Category Archive: Virus

February 27th, 2020
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Top Ten Natural Anti-Viral Agents

Winter is the time of year when we seem to be particularly vulnerable to all kinds of illnesses that are caused by viruses including colds, flu and cold sores. A virus is not to be confused with bacteria, which causes infection. Viruses are tiny bits of nucleic acids that contain information and use your body’s cells tor create more copies of themselves.

There are very few treatments, allopathic or natural that can kill a virus outright, as usually a virus must run its course. However the list of natural remedies here come as close to stopping a virus in its tracks as Mother Nature can get.


COLLOIDAL SILVER

Silver has been utilized as a medicine since ancient times to treat scores of ailments, including the bubonic plague. Colloidal silver is a suspension of pure metallic silver in water, that is used to dramatically reduce the activity of the HIV virus in AIDS patients, slow down the ravages of the hepatitis C virus and combat other viruses in general. It works by interfering with the enzymes that allow a virus to utilize oxygen thus, in essence, suffocating it so it cannot do damage in the body.


ELDERBERRY

The common black elderberry (Sambucus nigra) has long been used to reduce the length and severity of flu symptoms and studies. Taking 60 ml a day for adults and 30 ml for children helps to facilitate a complete recovery, often in three days. Elderberry extract binds to the tiny spikes on a virus protein that are used to pierce and invade healthy cells and destroys them so that the virus is ineffective. Elderberry may also be effective against the herpes simplex virus and some HIV strains.


ECHINACEA

The herb Echinacea (Echinacea purpurea) is supportive of the immune system and has a direct anti-viral action against colds and viral bronchitis. Preparations that include both the roots and the flowering tops are the most effective at helping the body resist the viruses.


GARLIC

Garlic has been prized for its medicinal properties for thousands of years. The compounds allicin and alliion are responsible for this common plant’s reputation as a triple threat. Garlic is anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal and it is especially effective against viruses if chewed raw.


GREEN TEA

Green tea (Camellia sinensis) contains a group of flavonoids called catechins, which appear to inhibit viral infections by blocking the enzymes that allow it to reproduce. Green tea has been known to be effective in inhibiting HIV, herpes simples and the hepatitis B virus.


LIQORICE

Liquorice contains a substance called glycyrrhizin that reduces the replication of viruses and halts their ability to penetrate replicate inside healthy cells. It has been noted to be effective in the treatment of many viral illnesses including HIV strains and viral hepatitis.


OLIVE LEAF

The leaves of Olive trees (Olea europea) contain a substances called elenoic acid and calcium elonate has been identified as a powerful inhibitor of a wide range of viruses in laboratory tests., including influenza, herpes, polio and coxsackie viruses. These substances block the production of enzymes that allow viruses to replicate.


PAU D’ARCO

Pau d’arco (Tabebuia impetiginosa), also known as lapacho or ipe roxo, is an Amazon tree with healing inner bark that can treat colds, influenza, herpes and viral stomatis. It contains quinoids that inhibit virus replication by damaging the DNA and RNA inside the viral protein that would insert itself in a healthy human cell and replicate.


ST JOHN’S WORT

St John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum) is ore well-known for its ability to treat depression and neuralgia but it also has potent antiviral chemicals called hypercin and pseudohypericin that proactively fight off viruses that thrive by imitating existing cells through “cloaking”. These viruses that masquerade as human cells include Herpes, HIV and Hepatitis C.

For the most effective results it is highly recommended that at least two or three of these remedies in conjunction in order to vanquish viruses. As always, consult your naturopathic doctor for advise that is tailored specifically to your body.


Start now to make sure you are staying prepared.


via:  oand


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February 25th, 2020
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CDC formally urges coronavirus preparedness

CDC formally says now is the time for businesses, hospitals, communities schools & individuals to begin preparing to respond to coronavirus. More via email.

 

Supplemental Info:

Comments made during telebriefing by Nancy Messonnier, M.D., Director, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (an element of the CDC).

 

CDC Media Telebriefing: Update on COVID-19
Tuesday Feb. 25, 2020

 

The link below leads to the audio transcript.

https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2020/a0225-cdc-
telebriefing-covid-19.html

 

Official Coronavirus Information Pages

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Food and Drug Administration

Public Health Agency of Canada

Infection Prevention and Control Canada

World Health Organization

 

Official Pandemic Preparedness Guidance:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Department of Homeland Security / Ready.Gov

World Health Organization

 

Assorted

(While some of the resources below were prepared for pandemic influenza, the broader guidance contain therein are directly applicable to the current coronavirus crisis)

Pub Health Guidance for Community-Level Preparedness & Response (SARS)
Business Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist
Faith-based & Community Org. Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Checklist
WHO Checklist for Influenza Pandemic Preparedness Planning
Get Your Workplace Ready for Pandemic Flu

 

————————–

 

Coronavirus Explodes in S. Korea
U.S. Forces On Alert

 

2/17 – DHS/HHS: Charter flight w/ AMCITS from quarantined vessel in Japan arrives at Travis AFB, CA. Onward quarantine at Travis or Joint Base San Antonio.

2/18 – DHS/CDC place temp travel restrictions on US citizens from Diamond Princess cruise ship due to exposure to COVID-19 coronavirus.

2/18 – US Embassy Japan issues update on and letters to US citizen passengers remaining aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship.

2/19 – Commander, US Forces Korea implements elevated health protection measures and travel restrictions for USFK pers due to COVID-2019 outbreak.

2/20 – US State Dept. issues alert urging reconsideration of travel by cruise ship to/in E. Asia and the Asia-Pacific Region due to COVID-2019 coronavirus.

2/21 – US Embassy S. Korea issues Health Alert re dangerous incr in number of COVID-19 cases and warns community-based transmission is occurring.

2/21 – USGOV warns international repatriation flights SHOULD NOT be relied upon as an option by those under poss risk of quarantine due to COVID-19.

2/21 – US Embassy Italy issues Health Alert warning of 16 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the north of the country. Schools, offices & public spaces closed.

 

What You Need To Know

On nine occasions this week AlertsUSA subscribers were notified via SMS messages to their mobile devices regarding safety and security matters. Eight of these alerts dealt with the increasingly dangerous situation with the COVID-19 novel coronavirus.

 

Most important for this report, on Wednesday we were informed that the Commander of US Forces in Korea implemented increased health protection measures and travel restrictions for all USFK personnel due to an outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Daegu, South Korea’s 4th largest city located 148 miles south east of Seoul. Daegu is also home to the U.S. Army Garrison Daegu, which consists of consists of 14 U.S. military installations and a combined total of more than 10,000 active duty and civilian personnel and contractors.

 

USFK previously imposed a 14-day quarantine for all U.S. troops headed to South Korea after visiting China earlier this month.

 

As of the time of this report’s preparation on Friday evening (2/21), the number of coronavirus cases in South Korea has reached 433, which is more than triple the case numbers from just 48 hours earlier. At least 58 of these cases can be traced to a single individual. Another 15 were infected at the local hospital, and at least two have died.

 

The U.S. Embassy in Seoul is warning Americans in or traveling to S. Korea to maintain good protective hygiene, to regularly monitor the CDC website, as well as that of your airline as schedules are changing rapidly..

 

South Korea’s prime minister called the fast spread of the new coronavirus in the country a “grave” situation and urged people to refrain from holding religious events in crowded places.

 

CRUISE SHIP WARNING

On Thursday, the State Department issued an alert urging U.S. citizens to reconsider travel by cruise ship to or in E. Asia and the Asia-Pacific Region due to the coronavirus. The State Department also warned that U.S. citizens planning travel by cruise ship elsewhere should be aware that, due to the current public health situation, many countries have implemented strict screening procedures in order to prevent the spread of the virus and you may be subject to quarantine procedures implemented by the local authorities.

 

WHY ARE U.S. CASE NUMBERS SO LOW?

 

Some readers may be wondering why reported coronavirus infection numbers in the U.S. are so low, when cases are now being reported in more than 30 countries, as well as the fact that inbound travel restrictions and quarantine measures exist only for those traveling from or through China?

 

Lets look at some related numbers:

 

The CDC estimates that from October 1, 2019, through February 15, 2020, there have been at least 29,000,000 flu illnesses, 280,000 flu hospitalizations, and at least 16,000 deaths. As there are problems with the coronavirus test developed by the CDC, only three of the more than 100 public health labs across the country are able to test for the coronavirus in addition to the CDC’s headquarters in Atlanta. This delay in producing a reliable test has, in turn, delayed CDC’s plan to screen samples collected by its national flu-surveillance network. Given this inability to properly conduct tests on patients in a timely manner, many scientists, public health officials and health workers believe there are likely a much higher number of coronavirus infections lurking in the U.S., and may also account for some of the deaths.

 

MAJOR OUTBREAKS IN ITALY AND IRAN

 

On Friday, AlertsUSA subscribers were also notified of a Health Alert issued by the US Embassy in Rome, Italy warning of an outbreak of COVID-19 in the north of the country. In this developing situation, authorities put ten towns on lockdown after a cluster of cases was located in a handful of small towns in the Lombardy region. The first to fall ill from the virus was a 38-year-old Italian who met with someone who had returned from China on January 21. The latest confirmed case count stands at 38, along with 2 deaths.

 

Iran on Saturday ordered the closure of schools, universities and cultural centers after a coronavirus outbreak that has killed five people in the Islamic republic. The COVID-19 outbreak in Iran first surfaced on Wednesday, when authorities said it claimed the lives of two elderly people in Qom, a Shiite holy city south of the capital. The latest confirmed case count stands at 38.

 

CHINA STILL SAYS NO

 

As of the time of this report’s preparation on Friday (2/21), China continues to rebuff offers by the Centers for Disease Control to send teams of specialists to help both in their response, as well as to learn more about the nature of this virus.

 

OFFICIAL CASE NUMBERS

 

As of the time of this report’s preparation on Friday (2/21), official World Health Organization case numbers (which are widely believed to be underreported by China) are as follows:

Globally

76,796 confirmed (1021 new)

China (numbers widely believed to be underreported.)

75,569 confirmed (894 new)
2,239 deaths (118 new)

Outside of China

1200 confirmed (127 new)
26 countries
8 deaths

 

WHO RISK ASSESSMENT

 

China Very High
Regional Level High
Global Level High

Official CDC case numbers for the the U.S. are as follows:

Travel Related 12
Person-to-Person 2
Total Tested 414

According to the CDC, these numbers represents cases detected and tested in the United States through U.S. public health surveillance systems since January 21, 2020. It does not include people who returned to the U.S. via State Department-chartered flights.

 

Acknowledged states with confirmed cases:

 

Washington
California
Arizona
Wisconsin
Illinois
Massachusetts
Texas

 

Also Worth Noting:

 

The following is from Dr. Nancy Messonnier, Director for the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, during a CDC Telebriefing Update on COVID-19 on Friday, February 21, 2020.

“We’re not seeing spread here in the United States yet, but it is possible, even likely, that it may eventually happen. Our goal continues to be slowing the introduction of the virus into the U.S. This buys us more time to prepare our communities for more cases and possibly sustained spread. This new virus represents a tremendous public health threat. We don’t yet have a vaccine for this novel virus, nor do we have a medicine to treat it specifically. We are taking and will continue to take aggressive action to reduce the impact of this virus, that it will have on the communities in the U.S. we are working with state, local, and territorial health departments to ready our public health work force to respond to local cases and the possibility this outbreak could become a pandemic.”

 

Additional Coronavirus News Items

Asymptomatic Wuhan woman shows why outbreak ‘will be hard to stop’
Trump furious after infected AMCITS allowed to fly home with other passengers
Chinese study finds COVID-19 virus more contagious than SARS or MERS
Moon: virus spread in local communities ‘very severe’
Amid Coronavirus, the World Closes Its Doors to China: ‘I Feel So Isolated’
China deploys 40 incinerators to Wuhan amid fears of death toll ‘cover up’
China Turns to Health-Rating Apps to Control Movements During Outbreak
As Cases Mount, Japan Is Rapidly Becoming a Coronavirus Hotbed
‘Bureaucrats were in charge’: Japanese doctor blasts ship quarantine
Coronavirus Has U.S. Cities Stretching to Monitor Self-Quarantined Americans
Coronavirus Patient Reinfected 10 Days After Leaving Hospital
Dissent becomes the next victim of coronavirus as China cracks down
Coronavirus ‘lab leakage’ rumors spreading
Global efforts to develop vaccines, drugs to fight the coronavirus
China changes method of counting virus infected… again
Two Diamond Princess passengers die after coronavirus quarantine
South Korean city on high alert as coronavirus cases soar at ‘cult’ church
Coronavirus in N Korea could be ‘much more lethal’ than in China
Coronavirus ‘could cost global economy $1.1tn in lost income’.
How the coronavirus spread around the world
Two die of coronavirus in Iran, first fatalities in Middle East

If you want to keep up in real time consider:

 

AlertsUSA.com

OTHER SMS ALERTS FROM THIS WEEK
NOT DETAILED IN THIS NEWSLETTER ISSUE

 

2/19 – Germany: Shootings at 2 hookah bars in Hanau, 15 miles east of Frankfurt. At least 8 killed, 5 injured. Multiple shooters remain at large. AlertsUSA monitoring.

 

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* Threat Info Direct to Your Mobile Device
* Get Away Early, Give Your Family Extra Safety.
* In Wide Use By Gov, 1st Responders, Travelers.
* 24/7/365 Monitoring. No Hype. Just the Bad Stuff.
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* On your Cell Phone, Tablet or Email.
* We Give The Clear Truth, Unlike the MSM.
* 18 Years in Operation!

We are NOT part of the government.
In fact, they are our customers!

 

Start now to make sure you are staying prepared.

 

via: AlertsUSA.com


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February 25th, 2020
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How to Make Your Own Cold Medicines at Home Using Herbs

When it comes to dealing with colds and the flu, most of us treat the symptoms and try to get through it. I’ve been reflecting on this a lot lately because of the outbreak of the novel Coronavirus (nCoV). We have many herbal remedies that apply to the cold and flu and this virus, but most people don’t know or don’t use them.

And most of the useful commercial treatments have disappeared from the store shelves. For example, I used excellent echinacea and zinc throat lozenges that worked like a charm. I can’t find them anymore. I can buy echinacea lozenges or zinc lozenges, but not the combination.

Prepare Now for Cold and Flu Season

A bad flu is going around my area and my son caught it. I was out of town at the time. It occurred to me then that my knowledge was useless to him.

I should have prepared my remedies before the flu season began, so that I could quickly point him to the right remedies, even from hundreds of miles away. Having your treatments in stock, prepared, and ready to use is essential when an outbreak happens.

Preventing Illnesses, Cold, and Flu

Boost your Immune System

Boosting your immune system can prevent infection, even when household members are sick. If you do get sick, your immune system has a head start and your illness may be less severe. If you begin taking herbs to boost your immune system before the flu season starts, you have a big head start in defeating the virus.

Many herbs boost the immune system. I take these when an illness is going around and throughout the flu season: Echinacea, Astragalus Root, Ashwagandha, Elderberry, Ginger, Garlic, cinnamon, and Turmeric. These herbs and spices can be taken in tea, as a cold remedy (see recipes below), or as a supplement. I also take Vitamin C and Vitamin D, which boost the immune system.

Disinfect Skin and Surfaces

Doctors are adamant that hand washing is your best defense against catching a cold. What they usually don’t mention is that you need to be serious about your hand washing. Wash with soap for 20 seconds, rubbing your skin together. Twenty seconds is the equivalent of singing Happy Birthday twice. Time Baby Shark or another popular song for your kids’ hand washing serenade.

For disinfecting surfaces, bleach water is in widespread use. One-quarter cup of bleach in a gallon of water, freshly made, is sufficient. However, I prefer to use vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. Either alone is a good disinfectant, but when you use them together, they are dynamite against bacteria and viruses. I put spray nozzles on each bottle and spray one, then the other on the surface. Leave it to dry naturally, if possible. Use this combination on all surfaces that are touched often. Both vinegar and hydrogen peroxide are safe for kids and pets.

Treat Infection with Antibiotic and Antiviral Herbs

If you’ve come down sick with the flu or a cold, it is time to increase your herbs. Continue taking your immune-boosting herbs, but add antibiotic and antiviral herbs. My favorite here is Oil of Oregano, but many others work just as well, including my favorites: horseradish, cat’s claw, licorice root, elderberry, and nettle leaf. Take these herbs as a tea, infusion, syrup, or supplement.

Treat the Symptoms

Treat the symptoms to keep your patient comfortable. This can include inhaling the steam and drinking chamomile tea for general cold symptoms and to clear the nasal passages. Eucalyptus is excellent for clearing a stuffy nose, also. Put it in boiling water and breathe the steam, or rub a little eucalyptus ointment under your nose and on the chest to clear congestion.

For sore throats, tea with honey and lemon is lovely. Echinacea and zinc suppress the infection and soothes the throat. My choir director swears by gargling cayenne in water for a sore throat. I can’t tolerate the heat of cayenne, so I haven’t tried it, but my son says it works for him. I do use a little cayenne in my Cold and Flu Vinegar.

Keep Taking the Herbs

You may feel fully recovered, but your body still needs time to heal completely. Continue taking your herbs for another week or two to prevent relapse and build your body strength.

Cold and Flu Remedy Recipes:

Cold and Flu Vinegar

This vinegar is also good taken daily to reduce inflammation.

  • 1/2 large red onion, chopped fine
  • Two heads garlic, chopped fine
  • 1/4 cup fresh ginger root, grated
  • 1/4 cup fresh turmeric root, grated
  • 1/8 cup fresh horseradish root, grated
  • 1/8 cup fresh thyme, chopped
  • One fresh cayenne pepper, more or less to taste tolerance
  • 1-quart raw, unpasteurized apple cider vinegar

1. Put all the herbs in a clean and sterilized quart jar with a tight-fitting lid. Fill the jar with unpasteurized apple cider vinegar. All herbs should be covered entirely by the vinegar.
2. Seal the jar tightly and place it in a warm place, like a sunny window.
3. Steep the herbs and vinegar for four weeks, shaking the jar daily.
4. Strain out the herbs or leave them in and consume them with the vinegar.
5. Consume a tablespoon daily during cold and flu season.

Cold and Flu Tea

I use this tea as a base for other herbs when needed for specific symptoms.

  • 3-4 slices fresh ginger with the skin
  • One tea bag, herbal, green, or black tea; Chamomile is also good
  • Cayenne powder to taste, as hot as you can stand it
  • Honey to taste

1. Bring the fresh ginger to a boil in 1 to 2 cups of water. Simmer for 20 minutes, then remove the ginger slices.
2. Steep the teabag in the ginger water for 5 to 8 minutes, or to your liking.
3. Add the cayenne powder as hot as can be tolerated. Cayenne induces sweating. You can leave it out if fever is not present.
4. Add honey to taste. Drink 3 to 4 times daily.

Cold and Sore Throat Honey
  • 1 cup raw honey
  • 1/8 cup powdered echinacea
  • 1/8 cup powdered elderberry

1. Place the honey and herbs into a dry, sterile jar.
2. Place the jar into the top of a double boiler and heat gently.
3. Simmer over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes. Do not let the honey boil or burn.
4. Stir the honey, remove from the heat and cool.
5. When completely cooled, seal the jar and store in a cool, dark place.
6. Use immediately or let the herbs steep in the honey before using it.
7. Give ½ to 1 teaspoon every two hours, as needed.
*Do not give honey to babies or young children.

Herbal Steam Inhalation

  • 4 cups of water
  • The herbal combination of your choice, see below
  • Large towel

1. In a large glass or ceramic bowl, add a handful of your herbs and pour in the boiling water.
2. Place your face over the bowl and throw the towel over your head. Caution: hold your head far enough away to avoid burning your face.
3. Inhale the steam for 10 minutes or more.
*Herbs can also be used in a steam vaporizer or boiled in water, strained, and used in a cold vaporizer.
*You can also use essential oils for steam inhalation.

Herbal Mixtures:
  • Eucalyptus and Sage
  • Thyme, Sage, Rosemary, and Peppermint
  • Ginger, Orange peel, and mint
  • Lavender

Another game changer is Black Seed Oil. When there are stomach issues as well, you could add black seed oil. Black seed oil boosts the immune system like echinacea, but doesn’t make the autoimmune system react if you already have an autoimmune problem.

Standardized Echinacea capsule every fourth day as a preventative has shown to help prevent respiratory virus infections in some.

 

There many more effective herbs that I have not mentioned here. I tried to use herbs that are readily available everywhere. The point is to be proactive during cold and flu season so that you don’t have to suffer.

 

Start now to make sure you are staying prepared.

 

via:  askaprepper, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov


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Disaster, Economy, Herbs, Medical, Prepper, Recipes, Security, Virus, Vitamins , , ,
February 19th, 2020
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US military prepping for coronavirus pandemic

U.S. Northern Command is executing plans to prepare for a potential pandemic of the novel coronavirus, now called COVID19, according to Navy and Marine Corps service-wide messages issued this week.

An executive order issued by the Joint Staff and approved by Defense Secretary Mark Esper this month directed Northern Command and geographic combatant commanders to initiate pandemic plans, which include ordering commanders to prepare for widespread outbreaks and confining service members with a history of travel to China.

The Navy and Marine Corps messages, issued, reference an executive order directing U.S. Northern Command to implement the Department of Defense Global Campaign plan for Pandemic Influenza and Infectious Diseases 3551-13.

The document serves as the Pentagon’s blueprint for planning and preparing for widespread dispersion of influenza and previously unknown diseases.

U.S. Northern Command said Wednesday it was directed the Joint Staff Feb. 1 to commence “prudent planning” in their assigned role synchronizing the department’s plans for pandemic flu and disease.

But in no way “does the planning indicate a greater likelihood of an event developing. As military professionals, planning for a range of contingencies is something we owe the American people,” Navy Lt. Cmdr. Mike Hatfield said.

“We coordinate with other combatant commands to assess potential impacts in the event of a pandemic and we ensure the U.S. military is poised to respond as required,” Hatfield said in a statement. “The military profession fosters a culture of planning, and the fact that we are coordinating planning efforts across the geographical combatant commands is consistent with how we prepare to respond, if directed.”

According to the Marine Corps message MARADMIN 082/20, commanders are to review their disease containment plans and take “preparatory and precautionary actions” to protect service members, installations and ships.

This includes ensuring that the plans contain procedures for “response, isolation, quarantine, restriction of movement and community based intervention” as well as developing measures to contain and treat those possibly exposed.

U.S. Marshal Service and local law enforcement agencies provided security for the federal quarantine ordered at March Air Reserve Base by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Jan. 31. (David Sherman)

First group of US coronavirus evacuees from China leaving quarantine after 2 weeks

The Marine Corps’ mission, according to the message, is to “prepare for potential outbreaks of [COVID19].” The service must “mitigate, respond, and recover from the effects in order to maintain force readiness.”

COVID19, the flu-like virus that originated in Wuhan, China, is now responsible for killing more than 1,100 people and sickening at least 45,000. While the rate of new cases has fallen in the past several days in Wuhan and Hubei province, the death toll continues to climb, topping more than 100 in a single day in China.

The number of cases in the U.S. was at 15.

DoD 3551-13 calls for preparing for a pandemic and ensuring open lines of communication in the community, diseases surveillance and detection, response and containment.

According to the service messages, military commanders have been asked to confine any service member who has been to China since Feb. 2 to their residences or, if they live in an open barracks or share a bathroom with others, restrict them to a temporary lodging facility for 14 days.

The restricted service members will be assessed daily for fever by medical personnel by phone or in person and wear protective gear if they personally conduct the medical checks, according to the messages. Should they display symptoms, they must seek medical attention, but call their military treatment facility first to inform them of their travel.

The Marine Corps message advises civilian employees and contractors, as well as any family members returning from China, to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance to detect the virus and prevent its spread, which include voluntarily remaining at home, limiting close contact with people and animals, self-monitoring and seeking medical care if symptoms develop.

The Navy has included visits to Hong Kong and Macau as part of its directive and gives commanders the flexibility to decide whether they need to confine a service member who has had close contact with a person who has traveled to the region.

The Marine Corps also has told commanders to work with military treatment facilities on developing and executing any response and stay up-to-date on CDC guidance regarding the virus.

The Army issued a service-wide message Jan. 31 on the coronavirus advising its members on the illness’s symptoms and instructing them on reducing their risk of catching the infection. The message was issued the same day the Pentagon released an advisory about how service members can reduce the risk of catching the disease.

It does not publicly release its service-wide messages and has not issued any since the executive order.

The Air Force does not publicly disclose its service-wide messages.

Since the outbreak began in late December, individual commands, especially those in Asia, have enforced confinement of service members with a travel history to China. Earlier this month, U.S. Forces Korea began confining troops who had traveled to China for 14 days.

Also earlier this month, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command restricted all Defense Department travel to mainland China and recalled all travelers to the country home.

Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said Monday that the likelihood of more cases being diagnosed in the U.S. of COVID19 is high, but added that the chance of contracting the disease outside China remains low.

She said the biggest infectious disease threat to the American public this year remains the influenza virus, which has sickened more than 22 million and killed at least 12,000.

Precautions against the coronavirus, which include hand-washing, staying home if ill and sneezing or coughing into a tissue or sleeve, also cut down on flu transmission.

“We are taking all appropriate precautionary measures to prevent any potential spread of the virus,” U.S. Forces Korea commander Army Gen. Robert Abrams Feb. 2. “Key for everyone is to follow standard hygiene protocols, and if not feeling well — get screened ASAP!”


Start now to make sure you are staying prepared.


via:  militarytimes


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February 6th, 2020
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Coronavirus may have originated in lab linked to China’s biowarfare program

The deadly animal-borne coronavirus spreading globally may have originated in a laboratory in the city of Wuhan linked to China’s covert biological weapons program, said an Israeli biological warfare analyst.

Radio Free Asia last week rebroadcast a Wuhan television report from 2015 showing China’s most advanced virus research laboratory, known the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The laboratory is the only declared site in China capable of working with deadly viruses.

Dany Shoham, a former Israeli military intelligence officer who has studied Chinese biological warfare, said the institute is linked to Beijing’s covert bio-weapons program.

“Certain laboratories in the institute have probably been engaged, in terms of research and development, in Chinese [biological weapons], at least collaterally, yet not as a principal facility of the Chinese BW alignment,” Mr. Shoham told The Washington Times.

Work on biological weapons is conducted as part of dual civilian-military research and is “definitely covert,” he said in an email.

Mr. Shoham holds a doctorate in medical microbiology. From 1970 to 1991, he was a senior analyst with Israeli military intelligence for biological and chemical warfare in the Middle East and worldwide. He held the rank of lieutenant colonel.

China has denied having any offensive biological weapons, but a State Department report last year revealed suspicions of covert biological warfare work.

A Chinese Embassy spokesman did not return an email seeking comment.

Chinese authorities said they do not know the origin of the coronavirus, which has killed hundreds and infected many thousands more.

Gao Fu, director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told state-controlled media that initial signs indicated the virus originated from wild animals sold at a seafood market in Wuhan.

One ominous sign, said a U.S. official, is that false rumors circulating on the Chinese internet claim the virus is part of a U.S. conspiracy to spread germ weapons. That could indicate China is preparing propaganda outlets to counter any charges that the new coronavirus escaped from one of Wuhan’s civilian or defense research laboratories.

The World Health Organization is calling the microbe novel coronavirus 2019-nCoV. At a meeting Thursday in Geneva, the organization stopped short of declaring a public health emergency of international concern.

China has deployed military forces to Wuhan to halt all travel out of the city of 11 million people in an effort to contain the outbreak of the virus, which causes pneumonialike symptoms.

The Wuhan institute has studied coronaviruses including the strain that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), H5N1 influenza virus, Japanese encephalitis and dengue. Researchers at the institute also have studied the germ that causes anthrax, a biological agent once developed in Russia.

“Coronaviruses [particularly SARS] have been studied in the institute and are probably held therein,” Mr. Shoham said. “SARS is included within the Chinese BW program, at large, and is dealt with in several pertinent facilities.”

It is not known whether the institute’s coronaviruses are specifically included in China’s biological weapons program but it is possible, he said.

Asked whether the new coronavirus may have leaked, Mr. Shoham said: “In principle, outward virus infiltration might take place either as leakage or as an indoor unnoticed infection of a person that normally went out of the concerned facility. This could have been the case with the Wuhan Institute of Virology, but so far there isn’t evidence or indication for such incident.”

After researchers sequence the genome of the new coronavirus, they might be able to determine or suggest its origin or source.

Biological weapons convention

Mr. Shoham, now with the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Bar Ilan University in Israel, said the virology institute is the only declared site in China known as P4 for pathogen level 4. That status indicates the institute uses the strictest safety standards to prevent the spread of the most dangerous and exotic microbes being studied.

The former Israeli military intelligence doctor also said suspicions were raised about the Wuhan Institute of Virology when a group of Chinese virologists working in Canada improperly sent to China samples of what he described as some of the deadliest viruses on earth, including the Ebola virus.

In a July article in the journal Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses, Mr. Shoham said the Wuhan institute was one of four Chinese laboratories engaged in some aspects of biological weapons development.

He said the secure Wuhan National Biosafety Laboratory at the institute was engaged in research on the Ebola, Nipah and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever viruses.

The Wuhan virology institute is under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, but certain laboratories within it “have linkage with the PLA or BW-related elements within the Chinese defense establishment,” he said.

In 1993, China declared a second facility, the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products, as one of eight biological warfare research facilities covered by the Biological Weapons Convention, which China joined in 1985.

The Wuhan Institute of Biological Products is a civilian facility but is linked to the Chinese defense establishment. Mr. Shoham said it is thought to be involved in the Chinese Biological Weapons Convention program. China’s vaccine against SARS is probably produced there.

“This means the SARS virus is held and propagated there, but it is not a new coronavirus unless the wild type has been modified, which is not known and cannot be speculated at the moment,” he said.

The annual State Department report on arms treaty compliance stated last year that China engaged in activities that could support biological warfare.

“Information indicates that the People’s Republic of China engaged during the reporting period in biological activities with potential dual-use applications, which raises concerns regarding its compliance with the BWC,” said the report, adding that the United States suspects China failed to eliminate its biological warfare program as required by the treaty.

“The United States has compliance concerns with respect to Chinese military medical institutions’ toxin research and development because of the potential dual-use applications and their potential as a biological threat,” the report said.

The biosafety lab is about 20 miles from the Hunan Seafood Market, which reports from China say may have been the origin point of the virus.

Rutgers University microbiologist Richard Ebright told London’s Daily Mail that “at this point there’s no reason to harbor suspicions” that the lab may be linked to the virus outbreak.


Start now to make sure you are staying prepared.



via:  washingtontimes,


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February 5th, 2020
post by policysup | | 0

Pentagon to provide housing support to HHS for evacuees over coronavirus concerns

Defense officials say all the care, transport and security will come from HHS.

The Defense Department on Saturday approved housing support for up to 1,000 people should they need to be quarantined upon return from their overseas travel due to the coronavirus outbreak, according to a statement.

Officials from the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) requested DOD to provide several facilities capable of housing at least 250 people in individual rooms through the end of the month.

“DOD personnel will not be directly in contact with the evacuees and evacuees will not have access to any base location other than their assigned housing,” the statement said. “In accordance with [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines, all evacuees will be monitored for a period of 14 days.”

As has been the case at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County, California — where the first planeload of evacuees were taken — the military will only provide housing support.

All care, transport and security will come directly from HHS, Jonathan Rath Hoffman, Defense Secretary Mark Esper’s assistant for public affairs, wrote on Twitter.

He added that the help will not negatively impact readiness or critical operations.

image

“Should routine monitoring of the evacuees identify ill individuals, HHS has procedures in place to transport them to a local civilian hospital,” the DOD statement said.

The four military installations that may be utilized by HHS are:

  • Centennial Regional Training Institute (168th regiment) in Fort Carson, Colorado
  • Travis Air Force Base near Fairfield, California
  • Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas
  • Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, California

    “The department’s primary responsibility is the safety of our force, our families and our base communities,” Hoffman wrote.

image

This also when a Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan quarantined after passenger diagnosed with coronaviru with over 2,666 guests and 1,045 crew members on board.

 

Even still, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates 10,000 to 25,000 people died of flu in the US from October 1, 2019 through January 25.

 

‘Coronavirus’ Threat? Yet 15 MILLION people are now INFECTED with something else.

 

Start now to make sure you are staying prepared.

 

via:  abcnews


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