NEW YORK (THE CONVERSATION/AP)- An estimated 24,000 to 62,000 people died from the flu in the United States during the 2019-20 flu season. And that was a relatively mild flu season, which typically starts in October and peaks between December and February. The latest computer model predicts 300,000 deaths from COVID-19 by Dec. 1. With the advent of flu […]

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Israel’s coronavirus “czar” (project manager) Prof. Ronny Gamzu issued an unequivocal statement Saturday night, stating that “There will be no flights to Uman. Period.” However Gamzu is well aware of the determination of the Breslav chasidim as well as thousands of others who join the annual pilgrimage to Uman. The Chareidi MKs […]

LEIPZIG (VINnews) — German scientists performed a novel simulation experiment in order to assess the risk of transmission of coronavirus at mass indoor events. The experiment, dubbed Restart-19, which was organized by the University Hospital of Halle, involved simulating a live concert venue with thousands of participants taking place in three different scenarios in order […]

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Their final breaths are tormented. Rublas Ruiz has seen too many of them — the last gasps of 17 men and women who died of the coronavirus. A 41-year-old ICU nurse in Miami’s Kendall Regional Medical Center, Ruiz has witnessed the desperate, pleading, wide-eyed, barely there gasps. “The fear in […]

In new book 'The Better Half' Dr. Sharon Moalem says genes, not behavior, responsible for women's increased longevity and immune response, but also heighten effects of 'Long Covid'

NEW YORK (JTA) – As hospitals care for people with COVID-19 and try to keep others from catching the virus, more patients are opting to be treated where they feel safest: at home. Across the U.S., “hospital at home” programs are taking off amid the pandemic, thanks to communications technology, portable medical equipment and teams […]

NEW YORK (AP)- Airbnb is banning house parties worldwide as it tries to clean up its reputation and comply with coronavirus-related limits on gatherings. The San Francisco-based home sharing company said it will limit occupancy in its rental homes to 16 people. It may offer exceptions for boutique hotels or other event venues. Airbnb said […]

JERUSALEM (VINNews) — Supreme Court judge Dafna Barak-Erez ordered Prime Minister Netanyahu, the Israeli government and the Jewish Agency to respond to a petition demanding that Israel act in order to bring the  of Rabbi Nachman of Breslav to Israel. The petition was presented by Sharon Shelzer, the director of the Committee for Bringing Rabbi […]

NEW YORK (JTA) – Over the past week, the reports have come fast and furious. One overnight sports camp for boys in Pennsylvania had an outbreak of COVID-19, sending eight boys back to their home communities on Long Island and several more to Baltimore, where others had contracted the virus after attending weddings or coming […]

JERUSALEM (VINNews) — The lack of a budget has hurt much of Israeli society, including the yeshivas, kollels and avreichim (married students). Without yet having passed the 2020  budget, the state of Israel is operating on a budget based on numbers from 2018, since the last budget was passed in that year, and 2019 was […]