The eagerly awaited Stimulus payments and vaccinations should accelerate this week as the US hopes to gain a foothold amid the relentless pandemic.
Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday that federal restrictions “will be much more liberal” and the US could see a “considerable amount of normality” by July 4th, when US cases drop, if more Americans will be vaccinated. On Fox News Sunday, however, he also warned that the US must gradually lift the restrictions or risk a wide-ranging lockdown in order to stop any further increase.
Now the nation only needs former President Donald Trump to help, says Fauci.
A recent new poll by PBS NewsHour / NPR / Marist found that 41% of Republicans said they wouldn’t get any of the three state-approved coronavirus vaccines, compared to less than 15% of Democrats. Fauci appeared on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” where host Chuck Todd suggested President Joe Biden persuade Trump to encourage doubters to vaccinate.
“I hope he does because the numbers you gave are so worrying,” said Fauci. “It makes absolutely no sense. And I’ve been saying that for so long. We have to separate political belief from what is common sense.
►More than 25% of Chileans have received at least one vaccine, making the nation of 19 million the leading Latin American. Globally, only Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom have a higher percentage of their population.
After being canceled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the The NCAA men’s basketball tournament is back It starts with the selection Sunday, on which the field of 68 teams is announced.
► Residents of more than a dozen California counties woke up Sunday morning to ease business restrictions. State officials relaxed the requirements necessary to get out of the most restrictive layers of California’s reopening system as vaccinations increased in hard-hit communities across the state.
📈 Today’s numbers: In the United States, over 29.4 million coronavirus cases and more than 534,000 deaths have been confirmed, according to Johns Hopkins University. The global total: nearly 120 million cases and 2.6 million deaths. More than 135 million vaccine doses have been distributed and 106 million administered in the United States, according to the CDC.
📘 What we read: The spring and summer weather offers opportunities for vaccinated or unvaccinated people Enjoy low-risk outdoor activities to improve your physical and mental health, Experts say.
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Duke University bans students; The fate of the semester hangs in the balance.
Duke undergraduate students have been ordered to stay in place until 9 a.m. next Sunday as the school struggles to contain a virus outbreak “caused primarily by students attending recruitment parties for select live groups,” said the school in a letter to the students. More than 180 students were isolated after testing positive last week. Another 200 students will be quarantined due to contact tracing.
Students living in apartments provided by a duke must “remain in their dorm room or apartment at all times except for essential diet, health, or safety activities,” the letter said. Students living off campus are not allowed on campus.
“If that feels serious, it’s because it is,” the letter said. “Our ability to complete the semester, the beginning for our seniors and the health and safety of our community, including your fellow students, depends on balance.”
Some stimulus-stimulus-stimulus checks are sent to bogus bank accounts
Some Americans say their stimulus checks are taking place deposited in the wrong bank accountMany of them had to wait longer for much-needed help after struggling financially during the COVID-19 pandemic. These taxpayers were surprised to see that the last four digits of their bank account numbers were wrong when they checked their payment status on the IRS website. This issue occurred during the first two rounds of direct payments, when technical issues were encountered by third-party tax advisors causing delays for many filers.
“I am very frustrated. I have so many bills to pay, ”said Lori Young, 52, of Camden, South Carolina. “I have a stable income from my social security, but I have a lot of medical problems. I relied on these stimulus checks to pay my bills.”
– Jessica Menton
Here you can find out when your stimulus payment will be made
You can now find out when your next stimulus payment is expected Hit your bank account or get an email. The IRS has updated that “Received my payment” Tool on its website with information on the third round of stimulus checks on Saturday, agency spokeswoman Karen Connelly confirmed the US TODAY. Check your status here. The third round of economic impact payments is based on a taxpayer’s most recent tax return processed in 2020 or 2019. This includes anyone who has used the IRS non-filer tool or filed a special simplified tax return in the past year.
– Kelly Tyko
A year later, doctors treating COVID-19 “are still treating blindly”.
Treatment of the sickest patients has improved since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic a year ago, but about 20% of patients sick enough to be hospitalized still end up in intensive care . That number that hasn’t changed in the last yearsaid Dr. Kevin Tracey, neurosurgeon and President and CEO of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. Frontline doctors say the care they give is clearly better than it was a year ago, if only because the disease is better understood and hospitals are not overcrowded with desperately ill patients. But ICU death rates remain worryingly high, Tracey said.
“A year later we’re still flying blind,” said Tracey. Read more here.
– Karen Weintraub
London Police tactics at the vigil for murdered women are in control
An official vigil for a London woman whose killing a police officer is charged with murder and who incites national talk about violence against women in the UK ended Saturday night as the city police checked how officers were handling some attendees at the event held despite coronavirus restrictions. Hundreds of people disregarded a judge’s decisions and the police by gathering in Clapham Common in honor of Sarah Everard, 33, who was last seen alive near the park in south London on March 3rd. Protesters said they wanted to raise awareness of the fear and danger that many women see as a daily part of British life; Police said the size of the crowd raised COVID-19 concerns.
The video from Saturday’s informal vigil showed officers from the same police force fighting with the attendees as they pushed through the crowd. London Mayor Sadiq Khan described the police’s behavior as “unacceptable” and said he had asked the police for an explanation.
Contributors: Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press; The Associated Press.
