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Good evening, here are the coronavirus updates you need to know tonight.

Top headlines:

  1. Ottawa was told about potential problems at the Public Health Agency of Canada, top doctors say
  2. Europe hesitant to declare a second wave before deaths catch up to peak numbers
  3. The unrelenting stress of COVID-19 has pushed some Canadian couples to counselling and divorce

In Canada, there have been at least 186,881 cases reported. In the last week 14,665 new cases were announced, 4 per cent more than the previous week.

There have also been at least 157,486 recoveries and 9,654 deaths. Today, 19 new deaths were reported.

Open this photo in gallery:

new deaths oct. 13The Globe and Mail

Worldwide, there have been at least 37,801,526 cases confirmed and 1,080,680 deaths reported.

Sources: Canada data is compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data is from Johns Hopkins University.


Coronavirus explainers: Coronavirus in maps and charts Lockdown rules and reopening Mask-wearing rules Back to school guide Essential resources


Photo of the day

Open this photo in gallery:

U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett speaks during the second day of her confirmation hearing before the Senate judiciary committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on Tuesday. The proceedings continued despite the spectre of COVID-19 in a Senate hearing room that contained the judge’s children and at least one lawmaker who tested positive for the disease. President Donald Trump had formally nominated Barrett at a packed Sept. 26 White House ceremony. Days later, he and a spate of advisers tested positive.Drew Angerer/The Associated Press


Coronavirus in Canada


In Ottawa, the federal government was warned years ago that the Public Health Agency of Canada was destined for serious problems unless changes were made to its oversight, but those concerns were ignored, two of Canada’s top doctors say.

  • A steady erosion of scientific capacity and a chronic shortage of resources over the past decade have left the agency unable to do its job properly, public-health experts Perry Kendall and Paul Gully said.
  • Recent problems, including the mishandling of the country’s pandemic early warning system, emergency stockpile shortages and allegations that scientists were forced to “dumb down” reports for senior government officials, are all symptoms of a larger ailment afflicting the agency, the doctors said.

Also today, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer, Theresa Tam, said trick-or-treating should be possible this Halloween as long as parents follow local public-health guidelines.

And: The unrelenting stress of COVID-19 has pushed some Canadian couples to counselling and divorce


Coronavirus around the world

  • Eli Lilly and Co. said the U.S. government-sponsored clinical trial of its COVID-19 antibody treatment, similar to one taken by President Donald Trump, has been paused because of a safety concern. Eli made the announcement one day after Johnson & Johnson said it was forced to pause a large high-profile trial of its experimental coronavirus vaccine because a volunteer fell ill.
  • Cases of COVID-19 are climbing across Europe but some scientists and doctors are hesitant to call it a full-blown second wave. The fatality rates – so far – are not nearly as high as they were during the peak of the pandemic.
  • Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo has tested positive for COVID-19, Portugal’s Football Federation said in a statement on its website on Tuesday.

Coronavirus and business

Cineplex’s chief executive officer said restrictions that have again closed 22 of its 68 theatres are “excessive” and argued cinemas are “fundamentally different” from other indoor retail environments.

Also today: Amid a second wave of the pandemic, some parents are struggling to decide if they can afford not to work or pay for full-time child care.

And: Porter Airlines delayed the restart of operations by another five weeks to mid-December.


Globe opinion

Bharat Masrani: “Future generations will look back at our response to COVID-19 and judge us by how we supported those who were disproportionately impacted – how we came together to lift each other up in the wake of this crisis.”

Kevin Bryan: “The upshot is clear: Tailoring restrictions appropriately during a second-wave lockdown is crucial. On both economic and long-term health grounds, we should endeavour to keep open upstream sectors such as manufacturing, transportation and natural resource extraction.”


More reporting


Information centre

Sources: Canada data are compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins University and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data are from Johns Hopkins.

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