what’s this

Port goods that donate thousands of masks, gloves to health workers – NBC 7 San Diego

by

There are serious concerns among frontline health professionals
on the availability of masks, gloves, clothes and other personal protective equipment
equipment (PPE) on offer nationwide, but help is on the way to Sharp
Rees-Stealy medical center.

If gloves, masks and visors are weapons to fight
the war on the coronavirus, a San Diego nurse who says her PPE is now under lock and key
the key feels unarmed.

“It’s really frustrating because sometimes you wonder
there will be an N95 mask there, is there a visor? “Nurse
Shannon Cotton wondered.

Cotton and other nurses, doctors and EMT are taking the
coronavirus has reported help and local residents and businesses
they are answering their call. At the request of community members, Sharp Healthcare
is coordinating a PPE donation campaign.

“They want to help, especially when people are in this state of residence. They want to feel like they’re doing something, ”said Sharp spokesman John Cihomsky.

But healthcare professionals are receiving help from more than just a simple one
people at home.

The famous tool dealer Harbor Freight is donating all the gloves, masks and face shields to the shelves of its over 1,000 stores, and everything in its warehouse, to the cause.

“Right now we understand that the best thing we could do is
provide our frontline staff in hospitals, ”Harbor Freight
said spokesman Craig Hoffman.

The company has 45 million pairs of gloves, hundreds of thousands
of N95 masks and tens of thousands of visors to give.

Their generosity resonates with San Diego shoppers

“Rubber gloves were one of the things on our list and I saw the
sign up and think it’s really cool, “said customer Adam Prange.

Harbor Freight plans to begin shipping supplies within the week,
and Sharp’s donation unit officially starts on Wednesday at several drive-up drop-offs
sites. You don’t even have to get out of your car to donate.

Sharp will update these release sites here.

While it is appreciated, the use of homemade masks is, however
now prohibited.

Sharp is asking that if you are not feeling well, for the sake of volunteers, please send your donation with a friend.

Anyone looking to help supplies donated by Harbor Freight to where they are needed can contact the company.

Cihomsky said his hospitals have adequate supplies, but for
how long it has not been known.

.

Chaos, inconsistency Marks the launch of the Drive-thru Virus – NBC Los Angeles test

by

Drive-thru sites have been opened in the United States to make testing the new coronavirus faster and safer. But just like the rest of the United States’ response to the pandemic, the system has been characterized by inconsistencies, delays and shortcomings. Many people who have symptoms and a doctor’s order have waited hours or days for a test.

More than a week after President Donald Trump promised that states and retail stores such as Walmart and CVS would open drive-through test centers, few sites are active and are not yet open to the public. Some states are leaving the test sector open to the private sector; others are coordinating efforts through state health departments.

Patients complained that they had to jump through bulky red tape and wait for days to get tested, then wait even longer for a result. The test centers were opened in some places to be closed shortly afterwards due to the shortage of supplies and staff. And while the drive-through test centers that have been opened are generally sorted, in some there have been long lines.

The slow increase in COVID-19 tests and the unpredictable nature of the system make it difficult for public health officials to track the spread of the disease and bring it under control.

“We need to do more extensive testing to fully understand the scale of the public health situation we are facing,” said Joseph Wendelken, a spokesman for the Rhode Island Department of Health.

Dr Brett Giroir, the federal health officer in charge of overseeing the tests, said on Saturday at a White House briefing that approximately 195,000 people have so far been tested in the United States. This figure does not include some people who have been tested in private laboratories.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more serious illnesses, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness can take anywhere from three weeks to six weeks to recover.

Drive-through test sites have sprung up in places in over 30 states: in state parks and parking lots, near medical centers and universities, the Mississippi state fairgrounds, and near where the Jacksonville Jaguars play. The governor of Maryland last week ordered the stopping of vehicle emission inspection programs across the state, so that the offices could be used as drive-thru centers to test the virus.

But as of Friday, there were no open drive-through tests available in Maryland inspection centers.

The Utah health department said it is not responsible for the sites and is not monitoring them. The North Carolina health director said the state is leaving the tests to the private sector and declined to say how many sites there are. In contrast, in Rhode Island, health organizations manage the sites in collaboration with the state health department.

On Thursday, cars lined up for more than a mile outside a hospital in Houston when the first drive-through test site was opened. U.S. representative Sheila Jackson Lee said she administered fewer than 200 tests in the first six hours.

Elsewhere, at various sites visited by Associated Press reporters, the scenes were well controlled and sometimes quite silent.

Dozens of people waiting by car in a downtown Homestead, Florida on Wednesday waited for their turn to speak with a screener who was wearing a suit and mask and carrying notes. Some were apparently removed. Others were stirred, checked their temperatures, and swabbed for the samples.

But the shortage of supply has stopped the thrusters in several states, including Colorado, New Mexico, Virginia, Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, North Carolina and Utah. A Las Vegas site was shut down because it didn’t have enough workers.

New York state opened several centers with great fanfare on Tuesday. By Friday, however, the New York City health department issued a warning saying that only people requesting hospitalization should be tested, due to a shortage of protective equipment such as face masks. Drive-thru sites in New York State remain open, but only to people who meet certain criteria.

Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak said he had asked the federal government for additional test kits and supplies, but the state received a warning Thursday that all of its requests for drive-through test pods and test kits “are undefined arrears, without any estimate of a timeline for delivery. “

“This is our unfortunate Nevada reality. It depends on us, “he said.

The sites themselves are dotted with tents and traffic cones. The most important features are medical personnel who wear masks, gloves and protective vests or other clothing. They take nose and throat swabs from people sitting in their cars or help people get in for the test.

Some states have only one drive-thru site. Montana’s only site is in Billings, the largest city in the state. Others have a dozen.

Security guards have been reported on many sites, but an AP survey of states did not reveal any security concerns. In Rhode Island, the National Guard was on hand to set up the state’s three drive-thru sites and even to buffer patients.

The vast network of drive-thru sites in retail chains that Trump claimed was coming over a week ago has not materialized yet. CVS has opened a site in Massachusetts that defines a “test model”. Walmart launched two sites on Sunday and Walgreens said it will launch one, all three in Illinois. Only healthcare professionals and first responders are allowed, and Walmart said that a maximum of 150 tests per day could be performed on its federal sites.

The patchwork of approaches has caused confusion for patients. Caroline Mauldin was sentenced to get tested by her doctor in Charleston, South Carolina on Tuesday after suffering from pain and chills for several days.

To make an appointment at a center in a medical center, she had to fill out a long online questionnaire and spent two days calling a number that went to voicemail and did not answer messages. He resorted to tweets in the hospital several times just to get things going.

Finally, on Thursday, he had an appointment for Monday. And she was told that the results would not return until after 4-5 days. The visit will cost you $ 25, he said. Complicating things, he doesn’t have a car and has to borrow it from a friend.

“Here we have a lot of older, low-income people who don’t have Internet access and who don’t have access to transportation. And since they’re the highest risk population, how are we testing for them?” She asked.

In urban areas such as New York and Philadelphia, some sites offer “walk-up” dating for people without cars.

At the Penn Medicine test site in West Philadelphia, two security agents were late on Thursday to make sure that people arriving by car or on foot had an appointment. For about 40 minutes that evening, the line of cars never grew to more than six or seven. But Patricia Sullivan, Penn Medicine’s quality manager, said every morning last week, 25-35 cars were lined up and six or seven standing patients were 6 feet apart on a porch waiting to be seen.

The 20 sites in Greater Philadelphia are testing around 1,000 people a day, but that hasn’t eliminated pent-up demand.

Rosanne Tanner’s 79-year-old mother has been suffering from fever and chest pain since returning from a visit to Tanner’s brother and wife, who had recently been on a cruise ship.

His doctor ordered a test on Tuesday, but when he tried to make an appointment at a drive-through site in a hospital outside of Philadelphia, he was told that “they are overloaded, they are bogged down,” Tanner said.

Medical staff told her that they are scheduling 15 minutes apart, so there are no bottlenecks on the test site.

Finally on Thursday his mother made sure of an appointment for the following Tuesday. Then, he will have to wait another five days for a result.

“The delay in these tests is putting people at risk,” said Tanner.

In Rhode Island, state officials said they are testing 100 to 200 people per day at all test sites, including three drive thrusters.

Governor Gina Raimondo said they want to perform 500 to 600 a day, but they don’t have the supplies they need.

“It is our top priority to reach a place where everyone who needs it can be tested and you will get results very quickly,” said Raimondo during a press conference held on Facebook Live on Friday on Friday. “So if you’re positive, we can quarantine you.”

____

Associate press writers Michelle L. Price in Las Vegas, Lynne Sladky in Homestead, Florida, Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia, Chris Ehrmann in Hartford, Connecticut, Brady McCombs in Salt Lake City and Jonathan Drew in Raleigh, North Carolina and Anne D ‘Innocenzio and Mike Sisak in New York contributed to this report.

___

The Associated Press receives support for health and scientific coverage from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

.

Heavy rain absorbs Thursday in three states before temperatures peak above 70 degrees – NBC New York

by

Heavy rains have come overnight and it is expected that the showers will continue to wet the tri-state the morning before spring and temperatures similar to those of spring increase.

Patches of rain, at times abundant, try to dampen the morning commute for those who have yet to go to work, but things should clear up around 9:00 am It will remain cloudy, but dry, with temperatures in the mid-50s before more showers come back overnight, says Storm Team 4.

Thunderstorms are possible early Friday mornings, mainly for those north and west of New York City. There will be some breaks in the clouds during the day and temperatures will rise in the 70s. More thunder is possible due to the incoming cold front which makes the atmosphere unstable.

Temperatures will drop below 50 degrees over the weekend again, but it will be dry before the rain returns during the next working week.

.

Who gets the most credit: Brady or Belichick? – NBC Boston

by

From 2001 to 2019, the New England Patriots have won the AFC East 17 times. The other two years ended in a tie in first place.

In that time frame, they went to 12 AFC championship games and nine Super bowls. Six have won.

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady have been together for the entire race and – thanks to the past two decades – are now recognized as the best coach and quarterback in NFL history respectively.

Trying to share credit for a race never seen before the NFL domination and perhaps the most incredible trait in the history of professional sport – to some extent – is missing the point.

Did the ancient Egyptians stand in front of the pyramids and discuss whether the architect or builders deserved more credit? Did Mrs Wright analyze which of her children – Wilbur or Orville – was primarily responsible for the invention, construction and flight of the first plane?

There is something to be said just to close and appreciate the realization, isn’t there? Yup.

And we will get there.

But right now, with the engines going down Route 1 to pack Tom Brady’s remaining stuff and take him out of Foxboro forever, the question hangs on everything. Which man was most responsible for creating the story we’ve seen written in the past two decades: Belichick or Brady?

Results may vary. In fact, I know they will. But here’s how I see it.

If it hadn’t been for Belichick, there would never have been the mini-dynasty that they became in the decade 2000-2009.

If it weren’t for Brady, the Patriots would never have become the Super Dynasty that they became from 2010 to 2019 when they blew up the 60s Packers, 70s Steelers, 80s Niners and 90s Cowboys to become the only franchise that has dominated two decades.

Bill gets the first decade

The moment Mo Lewis cut an artery in Drew Bledsoe’s chest in September 2001, he is touched as the history of the NFL has changed. It wasn’t. It will only speed up a trial that began when Robert Kraft decided to hire Belichick to succeed Pete Carroll in January 2000.

Belichick took a look at the team’s register and management and started fumigating and renewing. In the end – despite the heavy contract that the Patriots gave Bledsoe in January 2001 to help strengthen public confidence and private investment in building CMGI Field (possibly Gillette Stadium) – Belichick was wary of being tied to a quarterback that the coach was able to routinely undress whenever he trained against him.

Especially a quarterback who had to be paid as the top of the market, as Bledsoe and his agent David Dunn made clear.

Brady was not enlisted in the sixth round of the 2000 draft as Bledsoe’s successor, but in September it became clear to Belichick that he had something. And it became obvious during the 2001 offseason and the training camp that – although not better than Bledsoe in all – the child who made $ 298,000 was more mobile, more precise, more ready in his pocket and destined to be more suited to handling a Bledsoe game.

Mo Lewis accelerated the process and – with a painful stroke – made the transition relatively painless. But the credit goes to Belichick for seeing what he had, promoting it and having the decision to pull the trigger.

The fact that the Patriots went 14-5 under Brady after starting 5-13 under Bledsoe is persuasive evidence that Brady was the missing piece. But Belichick created the register, built the culture and hired the right people – from managers to coaches – to put the team in a position to succeed. It deserves more credit.

Brady may have helped them get where they did, but the Patriots were undoubtedly headed in the right direction and the fruits of Belichick’s designs were collected in 2003 and 2004.

Those Super Bowl wins – the first at the end of a season that started with the shooting down of lawyer Milloy in favor of Rodney Harrison; the second thanks largely to a dice throw on Corey Dillon – they were the victories for “culture”.

Disinterest imposed. All done for the greatest good of the team. Everything ego in your pocket. The most impressive aspect of the patriots was therefore their stamina and mental endurance. Brady was an important part. But so were Tedy Bruschi and Harrison, Matt Light, Richard Seymour, Mike Vrabel and so on.

Fifty-three very intelligent and capable players row together in the hold of the big ship while Belichick was over the bridge to trace a route. It was from 2001 to 2004.

The dips in 2005 and 2006 began the process that would have led Brady to become, largely on Belichick’s design, the engine.

The 2005 Patriots were hit by injuries – not a hindsight surprise when you consider the nine extra games played in the previous four seasons and the difficulty of staying on top. They started to see some friction to grow old – Troy Brown was 34 then – and the ongoing game was marked as well as their defense on the run. They went 10-6 and lost in the division round.

The following season, a protracted squabble over the contract led to the Deion Branch being swapped with Seattle shortly before the season began. Reche Caldwell led the team in receptions followed by Ben Watson, Troy Brown and Kevin Faulk. However, they were unable to advance to the Super Bowl, but lost on the road to the Colts.

That season, Brady got a toy he had never had in Randy Moss and a Troy Brown replica model named Wes Welker. The entire set of record sets went 16-0 and lost in the Super Bowl.

Which brings us to 2008. This is the season that many are aiming for when they say that it is Belichick’s genius that is most responsible for twenty-year success. The Patriots went 11-5 with Matt Cassel starting in quarterback. Hadn’t he been a beginner from high school, yet the patriots still went 11-5?

Cassel was exceptional, better than anyone could hope for. But it’s still a sharp drop from 16-0 to 11-5.

In 2009, the central defense core was expelled or withdrawn: Vrabel, Bruschi, Seymour and Harrison. Belichick complained to Brady on the sidelines during a defeat for the Saints that season that “I just can’t get these kids to play the way I want them. So frustrating.”

The season ended with an ignominious home defeat against the crows in the AFC division playoff round.

Brady gets the second decade

The patriots renewed in the off-season and, in my opinion, Brady was at the forefront of finding their places where they had no business at that stage of their reconstruction. In 2010, the Patriots went 14-2, they were seed no. 1 and Brady was the unanimous MVP.

The offense, moving away from the narrow final position, enlisted two – Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez – and their production would become historic in 2011 when the Patriots arrived at the Super Bowl and lost again to the Giants. Brady launched for 5,235 career yards with 39 touchdowns and 12 picks.

In the 2012 season, he launched 637 times, a career high and one of three times in four seasons that attempted more than 600 passes. With a defense that too often seemed to resist better teams, it was Brady and the offense to score and score and score a little more. They were the first, third, first and third in points marked from 2010 to 2013. Defensively in that period they were eighth, 15th, ninth and tenth.

Even in 2013, when Hernandez was jailed for murder, Gronkowski was grounded due to back surgery and then with an ACL, Brady still ran by hitting the ball with Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola and – to a lesser extent – Kenbrell Thompkins, Aaron Dobson and Shane Vereen.

They won the Super Bowl in 2014, winning a shootout against the Ravens in the Divisional Round, 35-31, and then overcoming a 24-14 deficit against the Seahawks in the fourth quarter when Brady moved to a completely different level in the fourth quarter.

The previous April, Belichick had enlisted Brady’s aspiring successor, Jimmy Garoppolo, in the second round. Brady, perhaps remembering the shrug that Drew Bledsoe had encountered Brady’s arrival 14 years earlier, would not have fallen asleep on the move with the team that ran Garoppolo.

Brady went on to launch 69 touchdowns and 16 predictions in 2014 and 15. He lost four suspension games in 2016 – Garoppolo overcame six quarters of Brady’s relief before hurting himself and giving way to Jacoby Brissett – but he still threw 28 touchdowns and two interceptions before ending that season with a 43- record. by-62, 466 yards in the Super Bowl when the Patriots canceled out a deficit of 28-3. Brady did it at 39.

At 40 in the AFCCG, without Edelman, without an injured Gronkowski, Brady and Amendola joined together to push the Patriots beyond the Jaguars and in the Super Bowl against Philly where he would have launched for 505 yards.

So let’s tell here. From 2010 to 2017, the Patriots have reached seven consecutive AFC Championship Games and the year they didn’t, Brady was the unanimous MVP. He wrote the filming of the playoffs against Ravens and Seahawks in 2014, the Falcons in 2016, the Jaguars in 2017 and led the team to two Super Bowl wins.

In 2018, Edelman was exiting an ACL and was therefore suspended for the first four games. Gronk was injured for a large chunk of the year. Phillip Dorsett and Chris Hogan were the main gimmicks for a while until the team faced Josh Gordon. It’s still? The team went 11-5, Brady put them on his back in the fourth quarter and overtime in Kansas City in the AFCCG and then the Patriots defense checked against the Rams and delivered a Super Bowl to Brady – apart from the shot at Gronk which led to the game’s winning touchdown – he just had to play OK to win the team.

The final verdict

So, see what my answer to this debate is now. Bill gets a bigger share of the first three Lombards. Tom gets a higher share than the second three.

So many people over the years have speculated that Belichick wants to prove that he can win a championship without Brady. I don’t know if it’s true.

I think if Brady was gone, Belichick would appreciate the opportunity, but I never thought he would have wanted to get rid of what he thinks is a quarterback capable of giving him a title that the others couldn’t.

Maybe that’s why we’re here. Belichick doesn’t see Brady as special as he once was. Great? Sure. Are there other guys who can do things they can’t do now? Belichick seems to think so. Brady has apparently survived its usefulness here.

Bill will do what he has done to so many other players. Go ahead. But this is the life cycle of the NFL.

From what I’ve been told and what I’ve collected, Brady agrees. He hoped to be special and to be able to write a different ending here, but to realize he couldn’t shock him. For a legend, it is rather well established.

Playing for Bill Belichick will help keep a player that way. And maybe even for that, Belichick deserves a lot of credit. He allowed Tom Brady to become Tom Brady because he was eternally and exasperatedly Bill Belichick.

Every. Single. Year.

.

Church of Fort Worth, offices closed for the week as positive presumptive chief pastor test for Coronavirus – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

by

The Trinity Episcopal Church in Fort Worth closed its building and offices for the week after a member of their church leadership tested the supposed positive for COVID-19.

Robert Pace, 53, remains in hospital in solitary confinement, church leaders confirmed Wednesday. According to Rev. Janet Wagoner with the episcopal diocese of Fort Worth, Pace has been part of the Fort Worth congregation since December.

“His spirit is strong. He is cheerful,
fun loving and deeply spiritual man who takes care of people like you don’t
to believe. People give it back, of course, “Rev. Wagoner told NBC 5.” I think our faith communities are uniquely equipped for
come around people and support people when this kind of thing happens and us
we are honored to have this type of role in our community where we have
networks and support systems. “

Pace is the first alleged positive case in Tarrant County. After initial discussions with public health officials this week, church officials said the rest of the congregation is not at risk.

According to the episcopal diocese of Fort Worth, Pace
participated in the consortium of gifted episcopal parishes (CEEP) in its annual
conference in Louisville, Kentucky, February 19 to February 22.

In a letter posted on the church’s website, Pace said he started feeling bad around Ash on Wednesday night.

“The beginning of Lent for me was one for the record books. I
I “involuntarily” fasted for days and days, and I certainly did
I said intercessory prayers. All this because I had a virus
that some time has come around the evening of Ash Wednesday. With high fever, a
horrible, painful cough and a little nausea, this was humiliating. But I am
finally getting better, ”said the letter.

Katie Sherrod, communications director for the episcopal diocese of Fort Worth, said she was informed by the public
Health officials that Pace’s presence at Ash Wednesday church services
the premises were not a concern, because it was then asymptomatic.

Pace tested negative for the flu twice a day after Ash Wednesday. The next time he was in church premises, on Wednesday, March 4, for a Lenten program.

“That particular night program, that is when he was here –
this is what Tarrant County public health focuses on, ”Church said
communications director Sarah Martinez. “Basically they just want to achieve
to the people who were at that event and what I was told is that they simply are
reach out and ask people to monitor their health. “

At NBC 5 all the hard surfaces in the Pace offices are told and the commonly touched surfaces were swept away after the March 4 event – along with the music stand, microphone, chair and piano bench. His exposure to anyone within a meter of him was also very limited, say church leaders.

Martinez told NBC 5 that no public health official was entrusted with the decision to cancel Sunday services this week. It was a decision by church leaders over an abundance of caution, he said.

Crews are already cleaning the church and offices day and night on alternate days. There is also a hand sanitizer available, along with many areas for hand washing.

“The public health people of Tarrant County were fantastic – they phoned me for a very long and detailed conversation, which put many worries at ease,” he said, referring to a Tuesday night conversation. “[They] they told me, there is no reason for any kind of deep cleaning, sanitizing of the church premises “.

The church
it was a polling place on Super Tuesday, particularly in its Parish Hall. On the
on election day, Pace had not been in the church building or office for
five days. Election officials provided tables, chairs and election materials
– not the church.

Next door
the church building is a nursery school, which is on vacation this week. Diocese
officials say that none of the children had any exposure to Pace.

Rev. Wagoner
says Pace’s wife, Rev. Dr. Jill Walters, tested negative for COVID-19, but
will remain in self-quarantine at home for 14 days. He encouraged people
who may know individuals currently isolated or self-quarantined to reach
via SMS or phone call, if possible, so they didn’t feel alone.

“This is a time when we really need the community and the information
and speaking of information, we really have to make sure we share it well
information including material from the public health department and the CDC “,
Wagoner said.

The Lenten program scheduled for Wednesday evening has been canceled.

To read the full version of the episcopal diocese of Fort Worth and the Trinity episcopal church of Fort Worth, click here.

.

Nursing homes face unique challenges with Coronavirus – NBC Los Angeles

by

From Miami to Seattle, nursing homes and other facilities for the elderly host stocks of masks and thermometers, preparing staff shortages and checking visitors to protect a particularly vulnerable population from the coronavirus.

In China, where the epidemic started, the disease was basically deadly for the elderly. In Italy, the epicenter of the virus epidemic in Europe, the more than 100 people who died were elderly, suffering from other complications or both.

Of the 19 deaths in the United States since Saturday, at least 14 had been linked to a nursing home in the Seattle area, along with many other infections among residents, staff and family members. The Seattle Times reported that a second nursing home and a retired community in the area had reported a virus case.

This has alerted other structures in the United States, especially in states with large populations of older residents, such as Florida and California. About 2.5 million people live in long-term care facilities in the United States.

“For people over the age of 80 … the death rate could reach 15%,” said Mark Parkinson, president of the American Health Care Association nursing homes group.

The federal government is now focusing all inspections of nursing homes on infection control, identifying facilities in the city with confirmed cases and those previously mentioned for not following the protocol.

Federal regulations already require homes to have a specialist in preventing infections in staff, and many have already taken measures to deal with seasonal flow and other ailments that pose a greater risk to the elderly.

Even so, the response of structures to coronavirus has varied across the country.

In Florida, where some 160,000 seniors live in nursing homes and assisted living facilities, mandatory screening for visitors is not expected “because we are not at that point,” said Florida Health Care Association spokeswoman Kristen Knapp.

But aged care centers are posting signs that urge visitors to stay away if they have symptoms and are looking for alternative ways to connect to families, such as through video chats, Knapp said.

Concierges in the 14 Florida nursing homes managed by Palm Gardens Corporation are now offering all visitors a short questionnaire asking for information on symptoms, recent trips and contacts with others, said company vice president Luke Neumann.

Neumann said that nursing homes have also purchased additional thermometers in case they have to check visitors’ temperatures and accumulate preventive supplies, including medical masks, protective goggles and clothing. In laundries they make sure to use enough bleach and heat to kill any persistent viral germs, he said.

In the South Shore Rehabilitation and Skilled Care Center south of Boston, patient Leo Marchand holds a container of disinfectant wipes on a shelf near the bed that he uses several times a day. The 71-year-old Vietnam veteran and retired truck driver has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease which makes it difficult to breathe. The possibility of contracting the coronavirus scares him.

“It’s a concern,” said Marchand. “Really.”

Many facilities across the country have said they have trouble getting masks and medical clothes because of the shortage.

The more intense screening of visitors, meanwhile, isn’t going well with some.

“Some of the visitors have been quite reluctant to comply, and this has been stressful,” said Janet Snipes, executive director of Denver’s Holly Heights nursing center.

Under federal regulations, nursing homes are considered to be a patient’s residence and facilities want to keep them in contact with the family, especially when they are almost dead.

“I don’t think you can completely prevent visitors,” said Dr. David A. Nace, director of long-term care and flu programs at the University of Pittsburgh Department of Medicine. Supervise 300 facilities in Pennsylvania.

For now, facilities in most states are underlining basic precautions, including hand washing and the cough tag.

Centers across the country are also trying to prepare staff for the worst.

An adult daycare center in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami purchased long-lasting ready meals in preparation for possible shortages. The Hebrew Home in Riverdale, New York is running nursing staff through exercises to see how they will handle situations in the 750-bed facility if the virus progresses. Their IT department is building an infrastructure to allow staff to work remotely if they get sick.

“If one of our sites has an outbreak, we will quickly run out of staff in that position,” said Randy Bury, CEO of The Good Samaritan Society, one of the largest nonprofit senior care providers in the country, with 19,000 employees in 24 states.

Some families are considering withdrawing loved ones from the facilities.

Kathleen Churchyard said her family decided to move her 80-year-old mother out of her retirement community near Jacksonville, Florida, and to her sister’s home nearby if the virus is confirmed in the area.

Churchyard, who lives in Concord, North Carolina, fears that her mother won’t take her seriously, and is particularly concerned about her dining room.

“I tried to get her to buy things to prepare … She said, ‘No. If (the virus) catches me, it takes it,'” said Churchyard.

___

Associate associate writer Philip Marcelo in Rockland, Massachusetts contributed to this report.

___

The Associated Press receives support for health and scientific coverage from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

.

Should you get travel insurance amid Coronavirus concerns? – NBC Chicago

by

Many travelers remain in doubt as to whether or not they should travel after fears of the hijacked coronavirus titles.

On Tuesday, in the lively O’Hare International terminal, some travelers said they considered canceling their travels, while others said they didn’t think twice.

Many of the travelers who went out of town on Tuesday booked their trips long before COVID-19 became a worldwide concern. They told NBC 5 not to seriously consider buying travel insurance – and that’s good news for them.

If they had given up on these charges, they would probably be unfortunate for any coronavirus-related cancellation on their part.

“A big problem with travel insurance is that most of the policies sold don’t actually cover you for things like epidemics and pandemics. They are explicitly excluded from coverage,” said Consumer Checkbook CEO Kevin Brasler to NBC 5.

The only armored reimbursement protection for passengers at this point is for those who have purchased tickets for the hard-hit regions, such as China, South Korea or Italy. In a growing list, airlines including American, Delta and United have issued temporary exemptions for cancellation fees.

Governor J.B. Pritzker and the director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, Ngozi Ezike, discuss the state’s response to COVID-19 after a fourth case was confirmed on Monday.

According to Kasara Barto with the Squaremouth travel insurance search engine, those who choose to purchase travel insurance will want to get a “cancellation for any reason” plan.

This insurance is priced much higher than the average travel insurance, however, said Jesse Neugarten, CEO of Dollar Flight Club.

“These high-end insurance plans are ideal for the current travel climate,” he said. “The only drawback you might consider is that these policies can cost up to 50% more than a standard travel insurance policy.”

.

The tooth hurts, deputy sheriff of insurance pains – NBC 7 San Diego

by

Gerry Bedard had nothing to fear but the fear of getting a root canal. Encinitas’ retired sheriff’s deputy had purchased dental insurance from a third-party insurance provider.

But when it came time to schedule surgery in February last year through Delta Dental, Bedard experienced a new type of pain. The company claimed that its plan does not cover root canals.

“Most dental companies cover 50 percent of a root canal. It’s pretty typical, ”Bedard told NBC 7 Responds. “It’s still a lot of money, but at least it covers 50 percent.”

The pain was too difficult for Bedard to handle, so he continued the procedure.

Weeks later, Bedard claims to have received another surprise in the mail.

“When we got the bill, he said the insurance would only pay $ 109,” said Bedard.

This meant that the pair was out of nearly $ 1,300.

Bedard called Delta Dental and said that he was eventually told that his dental insurance plan was for a child, not an adult.

The problem was Bedard and his wife had no children, let alone children.

“My wife and I are over 60,” said Bedard. “We don’t have children, we haven’t registered children, but somehow we bought a plan just for children.”

After months back and forth, Bedard decided to call NBC 7 Responds to clarify things.

“At this point we were completely in a dead end. We had nowhere to go and we would have been out $ 1300 dollars, “Bedard told NBC 7.

NBC 7 replied to Delta Dental. A few weeks later Bedard received some much-needed news.

“They would refund us the full amount of the root canal which was over $ 1,200,” Bedard said. “I don’t like injustice. And justice is something I fought to be a retired deputy sheriff. Injustice really keeps me going. But NBC 7 Responds made a difference. ”

Delta Dental did not respond to a request for comment.

.

What to do and what not to do when protecting against coronavirus – NBC New York

by

With a confirmed infectious coronavirus case in New York City, health officials say the risk for nearly 9 million residents who contract the disease remains low – but there are things you can do to prepare for it when the virus inevitably spreads.

DO: wash your hands often

The most important thing New Yorkers can do to protect themselves from COVID-19 and other person-to-person diseases is to wash their hands. Spend at least 20 seconds washing your hands thoroughly with soap and water, CDC advised.

Wash your hands after going to the bathroom, before and after eating, and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing.

If you’re out and about and don’t have access to soap and water, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol, which will effectively kill the virus.

Regular surgical masks are not effective in protecting against coronavirus. A more specialized face mask known as N95 respirators are thicker than surgical masks and are mounted on a person’s face to keep out any viral particles.

NOT: stocks of face masks

The CDC does not recommend anyone without symptoms to wear face masks.

Surgical masks should be reserved for people with symptoms (to prevent them from spreading the virus through respiratory secretions such as saliva or mucus) and healthcare professionals who take care of the sick.

Regular surgical masks are not effective in protecting against coronavirus, according to the CDC. A more specialized face mask known as N95 respirators are thicker than surgical masks and are mounted on a person’s face to keep out any viral particles.

DO: Avoid contact with those who are sick

COVID-19 symptoms are similar to other respiratory diseases and include fever, cough and shortness of breath. The CDC’s recommendation to anyone with symptoms is to stay home and avoid contact with others.

You should contact your doctor if you develop symptoms and have been in close contact (at least 6 feet) with a person known to have COVID-19 or if you have recently traveled from an area with widespread or ongoing spread of the virus in the community.

Currently, the countries with health communications and ongoing transmission are China, Iran, Italy, South Korea and Japan.

The CDC says you shouldn’t share items like dishes, cups, kitchen utensils, towels or bed linen with other people or pets in your home. If unavoidable, the items should be cleaned with soap and water. Surfaces such as counters, door handles, telephones and keypads also need to be cleaned frequently.

The only thing that spreads faster than panic about the COVID-19 virus could be the myths that surround it, including how it spreads and what can be done to prevent it. Rana Novini of NBC in New York.

DO NOT: avoid joining Chinese-owned companies

While the epicenter of COVID-19 is in Wuhan, China, the disease can make anyone sick, regardless of race or ethnicity, the CDC said.

Local companies in Chinatown and Flushing, Queens, say they have seen a sharp drop in their operations since the virus started to spread, but the fear that Chinese Americans are more likely to carry the virus is without foundation.

“The stigma hurts everyone by creating more fear or anger towards ordinary people instead of the disease that is causing the problem,” said the CDC.

DO: Supply store, medicinewhether to keep medical records handy

If COVID-19 becomes more prevalent, the National Security Department says that you should stock up on medicines, supplies for you and your children. Pain relievers, cough and cold medicines, medicines for stomach pain and even liquids that contain electrolytes are recommended.

People with prescription drugs also need to make sure they have a regular supply. Having copies and electronic versions of medical records can also be helpful in a pandemic, says DHS.

If there is ever an interruption in the supply chain, DHS recommends having at least 2 weeks of non-perishable food and bottled water.

With the flu season behind and worries about coronavirus growth, NBC 5’s Lauren Petty visited Northwestern Hospital and spoke with Dr. Igor Koralnik. Koralnik shows us the right way to clean your hands in 60 seconds.

.