Good evening, here are the coronavirus updates you need to know tonight.
Top headlines:
- Why is COVID-19 so much more dangerous to men? This Canadian geneticist has a personal stake in finding out
- A potentially crucial drug for fighting COVID-19 awaits new outbreaks to prove its efficiency
- Actual coronavirus infections in the U.S. are vastly undercounted, CDC data shows
In Canada, at least 102,954 cases have been reported. In the last week 1,925 new cases were announced, 26% fewer than the previous week. There have also been at least 65,908 recoveries and 8,516 deaths. Health officials have administered more than 2,769,800 tests.
Worldwide, there have been at least 9,801,572 cases confirmed and 494,181 deaths reported.
Sources: Canada data is compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data is from Johns Hopkins University.
Coronavirus explainers: Updates and essential resources • Coronavirus in maps and charts • Lockdown rules and reopening plans in each province
Photo of the day
Wearing masks to protect against COVID-19, demonstrators carry placards as they walk down Sable Boulevard during a rally and march over the death of 23-year-old Elijah McClain. McClain died in late August 2019 after he was stopped while walking to his apartment by three Aurora Police Department officers.David Zalubowski/The Associated Press
Coronavirus in Canada
- As Nova Scotia hasn’t reported a COVID-19 case in the past 17 days, the provincial government is pushing forward with its reopening plan, which includes allowing all bars and restaurants to operate at full capacity. But the province also continues its strong recommendations of mask-wearing and physical distancing.
- As the military prepares to withdraw from Quebec’s long-term care homes, 900 Canadian Red Cross workers are due to replace them. The Red Cross is expected to remain until September 15, while thousands of provincial workers are intended to be hired and trained to take over these roles. This turnover is taking place despite Premier François Legault’s repeated requests to maintain at least 1,000 military members until the fall.
- In Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada will commit $300 million to fight COVID-19 internationally. However, Canadian aid agencies and advocates said this amount is a fraction of what is needed, calling for at least a $1.5-billion investment.
Coronavirus around the world
- Citing the pandemic, a United States federal judge has ordered the release of migrant children who are being held in family detention centres by July 17. This applies to children held for more than 20 days in three Immigration and Customs Enforcement-operated detention centres in Texas and Pennsylvania, some of whom have been detained since 2019.
In this file photo taken on June 21, 2018 scurity personnel stand before shoes and toys left at the Tornillo Port of Entry where minors crossing the border without proper papers have been housed after being separated from adults in Tornillo, Texas. A court in Los Angeles has now ordered the release of more than 100 children held in United States family immigration detention because of the risk they could catch coronavirus in the facilities.BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images
- The European Union is still finalizing the list of countries whose citizens it will allow to travel to the Union in the near future. But it’s almost certain that the United States will be left off the list due to its surge in COVID-19 cases. Russia and Brazil are also likely to be excluded.
- With more than 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and rising infection numbers, Brazil has signed a deal with Oxford University and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca to produce a vaccine. The World Health Organization has called the vaccine, which is currently undergoing testing, promising.
Globe opinion
- Emily Kellogg: “I support the closing, as I do all precautions to help mitigate the impact of the pandemic, which has killed more than 120,000 people in the United States and 8,500 in Canada. Still, this lockdown period has undoubtedly been a test of all our abilities to endure isolation and anxiety. And as a dual citizen of Canada and the U.S. – whose immediate family lives in California – I feel the sting of fear caused by the border closing particularly acutely.”
- Wency Leung: “That fist-sized bean-shaped kidney that once resided in the small of my back was one of 302 live organs donated in Ontario in 2019. When people learn it’s no longer in my possession, the first thing they ask is whom I gave it to. The answer is I don’t know.”
Distractions
Christie Vuong/The Globe and Mail
From tales of great escapes to family sagas to stories about fame and misfortune, here are 34 previews of the summer’s hottest reads:
- Indians on Vacation: “Why would we want to travel, when we can stay home?” asks Bird at the beginning of this sly, witty novel from the author of The Inconvenient Indian and The Truth About Stories. For readers in pandemic times staring down a summer of not too much, that question might become: “Where might we armchair travel, when we are told to stay home?”
- The Pull of the Stars: Pandemic fiction and historical fiction find a home together in this eerily well-timed novel from the author of Room and The Wonder.
- The Answer Is … Reflections on My Life: Answer: It’s bound to be a bestseller. Question: What is the memoir of Alex Trebek?
- Luster: In this internationally anticipated debut, Edie, a Black woman stumbling through her 20s in New York, falls into art and her lover’s open marriage.
Information centre
- Pandemic personal finance: Rob Carrick’s 10-point checklist of things you should have done by now to protect or improve your money situation. Tips for minimizing damage to your credit score; how to manage retirement anxiety during difficult times; and things to think about if you’re considering home delivery.
- Here are the expectations for self-isolation; tips for managing anxiety and protecting your mental health; and what to do if you think you have the virus, and what you can do to help slow the spread of coronavirus. How to break a bad habit (like touching your face).
- The best foods to eat to maintain an immune system-friendly diet; and how to keep a healthy diet while working from home; four eating tips when working from home; and five mistakes that might cause you to gain unwanted weight. Here are the essentials to stock up on and how to shop safely for groceries; the best pantry staples and how to stop stress-eating. What to cook with rhubarb (aside from pie).
- Here’s what you should do if you are newly laid off; how to apply for CERB, EI, and other financial benefits; how the CRA might identify CERB fraud; and other coronavirus and employment questions answered. What to do if your employees don’t return to work because they want to collect CERB.
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