Government ‘actively monitoring’ ways to obtain vaccine – Ireland

Ms Canavan said Ireland has signed “expression of interest” letters with two separate mechanisms.

One is a joint EU approach to Covid-19 procurement to ensure coordinated action at European level to protect public health and achieve optimal management of Covid-19 through vaccination.

The other is the Covax initiative — Access to Covid-19 Tools Accelerator, a new global collaboration to accelerate development, production, and equitable access to Covid-19 diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines.

 

Source: Government ‘actively monitoring’ ways to obtain vaccine

FEMA head says coronavirus hot spots may face PPE shortages

Local officials have criticized federal efforts to procure essential protective equipment for health-care workers on the front lines of the pandemic, saying they’ve been placed into a competition among states, private entities and the U.S. government for critical supplies.

Gaynor told the committee that FEMA is still competing for the equipment, saying that other countries, governors, mayors and tribal leaders are searching for the same supplies. The U.S. doesn’t manufacture most of the supplies but instead relies on countries in Asia, including China and Vietnam, to produce the equipment, Gaynor said.

“It’s a national security issue,” he testified. “PPE and life saving equipment is just as important as building an aircraft carrier. We need to have that capacity here in the United States. We cannot rely on peer competitors to manage our destiny.”

 

Source: FEMA head says coronavirus hot spots may face PPE shortages

Rise in Virus Cases Near Bases in U.S. and Abroad Poses Test for Military – The New York Times

More than 20,000 American service members have contracted the coronavirus, and the infection rate in the services has tripled over the past six weeks as the United States military has emerged as a potential source of transmission both domestically and abroad, according to military and local public health officials.

Cases are rising the most on military bases in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia and Texas, states that have all seen surges in confirmed infections.

Cheap and Expendible: The Systematic Exploitation of Harvest Workers in Europe

Millions of seasonal workers across the Continent are responsible for picking much of the low-cost produce available in European supermarkets. But an international research project reveals that many of these workers face abysmal conditions – and the COVID-19 crisis has made things even worse.

Millions of seasonal workers across the Continent are responsible for picking much of the low-cost produce available in European supermarkets. But an international research project reveals that many of these workers face abysmal conditions – and the COVID-19 crisis has made things even worse.

To provide increased Congressional oversight of certain pardons, to clarify the applicability of bribery prohibitions to pardons and commutations, and for other purposes. (H.R. 7694) – GovTrack.us

Source: To provide increased Congressional oversight of certain pardons, to clarify the applicability of bribery prohibitions to pardons and commutations, and for other purposes. (H.R. 7694) – GovTrack.us

Trump’s new immigration and census policy is an unconstitutional reading of the 14th Amendment – Vox

The 14th Amendment to the Constitution provides that “representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each state, excluding Indians not taxed.”

This text is unambiguous. With a narrow exception for some Native Americans, all persons within the United States must be counted in the decennial census. And all persons must be counted when representation is allocated to states in the House of Representatives.

Nevertheless, on Tuesday, President Trump released an extraordinary memorandum suggesting that he gets to decide who counts as a “person” — and that undocumented immigrants do not qualify.

 

Source: Trump’s new immigration and census policy is an unconstitutional reading of the 14th Amendment – Vox