More than 62,000 front-line doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers have been infected with COVID-19, the Center for Disease Control reported on Tuesday. At least 291 healthcare workers have died from coronavirus complications. The previous CDC analysis, released April 17, reported that there were only 9,888 documented cases of coronavirus among healthcare workers. At […]
Americans Support Medical Care but Not Economic Aid for Undocumented Immigrants
A Pew Research Center survey published May 22 found that a majority of U.S. adults (68 percent) believe the federal government has a responsibility to provide medical care to undocumented immigrants who are sick with coronavirus. Only 32 percent believe that the government should provide economic relief, such as stimulus checks, to undocumented immigrants who […]
Rwanda Announces Release of 50 Women Jailed for Abortion
On May 20, President Paul Kagame of Rwanda announced the release of 50 women imprisoned for undergoing, seeking, or helping others locate an abortion. Their pardoning was part of Rwanda’s plan to reduce the number of people in prison to slow the spread of coronavirus. A total of 3,596 convicts were granted conditional release by […]
Anti-Mask Protests Are Using Disability Rights Laws to Avoid Following State Orders
As of Wednesday, May 20, 13 states currently have orders mandating that Americans wear masks in public, according to U.S.-based science collective #Masks4All. These orders differ in scope, but most establish the need to wear a mask in high-density public spaces, including businesses, public transportation, and public parks. Anti-mask protestors are using U.S. laws protecting […]
Trump Administration Demands UN Remove “Reproductive Health” From Pandemic Response
The Trump administration sent a letter to the United Nations on Monday urging the UN to remove references to reproductive health and abortion in its COVID-19 humanitarian response plan. The letter was sent from John Barsa, acting administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The letter urges the UN to eliminate all mentions […]
Women Make Up the Majority of COVID-19 Job Losses in the U.S.
Though they make up only half the U.S. workforce, women make up 55 percent of those currently unemployed due to COVID-19, effectively erasing the gains made in workplace equality since the recession of 2008. The current unemployment crisis has been deemed a “she-cession” by C. Nicole Mason, president and chief executive of the Institute for […]
Global Feminist Organizations Release Policy Priorities for COVID-19 Response
More than 400 feminist organizations and 700 individuals across the globe released a joint statement today outlining how governments can bolster equality in their responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. The statement calls on governments to uphold human rights standards in its pandemic response and center marginalized communities that have been disproportionally affected by the disease. […]
U.S. is the Largest Exporter of Coronavirus Due to Continuing Deportations
ICE is actively deporting both untested and positive-testing immigrants to countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, which are not equipped to deal with major outbreaks of the virus. ICE is continuing deportations to Haiti and recently knowingly put five deportees who had tested positive for Covid-19 on a packed flight, endangering fellow passengers, the […]
South Korean LGBTQ Community Faces Increased Homophobia After COVID-19 Outbreak
The LGBTQ community in South Korea is facing increased homophobia after a recent outbreak of COVID-19 was linked to gay nightclubs in Seoul. In early May, the government announced that a man who had visited multiple night clubs on May 2 tested positive for the coronavirus. More than 100 cases of the virus has since […]
New Report Shows Gaps in Coverage for Abortions in Employer Insurance Plans
Ten percent of people on employer-sponsored health insurance work at firms that have opted to exclude abortion coverage from its health plans, a Kaiser Family Foundation reported revealed on Tuesday. As the most popular source of health insurance, employer-sponsored plans cover 153 million Americans. For more than 15 million people whose plans do not cover […]
COVID-19 Cases Increase at Women’s Prison in Florida
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 at a Florida women’s prison totaled 73 on Monday, a jump from the previous day’s total of two. Seventy percent of tests administered at Homestead Correctional Institution so far have come back positive and 616 tests are pending results. The spike in confirmed cases comes after weeks of the facility’s shuffling […]
House Democrats Propose $3 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Package
House Democrats and Speaker Nancy Pelosi have released their newest bill to address the coronavirus pandemic, proposing ambitious measures to boost the economy, increase COVID-19 testing, and ensure safe elections this fall. Party leaders expect to vote on the bill, dubbed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, on Friday. The 1,815-page […]
South Dakota Sioux Tribes Refuse to Remove Checkpoints Despite Governor’s Threats
The Oglala Sioux and the Cheyenne River Sioux tribes have refused to remove their coronavirus checkpoints on roads passing through their reservations after South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem threatened to take them to federal court if the checkpoints remain in place. The two tribes argue that the checkpoints are the only way to prevent a […]
First ICE Detainee Covid-19 Death Occurred This Week
A 57-year-old man from El Salvador who was being held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in California died from Covid-19 on Wednesday. This is the first confirmed death from the coronavirus at an ICE detention center. Carlos Escobar-Mejia has been detained at the center since Jan. 10 after having lived in the U.S. for […]
Police Brutality in the Time of Coronavirus
Covid-19 is shining yet another spotlight on American systemic racism as African Americans face higher rates of death from coronavirus, as well as policing in the form of social distancing patrols, which are often racially disparate, inequitable, and aggressive. A majority of businesses have reduced operations or closed, but the NYPD has not slowed operations […]
Universities Face Decision Between Medical Disaster and Financial Ruin This Fall
Amidst great economic and political pressure to reopen in the fall, American colleges and universities must choose between enormous risk and liability if they do open and bankruptcy if they do not. Colleges and universities are among the most vulnerable institutions to disease outbreaks and would serve as efficient grounds the spread of coronavirus as […]
COVID-19 Pandemic Highlights Preexisting and Underlying American Racism and Sexism
As with most issues in the United States, Black Americans and female Americans are the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. On April 6, Louisiana was the first state to release data on Covid-19 broken down by race. Its report showed that while African American’s make up 33% of the state’s population, they accounted for […]
Court of Appeals Lifts Oklahoma Abortion Ban
On March 27th, Oklahoma Kevin Stitt issued an executive order postponing elective procedures and surgeries, including “any type of abortion services… which are not a medical emergency… or otherwise necessary to prevent serious health risks” to the pregnant person. On April 6, Judge Charles Goodwin of Oklahoma’s Western District Court placed a temporary stay on […]
States Tell Workers Return to Work During Pandemic or Lose Unemployment Benefits
Some states, including Iowa and Texas, have begun to reopen their economies amidst the coronavirus pandemic and have warned residents that employees who refuse to return to their jobs will be ineligible for unemployment benefits. These policies force workers to decide between their health and unemployment insurance and could facilitate the spread of COVID-19. Congress […]
COVID-19 Compounds The Struggle of Addiction During Pandemic
The novel coronavirus is creating many complications and hardships to current daily life. One often overlooked challenge faced by families and individuals is struggling with substance abuse and addiction issues. Covid-19 is putting more stress on families and people already dealing with addiction as the taxing physical and emotional burdens of unemployment, isolation, boredom, loneliness, […]
