At least 667,650 people globally have died from COVID-19 and 17,118,787 have been infected by the novel coronavirus that causes it, following an outbreak that started in Wuhan, China, in early December. The World Health Organization referred to it as a pandemic on March 11, 2020.
(Reuters) - U.S. deaths from the novel coronavirus were approaching 150,000 on Wednesday, the highest level in the world and rising by 10,000 in 11 days, according to a Reuters tally.
CHICAGO — The latest count of new coronavirus cases was jarring: Some 1,500 virus cases were identified three consecutive days last week in Illinois, and fears of a resurgence in the state even led the mayor of Chicago to shut down bars all over town on Friday.
But at the same moment, there were other, hopeful data points that seemed to tell a different story entirely. Deaths from the virus statewide are one-tenth what they were at their peak in May. And the positivity rate of new coronavirus tests in Illinois is about half that of neighboring states.
“There are so many numbers flying around,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, the commissioner of the Chicago health department. “It’s hard for people to know what’s the most important thing to follow.”...
GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Health Organization on Tuesday warned against complacency about new coronavirus transmission in the northern hemisphere summer, saying that this virus did not behave like influenza that tended to follow seasonal trends.
Good levels of vitamin D, the so-called sunshine vitamin, help people to fight the coronavirus more quickly and effectively and reduce chances of hospitalization, Israeli researchers have concluded.
However, others are cautioning broad conclusions, saying other factors may be involved.
...Around the globe, the pandemic has jeopardized a vital artery of finance supporting hundreds of millions of families — so-called remittances sent home from wealthy countries by migrant workers. As the coronavirus has sent economies into lockdown, sowing joblessness, people accustomed to taking care of relatives at home have lost their paychecks, forcing some to depend on those who have depended on them.
