Confirmation of COVID-19 in Two Pet Cats in New York
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service sent this bulletin at 04/22/2020 01:35 PM EDT
Confirmation of COVID-19 in Two Pet Cats in New York
Washington, D.C. April 22, 2020 – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) today announced the first confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) infection in two pet cats. These are the first pets in the United States to test positive for SARS-CoV-2.
The cats live in two separate areas of New York state. Both had mild respiratory illness and are expected to make a full recovery. SARS-CoV-2 infections have been reported in very few animals worldwide, mostly in those that had close contact with a person with COVID-19.
At this time, routine testing of animals is not recommended. Should other animals be confirmed positive for SARS-CoV-2 in the United States, USDA will post the findings at
State animal health and public health officials will take the lead in making determinations about whether animals should be tested for SARS-CoV-2.
In the New York cases announced today, a veterinarian tested the first cat after it showed mild respiratory signs. No individuals in the household were confirmed to be ill with COVID-19. The virus may have been transmitted to this cat by mildly ill or asymptomatic household members or through contact with an infected person outside its home.
Samples from the second cat were taken after it showed signs of respiratory illness. The owner of the cat tested positive for COVID-19 prior to the cat showing signs. Another cat in the household has shown no signs of illness.
Both cats tested presumptive positive for SARS-CoV-2 at a private veterinary laboratory, which then reported the results to state and federal officials. The confirmatory testing was conducted at NVSL and included collection of additional samples. NVSL serves as an international reference laboratory and provides expertise and guidance on diagnostic techniques, as well as confirmatory testing for foreign and emerging animal diseases. Such testing is required for certain animal diseases in the U.S. in order to comply with national and international reporting procedures. The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) considers SARS-CoV-2 an emerging disease, and therefore USDA must report confirmed U.S. animal infections to the OIE.
Public health officials are still learning about SARS-CoV-2, but there is no evidence that pets play a role in spreading the virus in the United States. Therefore, there is no justification in taking measures against companion animals that may compromise their welfare. Further studies are needed to understand if and how different animals, including pets, could be affected.
Until we know more, CDC recommends the following:
Do not let pets interact with people or other animals outside the household. Keep cats indoors when possible to prevent them from interacting with other animals or people. Walk dogs on a leash, maintaining at least 6 feet from other people and animals. Avoid dog parks or public places where a large number of people and dogs gather. If you are sick with COVID-19 (either suspected or confirmed by a test), restrict contact with your pets and other animals, just like you would around other people.
When possible, have another member of your household care for your pets while you are sick. Avoid contact with your pet, including petting, snuggling, being kissed or licked, and sharing food or bedding. If you must care for your pet or be around animals while you are sick, wear a cloth face covering and wash your hands before and after you interact with them.
While additional animals may test positive as infections continue in people, it is important to note that performing this animal testing does not reduce the availability of tests for humans. The U.S. government remains committed to increasing nationwide COVID-19 testing for Americans. In fact, the United States has conducted more than four million COVID-19 tests for humans, which is more tests than the following nations combined: France, the UK, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, India, Austria, Australia, Sweden, and Canada.
For more information on animals and COVID-19, see: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/animals.html
For more information about testing in animals, see:
Coronavirus can infect cats — dogs, not so much
But scientists say it’s unclear whether felines can spread the virus to people, so pet owners need not panic yet.
We found that SARS-CoV-2 replicates poorly in dogs, pigs, chickens, and ducks, but efficiently in ferrets and cats. We found that the virus transmits in cats via respiratory droplets
OIE COVID-19
Likely human to animal transmission
Epidemiological comments
The cat was placed under quarantine on 30 March 2020 after its owner was hospitalised due to COVID-19 infection.
Bronx NY, April 5, 2020 -- The following information was released today by the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo:
Nadia, a 4-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo, has tested positive for COVID-19. She, her sister Azul, two Amur tigers, and three African lions had developed a dry cough and all are expected to recover.
This positive COVID-19 test for the tiger was confirmed by USDA’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory, based in Ames, Iowa.
(Washington, D.C. April 5, 2020) – The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Veterinary Services Laboratories has confirmed SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19 in humans) in one tiger at a zoo in New York. This is the first instance of a tiger being infected with COVID-19. Samples from this tiger were taken and tested after several lions and tigers at the zoo showed symptoms of respiratory illness.
Public health officials believe these large cats became sick after being exposed to a zoo employee who was actively shedding virus. The zoo has been closed to the public since mid-March, and the first tiger began showing signs of sickness on March 27. All of these large cats are expected to recover. There is no evidence that other animals in other areas of the zoo are showing symptoms.
Coronavirus at meatpacking plants worse than first thought, USA TODAY investigation finds Coronavirus closed Smithfield and JBS meatpacking plants. Many more are at risk. Operators may have to choose between worker health or meat in stores. Kyle Bagenstose, Sky Chadde and Matt Wynn, USA TODAY Updated 22 minutes ago Tyson Foods installed plastic barriers between worker stations at its meat and poultry plants to protect against transmission of the coronavirus. Tyson Foods installed plastic barriers between worker stations at its meat and poultry plants to protect against transmission of the coronavirus. TYSON FOODS A rash of coronavirus outbreaks at dozens of meatpacking plants across the nation is far more extensive than previously thought, according to an exclusive review of cases by USA TODAY and the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting.
And it could get worse. More than 150 of America’s largest meat processing plants operate in counties where the rate of coronavirus infection is already among the nation’s highest, based on the media outlets’ analysis of slaughterhouse locations and county-level COVID-19 infection rates.
These facilities represent more than 1 in 3 of the nation’s biggest beef, pork and poultry processing plants. Rates of infection around these plants are higher than those of 75% of other U.S. counties, the analysis found.
And while experts say the industry has thus far maintained sufficient production despite infections in at least 2,200 workers at 48 plants, there are fears that the number of cases could continue to rise and that meatpacking plants will become the next disaster zones.
"Initially our concern was long-term care facilities," said Gary Anthone, Nebraska's chief medical officer, in a Facebook Live video Sunday. “If there's one thing that might keep me up at night, it's the meat processing plants and the manufacturing plants."
As companies scramble to contain the outbreaks by closing more than a dozen U.S. plants so far – including a Smithfield pork plant in South Dakota that handles 5% of U.S. pork production – the crisis has raised the specter of mass meat shortages.
But experts say there's little risk of a dwindling protein supply because, given the choice between worker safety and keeping meat on grocery shelves, the nation’s slaughterhouses will choose to produce food.
“If this goes on for a long time, there is a reality of a shortage,” said Joshua Specht, an assistant professor of history at the University of Notre Dame who studies the meat industry. “The politics of this could play out that they reopen at enormous risks to workers, rather than face an actual shortage … I wouldn’t bet against that.”
The meatpacking industry already has been notorious for poor working conditions even before the coronavirus pandemic. Meat and poultry employees have among the highest illness rates of all manufacturing employees and are less likely to report injuries and illness than any other type of worker, federal watchdog reports have found.
And the plants have been called out numerous times for refusing to let their employees use the bathroom, even to wash their hands – one of the biggest ways to reduce the spread of the coronavirus.
Amplifying the danger is that, in many places, meat processing companies are largely on their own to ensure an outbreak doesn’t spread across their factory floors.
Factory workers, unions, and even managers say the federal government – including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration – has done little more than issue non-enforceable guidance. On its website, for example, the CDC has released safety guidelines for critical workers and businesses, which primarily promote common-sense measures of sanitization and personal distancing.
State health departments have also taken a backseat role in all but a few places.
A bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday would require OSHA to issue enforceable safety standards to protect workers from COVID-19. A day earlier, 32 Democratic and two independent U.S. senators sent their concerns in a letter to the Trump administration asking what was being done to protect food workers and the supply chain.
“Breakdowns in the food supply chain could have significant economic impacts for both consumers and agricultural producers,” the letter read. “It is also imperative that precautions are taken to ensure the stability and safety of our food supply.”
But rather than increase safety and oversight, the U.S. Department of Agriculture relaxed it in the midst of the pandemic. Just this month, the agency allowed 15 poultry plants to exceed federal limits on how many birds workers can process in a minute.
That’s more than in any previous month in the waiver program’s history. Several worker protection agencies have found that increasing line speeds causes more injuries.
And it could lead to more infections, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union said in a statement: “These waivers guarantee that workers are more crowded along a meatpacking line and more workers are put at risk of either catching or spreading the virus.”
Most of the plants that received waivers are owned by Tyson Foods and Wayne Farms, according to a department record. One of them – a Wayne Farms facility in Albertville, Alabama – disclosed this week that 75 of its workers tested positive and one died. The plant will slow production to improve safety, it told AL.com.
“This is so dangerous for workers and the public," Debbie Berkowitz, who spent six years as chief of staff and senior policy adviser at OSHA and is now director of the National Employment Law Project’s worker health and safety program.
Berkowitz said she has never seen anything like the recent flurry of approvals. "They did this behind closed doors with no input by the public and with no consideration to the impact on food or workers' safety.”
A spokesperson with the Food Safety and Inspection Service, the USDA agency that grants the waivers, said the agency has stopped accepting additional waiver requests.
Companies say they are taking steps to keep workers safe from outbreaks as they continue to feed the nation.
After the coronavirus sickened nearly 200 workers and killed two at a Tyson plant in Iowa, the company responded by making sweeping safety improvements at all its facilities, said Worth Sparkman, a company spokesperson.
Tyson installed plastic barriers between workers on the lines, allowed more time between shifts and removed chairs in break rooms to keep workers at a safe distance, Sparkman said.
“At all locations we’re working to educate our team members and reinforce the importance of social distancing, wearing protective facial coverings and frequent hand washing outside of work as well,” he said. “This is especially important in locations where there is community spread occurring.”
Tyson reopened that Iowa plant on Tuesday after having closed it April 6 to contain the outbreak.
But meat processing workers elsewhere remain fearful for their safety.
A 50-year-old employee named John at Smithfield’s Sioux Falls plant told USA TODAY that there’s no way to stay 6 feet from co-workers on the production line, in the cafeteria or in the locker room. The employee asked to use only his first name for fear that speaking out would cost him his job.
As people around him at the plant became infected with COVID-19, John said, he started feeling sick and went to get his temperature checked, thinking he needed to leave. But he was stopped, he said.
“They told me I was OK and I needed to work,” said John, who has worked at the plant for a decade. “I said nope, and I came home.”
In early April, he learned he had tested positive for COVID-19.
“Those people don’t care about us,” John said. “If you die, they’ll just replace you tomorrow.”
Plants close, production plummets
By the time it closed its doors on April 12, Smithfield’s Sioux Falls plant had more than 200 confirmed cases of COVID-19. In the days since then, the case count has swelled to nearly 900, including workers and those they’ve interacted with, making it the biggest single cluster of COVID-19 infections in the nation.
CDC employees are touring the plant to develop a reopening plan expected to be released this week.
But it’s not just Smithfield. As of Tuesday night, coronavirus infections had spread in at least 48 U.S. meatpacking plants, sickening more than 2,200 people and killing 17, USA TODAY and the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting found. The outbreaks also have prompted the closure of at least 17 facilities, including that of the JBS pork plant in Worthington, Minnesota, on Monday.
The Worthington JBS is among the 153 meat processing plants that USA TODAY and the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting identified as operating in counties with a high rate of coronavirus infection. Any rate above one infection per 1,000 people puts a county in the top 25% of U.S. counties reporting COVID-19 infection rates.
Other plants on the list include the Tyson pork-processing facility in Columbus Junction, Iowa, where 186 workers fell ill and two died after COVID-19 swept through the factory.
The Tyson plant is located in Louisa County, where 19 out of every 1,000 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. It’s the highest rate of any county with a large meat processor.
Tyson also has a poultry processing facility in Mitchell County, Georgia, where at least four workers have tested positive for coronavirus. The facility remains open, despite more than 9 out of every 1,000 county residents testing positive for COVID-19.
A JBS facility in Grand Island, Nebraska also remains open even after 237 workers tested positive there. The plant is located in Hall County, where 7.5 of every 1,000 people has tested positive.
National meat production is already hurting. Industry analysts say the factory closures cause choke points, with livestock backing up on farms and consumers struggling to find some products. Statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture show weekly beef production plummeting from late March onward, now down 19% from the same time a year ago.
While about 2.5 billion pounds of red meat and poultry products are typically warehoused in commercial freezers at any one time as they move along the supply chain, it’s not enough to prevent a shortage, said Don Close, a senior animal protein analyst at Rabo AgriFinance. The freezers typically only hold about one week’s supply of meat, USDA statistics show.
Despite this, experts say the meat industry has enough flexibility and redundancy to avoid mass shortages.
“At this point I think it’s a fairly remote possibility,” said Altin Kalo, senior economist at the Steiner Consulting Group. “But we’re living through times that there are things that are happening that I never thought we would see. We have oil that trades at a negative.”
If the industry can avoid a mass shortage, workers say it will be at their expense.
Jean Hakizimana, 34, was employed as a cleaner at Smithfield’s Sioux Falls plant and recently tested positive for COVID-19. His wife, who doesn’t work at the plant, also tested positive.
As the outbreak spread, he said, he didn’t feel safe in the plant. He wasn’t provided with a mask, he said, but one wouldn’t have helped anyway because the heavy spraying of water would have just soaked it.
“You can’t do the job with the mask,” he said. “You have to take it off to keep working.”
Hakizimana also said social distancing in a meat processing plant, where workers stand about a foot apart, is impossible.
“There was no way to keep 6 feet apart,” he said, “because the belt is so fast.”
Line speed was cited as a primary concern among meat and poultry workers in a 2016 U.S. Government Accountability Report that said employees felt their bosses cared more about production than worker safety.
Plant workers told investigators that “employers do not want the line to slow down even when the plant is understaffed,” the GAO report said, adding that industry officials disagreed. “According to representatives of a meat industry trade association, staffing is typically increased when line speed increases.”
The same GAO report noted that meat and poultry workers experienced higher illness rates than other manufacturing workers — nearly 160 cases per 10,000 full-time meat and poultry workers in 2013, compared to about 40 cases for manufacturing overall.
But those rates are likely higher, the report said, because both workers and their employers may underreport injuries and illnesses. For the worker, it’s from fear of job loss, the report said. For the employer, it’s from fear of the potential costs associated with those injuries and illnesses.
What’s more, the health units in these meatpacking plants have numerous problems, including “lack supervision of medical personnel, personnel working outside their scope of practice, out-of-date health unit protocols, inappropriate response to injuries and illness, lack of quality assurance, poor worker access to health units, and inadequate recordkeeping,” a 2017 GAO report found.
States on the sideline Meatpacking plants in Iowa, though, are now in a more protected position than most.
On Monday, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced the state will focus COVID-19 testing on meatpacking plants, swabbing all employees. “Strike teams” of epidemiologists and infectious disease nurses will also trace those who contacted infected workers and other Iowans. Later, Reynolds added that 250 National Guard members had been activated and that their mission includes helping to keep meat processing plants open.
Despite the potential for meatpacking plants to mutate into hotbeds of infection because of the close quarters in which employees work, Reynolds said she declined to close the facilities outright due to their importance to the food supply.
"We must do our part to keep them open in a safe and responsible way," Reynolds said.
Processing facilities in other states aren’t getting the same support. While Iowa has 23 major meat processing plants, four states have more: Arkansas (33), Georgia (32), Texas (32), and North Carolina (24).
Texas Department of State Health Services spokeswoman Lara Anton said the agency is aware of two COVID-19 outbreaks in meat processing plants and that it “actively investigates” such outbreaks.
“We’ve sent an environmental assessment team into one of the facilities and a team will be going into the other facility,” Anton said.
Georgia did not respond to an inquiry, and Arkansas and North Carolina said they had only issued guidance.
“We are monitoring closely for positive cases in any industry situations like this, and working with those businesses when needed,” said Meg Mirivel, a spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Health.
Mirivel also cited a three-page “guidance” for businesses, which noted the state health department would only know if an employee of a meatpacking plant tested positive for coronavirus if they volunteered their employment information at the time of the test.
Kelly Haight Connor, a spokeswoman for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, said that agency currently relies on county health departments to perform interventions like contact tracing. The state otherwise has also issued guidance.
“Going forward, it will take a much larger team to aggressively trace the contacts of everyone who tests positive,” Haight Connor said, adding the health department is “working to structure contact tracing collaboratively between the state and counties.”
Even in places with some of the nation’s highest infection rates, facilities are left to police themselves. Of the 10 major meat-packing counties with the highest COVID-19 infection rates, five are in hard-hit New Jersey.
Managers at two of those factories reached by phone Monday said they have had little interaction with health authorities at any level.
“Officially, from the government, we haven’t received anything,” said Simone Bocchini, president of Fratelli Beretta, which distributes Italian cured meats nationwide.
Bocchini said the company took action on its own more than a month ago. Its facility in Morris County, where 8 of every 1,000 residents has tested positive for coronavirus, checks employee temperatures, sanitizes all surfaces and common areas, and provides copious hand sanitizer to employees, Bocchini said.
“We implement them like they were part of the (rules),” Bocchini said.
He declined to say whether any employees had tested positive for COVID-19, citing personnel privacy.
Asked about any actions the New Jersey Department of Health has taken to protect major food processors, spokeswoman Dawn Thomas wrote in an email that inspections “may be performed by local health departments.” She did not respond to follow-up questions asking if that means the state is not taking additional measures.
The state capital of Trenton in Mercer County, where just under 7 out of every 1,000 residents has tested positive, contains two major meat processing plants. But a county spokesperson said Mercer doesn’t have a health department, and a counterpart in Trenton did not respond to an inquiry about any measures the city is taking.
Specht, the Notre Dame professor, said he doubts health departments at all levels have the resources to ensure safe conditions at every facility, following a history of attrition.
“You can get things on paper,” Specht said, “but I don’t know where they get the manpower to enforce.”
Feds absent near Philly Union workers at four Pennsylvania meatpacking plants stricken by coronavirus say the federal government has ignored their push for safer working conditions.
“Early on we were putting calls into OSHA that went completely unanswered,” said Wendell Young IV, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1776 in the Philadelphia suburbs.
In an attempt to better protect meatpackers from COVID-19, Young said, the union has been negotiating with those four companies, which include the JBS beef packing plant in Souderton that closed in late March due to an outbreak.
But OSHA and the CDC weren’t part of those discussions, Young said.
“OSHA did not issue any orders or directives,” Young said, “nor did they ramp up inspections or enforcement.”
Instead, he said several companies voluntarily agreed to make changes, such as placing barriers between employees, issuing personal protective equipment and instructing managers to enforce proper personal distance.
Those measures led to a scheduled reopening of the Souderton JBS plant on Monday, but Wendell said workers have nothing but the company’s word that the changes will continue.
One of those workers is Carmen Dominguez. Before the plant’s temporary shutdown, she operated a machine that packages meat. Now she’s a union steward, making sure her co-workers follow new distancing guidelines. She says for the time, employees feel safe.
But she wonders about the long-term and whether any government backstop will be needed.
“At the moment, everything is going well,” Dominguez said in Spanish through an interpreter on Tuesday. “We try to make sure that they continue doing the right thing, but if not, probably we will need somebody that can help.”
OSHA will also be “issuing guidance” specifically for meat processing workers, said a spokesperson at the U.S. Department of Labor, which includes OSHA. The agency is also “enforcing” the CDC’s guidance through a regulatory power that says employers have a duty to protect workers from known hazards, the spokesperson said.
“When OSHA finds such a violation, a citation would be issued and a civil monetary penalty imposed,” the spokesperson said via email.
According to records OSHA posted on its website, there were two findings against meat processors in March for violating COVID-19 safety guidelines. The records showed a dozen more open cases at meat plants.
USA TODAY also sent a list of questions about what steps the CDC has taken to ensure safe workspaces in the Pennsylvania factories, or anywhere else. Bert Kelly, a spokesperson for the agency, responded with a one-sentence email.
“Please check in with OSHA, FDA or local regulators about this topic,” Kelly wrote.
This story is a collaboration between USA TODAY and the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting. The Center is an independent, nonprofit newsroom covering agribusiness, Big Ag and related issues. USA TODAY is funding a fellowship at the center for expanded coverage of agribusiness and its impact on communities.
Originally Published 6:05 a.m. CDT Apr. 22, 2020
Coronavirus cases found in at least 17 meat processing plants across U.S.
Coronavirus infections in at least 17 meat processing plants across nine states are contributing to a spike in confirmed cases in the Midwest. Although 13 plants are already closed temporarily or operating at reduced capacity, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds says shutting down plants would hurt farmers and the national food supply. Adriana Diaz looks at the effect the pandemic has had on some of these facilities. 4H AGO
17 plants in 10 states...
Texas investigating meat processing plants over coronavirus outbreaks
The Department of State Health Services is looking into outbreaks at JBS Beef in Moore County and Tyson Foods in Shelby County.
BY ALEXA URA APRIL 21, 2020 2 HOURS AGO
The JBS beef processing plant in Cactus on Jan. 28, 2020.
The JBS beef processing plant in Cactus on Jan. 28, 2020. Photo credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
Coronavirus in Texas
As the coronavirus spreads across the state, The Texas Tribune is covering the most important health, economic and breaking developments that affect Texans, every day. Watch our Texas unemployment tracker, use our explainer on the coronavirus for essential information, and visit our map tracker for the number of cases, deaths and tests in Texas. MORE IN THIS SERIES
State health officials confirmed Tuesday that they are investigating an outbreak of the new coronavirus at the JBS Beef packing plant in the Texas Panhandle, part of ongoing efforts to monitor major meat processing plants as the pandemic continues to threaten food supply chains.
Earlier this month, the Department of State Health Services conducted an epidemiological investigation in Shelby County that identified a cluster of 14 coronavirus cases and two related deaths that were “in some manner” tied to employees of a Tyson Foods facility.
Now, a department spokeswoman said, an “environmental assessment team” is being sent to Moore County to advise on ways the massive meatpacking plant, which processes a significant portion of the nation’s beef, can curb the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new strain of the coronavirus.
The investigation follows the shuttering of the company’s meat packing plants in other states because of local outbreaks. Moore County, near the Oklahoma border, has one of the highest rates of infection per capita in the state. (Some local leaders attribute it to rapid testing.)
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After a call with Tyson Foods officials, the health department asked the company to enact additional protections for employees at its facility near the Louisiana border, including monitoring all individuals entering the facility for both fever and other COVID-19 related symptoms, and to increase its sanitizing as part of the transportation the company provides for workers.
In an April 10 letter, health commissioner John Hellerstedt wrote to officials for Tyson Foods that the department was “not currently seeking a temporary closure” of the facility but asked the company to provide written confirmation it would take additional actions beyond those previously outlined by the facility in a letter to the state.
“I appreciate the commitment Tyson Foods has expressed in our call and in writing,” Hellerstedt wrote. “We know these actions are effective against the virus, and strict adherence will result in a healthier Texas.
Representatives for JBS Beef and Tyson Foods did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2020
Coronavirus at Smithfield pork plant: The untold story of America's biggest outbreak
and
Tyson Foods processing plant in rural Iowa hit hard by coronavirus with 186 positive cases
The new rule will end limits on how fast slaughterhouses can kill pigs. It will also shift responsibility for removing defective meat during the slaughtering process from government inspectors to plant workers. The USDA will still inspect live pigs and the final pork products.
As line speeds increase, meatpacking workers are in ever more danger Don't expect the Trump administration to improve conditions in this already brutal industry. Matt McConnell Opinion contributor
***> The estimated low level of immunity against SARS-CoV-2 indicates that efficient control measures that limit transmission risk will have to be maintained beyond the 11th May to avoid a rebound of the epidemic.
Estimating the burden of SARS-CoV-2 in France
Henrik Salje, Cécile Tran Kiem, Noémie Lefrancq, Noémie Courtejoie, Paolo Bosetti, Juliette Paireau, Alessio Andronico, Nathanaël Hoze, Jehanne Richet, Claire-Lise Dubost, et al.
Abstract
France has been heavily affected by the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic and went into lockdown on the 17th March 2020. Using models applied to hospital and death data, we estimate the impact of the lockdown and current population immunity. We find 2.6% of infected individuals are hospitalized and 0.53% die, ranging from 0.001% in those <20y 8.3="" in="" those="" to="">80y. Across all ages, men are more likely to be hospitalized, enter intensive care, and die than women. The lockdown reduced the reproductive number from 3.3 to 0.5 (84% reduction). By 11 May, when interventions are scheduled to be eased, we project 3.7 million (range: 2.3-6.7) people, 5.7% of the population, will have been infected. Population immunity appears insufficient to avoid a second wave if all control measures are released at the end of the lockdown.
This study shows the massive impact the French lockdown had on SARS-CoV-2 transmission. It estimates underlying probabilities of infection, hospitalization and death, which is essential for the interpretation of COVID-19 surveillance data. The forecasts we provide can inform planning of ICU bed occupancy and lockdown exit strategies.
***> The estimated low level of immunity against SARS-CoV-2 indicates that efficient control measures that limit transmission risk will have to be maintained beyond the 11th May to avoid a rebound of the epidemic.
USC-LA County Study: Early Results of Antibody Testing Suggest Number of COVID-19 Infections Far Exceeds Number of Confirmed Cases in Los Angeles County
In the study of 368 patients, 97 patients who took hydroxychloroquine had a 27.8% death rate. The 158 patients who did not take the drug had an 11.4% death rate.
(CNN)The 5-year-old daughter of two Detroit first responders has died of complications from coronavirus.
Skylar Herbert died Sunday at Beaumont Royal Oak Hospital after being on a ventilator for two weeks, CNN affiliate WXYZ reported. She tested positive for coronavirus last month and developed a rare form of meningitis and swelling on the brain, according to WXYZ. "The loss of a child, at any time, under any circumstances, is a tragedy," Beaumont Hospital said in a statement obtained by WXYZ. "We are heartbroken that COVID-19 has taken the life of a child. We extend our deepest sympathy to Skylar's family and all others who have lost a loved one to this virus."
Skylar's mother has been a Detroit Police officer for 25 years and her father has worked as a firefighter with the Detroit Fire Department for 18 years, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said during a Monday news conference.
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2020
Detroit 5-year-old dies of coronavirus; parents try to warn others, while Texas Lt Gov Dan Patrick says there are more important things than living
so, i guess your Mom and Dad and essential workers should be happy to die, just take one for the Gipper...i think not...terry
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2020
Covid-19 Hydroxychloroquine Study finds no benefit, higher death rate, study of 368 patients, 97 patients who took drug had a 27.8% death rate compared to 11.4% death rate that did not take drug
Texas City, Texas, Galveston County
COVID-19 Patients Given Unproven Drug In Texas Nursing Home In 'Disconcerting' Move
When Larry Edrozo got a phone call from his mother’s nursing home in Texas City telling him she was being treated for the novel coronavirus with an unproven pharmaceutical drug, he had two questions: why was she getting the drug if she had not been showing symptoms, and who gave consent?
“What I’m living in fear of is what’s happening to this country. And you know, Tucker, no one reached out to me and said, as a senior citizen, are you willing to take a chance on your survival in exchange for keeping the America that all America loves for your children and grandchildren?
“And if that’s the exchange,” he said, “I’m all in.”
snip...
Patrick called for “a time certain” for the economy to reopen, but that three or six or 12 months is too long.
The problem, of course, with the Patrick strategy is that it also would put other people at risk, people of all ages. Predictably, his comments drew partisan fire via Twitter.
“The full stupidity of Lt. Dan’s ‘Let The Bodies Hit the Floor’ philosophy is that even if everyone goes back to work and 2 million Americans end up dying, that may not be enough to stop the global economic effects of the” virus, state Rep. Gene Wu, D-Houston, tweeted.
Ad By Sponsor See More “It always makes my heart swell to know that wealthy people, like Dan Patrick ... are so willing and eager to sacrifice other people’s lives,” Wu tweeted. “Maybe I’m the only one who feels this way, but I will happily trade my 401k and all my stocks to have my parents around and for my boys to have their Grandpa and Nanna. It’s my life savings, but it’s just money. I’d rather have my family.”
Former nurse and state Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, summed it up appropriately in a tweet reacting to Patrick’s let’s-get-back-to-work comments:
“I also have 6 perfect grandkids and want to help secure their future. But wow, that doesn’t mean the only option is to risk further spread of this non-discriminatory virus by everyone returning to work w/o ensuring we contain the spread — which also affects young people.”
Tuesday morning, as his words spread around the nation like, well, a virulent virus, Patrick issued a statement saying he’d been “very clear last night that we should continue President Trump’s 15-day plan and if he believes we need more time, then we need more time. I trust his judgment.”
“But at some point, sooner rather than later, we must get back to work before our nation totally collapses. When you close the doors of every business in America, you cannot help but destroy the economy and with it the opportunity for the next generation to live the American dream.”
Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa wasn’t buying it: “Republicans are not here to protect you or your family. The only thing they are concerned about is enriching themselves and their stock portfolios. They would see our family members die to bail out Wall Street.”
And all this came on a day Trump went on TV to tell us, in defiance of what health care experts have advised, “I would love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter.”
CORONAVIRUS IN TEXAS
Dan Patrick says “there are more important things than living and that’s saving this country” Patrick went on Fox News on Monday evening to defend comments he made last month where he said he would rather die from the widely spreading coronavirus than see the economy destroyed for his children and grandchildren.
BY ALEX SAMUELS APRIL 21, 20208 HOURS AGO
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2020
Covid-19 Hydroxychloroquine Study finds no benefit, higher death rate, study of 368 patients, 97 patients who took drug had a 27.8% death rate compared to 11.4% death rate that did not take drug
COVID-19 Patients Given Unproven Drug In Texas Nursing Home In 'Disconcerting' Move
When Larry Edrozo got a phone call from his mother’s nursing home in Texas City telling him she was being treated for the novel coronavirus with an unproven pharmaceutical drug, he had two questions: why was she getting the drug if she had not been showing symptoms, and who gave consent?
Purging the Old Folks From Nursing Homes and Long-term Care Facilities
And, across the nation, according to a recent report in the Wall Street Journal, the coronavirus epidemic has affected more than 2,100 nursing homes and long-term care facilities, causing more than 2,300 fatalities. The article states that the official tally “almost certainly understates the extent of the epidemic, because not all states provide data.” As a further matter, a Time article suggests the number is at least 3,600 deaths. And on April 16, a report indicates that at least 5,670 nursing home residents have died from COVID-19.
This week state, county, and municipal officials have begun rectifying the problem of underreporting of COVID-19 deaths by adding to the tally deaths that have occurred at home or in nursing homes and are presumed to be caused by COVID-19.
SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Children
March 18, 2020
DOI: 10.1056/NEJMc2005073
TO THE EDITOR:
As of March 10, 2020, the 2019 novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has been responsible for more than 110,000 infections and 4000 deaths worldwide, but data regarding the epidemiologic characteristics and clinical features of infected children are limited.1-3 A recent review of 72,314 cases by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that less than 1% of the cases were in children younger than 10 years of age.2 In order to determine the spectrum of disease in children, we evaluated children infected with SARS-CoV-2 and treated at the Wuhan Children’s Hospital, the only center assigned by the central government for treating infected children under 16 years of age in Wuhan. Both symptomatic and asymptomatic children with known contact with persons having confirmed or suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection were evaluated. Nasopharyngeal or throat swabs were obtained for detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA by established methods.4 The clinical outcomes were monitored up to March 8, 2020.
Of the 1391 children assessed and tested from January 28 through February 26, 2020, a total of 171 (12.3%) were confirmed to have SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Demographic data and clinical features are summarized in Table 1. (Details of the laboratory and radiologic findings are provided in the Supplementary Appendix, available with the full text of this letter at NEJM.org.)
The median age of the infected children was 6.7 years.
Fever was present in 41.5% of the children at any time during the illness.
Other common signs and symptoms included cough and pharyngeal erythema.
A total of 27 patients (15.8%) did not have any symptoms of infection or radiologic features of pneumonia.
A total of 12 patients had radiologic features of pneumonia but did not have any symptoms of infection.
During the course of hospitalization, 3 patients required intensive care support and invasive mechanical ventilation; all had coexisting conditions (hydronephrosis, leukemia [for which the patient was receiving maintenance chemotherapy], and intussusception).
Lymphopenia (lymphocyte count, <1 .2="" 6="" div="" in="" liter="" nbsp="" patients="" per="" present="" was="">
The most common radiologic finding was bilateral ground-glass opacity (32.7%).
As of March 8, 2020, there was one death. A 10-month-old child with intussusception had multiorgan failure and died 4 weeks after admission.
A total of 21 patients were in stable condition in the general wards, and 149 have been discharged from the hospital.
This report describes a spectrum of illness from SARS-CoV-2 infection in children. In contrast with infected adults, most infected children appear to have a milder clinical course. Asymptomatic infections were not uncommon.2 Determination of the transmission potential of these asymptomatic patients is important for guiding the development of measures to control the ongoing pandemic.
Two COVID-19 infected children, aged 12 and 13, die in Belgium and UK
By Alasdair Sandford with AFP, AP • last updated: 01/04/2020
A health worker in the intensive care ward observes a COVID-19 patient at a hospital in Belgium, March 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)
A 12-year-old girl in Belgium and a 13-year old boy in the UK infected with the novel coronavirus have died, authorities said.
They are believed to be the youngest victims of the disease in their respective countries.
The 12-year-old girl's death was announced during the daily news conference given by Belgium's health service, at the end of its regular update on casualty figures and hospitalisations.
“It's an emotionally difficult moment because it involves a child, and it has also upset the medical and scientific community,” said spokesman Dr Emmanuel André, visibly upset.
"We are thinking of her family and friends. It's a very rare event, but one which devastates us."
Another spokesman added that the child had had a fever for three days and had tested positive for the coronavirus. No other details were given of the girl's background.
Until now the youngest person to die from the virus in Belgium was a 30-year-old female nurse, according to Belgian media.
Just a few hours later, London's King's College Hospital announced that a 13-year-old COVID-19 patient had also died.
"Sadly, a 13-year old boy who tested positive for COVID-19 has passed away, and our thoughts and condolences are with the family at this time," a Trust spokesperson said in a statement.
"The death has been referred to the Coroner," it added.
An appeal posted on the GoFunMe crowdfunding platform by Madinah College, named him as Ismail and said that he didn't have "any pre-existing health conditions.
"Sadly he died without any family members close by due to the highly infectious nature of COVID-19," it added.
Ismail is believed the be the youngest victim of the disease in the UK.
Last week French authorities said a 16-year-old girl had died at a children's hospital in Paris. The death of the teenager, identified as Julie A. and described as otherwise healthy, has provoked strong emotions in France.
Coronavirus in France: healthy 16 year-old dies of COVID-19
Deaths from COVID-19 among people so young are exceptional. Health authorities have said previously that serious cases of the illness -- although predominant in older and more vulnerable age groups -- can occur in adults of any age.
Last weekend the US state of Illinois announced the death of an infant under one year old who had tested positive for coronavirus. The cause of death was being investigated. Medical reports on cases in China have documented the death of a 10-month-old baby and a 14-year-old boy.
A recent US study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of 2,500 patients found no cases of deaths among people aged under 19. But it did find that people of all ages were liable to become seriously ill: more than a third of those hospitalised were aged between 20 and 54.
Coronavirus in Europe: Latest numbers on COVID-19 cases and deaths
The Belgian girl's death was included among the latest national figures released on Tuesday, confirming nearly 200 more deaths since the previous update. More than 700 people in the country have died from coronavirus since the outbreak began.
Hospitals in three regions have been particularly badly affected, the authorities say -- around Brussels, in Limburg in eastern Flanders, and in Hainaut in Wallonia to the west.
With 12,775 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Tuesday, Belgium has the 10th highest number of infections among countries worldwide, according to data compiled by the US Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.
just pondering, remember those teabagger gop and those Obama 'death panels' that never were, due to his Obama Care.
2020 Covid-19, trump gop maga, wow, just wow, look where we are now, how many more dead?
so sad, so sad, and the sheeples will still follow, no matter if it's their mom or dad, or uncle or aunt, that dies from covid-19, is this where we are at? so very damn sad.
Trump gop maga, “get back to work now” before proper testing, before testing in sufficient numbers, before hospitals are geared up and ready to go for round two and three, not ready to collapse in some places, is like leading more sheeple to slaughter imo, but what the hell, at least they can get their hair and nails done before they go...
