Monday Morning News & Notes
WHO pleas fall on deaf ears. Long-COVID impacts mount.
🦠Pandemic🦠
🌍 🦠
Global COVID numbers continued to plunge, according to the World Health Organizations’ latest pandemic snapshot. In the 28-day period e ding March 5, there were nearly 4.5 million new infections (-58%) and 32,000 more lives lost (-65%).
“Current trends in reported COVID cases are underestimates of the true number of global infections and reinfections. This is partly due to the reductions in testing and delays in reporting in many countries.”
COVID indicators dropped in five of the six WHO global health regions. But, In Europe, the number of confirmed infections rose (+12%), and in the Eastern Mediterranean, pandemic fatalities also increased (+18%).
Looking at the individual countries, the United States continues to have the most new infections, 1,027,596 (-23%), and the highest number of coronavirus deaths, 10,856 (-29%), of any nation on earth. Japan remains a COVID concern with 539,251 new infections (-78%) and 3,432 more deaths (-65%). China also remains a pandemic hot spot with 454,575 new virus cases (-87%) and another 2,634 fatalities (-94%).
In Europe, Germany is seeing an increasing number of new infections, with 379,505 (+23%), while the United Kingdom suffered another 2,103 coronavirus deaths (-37%).
On the variant front, the WHO says its ability to monitor pandemic developments and the spread of different variants continues to erode. Over the last 28-day reporting period, it says there were just 59,294 sequenced positive tests submitted. Of those, recombinant strains (XBB) were dominant, accounting for 44.1% of all sequenced positive test results. The XBB.1.5 variant was the most active of the recombinant strains. The global health agency notes XBB strains have increased by 25% in the last four weeks.
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The World Health Organization continues to plead with countries to not pretend the pandemic is over when it absolutely is not. WHO COVID Technical Lead Maria Van Kerkhove says as we go into the fourth year of the coronavirus pandemic, there has been much improvement, but we are not out of the woods yet.
“I know the world wants so desperately for the COVID pandemic to be over. I do too. But we aren’t done yet, and this virus isn’t done with us yet. It is here to stay, and we can do more to protect everyone everywhere. People are dying from COVID every day, people are suffering from long-COVID, health systems are strained, and the workforce is exhausted.”
Kerkhove says medications to treat infections are also still not available in far too many places. Even worse, COVID vaccination rates are too low among populations who are at the highest risk of severe infections in every country around the world but especially in low and middle-income countries.
She credits the hard work of healthcare workers, the use of masks, ventilation of indoor spaces, and vaccines for putting the world in a much better situation than it was a few years ago.
“We can, and I believe we will end the COVID emergency this year. This doesn’t mean the fight is over. We need to remain vigilant because we are all still at risk because COVID impacts are still high. The virus continues to evolve and has not settled into a predictable nor seasonal pattern. And because we still have approx 10,000 deaths a week.”
On that note, she again urged governments not to dismantle COVID surveillance systems even though those pleas continue to fall on deaf ears.
“We have to maintain surveillance, sequencing, and sharing data to track COVID known Omicron variants and detect new ones. Governments need to be vigilant. Do not let down your guard. Do not dismantle systems. Strengthen systems to be agile. Maintain and sustain what you’ve enhanced for pandemic surveillance, clinical care, testing, sequencing, vaccination etc. Because of work we have done, the systems that have been enhanced during the pandemic are also critical for influenza, RS virus, Ebola, Marburg, Mpox, other known pathogens, and the next disease to come.”
With the coronavirus circulating more or less unchecked now, Kerkhove says it is up to people to take responsibility to reduce the risk of infection themselves. This includes getting vaccinated, wearing a mask, making sure indoor spaces are ventilated, and staying home when you are sick or symptomatic.
🇪🇺🦠
The pandemic picture in the European Union hasn’t changed much from week to week. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control says there was no increase among any of the overall pandemic indicators last week.
At the individual country level, fewer countries reported increasing infection trends last week compared to the week before. The ECDC says this suggests an overall improvement in the pandemic situation across Europe.
Among the 23 countries reporting COVID deaths, there were another 765 virus-related fatalities last week.
That said, infection numbers among vulnerable seniors over 65 rose in 10 of the 25 countries reporting age-related data. They include Austria, Belgium, Norway, Hungary, and the Netherlands. Seven of the ten countries have seen infections rise among seniors for at least four straight weeks.
Of the 22 countries reporting hospitalization numbers, eight saw increases in either General admissions or intensive care capacity. They include Latvia, Lithuania, and the Netherlands.
There were no increases in overall pandemic deaths in any country in Europe last week. But, six of the 21 countries reporting age-specific data saw a rise in COVID deaths among seniors over 65.
The ECDC notes that countries, where the XBB.1.5 variant is dominant, are also the ones reporting increasing pandemic numbers.
The EU is becoming more blind to pandemic developments. Only eight European countries, down from ten in previous weeks, are still testing and sequencing positive results in numbers high enough to derive any useful data. Of those, 38.6% of cases came back as the XBB.1.5 variant. 23.7% were confirmed to be BQ.1 infections. And in 21.7% of cases, the BA.2.75 variant was identified.
Across the EU and the greater European Economic Area, uptake for a second COVID vaccine booster dose remains pitifully low. Just 17.3% of adults over 18 have a 2nd booster dose. Among vulnerable seniors over 60, the booster dose rate is 35.5%. Across the entire European population, a mere 14.2% had a fifth dose.
🇩🇰
Another sign of the times as Denmark ends the bulk of its vaccination efforts and winds down its once world-leading COVID testing regime. Region Sjælland held a job fair to help employees who have been working in closed vaccination centers and soon-to-be-closed testing centers find new jobs.
An estimated 200 people attended the job fair, with representatives from educational institutes, hospitals, and the municipality pitching them on career opportunities.
Regional Chair Heino Knudsen:
“Now a chapter closes for the skilled employees who have helped us through the COVID pandemic. They have made a great effort. I hope that the time spent vaccinating and testing people has given them the desire to continue in the healthcare system and that the job fair can contribute to opening a new chapter. The door is open at Region Zealand.”
Denmark ended the bulk of its flu and COVID vaccination efforts on March 1, although people needing a first or second dose can still get vaccinated. The country’s once-vaunted public PCR testing system will shut down at the end of the month. Region Sjælland says it will close its last five testing centers on March 31.
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Overall infection trends over the last seven days in Denmark have remained more or less in line with recent weeks. The age group registering the most confirmed infections continues to be those 40 to 64 years old. But, numbers have bumped up a little with more infections week over week among infants under 2, those 20 to 39 years old, and seniors over 65.
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Seniors over 65 made up 73% of all infection-related hospitalizations over the last week. That increases to 88% if you add in the 40 to 64-year-old age group. Numerically, hospitalizations have increased week to week for seniors in both the 65 to 79 age group (+32) and those over 80 (+23).
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The COVID pandemic hit the most socially vulnerable in Denmark and elsewhere particularly hard. During pandemic lockdowns, many avenues to help those battling drug, alcohol, homelessness, and other social challenges were vastly reduced or closed outright.
But every adversity and challenge carries with it the seed for new ideas and innovations. Volunteer organizations working with socially vulnerable citizens in Denmark were forced to think outside the box and come up with new methods during the pandemic. Now that the country has returned to near-normal many of those initiatives have proven to have worked so well that they should remain in place in the future, pandemic or no pandemic. That is the essence of a new report from the Council for the Socially Vulnerable.
Council Chair Kira West:
“The closure of shelters and other social services hit many socially vulnerable people hard. We must avoid that the next time we face a crisis. But the pandemic also paved the way for new initiatives and flexible forms of collaboration across sectors, and we must learn from that. Both so that we are better prepared the next time a crisis hits, but also because the learned experience can also be used outside of times of crisis.”
The report compiled by a group of 27 experts in the social sector contains a number of recommendations. They include creating a social emergency plan. This would function as a roadmap to deal with social issues and vulnerable populations alongside any current crisis. Built into the emergency plan would be flexibility to adapt to whatever crisis unfolds.
One of the pandemic adjustments for social workers and volunteers was to get out and knock on doors, going to where the people in need are. This more proactive approach reaped benefits and should continue.
“It turned out that there were lonely people who were contacted in this way. So it is quite obvious to keep making outreach social efforts.”
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People in Denmark are buying a lot less hand sanitizer as life returns to near normal and the strategy of the day is to pretend the pandemic is over. The supermarket chains of Coop and the Salling Group won’t disclose actual sales numbers but have told DR that hand sanitizer sales have plummeted.
Professor Michael Bang Petersen, who leads the HOPE project, which monitored social trust in the Danish population during the pandemic says this is a sign that people are being people.
“It is an example of how quickly we forget. It shows how much it takes before we change our habits. Two years of hand sanitizer was clearly not enough.”
Recently, Danish health experts revealed that in hindsight they relied too much on things like hand sanitizer instead of what might be a more effective way to battle infection spread, air filtration.
🇺🇸 🦠
Labour market numbers in the United States may provide a glimpse into how long-COVID impacts the economy. In reverse of historical trends, women with disabilities have surpassed their male counterparts in the U.S. during the pandemic.
Alongside the emergence of long-COVID as a serious health issue, the number of women claiming disability has surged. Last June, they surpassed the number of men in monthly labour force figures.
The Brookings Institute has been tracking the development and says it doesn’t come as a surprise. Senior Fellow Katie Bach says there is a direct link to long-COVID.
“We have a pandemic that is resulting in a long-term infection associated with a chronic illness that we know disproportionately impacts women. And at the same time, the percentage of disabled people who are women is increasing; the two are probably related.”
Labour market researchers estimate that coronavirus infections may have reduced the number of people in the U.S. workforce by 500,000 to one-million workers when factoring in those who worked reduced hours or left entirely.
It isn’t just labour force numbers either; the U.S. Census Bureau found that 65% of the 11.2 million people who reported long-COVID symptoms impacting their ability to do day-to-day activities were women.
In the United States, long-COVID has been recognized as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act since July 2021.
🇨🇦
COVID infections continue to weigh heavily on hospital resources across Canada as infection-related admissions are second only to giving birth for the most common reason for hospitalization. This is according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information. This is a big jump from 2020/2021, when a COVID infection was the 7th most common reason to be admitted to the hospital. In terms of the actual number of infection-related hospitalizations, they shot up from 47,715 to 77,344 year over year.
It says while the average length of stay in a hospital for giving birth is 2.1 days, people battling coronavirus infections average 10.1 days in the hospital.
Overall, the institute says there were 2.9 million acute inpatient hospitalizations in Canada in 2021/2022, an increase from 2.7 million in 2020/2021.
Of concern, the agency crunched the numbers and found that in the second year of the pandemic, there was a surge in the number of children being hospitalized for COVID and other infections. Among children under the age of four, a coronavirus infection was the sixth most common reason for being hospitalized with a total of 2,315 hospitalizations among the age group, that represents a yearly increase of 600%. The previous year saw only 325 hospitalizations among children due to coronavirus infection.
In addition to a spike in COVID-related hospitalizations, the CIHI found that hospital admissions for a range of other respiratory infections also surged as pandemic restrictions were being eased.
Acute and Ambulatory Care Information Services Director Juliana Wu:
“This uptick in hospitalizations for COVID, respiratory infections, and other viral illnesses seen among the youngest Canadians in the second year of the pandemic is concerning both for the health of our youngest and most vulnerable and for the additional strain placed on health systems and health care workers that were already stretched thin.”
⚡️Energy Crisis⚡️
🇪🇺
While homeowners are benefiting from energy prices that have plummeted from last summer’s punishing heights, the news is anything but good for Europe’s energy-intensive industrial sector. Another European aluminum smelter is closing down. The plant in Rheinwork, Germany, is another victim of the energy crisis that is now hampering supplies of critical raw materials in Europe.
The shutdown comes as the European Union works on a plan to become more self-reliant by producing at least 40% of its annual consumption of strategy raw materials within Europe by 2030.
It takes a lot of energy to produce aluminum, and since the energy crisis has sunk its teeth in, European production capacity has fallen by more than half. This latest smelter closure joins others, including smelters in Spain and Slovakia, that have also shut down entirely due to huge energy crisis-related cost increases.
🇸🇪
As inflation drives food prices in Sweden to record highs, smaller stores are taking it on the chin. The Swedish Food Retailers Association says that smaller shops are seeing less business as people move to larger grocery stores selling more quantity at lower prices. The association says smaller grocery stores and other shops operate on much narrower margins, and the loss of business is especially challenging.
🇫🇷
More woes for France’s nuclear power plants. The country’s nuclear safety watchdog, ASN, has ordered that inspections are required for some 200 pipe weldings across the country’s 56 nuclear power plants. This is due to the discovery of cracks in pipes at the Penly 1, Penly 2, and Cattenom reactors.
French energy utility, EDF, attributed the cracks to “thermal fatigue,” which happens when hot and cold water meet inside the steel pipes.
Meanwhile, according to Reuters, energy output at the problem-plagued nuclear power plants managed to hit the lowest level in the last 34 years.
🇺🇦/ 🇷🇺 War
🇩🇰 🇩🇪 🇳🇱/ 🇺🇦
The first refurbished Leopard tanks promised by Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands will begin to arrive in Ukraine at the beginning of May. That is according to acting Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen, who told Ritzau that he paid a visit on Friday to the company, Flensburger Fahrzeugbau Gesellschaft, refurbishing the Leopard 1 A5 tanks.
“The German company is working as quickly as it can. We will see that this delivery will extend over several months and will only be finally completed when we are well into the autumn.”
At the beginning of February, the three countries announced the plan to get older Leopard 1 A5 tanks that had been retired and put into storage back into combat shape and get them to Ukraine. The three countries pledged to provide almost 200 tanks, with the first 25 initially set to arrive in Ukraine this summer. So it looks like the work is ahead of schedule. The package also includes training for Ukrainian troops, logistical support, spare parts, and ammunition for the tanks.
🇩🇰
As the war rages on in Ukraine for a 2nd straight year, Denmark is reassessing whether to buy more new F-35 fighter jets. The Danish Armed Forces hit pause last year on a plan to begin phasing out its fleet of aging F-16 fighter jets after Russia invaded Ukraine. With a starkly different security picture in Europe, Acting Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen told DR that he is considering whether more F-35s need to be ordered. Denmark has 27 fighters currently on order, with the first jets due to arrive this fall.
“There was a completely different security policy situation when the decision was taken, so yes, we will start defense negotiations in the coming months, and here we will discuss the number of combat aircraft. I am open to discussing whether we should prioritize having more.”
Poulsen adds that with a suddenly more aggressive Russia, his wish list for the military is quite extensive.
“There is a lot on my wish list. The important thing for us is to make a defense settlement with a ten-year horizon. We are not going to run out of flights overnight. Now we are getting this very advanced aircraft that will solve many tasks nationally and internationally. Then we can subsequently consider whether we need a strengthened capacity. Right now, I think the number is great.
Another wrinkle is that Denmark is just one of a number of countries waiting for F-35s from Lockheed Martin, so even if more planes are ordered, the waiting list isn’t getting any shorter.
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Danish troops, equipment, and armoured vehicles have begun arriving back in Denmark after serving a tour of duty shoring up NATO’s eastern flank. The first shipment arrived in Fredericia harbour on Saturday. An area of the harbour was temporarily restricted as the military gear was unloaded. But as you read this, access restrictions should be lifted, and harbour traffic in Fredericia should be back to normal.
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However, a new off-limits area came into force early this morning in Køge harbour as another boatload of Danish military equipment arrived to be unloaded. Sjælland police say the temporary military area will be lifted by Tuesday night at 7 pm. Until then, access will be restricted, and soldiers will guard the area.
A map of the temporarily restricted area is below.
🇳🇴 🇺🇸 🇺🇦
During a weekend visit to Ukraine, Norwegian Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram announced that Norway, in collaboration with the United States, would donate more air defense systems to Ukrainian forces.
“Norway will donate NASAMS to Ukraine. Ukraine has a strong need for more air defense, and Norway will contribute what we can.”
Gram says two NASAMS surface-to-air missile systems will be headed to Ukraine. He says the air defense systems will significantly improve Ukraine’s ability to defend against relentless Russian missile attacks. The Norwegian part of the donation will be six launch pads, two fire control systems, and training Ukrainian troops to use the missile defense platforms.
“Norway has previously contributed to an American donation of NASAMS with material and training. The donation has been greatly appreciated and has had a very good effect. Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure show the need to strengthen air defense in Ukraine.”
During his visit, Gram saw firsthand the destruction caused by Russian missile attacks on energy infrastructure and civilian targets.
“The war has had enormous consequences. Tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians have been killed. Millions of people have had to flee. Large parts of Ukraine have been reduced to rubble. The devastation is unimaginable. Seeing this with your own eyes makes a deep impression.”
🇵🇱/ 🇷🇺
Poland has undertaken an effort to fortify its now-closed border crossings into Russia. Last week, the work moved to the border crossings into the Kaliningrad enclave, a section of Russia sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania.
As you can see, Poland is not messing around as it installs anti-tank obstacles and other fortifications.
🇫🇮 🇺🇸/ 🇷🇺
The United States took a page from the Russian playbook. It flew a B-52 bomber over the Gulf of Finland this weekend just outside Russia’s air space. This is a tactic Russia has been using for years.
Director of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs Mike Aaltola took to Twitter to describe the bomber’s flight over the Gulf of Finland as “a clear message” to Russia.
“The Gulf of Finland is one of Europe's most strategically important straits, [and one] where Russia has increased its activities, for instance, on Suursaari. This is how de facto allies are taken care of, and a counter-deterrent message is sent. Russia has increased its provocative activities from Alaska to the Arctic. This is counter-signaling."
Finland has applied to join NATO, and the United States joined several other countries, including Finland’s Nordic neighbours, in providing security guarantees in case Russia is tempted to attack before the NATO ascension process is complete.
🇫🇮/ 🇺🇦
A comment by Finland’s Prime Minister as she visited Ukraine over the weekend has caused a political stir back home. Responding to a reporter’s question, Sanna Marin said Finland should consider donating fighter jets to Ukraine.
“There will certainly be a discussion about fighter jets. Various countries are weighing their own abilities to deliver this kind of military support. I think this could also be discussed in Finland. We know that we have made a decision about new fighter jets. We know the timetable for when we will receive new jets in Finland, and I think we can also have discussions in regard to the Hornets, whether it would be possible to hand [the jets] over to Ukraine, but no decisions have been made. The discussions are in the very early stages.”
It seems the discussions are in such early stages no one back in Finland knew they were happening. Finnish News Agency STT said Finnish President Sauli Niinistö was caught flat-footed. He said there "has been no discussion with anyone" about handing over Hornet fighters to Ukraine.
Another media outlet, Helsingin Sanomat, quoted Air Force Commander, Major General Juha-Pekka Keränen and the Deputy Manager of Finnish Defence Forces Logistics Command Juha-Matti Ylitalo, who also both denied any such discussions were taking place.
Another problem, according to Yle, is that Finland won’t begin swapping out its aging fleet of Hornet fighter jets for new F-35s until 2025. Even then, it says, the Hornets may have reached the end of their useful lives by then and will likely be used as spare parts after being decommissioned.
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€29 million will be donated by Finland to Ukraine for humanitarian aid and help in rebuilding. The Finnish Foreign Affairs Ministry says people suffering from Russia’s relentless bombardments need food, shelter, and medication, especially impacted children. The funds will be split between the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund, operated by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the World Food Program, the Red Cross, and the World Bank's Public Expenditures for Administrative Capacity Endurance Project.
The Finnish Foreign Affairs Ministry also announced that the country’s Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority will work with Ukraine “to broaden the expertise of the Ukrainian radiation and nuclear safety authorities.”
🇨🇦/ 🇷🇺
The Canadian government has banned the import of all Russian steel and aluminum products. The import ban is due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as western nations continue to try and force Russia to change course in attempting to cripple it economically.
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland:
“Ukraine can and must win this war. We continue to do everything we can to cut off or limit the revenues used to finance Putin's illegal and barbaric invasion of Ukraine.”
The import ban covers finished and unfinished products, including things like steel pipes and sheets of aluminum.