Day: March 3, 2021

US Health Official: ‘Now is Not the Time’ to End COVID-19 Restrictions

The head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Wednesday “now is not the time” to lift COVID-19 restrictions, one day after the governor of Texas announced the southern U.S. state was “100 percent open.”  At a virtual news briefing for the White House COVID-19 response, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the next month or two will be pivotal in deciding the trajectory of the pandemic.    FILE – In this image from video, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky speaks during a briefing on the Biden administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Jan. 27, 2021, in Washington. (White House via AP)On one hand, she noted infection rates across the country have been leveling off, but, she said, COVID-19 variants such as the highly transmissible so-called British strain, are poised to surge. This threatens to destroy what progress has been made.   Walensky also recognized that pandemic fatigue is winning out and people have begun ignoring measures that she says have successfully contributed to driving down U.S. infection rates.   The CDC director said this is occurring just as the United States begins a program to vaccinate the entire nation over the course of three or four months.  Walensky urged Americans to keep wearing masks and communities to encourage mask use. She advocated for precautions such as avoiding travel, crowds and to continue practicing personal hygiene, whether it is government-mandated or not.   Texas’ Republican Governor Greg Abbott Tuesday lifted his state’s mask-wearing mandate, along with all other restrictions on businesses, saying Texas has mastered the daily habits necessary to avoid getting COVID-19. 

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COVID-19 Exposes Hearing Problems 

The World Health Organization says one in 10 people worldwide is expected to suffer from hearing loss by 2050. But in the United States, health officials say around 20 percent of America’s adult population is already experiencing some level of hearing loss and the coronavirus pandemic has exposed the problem to a greater extent. As the country marks FILE – Director of Empowering Deaf Society Mangai Sutharsan, puts on a partially transparent mask following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Ilford, London, Britain, July 29, 2020.Experts are also worried about the next generation of Americans. While children with hearing problems often show poor school performance, hearing loss in teenagers has been on the rise.  Currently, one in five teens exhibits some level of loss, according to the Hearing Loss Association of America. This number has increased by more than 30 percent since the 1990s, which to some extent has to do with “listening to loud music,” Shoup said. About 466 million people worldwide struggle with disabling hearing loss, according to the WHO. By 2050, this number could rise to 900 million people. In 2007, the World Health Organization designated March 3 as World Hearing Health Day to raise awareness of the growing numbers of those suffering from hearing loss and the importance of hearing health care. FILE – Resound LiNX2 connected smart hearing aids are shown at ShowStoppers during the 2017 Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada, Jan. 5, 2017.In 2017, the National Institute on Deafness & Other Communication Disorders, whisih is part of the National Institutes of Health, said that 48 million Americans suffer some type of hearing loss.  “The growing health problem of hearing loss is often unrecognized in U.S. adults, adolescents and children and it leads to a long list of problems including depression, isolation, academic delays, impaired communication and cognitive decline. We are grateful that this awareness day was created to shine a light on the significance of hearing loss,” said Shoup. Shoup is also the executive director of the Callier Center for Communication Disorders and a professor of speech, language and hearing in the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences at the University of Texas at Dallas.  FILE – An employee of GN, the world’s fourth largest maker of hearing aids, demonstrates the use of ReSound LiNX in Vienna, Nov. 22, 2013.“We also look to this day to help educate the public on the importance of seeing an audiologist for professional evaluation and management of hearing and balance difficulties,” she said.   According to the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders, approximately 20 percent of American adults aged 20 to 69 have some trouble with hearing and approximately 28.8 million could benefit from the use of hearing aids.    Some signs of hearing loss may include:…  Suddenly having to turn up the volume of the television, radio, or stereo and having other family members complain that the volume is too loud. Difficulty understanding people speaking to you and asking people to repeat themselves. Difficulty with phone conversations and understanding the other person. Sudden inability to hear the door bell, the dog barking, and other household sounds. People telling you that you speak too loudly. Ringing in the ears.   

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Seattle Struggles with Protest Signage: Art? Or Graffiti?

With this past year’s city-shaking protests and quarantine closures, shops in cities across the country have been boarded up. In Seattle and other American cities, the plywood, – along with walls, sidewalks and even roads – have become a canvas for artists. As life gradually returns to normal, one question lingers: what will happen to the protest art many see as part of history in the making? Natasha Mozgovaya has more.

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Brazilian Variant of COVID-19 Could Resist Vaccine, Scientists Warn

Scientists are warning that a variant of the novel coronavirus that was first detected in Brazil could reinfect people already recovering from COVID-19.  The P.1 variant has spread to more than 20 countries since it was first detected last November in the Amazonian region city of Manaus.  A joint study by scientists in Britain and Brazil says the variant is 1.4 to 2.4 times more transmissible than the original version of the coronavirus.  Manaus was struck by an initial wave of COVID-19 infections in April and May of last year.  According to researchers, by October almost 80% of recovering coronavirus patients should have developed antibodies that would have made them immune to the virus. Peru will Receive a Second Vaccine Wednesday to Battle COVID-19Peru to receive the first batch of 50,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine Wednesday    But 25% to 61% of those who had recovered from a first bout of COVID-19 were reinfected with the P.1 variant, according to the study, which has not been peer-reviewed.Scientists are worried that new and more infectious variants of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 could be resistant to vaccine now being distributed around the world.  But Nuno Faria, a virologist at Imperial College London who co-led the study, says it is too early to determine if the situation in Brazil with the P.1 variant will also occur elsewhere.  The release of the study on the P.1 variant coincided with official data from Brazil showing it had recorded its highest single-day number of COVID-19 deaths with 1,641.The COVID-19 pandemic has sickened more than 114.8 million people around the globe since it was first detected in central China in late 2019, including 2.5 million deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center.The pandemic has also led to what the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has described as an “education emergency,” with more than 168 million children around the world locked out of the classroom for nearly a year.   UNICEF says 98 million children across Latin America and the Caribbean account for the majority of students who have missed in-person learning.  U.S. country music superstar Dolly Parton tried to inject hope and encouragement Tuesday as she was injected with her first dose of the Moderna vaccine. In a short video she posted on Twitter, the 75-year-old singer-songwriter received the vaccine at Vanderbilt University Health Center in Nashville, Tennessee.Dolly gets a dose of her own medicine. @VUMChealthpic.twitter.com/38kJrDzLqC— Dolly Parton (@DollyParton) March 2, 2021Before getting the shot, Parton revamped one of her most famous songs, “Jolene,” to encourage viewers to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

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WHO Says 1.5 Billion People Suffer Hearing Loss Globally 

To mark World Hearing Day, the World Health Organization is calling for action to stem the epidemic of hearing loss, which currently affects 1.5 billion people globally.  A roadmap for action is contained in WHO’s first World Report on Hearing.     WHO officials warn nearly 2.5 billion people will be living with some degree of hearing loss by 2050 if nothing is done to prevent or mitigate this condition.  Nearly a third, they say will require hearing rehabilitation.   The personal and economic cost of this condition is huge.  Many people who are deaf or suffer from varying degrees of hearing loss are stigmatized and spend much of their lives in isolation.   Additionally, WHO reports unaddressed hearing loss costs the global economy nearly $1 trillion  each year.   WHO technical officer on ear and hearing care Shelly Chadha says much of this hearing loss can be prevented.   “Many of the causes, for example, hearing loss which is caused by listening to loud music over one’s headphones and earphones — this can be prevented.  As can be hearing loss, which is caused by loud noise in one’s workplace.  Other common causes of hearing loss — ear infections, rubella, meningitis — these are causes which can be prevented by established public health strategies.”     Chadha notes almost 60% of hearing loss in children is due to avoidable causes such as ear infections and birth complications.  She says solutions are available.  She says hearing technologies, such as hearing aids and cochlear implants accompanied by rehabilitative therapy can mitigate the adverse effects of hearing loss.   “Millions of people across the world are already benefiting from these interventions.  But they are a bit of an exclusive group because what we estimate is that across the world only about 17 percent of people who need these services actually are able to benefit from them,” she said.     People in low-income countries are the most underserved because they lack the specialists, audiologists and speech therapists who can provide the care required.  WHO says this gap can be closed by integrating ear and hearing care into national primary health care services.   WHO calls this a great investment, noting for every dollar invested in hearing loss care, governments can expect a return of nearly $16.  

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Japan Billionaire Offers Space Seats to Moon

It’s the sort of chance that comes along just once in a blue Moon: a Japanese billionaire is throwing open a private lunar expedition to eight people from around the world. Yusaku Maezawa, an online fashion tycoon, was announced in 2018 as the first man to book a spot aboard the lunar spaceship being developed by SpaceX. Maezawa, who paid an undisclosed sum for the trip expected to launch around 2023, originally said he planned to invite six to eight artists to join him on the voyage.But on Wednesday, in a video posted on his Twitter account, he revealed a broader application process. “I’m inviting you to join me on this mission. Eight of you from all around the world,” he said. “I have bought all the seats, so it will be a private ride,” he added. Maezawa said his initial plan of inviting artists had “evolved” because he came to believe that “every single person who is doing something creative could be called an artist.” The Japanese entrepreneur said applicants would need to fulfill just two criteria: being ready to “push the envelope” creatively, and being willing to help other crew members do the same. In all, he said around 10 to 12 people will be on board the trip, which is expected to loop around the Moon before returning to Earth. The application timeline for spots on the trip calls for would-be space travelers to pre-register by March 14th, with initial screening carried out by March 21st. No deadlines are given for the next stages – an “assignment” and an online interview – but final interviews and medical checkups are currently scheduled for late May 2021, according to Maezawa’s website. Maezawa and his band of merry astronauts will become the first lunar voyages since the last US Apollo mission in 1972 – if SpaceX can pull the trip off.   Last month, a prototype of its Starship crashed in a fireball as it tried to land upright after a test flight, the second such accident, after the last prototype of the Starship met a similar fate in December. The company hopes the reusable, 394-foot (120-meter) rocket system will one day carry crew and cargo to the Moon, Mars and beyond. 

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Biden: Enough Vaccine for Every Adult American by End of May  

Merck will help its pharmaceutical competitor Johnson & Johnson make the single-shot coronavirus vaccine. That was announced on Tuesday by President Joe Biden.VOA’s White House bureau chief Steve Herman was in the room when the president also said he wants every American educator to receive at least one vaccine dose by the end of this month, as part of the effort to get the country back to normal as quickly as possible.President Biden, speaking in the White House State Dining Room, says the cooperation among competitors to produce more doses and other actions will speed up the timeline by two months to have enough vaccine to inoculate every adult American.“Here’s what all this means – we’re now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in America by the end of May.”The president, in response to a reporter’s question, said he hopes that “by this time next year” or sooner, things will be back to normal.  

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