A crowd of janitorial workers and supporters marched from Bovard Auditorium to USC Village Thursday in a continued demonstration calling for higher wages and better health care benefits. The protest follows last Thursday’s negotiations with contractor Aramark, which protesters felt did not adequately address the concerns expressed by the Service Employees International Union. 

Demonstrators carried a banner that read: “Janitors READY 2 STRIKE,” a sentiment also expressed at SEIU-organized protests that took place March 31 on campus and April 1 at Union Hall while negotiations were ongoing. 

More at source: Daily Trojan

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More contagious omicron BA.2 on track to displace other variants in U.S. in next two weeks

The more contagious omicron BA.2 subvariant now makes up 72% of Covid infections that have undergone genetic sequencing in the U.S., according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

BA.2 became dominant in the U.S. last week, and now appears on track to displace the earlier version of omicron, BA.1. Ali Mokdad, an epidemiologist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in Washington state, projected that will happen within the next two weeks.

Though some estimates differ, BA.2 spreads 30% to 80% faster than BA.1., according to data from public health authorities in the U.K. and Denmark.

More at source: CNBC

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The FDA and CDC have cleared the way for Americans older than 50 to get a second booster shot—but they don’t quite suggest that everyone in that age group should do so. Like masking and many other pandemic-control measures, a fourth dose (or third, for the J&Jers in the back) is now a matter of personal judgment, even as another wave of COVID cases seems poised to break.

That leaves millions of Americans and their doctors to perform their own risk-benefit analysis. Read: Another COVID wave is looming Or perhaps it’s just a risk analysis. The upsides of a fourth shot are indeed uncertain: The best we can say right now is that its protective effects are probably modest and temporary (with greater benefits for older people). But a modest, temporary boost is still better than nothing—so why not go ahead and get one, just in case? What, if any, risks would that actually entail?

More at source: The Atlantic

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Shanghai starts China's biggest COVID-19 lockdown in 2 years

The citywide lockdown that will be conducted in two phases will be China’s most extensive since the central city of Wuhan, where the virus was first detected in late 2019, confined its 11 million people to their homes for 76 days in early 2020. Millions more have been kept in lockdown since then.

Shanghai's Pudong financial district and nearby areas will be locked down from Monday to Friday as mass testing gets underway, the local government said. In the second phase of the lockdown, the vast downtown area west of the Huangpu River that divides the city will start its own five-day lockdown Friday.

Residents will be required to stay home and deliveries will be left at checkpoints to ensure there is no contact with the outside world. Offices and all businesses not considered essential will be closed and public transport suspended.

More at source: Yahoo News

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Long COVID study indicates “something concerning is happening”

Two new studies are reporting on an ongoing long COVID research project investigating the persistent effects of COVID-19 on cognition in the months after acute disease. The University of Cambridge-led research found many long COVID patients are experiencing significant and measurable memory or concentration impairments even after mild illness.

“Long COVID has received very little attention politically or medically,” said Lucy Cheke, senior author on the new studies. “It urgently needs to be taken more seriously, and cognitive issues are an important part of this. When politicians talk about ‘Living with COVID’ – that is, unmitigated infection, this is something they ignore.”

More at source: News Atlas Health

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WHAT DO FORENSIC CLEANERS DO?

Forensic cleaners are employed by a variety of different organisations, including businesses, hospitals, and government agencies. They typically work on crime scenes, accident scenes, and other areas where there is a high potential for biohazards. Forensic cleaners are also known as Trauma cleaners, Biohazard cleaners or hygiene technicians.

There are three main types of forensic cleaning:

1. remediation
2. decontamination, and
3. disinfection.

More at source: INSC

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What rising Covid-19 infections in the UK and Europe could mean for the US

(CNN)Two weeks after the United Kingdom dropped its last remaining Covid-19 mitigation measure -- a requirement that people who test positive for the virus isolate for five days -- the country is seeing cases and hospitalizations climb once again.

Covid-19 cases were up 48% in the UK last week compared with the week before. Hospitalizations were up 17% over the same period.

The country's daily case rate -- about 55,000 a day -- is still less than a third of the Omicron peak, but cases are rising as fast as they were falling just two weeks earlier, when the country removed pandemic-related restrictions.

More at source: CNN

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Two years on, COVID-19 pandemic ‘far from over’

Deaths continue

Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Dr Tedros reminded the world that many countries in Asia and the Pacific are currently facing surges of cases and deaths.

“The virus continues to evolve, and we continue to face major obstacles in distributing vaccines, tests and treatments everywhere they are needed”, he said.

COVID-19 vaccinations are being administered to 15-18 year olds in Rajasthan, India.

Avoid ‘two-tier recovery from COVID-19’

The UN Secretary-General issued a statement on Wednesday supporting the WHO chief’s assessment, that it would be ‘a grave mistake’ to think the virus was now in the rear-view mirror.

In a statement published on Wednesday, António Guterres reiterated that the distribution of vaccines remains “scandalously unequal”.

“Manufacturers are producing 1.5 billion doses per month, but nearly three billion people are still waiting for their first shot”, he highlighted.

The UN chief blamed this “failure” on policy and budgetary decisions that prioritize the health of people in wealthy countries, over the health of people in poor countries.

“This is a moral indictment of our world. It is also a recipe for more variants, more lockdowns and more sorrow and sacrifice in every country. Our world cannot afford a two-tier recovery from COVID-19”, he said.

More at the source: United Nations

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Even mild Covid is linked to brain damage, scans show

During at least the first few months following a coronavirus infection, even mild cases of Covid-19 are associated with subtle tissue damage and accelerated losses in brain regions tied to the sense of smell, as well as a small loss in the brain’s overall volume, a new British study finds. Having mild Covid is also associated with a cognitive function deficit.

These are the striking findings of the new study led by University of Oxford investigators, one that leading Covid researchers consider particularly important because it is the first study of the disease’s potential impact on the brain that is based on brain scans taken both before and after participants contracted the coronavirus.

“This study design overcomes some of the major limitations of most brain-related studies of Covid-19 to date, which rely on analysis and interpretation at a single time point in people who had Covid-19,” said Dr. Serena S. Spudich, a neurologist at the Yale University School of Medicine, who was not involved in the research.

More at source: NBC

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The U.S. cleaning products market was valued at $1,957.9 million in 2020, and is projected reach $2,898.5 million by 2030, registering a CAGR of 4.1% from 2021 to 2030

Wide array of products including brooms, brush, mops, rags, sponge, and others are collectively referred to as cleaning products. These products are utilized majorly by households as well as commercial purposes in the U.S. The increase in number of households in the U.S. since last decade is expected to proliferate the cleaning products market all across the country. Increase in GDP, rise in population, and surge in number of new households per year in the U.S. are few of the major factors that support the increase in demand for cleaning products in the country. Furthermore, commercial consumers comprise offices, schools, universities, hospitals, and others.

Economic upsurge and rise in demand among commercial consumers (retail sector, public institutions, hospitals, and others) fuel the growth of the cleaning products market. Moreover, increased concerns of health and safety and hygiene consciousness are other factors that drive the growth of the market. Increase in number of working women and investment in real estate industry are anticipated to generate potential business opportunities for the industry in near future. However, increased competition is a major challenge for the market players.

The U.S. cleaning products market is segmented into product type, and distribution channel. By product type, the market is classified into brooms, mops, brush, and others. By distribution channel, the market is divided into dollar stores, big box retailers, grocery stores, supermarket, and others (online retailers & B2B sellers). By country, the market is analyzed across the U.S. The state-wise analysis of the market is included in the report.

More at source: Business Wire

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