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Friday, January 29, 2021

Wake-Up Call: NY A-G...Nursing Home Deaths Undercounted


N.Y. Deaths in Nursing Home Residents Significantly Undercounted: The number of coronavirus deaths in New York State that were in nursing home residents was significantly undercounted, state Attorney General Letitia James said in a report yesterday, which indicated the official count from Governor Andrew Cuomo's administration could be off by as much as 50 percent. The discrepancy is largely because New York is one of the only states to count as nursing home resident Covid deaths only those who died on nursing home grounds, not in the hospital. The report said that at least 12,743 long-term care residents died of the coronavirus in New York as of January 19th, much higher than the official count of 8,505.

Biden Orders Special Obamacare Sign-Up Window: President Biden yesterday ordered the opening of a special Obamacare sign-up window for uninsured Americans amid the ongoing pandemic. The "special enrollment period" will run from February 15th through May 15th. The usual annual open enrollment period is in the late fall.

SOUTH AFRICA CORONAVIRUS MUTATION FOUND IN U.S. FOR FIRST TIME: A worrisome coronavirus mutation that was first identified in South Africa has been found in the U.S. for the first time, showing up in two people in South Carolina, state public health official said yesterday. The two people were in different parts of the state and their cases don't seem to be connected. Neither has traveled recently, leading health officials to say it's almost certain there are more as-yet undetected cases in the state. The South Africa variant of the virus spreads more easily, and there are concerns that the vaccines could be less effective against it. Other variants first found in the U.K. and Brazil have also recently been confirmed as being found in cases in the U.S.

➤SIX KILLED IN LIQUID NITROGEN LEAK AT GEORGIA POULTRY PLANT: Six people were killed and 11 others injured, at least three of them critically, in a liquid nitrogen leak at a poultry plant in Gainesville, Georgia Thursday. Liquid nitrogen comes from the refrigeration systems that poultry plants use. The cause of the leak at the Foundation Food Group plant is being investigated, but the company's Vice President for Human Resources, Nicholas Ancrum, said early indications are that a nitrogen line ruptured. Liquid nitrogen vaporizes in air into an odorless gas that can displace oxygen, so a leak in an enclosed space can push out breathable air.
 

➤RUSSIAN COURT REJECTS OPPOSITION LEADER NAVALNY'S APPEAL TO BE RELEASED FROM JAIL: A Russian court yesterday rejected an appeal by opposition leader Alexei Navalny to be released from jail. Navalny appeared in court via a video link from jail, denouncing the criminal case against him as government intimidation, declaring, "Yes, you have the power now to put me in handcuffs, but it’s not going to last forever." Meanwhile, several of Navalny's allies, including his brother, were detained by authorities, and social media companies were warned about promoting more pro-Navalny protests this weekend after tens of thousands turned out in rallies across the country last week. Navalny is alleged to have violated the probation terms of his suspended sentence from a 2014 money-laundering conviction that he has charged was politically motivated.
 

➤U.S. ECONOMY SHRANK 3.5 PERCENT LAST YEAR AMID PANDEMIC: The U.S. economy shrank 3.5 percent last year, the largest amount in 74 years, due to the pandemic, according to a government report out Thursday. The economic outlook for 2021 is unclear, but a sustained recovery is unlikely until vaccines are administered across the country and government rescue aid makes its way through the economy. Government data yesterday also showed that first-time applications for unemployment benefits fell last week to 847,000, but that is still a historically high level. Before the start of the pandemic last March, weekly applications had never topped 700,000.

🐔AMERICANS PREDICTED TO EAT RECORD 1.42 BILLION CHICKEN WINGS DURING SUPER BOWL LV: Americans are predicted to be all about the wings this Super Bowl weekend. The National Chicken Council has given their annual wing report and say that the big game that’ll pit the Kansas City Chiefs against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, February 7th, is an especially important food holiday this year, as fans stay home and crave comfort foods. They note that total chicken wing sales at supermarkets during the pandemic have totaled nearly $3 billion, up 10.3 percent from last year. It’s thought this uptick could be caused by the air fryer craze, as sales of in-store frozen wings shot up 37.2 percent. And despite the issues faced by the restaurant industry, those serving chicken wings saw a seven percent growth in 2020 compared to 2019. All-in-all, the the group predicts Americans will consume some 1.42 billion chicken wings during Super Bowl weekend.

Nick Cannon
➤NICK CANNON GETS ANOTHER SHOT:
Nick Cannon is getting another shot at a daytime talk show. The Masked Singer host’s show was set to premiere last September, but was put on ice after comments he made on a podcast about the ancient history of Black people and Jews were condemned as anti-Semitic.

“It’s been a longtime dream of mine to host my own daytime talk show and that I’m able to do this in New York City, bringing daytime television back to the place that has fostered generations of talent, is very special to me,” Cannon said in a statement. “With this show, we’ll be uniting all aspects of entertainment in a unique way in the very place where a lot of what we know today as our culture started. I couldn’t ask for better partners than Debmar-Mercury and Fox and thank them for supporting me in this endeavor.”

Cannon apologized and vowed to learn more about history after the comments were criticized. The uproar cost him a deal with MTV to produce and host Wild N Out, and his syndicated radio show.

He has spent time meeting with rabbis and Jewish leaders. In September, he started hosting his syndicated radio program again, and is expected to reach a deal on Wild N Out.

Nick Cannon will bow in the fall on Fox.


➤CICELY TYSON DEAD AT 96:  Hollywood Icon Cicely Tyson has passed away at age 96. According to The AP, Tyson's manager Larry Thompson confirmed that the Emmy and Tony Award winning actress died yesterday. Tyson just released her memoir Just As I Am on January 26th.

In a statement, Thompson said, “With heavy heart, the family of Miss Cicely Tyson announces her peaceful transition this afternoon. At this time, please allow the family their privacy.” Tyson just released her memoir Just As I Am on January 26th. She told Bustle why she decided to release her memoir at 96, saying, “People wanted to know all about my personal life, and I said, ‘That has nothing to do with my acting.' My personal life allows me to bring some kind of contribution to my career life. You have to have something feeding you. If you do not allow yourself to be fed by life, then you have nothing to give an audience. The characters that you read about come from a human life.”


🏈TEXANS' WATSON HAS REPORTEDLY ASKED TO BE TRADED: Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson has asked to be traded, according to media reports Thursday. ESPN reported that Watson, who signed a four-year, $156 million contract extension in September, made the trade request after he was reportedly unhappy with the process used by the Texans to hire new general manager Nick Caserio early this month. The 25-year-old had career highs this season in passing yards, touchdowns and completion percentage and set single-season franchise records in touchdown and passing yards. He's also the NFL's career leader in completion percentage.

🏌REED, NOREN TIED IN LEAD AFTER FIRST ROUND OF FARMERS INSURANCE OPEN: American Patrick Reed and Sweden's Alex Noren were tied at the top of the leader board after the first round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in San Diego. They both shot an 8-under 64, with American Scottie Scheffler just one stroke behind.

⚾TANAKA LEAVING YANKEES TO PLAY FOR FORMER TEAM IN JAPAN: Pitcher Masahiro Tanaka is leaving the New York Yankees after seven seasons and returning to Japan, where he will play for his former team, the Rakuten Eagles. The Yankees acquired two new pitchers this week, and appeared not to have room for Tanaka in their rotation and didn't appear to be trying to resign the 32-year-old free agent. Tanaka was 78-46 in his seven seasons in the MLB with the Yankees, with a 3.74 ERA, and was a two-time All-Star.

🏈WASHINGTON HEAD COACH RIVERA IS CANCER-FREE: Washington Football Team head coach Ron Rivera announced yesterday that he is officially cancer-free, sharing the news in a tweet showing him with his dogs and a sign that said, "We kicked cancer's ass!" Rivera had been fighting squamous cell cancer during the season, with his diagnosis first reported in August, when it was said to be "very treatable." Rivera didn't miss any games while undergoing treatment.

 

➤O'NEAL TO HOST VIRTUAL 'SHAQ BOWL' ON SUPER BOWL SUNDAY: Shaquille O’Neal will be hosting a virtual SHAQ Bowl on Super Bowl Sunday before the big game on February 7th. The three-hour special will start at 3 p.m. ET and be available on Facebook and SHAQBowl.com, and also on LiveXLive across more than 20 platforms including YouTube, Twitch, TikTok and Twitter. Taking part will be Terrell Owens, Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson, Ezekiel Elliott, Tim Tebow, actor Anthony Anderson, musicians Nelly, Quavo and Diplo, and WWE superstars Drew McIntyre and The Miz competing in different events. There will also be a "halftime" performance from Migos and DJ Diesel. The SHAQ Bowl is replacing Shaq’s Fun House, which had been held the past two years in Atlanta and Miami.

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