Victoria has recorded another record number of cases overnight. NSW brings back social distancing restrictions. Russian hackers have been accused of trying to steal vaccine and treatment research. And new research on just how long COVID-19 symptoms can last.
No taste or smell and a huge headache
Headaches are the most common symptom in coronavirus patients, new research shows, with the loss of taste or smell more common than a cough.
The Imperial College London study tested more than 120,000 people in a month across England. It also found of those who tested positive for COVID-19, just three in 10 showed symptoms.
Meanwhile, around 80% of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 in Sydney are still experiencing symptoms more than three months after being discharged. The most common symptom is fatigue, along with chest discomfort, shortness of breath and loss of smell.
Stealing secrets and scams
Russia has been accused of trying to steal virus vaccine secrets from medical companies in the US, UK and Canada.
The three countries issued a joint statement saying hackers had been using malware and sending fraudulent emails to trick people into handing over their security credentials. The Kremlin has denied Russian involvement.
A man has been arrested in Bangladesh for allegedly issuing thousands of fake-negative coronavirus test results, raking in over half a million dollars from the scam. Medical facilities owned by Mohammad Shahed conducted 4000 legitimate tests but over 6500 fake ones, issuing false-negative results.
The US mess
Previously public coronavirus data has already disappeared from the Center for Disease and Control (CDC) website, with states ordered to send data straight to the Trump administration instead of the CDC. The CDC previously provided data on the availability of hospital beds and intensive care units across the country.
US President Donald Trump has also been accused of breaking the law after not wearing a mask at an international airport in Atlanta. Trump’s entourage never left the airport and said they were following guidelines from the CDC.
And as the US’s largest retailers require masks to be worn in their stores across the country, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has signed an executive order explicitly banning cities from creating mask mandates, and voiding those already in place.
He signed the order the same day the state recorded its second-highest number of coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic, with nearly 4000 cases.
Australian numbers just keep rising
Overnight, Victoria had its second day in a row of record new cases since the pandemic began, confirming 428 cases in the past 24 hours. There were three more deaths, taking the state’s death toll to 32 and the national death toll to 116. Yesterday, it recorded 317 new cases in the previous 24 hours.
Meanwhile, a total of 388 healthcare workers have been infected, with dozens in isolation as the state faces a shortage of critical health workers.
In NSW, the Crossroads Hotel cluster has grown to 42, with eight new cases recorded yesterday. Two of the new cases are linked to the Crossroads Hotel cluster.
Restrictions on pubs, which include a 10-person limit on table bookings, will be extended to clubs, restaurants, and cafes. Weddings and corporate events will be limited to 150 people — everyone must be seated and there’s a ban on dancing. Funerals and places of worship will be limited to 100 people.
NSW Police had previously been told to target teens flouting social distancing rules when handing out fines during the state’s lockdown, a Freedom of Information request by The Sydney Morning Herald revealed. Police were also told the same response shouldn’t be applied to those sitting “quietly” as to “rowdy young adults causing a disturbance”.
Australia’s unemployment has reached a 22-year high of 7.4% with 992,000 people officially unemployed. This figure excludes those who didn’t work at all but were employed through the JobKeeper program. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the “real” jobless rate was likely to be about 13.3%.
South Australia has recorded its first case of COVID-19 in months from a Victorian traveller, who is in quarantine and is not contagious.
Brain drain
The Group of Eight universities have warned Australia could face a “brain drain” as researchers lose their jobs thanks to the loss of full-fee paying overseas students. Around 6700 jobs will be lost due to the $2 billion shortfall.
“Russia has been accused of trying to steal virus vaccine secrets from medical companies in the US, UK and Canada.”
Wonder what the result might be, if the world went into full “open source” mode on trying to find a vaccine/treatment for Covid19?
I thought that C19 research had been open source since China released the genome in December.
Not that a US company would contemplate for a nanosecond profiteering & gouging were it to find a vaccine.
“Headaches are the most common symptom in coronavirus patients, new research shows, with the loss of taste or smell more common than a cough.”
It would be interesting to know if they underwent the nasal swab test. To do this they use a chop-stick sized bud with some prickly things on the end of it that cause severe pain when applied and take their samples from the cribriform plate, which is a millimeter thick bone at the top of the nasal cavity that is perforated with many holes that go directly into the brain cavity.
I wonder if there is some truth to people’s loss of taste, smell and brain fade calling it a symton of C 19 instead of damage caused by the swab test. Even the MSM are now running related stories…who would a thunk it?!!!
“Russia has been accused of trying to steal virus vaccine secrets from medical companies in the US, UK and Canada.” Just hours before the announcement from Moscow that Russian researchers have a vaccine tested and ready and expect to release it to the world in August. The Russians have a lot of experience using viruses for treatment of disease in their extensive use of phages against bacterial infections so it’s not surprising to find them at the head of the pack. Sadly it’s also not surprising to see North American and UK authorities shouting foul when their pharma corporations stand to miss out on capturing a worldwide market. Who has forgotten the US attempt to buy up and monopolise German COVID-19 research?
Indeed – while Clive was bulk buying chloroquin and Twiggy who knows what, the US tried to buy the world supply of Remdesivir.
Amazingly, though Trump did manage to get a lot, the company had sufficient ethical standards to ensure that the ‘flu drug was not monopolised, even if useless against C19.
It’d be nice to think that all 3 have a huge sunk cost.
“NSW Police had previously been told to target teens flouting social distancing rules when handing out fines during the state’s lockdown“
Nothing like ganging up on the defenceless and not really relevant. They aren’t spreading the virus, in fact most are in the 20-40 age group.
Just more of the war on the young.
At least they might employ some common sense regarding families having a picnic in a local park.
From where in dogs name do you get the idea that 20-40year olds do not spread the virus?
Too much twitting and facepalming perhaps.
Everyone is a potential carrier, symptomatic or not.
I maybe misread you badly written diatribe.
If you meant to claim that most carriers are in the 20-40year old bracket, you might possibly be correct; but then they are the cohort most likely to be at their work places and therefore more exposed to infection.
But, year 11 and 12 students attending school are in much the same situation.
And my statement that everyone is a potential carrier, regardless of age, remains factual.
I mean ? f people in Australia don’t bother having their COVID vaccinations and booster shots they shouldn’t expect medical staff in hospital to look after them.
Not had boosters? Now sick – stay home and take a Panadol.
Lots of $$’s will be saved when I’m finally PM ?