Los Angeles is officially the first major city in the United States to offer free coronavirus tests to all of its residents, even those who have not experienced any symptoms. Major of Los Angeles County, Eric Garcetti, made the announcement on Wednesday during his daily briefing. "Tonight, I am proud to announce that Los Angeles will become the first major city in America to offer wide scale testing to all of its residents, with or without symptoms," he stated. Prior to this change, all 34 drive-thru sites around L.A. had restricted testing only to individuals who had experienced symptoms—fever, cough, and/or shortness of breath—or essential front-line workers, like grocery store employees and rideshare drivers, who had not yet experienced symptoms.
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While testing at these sites will now be available to any and all residents, these essential front-line workers and those experiencing symptoms will still be given priority.
However, it's worth nothing that these sites, which have conducted 140,000 tests total over the past month, can now conduct up to 18,000 tests a day. "We have the capacity," Garcetti said. "So don't wait, don't wonder and don't risk infecting others." Folks can sign up here for same-day testing, or they can schedule to be tested the following day.
Coronavirus Could Cause Strokes In Young Adults, Doctors Warn
Doctors are warning folks in their 30s and 40s that coronavirus might be the cause of a recent increase in strokes in normally healthy young adults.
Health care professionals have noticed a recent increase in treatment for sudden strokes in young adults, and they worry it’s a result of the coronavirus. Doctors at Mount Sinai Health System in New York City reported that they typically treat less than two strokes per month in patients under 50 years old, but during a two-week-period amidst the coronavirus pandemic, they’ve treated five. They believe this increase is a result of the blood clotting in unusual ways, which can cause sudden stroke in people who are for the most part in good health. “The virus seems to be causing increased clotting in the large arteries, leading to severe stroke,” neurosurgeon Dr. Thomas Oxley noted.
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“Our report shows a seven-fold increase in incidence of sudden stroke in young patients during the past two weeks. Most of these patients have no past medical history and were at home with either mild symptoms (or in two cases, no symptoms) of Covid,” Oxley said. “All tested positive. Two of them delayed calling an ambulance.” These findings of potential evidence that coronavirus is causing this irregular blood clotting will be published in a letter in the New England Journal of Medicine.
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This potential evidence poses a problem in New York especially, since officials have advised residents against calling 911 unless they begin experiencing severe symptoms, such as shortness of breath, in order to avoid overwhelming ambulance services. Oxley and his team are urging people to monitor their condition for symptoms of coronavirus and to call 911 if they believe they’ve suffered a stroke. He also referred to the mnemonic device to remember warning signs for strokes, “FAST”: F for face drooping, A for arm weakness, S for speech difficulty, and T for time to call 911.
Rita Wilson Describes Coronavirus Experience In First Interview
Rita Wilson details her experience with Coronavirus in her first interview since she was diagnosed, and recovered.
When the Coronavirus pandemic was first beginning to take off, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson were among the first celebrities who revealed their diagnosis with the disease. Tom Hanks and his wife were out in Australia at the time, and they spent their recovery in isolation while out there before they returned to the United States.
As the two famed actors dealt with their bout of COVID-19, they shared a few updates along the way. Rita Wilson spread some positivity when she did her own rendition of Naughty By Nature’s “Hip Hop Hooray.”
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Now, Rita Wilson has given her first interview since her recovery from COVID-19 with CBS This Morning. While talking to Gayle King, Wilson revealed “I felt extremely achy, uncomfortable, didn’t want to be touched, and then the fever started.” She said her fever reached a high of 102, and she had “chills like I never had before.”
Apparently Wilson suffered more than Hanks, “He did not have as high a fever. He did not lose his sense of taste or smell, but it still took us the same time to get through it,” she said.
She also revealed that she did try the controversial drug chloroquine while she was still sick, but she is hesitant to say whether or not the drug had anything to do with her recovery. “The fever did break, but the chloroquine had such extreme side effects. I was completely nauseous and I had vertigo and my muscles felt very weak. I think people have to be very considerate about that drug. We don’t really know if it is helpful in this case.”
Sturgill Simpson Tests Positive For COVID-19
Sturgill Simpson is the latest musician to test positive for the coronavirus.
Renown singer-songwriter Sturgill Simpson has tested positive for COVID-19, as confirmed by a post on his Instagram.
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Simpson explains that he began experiencing symptoms weeks ago, but was refused a test until April 6. He cited “chest pains, fever, and pre-stroke blood pressure levels.” The long caption is accompanied by a picture taken of Simpson when he first went to the hospital on March 13.
“I spent an hour listening to a (highly condescending) Doctor refuse to test me because I ‘did not fit testing criteria’ and tell me why it was impossible that I had contracted the virus due to its extreme rarity and that it was not in western Europe yet during that same period (which we now know is incorrect) even though I was told by two nurses that I was the first person their hospital had walk-in requesting to be tested,” Simpson explains.
Simpson ends the post saying, “But hey, at least our Government-appointed task force headed by a man who does not believe in science is against mass testing and we now have a second task force in the works to ‘open America back up for business!’ Dick Daddy out.”
Simpson was touring when the coronavirus outbreak began.
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Georgia Governor Didn’t Know Asymptomatic People Could Spread Coronavirus
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp admitted that he was not actually aware that asymptomatic people could spread coronavirus to others until recently.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp confessed that he had only just recently learned that people who haven't shown symptoms of coronavirus could still spread the disease to others. During a press conference on Wednesday, Kemp revealed that he had just been informed earlier this week "that this virus is now transmitting before people see signs," despite medical professionals stressing this possibility for quite awhile.
"So what we've been telling people from directives from the CDC for weeks now," he continued, "that if you start feeling bad stay home, those individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad." However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had definitely already made it abundantly clear that the incubation period for coronavirus is anywhere between 2-4 days, meaning asymptomatic carriers could absolutely unknowingly spread the virus to others. While the CDC only explicitly stated that asymptomatic individuals were capable of infecting others on Monday (March 30th), Dr. Anthony Fauci had already confirmed that "asymptomatic transmission" was a real threat way back in January.
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"Well we didn't know that until the last 24 hours," Kemp confessed. "This is a game-changer for us." Kemp initiated a shelter-in-place order for the state of Georgia during this press conference, which will go into effect on Friday (April 3rd) and last until at least April 13th. He explained that Georgia is preparing hospitals for an expected increase of coronavirus-infected patients, as the state's numbers rose to 4,700 confirmed cases and 154 deaths this week.
Idris Elba Can’t Go Home Despite Completing Coronavirus Quarantine
Idris Elba gave an update on his and his wife's health following their coronavirus diagnoses, revealing that they'd finished quarantine but still can't go home yet.
Idris Elba and his wife, Sabrina Dhowre Elba, may be finished their two required weeks of coronavirus quarantine, but the couple are not allowed to hop on a plane back to London just yet. Following both of their respective coronavirus diagnoses earlier this month, Idris and Sabrina have been in quarantine for at least 14 days in New Mexico, where the actor was on location to film a new movie. While neither of them have experienced any of the symptoms associated with the virus, they were put into self-isolation until the two weeks were up, when the incubation period for the virus is over. Despite completing the required quarantine time, Idris revealed in an update Twitter on Tuesday that he and Sabrina are "stuck in limbo" and are unable to leave their quarantine space just yet.
Letting fans know that the two of them were both "still asymptomatic," the actor explained: “We’ve passed the quarantine period, but we’re a little bit in limbo—we can’t get a flight back home. So we just have to sit still for a little bit."
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“Other than that, we’re OK," he added. "We're so thankful that I think the worst of it is probably past." He goes on to laugh about how neither of them are used to sitting still, and how Sabrina is getting a bit of "cabin fever" being stuck inside all the time. “We’re both good mentally, just trying to stay optimistic," he continued. "I hope you guys are, too, keeping yourselves sane and not getting too worried and too panicked. Take it from me, man, I thought I definitely was gonna see the worst of it, as an asthmatic, but thankfully, I came through, and you can too.” He went on to give "a big shout out to everyone that's helping other people, especially the doctors and nurses, and the healthcare people that are doing their thing. You lot are amazing, and you should be fully appreciated.”
Greta Thunberg Believes She Had Coronavirus
Climate activist Greta Thunberg believes she had symptoms of Coronavirus and implores young people to be vigilant.
Swedish activist Greta Thunberg became an instant icon after a passionate speech on the perils of climate change went viral, making her an instant target in the eyes of many — including U.S. President Donald Trump. Before long, she was leading marches across the globe, including a record-breaking one in Montreal, Canada, and gracing the cover of Time Magazine as Person of the Year.
Suffice it to say, the teenage activist has become one of the most widely recognizable names in her field, and as such holds a high degree of influence — particularly with regards to younger demographics. Today, Thunburg took to Instagram to share her own experience with COVID-19, the deadly coronavirus, revealing that she believes to have suffered from several symptoms following a return trip from Central Europe.
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“The last two weeks I’ve stayed inside,” she begins, stressing the importance of social distancing measures. Around ten days ago I started feeling some symptoms, exactly the same time as my father – who traveled with me from Brussels. I was feeling tired, had shivers, a sore throat and coughed. My dad experienced the same symptoms, but much more intense and with a fever.”
Explaining that the testing protocol in Sweden is reserved for cases of emergency, Thunberg went on to self-diagnose her condition. “I have therefore not been tested for COVID-19, but it’s extremely likely that I’ve had it, given the combined symptoms and circumstances,” she writes. “Now I’ve basically recovered, but – AND THIS IS THE BOTTOM LINE: I almost didn’t feel ill. My last cold was much worse than this! Had it not been for someone else having the virus simultaneously I might not even have suspected anything. Then I would just have thought I was feeling unusually tired with a bit of a cough.”
She closes by imploring young people to be mindful of the virus; even if one might not suffer from COVID-19 on an overt level, they run the risk of passing it to someone who might not be so lucky. Hopefully her words can resonate with anyone who remains on the fence about self-isolation, a process that might very well save a life. Stay safe, people.
Tekashi 6ix9ine Fears For Life Amid Coronavirus Scare
In light of the coronavirus hitting the New York prison system, Tekashi 6ix9ine’s team is once again moving for an early release.
While Tekashi 6ix9ine is set to be released on August 2nd, having served a twenty-four-month prison service, his team is looking to expedite the process in light of the coronavirus pandemic. While many are operating under a strict state self-isolation —though others have chosen to neglect the practice altogether– several cases have already been confirmed within the New York prison system. In light of that, 6ix9ine’s lawyer Lance Lazarro has implored the judge to allow 6ix9ine leniency in serving his remaining sentence under house arrest.
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A letter received by NBC New York reveals the reasoning behind Lazarro’s request, citing a preexisting medical condition that would leave the young rapper susceptible to the virus. On October 31s,t 2019, 6ix9ine was diagnosed with bronchitis and sinusitis, which ultimately led to his hospitalization. To make the situation more complicated, Lazarro reveals that 6ix9ine has been experiencing shortness of breath –one of the main symptoms of coronavirus–only for the warden to dismiss his concerns.
“Mr. Hernandez has been complaining to prison officials this week of shortness of breath, but apparently the warden of his facility will not allow Mr. Hernandez to go to the hospital despite the recommendation of the facility’s medical director that Mr. Hernandez be treated by a doctor at a hospital,” writes Lazarro, in the legal letter to Judge Paul Engelmeyer.
Given that there have already been thirty-nine confirmed cases at Riker’s Island, as well as Harvey Weinstein’s diagnosis at Wende Correctional Facility, it’s clear the virus runs a risk of rampaging through the prison system. What isn’t clear, however, is whether the Judge will indeed show leniency to the rainbow-haired young rapper — even if he does run a higher risk of succumbing to the virus, should he find himself infected. We’ll be sure to keep you updated on the latest developments as they occur.