The long term cost of lock downs

[Anonymous]

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I don't mind the mask mandate. It's a minor inconvenience compared to lockdown restrictions.

[Gaon]

Israel is not returning to normal fast enough. People that are fully vaccinated or green designation should have no restrictions after a specified wait time after their second dose.

[Anonymous]

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[Anonymous]

This is frickin nuts.



Crisis brewing as COVID-19 derails life-saving surgeries at Canadian hospitals

https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/crisis-brewing-as-covid-19-derails-life-saving-surgeries-at-canadian-hospitals-1.5347097?fbclid=IwAR3yj7lXKzFjADsJnIVIAKKleVds1oVPVYMck9My08XUC0dECGw6_JScCJY">https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavir ... Gw6_JScCJY">https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/crisis-brewing-as-covid-19-derails-life-saving-surgeries-at-canadian-hospitals-1.5347097?fbclid=IwAR3yj7lXKzFjADsJnIVIAKKleVds1oVPVYMck9My08XUC0dECGw6_JScCJY



TORONTO -- Many cancer patients have been stuck waiting for life-saving surgeries, according to a new study using Ontario data, confirming worries about the impact of the enormous and growing backlog of procedures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.



And it's not just cancer patients. Doctors are warning that the health care system has yet to return to pre-pandemic surgical rates, let alone clearing the backlog, with over a quarter of a million people in Ontario alone on standby for life saving operations.



The study, published in JAMA, showed a dramatic 60 per cent drop in cancer surgeries when the pandemic began a year ago, as hospitals reallocated resources like beds, ventilators, and medical staff to ensure they were prepared for a sudden influx of COVID-19 cases.



The result? Over 36,000 Ontario cancer patients had their surgeries delayed last spring.



"That's a staggering number there and that's in Ontario alone in a very short period of time," said Dr. Antoine Eskander, a surgical oncologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.



"It's almost impossible to recover from this type of a backlog ... Even if we were to operate on Saturdays and Sundays and into the evenings every day, which we don't have the capacity for, we could not do that even if we wanted to."



Eskander says surgeries have only increased by small increments -- about 6 per cent per week. To increase surgical capacity, it would require not just hospital capacity, but nursing and physician capacity as well. And even then, it would be hard to recover, he says.



"So we're stuck in a situation now where I think it's becoming clear we're going to have to make decisions about surgery and about prioritization of certain types of procedures ... And I'm worried that there will be some patients who won't get surgery for a very long time."



For one single mother, who asked not to be identified, the backlog has meant having her thyroid cancer surgery, originally booked for January after a diagnosis in November, postponed until March.



"Every time I clear my throat -- is it COVID or is that cancer spreading? And that's hard every day," she told CTV National News.



"I often feel my neck, and it's like, oh, there's a lump there. Is that something that's growing or is cancer growing faster than the doctors thought?"



The mental health impact of these delays adds another layer of stress for patients. When her surgery was cancelled, her son was heartbroken, she said, adding that the worry and the delays, combined with the pandemic has affected him in other ways too.



"I know everyday my life's on hold," she said.



Patients advocates say timely surgery for cancer isn't optional -- it's essential.



"When you have a cancer diagnosis, cancer literally cannot wait. It's progressive, it does not sit there and say, OK, we'll wait till COVID is gone and then we'll ramp up. it continues in the body," said Diane Van Keulen, who was diagnosed in March of 2019.



She is at stage four lung cancer, and considers herself "one of the lucky ones", pointing to the other lung cancer patients she knows who are at stage one or two and have had their surgeries cancelled.



"If you're that patient being told your surgery is cancelled, knowing that you could be cured at that stage -- that's not okay. And the psychological stress that incurred on some of my friends was just unbelievable."



A 'TSUNAMI' OF COMPLEX CANCER PATIENTS

Compounding the looming crisis are those who have put off medical attention over fears of catching the virus, and those who have faced delays with routine screenings and biopsies as well. Without a solution to expand capacity, this confluence of circumstances could create a deluge of cases, doctors warn.



"I think the major [issue] is what's called diagnostic delay. So it's delays between when someone has the first symptoms suggesting cancer and when they are diagnosed, or from the time that they would have normally been screened to the time they were diagnosed," said Dr. Tim Hanna, an oncologist with Queen's University's School of Medicine.



"I'm worried that we're missing our chance to catch cancer early, and to treat it early when really, that's the best chance to cure the disease ... If they feel unsafe to visit a practitioner or doctor in person, they should pick up the phone to start. We need to catch up on cancer screening."



He and other doctors are anecdotally seeing more cases of advanced cancer, and more cases that require more complex management.



"It looks like a veritable tsunami of very complex cancer patients heading our way in a very dramatic fashion," said Dr. Gerald Batist, director of the Segal Cancer Centre at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal.



These are major red flags for oncologists who are urging strong public messaging for people to see a doctor if they have health concerns or if they are past due for a standard breast, colorectal, or cervical cancer screening.



"It's very important that the ... population understand that we have learned very well how to make the hospital environment very COVID safe ... and so everyone should be coming for all of their scheduled screening tests," said Batist.



"This is global, this is not Ontario, this is not Quebec, this is not Canada. This is happening all over the world ... we knew this was coming. Everywhere in the world we're seeing a very dramatic decrease in the number of cases that were diagnosed."



There are no official plans to ramp up surgeries for cancer -- or other conditions -- that doctors are aware of. With cases mounting across the country, doctors are demanding a cancer recovery plan.



"It's very alarming to us and we've all been working our hearts out the whole pandemic to just keep our cancer patients safe and keep treating them as best we could," said Batist.



"This is a catastrophe for cancer care because this will have an impact on their survival."

[Anonymous]

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[Anonymous]

In spite of his Yale and Harvard Law School educations, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was a fool in his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, wasn't he? That, at any rate, was the take of the COVID-19 cognoscenti and the woke liberal media crowd just a few months ago.



The Donald Trump-worshipping governor defied the national trend of statewide lockdowns and mask-wearing ordinances. He barred counties from fining people for COVID-19 safety violations. He opened restaurants, bars, beaches and schools.



"Even by Florida Standards, Gov. Ron DeSantis is a COVID-19 Catastrophe," cried a Washington Post headline. On the streets of the Sunshine State, some Democrats wore masks emblazoned with the words "My Governor is an Idiot." Critics predicted that disaster loomed.



Until it never happened. The reputedly reckless approach of Mr. DeSantis is proving to be far less than foolhardy. Florida's per-capita COVID-19 infection and death rates are far down the list of states – not even in the top half – while its economy, which the maverick Governor kept open, is faring far better than that of most states.



Florida's unemployment rate is 5.1 per cent, several points below that of other big states such as California and New York. Floridians have been able to live relatively normal lives, and students have been able to get normal educations.



The country heard President Joe Biden last week saying that he hoped to see all American families reunited by July 4. Mr. DeSantis's rejoinder? "We've been doing that for over a year in Florida."



He was called "DeathSantis" a few months ago. Now he's the toast of the Republican Party. At its big national convention last month in Orlando, where the Governor had home-field advantage, he trounced all comers in a straw poll for who should be the party's 2024 nominee.



In terms of pedigree for a contender, the party could do much worse than this raw-boned righty. At Yale, he was a baseball star like George H.W. Bush. He is a decorated war veteran for his service in Iraq. He's young, 42, and burly in build and temperament. He has experience as a Congressman, he has Mr. Trump in his corner, and unlike the former president, his natural habitat is not a knowledge-free zone.



Even the once highly-critical New York Times ran an article on the weekend putting the Governor and his state in a rather good light. While pointing out that Florida isn't exactly booming – tourism was bound to take a huge hit from the pandemic, and did – the report added that "in a country just coming out of the morose grip of coronavirus lockdowns, Florida feels unmistakably hot."

Not everybody is happy, certainly not the liberally inclined. More than 32,000 Floridians dying from the virus is nothing to boast about. And the Governor has had a big advantage, they say, with the state's climate allowing the population to spend time outdoors, where the virus is more easily dispersed and diluted.



Likely helping his cause was the fact that many Floridians ignored his advice and took precautions anyway. Had Mr. DeSantis not flouted public health measures, far fewer might have died.



What he did, detractors say, was sociopathic, and inspired others. One couple reportedly went to a funeral home to pay their last respects whereupon the barefaced funeral parlour director, following the Governor's lead, chided them for wearing masks.



But Florida is doing better than several other warm-weather states. California has a slightly lower death rate, but the proportion of that state's total population that is senior-aged isn't as high as Florida's.



Unlike New York, where the per-capita death rate is one of the worst in the country, Florida didn't permit hospitals to send COVID-19 patients back to nursing homes. That likely saved a lot of lives.



While in Washington, Mr. DeSantis co-founded the conservative Freedom Caucus. He has come out in favour of allowing people to carry firearms openly. He supported Mr. Trump's bid to overturn last fall's election results. Much of his popularity, he maintains, comes from his quicktongued Trumpian aptitude at what has become one of America's favourite sports: harpooning media elites.



Although the Governor is confident that vaccines will solve the remaining problems, his state isn't out of the woods yet. COVID19 infection numbers have ratcheted up in recent weeks. A dangerous variant is reportedly more prevalent in Florida than it is elsewhere.

But Mr. DeSantis is riding high in the meantime. With his science-defying apostasy in the handling of the pandemic, he's done something that will endear him to Republicans for a long time: He's made the liberal establishment eat crow.

[cc]

Strange here is that while Florida has the most UK variants in the entire US (a concern), our 5 million people province has 25% more of them than Florida which has 21 Million people



Obviously a concern here & mainly UK B117



Ontario is the only province or state that has  more than us

[Anonymous]

Strange here is that while Florida has the most UK variants in the entire US (a concern), our 5 million people province has 25% more of them than Florida which has 21 Million people



Obviously a concern here & mainly UK B117



Ontario is the only province or state that has  more than us

Varients have really spread in Canada.

[cc]

Yes, and replicating rapidly .. We had well over 100  new B117  today & 1300 total



I believe you guys have several also

[Anonymous]

Yes, and replicating rapidly .. We had well over 100  new B117  today & 1300 total



I believe you guys have several also

Two days ago, variants were almost twenty five per cent of the daily total.

[Anonymous]

Another causlaty of continued lockdowns-work ethic.



Businesses Hurt by Labor Shortage Due to Rich Federal Benefits



WASHINGTON—U.S. small businesses have faced an unprecedented economic disruption due to the pandemic and the subsequent government shutdowns. With the economy reopening, many business owners are now hit by another crisis, as they have trouble filling jobs.



Many entrepreneurs can't compete with the unemployment benefits offered by the federal government. Mark Owens, owner of USA Insulation and a trucking company in Indiana, is one of them.



The inability to hire people "has put a burden on our business," Owens said during a virtual roundtable hosted by Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) on March 24. "Because nobody wants to come and work."



His business ran 150 job advertisements from December 2020 through Feb. 15 but only three people showed up for an interview during that time. And their objective, he said, was to provide proof of a job search needed to receive benefits rather than to actually get the job.



Candidates say they want the job but they never show up, Owens said, "because we couldn't compete with the unemployment [benefits.]"



According to him, the inability to hire people has been an "emotional rollercoaster" for many small-business owners.



Recent business surveys show that the majority of small-business owners who are hiring have difficulties finding qualified workers. According to a monthly survey by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), job openings in February reached an all-time record high, with 40 percent of companies saying that they can't fill job openings.



"This is a huge departure from what we saw in the last recession in 2009, where it was roughly 7 percent," Holly Wade, executive director at the NFIB Research Center, said at the roundtable meeting.



The CARES Act enacted in March 2020 provided a $600 weekly benefit on top of regular unemployment insurance benefits. Following the expiration of the supplemental benefit in July 2020, the Trump administration via executive order authorized an extra $300 per week federal payment.



The Biden administration's new $1.9 trillion stimulus plan extended the weekly unemployment benefit at $300 through Sept. 6. In addition, the bill included a provision that made the first $10,200 in unemployment benefits received in 2020 nontaxable for households earning $150,000 or less.



Some economists have argued that the supplemental benefit has discouraged workers from returning to work. According to American Action Forum, a center-right policy institute, 37 percent of workers could make more on unemployment at the $300 level than they would earn by returning to work.



Advocates of the supplemental benefit, however, argue that continued relief is critical, especially for Americans experiencing long-term job losses in the hardest-hit service industries, such as restaurants.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/businesses-hurt-by-labor-shortage-due-to-rich-federal-benefits_3749796.html?utm_source=morningbriefnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mb-2021-03-26">https://www.theepochtimes.com/businesse ... 2021-03-26">https://www.theepochtimes.com/businesses-hurt-by-labor-shortage-due-to-rich-federal-benefits_3749796.html?utm_source=morningbriefnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mb-2021-03-26

[Anonymous]

That's unfortunate for small businesses.

[Anonymous]

DOJ Charges 474 With COVID-Related Fraud in the Past Year



The Department of Justice announced it has charged nearly 500 people with engaging in COVID-19 scams worth hundreds of millions of dollars.



"The Department of Justice (DOJ) has led a historic enforcement initiative to detect and disrupt COVID-19 related fraud schemes," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a news release on Friday, referring to the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus. "The impact of the department's work to date sends a clear and unmistakable message to those who would exploit a national emergency to steal taxpayer-funded resources from vulnerable individuals and small businesses."



The agency charged 474 defendants with engaging in criminally fraudulent schemes and attempted to obtain over $569 million from the federal government as well as unsuspecting victims.



"We are committed to protecting the American people and the integrity of the critical lifelines provided for them by Congress, and we will continue to respond to this challenge," said Garland.



Since Congress passed the $2 trillion CARES Act last year, the agency has investigated claims related to COVID-19-related scams, including ones that bilked the Paycheck Protection Program, the Economic Injury Disaster Loans, and unemployment insurance out of money. Then-Attorney General William Barr instructed federal prosecutors investigate and prosecute fraud claims.



"We will not allow American citizens or the critical benefits programs that have been created to assist them to be preyed upon by those seeking to take advantage of this national emergency," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department's Civil Division in the release. "We are proud to work with our law enforcement partners to hold wrongdoers accountable and to safeguard taxpayer funds."



The DOJ focused on one case in Texas involving an alleged fraudster, Dinesh Sah, who applied for 15 Payment Protection Program loans using 11 different companies before receiving more than $17 million in government loans, which were used to buy property, jewelry, a Bentley convertible, and other items. Sah has since pleaded guilty.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/doj-charges-474-with-covid-related-fraud-in-the-past-year_3751037.html?utm_source=morningbriefnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mb-2021-03-27">https://www.theepochtimes.com/doj-charg ... 2021-03-27">https://www.theepochtimes.com/doj-charges-474-with-covid-related-fraud-in-the-past-year_3751037.html?utm_source=morningbriefnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mb-2021-03-27

[Anonymous]

It aint no different in Canada.

[Anonymous]

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a press conference on March 29 that he will take emergency executive action shortly against the concept of Americans needing a vaccine passport to be able to travel domestically and internationally.