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Idaho behind in testing for COVID-19 variants
BOISE, Idaho — As of Sunday, the United States had confirmed 6,638 COVID-19 cases caused by variants, according to the CDC. COVID-19 variants are said to be stronger and more contagious than the original strain, SARS-CoV-2. According to Idaho’s Department of Health and Welfare website, the state has confirmed just...Read Full StoryCovid-19CdcPcr TestingPublic HealthGenome SequencingClinical TestingHealth DataCDCIdahoansCOVID-19 VariantsPCR TestingEastern IdahoSouthwest IdahoCOVID-19 CasesFailure Samples
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Taiwan gives health workers island's 1st AstraZeneca doses
Health care workers received the first shots in Taiwan's COVID-19 vaccination drive Monday, beginning a campaign that won't use supplies from China amid uneven distribution of the vaccines globally. Taiwan has on hand 117,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which it is distributing to health care workers across 57 hospitals. Taiwanese premier Su Tseng-chang launched the drive by receiving the first shot at National Taiwan University Hospital in the capital Taipei. “After 30 minutes of rest, there's no signs of any discomfort,” he said. The rest period is for monitoring recipients for any adverse reactions. Last week, more than a dozen nations suspended use of the AstraZeneca vaccine after a few dozen people among the millions who've received the vaccine developed blood clots. The European Union’s drug regulatory agency concluded after a review it couldn't rule out a direct link but the benefits of using the vaccine outweigh the possible risks. Taiwan has signed contracts securing 10 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, 5.05 million doses of the Moderna vaccine, and 4.76 million doses of vaccines through COVAX. Currently, Taiwan has recorded 1,006 confirmed cases of COVID-19, most of those from visitors coming from abroad. It has been one of the most successful places in the world in the battle against the pandemic, owing to strict public health and border control measures. The island is planning to administer its full initial supply to 117,000 individuals to ensure the broadest protection. The first dose provides an efficacy rate of 71% and the second dose — meant to be given eight weeks later — boosts its effectiveness to 81%, authorities have said previously. Taiwan has yet to announce a vaccination campaign for the public. Countries around the world are scrambling for vaccines, which have been distributed unevenly with rich countries buying up a majority of the doses. China has stepped in to offer hundreds of millions of doses of its own vaccines across the developing world, but Taiwan has refrained from buying them. Taiwanese law bans import of Chinese vaccines made for human use. The island's health minister had said in February there were no considerations to amending the law and no experts have made a special recommendation for Chinese vaccines. China TaiwanAstrazenecaVaccine DosesHealth WorkersHealth Care WorkersAstraZenecaTaiwaneseThe European Union 'sCOVAXEuropean UnionChinese VaccinesDrugTaipeiHospitalsMonitoring Recipients
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South Health District to offer COVID testing as clinical appointments
VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) - Starting Monday, the South Health District will begin offering rapid COVID-19 testing as a clinical appointment, according to a press release from the district. The release said the two largest health departments, Lowndes and Tift, will alternate holding drive-thru COVID-19 testing events on Tuesday mornings. “Due...Read Full StoryCovidPcr TestingHealth DepartmentPublic HealthDepartment Of HealthDeputy DirectorWALBPCRCOVID-19 TestingSouth Health DistrictDeputy Health DirectorLowndes CountyTift CountyDrive
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How to Mitigate Low-Code Security Risks
Gartner predicts that by the end of 2025, over 65% of development projects will usee low-code builders. The field of low-code continues to expand. But what security implications does low-code introduce?. Low-code refers to tools that enable application construction using visual programming models. Adopting drag-and-drop components instead of traditional code,...Read Full StorySoftware SecurityApplication SecuritySecurity TestingProprietary SoftwareSecurity SystemsSecurity SoftwareSoftware SystemsSoftware VulnerabilitiesSoftware ToolsGartnerUseeCTOVeracodeDBIRJSChris Wysopal
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Indonesia to deport Russian drug convict who fled on 1st try
Indonesia was deporting a Russian drug convict Tuesday after he fled from his home country and escaped his first deportation attempt in February on the resort island of Bali . Andrei Kovalenka, who used the alias Andrew Ayer, served a prison sentence in Indonesia after being arrested in 2019 and convicted of possessing hashish. He escaped with his partner during the transfer on Feb. 11. Police found them at a villa after 13 days on the run and arrested him. He was being transported from Bali to Jakarta on Tuesday morning. “The handover to the Russian police that will escort him will be in Jakarta,” said Tommy Arya Dwianto, officer from Interpol National Central Bureau in Indonesia. According to Dwianto, Kovalenka was convicted in a Russian drug case in 2011 but fled without serving the sentence. The Russian government asked Interpol to issue the red notice in 2015. Jamaruli Manihuruk, chief of the Bali regional office for the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, added that Kovalenka’s partner Ekaterina Trubkina has been deported earlier. Bali regional office for the Ministry of Law and Human Rights recorded 162 foreigners deported from Bali in 2020 and 2021, mostly for visa violations. IndonesiaDeportationHashishJakartaPolice ChiefRussianDrugVisa ViolationsBali Regional OfficeCountryFebruaryOfficerAliasEkaterina TrubkinaAndrei Kovalenka
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Opinion: COVID-19 diverted lifesaving tuberculosis work. But there is still hope.
In 2020, we all witnessed, in real time, the deadly impact of an airborne pandemic. In just over a year, more than 2.7 million people have died from COVID-19. But in the lowest-income and most marginalized communities around the world, another airborne disease — tuberculosis — has been killing tens of millions of people for millennia. And with the arrival of COVID-19, it’s getting worse.Read Full StoryTuberculosisCovid-19Global HealthHealth SecurityLifesavingPublic HealthHIV DrugsHIV PreventionDrug-Resistant TBFacilitation CouncilTB PatientsTB DrugsFighting TBDrug-resistant TBMalaria Programs
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Spring assessments to be postponed until the fall
The state board of education approved a recommendation to postpone this spring’s state assessments until the fall, as well as use a shortened diagnostic assessment, at a special meeting last week. The decision came after the board previously approved the state superintendent’s request to move forward with revised spring assessments...Read Full StoryStandardized TestingTests And TestingState SchoolsElementary EducationTest ScoresMCAPThe State Board 'sMSEASpringFallRemediationFebruaryPublic School StudentsState SuperintendentMaryland Schools
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Predicting COVID-19 Spikes: UNR Wastewater Study Can See Trend One Week Ahead of Positive Tests
A University of Nevada, Reno study can show a COVID-19 spike an entire week before people test positive for the virus in the community. Krishna Pagilla, an environmental engineering professor at UNR and leader of the study, said “...It’s predictive for seven days ahead, telling us the trend in new positive cases we’ll see in the community in that timeframe. It’s predictive because people don’t get tested until they have symptoms, but our marker concentrations are real time – as soon as the virus is discharged into the wastewater.”Read Full StoryMichael DrinkwaterSpikesUnrCovid-19Public HealthWater TestingTests And TestingGenetic TestingGenetic EngineeringWater SystemsThe University Of NevadaTMWRFWastewater RiseWastewater MonitoringReno Study
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Bobby Brown Jr died of accidental overdose, says coroner
Bobby Brown Jr died of an overdose of alcohol, cocaine and the powerful opioid fentanyl, according to a coroner's report. The son of R&B singer Bobby Brown, Brown Jr died at his Los Angeles home on 18 November last year. The 28-year-old was found unresponsive in his bedroom by his...Read Full StoryCoronerCelebritiesParamedicsInstagramFacebookAnna ReedLandonKingDrugOpioidFlu-like SymptomsLost SoulmateBedroomLos AngelesHomeBobby BrownKim WardWhitney HoustonBobbi Kristina
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Surge testing in Sandwell after South African variant found
Surge testing will be carried out after a case of the South African variant of Covid-19 was identified in Sandwell. A mobile testing unit has been set up and people over the age of 16 are being asked to get tested, whether they have symptoms or not. The tests will...Read Full StoryBrazilPublic HealthTests And TestingThe South AfricanOldburyTiptonSandwell CouncilBBC West MidlandsTwitterInstagramFacebookSurge TestingCoronavirus CasesUnitLatest Figures