Covid-19 Daily Bulletin

A series of daily updates for CHO members regarding relevant updates pertaining to Coronavirus from home and abroad.

Key Announcements   

• In the UK, more than 93,873 people have been confirmed to have caught Covid-19 and 12,107 people have died in hospital(an increase of 778 on the previous day) after contracting the disease.
• The UK government promises that all care home residents and staff with Covid-19 symptoms will be tested. Hancock says this is due to testing capacity increases. It follows statistics from the ONS highlighting that Covid related deaths outside of hospitals had been grossly under represented.
• Charities say the virus is “running wild” amid outbreaks at more than 2,000 care homes
• Donald Trump has said the US will stop  funding to  the World Health Organisation , accusing it of mismanagement.
• Health workers in England might need to reuse their personal protective equipment under “last resort” plans, reveals a leaked Public Health England document .   The document suggested a series of measures that could be put in place, including:

– Buying “building” or “sportswear” eye protection with extensions to cover the side of the eyes if there are no available goggles or face shields

– Using washable laboratory coats and patients’ gowns where there are no available disposable gowns or coveralls

– Re-purposing face masks using various disinfection or sterilisation methods, including steam and UV disinfection

• The government is expected to announce an extension to the lockdown on Thursday and Prof Openshaw, who has previously sat on their Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that talk of removing measures is premature.
• Fraudsters are targeting the vulnerable and self-isolating people, warns the National Crime Agency
• The Welsh Government has “sincerely apologised” after 13,000 letters meant for the most vulnerable people were sent to the wrong addresses
• And some happy news, as the BBC reports that a  99-year-old  army veteran  has raised more than £4m ($5m) to help the NHS

International       

• The global coronavirus pandemic has now infected more than 2 million people worldwide and an estimated 124,000 deaths have been recorded.
• UN Secretary General António Guterres says it is “not the time” to cut WHO resources.
• South Korea’s parliamentary elections are going ahead with tight restrictions in place
• India has extended its nationwide lockdown until May 3rdalthough they have relaxed restrictions on farming, banking and public works.
• Germany’s virus death toll has risen to above 3,000. The country’s Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases said 285 deaths over the past day were linked to Covid-19, taking the toll to 3,254.
• Singapore has made it mandatory to wear a facemask as soon as you leave the House.
• There has been contention in Pakistan. Authorities have restricted gatherings at mosques to five people or less, but this has prompted backlash from some religious leaders, and several instances of clashes with police trying to enforce the rules.

Stakeholders  

• In response to the reuse of PPE, the British Medical Association said this “underlines the urgency” of protective equipment shortages.
• Britain’s largest care home operator, HC-One, said the virus represented about one-third of all deaths at HC-One’s care homes over the last three weeks. And MHA, a charity which operates 131 homes, said it had recorded 210 coronavirus-related deaths to date.
• Labour leader Sir Keir Starmeris  urging the government to publish an exit strategy from the coronavirus lockdown.
• The President’s announcement has been widely condemned, Bill Gates responding via twitter that  it was “as dangerous as it sounds”.
• In the financial sector, Andrew Kail, Head of Financial Services at PwC, said:  “The Covid-19 pandemic is one of the most significant tests of operational resilience the FS sector has seen. The need to move to full workforce remote working, on a global scale for many, has significantly tested business continuity plans. The response by the industry has largely been a success. The need to maintain vital customer services in a technically and regulatory compliant manner has seen organisations act at their most agile and responsive.   The FS sector must continue to work with customers, the government and the regulators to help the economy recover in the best possible shape. Services it provides across banking, insurance and asset management are central to the sustainability of the corporate sector and millions of people. “

Unconfirmed reports    

• The Guardian is reporting that experts are suggesting that social distancing coronavirus measures may be needed until 2022.
• With ongoing contention from some over the 5g network, wider questions are  being asked whether coronavirus has  “opened the door” to  mass electronic  surveillance in the UK, as many state this is why the UK death toll compares worse to that of their international counterparts.
• As the OBR forecasts the economic downturn from the virus, they warn the economy may shrink by a third, resulting in two million people unemployed.