In January, after its first patient tested positive, the government set up a crisis team and tracked down those who had contact with the patient. They even identified a salt shaker she touched that others handled. Germany’s coronavirus death rate is among the lowest. Global news reports are from Iceland, England, China and other nations.
Reuters: Pass The Salt: The Minute Details That Helped Germany Build Virus Defences
One January lunchtime in a car parts company, a worker turned to a colleague and asked to borrow the salt. As well as the saltshaker, in that instant, they shared the new coronavirus, scientists have since concluded. That their exchange was documented at all is the result of intense scrutiny, part of a rare success story in the global fight against the virus. The co-workers were early links in what was to be the first documented chain of multiple human-to-human transmissions outside Asia of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. (Poltz and Carrel, 4/9)
The New York Times: Iceland’s Coronavirus Test Has Skeptics, But It May Be Working
With its small population and isolated location, Iceland has earned praise and headlines for its plan to test as many people as possible for exposure to the new coronavirus. Why, some wondered, couldn’t other countries be like Iceland? But critics inside the country have called this rosy picture misleading. They say the tiny Nordic island country of 360,000 people has not done enough to suppress new cases of Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus. (Ortiz, 4/9)
Reuters: UK PM Johnson Leaves Intensive Care, Remains Under Observation
Prime Minister Boris Johnson left intensive care on Thursday evening as he continues to recover from COVID-19, but he remains under close observation in hospital, his office said on Thursday. (Bruce and James, 4/9)
The Associated Press: Virus-Hit Wuhan Cautiously Revives Amid Thicket Of Controls
Released from their apartments after a 2 1/2-month quarantine, residents of the city where the coronavirus pandemic began are cautiously returning to shopping and strolling in the streets. But they say they still go out little and keep their children home while waiting for schools to reopen. Wuhan’s 11 million people still face a thicket of controls after curbs that kept most of them from leaving the sprawling city ended this week. (McNeil and McDonald, 4/10)
Reuters: China’s Wuhan To Keep Testing Residents As Coronavirus Lockdown Eases
China’s Wuhan city, where the global coronavirus pandemic began, is still testing residents regularly despite relaxing its tough two-month lockdown, with the country wary of a rebound in cases even as it sets its sights on normalising the economy. (Goh, 4/10)
The New York Times: A New Front For Nationalism: The Global Battle Against A Virus
As they battle a pandemic that has no regard for borders, the leaders of many of the world’s largest economies are in the thrall of unabashedly nationalist principles, undermining collective efforts to tame the novel coronavirus. The United States, an unrivaled scientific power, is led by a president who openly scoffs at international cooperation while pursuing a global trade war. India, which produces staggering amounts of drugs, is ruled by a Hindu nationalist who has ratcheted up confrontation with neighbors. China, a dominant source of protective gear and medicines, is bent on a mission to restore its former imperial glory. (Goodman, Thomas, Wee and Gettleman, 4/10)
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