Global Scans · Coronavirus · Weekly Summary

Future potential spread of the coronavirus is impacting world trade and threatens a global economic recession and inflection point. For the first time, Illness is now a major driving force. We first reported this virus way back in 2010 and regularly since July 2015 as a predictable surprise: a known unknown to most. It is not a Black Swan; it was foreseen! Forewarned is forearmed and forearmed is protection against unpleasant possibilities and this inflection point will most likely change everyone's future profoundly.

Here are some actions you could take offered by and our friends at WavePoint and BCG and McKinsey.

Companies are asking people to work from home (we have always worked from our homes since 2003). We think the latter will become a long-term and rapidly growing trend as people reduce traveling time, buy more online, and increasingly recognize the benefits to their health of staying home. More emerging, potential behavioral trends here. Begin regularly evaluating predictable surprises, be prepared and act in time, while others lose their shirt through inattention to the future.

• [New] You do not need a prescription to get a 2025-2026 COVID-19 vaccine in many states, including New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
• [New] The vaccine panel's recommendations for people under 65 found the most benefit for someone at increased risk for severe Covid due to underlying conditions. NBC News
• [New] COVID vaccines will continue to be covered by Medicare and Medi-Cal for the time being. University of California San Francisco
• [New] COVID vaccines have been shown to be effective at preventing severe disease, including hospitalization and death and can decrease the risk of post-COVID - 19 condition, or long COVID. CBC
• [New] Colorado adopted an emergency regulation to require health insurance carriers to cover 2025-2026 COVID-19 vaccines as preventive services without cost-sharing. First Consulting
• [New] People who are covered by public insurance such as Medicare and Medicaid and who meet the new FDA eligibility requirements will probably continue to have Covid-19 vaccines covered, experts say. CNN
• UK evidence from COVID era disruptions shows that firms with skills, infrastructure, and capital used AI and IoT to keep operating and reach new customers. Binary Verse AI
• During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress temporarily lifted restrictions on where patients covered by fee-for-service Medicare could receive telehealth. AAPA
• The UK Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025 found that only 19% of UK businesses provide any form of cybersecurity training, despite AI impersonation now being a known risk. Techforce
• YouTube announced this week that it will reinstate channels previously banned under old COVID-19 and election integrity rules. Ignite Visibility
• Vaccine hesitancy among German citizens could be attributed to the spread of misinformation on Twitter about the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccination. PubMed Central (PMC)
• A large Japanese study suggested loneliness as a significant factor contributing to the increased risk of suicide during the COVID-19 pandemic. PubMed Central (PMC)
• The Commerce Department will scrutinize trade in personal protective equipment, such as the gloves and face masks that became ubiquitous during the COVID-19 pandemic. / USA Yahoo Finance
• The World Bank anticipates a 12% drop in global commodity prices for 2025, followed by an additional 5% decline in 2026, pushing real-term prices to their lowest levels since before the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chronicle-Journal
• The shifting Covid vaccine guidance will limit availability. Onclive
• In 2025-26, Nova Scotia will receive $63,271,456 to make strategic infrastructure investments across 19 project categories. Yahoo Finance
• In a separate $13.7 billion deal with GE Aerospace, Korean Air will purchase 19 aircraft engines. Yonhap News Agency
• Nearly all participants (3482 [95.1%]) received at least 1 COVID-19 vaccine, with most participants (2609 [71.2%]) reporting receiving 3 to 5 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. / USA AJMC
• The ACIP has decided the CDC will no longer recommend the combined MMRV for children under the age of 4 and will no longer recommend the COVID-19 vaccine for most adults 18 and older. 5 Calls
• America's Health Insurance Plans, the industry group for private insurance companies, issued a statement that COVID-19 vaccines would be covered with no cost-sharing through the end of 2026. NPR
• California, Oregon, Washington State and Hawaii have joined the West Coast Health Alliance, which will develop its own vaccine guidelines for COVID and other respiratory illnesses, independent of the CDC or the FDA. Scientific American

Last updated: 12 October 2025