It’s official now according to everyone: we are in a pandemic. The President has added the Schengen Area within the European Union to the existing travel restrictions from China, Italy and Iran. Organizations are canceling conferences, tournaments and group events that were schedule over the next couple of months. Social distancing is starting to be a thing. Tele-video is becoming a thing from healthcare systems, schools, and anyone else with the capability. The person manning the cash register at the pharmacy today was wearing nitrile gloves. I have nitrile gloves in the car truck for wearing when pumping gas.

Nursing home visits are suspended for the time being — staff only. The elderly are encouraged to self-segregate from younger family members (who could be vectors) in addition to social distancing amongst themselves. Testing is expanding rapidly in the US (some argue its a critical “catch up” exercise).

Service entities, such as restaurants, are taking extra steps to ensure that at least someone will patronize their establishment. Here is an email sent out by the Smoke House restaurant located next to movie studios in Burbank, CA:

All of us here at The Smoke House care deeply about the health and safety of our guests and employees. We are always  in accordance with CDC and LA County Health department requirements and are closely monitoring the Coronavirus (COVID-19) information they provide.   Here are some additional steps The Smoke House is taking to protect our guests so you can continue to visit us with confidence: Commonly used surfaces such as door handles, check presenters, and menus are being disinfected throughout the day, all day. Bussers are wearing plastic gloves and sanitizing tables between customer use, using alcohol-based sanitizers and bleach products to reduce any possibility of accidental community spread. Employees are being reminded about strict hand washing protocols, especially after contact with commonly used surfaces. The Smoke House maintains a paid sick leave policy for all our employees.  Any employees who report symptoms is given the time off and advised to seek medical attention if appropriate. We are communicating with the staff daily to make sure they have all the tools and training they need to keep up a vigilant approach to clean surfaces. Our mission at The Smoke House is to create an atmosphere that can be a tonic during times of turbulence. It is a time to stay present, stay positive, and to share our humanity with each person we encounter now more than ever.  We have never been more mindful and grateful for the community of people we’ve been fortunate to serve over the years.

All of this is not because of ~1,600 confirmed cases and 40 deaths in this country. It is because of the over 21,ooo cases and ~1,700 deaths in the European Union that indicates something evil this way comes.

[Note: Links to all my COVID-19 posts can be found here.]

Here is the latest Worldometer.com news update for March 11 & 12:

March 12 (GMT):

 

• United States:
  Coronavirus outbreak “could easily be a a six-month crisis.” said New York Mayor Bill de Blasio as he declared a state of emergency in the city on Thursday, adding that New Yorkers should expect “major changes” from day-to-day because there’s a pattern of “extraordinary new information on what now feels like an hourly basis” With at least 328 total cases in New York, of which more than 100 added today, the number of cases in the city is projected to rise to 1,000 by next week, de Blasio said [source]
• Virus can remain viable “in aerosols up to 3 hours, up to 4 hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to 2-3 days on plastic and stainless steel” a Princeton study awaiting peer review has found [source]
• 1^stdeath in India: a 76-year old man from Karnataka [source]
• France to close all schools and universities beginning Monday, March 13. Employers urged to let staff work from home [source]
• Israel is closing all schools and university beginning Friday, March 13 [source]
• Greece is closing all the courthouses, theaters, cinemas, gyms, children playgrounds and nightclubs in the country, after having already closed the schools two days ago [source]
• UK – Boris Johnson has addressed the nation today: [source]
  called coronavirus “worst public health crisis for a generation“
  warned “many families are going to lose loved ones before their time“
  UK is 4 weeks behind Italy
  true UK cases likely up to 10,000
  if you have symptoms stay home
  more drastic measures to come
• 2 new deaths in Germany [source] [source]
• 1^st death in Norway, as the country shuts down for 2 weeks [source] [source] [source]
• Turkey has closed all schools for 1 week and universities for 3 weeks. Classes will be conducted online [source]
• 2 new cases in Armenia: they had been in close contact with a previously confirmed case of a woman who had arrived from Italy. They had fever and later tested positive for coronavirus. They now feel well and have no fever [source]
• 2,651 new cases, 189 new deaths, and 213 new recoveries in Italy. Death toll tops 1,000 [source]
• United States: NBA suspended its season indefinitely after a player on the Utah Jazz has tested positive for COVID-19 earlier today [source] Later during the day, a second Utah Jazz player tested positive for coronavirus, as a suspended NBA considers next steps [source]
• United States updates include:
  1^st death in Georgia: a 67-year old year old man who was hospitalized at WellStar Kennestone Hospital. He had underlying medical conditions [source]
  – 1^st case in Maine: a woman who recently returned from an outbreak area [source]
  – 3 new cases in Washington State, for a total of 379
  – 13 new cases in Massachusetts, for a total of 108
  – 11 new cases in Colorado, for a total of 45
  – 6 new cases in New Jersey, for a total of 29
  – 9 in Tennessee, for a total of 18
  – 5 in North Carolina, for a total of 14
  – 3 in Nevada, for a total of 10
  – 4 in Minnesota, for a toal of 9
  – 1 in New Hampshire, for a total of 6
  – 5 in Arkansas, for a total of 6
  – 2 new in Utah, for a total of 5 (2 Utah Jazz players)
  – 1 in Oklahoma, for a total of 3
  – 2 new in Texas, for a total of 25 [source]
  – 6 new in Pennsylvania, for a total of 22 [source]
  – 7 new in Virginia (including a Longwood student), for a total of 18 [source]
  – 1 new in Louisiana, for a total of 14 [source]
  – 3 new in Kansas, for a total of 4 [source]
  – 1 new in New Mexico, for a total of 5 [source]
  – 3 new in Delaware, for a total of 4 [source]
  – at least 5 new cases in North Carolina for a total of 14 [source] [source] [source]
  – 3 in Wisconsin, for a total of 6 [source]
  – at least 112 new in New York State, for a total of 328 in the state [source]
  – 4 in Florida for a total of 35 [source] [source]
  – 13 in California (Riverside County) for a total of 197 cases and 4 deaths [source]
  – 1^st case in Mississippi: a Forrest county adult male who recently traveled to Florida [source]
• 1 new death in Azerbaijan: a 51-year old woman who had been quarantined after returning from Iran [source] 4 new cases [source]
• 31 new deaths and 782 new cases in Spain [source] Total cases surpass 3,000
• Lithuania (3 cases in total) closes all schools for 2 weeks, bans mass events, and recommends to avoid travel to high risk countries (China, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Italy, France, Germany and Spain) [source]. Capital City of Vilnius also closes museums, cinemas, sport clubs, etc. Recommends to organise work from home to all companies. City administration is to provide its services online and via phone only [source]
• US travel ban from Europe (read original document), which does not apply to the UK and Ireland, will go into effect on Friday March 13 (tomorrow) at 23:59 ET (midnight). Americans returning from Europe “will be funneled through 13 different airports,” be subject to screening, and asked “to self-quarantine for 14 days” said Pence [source]
• 2 new deaths and 130 new cases in the UK [source]
• 1 new case in Cyprus: a person who had recently arrived from the UK [source]
• 167 new cases in Sweden, [source] which announced that testing for Covid-19 will ceaseunless you are hospitalized or belong to one of the risk groups. Even if you report corona-like symptoms [source]
• 1 new case in Pakistan: a 31 year-old man who returned from Iran [source]
• 2 new cases in Czech Republic, bringing the total to 96. State of Emergency declared[source]
• 1 new case in Senegal: a Senegalese national who returned to Dakar from Italy [source]
• 1 new case in Estonia [source]
• 111 new cases in the Netherlands [source]
• 1 new case in the Republic of Moldova: a young man who recently returned from Italy[source]
• 85 new cases in Belgium [source]
• Republic of Ireland announces that all schools will be closed for 17 days starting today. Indoor gatherings of more than 100 people and outdoor gatherings of more than 500 should be canceled [source]
• 1 new case in Sri Lanka (second in the country): a 44-year-old man shared a hotel room in Dambulla with the first confirmed case [source]
• At least 3 Albanians have died in Italy so far, including a 55-year-old who had diabetes, according to reports [source]
• 1 new case in Palestine: a 20 year-old woman in Bethlehem [source]
• 11 new cases in the UAE: 2 Italians, 2 Filipinos, 1 Montenegrin, Canadian, German, Pakistani, Emirati, Russian and British citizen [source]
• 1^st death in Austria: a 69 year-old man in Vienna [source] 115 new cases, total over 300 [source]
  Schools will be closed, over 1 million students will stay at home until at least April 12. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz appealed that grandparents should not take care of the children, so that the elderly be protected against the coronavirus. Children are “much less at risk when it comes to illnesses, but at the same time we know that children are strong multipliers,” said Health Minister Anschober [source]
• 18 new cases in Iceland [source]
• 8 new cases in Albania: all have connections with Italy [source]
• 3 new cases in Armenia: a 51 year-old Italian man and 45 and 27 year-old Armenians that returned from Italy [source]
• 6 new cases in Slovakia, declares ‘state of emergency’ [source]
• 32 new cases in Slovenia: [source] [source]
  – the government will declare an epidemic
  – all educational institutions will close
  – those forced to stay at home will be paid 80 percent of their salary
• 1^st death and 20 new cases in Poland: a 57 year-old woman dies [source] [source]
• 75 deaths, 1,075 new cases, and 317 new recoveries in Iran [source]
• Over 100 new cases in Denmark [source]
• 3 new cases in the Philippines [source]
• 12 new cases in Luxembourg: local transmission was noted for 2 cases [source]
• 2 deaths in Lebanon: one of the victims a 55 year-old teacher [source]
• 1 new case in the Channel Islands (Jersey): a person returning from north-west Italy[source]
• 4 new cases in Bosnia and Herzegovina: 2 of the cases are a man and a woman returned from skiing in Austria [source]
• 1 new case in Serbia [source]
• 1 new case in Taiwan: a woman in her 40s who traveled to Ireland and Belgium [source]
• 4 new cases in South Africa: 38 year-old male living in Turkey and visiting family, a 27 year-old female who traveled to the United States, a 43 year-old male who traveled to New York via Dubai, a 32 year-old male who came in contact with a Chinese businessman [source]
• 8 new cases in Kuwait: cases connected by travel to Azerbaijan and Iran [source]
• 1^st death and 4 new cases in Algeria: infected by a visiting relative from France[source]
•  56 new cases in Austria [source]
• 1^st death in Greece: a 66 year-old citizen [source]
• 3 new cases in Israel [source]
• 28 new cases in Australia, including actor Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson [source]
• 7 new cases in Norway: 2 cases related to outbreaks abroad [source]
• new cases in Peru [source]
• 114 new cases and 6 new deaths in South Korea [source]
• 15 new cases, 11 new deaths (10 in Hubei) and 1,318 new discharges occurred in China on March 11, as reported by the National Health Commission (NHC) of China [source]

March 11:

WHO press briefing:

“PANDEMIC”

But not the time for countries to move to mitigation
Must still try to suppress transmission, continue with containment efforts
_____________

All Travel from Europe to the United States suspended for 30 Days

Ban will not apply to the UK

Trump had said earlier: “I am fully prepared to use the full power of the Federal Government to deal with our current challenge of the CoronaVirus!” [source]

Pence: “All the insurance companies […] have agreed to waive all copays on coronavirus testing, and extend coverage for coronavirus treatment in all of their benefit plans,”

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases:

“Things will get worse.” How much worse it will get depends on 2 things, he said:

1. containing the influx of infected people coming from other countries

2. containing local outbreaks within the U.S.

When pressed by lawmakers for an estimate of eventual fatalities in the U.S., Fauci said it will be “totally dependent upon how we respond to it.”

“I can’t give you a number,” he said. “I can’t give you a realistic number until we put into the factor of how we respond. If we’re complacent and don’t do really aggressive containment and mitigation, the number could go way up and be involved in many, many millions.”

[source]

____________

ITALY SHUTS DOWN

Italy closes all commercial activities, offices, cafes, shops

Only transportation, pharmacies, groceries will remain open

[source]

• UK: Boris Johnson calls emergency meeting to rule on closing schools and telling everyone to work from home [source]
• 73 new cases in the UK: biggest daily rise [source] NHS to ramp up testing capacity from 1,500 to 8,000 tests per day [source]
• 2 new deaths in the UK [source]
• Germany: Merkel warns that up to 70% of Germany’s population could contract the coronavirus, which would amount to 58 million people (population of 83.7 million people) [source] [Germany Population]
• 343 new cases and 1 new death in Germany [source]
• 2,313 new cases and 196 new deaths in Italy. About 600 new cases can be ascribed to the previous day’s delay in reporting [source]
• 582 new cases and 19 new deaths in Spain [source]
• 497 new cases and 15 new deaths in France [source]
• 252 new cases in Denmark:
  Government closes all schools and universities
  All public employees will be sent home beginning on March 13 [source]
• Hungary declares State of Emergency: [source]
  – closes all Universities
  – bans indoor events for more than 100 people
  – bans outdoor events for more than 500 people
  – stops flights, trains and buses from Slovenia and Austria
  – tightens control of the border with Croatia
  – requires quarantine for Hungarian citizens returning from Italy, China, South Korea and Iran
• 1^st death and 9 new cases in Ireland [source]
• 1^st case in Ivory Coast: a 45-year old man in Abidjan [source]
• 1^st death in Ireland: a woman in the east of the country [source]
• 1^st death in Bulgaria: a 66-year old woman [source]
• 4 new cases in Israel including a man in his 60s from central Israel whose contagion source is unknown [source]
• New cases in Canada include:
  2 in Ontario: a radiation oncologist in Hamilton who had returned from a trip to Hawaii [source], and a man in his 50s [source]
  2 in Montreal, raising the total to 7 confirmed in Quebec [source]
  
• 10 new cases in Greece, raising the total to 99, with at least 2 patients in intensive care[source]
• 238 new cases in Qatar (total cases jumps from 24 to 262) [source]
• 1^st death in Sweden: an elderly patient [source]
• 1 new case in Tunisia: a person who had traveled to Egypt [source]
• 4 new cases in Cyprus: 3 men and 1 woman [source]
• 3 new deaths in Belgium: a 90-year-old patient, a 73-year old patient and an 86-year old patient [source] [source] 47 new cases [source]
• 1 new case in Brazil: a 52-year old patient in critical condition hospitalized in the Regional Hospital of Asa Norte [source]
• 5 new cases in Brunei: 3 had attended the same religious gathering in Malaysia with the first confirmed patient, the other 2 had no history of travel [source]
• 5 new cases in Hong Kong, including a Cathay Pacific flight attendant and members of an Egypt tour group [source]
• 1^st case in La Réunion: an 80-year-old man, returning from the United States who transited through Paris [source]
• 6 new cases in Colombia [source]
• 1 new death and 121 new cases in the Netherlands [source]
• 3 new cases in Slovakia [source]
• 9 new cases in Poland, including 3 persons in Cieszyn, 1 of which had potential contacts with schoolchildren (for which a decision was made to close all schools in town), a young man from the province Masovian (Warsaw), and a young woman from Łańcut [source] [source]All schools, as well as museums and cinemas, will close starting on Monday to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said [source]
• 23 new cases in Slovenia [source]
• India: a 76-year-old man suspected to be infected with coronavirus dies in Karnataka ‘s Kalaburagi [source]
• 2 new cases in Latvia: part of a group traveling back from northern Italy [source]
• 12 new cases in Singapore: 8 cases, including 3 Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) servicemen who were in France on duty, were imported. One other case is linked to the private dinner function at the Joy Garden restaurant at Safra Jurong, Singapore’s biggest coronavirus cluster [source]
• 4 new cases in Iceland, all related to international skiing trips [source]
• 3^rd death in Germany [source] and 57 new cases [source], including the first German professional football player to test positive for coronavirus [source]
• 34 new cases in Norway [source]
• 6 new cases in Romania: including a 43-year-old woman doctor, contact of the patientwho was admitted to the Dimitrie Gerota Hospital in Bucharest, and a 42-year-old man from Iasi who returned from Venice, Italy [source]
• 1 new case in Saudi Arabia: an Egyptian man who was passing through King Abdul Aziz Airport in Jeddah on the way to Cairo from New York [source]
• 18 new cases in Portugal, 83 people awaiting laboratory results and 471 suspected cases [source]
• 19 new cases in Finland [source]
• 1^st death in Albania: a 73 year-old woman from Durres who had returned from Italy. Reports say she was suffering from severe health complications [source]
• 122 new cases in Sweden [source]
• 958 new cases, 63 new deaths and 228 new recoveries in Iran. Total cases reach 9,000 [source]
• 1 new case in Croatia: a young male hairdresser who returned from Munich, Germany [source]
• 2 new cases in Morocco: a wife and son of a previously confirmed case [source]
• 2 new cases in Albania [source]
• 1 new case in Malta: a man who contracted the infection while on holiday in Italy [source]
• 7 new cases in Indonesia: all imported [source]
• 7 new cases in Serbia [source]
• 79 new cases in Bahrain, including 77 Bahrain citizens evacuated from Iran (out of the 165 total evacuees) [source]
• 16 new cases in the Philippines [source]
• 4 new case in Vietnam:
  – a 64-year old woman, 37-year old woman, and 28-year old man, contacts of a previous case [source]
  – a 29-year old woman who had direct contact with 2 British nationals at a supermarket[source]
• 1 new death in Lebanon: a 55-year-old man who was infected from one of his students coming from abroad. Reports note that he was not suffering from any pre-existing condition, but “his immune system was weak” and he had transmitted the infection to his wife and 2 children [source]
• 24 new cases in Austria [source]
• 6 new cases in South Africa: a 33 year old woman who returned from a trip to Italy, a 34 and 33 year-old couple who traveled to Germany, a 57 year-old man who traveled to Austria and Italy, a 40 year old man who traveled to Portugal, and a 36 year old man who traveled to multiple countries including Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Turkey [source]
• First 2 cases in Honduras [source]
  – a 42-year-old Honduran pregnant woman who entered the country asymptomatically on March 4 on a flight from Spain. At this time she is hospitalized, clinically stable
  – a 37-year-old Honduran who entered the country on March 5 on a flight from Switzerland. The patient has a clinical picture of mild disease and has remained in home self-isolation, with medical surveillance since entering the country
• 1 new case in Israel, bringing the total to 76 [source] [source]
  – Mass events canceled, no gatherings over 2,000 people
  – Police will help catch Israelis who break quarantine
  – Hundreds of schoolchildren quarantined
  – Law enforcement will monitor Israelis returning from abroad
  – 25 diagnosed with coronavirus on Tuesday, including Israeli returning from U.S.
• 3 new cases in Kuwait [source]
• 2 new cases in the Maldives [source]
• 1 new death in Indonesia: a 53-year-old woman with underlying health conditions
• 6 new cases in Thailand [source]
• 1 new case in Mexico: a 47-year-old man who arrived from a trip from Italy [source]
• New cases in Australia include:
  – 3 new cases in Queensland: a 42-year-old female partner of a 38-year-old woman who tested positive and recently travelled from London through Dubai, as well as a 22-year-old man who attended a nightclub for multiple times over the weekend. Queensland Health is asking anyone who attended the CBD nightclub in Brisbane between 6pm last Friday and 11pm on Monday to contact 13 HEALTH if they become unwell [source]
  – 2 new cases in South Australia: men in their 60s and 70s who traveled abroad and will most likely be taken to the Royal Adelaide
  – 4 new cases in New South Wales: 3 women in their 20s and 30s who returned from Italytogether and 1 resident of a nursing facility in his 70s [source]
  
• 1 new case in Taiwan: a woman in her 30s who had traveled to the UK [source]
• 1 new case in Sri Lanka: a 52-year old Sri Lankan tour guide who had worked with a group of Italian tourists [source]
• United States new cases include:
  – 1 new case in Virginia [source]
  – 3 new cases in Louisiana [source]
  – 5 new cases in Georgia [source]
  – 8 new cases in Florida [source]
  – First 2 cases in Michigan (Oakland and Wayne counties), Michigan: Gov. Whitmer declared a state of emergency [source]
• 242 new cases in South Korea [source]
• 24 new cases, 22 new deaths (all in Hubei) and 1,578 new discharges occurred in China on March 10, as reported by the National Health Commission (NHC) of China [source]
• 7 new cases, including 1 death, in Panama [source]
• 3 new cases in Paraguay [source]