From ProPublica:

Most ER providers in the U.S. work for staffing companies that have contracts with hospitals. Those staffing companies are losing revenue as hospitals postpone elective procedures and non-coronavirus patients avoid emergency rooms. Health insurers are processing claims more slowly as they adapt to a remote workforce.

[…]

[A memo from Alteon Health, a major hospital staffing company] announced that the company would be reducing hours for clinicians, cutting pay for administrative employees by 20%, and suspending 401(k) matches, bonuses and paid time off. Holtzclaw indicated that the measures were temporary but didn’t know how long they would last.

From The Boston Globe:

Emergency room doctors at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center have been told some of their accrued pay is being held back. More than 1,100 Atrius Health physicians and staffers are facing reduced paychecks or unpaid furloughs, while pay raises for medical staff at South Shore Health, set for April, are being delayed.

From Twitter, which is what lead me down this wormhole in the first place:

My dad’s an ER doctor. He just got off of a conference call. His hospital is cutting his salary - and everyone else’s that works on the front lines - because they’re losing money from non-COVID patients.

Cutting medical personnels’ salaries right now. I mean... what the fuck?

— Cameron Beach (@CameronNBeach) April 3, 2020

Good thing we paid billions in bailouts to airlines and other corporations. Granted, the coronavirus stimulus bill did provide $100 billion for hospitals and healthcare providers, but it seems that none of that is trickling down to the people on the front lines keeping us alive. Read the rest

A gentleman in Quebec has fun purposely coughing on a debit machine at a drive-thru restaurant window, and his passenger laughs at his witty behavior. It was posted on Facebook, which is how the video ended up in the hands of police, but has since been deleted. The police have yet to approach the fellow. Although the coronavirus brings out the best in most people, there are always a few morons amongst us.

Jeune homme qui tousse sur un terminal Interac avant de le remettre au commis: la police de Repentigny affirme avoir transféré ce dossier à la Sûreté du Québec. #Covid_19 pic.twitter.com/JYjEqv0Mlg

— Félix Séguin (@felixseguin) April 5, 2020

Via Vice Read the rest

Impeached and manifestly unfit U.S. President Donald John Trump stopped the U.S. medical expert Dr. Anthony Fauci from answering a question about hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug Trump is pushing, during Trump's daily COVID-19 standup act in front of the cameras. In a surreal disinformation briefing, this was an especially surreal moment. Read the rest

This 'rona GIF has me screaming. Read the rest

British Prime minister Boris Johnson, hospitalized with "persistent symptoms" of coronavirus infection, is reportedly "in good spirits" but has to stay there for more tests.

The prime minister's official spokesman said he remained in hospital "under observation", and described Russian reports that Mr Johnson had been placed on a ventilator as "disinformation".

He is continuing to receive updates and briefings in hospital, the spokesman added.

As an exercise in media studies, what might "in good spirits" be a Britishy euphemism for?

ANSWER: Drunk or otherwise intoxicated. Jesus, what did you think it meant? Read the rest

Individuals from 26 different countries share one nice thing about how they are spending their time during coronavirus shutdown. A lovely video by Joe Sabia and Aaron Rasmussen, who are based in New York, and keeping the positivity alive.

[video link] Read the rest

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who tested positive for coronavirus 10 days ago and has remained in isolation since, was today hospitalized for treatment of "persistent symptoms." He is still formally in charge of the government, but the BBC reports that Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will be chairing Monday's cabinet meeting. Read the rest

Amazon.com is in touch with CEOs of two companies that produce coronavirus tests about plans to screen workers to reduce the risk of COVID-19 outbreaks at its warehouses, Reuters reports, citing leaked internal meeting notes. Read the rest

Scientists say that traces of SARS-CoV-2 genetic material -- viral RNA -- in the poo we flush down the toilet and into the sewage system might reveal how badly coronavirus has hit a given community.

Analyzing sewage could show the true scale of an outbreak, in the absence of available testing, they say. Read the rest

Even tho they are only updated once a day (at most) I check, check and re-check 91-divoc and the IHME COVID-19 Projections.

The linear scale graphs on 91-divoc have given me the best picture of 'is the curve flattening' for the regions I watch. Tribalism runs rampant during Trump's Pandemic and I am naturally more focused on the regions where my loved ones live.

IHME's projections give me an idea about what to expect based on data and models they've explained and I can trust. What comes out of the Orange one's mouth is useless.

Please help me add to my list... Read the rest

NEW: After weeks of internal White House debate, finally the U.S. Centers for Disease control will 'recommend,' but not require, that people wear face coverings or improvised cloth masks if they go out in public.

The CDC will soon advise the American people to wear masks in public to stem the spread of coronavirus. This is a complete reversal of policy change, well into an still-uncontrolled disease outbreak.

Lives will be lost because of this policy bungling. Read the rest

Wow. That's all I can manage to get out of my keyboard, I'm so astonished by how gorgeous and dedicated this wonderful crafted popsicle stick house is. Read the rest

Amazon will delay its annual marketing and money-making Prime Day due to the coronavirus pandemic. Read the rest

Impeached president and serial liar Donald John Trump said on Thursday that he has been tested for COVID-19 for a second time, and again received negative results.

Trump this time took the newer, rapid point-of-care test and called it "more pleasant" than the first.

Seems legit.

President Trump says he tested negative for coronavirus using a rapid diagnostic that produced a result in less than 15 minutes https://t.co/p55evbARs2 pic.twitter.com/YRBhhz5LUs

— Reuters (@Reuters) April 3, 2020

"I think I took it really out of curiosity to see how quickly it worked."

President Donald Trump said he tested negative for Covid-19 for the second time yesterday. He used a rapid test that gave a result in less than 15 minutes. pic.twitter.com/FhafxC5TYI

— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) April 3, 2020

More at NBC News. Read the rest

Canada's prime minister Justin Trudeau says the country has signed an agreement with Amazon.com for the distribution of critical emergency medical supplies such as masks, face shields, gowns, ventilators, and test kits in the COVID-19 crisis. Read the rest