The COVID-19 History Project

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This Day in COVID: December 6, 2020

Details

Coronavirus: Vaccine rollout 'marathon not a sprint' - Powis

Prof Stephen Powis says the jab is the 'beginning of the end', as hospitals start to take deliveries.

BBC

A gamble pays off in ‘spectacular success’: How the leading coronavirus vaccines made it to the finish line

Washington Post

Biden’s 100-day mask plan ‘a good idea,’ Trump’s vaccine chief says

'It's never too late,' said Moncef Slaoui, the scientific head of Operation Warp Speed.

Politico

Chicago Teachers Union deletes tweet claiming school reopening push 'rooted' in sexism, racism, misogyny

The Chicago Teachers Union is facing swift criticism on social media Sunday after claiming in a now deleted tweet that the push to reopen schools is 'rooted in sexism, racism and misogyny.'

Fox

New Covid-19 stay-at-home orders set to take effect Sunday night for millions of Californians

CNN

students-have-already-lost-too-much-time-they-need-to-be-back-in-classrooms

Washington Post

Fauci’s plea ‘Wear a mask’ tops list of 2020 notable quotes

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — A plea from Dr. Anthony Fauci for people to “wear a mask” to slow the spread of the coronavirus tops a Yale Law School librarian’s list of the most notable quotes of 2020.

AP News

Music education in UK schools devastated by pandemic, survey finds

Students will lose out emotionally and academically, say teachers, as lessons and concerts are cut back

The Guardian

Tipped Service Workers Are More Vulnerable Amid Pandemic Harassment Spike: Study

More than half of workers surveyed said they were reluctant to enforce COVID-19 safety measures with customers from whom they would receive tips, according to the One Fair Wage study.

NPR

The pandemic boosted food delivery companies. Soon they may face a reality check

CNN

A new report adds to the evidence of a coronavirus coverup in China

Washington Post

Former cybersecurity chief says Russia, China, Iran and North Korea are trying to steal coronavirus vaccine IP

Former CISA director said Sunday that adversaries have attempted to steal intellectual property related to the coronavirus vaccine.

CNBC

Hit by Covid-19, Colleges Do the Unthinkable and Cut Tenure

WSJ

COVID-19 becomes top killer in U.S. as hospitals fill up: 'It's one giant ball of anxiety'

Across the country, 100,000 people are in hospitals, and 11 states broke records this week for new cases reported in a single day.

CBS

Countdown to a Coronavirus Vaccine

The race is nearly complete, but distributing the doses will be a breathtaking challenge.

New Yorker

Rudy Giuliani in hospital after testing positive for COVID-19

The president tweeted that his longtime ally contracted the virus.

ABC

Can your employer force you to get a COVID-19 vaccine? Yes usually

With vaccines on the way, companies will likely have the legal right to compel many workers to get inoculated, experts say.

CBS

Despite promise, few in US adopting COVID-19 exposure apps

Six months ago, Apple and Google introduced a new smartphone tool designed to notify people who might have been exposed to the coronavirus, without disclosing any personal information. But for the most part, Americans haven’t been all that interested.

PBS

Our Mission

The COVID-19 History Project is a curated archive of the events and policy decisions surrounding the emergence of COVID-19.

The pandemic era of 2020-2022 saw massive increases in restrictions on daily life—enforced by the government and by social stigma—accompanied social protests that roiled cities worldwide

In the United States alone, trillions of dollars were spent by the federal government to offset the forced closure of businesses and the devastation of normal life.

The impacts of these policy decisions are still being felt today.

Some would like us to forget the actions and people that played a significant role during the pandemic.

But we of the COVID-19 History Project don't want to forget. Through our work, we hope there will always be an archive to learn from and interpret this fascinating, disturbing, time in world history.

The Timeline

In order to learn from the mistakes of the past, and give COVID-19 decision makers the credit—both good and bad—they deserve, we have compiled a media timeline from every day of the pandemic.

We have endeavored to make the timeline comprehensive without being duplicative, following the major trends as they unfolded.

We provided analyses for each month highlighting major events, but encourage readers to make their own conclusions about these events as well.

This Day in COVID: December 6, 2021

Details

Crowdfunding offers the UK’s independent booksellers a pandemic lifeline

As local bookshop numbers grow, readers have come together to back them in Crickhowell, Brighton and Buckley

The Guardian

Sarah Gilbert: Next pandemic could be more lethal than Covid

More funding is needed to prepare for pandemics and prevent gains from being lost, Dame Sarah Gilbert says.

BBC

Covid: Blackpool's sex infection cases fall during pandemic

Lockdowns played a part in the fall in Blackpool, where figures are usually higher than average.

BBC

Metabolic disorders, COVID-19 and vaccine-breakthrough infections - Nature Reviews Endocrinology

Obesity and impaired metabolic health are important risk factors for severe COVID-19. Novel data indicate that these risk factors might also promote vaccine-breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infections in fully vaccinated people. Here, these relationships are discussed and post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 that are related to obesity and impaired metabolic health are addressed.

Nature

This is how COVID-19 hit household expenditure in Europe

The World Economic Forum

Adherence and sustainability of interventions informing optimal control against the COVID-19 pandemic - Communications Medicine

Di Domenico and Sabbatini et al. model the impact of lockdowns of varying duration and intensity on the control of COVID-19, using data from the third wave of the epidemic in the Paris region of France. The authors introduce a measure of policy-induced fatigue, the ‘distress index’, that helps to explain why shorter, more stringent restrictions might be more effective.

Nature

A 1-minute blood test detects decreased immune function and increased clinical risk in COVID-19 patients - Scientific Reports

Nature

COVID-19 laid bare barriers faced by 1 billion people with disabilities

Welcome to the United Nations

Comparative assessment of favipiravir and remdesivir against human coronavirus NL63 in molecular docking and cell culture models - Scientific Reports

Nature

Omicron Is Fast Moving, but Perhaps Less Severe, Early Reports Suggest (Published 2021)

The New York Times

Frontiers | Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Membrane (M) and Spike (S) Proteins Antagonize Host Type I Interferon Response

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has spread worldwide and has infected more than ...

Frontiers

We’re Not at Endemicity Yet

Too many people still have no protection against the coronavirus.

The Atlantic

British vaccine developer Sarah Gilbert says next pandemic ‘could be worse’ than coronavirus

The Washington Post

Pandemic stress weighs heavily on Gen Z: AP-NORC, MTV poll

AP News

Healthcare in 2022: the aftermath of coronavirus

EIU has taken a look at the growth prospects, top risks and key trends facing the healthcare sector next year. Read the article to find out more

Economist Intelligence Unit

In Armenia, why are just 15 percent fully vaccinated?

COVID-19 pandemic is politicised in Armenia, where even doctors are responsible for spreading falsehoods about jabs.

Al Jazeera

Coronavirus: Fauci calls Republican ‘overhyping’ claim ‘preposterous’

Republican senator Ron Johnson also says Fauci ‘did the exact same thing with Aids’

The Guardian

Where did the coronavirus omicron variant come from? Scientists suggest it evolved in one person.

The omicron variant of the coronavirus may have first developed in a single immunocompromised person.

USA Today

The colonial undertones of Omicron travel bans

Instead of adopting sound public health policies, the West is resorting to colonial-time practices to isolate Africa.

Al Jazeera

Coroners in England issue rare warnings over avoidable deaths in pandemic

Exclusive: at least 16 notices issued to prevent future deaths after inquests highlight care failures

The Guardian

In India, as the virus abates, a hunger crisis persists

The Washington Post

South Africa prepares hospitals as COVID cases surge

President Cyril Ramaphosa says Omicron seems to be the dominant COVID strain in most of the country’s nine provinces.

Al Jazeera

Effective risk management strategy prevented severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission in three private hospitals in Hong Kong throughout the pandemic | Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology | Cambridge Core

Cambridge University Press & Assessment

Analysis | The obvious problem with blaming coronavirus deaths on Joe Biden

The Washington Post

Germany taps epidemiologist as health minister – DW – 12/06/2021

During the COVID pandemic, epidemiologist and eccentric Karl Lauterbach became known as a voice of reason for some, and an infuriating lockdown supporter for others. Now he will be Germany's new health minister.

Coronavirus Vaccination Reversal Fiends Love This Wacky ‘Treatment’

A bizarre “protocol” popular among conspiracy theorists and people who feel forced into getting safe shots is concerning experts—and making money for its mastermind.

The Daily Beast

With omicron out there, here's how to decide if you should attend that holiday party, according to Dr. Fauci

Is it safe to go to a holiday party while Covid's omicron variant is circulating? Here's what White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci recommends.

CNBC

Moderna's chief medical officer talks omicron variant

ABC News

South Africa's Biovac to start making Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in early 2022 - exec

Reuters

The Pandemic Has Your Blood Pressure Rising? You’re Not Alone. (Published 2021)

The New York Times

A scientist behind the AstraZeneca vaccine is warning the next pandemic may be worse

Sarah Gilbert helped develop the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. She says without more spending to fight emerging viral threats, the next pandemic could be more contagious and more lethal.

NPR

COVID: How Europe's prisons have fared in the pandemic – DW – 12/06/2021

Prisons are breeding grounds for viruses, yet carceral administrations have revealed little about COVID-19 cases, deaths and vaccinations in Europe's prisons. Data from 32 countries show the pandemic's impact on prisons.

U.S. coronavirus cases approach 50 million as New York City imposes new vaccine mandate

The Washington Post

Malaria fight disrupted by COVID pandemic, says UN health agency

The UN health agency cited a total of 241 million cases of the disease in 2020, up 14 million from the year before.

Al Jazeera

Face masks make a difference

Learn how staff members, patients and families have been wearing masks correctly for decades to protect children and prevent infection.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Reintroducing masks in England may be met with resistance – here’s how the government can overcome it

Inconsistent rules, those in charge setting a poor example, and feeling rebellious are all factors that may prevent people from wearing a mask.

The Conversation

COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 6 December

The World Economic Forum

COVID-19: Students face $17 trillion loss in lifetime earnings

School closures during the COVID-19 pandemic could result in a staggering $17 trillion in lost lifetime earnings for today’s students, according to a UN-backed report issued on Monday.

UN News

Nebraska legend Rodgers in hospital with COVID

Johnny Rodgers, the 1972 Heisman Trophy winner and a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, is in the hospital with COVID-19. He was first hospitalized Thanksgiving morning with the virus.

ESPN

Six weeks after reopening, Bali wonders where the tourists are

Indonesian island’s unique culture and natural beauty not enough to overcome stress and worry of travel during COVID.

Al Jazeera

As covid persists, nurses are leaving staff jobs — and tripling their salaries as travelers

The Washington Post

Protesters demonstrate against masks, vaccine mandates in LA public schools - Daily Bruin

More than 60 people gathered outside the Wilshire Federal Building on Sunday to protest masking and vaccine requirements related to the COVID-19 pandemic in Los Angeles public schools.

Daily Bruin

Supporting TB patients during the COVID-19 pandemic in PNG

Tuberculosis (TB) is a leading cause of death in Papua new Guinea (PNG). •A successful community-based TB treatment program funded by the World Bank is effectively supporting communities across the National Capital District to help eradicate this deadly disease.

World Bank