Coronavirus News

California Will Provide $500M in Virus Aid for Small Businesses

California will provide temporary tax relief and $500 million in aid to small businesses struggling because of coronavirus outbreak restrictions, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday. The tax measures include a three-month automatic extension of the income tax payment deadline for …

Virus Outbreak Reported Among Animals and Staff at Oregon Mink Farm

An Oregon mink farm has reported an outbreak of COVID-19 among animals and staff. The Statesman Journal reports the farm has been placed under quarantine, meaning no animals or animal products can leave the farm. The state has not said …

Human Nature Thwarts Widespread Use of Apps Tracking Coronavirus Exposure

The app builders had planned for pranksters, ensuring that only people with verified COVID-19 cases could trigger an alert. They’d planned for heavy criticism about privacy, in many cases making the features as bare-bones as possible. But, as more states …

An Emerging Risk of COVID-19 Pandemic: Rusty Pilots Making Flying Errors

On Sept. 15, an Indonesian flight carrying 307 passengers and 11 crew to the northern city of Medan momentarily veered off the runway after landing, sparking an investigation by the country’s transport safety regulator. It found the pilot had flown …

D.C. Postpones All P/C Insurance Rate Increases During COVID Crisis

The Washington D.C. Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB) issued a new insurance bulletin to notify all property and casualty insurers that for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic, all filed rate increases will be postponed, effective immediately. The …

Trials Delayed, Cases Pile Up as Too Few Jurors Show Up Amid Coronavirus

Jury duty notices have set Nicholas Philbrook’s home on edge with worries about him contracting the coronavirus and passing it on to his father-in-law, a cancer survivor with diabetes in his mid-70s who is at higher risk of developing serious …

Europeans Buy Older Cars to Avoid Public Transport During Pandemic

LONDON/MADRID – Want a cheap used car to nip around town without running the gauntlet of coronavirus on public transport? Welcome to Pandemic Motors, we have just what you need. Across Europe, people are snapping up old bangers, clunkers, Klapperkasten, …

California OKs Workers’ Comp Advisory Rates, No Virus Adjustment for Now

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has adopted and issued a revised average advisory pure premium rate, lowering the benchmark to $1.45 per $100 of payroll for workers’ compensation insurance, effective Jan. 1, 2021. This marks the tenth consecutive reduction to …

Next Virus Shutdown May Cost Washington Restaurants $800M

A four-week shutdown on indoor service at restaurants and bars prompted by an alarming statewide spike in COVID-19 cases is expected to cost the industry some $800 million, a representative said Monday. Anthony Anton, chief executive of the Washington Hospitality …

COVID-19 Vaccines Could Be Sent to States Within 24 Hours of FDA’s OK: Official

The first Americans could receive a COVID-19 vaccine as soon as Dec. 11, the chief scientific adviser for the U.S. government’s vaccine program said on Sunday. “Within 24 hours from the approval, the vaccine will be moving and located in …