Covid Shorts: Cheers! Globally cases are declining

 

Globally, there appears to be some good news as the number of new Covid-19 cases and deaths continues to decrease.

A total of 3,550,456 new cases and 78,665 new deaths were reported globally in the week ending May 31. This amounts to a 15% drop in cases and a 7% decrease in deaths compared with the previous week.

The largest decreases were in the European and the South and Southeast Asia regions, according to the World Health Organisation.

In South and Southeast Asia there were 1,516,572 new cases in the seven days till May 31, amounting to 43% of the world’s cases for that period. Although high, it was nevertheless lower by 24% compared with the previous week. Cumulative cases stood at 31,605,221 or 19% of the world’s total cases.

There were 29,477 deaths in this region in the last 7 days, down by 8%. Cumulative deaths stood at 401,754 or 11% of the world’s total.

Worldwide, the highest number of new cases were reported from India (1,364,668 new cases; 26% decrease), Brazil (420,981 new cases; 7% decrease), Argentina (219,910 new cases; 3% increase), the United States (153,587 new cases; 18% decrease), and Colombia (150,517 new cases; 40% increase).

But I suppose Malaysians who drink alcohol may be confused as to whether they can raise their glasses. This is because of confusion over whether outlets can sell alcohol.

FMT reported that there is confusion over the sale of alcohol following two incidents. One, a shop selling alcoholic beverages was ordered to close because it was not considered an essential service during the June 1-14 lockdown; two, police raided a shop selling alcoholic beverages in Bangsar and told it to close.

But remarks by the minister in charge of SOPs and even the inspector general of police give the impression there’s a lack of clarity even at the top level. Which is why confused business groups dealing with alcohol are asking for clarity.

In Tokyo, however, there is perfect clarity.

Eateries are banned from selling alcohol in the city which is fighting a fourth wave of Covid-19 infections. Eatery operators have been clearly told they would be fined for non-compliance. And although they are upset, neither the rules nor the implementation give rise to confusion.

The Japanese government, in fact, offers a daily subsidy of between ¥40,000 (RM1,500) and ¥200,000 (RM7,500) depending on the establishment’s size.

Talking about alcohol, those who like to down a glass or two may want to listen to what the World Health Organization says about alcohol and Covid-19 vaccines. It says alcohol use, especially heavy use, weakens the immune system and thus reduces the ability to cope with infectious diseases.

Although it is not specifically known how the Covid-19 vaccine will react if you drink alcohol after getting the jab, it’s a fact that alcohol doesn’t go well with medicine.

And remember, it’s an established fact that alcohol is detrimental to health.

Brazilians protest with pots

Brazilians are so fed up with their government’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, they have started protesting.

Last Wednesday, as President Jair Bolsonaro spoke to the nation about his government’s actions and achievements in battling Covid-19, people in various cities resorted to pot-banging as a means of protest.

Only a few days earlier, thousands were involved in street protests in 16 cities across Brazil.

I suppose one can understand their frustration. The pot banging occurred on the day when almost 100,000 Brazilians were infected and 2,507 died of Covid-19.

Covid the company

What happens when your company carries the same name as that given to a pandemic? There will be no end to jokes about it, and that is what has happened to a US company called Covid, in Tempe, Arizona.

Company officials have got used to the smiles and attempts at jokes about the company’s name. They have also got used to some people actually turning up at the company office for Covid-19 vaccination.

Covid the company sells audio-visual equipment and cables around the world.

How did it get this name? About 40 years ago, when it started, company officials initially came up with the name Video Company or Vidco for short, according to reports.

But they realised there were already many Vidcos around and so decided to have a contest to find a suitable name. One person came up with Covid, reversing the Vidco syllables.

Israel tops vaccination rollout

Reports say Israel, with a population of 9.1 million, has fully vaccinated about 80% of its adult population, the highest by any country.

With new cases hovering only around 15 a day, Israel has lifted some of its last Covid-19 restrictions: residents can now move about freely and businesses are operating at full capacity.

In the UK, although the vaccination rate is lower, more than half of adults (26,422,303 or 50.2% of the total population) have had two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine as of June 3.

Also, since the vaccination rollout began last December, about three-quarters of adults in the UK have received a first jab.

Similarly, 130.6 million Americans or more than 50% of adults in the US, had been fully vaccinated as at the end of last month. Also, 49.4% of the US population aged 12 and above has received at least one shot of the vaccine.

Vietnam asks for help

The Vietnamese government is sending mass text messages to citizens pleading for cash to fund its vaccine programme

The government has also written to Russian president Vladimir Putin and US president Joe Biden for vaccines.

Cases here are much lower than that in our country, but the virus is spreading fast and the people are worried. On June 3, the health authorities confirmed a daily total of 231 cases.

Vietnam has had more than 200 cases every day for the past 10 days. It has recorded 49 deaths and 8,115 cases in total. However almost 60% of infections were in the past month.

Pfizer’s vaccine

On June 2, Israel’s health ministry said it had found a “probable link” between several heart inflammation cases and Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine.

Reuters reported that 275 cases of myocarditis were found between December 2020 and May 2021 among more than 5 million vaccinated people. The health ministry said its study found “there is a probable link between receiving the second dose (of Pfizer) vaccine and the appearance of myocarditis among men aged 16 to 30”.

Reuters quoted Pfizer as saying the company was aware of the Israeli observations of myocarditis but said no causal link to its vaccine had been established.

I hope Malaysian health researchers are also keeping an eye on the effects of the various vaccines being used here and that they will be transparent with their findings. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.