Coronavirus Thread: Worldwide Pandemic

[N.J.stan]

Went to the grocery store earlier. Maybe 30% of people, myself included, had masks on

 

[Dillah810]

Went to the grocery store earlier. Maybe 30% of people, myself included, had masks on

Yeah people have pretty much given up now.

 

[mastermind]

I’ve never stopped wearing mine in public

Same, man

 

[Poetical Poltergeist]

Still wearing my mask. Seeing a lot of people go without up here (Toronto)

Aint no one wearing masks anymore. Very few people are but the masses are off that wave. No pun.

 

[barese]

Passport And Visa Privileges In Global Health

The field of global health is extraordinarily unequal, with privileged people and institutions in the global North dominating all aspects of global health. One form of privilege, the passports and visas people in high-income countries carry, further worsens inequities in global health.

www.forbes.com

The field of global health is extraordinarily unequal, with privileged people and institutions in the global North dominating all aspects of global health. In fact, a majority of global health agencies are headquartered in US, UK and Europe, and most global health conferences are held in these countries. One form of privilege, the passports and visas people in high-income countries (HICs) carry, further worsens inequities in global health. And the Covid-19 pandemic has worsened inequities in global travel, making the playing field treacherously uneven.

To begin with, the vaccine apartheid has left nearly 2.8 billion people, mostly people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), waiting for their first vaccine dose. Travel is more expensive now, visas are costly, often hard to get (or take forever), and vaccine proof and/or testing requirements are adding untold complexities and costs.

Global health was neither diverse nor global even before the pandemic, but now, there is a real risk that all global health events will start resembling Davos - elite, white people getting together in North American or European cities, to discuss issues that mostly impact Black and brown people in LMICs.

“As a health practitioner based in a low-income country, it is almost impossible to pick up my passport and baggage and head to the airport without planning 6 to 12 months in advance,” said Stephen Asiimwe, a Ugandan public health practitioner. “I have faced high visa fees, requirements to prove substantial ties to my home country – including needing to provide letters of support from my spouse, employer, parents, and senior government offices – and requests for countless documents including certified bank account statements, land titles and mortgages, airline and hotel bookings, and health and travel insurance,” he added.

Letters of invitation are often sent just a few days prior to the event, leaving people at risk of not even getting visa interviews in time, plus the economical burden of having to buy expensive flight tickets at the last minute, he explained.

For many countries, visa applications are a way to generate revenue. And visa outsourcing companies (e.g. VFS Global) have “turned the once costly endeavour of operating consulates and embassies into a money-making opportunity for cash-strapped immigration departments.” Even when visa applications are rejected, these companies still make money. And since most HICs tend to give short-term, single entry visas, people are forced to go back again and again to apply for new visas. This generates more revenue for companies and HIC governments.

Some countries privatized visa application process.
Wow.

VFS Global - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Jcotton1]

Aint no one wearing masks anymore. Very few people are but the masses are off that wave. No pun.

Where do u live? I live on the east coast I see plenty of folks old and young still masked up.

 

[Jcotton1]

Same, man

I keep a pack of N-95s in the back seat.

 

[Poetical Poltergeist]

Where do u live? I live on the east coast I see plenty of folks old and young still masked up.

Denver. Very few masks. I havent worn one in months except for my doctor appointment last week. I see people wearing them but the number is low low.

 

[barese]

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/coronavirus/article262212557.html

Florida’s COVID-19 data was so inaccurate, incomplete and delayed during the first months of the pandemic that government officials and the public may not have had necessary information to determine the effectiveness of the state’s COVID-19 precautions and the best plan to fight the virus, according to a state report released Monday.

State auditors reviewed a sample of 2,600 tests taken at three state-run testing facilities and found that state-contracted laboratories failed to return results for nearly 60% of tests.


Redfern said he could not say whether any of the missing results were positive, or whether potentially positive individuals had been notified of their results.

 

[Godless Socialist CEO]

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/coronavirus/article262212557.html

Once again, I called this two years ago

 

[Joe Sixpack]

I wear my mask on the train and in elevators that’s it..

Basically whenever I find myself in a cluster of people

 

[Orbital-Fetus]

Once again, I called this two years ago

DeSantis has blood on his hands.

 

[DJ Paul's Arm]

 

[ADevilYouKhow]

Travel news: US drops Covid testing and even Japan is relaxing entry

This week in travel news, the United States is set to drop its Covid-19 testing requirement for inbound air travelers and Japan is now allowing international tour groups

www.cnn.com

Welp

 

[88m3]