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Good evening, here are the coronavirus updates you need to know tonight.
Top headlines:
- New international study finds that cheap, readily available steroids can greatly reduce harm for COVID-19 patients in intensive care
- Canada expects to make a financial contribution to the international vaccine coalition COVAX, which aims to equitably distribute an eventual COVID-19 vaccine to poorer countries
- Wear a mask while having sex, Dr. Theresa Tam suggests
In Canada, there have been at least 129,924 cases reported. In the last week 3,584 new cases were announced, 26 per cent more than the previous week. There have also been at least 115,050 recoveries and 9,135 deaths. Health officials have administered more than 5,981,665 tests
Worldwide, there have been at least 5,749,642 cases confirmed and 857,015 deaths reported.
Sources: Canada data is compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data is from Johns Hopkins University.
Coronavirus explainers: Updates and essential resources • Coronavirus in maps and charts • Lockdown rules and reopening plans in each province • Global rules on mask-wearing • Back to school
Photo of the day
Preschool teacher Mikki Laugier reads aloud to students as part of an outdoor learning demonstration on Sept. 2 in Brooklyn, N.Y.
John Minchillo/The Associated Press
Number of the day
99
George Markow, a 99-year-old veteran of the Second World War in Newmarket, Ont., has walked 100 kilometres and raised almost $47,000 for COVID-19 medical research.
Coronavirus in Canada
- Some school boards in Ontario, including in Toronto and Ottawa-Carleton, will close play structures over fears about COVID-19 risks. Meanwhile, the opposition NDP asked the province’s ombudsman to review the government’s back-to-school plan to determine if it meets recommended safety standards.
- In Alberta, $250-million in federal funds will be distributed to school boards on a per-student basis. Another $12-million will distributed to schools seeing an increased demand in online learning programs.
- British Columbia will provide schools $3.75-million for the 2020-21 year for mental health programs. Meanwhile, the housing market in Vancouver continues to recover from the pandemic, with the number of homes sold last month nearly 20 per cent higher than the 10-year average for August.
- As part of its back-to-school guidelines, Manitoba announced that if a case is confirmed in school, contact tracing will begin within 24 hours, and close contacts will be advised if they need to self-isolate or get tested.
- Nova Scotia’s teachers are warning their schools aren’t ready to reopen as planned next week. The province’s teachers’ union issued a news release claiming schools are “in chaos,” citing out-of-date ventilation systems, a lack of hand-washing stations, and hallways filled with old furniture from teachers emptying classrooms to increase space.
Canada expects it will make a financial contribution to COVAX, the international vaccine coalition aiming to ensure developing countries have fair access to an eventual COVID-19 vaccine.
- COVAX intends to circumvent so-called vaccine nationalism – the scramble by individual countries to secure vaccines for their own populations, often by prebuying doses directly from pharmaceutical companies.
- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced deals with four companies for millions of doses of potential vaccines, and in June co-wrote an opinion column promoting COVAX as an equitable option for eliminating coronavirus everywhere.
COVID-safe sex: Skip kissing and consider wearing a mask when having sex with a new partner to protect yourself from catching the coronavirus, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer said today, adding that going solo remains the lowest risk sexual option in a pandemic.
Treatment: Cheap and widely available steroids significantly reduce the risk of death for severely ill patients, according to a new international study that reinforces the findings of an earlier British trial and confirms that more than one type of steroid can save lives.
Coronavirus around the world
- The United Nations Security Council will hold a high-level summit during the annual meeting of world leaders at the General Assembly later this month to discuss security threats in the world after the COVID-19 pandemic ends.
- In the U.S. Joe Biden assailed President Donald Trump for his vilifying of protesters as well as his handling of the pandemic, which has killed nearly 190,000 Americans and crippled the national economy. Meanwhile, United Airlines announced it will furlough 16,370 workers when U.S. federal aid expires on Oct. 1.
- Watch: India’s novel coronavirus infections rose to almost 3.8 million on Wednesday, as states continued to relax rules on movement despite a surge in cases.
- Germany’s financial regulator announced the worst was yet to come for the country’s economy, as many European countries struggle with resurgences of COVID-19.
Coronavirus and business
Montreal-based discount retailer Dollarama reported that its second-quarter sales grew 7.1 per cent, to $1-billion, driven by continued demand for cleaning products as well as summer items.
- Comparable store sales – an important metric that tracks sales growth at stores open more than a year – were up 2.5 per cent in the 13 weeks ended Aug. 2. Excluding stores that were temporarily closed during the pandemic, comparable sales rose 5.4 per cent.
Also today: Shopify will vacate its Ottawa headquarters as it moves more of its work online. Earlier, the e-commerce giant announced most of its 5,000 employees can work remotely on a permanent basis.
And: The U.S. Congressional Budget Office reported a deficit of US$3.3-trillion for 2020 – or, 16 per cent of gross domestic product. In April, the office reported a preliminary estimate of US$3.7-trillion.
Globe opinion
- Eric Brown: “New forms of rapid, non-invasive, saliva-based tests, ones that can be administered with speed and ease by anyone, could test COVID-19 into oblivion with widespread use.”
More reporting
- Do masks protect me from COVID-19 or just prevent me from spreading it? What kind should I wear?
- 26 per cent of millennials have spent more on their dog during the pandemic, compared with 12 per cent of baby boomers, according to data from Rover.com.
- Three Paris Saint-Germain soccer players tested positive for COVID-19.
Distractions
🍿 For the film buff: TIFF 2020: Ammonite, One Night in Miami and Inconvenient Indian: The Globe’s most-anticipated titles for this year’s Toronto film festival.
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