(Eagle News) — Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients who are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms of the disease should be placed in a quarantine facility approved by the government, according to the latest resolution no. 74 from the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID). Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque revealed that the IATF had ratified the decision of the technical working group to prohibit home quarantine for such COVID-19 cases, but that there are exemption […]
Tag: coronavirus
Global coronavirus death toll passes one million
by Simon MALFATTO Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — The global death toll from the new coronavirus, which emerged less than a year ago in China and has swept across the world, passed one million on Sunday. The pandemic has ravaged the global economy, inflamed geopolitical tensions and upended lives, from Indian slums and Brazil’s jungles to America’s biggest city New York. World sports, live entertainment and international travel ground to a halt […]
Coronavirus could overwhelm France, top doctor warns
PARIS, France (AFP) — France will face a months-long coronavirus epidemic that will overwhelm its health system if something does not change, one of the country’s top medical figures warned Sunday. “The second wave is arriving faster than we thought,” Patrick Bouet, head of the National Council of the Order of Doctors, told the weekly Journal du Dimanche. Fresh restrictions to slow the spread of the disease in the country’s worst-hit areas, including the […]
COVID-19 deaths worldwide breach 950,500, as global cases top 30.4 million
(Eagle News) – The COVID-19 death toll worldwide reached 950,500 on Saturday, Sept. 19, as fatalities continue to rise while scientists in various countries race to find a cure and a vaccine for the virus. As of Saturday noon, Sept. 19 (Philippine time), more than 30.4 million confirmed virus cases were recorded across the globe, or 30,406,197 cases to be exact, with the United States still leading countries with the most COVID cases and […]
Chinese bus offers new evidence of airborne coronavirus spread: study
WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — A person on a poorly ventilated Chinese bus infected nearly two dozen other passengers with coronavirus even though many weren’t sitting close by, according to research published on Tuesday that offers fresh evidence the disease can spread in the air. Health authorities had initially discounted the possibility that simply breathing could send infectious micro-droplets into the air, but did a U-turn as experts piled on pressure and evidence mounted. […]
Coronavirus pushes leading world economies into record slumps
PARIS, France (AFP) — Brazil and India reported historic second-quarter drops in national economic output this week, a situation seen in almost all leading global economies owing to the coronavirus pandemic. Only China, where the outbreak was first reported, has escaped a recession. Here are second-quarter changes in gross domestic product (GDP) compared with the previous quarter for many of the world’s top economies. Unless stated otherwise, the figures are from the national statistics […]
Robot eases loneliness of Mexican virus patients
MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — A robot at a hospital in the Mexican capital is providing a lifeline for coronavirus patients separated from their relatives and reducing the risk of infection for medical workers. “Hi, I’m LaLuchy Robotina! What’s your name?” the 1.4-meter-tall (4.6 feet) robot asks patients as it goes from room to room. It moves around on wheels and has a camera and display screen enabling relatives and doctors to chat with patients […]
Global virus cases cross 25 million as India sets grim record of
by Glenda Kwek, with AFP Bureaus Agence France Presse NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — Global coronavirus infections soared past 25 million on Sunday, as countries around the world further tightened restrictions to try to stop the rampaging pandemic. A million additional cases have been detected globally roughly every four days since mid-July, according to an AFP tally, with India on Sunday setting the record for the highest single-day rise in cases with 78,761. The […]
Brazil surpasses 120,000 COVID deaths
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — Just over six months after registering its first case of the new coronavirus, Brazil crossed the grim threshold of 120,000 people killed by Covid-19 Saturday, with no end in sight to the crisis. The country of 212 million people has now registered 120,262 deaths from the virus and 3,846,153 infections, the health ministry said in its daily update. Brazil is just the second country to surpass a death toll […]
Hong Kong: first ‘proven’ case of COVID reinfection
by Marlowe HOOD Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Researchers in Hong Kong Monday identified what they said was the first confirmed case worldwide of COVID-19 reinfection, raising questions about the durability of immunity, whether acquired naturally or with a vaccine. “Our study proves that immunity for COVID infection is not lifelong — in fact, reinfection can occur quite quickly,” said Kelvin Kai-Wang To, a microbiologist at Hong Kong University’s Faculty of Medicine and lead […]
India coronavirus deaths hit 50,000
by Bhuvan BAGGA gence France Presse NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — India’s death toll from the coronavirus hit 50,000 on Monday, with more than 900 new fatalities reported in 24 hours, health ministry data showed. The country last week overtook Britain with the world’s fourth-highest number of deaths, behind the United States, Brazil and Mexico, and has recorded 2.6 million infections. India’s death toll from the pandemic now stands at 50,921, an increase of […]
Mutated SARS-CoV-2 strain detected in QC
Study says mutation can increase viral rate of transmission but “no definitive evidence” carriers are more infectious than others yet (Eagle News)–A mutated strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID19 has been found in Quezon City. The Philippine Genome Center, which conducted a whole genome and targeted sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in the country as part of the validation study of the locally developed SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR kit, said in its first advisory that […]





