<p class="source"><span>Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post via Getty Images</span></p><p class="caption">Doherty Tim, senior officer specialist, Federal Bureau of Prisons, chats with Ben Lupo, 64, from Youngstown, Ohio, at Devens federal prison in Massachusetts, on Tuesday, April 22, 2015.</p><ul class="summary-list"><li>There are 2.3 million people incarcerated in the US.</li><li>Like the flu, coronavirus prevention is dependent on frequent handwashing and isolation from people who are sick.</li><li>In jails and prisons, where people are living in close quarters, that will be a challenge.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul><p>More than two million people are being held in jails and prisons across the United States, and oftentimes these men and women are tightly housed.</p><p>Preventing the spread of the highly contagious and deadly coronavirus in these institutions will pose unique challenges, medical experts told Business Insider.</p><p>"They're unique because these people are in tight confines, often tightly packed, and that's a fertile ground for infectious disease," said Dr. Burton Bentley II, an emergency medicine physician and founder of the consulting firm <a href="https://elitemedicalexperts.com/">Elite Medical Experts.</a> "Anytime you have populations that are tightly condensed, the spread of communicable diseases … is obviously elevated and accelerated."</p><p class="source"><span>AP Photo/Ric Francis</span></p><p class="caption">Inmates at the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic, 40 miles north of downtown Los Angeles.</p><p>The coronavirus outbreak that originated in Wuhan, China, has killed more than 3,300 people and infected more than 95,000.</p><p>More than 230 deaths have been reported outside of mainland China, including <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wuhan-coronavirus-us-cases-health-risk-2020-1">11 in the US</a>. </p><p>There is no vaccine for the virus, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's primary recommendations include avoiding close contact with people who are sick, avoiding touching your eyes and nose, and staying home when feeling ill. </p><p>While these prevention measures might be easily executed by the general public, that may not the case for people who are incarcerated in dormitory-style housing.</p><p>"Logistically, that's very difficult in close quarters," Dr. Thomas L. Fariss, an occupational medicine specialist and consultant for Elite, told Business Insider.</p><p>In China, prisons have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/500-coronavirus-cases-reported-in-jails-in-china-2020-2">become a hotbed</a> for the new coronavirus and Iran has made the move to temporarily release 54,000 people from prison to stem the outbreak.</p><p class="source"><span>China Daily/Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">A medical worker in a protective suit inspects a CT scan at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital in the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak in Hubei province, China.</p><h2>The Bureau of Prisons has yet to release its coronavirus plan</h2><p>Of the  2.3 million incarcerated Americans, the US Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) holds a total of 175,135 inmates across the country. The remaining population can be found in county jails and state prisons.</p><p>The agency has not released an official contingency plan for how it plans to deal with the spread of coronavirus, but spokesman Scott Taylor told Business Insider that it is following CDC recommendations and has provided guidance to healthcare professionals throughout the system. </p><p>There is "a screening tool in place for use in the event an inmate or staff member is exposed or symptomatic," Taylor told Business Insider.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">The screening tool is a set of questions that inquire about an individual's contact history, travel history, and symptoms, and is designed to better clarify the risks an individual may have for contracting the disease, Taylor said.</p><p>The agency also has an internal system for reporting outbreaks, he said.</p><p>"As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to evolve, the BOP updates and refines its recommendations, guidance, and protocols, and will continue to provide helpful information to staff, inmates and federal, state and local partners," Taylor said in an email.</p><p class="source"><span>AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli</span></p><p class="caption">A new inmate arrives at the Deuel Vocational Institution in Tracy, Calif. California.</p><h2>Some facilities have suspended visitor access to prisoners</h2><p>Prevention measures for the coronavirus are similar to the seasonal flu, which has already killed 20,000 people this year, Fariss said. </p><p>Fariss expects that any policies to prevent the spread of coronavirus in correctional facilities will look similar to how they address influenza.</p><p>"This probably needs to be something similar to that in terms of the public health measures that need to be taken," he said. </p><p>The New York Department of Correction manages 11 inmate facilities, including eight that are located on Rikers Island. </p><p>The agency has instructed its correction officers to follow "basic flu protocols such as covering nose/mouth when coughing or sneezing and washing hands frequently," according to a statement.</p><p>"The Department is in close coordination, working with the CDC, NYC Department of Health, and Correctional Health Services to identify and evaluate detainees with potential symptoms and refer them for testing as necessary, Deputy Commissioner for Public Information, Peter Thorne, said in a written statement. </p><p>Some correctional institutions have taken an additional precaution by limiting the number of visitors who enter the facilities.</p><p>While New Jersey has not yet had a coronavirus diagnosis, the Bergen County Jail, which is about 16 miles from Manhattan, has suspended their contact visit policies for detainees and inmates, according to the facilities spokesman, Derek Sands.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">"Additionally, the Bergen County Health Department and the Sheriff's Office have a quarantine plan on standby in the event of suspected cases," Sands said.</p><h2>Access to care and incubation pose a "logistical barrier" for correctional facilities</h2><p>Bentley said that he has no doubt that leadership at prisons and jails around the country are meeting to create and update contingency plans as the outbreak spreads.</p><p>Still, the sheer lack of access to immediate care in these institutions will make it hard to stem the virus, he said.</p><p>While the correctional system has come a long way in terms of providing healthcare to inmates, that access looks different than it does for the general population, he said. </p><p>"If you don't feel good today, you can pop into an urgent care, or if you're really not feeling well you can go over to the ER," Bentley said. </p><p>With inmates, though, there is a requirement that two guards be present with every inmate who is transported outside of the facility, Bentley said. </p><p>Unless someone is showing visible symptoms, it's unlikely that they will be taken to an outside hospital for testing, he said. </p><p>Another barrier to prevention inside correctional facilities is the length of time a patient carrying the coronavirus may be asymptomatic, Bentley said.</p><p>"It's not that they're going to keep them (without care for) too long," Bentley said of jails and prisons. "But, for them to enter the private system there's a bit of a logistical barrier."</p><p class="source"><span>AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli</span></p><p class="caption">In this March 2, 2012 file photo, an inmate stares out a window at the Deuel Vocational Institution in Tracy, Calif.</p><h2>Coming up with policies is only part of the puzzle - it's how they're implemented that matters</h2><p>Jack Donson worked for the US Bureau of Prisons for more than 20 years. He has since retired.</p><p>Nearly every move made in the system is dictated by policy and there are policies in place for almost every emergency that can pop up, Donson told Business Insider.</p><p>"This is a bit different because it's new," he said of the coronavirus. "When something kicks off, you have a paint by numbers to go with. Not with the coronavirus."</p><p>Donson said that he's sure a formalized policy is in the works, as there are people employed to prepare for incidents just like this. </p><p>If an outbreak does crop up in the prison system, it likely won't be because staff didn't have a plan to address the problem, but rather that it wasn't carried out, he said.</p><p>"Usually, if there is a problem it's because they haven't implemented their own policy," Donson said.</p><p>Donson said that in all his time working in the prison system, he never witnessed a serious flu outbreak.</p><p>He was, however, directly involved during a MRSA outbreak and remembers the process of getting an inmate into a helicopter to be transported to a hospital for treatment. </p><p>"In close quarters like that, MRSA spreads fast. Things can happen quickly in close living," he said. "It's not the best environment for when something like this happens."</p><p>Donson said that the prison system has the ability to keep and search data on inmates who may have traveled to areas of concern. That data should be able to assist in monitoring the virus, but it's up to the individual prisons will use the available data, he said.</p><p>There is a shortage of staff in the BOP, he said. </p><p>"There are people showing up and leaving every day. There could be Italians, people from China, who got arrested in the last few weeks," Donson said. "I'm not freaking out, but then again I'm not comfortable that they're going to be able to deal with this."</p><p>Read more:</p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/500-coronavirus-cases-reported-in-jails-in-china-2020-2">Chinese jails have become hotbeds of coronavirus as more than 500 cases have erupted</a></p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/disinfectant-control-coronavirus-triggers-mass-die-off-animals-china-2020-2">More than 100 wild animals in China died from poisoning in a mass die-off seemingly triggered by coronavirus disinfectant</a></p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-window-narrowing-to-stop-global-spread-coronavirus-covid-19-2020-2">The coronavirus outbreak is reaching a global tipping point, and the window to contain it is 'narrowing,' according to WHO</a></p>            <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/economist-weighted-voting-could-help-save-us-democracy-2018-5">A top economist has a radical plan to change the way Americans vote: weighted voting</a></h3>

US jails and prisons are 'fertile grounds for infectious disease' and preventing the spread of coronavirus behind bars will be a challenge, say experts

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Independence Day 2 the movie</span></p></div><p></p></div></div>We were warned time and time again by the <keyword id="6354868" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="UK">UK</keyword> Treasury that house prices would be hit by a Brexit.</p><p>Now, after Britons voted to leave the European Union on June 23, we have evidence that this prediction is coming true, especially in London.</p><p>Asking prices for UK properties on the market have fallen on average by 0.9% (-£2,647) so far this month to £307,824, <a href="http://www.rightmove.co.uk/news/house-price-index">according to Rightmove</a>. Inner, or central, London was particularly badly hit, with asking prices there falling by 2.3% (-£19,051).</p><p>This is a bad sign. House prices rise and fall during certain periods of the year but late spring/summer is usually peak season. Most people go to buy and sell homes at this time of year in the hope of moving in plenty of time before Christmas. We should be seeing healthy price growth right now.</p><p>Not only are house prices suffering compared to the prior month, we are also seeing prices fall when you compare it to this time last year.</p><p>Take a look at the below chart that clearly shows a year-on-year fall in inner London property prices:<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Rightmove</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>This is significant because UK property prices, especially those in London, have been rocketing for years as the economy has been healthy, interest rates are low, employment is high, and the nation has a significant supply and demand imbalance.</p><p>Interest rates are still low, employment still high, and there still aren't enough houses to meet demand in London. But the outlook for the economy has nosedived in the wake of the Brexit vote, <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/eu-referendum-brexit-impact-pantheon-macroeconomics-chart-on-recession-probability-2016-7">with most banks and economists predicting a recession.</a></p><p>This is only the start. House prices are likely to fall a lot further from here. Last week, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors outlined exactly how <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/rics-charts-brexit-impact-on-uk-house-prices-2016-7">Brexit is going to kill house prices</a>.</p><p>RICS said on Thursday that new buyer enquiries "declined significantly" in June, <a href="http://www.rics.org/uk/news/news-insight/press-releases/brexit-uncertainty-hits-activity/">with 36% more chartered surveyors reporting a fall in interest as part of the June housing survey.</a> This is the lowest reading since mid-2008 when the financial crisis was in full swing.</p><p>Research firm LonRes says that the "number of cuts to asking prices surged by 163% in the 12 days following the referendum compared with the 12 days beforehand," <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7e918d8c-4c15-11e6-88c5-db83e98a590a.html?siteedition=uk#axzz4EjnbWJXQ">according to the Financial Times.</a>The report says that this failed to materialise in sales.</p><p>But we were all warned.</p><p>Prior to Britons voting in the referendum, the UK Treasury said that house prices could crash by between 10% to 18%. Meanwhile, Mark Burrows and his team at Bernstein said it would be much worse. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/bernstein-eu-referendum-and-brexit-impact-on-uk-property-prices-2016-6">They think property prices could crash by as much as 30%</a> - nearly double the upper estimate from the former Chancellor George Osborne.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/50-cent-debt-bankruptcy-court-creditors-2016-7">50 Cent will pay $23.4 million to creditors over the next 5 years -&#xa0;here's how he made and lost millions</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="VlbnI2djrZXIh9tIkLc68cC984sL8GSb" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Brexit is officially starting to destroy Britain's property prices - especially in London

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Until Tuesday, <keyword id="22501" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="New-Zealand">New Zealand</keyword> hadn't reported a new locally transmitted case of <keyword id="8763838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid-19">COVID-19</keyword> from the novel <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> in <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/new-zealand-lockdown-first-new-coronavirus-cases-101-days-2020-8">102 days</a>.</li><li>Freelance reporter James Pasley has been in New Zealand since its strict lockdown began in March.</li><li>He writes about the strangely peaceful way life has carried on there, contrary to the situation in the US.</li></ul><p>MANGAWHAI, NEW ZEALAND — One of the first signs "normality" had returned to New Zealand was when I heard helicopters overhead.</p><p>Before that it was empty skies and empty roads.</p><p>When lockdown ended at the beginning of <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52961539">June</a>, helicopters resumed trips to <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&amp;objectid=122984588458">Tara Iti</a>, US billionaire Ric Kayne's estimated $100 million golf course that Golf Digest ranked higher than US President Donald Trump's course in Scotland.</p><p>Tara Iti is just to the south of Mangawhai, a small seaside town of fewer than 1,000 people, a little over an hour north of Auckland, the country's largest city.</p><p>I've been living in Mangawhai since late March when New Zealand went into strict lockdown. I came back home from New York City, after a brief stint in London. The house I've been living in does not have Wi-Fi, so I've been relying on a mobile phone hotspot, working with a lagging buffer. In the scheme of things, it is a glorious first world problem.</p><p>A farmer leases the fields below the house for grazing. Beyond them, there's an estuary that bustles in the summer with families, fisherman, boats, and jet skiers.</p><p>When I first got back, it was quiet and bereft of human activity, and if you didn't know about the state of the world, it might have looked like a winter lull.</p><p>Lately, there's more activity. Kitesurfers fill the waterway when the wind's blowing the right way. People walk along the edges. Things seem normal here. If you stayed off the internet and ignored the media, it would seem like the pandemic did not exist.</p><p><div type="image" title="Cows new zealand" height="2692" width="2991" msid="77491363" hostid="261"></div></p><p>On Sunday, New Zealand marked 100 days with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/new-zealand-100-days-no-new-local-covid-cases-2020-8">no new local cases of COVID-19</a>. The helicopters were flying regularly. Golfing had resumed.</p><p>But on Tuesday evening, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/122416730/coronavirus-auckland-moves-to-level-3-rest-of-nz-to-level-2-as-four-covid19-cases-confirmed-in-community">announced</a> Auckland was going back under its second highest level of lockdown after four new cases were discovered, without a link to overseas <keyword id="6354692" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Travel">travel</keyword>.</p><p>As of August 11, New Zealand has 1,570 cases and 22 deaths, according to data from <a href="https://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6">Johns Hopkins University</a>.</p><h2><strong>Masks had disappeared in Mangawhai because there were no cases</strong></h2><p>When I first got back, locals in town wore masks and stood in socially-distanced lines outside the supermarket. While we waited to check-out, the various levels of lockdown were discussed, as they eased, with a sense of anticipation.</p><p>Since the end of lockdown, I have not seen a mask in Mangawhai. During visits to Auckland, masks were rare, and while there have been half-hearted attempts at contact tracing in cafes and shops, <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/122390871/coronavirus-lack-of-contact-tracing-will-hurt-new-zealand-if-community-transmission-emerges-expert-says">few people</a> are following the process.</p><p>Three months ago, the government said there wasn't enough evidence to back recommending masks. This week, before the new cases had been discovered, public health officials started to urge people to keep masks at home, the <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&amp;objectid=123544104410">New Zealand Herald</a> reported.</p><p>Lockdown ending resulted in Mangawhai going from sleepy and quiet to booming. Traffic clogs the roads on the weekends as Aucklanders escape the city for a dose of nature. The farmer's market is bustling. The secondhand store owner told me she's kept busy with new faces each weekend.</p><p>And it's not just Aucklanders. Lockdown put a stop to any potentially dangerous activities, including hunting and surfing. At dusk surfers are once again heading out after work. The hunting ban caused duck numbers to increase in the fields around the house I'm staying in, and hunters have now returned to cull them.</p><p><div type="image" title="Mangawhai new zealand" height="1500" width="2000" msid="77491371" hostid="261"></div></p><h2>'How will they ruin this town next?'</h2><p>On a Tuesday morning in July, I attended a public council meeting at the local golf club (a less exclusive course than Tara Iti) to get a feeling for Mangawhai.</p><p>COVID-19 was mentioned, since a number of new jobs were created to keep people working in the area in the wake of the pandemic. But other than that, I counted 38 people, mostly elderly, who showed up to hear about a controversial roundabout that will push up annual property charges.</p><p>"How will they ruin this town next?" one lady said to the woman next to me. Another man yelled at Kaipara Mayor Jason Smith to redirect the projector, which showed the new road plan, to a different wall so that everyone could see it. He lamented what he described as the poor public process, but Smith said it had never been necessary before, because they'd never had so many attendees.</p><p>The absurdity of a roundabout stoking controversy as COVID-19 spreads across the world was a little hard to comprehend.</p><p>But it was also amazing to me that all these people could show up without masks and not fear for their health.</p><p>In a similar vein, Ian Griffin, the Otago Museum director, posted a <a href="https://twitter.com/iangriffin/status/1290222682240245761">photo</a> on Twitter last week showing a sea of grey heads at a seminar, which he pointed out couldn't really happen anywhere else in the world.</p><p><div type="image" title="From above new zealand" height="1709" width="2000" msid="77491374" hostid="261"></div></p><h2><strong>'I hope you all catch covid and die a horrific death'</strong></h2><p>About eight weeks ago, my partner had to go back to the US for work. Taking her to the Auckland Airport was a reminder of the abnormality at our borders and beyond.</p><p>We arrived early and had to wait for the single check-in to open. It was one of the only flights departing that day. Auckland airport is no LAX, but it's the largest airport in the country, and it was eerie turning up after sunset to an airport swathed in darkness, with empty buses doing loops despite no passengers.</p><p>People returning to New Zealand must complete a 14-day quarantine or managed isolation, and test negative for COVID-19 before they can leave it.</p><p>For a period in July, on almost a weekly basis someone or a group escaped mandatory quarantine. Several times it was to get to a dying loved one or to attend their <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/300065838/mum-who-escaped-coronavirus-isolation-i-wanted-to-give-my-children-closure">funeral</a>. After one of the early, more controversial breakouts, the military was brought in to monitor quarantine, but breakouts have continued.</p><p>One of the other main controversies was whether or not to charge people coming back into the country. Vicious online hate has been fired at New Zealanders who want to come home.</p><p>The vitriol is partly because of the risk people bring, but also an idea — inaccurate or not — that it was the better-off who left New Zealand for <keyword id="6356001" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="international">international</keyword> experiences, and now want to come back to safety when it suits them.</p><p>Newshub's Europe correspondent Lloyd Burr posted a selection of online comments on <a href="https://twitter.com/LloydBurr/status/1286317943446437896/photo/1">Twitter</a>. One comment ended with: "I hope you all catch covid and die a horrific death from it, because the world will be a better place without people like you."</p><p>Earlier this month, the government ended up passing a law that means only people who are returning to visit rather than to live will have to pay, <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300074730/coronavirus-government-passes-law-to-charge-returnees-for-border-hotel-stay">Stuff.co.nz</a> reported.</p><p>While I was in Auckland, I went to a bar to watch a couple of bands, because I could. I stood at the back of a hot room filled with young, sweaty people dancing.</p><p>At one point, between songs, the singer asked the crowd if anyone would give him a drink. There was no hesitation. Several people offered their cups. He drank then handed it back. There was no fear of transmission. There were no active cases.</p><p>Last week, the lack of Wi-Fi finally got to me. We rented a house for a week on Waiheke, known as a destination for US billionaires <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/waiheke-island-new-zealand-hamptons-wealthy-pandemic-photos-2020-4?r=AU&amp;IR=TIR=T">to hunker down</a> during the pandemic. As far as I'm aware, I encountered no billionaires, but I did catch a glimpse of a bus stop filled with old women, which was a heartwarming sight, considering.</p><p><div type="image" title="Elderly new zealand" height="1375" width="2000" msid="77491378" hostid="261"></div></p><p>Mostly, the roads were empty, and the vineyards were quiet. It's winter, so it's not the busy season, but it still felt slow.</p><p>I heard one waiter at a restaurant say they only had one dinner booking on a Saturday night, and instead of mentioning the pandemic, she wondered if it was due to a glitch in their booking system.</p><h2><strong>New Zealand's tourism is taking a hit</strong></h2><p>New Zealand relies heavily on tourism. A <a href="https://www.mbie.govt.nz/assets/5c05b7bfce/nz-tourism-forecasts-2018-2024-report.pdf">government paper</a> released in 2018 forecast the nation of 5 million would be getting 5.1 million visitors in 2024, with international annual spending to be nearly $15 billion. China was expected to be the biggest tourism market.</p><p>Now, only residents and citizens along with their children and partners can <a href="https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/covid-19-current-situation/covid-19-border-controls">enter the country</a>, unless someone has been granted a specific exemption, for a medical reason or if they're an essential worker.</p><p>On the upside, a large portion of the middle class travel internationally each year, and because they can't do that, they are traveling around the country. It's unlikely to be enough to offset the loss, but it's something.</p><p><div type="image" title="Estuary new zealand" height="2595" width="2981" msid="77491381" hostid="261"></div></p><p>New Zealand also gets an injection of cash from international students who pay about three times more than local students for university. A government paper estimated the loss will cost education providers about $600 million, according to <a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/422694/nz-international-student-sector-more-focus-on-quality-education-than-work-rights-cabinet-papers">RNZ</a>.</p><p>International students won't be allowed in for the rest of the year, and potentially not next year either, so universities that were already making cuts before the pandemic face an even more dire situation.</p><p>New Zealand's housing market has not noticeably suffered yet. I was hoping to find a place to live, most likely renting in Auckland, but the number of people returning has kept demand up — <a href="https://www.oneroof.co.nz/news/38195">300 people lined up to view a small apartment</a> — and made moving out of the countryside more difficult than I'd expected.</p><p>As for shortages, despite the closed borders, there aren't many I'm aware of. There are reports about the pain reliever <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/300060505/paracetamol-stocks-running-out-at-kiwi-pharmacies">paracetamol running low</a>, but supermarket shelves don't seem to be missing anything.</p><p>New Zealand relies on migrant labor for <a href="https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/rural/2020/07/slim-chance-much-needed-migrant-workers-will-be-allowed-into-nz-as-covid-19-worsens-globally-agriculture-minister.html">agricultural work</a> and that's no longer possible, which could have a long-term impact. But the government claims people already in the country will fill the void.</p><h2>One lockdown was enough — this next one might not go as smoothly</h2><p>Already, lockdown feels like a long time ago, and some people discount how bad it could have been had New Zealand not imposed such stringent rules.</p><p>There are calls for the borders to open, or for easing of rules around foreign people buying land in New Zealand, most notably from <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/122338065/relax-border-restrictions-to-soften-covid19s-economic-blow-sir-john-key-says">former prime minister John Key</a>.</p><p>But watching Australia's recent <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-09/coronavirus-victoria-394-new-cases-record-17-deaths/12539010">resurgence of cases</a> hit home just how serious a breakout could be here, and experts warn it wouldn't take much before the virus could spread like wildfire. Professor Tony Blakely, an epidemiologist in Melbourne, <a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/422619/melbourne-epidemiologist-sounds-warning-to-nz-over-hotspot-lockdowns">warned last week</a> that 100 cases would be too much for tracers to keep in control.</p><p>At my niece's baby shower last week, most of my family and friends were positive about how New Zealand was doing. It's hard not to be.</p><p>But there was a common concern: several different conversations ruminated on the likelihood that New Zealand will have to endure another lockdown.</p><p>There was a feeling of unease, knowing that we could not go on like this forever. And now we're here. Once was enough, but this next one might not go as smoothly.</p>

What it's like in New Zealand, where until Tuesday there hadn't been a new case of COVID-19 in more than 100 days

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li><strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/bryce-harper" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bryce Harper</a> made his debut with the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/philadelphia-phillies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Philadelphia Phillies</a> on opening day on Thursday.</strong></li><li><strong>The game was the first of 2,106 regular season games Harper will have the chance to play in after signing his 13-year, $330 million deal in the offseason.</strong></li><li><strong>At Citizens Bank Park, fans recalled the moment they found out Harper was coming to Philadelphia and the high expectations that come with his massive contract.</strong></li><li><strong>By the time Harper's deal with the Phillies is up, the 8-year-old fans in attendance on opening day 2019 will be able to buy a $12 stadium beer.</strong></li></ul><p>Opening day brings hope for all 30 teams in baseball.</p><p>No matter how low your expectations on the upcoming season, in game one of 162, a win will put you at the top of the standings, if only for a moment, and anything is possible.</p><p><em><strong>Read more:</strong> </em><em><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mlb-power-rankings-2019-2019-3" data-analytics-position="18" data-analytics-module="onecolumn-post_image">MLB Power Rankings: Where every team stands on the eve of the 2019 season</a></em></p><p>But for the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/philadelphia-phillies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Philadelphia Phillies</a> on Thursday, opening day was not just game one of 162 - it was game one of 2,106, with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/bryce-harper" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bryce Harper</a> making his debut in red pinstripes after signing a then-record $330 million deal to play in the City of Brotherly Love for the next 13 seasons.</p><p>The mood was electric at Citizens Bank Park, in a way that might not have been familiar to younger Phillies fans who were not around for the 2008 World Series run. But while the excitement of the 2008 Phillies was sparked by wins, on Thursday it was the electricity of expectation that rippled through the capacity crowd of <span>44,469 fans in attendance.</span></p><p><span>From the start, it was clear that Harper was ready to please the crowd of Philly Phaithful.</span></p><p><span>Donning <a href="https://twitter.com/dayneyoung/status/1111347252780519424" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bright green cleats emblazoned with the eyes of the Phillie Phanatic</a>, Harper ran out to raucous cheers when his name was announced in the opening lineups. The roars rose to another level when he made his way to right field, where he bowed to the fans and gave two emphatic fist pumps.</span></p><p>&#xa0;</p><p>Harper wasn't the only signing of the Phillies offseason. Fellow former NL MVP Andrew McCutchen joined the team and hit a lead-off home run in his debut in red and white. Catcher J.T. Realmuto was also brought to Philadelphia during the team's weeks of hot stove spending.</p><p>But Harper was the talk of the town on Thursday, not just because of his talent, but because of his contract, and the commitment to the future it represents. Asking around Citizens Bank Park, fans recalled the moment they found out that Harper was coming to Philadelphia with absolute joy.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>"I was on a run right after work," Steven Kuchera says of when he found out the news. Kuchera was sporting a Harper jersey standing by section 106 in right field to get a good view of the Phillies new superstar.</p><p>"My friend texted me, I was like 'Wait what?!' I couldn't process it," Kunchera says. "Then I went home and checked Twitter and realized it was the real freakin' deal."</p><p>Nicole Semola, a Phillies fan since she was born, attending her fifth straight opening day, had a similar story.</p><p>"One of my friends texted me, I saw it on social media, it kind of all happened at once," Semola says. "I was really, really excited. It was the best news I had heard in a while."</p><p>No Phillies fan I met at the stadium was more colorful with his recollection that Danny Ryan, a fan from Woodbury, New Jersey at his fourth straight opening day. Ryan had been walking his dogs when the news broke, and a friend had called him. He decided not to pick up, but as soon as the call was canceled, a notification from Bleacher Report came through his phone.</p><p>"I just screamed 'Holy s---!' I was going insane," Ryan tells me while waiting on line for roast pork from Tony Luke's in centerfield. "I was waiting for it, dude. I was so impatient."</p><p>Harper's debut was admitting underwhelming from a production standpoint. The Phillies new $330 million man went 0-3 with two strikeouts, a walk, and a run scored. Harper even received a smattering of boos from the Philly crowd after his second strikeout of the day, though I didn't hear of them until after the game.</p><p><em><strong>Read more:</strong> </em><em><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bryce-harper-booed-phillies-striking-out-2019-3" data-analytics-position="4" data-analytics-module="onecolumn-post_image">Phillies fans booed Bryce Harper after he struck out during rough first game of his 13-year $330 million contract</a></em></p><p>The real boos were reserved for the Braves after their decision to intentionally walk Harper when he had runners in scoring position in the seventh inning.</p><p>Even without a hit, Harper proved the value he has to the lineup with that walk - loading the bases to set up Rhys Hoskins for an exclamation point Grand Slam that sent the home crowd into hysterics.</p><p>&#xa0;</p><p>But Phillies fans are looking for a lot more than situational walks from Harper and his 13-year, $330 million deal.</p><p>"I want this hand to be heavy with rings," Kunchera tells me, holding up his right hand for emphasis. "I need at least three," his friend Faustinus agrees.</p><p>Ryan was a bit more reserved with his expectations but made it clear he still wants a title. "Just one. One or two," he says. "I know how hard it is to win a ring in baseball, so I'd be happy with just one. Especially in Philly."</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>It goes without saying, but is worth emphasizing - 13 years is a long time, and in baseball. It's an eternity, and Sunday's game only a blip. Nothing made that more clear than talking to some of the younger Phillies fans in attendance.</p><p>Jackson, Cash, and Peyton are 8, 10, and 11, respectively, and stood above the bullpens in centerfield sporting Harper jerseys along with their mothers. Peyton estimates he's been to "about 30" games in his young fandom, but this was his first opening day.</p><p>The trio's feelings for Bryce Harper will undoubtedly evolve with time, but for now, Peyton likes "How nice he is." Cash agrees, saying, "He's a good guy, and I like his hair," with a smile and a shock of bleach on his own head. Jackson tells me his favorite part of the day was high-fiving all the players and assured me that Harper gave the best high fives of the whole team, though Peyton argues that Maikel Franco gave a pretty good one as well.</p><p>Asked what they'll be doing on opening day in 13 years, the trio of friends thinks for a moment.</p><p>"Probably celebrating," Peyton says. "We're going to go to every game!" Cash proclaims.</p><p>Jackson's mother had another idea for his plans in 13 years, after 2,105 more games from Harper in red pinstripes.</p><p>"You'll have to buy mom a beer."</p><p><span style="font-family: LabGrotesque-Black, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000;">Read more from Tyler Lauletta:</span></p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mlb-power-rankings-2019-2019-3" data-analytics-position="3">MLB Power Rankings: Where every team stands on the eve of the 2019 season</a></p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nick-foles-perfect-backup-quarterback-2019-3" data-analytics-position="20">Nick Foles was the perfect backup quarterback</a></p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/2019-nfl-mock-draft-consensus-first-round-2019-2" data-analytics-position="2">NFL draft experts predict every pick for the first round</a></p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wwe-charlotte-flair-rips-espn-ric-flairs-daughter-2019-3" data-analytics-position="2">WWE superstar Charlotte Flair rips ESPN after they introduced her as Ric Flair's daughter without mentioning her accomplishments</a></p><div></div><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/lebron-james-nba-celebrity-stylist-fashion-icon-2019-3">Meet the stylist who turned LeBron James into a fashion icon</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

Phillies fans recall the moment they found out that Bryce Harper signed with the team,&#160;and the sky-high expectations it created

<p><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"><div class="image-container float_right click-to-enlarge" style="width:400px"><div class="image"><a title_source="Ric Kallaher" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/51893fbeecad04fd44000015-960/mike-hughes-the-martin-agency-4.png"><span class="click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a></div><p class="source">Ric Kallaher</p></div>Ad executive Mike Hughes is sharing his life lessons and regrets as </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/martin-agency-mike-hughes-blogs-through-cancer-2013-5">he blogs through his two-decade fight with lung cancer</a>, which might be nearing an end.</p>
<p>Hughes is the president of The Martin Agency, and <a href="http://unfinishedthinking.com/">his blog, "Unfinished Thinking,"</a> reveals a secret about one of the biggest <keyword id="35666" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="advertising">advertising</keyword> campaigns in the U.S.: The <keyword id="175942" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Geico">GEICO</keyword> Gecko.</p>
<p>"<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">One of the joys of being an agency president or creative director is that you get credit for the work the people around you create," <a href="http://unfinishedthinking.com/2013/01/31/people-keep-saying-what-can-i-do-heres-an-idea/">Hughes writes.</a> "I’ve built my career on the talents of a lot of talented people. I didn’t develop the gecko. <strong>In fact I tried to kill it. Four times.</strong> No kidding."</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"><table class="image-container float_right click-to-enlarge" width="200"><tr><td><div class="image"><a title_source="Youtube" title_caption="The GEICO Gecko" class="zoomin" href="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/51893fd9ecad04034500000b-960/geico-gecko.jpg"><span class="click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span><a href="http://www.geico.com/about/corporate/word-from-sponsor/"></a></a></div><p class="source"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKPXvqBKs64">Youtube</a></p><p class="caption">The GEICO Gecko</p></td></tr></table>The precocious reptile was dreamed up in a meeting in the late 1990s when creatives were discussing the public's inability to pronounce "GEICO" properly. Thus, the GEICO gecko was born.</span></p>
<p>While Hughes might have hated the pint-sized spokescharacter, the gecko has become a staple of American advertising culture. <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-02-07/geicos-gecko-has-written-a-book">He even wrote a book this year.</a></p>
<p>Hughes' overall message, however, is far more profound than just noting that he was against the very gecko that brought his shop critical acclaim.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span>So here’s my idea. In addition to sending me a note about how wonderful I am (and, yes, I still want those notes), send one to someone else – someone who may not get all the hurrahs I’m getting. Maybe it’s your kid’s teacher. Maybe it’s the woman in the next cubicle. Maybe it’s a niece or nephew who’s been through a rough time lately. Maybe it’s your oldest friend. Maybe it’s your newest. Everyone deserves to hear the things that will be said about them at their funerals before their funerals.</span></p>

Ad Exec Blogging Through Terminal Cancer Tried To Kill The Geico Gecko 4 Times

<p><div class="image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image"><a title_source="REUTERS/Susana Vera" title_caption="Two scrap dealers sleep on a mattress at the entrance to a former Bankia-Caja Madrid bank branch in Madrid August 12, 2013. The sign reads, " retail="" space="" available.="" class="zoomin" href="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/520a0ac06bb3f7f04b000004-960/person-sleeping-on-mattress.jpg"><span class="click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source">REUTERS/Susana Vera</p><p class="caption">Two scrap dealers sleep on a mattress at the entrance to a former Bankia-Caja Madrid bank branch in Madrid August 12, 2013. The sign reads, "retail space available".</p></div></div>Good morning. Here's what you need to know.</p>
<ul>
<li>Markets in Asia were higher in overnight trading. The Japanese Nikkei 225 rose 2.6%, the Hong Kong Hang Seng advanced 1.2%, and the Shanghai Composite rose 0.2%. European markets are trading higher, with the German DAX leading the way, currently up 0.8%. In the United States, futures point to a positive open.</li>
<li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The U.K. RICS home-price index suggests that </span><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-12/u-k-house-price-index-rises-to-highest-since-2006-rics-says.html">prices rose to their highest level in seven years</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> in July. The index increased to 36 in July from 21 in June. Economists had predicted a much smaller advance to 24.</span></li>
<li>Overnight, the Bank of Japan released the minutes from its July 10-11 policy meeting. The minutes <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2013/08/13/boj-minutes-raise-debt-concerns/">revealed concern on the board of governors over the fiscal position</a> of the Japanese government. Some on the board weighed in on the controversial consumption tax hike scheduled for April, saying it was important that the administration sticks to the timetable for hiking the tax.</li>
<li>Machine orders fell 2.7% in June following a 10.5% advance in May. Economists predicted a larger drop of 7%. "<span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;"><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;">In this ongoing economic recovery led by Abenomics, recovery in capital investment should come in the last stage, perhaps in 2H 2014 or later," says Deutsche Bank economist </span></span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;">Mikihiro Matsuoka.</span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;"> "One-year JPY depreciation does not seem sufficient to induce domestic capital investment. Unless Japanese companies regain their long-term confidence in the Japanese economy, they probably will not see enough incentives to increase domestic capital investment."</span></li>
<li>German consumer prices rose 1.9% year over year in July, unchanged from the month before and right in line with estimates. "<span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;">Looking at the components of the national CPI measures released by Destatis, the pressures came from the food prices which accelerated from 4.7% [year over year] to 5.1% [year over year], adding 4 [basis points] to the headline yearly rate," says Société Générale economist Herve Amourda. "On the downside, the seasonal effects were slightly more marked this July, as </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;">both the 'clothing' and </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;">the '</span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;">recreational and culture'</span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 1.5em;">components decelerated, cutting 8 [basis points] to the headline rate."</span></li>
<li>The German ZEW survey of economic sentiment revealed that the <a href="http://t.co/DfDd4fHncn">index of confidence rose to 42.0 in August from 36.3</a> in July. Economists had predicted it would rise to only 39.9. Meanwhile, the eurozone ZEW index jumped to 44.0 in August from 32.8 in July.</li>
<li>Tesla CEO Elon Musk <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-hyperloop-plan-2013-8">unveiled his plans for the "Hyperloop,"</a> a transportation system comprised of 28-passenger pods that whip through steel tubes at speeds up to 760 miles per hour between L.A. and San Francisco. Musk believes the Hyperloop will cost $7.5 billion at most.</li>
<li>Dick's Sporting Goods announces second quarter earnings this morning before the opening bell. Analysts expect the store chain to report earnings of $0.76 per share, up from $0.65 the year before, on revenues of $1.58 billion, up from $1.44 billion the year before. The announcement precedes a spate of other earnings reports this week from retailers like Macy's, Kohl's, Wal-Mart, and Nordstrom.</li>
<li>Advance retail sales data for July are due out in the U.S. at 8:30 AM ET. Economists predict total sales rose 0.3% following a 0.4% advance in June, while sales excluding autos are expected to have risen 0.4% after no change in June. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/moneygame">Follow the data LIVE on Business Insider &gt;</a></li>
<li>Also of note in the U.S. today are June business inventories data, due out at 10 AM, and a speech by Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart, who speaks on the economy at 12:45 PM.</li>
</ul>

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