India’s healthcare system is on the verge of collapsing: coronavirus fact and fiction

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On Wednesday, the country recorded its highest daily increase in infections and deaths since the start of the pandemic (295,041 new cases of Covid-19 and 2,023 fatalities) as hospitals push patients away and demand more oxygen. , while desperate families ask for beds and medicine on social media.

“The volume is huge,” said Jalil Parkar, a senior lung consultant at Mumbai’s Lilavati Hospital, who has had to turn his lobby into an additional Covid room. “It’s like a tsunami.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation on Tuesday and acknowledged the country’s “great battle” against Covid-19. However, he appealed to states to “use a blockade as a last resort,” even as the capital of New Delhi entered its first full day of a one-week closure, Jessie Yung reported. and Vedika Sud.
On Monday, Delhi’s chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, warned that failure to stop movements in the city could lead to a “tragedy”. When India closed in March last March, the mass exodus of migrant workers from cities became one of the most enduring images of the country’s battle against the virus, and is believed to have helped spread it. Covid-19 nationwide.

This month, thousands of people have been seen heading to railway stations and bus stops in cities like Mumbai and Delhi, although the central government has maintained that no reverse migration is taking place.

The second wave, which has surpassed the first, was a situation created by complacency, experts say, noting that the government is taking relaxing measures and a false sense of security on the part of the public. Weeks before the cases escalated again, the federal health minister said India was “at the end” of the pandemic.

Despite Covid’s risk warnings, sports matches were resumed, elaborate weddings were held and cinemas reopened. This month, one of the largest pilgrimages on Earth, the Kumbh Mela Hindu festival, went ahead.

Modi, who has a major Hindu base, refrained from commenting on the Kumbh Mela and its Covid risks for weeks. Finally, he appealed to pilgrims to avoid congregating in Haridwar earlier this week. But for some, Modi’s message sounded empty, as he continued to hold massive political rallies ahead of parliamentary and local council elections in four states and union territory.

During this year's Kumbh Mela, Hindu devotees sink in the Ganges River in Haridwar

YOU ASKED. WE ANSWERED.

Q. What should we do differently now that variant B.1.1.7 has become dominant in the United States?

A: Variant B.1.1.7, which was first identified in the UK, is more transmissible than previous strains, meaning we need to be very careful, says Dr Leana Wen, a CNN medical analyst. This includes:
  • Be even more on guard than before. “For example, if you eat outdoors in a restaurant, make sure they comply with CDC guidelines and that there is a minimum of 6 feet of distance between tables. Those who are not yet fully vaccinated should wait until get vaccinated before eating very close with someone at your table, ”he said.
  • Wear a mask in public, practice physical distancing, and avoid indoor meetings with people who are not from your home.
  • “It’s even more critical than ever to get vaccinated as soon as it’s your turn,” Wen added.
Submit your questions here. Are you a healthcare worker fighting Covid-19? Send us a message on WhatsApp about the challenges you face: +1 347-322-0415.

WHAT’S IMPORTANT TODAY

The EU regulator says the benefits outweigh the risks of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after finding a possible link to blood clots.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said on Tuesday it had found a possible link between the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine and rare blood clots, but stressed that the overall benefits outweigh the risks. To use it in the European Union, the agency said the vaccine must include a warning about “unusual blood clots with low blood platelets.”
The underlying mechanism that may be involved in blood clots related to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the US and the AstraZeneca vaccine in Europe is extremely rare and appears to involve a little-known immune response.

Experts say that taking vaccines far outweighs the risks. Blood clots in general are relatively common: they affect 900,000 Americans a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). And being infected with coronavirus greatly increases that risk.

Covid-19 cases continue to rise in the United States despite vaccines. Here’s why.

Covid-19 vaccinations in the United States continue at an impressive rate and now all Americans 16 years of age or older can get a shot. But health officials warn the country remains in a “complicated stage” of the pandemic.

In the past seven days, the United States reported an average of more than 67,100 new Covid-19 infections daily, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. This is slightly lower than the previous week’s figure, but is still 25% above what it was almost a month ago.

Experts explain that there are several reasons for this rise, namely the dangerous variants of coronavirus, such as the most contagious strain B.1.1.7 that has helped fuel another wave in Michigan. Pandemic fatigue and the presence of more Americans who don’t move don’t help either.

China’s vaccine nationalism softens as the country indicates it can approve foreign-made features

As much as China wants to promote its domestically produced Covid-19 vaccines, it must also face reality.

Beijing issued a policy last month to make it easier for foreigners to apply for a visa to China if they had received a Chinese vaccine. Experts warn that it is a dangerous precedent that could leave the world apart in vaccine silos.

There is also a practical problem: it is impossible to get a Chinese vaccine in many countries, including the United States, because they have not been approved for use by regulators, according to Nectar Gan and James Griffiths.

ON OUR RADAR

  • Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador received his first live shot from AstraZeneca yesterday, urging the country to rely on vaccines.
  • The economic recovery from the Covid-19 crisis is unsustainable, according to the International Energy Agency, as it estimates that carbon emissions from energy consumption are on track to rise 1.5 billion tonnes by 2021.
  • A national night curfew in the Netherlands, designed to reduce social contact, will end on April 28, Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced. The curfew has been running since Jan. 23 and runs from 10 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
  • As U.S. health officials compete to get more Covid-19 shots in weapons to control the virus, experts warn the country will face another challenge in the coming weeks: supply of vaccines is likely to outstrip demand.
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin urged all citizens to be vaccinated against Covid-19 in his annual speech to the nation on Wednesday. “It’s the only way to stop the deadly pandemic,” Putin said.

TODAY’S PODCAST

“Approximately 30-40% of people with long covid experience improvements in symptoms after vaccinations, so this gives us some hope in trying to understand what we can do to help them, but also what can cause the disease.” . – Akiko Iwasaki, immunologist at Yale University.

In today’s episode, CNN’s chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, talks to Iwasaki about the treatment of Covid’s long-distance carriers and what we can do to help women and minorities succeed. after an incredibly difficult year. Listen now.

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