IF iDir.com

Hundreds of people were back on the streets of Belarus' capital on Thursday morning, protesting for a fifth straight day against an election they say was rigged to extend the rule of the country's authoritarian leader and against a crackdown on rallies that followed the vote. In several areas of Minsk, large groups of people formed long “lines of solidarity." More than 100 women carrying flowers and portraits of their loved ones detained during protests gathered in the southwestern part of the city, where police had shot rubber bullets at people chanting and clapping on balconies the night before.

Thu, 13 Aug 2020 04:31:23 -0400

The novel coronavirus has now killed more than 749,000 people worldwide. Over 20.6 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some national governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their outbreaks.

Thu, 13 Aug 2020 04:23:44 -0400

At a time when nursing homes continue to be among the hardest hit settings in the coronavirus pandemic, new studies are beginning to offer insight as to why some facilities are seeing more cases than others -- and, according to one, how important nursing home employees themselves are to the fight. A study released on Monday by The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), found that across eight states those facilities that were able to maintain more staffing in the homes had fewer COVID-19 cases than staffing in homes the study rated as low-performing. Researchers used federal reviews based on health inspections, quality measures and nurse staffing to see if facilities with poor performance ratings in those categories had more viral infections or deaths.

Thu, 13 Aug 2020 04:01:00 -0400

After initial excitement about the discovery of a promising treatment for some coronavirus patients, executives with Gilead Sciences are now facing harsh criticism over the initial business decisions they’ve made in the midst of a pandemic. In recent days, state leaders and a government watchdog group have leveled complaints against the company for the price point it set for its antiviral drug remdesivir, a promising treatment shown to diminish recovery time in hospitalized coronavirus patients, and for allegedly not more quickly pursing a potentially cheaper alternative. “Gilead, on the one hand, has a product that helps people” said Dr. Erin Fox, the senior pharmacy director at the University of Utah.

Thu, 13 Aug 2020 04:00:29 -0400

The hub will connect Facebook and Instagram users to accurate and easy-to-find information about voting wherever they live and help them hold their elected officials accountable, the social media company said in a blog https://bit.ly/30RZP0z. Facebook said it was also speaking with election officials about misinformation surrounding election results as an emerging threat. The company is also offering free ad credits to U.S. state election authorities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia to help them recruit poll workers.

Thu, 13 Aug 2020 03:49:34 -0400