Faith Leaders Ask Congress to Grant Legal Immunity to Religious Organizations Reopening Amid Pandemic

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A long list of religious leaders signed onto a letter sent Tuesday requesting that Congress’ next coronavirus relief package include legal immunity for religious organizations reopening amid an onslaught of new regulations surrounding the pandemic.

“[I]n the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a proliferation of complex and often contradictory orders and guidelines at the state, county, and local levels, each purporting to govern when and how to reopen,” read the letter, signed by pastor Franklin Graham, actor Kirk Cameron, and dozens of pastors. In total, the letter has 300 signatories.

“Unfortunately, no religious organization—or any organization—can follow every guideline or order that has been issued around the country. We are concerned that some people—and their lawyers—will cherry pick certain guidelines from around the nation in order to assign liability to religious organizations. They might claim that a religious organization or a house of worship was negligent because it did not follow a single recommendation buried deep within a set of guidelines.”

Spearheaded by the legal non-profit First Liberty Institute, the appeal underscores national uncertainty as businesses and organizations return to normal after the economic shutdown.

“Churches, synagogues, and America’s houses of worship have provided critical care, comfort, and calm in the midst of the uncertainty caused by a worldwide pandemic,” said Kelly Shackelford, President, CEO, and Chief Counsel for First Liberty Institute. “Providing this reasonable measure of protection to religious organizations and houses of worship in America will ensure that they can continue performing their vital functions of serving Americans and ministering to all of our spiritual and physical needs. (Read more from “Faith Leaders Ask Congress to Grant Legal Immunity to Religious Organizations Reopening Amid Pandemic” HERE)

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What We Know About the Link Between COVID-19 and a Rare Children’s Disease

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One of the biggest unknowns of the COVID-19 pandemic is how it affects children.

Children have managed to avoid most of the severe manifestations of the disease caused by the new coronavirus, making up a small percentage of hospitalizations and almost none of the deaths. Conversely, Americans older than 65 have made up 45% of hospitalizations and 80% of deaths.

Thus, targeted mitigation efforts rightly would focus on nursing homes, which have suffered disproportionately from the COVID-19. Fixing policies that put older Americans at great risk likely will have the greatest effect on driving down national mortality, as opposed to blanket policies that include children.

However, just as we begin to think we have a handle on it, this virus continues to befuddle. A concerning link may exist between COVID-19 and a rare childhood autoimmune disorder called Kawasaki disease.

Out of 73 recent cases of Kawasaki disease in New York, three children have died and all three also tested positive for COVID-19. We don’t have evidence that this is necessarily a causal relationship, but some of the signs may make sense.

Kawasaki disease is an inflammatory autoimmune disorder of childhood that is thought to result from a previous viral infection. Some part of a virus, or the immune system’s response to it, causes the inflammatory pathway to hyperactivate suddenly and cause damage to the body.

A somewhat similar inflammatory phenomenon is known to occur with adults, and possibly is the main driver of mortality among COVID-19 patients. It stands to reason that Kawasaki disease, as an autoimmune disease of childhood often triggered by a previous viral infection, may be one of the effects of the coronavirus, also known as SARS-CoV-2.

But this is conjecture at this point. We simply don’t have sufficient data to draw any connection. The incidence of Kawasaki disease is estimated to be between nine to 19 cases per 100,000 children under age 5 per year.

And not all cases of Kawasaki disease occur in the context of a coronavirus infection.

For instance, in this report of 15 cases in New York, 10 tested positive either for an active or previous infection by SARS-CoV-2. This raises suspicion of the link, but with so few cases of Kawasaki disease, the correlation may be wholly spurious. After all, finding a case of COVID-19 in New York City would be entirely unremarkable.

The good news is that doctors have treated Kawasaki disease successfully for years with intravenous immunoglobulin. It is possible that Kawasaki disease may appear more severe lately because families have been reluctant to go to the emergency department for fear of COVID-19.

Families must seek treatment for Kawasaki disease, which is characterized by several days of a high fever, red and swollen eyes, rash, redness of the hands and feet, and inflammation of the lips and mouth.

Fear of the hospital has become a much larger problem for both the hospitals and their patients. But based on the data regarding children and SARS-CoV-2 transmission, it is likely safe for them and those around them to seek treatment.

Although children are not invulnerable to the coronavirus, they are less susceptible to severe disease.

A recent literature review of numerous pediatric studies found that children not only are much less likely to develop severe disease from the new coronavirus, but also unlikely to transmit the virus to others.

The review was conducted when there were 150,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States. Of those, only 1.7% were children, more than half of whom were infants (62%) and nearly a quarter had underlying conditions (23%).

Among all confirmed pediatric cases of COVID-19, 5.7% required hospitalization. Of them, only 2% were admitted to an intensive care unit. This dataset included three confirmed deaths out of 2,572 cases.

Clearly, children neither are at great risk nor are they completely invincible to the effects of the virus. But statistically, nearly all confirmed COVID-19 cases among children were relatively benign.

Data showing less severe disease in children is easy to find, but data tracing disease transmission from children to adults is difficult to gather. However, one study of multiple pediatric research articles suggests that children are unlikely to be the primary source for infection in a household.

Of the 31 households identified with intrafamilial transmission of COVID-19, only three began with a child. That is, only 9.7% of these household cases began with children. Using similar data in comparison, 54% of H5N1 influenza cases within households began with children.

A similar dynamic exists in the school setting. An Australian study of 10 high schools and five primary schools from March to April found little transmission of the coronavirus from one person to the next. Twelve high school students and four members of the faculty were identified as confirmed cases of COVID-19 who had attended classes while infectious.

Nearly 600 other students were exposed to these COVID-19 cases but none of them tested positive. One student tested positive by antibody testing, which indicated a previous infection from which the student already had recovered.

The primary schools had a similar result, with one student and five faculty members identified as COVID-19 cases and only one student later found to be positive for antibodies.

Although more data is needed to draw a definitive conclusion about the role, if any, that children play in transmitting COVID-19, these findings all suggest that children are at the least risk themselves and pose the lowest risk to others.

Children seem to be mercifully spared the more severe manifestations of this pandemic. Not only do they seem less susceptible to infection, they seem not to spread the disease to others.

That being the case, it is likely that activities for children, such as school or summer camp, should be relatively safe to resume.

But as it has been throughout this ordeal, the new coronavirus easily can surprise us in the worst ways. It is likely we can safely allow our children to return to some semblance of normal life, but with caution and vigilance. (For more from the author of “What We Know About the Link Between COVID-19 and a Rare Children’s Disease” please click HERE)

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I’m an ER Physician. Here’s Why Abortion Isn’t an ‘Essential Health Service.’

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Although we appear to be “flattening the curve” of the COVID-19 pandemic, with governors slowly lifting stay-at-home orders and hospitals beginning to schedule surgeries again, infection spikes in certain regions remain a possibility.

Throughout the coming months, we need to focus as a society on medical care that will not only help us survive but thrive.

Working in emergency rooms as an emergency medicine physician of more than 20 years, I’m particularly concerned that abortion activists have been promoting and advocating abortion as an “essential health service.”

An essential health service is a health care action or medical procedure that is essential to protecting the life of a human. But the truth is that rather than helping women through this pandemic, abortion is more likely to worsen the toll of illness.

Any decision about a medical procedure as serious as terminating a pregnancy must be made with facts and an assessment of risks. When medical equipment is scarce and many resources must be directed toward treating victims of COVID-19, continuing to perform abortions is medically irresponsible.

Here are three key facts:

1. The stress of COVID-19 adds to abortion’s emotional toll.

Abortion is known to result in mental health issues, and COVID-19 is likely to exacerbate those negative effects. Anxiety and fear have exploded during this time as many Americans suffer from prolonged isolation and economic challenges.

Calls to the federal mental health crisis hotline are nearly 900% greater than this time last year. According to Kaiser Family Foundation, nearly half (45%) of adults in the United States reported that their mental health has been affected negatively due to worry and stress over the coronavirus.

Combined with the emotional toll of abortion, the impact of this stress is amplified. Abortion long has been associated with serious, adverse mental health outcomes such as depression, grief, persistent sadness, and elevated stress—many of the same mental health challenges we are seeing from COVID-19.

Losing a baby, whether from abortion or a spontaneous miscarriage, causes emotional pain. Women who have abortions face higher rates of depression.

Data shows an increase in the number of suicide attempts by women who previously had an abortion. In fact, women who get abortions are at a 154% increased risk of suicide, according to the Southern Medical Journal.

What’s more, we know that women sometimes are coerced into abortion as a result of domestic abuse. Claiming that abortion is an “essential health service” only will minimize the emotional risks, fueling this cycle of violence and pressure.

At a time when domestic abuse afflicts more women than ever before, we need to respect and support women, not encourage them to get abortions.

2. Complications from abortion are more dangerous during a pandemic.

Complications from an abortion are a significant risk—even more so during a pandemic with an over-stressed health care system. I’ve seen firsthand the life-threatening medical complications that stem from an abortion procedure.

This type of crisis is often the result of abortion clinics not being equipped to provide the necessary emergency care. Instead, they send women to the ER.

Abortion itself carries risks of infection and increases the likelihood of women needing additional medical supervision and treatment. Also, blood loss, inflammatory stress, and other adverse outcomes from abortion can compromise a woman’s health and immune system, which makes her more susceptible to contracting a virus.

Chemical abortions, such as by the brand-name drug Mifeprex, are no safer. Typically 5% to 7% of women who undergo a chemical abortion require surgical follow-up procedures. Experimenting with an abortion at home—especially right now—is very dangerous.

3. COVID-19 doesn’t affect pregnancies.

I have heard from pregnant women who are worried that continuing a pregnancy during COVID-19 could be harmful. I understand their concerns, but the available data suggests that pregnant women do not suffer from coronavirus infections.

And as yet there is no evidence of vertical transmission of the coronavirus from mother to baby; the virus hasn’t been found in breast milk or amniotic fluid after birth. To date, the research shows that women infected with the coronavirus during pregnancy don’t have a higher incidence of compromised health or unhealthy babies.

Some women may be considering abortion because they fear that increased doctor visits and a hospital birth might expose them and their family at home to COVID-19. In actuality, abortion puts women at a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 than their pregnancy does.

Abortion has long-term detrimental effects on a woman, the data shows. Our nation desperately needs more love and hope, and less death and despair.

The reality is that if women who face unplanned pregnancies view abortion as the “healthy” option, we know that it is in fact a fatal deception.

As a physician who deals with death daily in the ER, I can say that death of any kind is horrific. I believe we can and must protect the lives of both the young and the old, and this includes protecting preborn human life. (For more from the author of “I’m an ER Physician. Here’s Why Abortion Isn’t an ‘Essential Health Service.’” please click HERE)

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Woman Mauled to Death by Her Rescue French Bulldog

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An Illinois woman was likely viciously mauled to death inside her home by her own rescue French bulldog, according to authorities.

Lisa Urso, 52, was found dead at her home in Ingleside, located in the northern part of the state about 60 miles from both Chicago and Milwaukee in opposite directions.

Officers who responded to the scene after 4:43 p.m. Saturday found her mutilated body on the back porch, Fox Lake Police Chief Jimmy Lee said.

An autopsy confirmed she died from injuries sustained when her dog attacked her. The coroner’s office said the attack began inside the home but Urso managed to make it out to the porch, where she died, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

The coroner said the rescue dog had previously been used to fight, according to WGN. (Read more from “Woman Mauled to Death by Her Rescue French Bulldog” HERE)

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Mother Dies During Childbirth From Treatable Condition That Went Undiagnosed Due to COVID-19 Restrictions

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A New York woman died during childbirth last month, and her husband said she tried to get treatment for the condition that killed her, but couldn’t because of coronavirus restrictions in hospitals, according to People magazine.

Amber Rose Isaac, 26, died on April 21 when her heart stopped shortly after giving birth to her son, Elias. The child’s father, Bruce McIntyre, called the death “100% preventable” if she had been able to get an in-person appointment in the months leading up to her death.

Isaac began noticing her platelet levels decreasing beginning in February, McIntyre said, but she couldn’t get an in-person appointment despite being seven months pregnant. Her regular check-ups were handled virtually, with her filling out a questionnaire and checking her blood pressure. . .

She was finally admitted to Montefiore Hospital in The Bronx in mid-April after her condition got worse. That same day, April 17, Isaac posted her final tweet — a criticism of how she was treated by the hospital.

Doctors induced labor three days later, more than a month ahead of her expected due date, because she had been diagnosed with HELLP Syndrome. HELLP is described by WebMD as a condition that “causes problems with your blood, liver, and blood pressure. If left untreated, these issues can hurt you and your baby.” (Read more from “Mother Dies During Childbirth From Treatable Condition That Went Undiagnosed Due to COVID-19 Restrictions” HERE)

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SICK: The Price is Right Promotes Drag Queen, Makes Massive Donation to Baby-Killing Group

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CBS’ primetime special “The Price is Right At Night” sparked heated reactions from viewers on social media over its decision to donate nearly $100,000 to Planned Parenthood.

The longest-running game show in television history aired Monday evening with regular host Drew Carey joined by Emmy-winning host of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” RuPaul. The famous drag queen was on hand to help raise money for charity, with the show promising to match all the contestants’ prize winnings with a donation to Planned Parenthood.

Contestants won big during the special, totaling $97,266 in prizes. This meant that the same dollar amount is now going to the organization as a charitable donation. . .

(Read more from “SICK: The Price is Right Promotes Drag Queen, Makes Massive Donation to Baby-Killing Group” HERE)

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White House Warns 80,000 Cases of Cancer Could Go Undiagnosed During Coronavirus Lockdown

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Closing down public life may be responsible for as many as 80,000 cases of common cancers going undiagnosed and tens of thousands of deaths from substance abuse and suicide, according to the White House press secretary.

As debate rages over whether the White House is trying to lift coronavirus restrictions too quickly, Kayleigh McEnany said failing to reopen the country could come with severe costs.

She cited data collected by the Epic Health Research Network showing that screenings for cancers of the cervix, colon, and breast were down between 86% and 94% in March.

“The consequence of this is quite frightening,” said McEnany, who added that she had seen from a visit for her own screening — she carries the BRCA2 gene and had a preventative double mastectomy two years ago — that numbers were much reduced.

Analysis of medical claims by the IQVIA Institute for Total Data Science forecast that more than 80,000 diagnoses of common cancers would be missed from March through June. (Read more from “White House Warns 80,000 Cases of Cancer Could Go Undiagnosed During Coronavirus Lockdown” HERE)

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Judges Demand Power Over All Children With Fake Constitutional Right to Education

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A divided Sixth Circuit panel ruling in a case about bad conditions in Detroit public schools shows why federalizing education is a bad idea for everyone.

If affirmed, the ruling, which announced a newly discovered free-standing federal right to education, would give Harvard Law School professor Elizabeth Bartholet a shortcut to her desired presumptive ban on homeschooling. The Sixth Circuit ruling could also open a new frontier for anyone to litigate any kind of education issue, with the Supreme Court becoming the new national referee on what a constitutional education looks like.

What could a single federal district court judge do with a free-standing, independent, federal constitutional right to education? What might a Congress do, empowered by a judicially discovered constitutional duty to provide for the federal right to education? What about a national school act, a national curriculum act, a national testing act, a national compulsory attendance act?

Do you remember Common Core? States passed it on their own to get federal money. A federal right to education would preempt even this sort of rubber-stamp state action and lead to a national, one-size-fits-none educational system. States would be powerless to object. . .

Bartholet writes in her 80-page Arizona Law Review article that up to now, “efforts to increase regulation [of homeschoolers] have been successfully fought off, with the [Home School Legal Defense Association]’s aggressive tactics playing a major role.” The solution, Bartholet writes, is the judiciary: “The courts may be essential to move things forward. Here, children are also dependent on adults — judges — to vindicate their rights. But courts can at least operate somewhat more freely than legislatures from political pressure.” (Read more from “Judges Demand Power Over All Children With Fake Constitutional Right to Education” HERE)

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Judge: Biological Males in Women’s Sports Cannot Be Called ‘Males’ in Court, Must Be Called ‘Transgender Females’

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Three female high school track athletes are suing the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) over unfair rules that allow biological males who identify as female to compete in women’s sports. Last month, a district court judge barred the girls’ lawyers from referring to the biological males as “males,” insisting that the lawyers call them “transgender females.” He threatened to retaliate if they refuse to do so. This effective gag order may undermine their case, and it certainly shows bias against their underlying argument. Therefore, the lawyers moved for the judge to recuse himself.

“The Court has now reprimanded Plaintiffs’ counsel and prohibited Plaintiffs from referring to those individuals as ‘male athletes’ because—in the Court’s view— alluding to an individual of the male sex as male is contrary to science, ‘bullying,’ and violates ‘human decency’ if that individual claims a female gender identity,” attorneys Roger Brooks, Kristen Waggoner, and Howard M. Wood III wrote in a motion filed Friday and provided to PJ Media. “A disinterested observer would reasonably believe that the Court’s order and comments have destroyed the appearance of impartiality in this proceeding. That requires recusal.”

They asked District Court Judge Robert Chatigny to recuse himself from the case, arguing that his order “and comments during the hearing would leave an impartial observer gravely concerned that the Court has prejudged the matter, rejected core aspects of Plaintiffs’ case before hearing the evidence and legal arguments, and assumed the role of advocate for the defendants, all to the detriment of Selina Soule, Chelsea Mitchell, Alanna Smith, and Ashley Nicoletti.” (Read more from “Judge: Biological Males in Women’s Sports Cannot Be Called ‘Males’ in Court, Must Be Called ‘Transgender Females'” HERE)

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Police: Man Created Fake Facebook Profile for ‘Hoax Threat’ Against Ahmaud Arbery Supporters

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By Breitbart. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) recently announced that it has arrested a 20-year-old man for allegedly making threats towards supporters of Ahmaud Arbery that authorities have labeled a “hoax.” Rawshawn Smith allegedly created a Facebook profile under another person’s name to threaten a “mass shooting” of Arbery supporters. He has been charged with the dissemination of information relating to terroristic acts.

The New York Post reports that a 20-year-old man named Rashawn Smith has been arrested by authorities in Georgia for allegedly threatening protests in the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery. Smith was taken into custody in Midway, Georgia, and charged with dissemination of information relating to terroristic acts according to the Georgia Bureau of Information.

The agency posted a tweet that stated that “Smith created a Facebook User ID of an unwitting individual to post a hoax threat.”

(Read more from “Police: Man Created Fake Facebook Profile for ‘Hoax Threat’ Against Ahmaud Arbery Supporters” HERE)

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Ahmaud Arbery: Hate Crime Charges Considered Over Killing

By BBC. The US justice department is considering federal hate crimes charges over the death of unarmed black jogger Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia in February.

Gregory McMichael and his son Travis, who are white, are facing murder and assault charges over the shooting.

The case sparked national outrage when video of the death emerged last week.

Mr Arbery’s supporters have been using the hashtag #IRunWithMaud, sharing photos and running 2.23 miles (3.6km) for the day he died, 23 February. (Read more from “Ahmaud Arbery: Hate Crime Charges Considered Over Killing” HERE)

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