Reddit users protest misinformation, pediatric cases trend upward, and countries change travel advisories. Here’s what you should know:
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Reddit moderators protest the rise of Covid misinformation online
In the past week, dozens of Reddit moderators coordinated a blackout to protest the company’s lax policies on Covid disinformation, making their subreddits private and posting messages critical of the platform. Reddit initially responded with statements about the importance of free speech, but on Wednesday reversed course and quarantined 54 Covid-denial subreddits, adding more hoops people need to jump through to join and limiting the spread of content. It also banned /r/NoNewNormal, a large subreddit that has been quarantined since mid-August for spamming other communities with falsehoods about the virus.
One instance of misinformation that has propagated on Reddit and elsewhere is the trend of vaccine-hesitant people taking ivermectin, an antiparasitic commonly used in livestock, to treat or prevent the disease. While the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have warned against using the drug, which has not proven to be a remedy and can cause severe illness, just this week podcast host Joe Rogan said he took it after testing positive for Covid-19.
Pediatric cases continue to rise, to the concern of parents and officials
Last week, children accounted for 22.4 percent of weekly reported Covid-19 cases in the US, and the rate of cases among kids is rising. Coupled with the start of the school year and a surge of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) cases, there’s mounting concern about the urgency of protecting children, especially as pediatric hospitals experience an “unprecedented strain.” The CDC has recommended universal indoor masking for all students, teachers, staff, and visitors at schools, regardless of vaccination status. And the US Department of Education is investigating five states over concerns that their mask mandate bans could be discriminatory against students with disabilities and health conditions that make them more vulnerable to Covid-19.
As pediatric cases rise, some parents, physicians, and scientists have been debating the ethics of vaccinating kids by prescribing shots “off-label,” or offering a drug for a reason or to a group not studied during the approval process. Now that Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine has full FDA approval, this may be possible—but most experts and officials strongly discourage it.
Changing restrictions and a holiday weekend impact travel
Earlier this week, the European Union voted to change its travel restrictions, notably removing the US from its list of safe countries for nonessential travel. These are recommendations, and it’s up to individual member nations to decide whether and how to enforce them. The change will most likely affect unvaccinated Americans. The US has yet to reopen its doors to tourists from the EU, and the CDC added seven new places to its list of highest-risk destinations this week, including Switzerland and Puerto Rico. The agency has also urged Americans to be cautious this holiday weekend, particularly those who are unvaccinated.
All of the changing protocols and uncertainty surrounding pandemic travel have been a boon for one industry: travel advisers. A recent survey of American tourists found that roughly 17 percent were likely to get professional help booking a trip for the first time when the pandemic is over.
Daily Distraction
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Something to Read
Decades ago, evolutionary biologist Richard Lewontin made waves studying the genetic overlap between different racial groups, and concluded that many of the differences that define us in society aren’t reflected in our DNA. Lewontin may have passed away this summer, but his work is enduringly relevant.
Sanity Check
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One Question
Why did Florida’s Covid surge screw with its water supply?
The pandemic is worse than it’s ever been in Florida. And last week the Tampa Bay water utility announced that, with so much liquid oxygen going to hospitals’ Covid wards, it wasn’t able to properly treat its water; the plant’s supply had been reduced by about half. Liquid oxygen is used in two ways: to disinfect water and to keep it from smelling terrible. Officials insist that the quality of drinking water remains safe. But they may substitute something else for oxygen to improve the water’s smell, and have encouraged people to limit water use as the pandemic rages. The one other thing Floridians can do to improve the situation, if they haven’t already? Go get vaccinated.
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