Country, Other	Total Cases	New Cases	Total Deaths
World	38,348,128	+313,286	1,090,247
USA	8,090,253	+51,534	220,873
India	7,237,082	+63,517	110,617
Brazil	5,114,823	+11,415	151,063
Russia	1,326,178	+13,868	22,966
Spain	925,341	+7,118	33,204
Colombia	924,098	+5,015	28,141
Argentina	917,035	+13,305	24,572
Peru	853,974	+2,803	33,419
Mexico	821,045	+3,542	83,945
France	756,472	+12,993	32,942
South Africa	694,537	+1,178	18,028
UK	634,920	+17,234	43,018
Iran	508,389	+4,108	29,070
Chile	484,280	+1,392	13,396
Iraq	409,358	+3,921	9,970
Bangladesh	381,275	+1,537	5,577
Italy	365,467	+5,901	36,246
Philippines	344,713	+1,990	6,372
Indonesia	340,622	+3,906	12,027
Saudi Arabia	340,089	+474	5,087
Turkey	338,779	+1,632	8,957
Germany	335,679	+4,585	9,740
Pakistan	319,848	+531	6,588
Israel	296,652	+2,621	2,055
Ukraine	270,587	+5,133	5,122
Netherlands	188,876	+7,378	6,631
Canada	186,881	+4,042	9,654
Belgium	165,880	+3,622	10,211
Romania	160,461	+3,109	5,535
Morocco	156,946	+3,185	2,685
Ecuador	148,171	+856	12,235
Bolivia	138,695	+121	8,326
Poland	135,278	+5,068	3,101
Czechia	129,747	+8,326	1,106
Qatar	128,405	+214	220
Panama	121,296	+494	2,511
Dominican	119,008	+165	2,183
Nepal	115,358	+3,556	663
Kuwait	112,737	+844	672
Kazakhstan	108,901	+70	1,768
UAE	108,608	+1,315	448
Oman	107,213	+638	1,053
Egypt	104,787	+139	6,071
Sweden	100,654	+2203	5,899
Guatemala	98,380	+554	3,410
Costa Rica	90,238	+1,015	1,124
Japan	89,673	+326	1,634
Portugal	89,121	+1,208	2,110
Ethiopia	85,718	+582	1,305
China	85,591	+13	4,634
Belarus	84,524	+526	906
Honduras	84,413	+332	2,521
Venezuela	84,391	+635	710
Bahrain	76,272	+324	285
Moldova	63,275	+657	1,495
Uzbekistan	61,642	+323	511
Nigeria	60,655	+225	1,116
Singapore	57,884	+4	28
Armenia	57,566	+745	1,032
Austria	57,326	+1,028	861
Lebanon	55,869	+1,245	479
Algeria	53,399	+174	1,818
Paraguay	51,197	+853	1,108
Kyrgyzstan	49,871	+343	1,092
Ghana	47,126	+96	310
Palestine	45,200	+516	391
Libya	44,985	+1,164	656
Ireland	44,159	+808	1,830
Azerbaijan	42,381	+277	612
Kenya	41,937	+318	787
Hungary	39,862	+1,025	996
Serbia	35,006	+152	767
Denmark	33,101	+290	674
El Salvador	30,480	+145	899
Myanmar	30,437	+1,123	693
Jordan	28,127	+2,054	225
Australia	27,317	+31	899
Bulgaria	25,774	+785	923
S. Korea	24,805	+102	434
Greece	23,060	+408	462
North Macedonia	21,193	+80	800
Croatia	20,993	+372	330
Slovakia	20,886	+531	61
Ivory Coast	20,183	+28	120
Malaysia	16,880	+660	163
Madagascar	16,754	+28	237
Norway	15,793	+154	277
Albania	15,752	+182	429
Zambia	15,587	+38	345
Senegal	15,307	+15	315
Montenegro	14,268	+218	213
Georgia	12,841	+569	102
Finland	12,499	+287	346
Namibia	12,000	+11	129
Guinea	11,134	+72	70
Maldives	10,993	+50	35
DRC	10,872	+4	276
Tajikistan	10,297	+37	79
Mozambique	10,258	+170	73
French Guiana	10,192	+12	69
Uganda	9,945	+81	95
Luxembourg	9,840	+109	133
Slovenia	9,231	+398	173
Zimbabwe	8,036	+15	230
Jamaica	7,910	+97	146
Guadeloupe	6,908	+425	96
Angola	6,680	+192	222
Lithuania	6,366	+118	106
Cuba	6,017	+17	123
Malawi	5,827	+3	181
Eswatini	5,696	+13	114
Nicaragua	5,353	+89	154
Hong Kong	5,202	+8	105
Bahamas	5,163	+85	108
Suriname	5,072	+14	107
Aruba	4,229	+32	33
Malta	3,937	+93	44
Thailand	3,643	+2	59
Cyprus	2,130	+83	25

 

Retrieved from:  https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

 

 

 

Client in spin studio that followed all the rules triggers outbreak with at least 61 cases

From CNN's Paula Newton and Leah Asmelash

 

A spin studio in Canada that public health officials say followed all Covid-19 protocols is now reporting 61 positive cases of the disease, and as many as 100 staff, clients and family members may have been exposed.

SPINCO, in Hamilton, Ontario, just reopened in July and had all of the right protocols in place, including screening of staff and attendees, tracking all those in attendance at each class, masking before and after classes, laundering towels and cleaning the rooms within 30 minutes of a complete class, said Dr. Elizabeth Richardson, Hamilton's medical officer of health, in a statement.

But it still wasn't enough.

Public health officials are very concerned about the number of cases and the size of the outbreak, especially because the city is not currently a hotspot and the facility was not ignoring health protocols, they said in a statement to CNN.

"They have also supported public health services in our investigation by sharing the messaging with all their members," Richardson said.

There are currently 44 confirmed positive primary cases associated with SPINCO and 17 confirmed secondary cases. Exposure was linked to several classes held from September 28 to October 4.

 

 

Woman dies after catching Covid-19 twice, the first reported reinfection death

From CNN's Amy Cassidy

 

An elderly Dutch woman has become the first known person to die from catching Covid-19 twice, according to experts, raising serious questions about how long immunity and antibodies can last.

The woman, 89, suffered from a rare type of bone marrow cancer called Waldenström's macroglobulinemia. Her immune system was compromised due to the cell-depleting therapy she received, the researchers at Maastricht University Medical Center in the Netherlands wrote in a paper accepted for publication in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.

However, the researchers said her natural immune response could still have been "sufficient" to fight-off Covid-19, as the type of treatment she received for cancer "does not necessarily result in life threatening disease."

The patient was initially admitted into hospital earlier this year with a severe cough and fever, testing positive for Covid-19.

She was discharged five days later when "besides some persisting fatigue her symptoms subsided completely," according to the report.

But two days into chemotherapy treatment -- 59 days after the start of the first Covid-19 episode -- the woman developed fever, cough and difficulty breathing.

She once again tested positive for coronavirus, and no antibodies were detected in her blood system when tested on days four and six. Her condition deteriorated on day eight.

Two weeks later, the woman died.

 

Retrieved from: https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/coronavirus-pandemic-10-14-20-intl/index.html

 

 

 

Ignoring scientific uncertainty, Trump tells fellow coronavirus survivors at rally, ‘You’re right now immune’

By Colby Itkowitz

 

President Trump throws face masks to the crowd as he arrives to hold a campaign rally at John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Oct. 13, 2020. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

 

Triumphant on his second day back on the campaign trail since contracting the coronavirus, Trump polled his rally crowd on how many had also had the virus and then celebrated a supposed immunity, even though that’s not guaranteed.

“Who has had it here? Who’s had it?” Trump asked, as some in the Pennsylvania rally crowd shouted. “I know a lot of people, a lot of people. We are the people I want to say hello to because you are right now immune. You’re right now immune.”

Reinfection is believed to be rare, but there’s still a lot unknown about immunity and how long it lasts.

Because of his immunity, Trump reasoned he could kiss everyone in the crowd, a recycled line from the previous night’s rally.

“I’d start kissing everybody. I’ll kiss every guy, man and woman, man, woman. Look at that guy. How handsome he is. I’ll kiss him, not with a lot of enjoyment, but that’s okay,” Trump said.

Trump also defended his controversial behavior during the months-long pandemic, during which he has continued to hold large political rallies and White House events with crowds. He and many of his closest aides all contracted the virus two or so weeks ago.

“I got to get out and have to meet people and I have to see people,” Trump said. “And I know it’s risky to do that, but you have to do what you have to do.”

 

Retrieved from: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-54496354

 

 

 

Iran at breaking point as it fights third wave of coronavirus

Patrick Wintour

 

 A police officer wearing a face mask works on a street in Tehran, Iran. Photograph: Xinhua/Rex/Shutterstock

 

Iran, the crucible of coronavirus in the Middle East, smashed two grim records this week, reporting its largest number of deaths in a single 24 hours since the outbreak started in March, and the largest number of new infections.

Iranian health officials openly admit Iran is deep into its third, and biggest, wave of the disease, and evidence suggests an exhausted and impoverished country is struggling to cope as trust in government diminishes, sanctions weaken the economy and hospitals report overcrowded intensive care units.

Mohammad Talebpour, the director of Sina hospital, the oldest in Tehran, predicted that if Iranians did not collectively take action and the disease persisted for another 18 months, as many as 300,000 could die. He said a third of the medical staff at his hospital had at one point contracted the disease.

Covid-19 has so far killed 29,070 Iranians, according to widely challenged official statistics, including 254 on Wednesday alone, just down on the daily record set on 12 October of 272.

The number of people newly infected in the previous 24 hours was recorded as 4,108 on Wednesday, just down on the record of 4,392 on 8 October.

In an attempt to force reluctant Iranians to abide by social distancing rules, including the compulsory wearing of face masks in public, Hassan Rouhani’s government has introduced fines of up to $6.60, initially in Tehran.

Businesses face fines that could rise to $30 on the third offence. Since the monthly minimum wage is worth less than $60 after a sharp fall in the value of the currency, these fines are not trivial, but even so the health minister, Saeed Namaki, said he feared they would not be high enough to act as a deterrent.

Masks have been compulsory in indoor public spaces since July.

But Rouhani is an innately cautious centrist, nervous of a public backlash, and concerned by the state of the economy now predicted by the International Monetary Fund to contract by 5% this year. The government spokesman Ali Rabiei stressed on Tuesday that the fines were “a tool to achieve compliance, and not a goal in itself. The fine is a warning to exercise self-discipline”. He insisted all the income from the fines would go to the ministry of health to fight coronavirus.

No one knows if the fines will be rigorously imposed, or the punishment likely to be inflicted on those unable to pay. The police, the Basij paramilitary force and health inspectors will have powers to impose the fines, and offenders will have two weeks to make payment into a health ministry account,

But the much-criticised sight of Iranian police this week parading criminals on the back of trucks is a reminder, if needed, of the methods security services can deploy.

Iran has not hidden the disputes between officials over its handling of the crisis.

Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, the state-appointed head of the Iranian Medical Association, has alleged that officials ignored warnings from health experts, and said that the medical staff in Iran were exhausted.

He blamed the severity of the crisis on “some of the non-expert decisions”, saying “some decisions were not made by experts, such as reopening schools with a requirement to attend or announcing protocols that people were not required to follow”.

The disease seems to be spreading most in the context of the family, but bakeries, schools and restaurants are also accused of frequently flouting the rules.

The crisis comes at a tumultuous time for Iran, as the US-imposed sanctions on 18 private sector banks, are reducing Iran’s access to humanitarian goods and medicine. The rial remains under pressure, and the Iranian central bank governor, Abdolnaser Hemmati, was in Iraq this week to try to gain access Iranian foreign exchange reserves stored in Iraq.

Rouhani, who is due to stand down next summer, is under growing criticism for his handling of the crisis. Critics, including many of those lining up to replace him in the elections next year, claim he has handed too much responsibility for controlling the outbreak to provincial authorities.

 

Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/14/iran-at-breaking-point-as-it-fights-third-wave-of-coronavirus

 

 

 

Latest on worldwide spread of coronavirus

OCTOBER 14 2020 - 9:09AM

 

 COVID-19 infections are again spiking across France.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

EUROPE

* Britain's opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer has called for a two-to-three-week "circuit breaker" lockdown, piling pressure on PM Boris Johnson who is struggling to sell his own COVID-19 plan.

* The Netherlands will return to a "partial lockdown", while Ukraine will extend its lockdown until the end of the year and Italy has imposed new restrictions on gatherings, restaurants, sports and school activities.

* New COVID-19 infections, hospitalisations and deaths have all spiked further in France as the nation braces for potential additional restrictions.

* Russia has reported record high daily cases and deaths but authorities say they do not plan to impose lockdowns across the country.

* Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo has tested positive, Portugal's Football Federation says.

AMERICAS

* Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the Republican-led US Senate will vote on a scaled-down coronavirus economic relief bill of the type Democrats have rejected as they hold out for trillions in aid.

* Mexico plans to vaccinate more than 116 million people or roughly 90 per cent of its population by the end of 2021.

ASIA-PACIFIC

* The Philippines has reported 1990 new infections, the lowest number in three weeks.

* Australia's most populous state will ease restrictions despite reporting the biggest one-day jump in new cases in six weeks.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* Iran's death toll has risen by 254 to 29,070, with the number of confirmed cases spiking to 508,389 in the hardest-hit Middle Eastern country.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* Johnson & Johnson says it will take at least a few days for an independent safety panel to evaluate an unexplained illness of a study participant that led to a pause in the company's COVID-19 vaccine trial.

* US drugmaker Eli Lilly says the government-sponsored clinical trial of its COVID-19 antibody treatment similar to one taken by President Donald Trump has been paused due to safety concerns.

* The European Union has agreed to pay more than 1 billion euros to Gilead for a six-month supply of its antiviral drug remdesivir.

ECONOMIC IMPACT

* JPMorgan Chase & Co executives are cautiously optimistic the pandemic will not send the economy into the worst possible tailspin.

 

Retrieved from: https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6967785/latest-on-worldwide-spread-of-coronavirus/?cs=14264

 

 

 

Speaker urges Vulnerable MPs to stay away from Parliament

 

The Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle has urged vulnerable MPs to stay away from Parliament, amid rising cases of coronavirus.

 

A spokeswoman for the Speaker confirmed he has told "a number of members" to avoid travelling to Westminster.

It comes as London Mayor Sadiq Khan warns the city could be put into stricter lockdowns within days.

Last week the Speaker said there had been "a small number of cases on the parliamentary estate".

He introduced new safety measures in a bid to protect MPs and staff from the virus including installing Perspex screens in the Commons and advising further use of face coverings.

· Covid MP says she behaved 'out of character'

· London Covid restrictions may increase 'in a week'

Both the Commons and the Lords are still running a "hybrid Parliament" which enables members to join in debates via video link and vote using proxies.

A limited number are allowed in the Commons chamber and many MPs have returned to Westminster.

Leader of the House Jacob Rees-Mogg has previously described the hybrid Parliament as "deeply unsatisfactory".

The Speaker's spokeswoman said: "The Speaker's number one priority is the safety of MPs, their staff and House staff - and to ensure the parliamentary estate is Covid-secure.

"The advice we have given all staff, which is to work from home if they can, is the same for MPs, particularly those who are under medical supervision.

"As Covid cases are rising across the country, the last thing the Speaker wants to do is encourage MPs who are vulnerable to take risks by travelling into Parliament. This is exactly what he told a number of members during a recent phone call."

Earlier this month Sir Lindsay criticised the MP Margaret Ferrier who travelled from Glasgow to London with Covid-19 symptoms, then returned home after testing positive.

Ms Ferrier has been suspended from the SNP and has been urged to quit as an MP.

 

Retrieved from: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-54536197

 

 

 

Summary

· Keir Starmer called on the UK government to impose a national circuit breaker lockdown of at least two weeks in England as the death toll from Covid-19 soared to a four-month high. In a significant escalation, the Labour leader said the prime minister Boris Johnson had “lost control of the virus” and must take urgent action to impose a near-total shutdown across the country over the October half-term. Full story here.

· The Polish prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki tested negative for Covid-19. Morawiecki went into quarantine after he had contact on Friday with a person who has tested positive. A government spokesman said the prime minister had no coronavirus symptoms and continued to fulfil his duties.

· Dutch bars and restaurants ordered to close to stem surge in coronavirus cases. The Dutch government announced the new round of measures on Tuesday as the number of cases in this country surged in recent weeks to a daily record of nearly 7,400.

· Italy announces new restrictions. Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte on Tuesday imposed new restrictions on gatherings, restaurants, sports and school activities in an attempt to slow a surge in novel coronavirus infections.

· UK reports 143 new deaths from Covid-19, highest daily figure since June. This brings the UK death total to 43,018. There had been a further 17,234 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK on Tuesday. It brings the total number of cases in the UK to 634,920.

· Cristiano Ronaldo has tested positive for coronavirus. The 35-year-old is said to be “doing well, without symptoms, and in isolation”, with no further positive tests reported in the squad before Portugal’s Nations League match against Sweden on Wednesday.

· Russia’s regulator has granted approval for a trial of its controversial Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine on people aged over 60. In August Russia approved the vaccine for use after less than two months of human testing, including a dose administered to one of Vladimir Putin’s daughters.

· Hospitals in Paris could have up to 90% of intensive care beds packed with Covid-19 patients as soon as next week. The warning came from the healthcare system’s chief as France braces for new measures to slow a surge in cases.

· Ireland’s government offered more support on Tuesday to those hit hardest by some of Europe’s toughest Covid-19 restrictions. The budget stimulus package was described as “unprecedented in the history of the state” by Reuters.

· Russia reports record daily coronavirus cases and deaths. On Tuesday, the country’s coronavirus crisis centre said 13,868 new cases had been reported in the past 24 hours, pushing the overall number of infections to 1,326,178.

 

Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2020/oct/13/coronavirus-live-news-trump-tests-negative-for-covid-who-reports-record-new-global-cases