Klobuchar opens up about husband contracting coronavirus
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said Sunday that it can be very lonely living with COVID-19, which her husband tested positive for and is self-isolating in their Washington, D.C., apartment.
“This is a disease like no other,” Klobuchar told MSNBC’s “Kasie DC.” “It’s a very lonely disease. It’s lonely in the ramp-up, it’s lonely if you get really sick and it is lonely afterward, because you really can’t go out there until you know are you not contagious.”
She said that she was staying in a Senate colleague’s apartment until her husband, John Bessler, gets the green light from doctors to make sure he can’t spread the disease to others.
“I hope my husband’s story will be helpful for many is that he is only 52. He’s really healthy. We have no idea how he got it and he ended up in the hospital with severe pneumonia,” she said. “He had been coughing up blood, he was there for a few days, turned the corner and is now home.”
Medical workers in Spain and Italy ‘overloaded’ as more of them catch coronavirus
Doctors, nurses and other medical workers on the front lines of the coronavirus epidemic in Italy and Spain are succumbing to the respiratory illness themselves in ever increasing numbers, leading many to complain about inadequate protective equipment and supplies.
The two hardest-hit countries in Europe have together recorded more than 17,000 deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, as of Monday.
In Italy, the country’s National Institute of Health said Monday that 8,358 health workers have tested positive for the coronavirus so far, nearly nine percent of the total number of infected nationwide. A total of 61 medical workers have died of COVID-19 since the beginning of the outbreak, according to the Italian Federation of Medical Professional Associations.
Officials in Spain have not revealed how many, if any, medical workers have died from the coronavirus, but in his most recent briefing about the subject, Fernando Simon, the head of the country’s emergency coordination center, said Friday that 9,444 had contracted it. Just six days earlier, that number stood at 3,475.
Russian PM asks regions to consider implementing new restrictions
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has asked regional governors to look at restrictive measures taken in Moscow to curb the spread of the coronavirus, state news agency RIA reported Monday.
“I ask the leadership of Russian federal subjects to pay attention to the experience of their colleagues [in Moscow] and work out the possibility of implementing similar measures in their regions,” Mishustin said, according to RIA.
Authorities announced a partial lockdown on Sunday, with Mayor Sergey Sobyanin signing an order that severely restricts freedom of movement both in the capital and the surrounding suburbs.
People can now only leave their homes to get emergency medical help, shop at the nearest grocery store or pharmacy and to go to and from work if deemed essential. On Monday, Russia reported 302 new cases, 212 of which are in Moscow, bringing the total to 1,836 cases with nine deaths.
Arrivals to South Korea face two-week self-isolation
The South Korean government is tightening quarantine measures for all overseas arrivals starting on April 1.
On Monday, Health Minister Park Neung Hoo said anyone entering the country will need to self-isolate for two weeks.
“The two weeks of self-isolation rule will be applied to both locals and foreigners regardless of long-term or short-term stay,” Park said.
He added that entrants without a place to stay in South Korea will be housed in an isolation facility provided by the government and will have to pay for the space provided.
Nearly 10,000 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in South Korea, but the number of deaths stands at 158, much lower than in the U.S. and European countries where thousands of people have died.
Questions as Tokyo sees spike in cases after Olympics delay
A rise in the number of coronavirus cases in Tokyo immediately after the postponement of the Summer Olympics has raised questions about whether Japan understated the extent of the outbreak and delayed the enforcement of social distancing measures, while clinging to hopes that the games would start in July as scheduled.
“In order to make an impression that the city was taking control of the coronavirus, Tokyo avoided making strict requests and made the number of patients look smaller,” former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said in a tweet. “The coronavirus has spread while they waited. (For Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike) it was Olympics first, not Tokyo’s residents.”
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Saturday that Japan is now on the brink of a huge jump in cases as it becomes increasingly difficult to trace and keep clusters under control.
Health minister Katsunobu Kato said there is “absolutely no relationship” between the Olympic postponement and the number of confirmed cases.
U.K. could take six months to get ‘back to normal,’ official says
It could take the U.K. six months to get “back to normal” as it enters the second week of a nationwide lockdown to curb the coronavirus pandemic, England’s deputy chief medical officer said Sunday.
Speaking at the government’s daily coronavirus briefing, Jenny Harries said the government will need a couple more weeks to see if restrictions to stop the virus spreading are working, adding that the U.K. must not suddenly revert to business as usual if the measures are successful.
“So over time, probably over the next six months, we will have a three-week review. We will see where we are going,” she said, later clarifying that it doesn’t mean the country will be in complete lockdown for six months.
There are also concerns that an extended lockdown in the U.K. could put a significant emotional strain on the public. On Sunday, Prince William and his wife Kate encouraged people to look after their mental health.
Nigerian cities set for new restrictions
Nigerians in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun State will enter a partial lockdown after the president ordered the “cessation of movement” set to begin Monday evening. The order will last for at least 14 days.
“All citizens in these areas are to stay in their homes. Travel to or from other states should be postponed. All businesses and offices within these locations should be fully closed during this period,” President Muhammadu Buhari said in a televised address Sunday.
Given its poor public health system, health experts are concerned about a widespread outbreak in the country of 200 million.
