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US Scientists Say COVID Particles Can Spread as Much as 4.8 Meters from the
Infected

VOA News

   U.S. scientists say they have isolated infectious particles of the
   coronavirus as much as 4.8 meters away from hospitalized patients.

   The scientists said the widely accepted 2-meter distance advised to
   observe social distancing provides a "false sense of security" and
   could result in large groups of people being exposed to the disease.
   The study, conducted at the university of Florida Health Shands
   Hospital, has not been peer reviewed.

   A saliva test to detect COVID-19 that was developed by Yale and paid
   for by the NBA won U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval Saturday
   for emergency use.

   SalivaDirect, the fifth saliva test approved by the FDA for the
   disease, uses spit from people who think they have the coronavirus,
   [1]the agency said.

   The test is seen as a faster, results in less than 24 hours; cheaper,
   about $10; simpler, it uses saliva; and less invasive, [2]no swab up
   the nose. And can use several readily available reagents.

   The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association partnered with
   the Yale School of Public Health in June, the school said, and has used
   SalivaDirect to test asymptomatic players, coaches and staff from
   several teams.

   The approval of the new test comes as the number of confirmed
   coronavirus tests conducted in the U.S. each day has fallen for the
   first time, despite calls from some public health and federal officials
   to significantly ramp up testing in the U.S., as it continues to lead
   the world in infections and COVID-19 deaths.

   Figures from the COVID Tracking Project, which describes itself as "a
   collaborative volunteer-run effort" to track the outbreak in the
   country, show that reported daily tests have [3]trended lower for much
   of the past two weeks.

   Statistics from the project, a widely used source of information by the
   White House and others, show about 733,000 people in the U.S. have been
   tested daily in August, fewer than about 750,000 the month before. The
   seven-day average plummeted to 709,000 on Monday before inching higher
   at the end of the week.

References

   1. https://bit.ly/3fZyX30
   2. https://bit.ly/3iOlYmf
   3. https://covidtracking.com/data/us-daily

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