Have you beaten COVID-19? The Day is seeking to tell the stories of southeastern Connecticut residents who have tested positive for the disease and survived.
By Stephanie Nebehay and Kate Kelland GENEVA/LONDON (Reuters) - The COVID-19 pandemic could be the catalyst for much-needed reform of the World Health Organization just as the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986 forced urgent changes at the U.N. nuclear agency, an independent review panel said on Tuesday. The panel, set up to investigate the global response to the coronavirus, said the WHO is underpowered, underfunded and required fundamental reform to give it the resources it needs to respond more effectively to deadly disease outbreaks. We are not here to assign blame, but to make concrete recommendations to help the world respond faster and better in future, the panel s co-chair, former Liberian president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, told a news briefing. The panel s report said earlier that Chinese officials should have applied public health measures more forcefully in January to curb the initial COVID-19 outbreak, and criticised the WHO for not declaring an international emergency until
Have you beaten COVID-19? The Day is seeking to tell the stories of southeastern Connecticut residents who have tested positive for the disease and survived.
By Susan Heavey and Trevor Hunnicutt WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday led a national memorial observance on the eve of his inauguration to honor the 400,000 Americans who have perished from COVID-19 during the 11 months since the novel coronavirus claimed its first U.S. life. The sundown commemoration came hours before President Donald Trump was due to leave the White House for the last time and hand over a country racked by the greatest public health crisis in a century, economic devastation and violent political upheaval. Ceremonies spearheaded by Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris from the base of the Lincoln Memorial marked the federal government s first official nod to the staggering death toll from the pandemic. To heal, we must remember. It s hard sometimes to remember, but that s how we heal. It s important to do that as a nation, Biden said to kick off a tribute that included observances in cities across the country. As he spoke, 400 electr
By Emma Farge GENEVA (Reuters) - The world is on the brink of catastrophic moral failure in sharing COVID-19 vaccines, the head of the World Health Organization said on Monday, urging countries and manufacturers to spread doses more fairly around the world. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the prospects for equitable distribution were at serious risk just as its COVAX vaccine-sharing scheme aimed to start distributing inoculations next month. He noted 44 bilateral deals were signed last year and at least 12 have already been signed this year. This could delay COVAX deliveries and create exactly the scenario COVAX was designed to avoid, with hoarding, a chaotic market, an uncoordinated response and continued social and economic disruption, he said. Such a me-first approach left the world s poorest and most vulnerable at risk, he said at the opening of the body s annual Executive Board meeting in virtual format. Ultimately these actions will only prolong the pandemic,