ? ''
Nobel says .
Art can be very powerful for centering and positioning — a way to explore your own identity .
`` And I actually believe for many people , that 's an essential first step to connecting with other people in an authentic way , '' Nobel says .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ For many elderly people , social distancing has brought layers of challenges .
`` It 's not just the lack of contact with others , '' says physician Kelli Tice Wells who is a senior medical director at health insurer Florida Blue .
It 's also `` not being able to navigate things that can be critical to your life '' such as on-line grocery shopping or getting prescriptions , Wells says .
Florida Blue now offers virtual companionship and assistance to seniors through a program called Papa Pals , which matches elderly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ paid to provide assistance .
Miriam Membreno , of Miami , Fla. , who is trained as a social worker , recently started working as a Papa Pal , after her hours at her regular job were cut short .
She meets with a few elderly people virtually .
`` I do feel like I 'm helping them be less lonely , '' Membreno says .
She says sometimes they just want to share stories , and she likes to listen .
Other times , during a virtual visit , she says , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up .
`` Just having those stress and concerns released , '' is worthwhile , she says .
Another program for seniors , Live a Dream , collects video montages to brighten a senior 's day .
Young people can submit a short video to share .
You can tell a joke , play an instrument , or just give some encouraging words .
There are numerous efforts to connect elderly people in senior living facilities with younger people around the country .
Check with local groups to find one where you live @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a online tutor , or assistant to the visually impaired : Find your way to volunteer , virtually As many community organizations struggle to keep up with rising needs and shrinking budgets , volunteer options — even contactless ones — abound .
Does the idea of becoming a citizen scholar sound intriguing ?
The Smithsonian has digital volunteer opportunities .
For instance , `` citizen scholars are invited to transcribe historic documents including diaries and working papers of prominent Americans , '' according to the Smithsonian website .
To get involved , you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Or , you could help people with low-vision , a program called Be My Eyes , is an app that connects people who are blind or have low-vision with volunteers who offer virtual assistance .
VolunteerMatch , a database of volunteer opportunities has a searchable site for virtual volunteering , with thousands of postings around the country , calling for all kinds of skills from tutoring kids to making face masks .
Find more options on Idealist.org .
5 .
Keep friendships alive , with small acts of kindness Sometimes , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Even though we ca n't bake together , think about dropping off some cookies to a friend .
Ask your neighbor if you can pick up some grocery items for them on your next trip .
Organize a puzzle or game swap .
During these strange and difficult times , `` you can feel like you 're really depleted and you have nothing to give , '' says Judith Moskowitz .
`` But just a simple act of helping someone else out comes back and bolsters you as well , '' she says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our spirits .
`` And that really feels good . ''
Look for creative ways to nourish your friendships , like working through a cookbook together , or watching movies together , suggests Lydia Denworth , author of Friendship : The Evolution , Biology , and Extraordinary Power of Life 's Fundamental Bond .
And do n't miss the opportunity for small touch points throughout the day : Even sharing a joke over text can make you feel less alone , she says .
`` Friendship is critical in times of stress — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Denworth says .

Too Much Alone Time? Tips To Connect And Find Joy While Social Distancing
Enlarge this image Tracy Lee for NPR Tracy Lee for NPR
We are social creatures. So it's no surprise that quarantine fatigue has begun to set in.
"Humans are wired to come together physically," says psychologist Judith Moskowitz of Northwestern University. But, loneliness has become widespread in modern life. And, social distancing has just exacerbated the problem, Moskowitz says.
Social connection is essential to our well-being, since prolonged isolation can increase the risk of depression and anxiety, says Dr. Sandro Galea of Boston University's School of Public Health. "We know from other events, the longer the isolation, the more risk," Galea says.
Social distancing recommendations will remain in place for months to come, and until there's a vaccine, limits on big gatherings will likely continue. For the elderly or those who live alone, the isolation can be particularly grueling. But, people are finding new ways to interact with each other, even under extraordinary circumstances.
Here are some strategies to connect with others.
Note: If you're feeling persistent sadness or anxiety that interferes with day-to-day life, consider seeing a therapist (which you can do online, too).
1. Don't scroll, but do connect online, with real-time activities
When it comes to our emotional health, social media platforms can be a double-edged sword. Simply scrolling through a Facebook, TikTok or Instagram feed may not help you connect with other people in a meaningful way.
So instead of cultivating that empty FOMO (fear of missing out) feeling, use the power of virtual platforms to connect more intentionally, more deeply.
Start by asking yourself: What matters to you? Do you have a hobby you'd like to resurrect, or take up for the first time? A whole world of online, live-streamed classes has opened up, from ceramics to languages to bread-making. Always wanted to play the banjo? "Find a banjo class," says Judith Moskowitz, a psychologists at Northwestern University.
The face-to-face, real time connections allow us to pick up on facial expressions and body language to better simulate real-world gatherings. A live, synchronous class, Moskowitz says, "is one way to get to know people and to broaden your social network."
Outside of classes, if you use social media to stay in touch with friends, instead of just commenting on posts, make the effort to interact one-on-one, says Joe Walther, who directs the Center for Information Technology & Society at the University of California Santa Barbara. "It's the intimacy of the messages, and the depth of the interactive conversation that will sustain us," he says.
2. Making art is a social act: Express yourself and share.
Looking for a place to connect with others who use art to express themselves? The UnLonely Project has created a community through its Stuck At Home Together initiative. You can watch a short film, then participate in an online conversation. You can view others' art or share your own. And for motivation to get started, the group has designed creative challenges, like crafting a self-portrait from objects around the house.
The group behind these initiatives includes physicians and researchers who document how the creative processes can help people maintain good health and fend off disease. "When you make art, you are in the moment — you are with [your] thoughts and feelings," says Jeremy Nobel, who founded the program and is also on the faculty at Harvard Medical School.
And by sharing what you create, it's as if you're sharing a "representation of your thoughts and feelings, whether it's a painting, a poem, a baked good, or a garden," Nobel says.
He says loneliness isn't just about lacking companionship. "Often loneliness starts with a sense of estrangement or disconnection from who you are. How do you fit into the world?" Nobel says.
Art can be very powerful for centering and positioning — a way to explore your own identity. "And I actually believe for many people, that's an essential first step to connecting with other people in an authentic way," Nobel says.
3. Reach out to the elderly
For many elderly people, social distancing has brought layers of challenges. "It's not just the lack of contact with others," says physician Kelli Tice Wells who is a senior medical director at health insurer Florida Blue. It's also "not being able to navigate things that can be critical to your life" such as on-line grocery shopping or getting prescriptions, Wells says.
Florida Blue now offers virtual companionship and assistance to seniors through a program called Papa Pals, which matches elderly adults with younger people, who are paid to provide assistance.
Miriam Membreno, of Miami, Fla., who is trained as a social worker, recently started working as a Papa Pal, after her hours at her regular job were cut short. She meets with a few elderly people virtually.
"I do feel like I'm helping them be less lonely," Membreno says. She says sometimes they just want to share stories, and she likes to listen. Other times, during a virtual visit, she says, they share worries that they have bottled up. "Just having those stress and concerns released," is worthwhile, she says.
Another program for seniors, Live a Dream, collects video montages to brighten a senior's day. Young people can submit a short video to share. You can tell a joke, play an instrument, or just give some encouraging words.
There are numerous efforts to connect elderly people in senior living facilities with younger people around the country. Check with local groups to find one where you live.
4. Become a citizen-scholar, a online tutor, or assistant to the visually impaired: Find your way to volunteer, virtually
As many community organizations struggle to keep up with rising needs and shrinking budgets, volunteer options — even contactless ones — abound.
Does the idea of becoming a citizen scholar sound intriguing? The Smithsonian has digital volunteer opportunities. For instance, "citizen scholars are invited to transcribe historic documents including diaries and working papers of prominent Americans," according to the Smithsonian website. To get involved, you can check out the Smithsonian Transcription Center.
Or, you could help people with low-vision, a program called Be My Eyes, is an app that connects people who are blind or have low-vision with volunteers who offer virtual assistance.
VolunteerMatch, a database of volunteer opportunities has a searchable site for virtual volunteering, with thousands of postings around the country, calling for all kinds of skills from tutoring kids to making face masks. Find more options on Idealist.org.
5. Keep friendships alive, with small acts of kindness
Sometimes, a small gesture can help you reconnect. Even though we can't bake together, think about dropping off some cookies to a friend. Ask your neighbor if you can pick up some grocery items for them on your next trip. Organize a puzzle or game swap.
During these strange and difficult times, "you can feel like you're really depleted and you have nothing to give," says Judith Moskowitz. "But just a simple act of helping someone else out comes back and bolsters you as well," she says. An act of kindness can lift our spirits. "And that really feels good."
Look for creative ways to nourish your friendships, like working through a cookbook together, or watching movies together, suggests Lydia Denworth, author of Friendship: The Evolution, Biology, and Extraordinary Power of Life's Fundamental Bond. And don't miss the opportunity for small touch points throughout the day: Even sharing a joke over text can make you feel less alone, she says.
"Friendship is critical in times of stress — that's what friendship is for," Denworth says.
Elena Renken contributed to this report.