Month: November 2020

Citing ethical concerns about the use of embryonic stem cells in vaccine development, Bishop Joseph Brennan of the Diocese of Fresno is urging Catholics not to “jump on the COVID-19 vaccine bandwagon.” In a video shared by the diocese this week, Brennan said the race to produce a coronavirus vaccine has spurred researchers to make use of morally objectionable materials. “I try to maintain a joyful spirit, so I don’t like to rain on anyone’s parade,” Brennan said. “But I’m going to rain on a parade today: the vaccine parade.” In his message, Brennan said the use of embryonic stem cells at any stage of a vaccine’s development means Catholics cannot avail themselves of its scientific results. “I won’t be able to take a vaccine, brothers and sisters, and I encourage you not to, if it was d...

2:38 PM PST 11/19/2020 by Trilby Beresford Governor Gavin Newsom announced the news on Thursday. California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a Safer at Home order on Thursday that will remain in effect through the Thanksgiving holiday and end at 5 a.m. on Dec. 21, according to the announcement on Thursday. Non-essential businesses and personal gatherings are prohibited between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. beginning Saturday, November 21 at 10 p.m. “The virus is spreading at a pace we haven’t seen since the start of this pandemic and the next several days and weeks will be critical to stop the surge. We are sounding the alarm,” said Newsom in the announcement. “It is crucial that we act to decrease transmission and slow hospitalizations before the death count surges. We’ve done...

More than 900 staff members in the Mayo Clinic Health System in the Midwest have been diagnosed with the coronavirus in just the last two weeks as COVID-19 cases regionally continue to soar, officials said. The newly diagnosed cases amount to 30% of the total number of cases among Mayo Clinic workers since the start of the pandemic in March, Ginger Plumbo, a spokesperson for the medical center, told HuffPost on Thursday. Plumbo emphasized that roughly 93% of the infections are believed to have occurred from community spread and not from exposure in the workplace, highlighting the need for greater virus precautions within the community. “This impacts our ability to care for patients,” Plumbo said of the virus’s effects on health care staff. “We need everyone in the communities we s...

GOOD EVENING - STARTING TOMORROW, NOVEMBER 20TH ... A NUMBER OF BUSINESSES WILL HAVE TO CLOSE AT 9 P.M. A LOT OF BUSIENSSES THAT WERE AFFECTED EARLIER IN THIS PANDEMIC FALL UNDER THIS UMBRELLA - RESTAURANTS, BARS, TASTING ROOMS, MOVIE THEATERS, CASINOS, PERFORMING ARTS VENUES, CLUBS AND INDOOR áAND OTUDOOR AMUSEMENT VENUES. IN A PRESS RELEASE THE MILLS ADMINISTRATION SAID THE NEW GUIDLIENS COME AFTER AN "ALARMING INCREASE IN COVID- 19 CASES, HOSPTILIZATIONS AND POSITIVITY RATES ACROSS THE STATE. NOW THIS CURFEW SO TO SPEAK IS SIMILAR TO WHAT OTHER STATES AND CITIES AROUND THE COUNTRY HAVE IMPLEMENTED... THE GOVERNORS OFFICE SAID THE INTENT IS TO LIMIT EXTENDED GATHERINGS DURING THE HOLIDAYS, WHEN FAMILY MEMBERS AND STUDETNS ARE EXPECTED TO RETURN TO MAINE. AGAIN THAT CURFEW BEG...

A woman in the United Kingdom who was hospitalized because of the novel coronavirus gave birth to twins while she was in a coma.  Perpetual Uke first fell ill with COVID-19 in late March. Her illness became so severe that she was taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, where she later required a ventilator and was placed in an induced coma, Sky News reported.  Perpetual Uke first fell ill with COVID-19 in late March. Her illness became so severe that she was taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, where she later required a ventilator and was placed in an induced coma, Sky News reported. (iStock) Uke, who was also pregnant at the time she fell ill, delivered the twins — a boy, Pascal, and a girl, Palmer — via cesarean section while was she still in a coma....

A former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lambasted a study from Denmark released on Wednesday that concluded that surgical masks do not protect against the coronavirus. In an editorial piece responding directly to the study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine (AIM), former CDC director Thomas Frieden wrote, "Although no single strategy can control the pandemic, widespread masking in the community can mitigate spread as part of a comprehensive approach.”  “An N95 mask is better than a surgical mask. A surgical mask is better than most cloth masks. A cloth mask is better than nothing,” Frieden said.  The study, published in the AIM, was noted by critics to have several issues, namely that the study heavily relied on patient-reported home ...