There’s no provision for homeless people between lockdowns in Victoria. The government provides funds for emergency hotel accommodation during lockdowns – but once the crisis is over, the homeless are out on their own again. It’s back to the streets or unstable housing. Housing providers say the on-again, off-again provisions are frustrating. They can’t always Read more
Churches are among the places new Covid sign-in regulations will apply to. The Government, Sunday, announced mandatory record-keeping is being introduced for busy places and events to ensure the Government can contact trace quickly. Covid Response Minister Chris Hipkins says the new rules mean those responsible for businesses and events will need to ensure people Read more
Washington: Just when you’re feeling proud of America, she finds a way to break your heart. At the end of June, it looked like the US was about to pass a remarkable milestone in its fight against the coronavirus. After plummeting for months, the seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases appeared poised to drop below Read more
With greater numbers of people being vaccinated and countries looking to reopen borders safely, the introduction of some form of vaccine passport seems increasingly likely. For New Zealand, where the elimination strategy has been largely successful but which remains vulnerable to border breaches, proof of vaccination may well be a condition of entry. Health Minister Read more
The Philippine government, the Police and a Manila diocese are warning people not to buy fake COVID vaccination cards so they can travel. The police say the country’s current lockdown has seen many people trying to head back to the provinces to avoid being “trapped” in Manila. The free-of-charge government-issued cards are restricted to those Read more
With governments worldwide under pressure to ease pandemic restrictions as vaccination rates rise and impatience with border restrictions grows, new threats become clearer. One of the costliest, it is now feared, could be a tsunami of “long COVID” cases. Long COVID is a serious ongoing illness that follows an acute episode of the disease. It Read more
Several Irish Catholic dioceses are defying a government ban on celebrating sacraments of initiation. They are planning to hold the ceremonies from mid-August. Bishop Kevin Doran of Elphin says after consulting with clergy, baptisms, First Holy Communions and confirmation ceremonies will be held. The regulations for general religious services will be followed. “The mission of Read more
The Republic of Cameroon’s government has approved the traditional medicine recipes a Catholic archbishop developed to help treat COVID-19 patients. The archbishop says they help save ‘even people on respirators’. The Republic’s Public Health Ministry authorised sales of Archbishop Samuel Kleda’s medicinal recipes as an “adjuvant” or supplementary aid to fighting COVID-19 infections. “This is Read more
For Jehovah’s Witnesses, the pandemic has meant putting principles ahead of personal preferences. “Our preference is to meet together, to hug one another, to greet one another, to see each other’s smiles, but our principles won’t let us do that, not yet,” said Robert Hendriks, US spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses. For the second year, the Read more
COVID travel restrictions may help slow the virus’s transmission, but seafarers are suffering, Pope Francis notes. He has been offering his prayers and solidarity to those who work at sea and have been prevented from going ashore or have not been able to work. In a video message last month Francis gave a special message Read more