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International News

US pharma cos protected from COVID vaccine liability

Pandemic-related claims for vaccines will be routed to a rarely used USA federal program set up to encourage drugmakers to help combat public health emergencies. It spares pharmaceutical and device makers from costly liability lawsuits in exchange for taxpayers compensating injured patients — though it doesn’t guarantee there’s funding to do so.“We want people vaccinated and we don’t want to expose pharmaceutical companies to the kind of liability that they would otherwise have,” said Brent Johnson, a partner with Holland & Hart, who defends corporate clients. “That’s the price we’re willing to pay to get rid of this horrible coronavirus problem.”

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Lebanon’s insurance claims from Beirut port blast total $425 million, so far

Caretaker Economy Minister Raoul Nehme said 2,500 claims have been filed, according to the presidency’s Twitter account. The ministry expects claims to reach 10,000

Insured losses from the Beirut port warehouse explosion are likely to total around $3 billion, similar to those from an explosion at the Chinese port of Tianjin in 2015, industry sources and analysts say.

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Who pays for Mauritius oil spill and how much?

Under the 2001 International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution damage, which is referred to as the BUNKER convention and has been administered by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) since it came into force in 2008, the owners of vessels are responsible for damage caused by oil leaks. That means Nagashiki rather than Mitsui OSK is liable.The Wakashio is insured by Japan P&I Club, the country’s only organization that underwrites protection and indemnity insurance for ocean going and coastal vessels. On Wednesday, a spokesman for Japan P&I said it was “trying to make internal estimates” for how much the clean up would cost.

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‘Canary in the coal mine’: Greenland ice has shrunk beyond return,study finds

That melting is already causing global seas to rise about a millimeter on average per year. If all of Greenland’s ice goes, the water released would push sea levels up by an average of 6 meters — enough to swamp many coastal cities around the world. This process, however, would take decades
The Arctic has been warming at least twice as fast as the rest of the world for the last 30 years, an observation referred to as Arctic amplification. The polar sea ice hit its lowest extent for July in 40 years.

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Extreme’ California wildfire forces hundreds to evacuate

No casualties were reported but the blaze threatened 5,420 homes and other structures in communities about 40 miles (65 km) north of downtown Los Angeles where residents have been told to prepare for possible evacuations over the weekend, Garrido said.

Across the United States, fires have been less ferocious so far in 2020, burning around 1.4 million fewer acres than in the same period of 2019. Conditions are expected to worsen in California next month when Santa Ana winds arrive in the south and El Diablo winds pick up in the North.

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South Korean doctors strike over health plans as new coronavirus cases climb

The government plans to increase the number of medical students by 4,000 over the next 10 years, which it says is necessary to be better prepared for public health crises like the coronavirus pandemic.

But the Korean Medical Association (KMA), which helped organise the protest, says the country already has more than enough physicians.At least 8,365 of the country’s total 33,836 medical facilities, including private clinics, had said they would stage a walk out on Friday, but the numbers could rise, Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip told a briefing.
“The number of physicians per 1,000 people has increased by 3.1% annually for the past 10 years, which is 6 times greater than that of OECD average,” KMA said in a statement.

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