Town prepares to reopen municipal buildings
By Melanie Petrucci,Senior Community Reporter
Shrewsbury Due to another discrepancy in how COVID-19 cases are being reporter, the town of Shrewsbury has been notified by the Central Massachusetts Regional Public Health Alliance (CMRPHA,) that there were an additional 32 unreported positive cases and five more as of June 4.
The office of Town Manager Kevin Mizikar released a memo on June 4 advising the town was reporting a higher increase of total positive cases of COVID-19. The memo noted that there had been no positive cases reported since May 26 and on that date the cumulative positive cases since March 1 was 270. The correct number is now 307.
This is the second time there has been a discrepancy in reported numbers. The first discrepancy was reported on April 21.
As the numbers are coming in a Reopening Task Force has been formed with Assistant Town Manager Kristen Las serving as chair and Angela Snell, superintendent of public facilities and parks, vice-chair. Members include town employees from administrative assistants to department heads.
The task force is following a similar phased timeline as the state and oversees the reopening of Town Hall, the Senior Center and the Library.
Currently, the Town is in Phase I and all building are still closed to the public. However, employees are working either in the office or remotely in accordance with Governor Charlie Bakers suggestion that if employees are able to work effectively from home then that is the preferred protocol at this time.
Phase I meets the states requirements for office space of the 25 percent capacity and it meets the safety standard requirements, required training on safety and hygiene for all staff, Las said.
The Reopening Task force is now working on what Phase II may look like, Las said. That may be allowing the public back into Town Hall by appointment only.
The Library is still working on Phase I which permits library materials to be picked up and returned curbside.
The Council on Aging is working to bring back transportation which was stalled in March. Meals on Wheels have continued to operate during the pandemic.
Phase II could start as soon as June 8. We do not have an idea at this time when the Town Hall would be open for appointments, Las noted.
When asked about the parks and playgrounds, Las replied that tennis courts at Dean Park, Coolidge School and Oak Middle School were open to the public but playgrounds, basketball courts and all facilities at Shrewsbury High School remain closed. However, all parks are open for passive recreation.
The Town is taking all the guidance from the state under very serious consideration. We are planning for the safety of not only the employees but most importantly the Town residents, she explained. If anyone needs anything we certainly are all answering phones and email and are getting back to people as soon as possible.
She also reminded that payments of bills can be done online or residents can use the drop box in front of the Town Hall.
The Delaware Division of Public Health reports two fatalities related to COVID-19 as the number of hospitalized fell to 117 from 174 a week earlier.
The two who died were both women with underlying health conditions, and they were both resident of long-term care facilities. One woman was 62, the other 92, and one was from New Castle County, and the other Kent.
In total, 390 Delawareans have passed away due to complications from COVID-19. Individuals who have died from COVID-19 ranged in age from 21 to 103 years old. Of those who have died, 208 were females and 182 were males. A total of 174 individuals were from New Castle County, 72 were from Kent County, and 144 were from Sussex County.
The latest Delaware COVID-19 case statistics* cumulatively since March 11, provided as of 6 p.m., Friday, June 5, include:
9,845 total positive cases
New Castle County cases: 3,995
Kent County cases: 1,496
Sussex County cases: 4,342
Unknown County: 12
Females: 5,433; Males: 4,394; Unknown: 18
Age range: 0 to 103
Currently hospitalized: 117; Critically ill: 24 (This data represents individuals currently hospitalized in a Delaware hospital regardless of residence, and is not cumulative.)
Delawareans recovered: 5,696
57,790 negative cases
As more and more states beGIN to ease restrictions and open back up, health experts warn of a resurgence of COVID-19 cases -- a so-called second wave. Whether that wave comes during the summer, in the middle of fall, or at some point in winter is tough to predict, but in the absence of a widely available COVID-19 vaccine, those who study pandemics for a living have stated repeatedly that it may be inevitable.
Clearly, that poses a number of concerns not just from a health perspective, but from a financial one, too. Since mid-March, millions of Americans have lost their jobs and unemployment rates have reached record highs. Meanwhile, countless small businesses risk never managing to reopen due to having been shut down for the better part of the past few months.
Image source: Getty Images.
Plus, mid-March saw the first stock market tumble into bear market territory in over a decade. And while the market has already recovered some of those losses, if a second large influx of cases hits, we could see a crash that's just as bad -- if not worse -- than what we experienced in March.
If you're worried about a second wave of COVID-19, there are a few steps you can take to protect yourself financially. Here are a few to focus on.
Under normal circumstances, it's wise to have enough money in savings to pay for three to six months of living expenses. But these aren't normal circumstances, and so it pays to aim for that six-month mark or higher, if you're worried about your job. Having that money available will help you avoid resorting to debt if your income takes a hit during a second COVID-19 wave. It will also help you avoid the temptation to tap your retirement plan prematurely, which may not hurt you immediately, but could have huge repercussions later in life.
If your income takes a hit during a second wave of COVID-19, you may need to borrow money to stay afloat. And while you could borrow from your 401(k) plan, doing so is a risky proposition -- namely because if you fail to repay your loan on time, you could face huge penalties on the amount you borrow. As such, it pays to apply for a home equity line of credit (HELOC) if you're a homeowner. With a HELOC, you don't borrow money right away; you simply secure a line of credit you can draw from as needed. That way, you're not paying interest on money you don't require right away.
Though many Americans have been struggling with income loss during the pandemic, others have actually benefited financially from the stay-at-home orders that were put in place months back. If you're still not commuting to work or spending money on entertainment outside the home, you may have a solid opportunity to increase your retirement plan contributions. And that can help you in a couple of ways. First, if you're saving in a traditional IRA or 401(k), as opposed to a Roth, ramping up your contributions will lower your tax burden for 2020, saving you some money that way. Secondly, if your income takes a dive later on in the year, you may not be able to fund your retirement plan at that point, so boosting your contributions now will take the pressure off.
It's too soon to tell how the COVID-19 outbreak will play out. Scientists are working furiously to develop therapies that improve COVID-19 outcomes or, better yet, prevent infection altogether. But until that happens, we all have to brace for the possibility of a second wave of the pandemic -- and do our best to protect ourselves financially in light of it.
DEFIANCE, Ohio The road to recovery for coronavirus patients is not the same. Many who have gotten the disease have been able to self-quarantine at home. But others have been stuck on ventilators and even on the brink of death.
Kyle Herren, a 26-year-old man from Defiance, Ohio, had never had the flu or pneumonia in his life. On Friday, April 17, he checked into a hospital for a cough and he was released, but not for long.
"We went back Saturday and I'm like 'my chest is still hurting'," said Herren. "Something isn't right."
Herren thought the cough was just allergies. But after returning to the hospital on April 18, three days later he was intubated in a medically-induced coma for three weeks. The treatment included a feeding tube.
Herren says he doesn't remember much during that time.
"It sucked," he said.
His mom Amy said the uncertainty was tough on the family but the staff at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton was amazing.
"The fourth week, when he was coming out of it," she said, "and the nurses were nice enough to use their phones to let us video chat with him. I mean that was a huge relief."
Kyle said he saw seven people leave the room next to him only to be replaced immediately by more facing down the virus.
"Not seeing my family was tough," said Herren. "Being in an isolated room and only seeing someone every two to three hours."
After finally seeing some improvement in late May, he suffered some setbacks. You need to test negative for the virus twice in a row to be discharged. It took him three tries before he was finally discharged on May 26.
Amy said she wants people to know anyone can be affected.
"You don't have to have any preexisting conditions to get it really bad," she noted. "Kyle is a young guy, healthy, never been in the hospital before, and he got it to an extreme."
Kyle is doing much better but still has some muscle aches. He said the pandemic is not over and wants everyone to continue to stay safe and protect others.
"Now, after having it, I want people to know it's real," Kyle said. "You can get it and it's not something to mess around with."
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Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Seema Verma, pictured at a White House event last month, says her agency will be stepping up fines for nursing homes that fail to sufficiently control infections. Evan Vucci/AP hide caption
Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Seema Verma, pictured at a White House event last month, says her agency will be stepping up fines for nursing homes that fail to sufficiently control infections.
Newly released data from the U.S. government show that nearly 26,000 nursing home residents have died from COVID-19 and more than 60,000 have fallen ill. These figures, however, don't account for all nursing homes across the country.
According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, known as CMS, about 80% of nursing homes nationwide reported data to the CDC as is now required. The remaining 20% could face fines if they don't comply.
CMS Administrator Seema Verma told reporters on a conference call Monday that the data has limitations: Some facilities have reported cumulative figures, and some have reported weekly. She said she expects the discrepancies will even out over time. The figures will be publicly available Thursday on a government website called Nursing Home Compare.
Verma also said CMS had found that the nursing homes with the lowest ratings had some of the worst outbreaks of COVID-19. In March, CMS ordered states to inspect nursing homes for proper infection control. But figures released Monday show that nationwide, a little over half of those inspections have been done, with Nevada completing 100 percent of inspections and West Virginia completing around 11 percent.
States that do not finish all of the required infection inspections by the end of July could face having to forfeit some of their funding under the coronavirus aid package known as the CARES Act. That money could be redistributed among states that are in compliance with the requirement.
CMS also announced Monday that it will be stepping up fines for nursing homes that fail to sufficiently control infections. Nursing homes that have previously been cited for lax infection control could receive fines ranging from $5,000 to $20,000.
More emphasis should be placed on addressing the inaccuracy of diagnostic tests for COVID-19, which play a key role in containing the pandemic, say scientists, who suggest that government agencies urge manufacturers to provide details of their tests' clinical sensitivity.
Follow live updates on the COVID-19 pandemic here
The researchers, including those from The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth in the US, said there is lack of widespread testing as a major barrier to safely reopening economies.
In the analysis, published in the New england Journal of Medicine, the scientists said while progress has been made in expanding testing, there is still concern on the accuracy of the process.
"Diagnostic tests, typically involving a nasopharyngeal swab, can be inaccurate in two ways," said study lead author Steven Woloshin from The Geisel School of Medicine.
A false-positive result mistakenly labels a person infected, with consequences including unnecessary quarantine and contact tracing, Woloshin explained.
According to the scientists, the sensitivity for many available tests could be substantially lower.
Citing earlier studies, they said this value could be 70 per cent.
"At this sensitivity level, with a pretest probability of 50 per cent, the post-test probability with a negative test would be 23 per cent -- far too high to safely assume someone is uninfected," the scientists wrote in the journal article.
"False-negative results are far more consequential because infected persons who might be asymptomatic may not be isolated and can infect others," Woloshin said.
In their analysis, the researchers discussed factors contributing to the current limitations of diagnostic tests.
They said variability in test sensitivity, and the lack of a standard process for validating this is a cause for concern.
Citing several large studies, the researchers also said frequent false-negative results reported in several parts of the world are concerning.
From an analysis of a preprint systematic review of five studies, involving 957 patients under suspicion of COVID-19 or with confirmed cases, the scientists said false negatives ranged from 2 to 29 per cent.
But they said this evidence is less concrete due to the differences among the nature of the diagnosis tests used to assess these patients.
Coronavirus Worldometer | 15 countries with the highest number of cases, deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic
"However, the certainty of the evidence was considered very low because of the heterogeneity of sensitivity estimates among the studies, lack of blinding to index-test results in establishing diagnoses, and failure to report key RT-PCR characteristics," the scientists wrote in their analysis.
Based on their assessment of review research about diagnosis tests, the researchers said, frequent false negatives in the commonly used diagnosis method, RT-PCR, is concerning while the evidence on this also limited.
"Diagnostic testing will help to safely open the country, but only if the tests are highly sensitive and validated against a clinically meaningful reference standard -- otherwise we cannot confidently declare people uninfected," Woloshin said.
The researchers said, drug approval agencies like the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should ensure that test manufacturers provide details of their tests' clinical sensitivity, and specificity at the time of market authorisation.
They said tests without such information will have less relevance to patient care.
"Measuring the sensitivity of tests in asymptomatic people is an urgent priority," Woloshin said.
"A negative result on even a highly sensitive test cannot rule out infection if the pretest probability -- an estimate before testing of a person's chance of being infected -- is high, so clinicians shouldn't trust unexpected negative results," he added.
According to Woloshin, this estimate might depend on how common COVID-19 is where a person lives, their exposure history, and symptoms.
Michael Rosen, the writer, poet and broadcaster who spent 47 days in intensive care with coronavirus has taken his first steps since beginning his recovery.
Rosen, 74, the author of childrens books including Were Going on a Bear Hunt and Little Rabbit Foo Foo, charted the initial stages of his illness on Twitter before he deteriorated at the height of the pandemic.
His wife, Emma-Louise Williams, confirmed that the former childrens laureate had had Covid-19 and that he was gradually recuperating at Whittington hospital in north London.
Very pleased to say Michael is recovering steadily in a rehabilitation hospital, she tweeted. He has been making really good progress this week and has been able to take his first steps today thanks to the great NHS physios who are keeping him busy!
Rosen was keeping off social media to rest his body and mind while he deals with the physical and psychological trauma of his extended stay in hospital, she said.
In response to a letter from a 12-year-old wellwisher thanking Rosen for his poem These Are the Hands in which he celebrates the work of nurses and doctors, Williams tweeted:
The author Philip Pullman tweeted his delighted at the news of Rosens progress.
Rosen was admitted to hospital in the week of 23 March and spend his first night in intensive care on 29 March, before being placed on a ward. He returned to intensive care in early April.
He described his illness on 22 March: Cant stop my thermostat from crashing: icy hands, hot head. Freezing cold sweats. Under the covers for bed-breaking shakes. Image of war hero biting on a hankie, while best mate plunges live charcoal into the wound to cauterise it.
The next day he wondered whether he was suffering from heavy flu rather than coronavirus. Have had no chest pains. No persistent cough. So all along it could have been a heavy flu and not corona. Today the fevers are ebbing. In their place a deep muscle exhaustion. In every corner.
His updates then became sporadic and were posted by Williams soon after. On 20 Aprilshe wrote: Thanks v much for all the love. Im not updating regularly because when someone is very poorly things can change daily & details of Michaels ongoing care from fantastic NHS staff are private. So please be patient, no news is good news.
After more than a fortnight without updates about his health, Williamstweetedon her own account on 23 May: Today Michael has been in hospital for 8 weeks & Im v happy to say he left ICU yesterday after a long & difficult 47 days. His recovery is continuing on the ward & will take time. He has done so well to get through this but please dont expect him back here yet.
Single parents and workers from black, Asian and minority ethnic groups have experienced the hardest economic shocks as a result of the Covid-19 crisis, new analysis reveals.
Research by the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex confirms that the earnings of households across the UK have fallen, with lowest earners suffering disproportionately.
Approaching half 44% - of non-BAME individuals whose working hours have declined during the crisis have been furloughed, while 7% have found themselves unemployed.
By contrast, only 31% of BAME workers who have experienced a drop in the hours they are working have been furloughed, while more than 20% have lost their jobs.
BAME household earnings have fallen from an average 441 a week to 404 over the course of the crisis. Non-BAME groups saw their average weekly earnings fall from 547 to 503.
Across the UK population as a whole, the highest 20% of earners saw their average earnings fall by 48 a week, from 832 in February to 784 in April.
Those in the lowest income bracket saw their weekly earnings fall 43 over the same period, from an average of 297 to 254.
The earnings of single parents fell by more than double the amount experienced by households with children and more than one adult.
Their average weekly household earnings fell 36, from 511 in February to 475 in April.
But single-parent households saw their average weekly earnings fall by 73, from 326 to 253 over the same period.
The data show that nearly 18% of the lowest earners were behind on their household bills, compared with just 2% of those in the highest income bracket.
The lowest earners were also more than five times more likely to report that they had been hungry but had not eaten at some time in the course of a week.
People are mitigating the effects of the pandemic in different ways: multiple adult households have relied more on savings compared with single parents, whereas single parents have relied more on borrowing, said Paul Fisher of the ISER.
The pandemic has meant many families have faced indescribable hardships on a day-to-day basis.
The BAME figures are particularly striking and we need to urgently understand the source of the difference. For example, to what extent it can be explained by differences in the type of jobs done by different groups.
The figures are based on respondents aged between 20 and 65 who participate in the regular Understanding Society survey, one of the largest household panel studies in the world.
More than 17,000 people were asked about their financial circumstances in the last week of April, and what their circumstances had been in January and February.
These new data show us that the economic shocks caused by the pandemic have affected people unevenly across the UK, said Thomas Crossley, associate director for scientific content at the survey. We know from this first look at the data that twice as many people expect their financial situation to get worse as those who expect it to get better. This rises to three times as many in the lowest income bracket, and among single parents.
Joe Richardson, research and policy officer at Gingerbread, a charity that provides support for single-parent families, said this group had been hit with a triple penalty as a result of the crisis. Many single parents had found themselves furloughed while experiencing increased costs because of their children not attending school or nursery, or having their maintenance payments reduced or withdrawn.
Prior to Covid-19, almost half of single parents were in poverty, Richardson said. The pandemic has meant many of these families have faced indescribable hardships on a day-to-day basis. It is not uncommon for single parents to have to choose between feeding themselves or feeding their children it really is that stark.
A government spokesman said: Our job retention and self-employment schemes are helping millions through the crisis. Weveinjected 6.5bn into the welfare safety net and have introduced mortgage holidays andtax deferrals.
Before the outbreak, the numbers of women and individuals from a BAME background in work was at a record high and the actionsweve taken will help to mitigate the economic impact of the virus.
Essentially, at our most current rate of 1.14, for every eight people with COVID-19, nine more people will get it.
ATLANTA With all of the emotions surrounding the ongoing protests its easy to forget were still in the middle of a pandemic. The impact of having so many people crowded together - is still unknown.
Athens Clarke County Commissioner Mariah Parker posted on Facebook that after the protests in Athens Sunday, she tested positive for COVID-19. She is asymptomatic, so its unclear when she contracted the virus. But theres at least one forecasting model that shows Georgia was already headed in the wrong direction days before the protests started.
The model was created in-part by the co-founder of Instagram, Kevin Systrom. It essentially shows how fast the virus is spreading in a community. The model is dynamic and constantly changing as new data is entered, but Georgias effective reproduction rate has hovered around 1.14 for several days, putting it near the top of the pack each day.
Lets be clear that transmission rate is really low, but its still big enough to keep this virus hanging around.
Essentially, at our most current rate of 1.14, for every eight people with COVID-19, nine more people will get it.
11Alive asked Dr. Richard Rothenberg, a Regents Professor at Georgia State Universitys School of Public Health, to look at the model and give his thoughts on whether the math and science behind it were valid.
It was developed for other epidemic diseases like SARS and MERS and Ebola, Rothenberg explained. He said the math behind the model has been around for about eight years, tweaked with each event.
In models in general you never want to take the exact number very seriously. You just want to look at the range and direction. Those are the things that are most important," he said.
We were in the green zone while we sheltered in place, but in the past two weeks, that changed.
Rothenberg said thats likely a product of not enough people wearing masks, washing their hands, or detecting the virus soon enough to avoid others.
He said he's curious to see how the data changes the closer we get to June 21, three weeks out from Memorial Day, the first mass gatherings in our state.
The period of two days before to two or three days after you get sick is a critical time for spread.So, the people who are important in protecting themselves are the ones that dont have it, said Rothenberg.
The chart below shows Georgia's 7-day moving average tracking new cases.
As of Thursday afternoon, the Georgia Department of Public Health reported 49,847 positive COVID19 cases, 953 new cases from the total the day before. The number of new cases has remained fairly flat since the end of the shelter in place order. Overall, thats good news. Georgia hasnt seen a second surge.
But to reduce that threat in our community, we need to see that trend line consistently head down, like seen in Connecticut, where the current effective reproduction rate according to this model is .85. That means the virus is slowly dying out.
If youve been on social media at all over the last few months, youve probably seen posts or advertisements about coronavirus remedies or miracle cures.
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Its important to know that nothing has been proven to prevent or cure COVID-19, says infectious disease specialist Kristin Englund, MD. That includes supplements and natural health products.
While some vitamins and supplements may make claims about supporting immune health, none have been shown to be effective in fighting COVID-19.
The best way to prevent infection is to keep your immune system healthy, maintain a safe distance from others, wash your hands frequently and avoid touching your face.
If you do get sick, its important not to use supplements in place of getting proper medical care. And its best to consult with your doctor before starting any new supplement in general.
Heres what we do and dont know about supplements and coronavirus so far.
A: Zinc is a mineral thats important for immune health. Because of this, you often see it used in over-the-counter cold remedies. A number of clinical trials are now testing whether zinc combined with other supplements or drugs could prevent COVID-19 or help people get over it more quickly, but no study results have been published yet.
A: Vitamin D is thought to have protective effects on the immune system, but its not yet known whether it could help prevent or treat COVID-19. New research has noted higher rates of COVID-19 infection and death in areas where people have lower levels of vitamin D in their system. But those studies show an association not that low vitamin D makes someone more likely to get COVID-19. Research is ongoing.
A: Clinical trials are exploring whether vitamin C, in combination with other treatments, could help COVID-19 patients, but no studies have been completed yet.
A: Some people who have COVID-19 get digestive symptoms such as diarrhea. While probiotics may contribute to a healthy balance of gut bacteria, theres no evidence that they do anything for people with COVID-19.
A: Selenium is a mineral that occurs in soil, water and some foods. In China, researchers noted that the COVID-19 death rate was lower in regions where people have higher selenium intake and status. But this does not mean that selenium supplements will prevent or cure COVID-19.
A: Copper surfaces are known for their antiviral and antibacterial properties. One recent study found that the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 only remains viable on copper surfaces for a max of four hours compared to two or three days on plastic and stainless steel surfaces. But theres no evidence suggesting that taking copper supplements will prevent or cure COVID-19.
A: Theres no research showing that using or consuming any natural or herbal products, including essential oils, eucalyptus oil or witch hazel, will prevent infection with the 2019 novel coronavirus.
