Costco, Walmart lead job pay hikes, perks to lure workers

As India grapples with a deadly second wave of Covid-19, a new threat has emerged - a rare infection called mucormycosis, or the ’black fungus.’ The disease, which can lead to blackening or discoloration over the nose, blurred or double vision, chest pain, breathing difficulties and coughing blood, is linked to diabetes. Cases have also been reported in UK, US, France, Austria, Brazil and Mexico.

Dozens of bodies believed to be Covid-19 victims have washed up on the banks of the Ganges River in northern India. Local officials said that about 40 corpses washed up in Buxar district near the border between Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, two of India’s poorest states. Reports suggest the bodies were dumped because cremation sites were overwhelmed or relatives could not afford wood for funeral pyres.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy says the state is considering paying people to get the COVID-19 vaccine. ’We might, I think all things are on the table frankly,’ Murphy said in an interview. ’We have to get to our objective, which is 70% of the adult population by the end of June.’

Dr. Fauci said Sunday that wearing masks could become seasonal. ’I think people have gotten used to the fact that wearing masks, clearly if you look at the data it diminishes respiratory diseases,’ Fauci said, pointing to a ’non-existent flu season this year.’ He added that ’people might actually elect to wear masks to diminish the likelihood that you’ll spread these respiratory borne diseases.’

US top official on Covid-19, Dr. Fauci, said that the U.S. will not likely see a rise of coronavirus infections over the fall and the winter like it did last year. Fauci attributes his statement to widespread availability to Covid-19 vaccines. Fauci calls the vaccines a game changer. More than 150 million Americans received at least one dose vaccine. About 34% of US people were fully vaccinated.

A vaccine center has been set up in Bran Castle, widely known as the inspiration for the lair of Dracula, in Romania. Medics are offering the Pfizer vaccines to everyone who visit the castle in the Carpathian mountains in Transylvania. The campaign is supported by government to stimulate people to get jabbed. Almost 3.6M Romanians of the country’s 19M people have received at least one jab.

Street preacher Artur Pawlowski was stopped & arrested Saturday on a Canadian highway after holding a religious service in Calgary amid COVID-19 restriction across the nation. Artur’s brother, David, was also arrested for his participation. Although the service was held outdoors, Canadian health law currently restricts gatherings of this nature & several churches in Canada have also been closed.

India is under increasingly serious attack by coronavirus. Indian authorities are trying to persuade Narendra Modi to fully lock down the country amid Covid-19 battle. Dr. Randeep Guleria, a government health official, said a complete lockdown is necessary, especially where the positive Covid-19 case rate surpassed 10 percent. Even the US official Anthony Fauci advised a total shutdown for India.

While hospitals in India plead for life-saving oxygen and Covid-19 casualties remain on a rise, India’s PM Modi is pushing ahead with a $1.8B parliamentary revamp, including a new home for himself. The decision to continue with the project, categorized as an ’essential service,’ has infuriated the public and opposition politicians. India registered a record 4,187 casualties in the last 24 hours.

India’s surge in COVID-19 cases is having a dangerous effect on neighboring Bangladesh. Health experts warn of imminent vaccine shortages just as the country should be stepping up its vaccination drive, and as more contagious virus variants are beginning to be detected

Pfizer is asking the Food and Drug Administration for full approval of its vaccine for people 16 and older, which would allow direct marketing to consumers and make it easier for employers to require vaccinations for workers.

The Biden administration has now agreed to back a proposal to suspend intellectual property protection for COVID-19 vaccines. These protections are codified in the World Trade Organization’s Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreements.

European countries separated themselves from the US about Covid-19 vaccine waivers. French leader Macron said that IP rights is not the issue of the day. All the leaders of 27-nation bloc discussed the proposal of the US to share vaccine IP rights. But EU leaders were divided on its usefulness. According to experts, waiver negotiation will take years and cannot be covered for immediate needs.

The owner of a Northern California bar, which made and sold fake COVID-19 vaccination cards for $20 each, has been arrested in what officials call the first such foiled operation they are aware of nationwide. Todd Anderson was arrested on Tuesday and charged with identity theft, forging government documents, falsifying medical records and having a loaded unregistered handgun.

President Biden said that April’s lower than expected job growth reveals that the US economy is still struggling to recover from the Covid pandemic. Earlier, the Labor Department reported that unemployment rate rose to 6.1%. ’This month’s job numbers show we are on the right track. But we still have a long way to go,’ Biden said. He added that 1.5M jobs have been created since he took office.

Japanese hold an online petition to postpone Tokyo Olympics over the course of global pandemic in order to prevent disease. More than 187,000 signs were gathered in only two days since the campaign has started. The goal is to bring the number over 200,000 to show concerns over the largest sport events in the world. Japan fights with 4th wave of Covid-19 pandemic and sluggish vaccination push.

British officials have said that people under 40 should be offered an alternative to AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 shot where possible due to a small risk of blood clots. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI) said this was suggested given low levels of Covid-19 infection in Britain and the availability of other vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna.

Japan has extended a Covid state of emergency in Tokyo and three other areas until at least the end of the month in an attempt to arrest a surge in cases. PM Yoshihide Suga said the measures would remain in place in the capital, Osaka prefecture, and the neighboring prefectures of Hyogo and Kyoto. So far 2.2% of the population has received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine.

Due to brutal impacts of Covid-19, many TV shows were put to an end. But Stranger Things is a highly-expected to be watched over pandemic. 3rd season left viewers with a herd of question marks, cliffhangers, It’s highly likely that this season will answer all of questions. Netflix has revealed exceptional trailers of season 4. Martin Brenner seems to be well and alive, and the experiments goes on.

Covid cases in Nepal are skyrocketing, a situation that is raising fears that the outbreak in the country could mimic that of India. The country recorded 8605 new cases on 5th May, the highest number of daily cases since the start of the pandemic. Fears of a strained health system have been raised, given the country of 30M people has only 1,595 intensive care beds and 480 ventilators.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered police to arrest anyone not wearing a mask properly, including below the nose. Duterte issued the directive after a meeting with his Covid-19 task force, where everyone except him was seen following the mandatory face covering. Earlier, the country’s health dept. announced that six cases of a highly infectious Covid strain have been detected.

The US government has indicated a temporary waiver for intellectual property rights on Covid-19 vaccines. This proposal aims to boost coronavirus vaccines to stop global pandemic and to be eligible for poor nations. The pharmaceutical industry has complaint about this decision to protect their copyright. The EU is ready to discuss details and oppose complaints of big companies.

Several world leaders applauded the US call to remove patent protections on Covid-19 vaccines to help poor countries. But the proposal brings some hurdles, including resistance from the pharmaceutical companies. Activists congratulate the US after Biden called for waiver on intellectual property rights on the vaccine. If a country rejects this plan in WHO, this plan will be a garbage.

Scotland is holding another local and regional elections on May 6. Scotland’s pivotal point is another referendum of independence from the UK again. Ruling Scottish National Party seeks for a vast majority to legalize the independence. Scottish National Party’s leader, Nicola Sturgeon, has gained much popularity during coronavirus pandemic. She told that this crisis is her priority.