# pandemic
Yesterday
9th June 2023
# pandemic
Inquiry into Ireland's Covid-19 response to be set up this year, Varadkar says
The Taoiseach said he wanted to see the right terms of reference so the Irish inquiry does not stray like the UK one is doing.
This week
4th June 2023 - 10th June 2023
# Cancer
2021 was second year in a row with fewer cancer diagnoses due to Covid, report finds
1 in 12 expected cancers were not detected over the first 2 years of the pandemic, an estimated 4,320 cases.
# cancer treatment
Access to cancer treatment has returned to pre-Covid levels, report finds
The government allocated €35 million in extra funding last year and recruited 172 additional staff to cancer services.
Last week
28th May 2023 - 10th June 2023
# factcheck
Debunked: Confusion over news article helps spread baseless claims about Pandemic Treaty
A letter sent by Conservative MPs has been used to allege a treaty will cede sovereignty to the WHO.
# UK
Boris Johnson hands WhatsApps and notebooks to UK Cabinet Office amid Covid inquiry row
Downing Street has already been forced to deny allegations of a “cover-up” amid criticism over the public row with the inquiry.
# pandemic
Two-thirds of all Covid deaths occurred in care homes, study finds
Ireland had the second highest proportion globally of Covid-19 deaths from Long Term Residential Care homes.
Last month
May 2023
# pandemic
Boris Johnson reported to police over new ‘potential lockdown breaches’
The Metropolitan Police said it was ‘currently assessing’ details it had received relating to incidents between June 2020 and May 2021.
# WHO
WHO declares an end to Covid-19 global health emergency
The coronavirus outbreak killed at least seven million people worldwide – and health chiefs stressed that the pandemic is not over.
The World Health Organisation has said Covid-19 no longer qualifies as a global emergency.
The announcement marks a symbolic end to the devastating coronavirus pandemic that triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns.
The WHO said that even though the emergency phase is over, the pandemic has not come to an end.
# pandemic
Covid vaccine requirement for international travelers entering US to end 11 May
The decision comes as Covid-19 deaths in the US have declined by 95% since January 2021, the White House said.
This year
2023
# Covid-19
Tony Holohan says media and others tried to 'oversimplify' pandemic response
Holohan said there was no “silver bullet” that could have stopped the pandemic.
# Infection Control
Mater Hospital nurse up for global award on leading change in infection control after pandemic
Jincy Jerry, a nursing manager who has an autistic son, says she experiences the health service from both sides.
# pandemic
Rollout of pandemic bonus has had errors but is largely complete, says Donnelly
A total of €208 million in tax-free pandemic bonus payments has been issued, the health minister said.
# Coronavirus
Covid-19 testing centres to close nationally, as testing no longer needed for 'vast majority'
Both PCR and antigen testing will continue to be used by doctors in hospitals and general practices
Voices
Opinion: If global leaders can't agree on the origin of Covid then what hope for future crises?
As global superpowers continue their war of words over the origin of Covid, Seána Glennon says the lack of cooperation doesn’t bode well for the future.
# contact tracing
Covid Tracker app expected to be 'decommissioned' by this summer
The app cost €811,227 to launch with over €100,000 spent on support and development in the six months after it launched.
# Covid-19
HSE bought 10 times more ventilators than necessary, hundreds of which were unusable
The HSE spent €129 million on ventilators, buying nearly twice the number approved by the Department of Health.
# Covid-19
UK ministers reportedly considered culling pet cats at start of pandemic over health fears
‘What we shouldn’t forget is how little we understood about this disease,’ a former UK Health Department deputy told Channel 4 News.
# Vaccines
Former NPHET member says mandatory Covid vaccines should have been considered
Professor Cormican also said that the intensity of lockdown measures meant that some vulnerable people were ‘effectively abandoned for months’.
# pandemic
Three years on, WHO says Covid-19 is still a global emergency
The WHO first declared a so-called public health emergency of international concern on 30 January 2020.
# WHO
WHO panel debates Covid's emergency status and whether pandemic merits highest level of alert
The outcome will be issued early next week.
# Transport
Used car prices jump by almost 70% - due to pandemic, Brexit and Ukraine - report says
In particular, used cars in the lower end of the market are becoming less affordable despite being lower in safety standards and higher in emissions.
# Vaccines
Over 70% of workforce have received Covid vaccine and at least one booster, latest data shows
61% of employees have a first booster and 13% of employees in the state had a second booster.
# pandemic
Covid-19 inquiry 'should not be about pointing fingers' – Taoiseach
Leo Varadkar said he hopes to have an inquiry into the handling of the pandemic up and running this year.
Last year
2022
# pandemic preparedness
Plans on how to respond to possible future pandemic are being worked on, CMO says
Professor Breda Smyth became CMO in October after Dr Tony Holohan stepped aside.
# lockdown over
WHO concerned over China Covid cases but country claims no new deaths
Beijing last week admitted the scale of the outbreak has become ‘impossible’ to track
# pandemic
China expands lockdowns as Covid-19 cases hit daily record
Officials in the government of Zhengzhou have declared a ‘war of annihilation’ against the virus.
# G20
G20 ministers launch billion-dollar pandemic fund
The fund is viewed as one of the early global outcomes of the G20 summit next week.
# ESRI
Young people argued with parents and siblings more during first year of the Covid pandemic
The ESRI findings are based on an online survey that was carried out in December 2020.
# pandemic
World Health Organisation warns Covid is still an international emergency
The WHO’s Covid-19 technical lead, agreed, warning that there were still millions of cases being reported each week
# mike ryan
Irish head of emergencies at WHO reveals he received death threats during pandemic
The Sligo-born doctor said that he may have post-traumatic stress disorder.
Voices
Opinion: The world wants us to go back to normal after the pandemic. Maybe we need to rest instead
Artist Áine O’Hara has created the Rest Rooms, where rest is a form of resistance – here, she explains the background to the installation.
# pandemic
Four in five Covid-19 deaths had at least three medical conditions involved
Diseases of the respiratory system were reported in 5,279 (or 98%) of Covid-19 deaths.
# Covid-19
Penneys accounts show €72 million less revenue last year
The company’s stores opened for Christmas 2020 but closed in January and didn’t reopen until May 2021.
# Coronavirus
Pair of new studies point to natural Covid origin in Wuhan animal market
Answering whether the disease transferred naturally from animals, or was due to a lab accident, is considered vital to averting the next pandemic.
# pandemic
Current Covid wave has peaked but hospital capacity remains under pressure, says CMO
46 Covid-19 related deaths were reported in the first 19 days of this month.
# increase
Almost one in ten people struggled with food poverty in 2021, according to government
Approximately 8.9% of Irish people experience food poverty according to a government survey, around 445,000 people.
# British Medical Journal
World Health Organization advises against use of two drugs for non-severe Covid-19
Fluvoxamine and colchicine received considerable interest during the pandemic.
# Covid-19
World Bank approves billion dollar fund for developing countries to fight future pandemics
The fund was developed under the leadership of the United States, Italy and Indonesia.
# covid19
Official Covid case numbers 'just the tip of the iceberg' as subvariants lead to summer surge
Last week there was a more than 50% jump in reported case numbers.
# Ombudsman
Majority of complaints about Covid-19 news articles linked to anonymous Facebook group
More than 500 complaints in total were made last year – 200 of those related to coverage of the pandemic.
