Legally, the Tokyo organisers are protected from events that are out of their control. And it’s unlikely broadcasters and sponsors would press legal claims during a global pandemic.
If Google Trends is any guide, many Australians are wondering what role phones and mail or package deliveries may play in the risk of coronavirus transmission.
Hospitals will need more space, staff and stuff as more people test positive to coronavirus. But hard decisions may have to be made if the health system gets overwhelmed with cases.
New Zealanders are preparing to stay at home for four weeks to stop the spread of COVID-19. Under existing laws, people who flout lockdown rules could face fines or six months in jail.
Overjoyed. That’s not a word epidemiologists normally use, but that’s how I felt after hearing Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s announcement of New Zealand’s COVID-19 lockdown from Wednesday night.
Facial recognition software could be applied to managing people during pandemics.
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Recently, police forces have come under criticism for their engagement of facial recognition technologies. But pandemic response plans may increasingly incorporate surveillance.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa declaring a national lockdown as a result of COVID-19.
EPA/picture supplied by GCIS (Government Information Services)
Epidemiology is only one of the inputs that should be considered in designing public health policy response to COVID-19 pandemic. The wider social and economic contexts must be factored in too.
A universal basic income and a job guarantee are critical ways to help us weather the economic storm of the coronavirus pandemic.
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A universal basic income could provide financially precarious people with the money they need. And it would keep money flowing through the financial system.
Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Washington.
Clare McLean/UW Medicine
As long as teachers are creative and resourceful, kids will keep learning. What’s less clear is how schools will make up for the lost time if they remain closed for several months or longer.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne
Dean Faculty of Health Sciences and Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand; and Director of the SAMRC Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand