Georgia could see dual runoffs—and keep narrow door open for Democrats to win Senate
● State Legislatures: Tuesday night was a big disappointment for Democrats at the state legislative level, especially since this is the last election before the 2020s redistricting cycle. Via the National Conference for State Legislatures, the legislative chambers below are still in doubt. Democrats failed to flip other targeted chambers such as the Iowa House, Minnesota Senate, North Carolina Senate and House, and Texas House.Alaska: Republicans have again won majorities of seats in the state House and Senate. However, it’s still possible that moderate Republicans will side with Democrats and independents to form new bipartisan coalitions in either chamber, as has been the case in the House for the last four years.Arizona: Enough races to decide majority control in both chambers are undecided. Democrats still have a chance to flip one or both chambers from GOP control, though later-counted votes have largely favored Republicans.Michigan: Control over the state House is still undecided as we are waiting on absentee ballots that lean heavily Democratic. Democrats are hoping to overcome GOP gerrymandering to flip the state House. The state Senate is only up in midterm years.New Hampshire: Republicans regained their majorities with an assist from their gerrymanders, giving them full control over state government heading into redistricting. Republicans also regained control over the state Executive Council, which is key for certain legislation and approving executive appointments such as giving the GOP a new majority on the state Supreme Court.Pennsylvania: Control over the state House is still undecided as we are waiting on absentee ballots that lean heavily Democratic. Democrats are hoping to overcome GOP gerrymandering to flip the state House. Republicans likely cemented their majority in the state Senate, though many absentee ballots are still remaining to be counted for that chamber too.Ballot Measures● CA Ballot: Ride-share giants Uber and Lyft scored a big victory in the most expensive most expensive ballot measure campaign in Californian—and perhaps American—history when voters backed Proposition 22 by a 58-42 margin.The passage of Prop. 22 designates drivers for “App-Based Transportation and Delivery Companies” as independent contractors with some benefits rather than as employees. Uber, Lyft, and delivery companies like DoorDash spent more than $200 million to pass Prop. 22, while labor groups were only to muster up a tenth of that in opposition.● FL Ballot: A proposed constitutional amendment to establish a top-two primary system in state-level races failed to muster up quite enough support to pass. Amendment 3 earned 57% of the vote on Tuesday, which was short of the 60% that constitutional amendments need in Florida.Unfortunately, though, a 79-21 majority approved Amendment 1, which will rewrite the Florida constitution to emphasize that “only a citizen” may vote instead of “every citizen.” While Amendment 1 doesn’t alter the status quo, it prevents local governments from experimenting with letting legal permanent residents who lack citizenship vote in local elections, something a handful of small localities in the U.S. and many European democracies already allow.● MS Ballot: Mississippi voted 78-22 for Measure 2, which repeals a provision of the state’s Jim Crow-era constitution that deliberately penalizes Black voters and the Democrats they support in elections for statewide office. The new law requires candidates for posts like governor or attorney general to take a majority of the vote in the general election in order to win outright; if no one hits this threshold, a runoff would take place between the top-two vote-getters.This new system, though, is still bad for Team Blue because a runoff could lead to a disproportionate drop in Democratic turnout, but it’s better than the 1890 law it replaces. Until now, statewide candidates needed to win not only a majority of the vote but also a majority of the state House’s 122 districts. If no candidate surpassed both thresholds, the members of the House would choose the winner, and there was nothing to stop them from picking the person who lost the popular vote.Voters also supported Measure 3, which will adopt a new state flag, by a 72-28 margin. Earlier this year, GOP Gov. Tate Reeves signed a bill that retired the 126-year-old state flag, which prominently displayed the Confederate battle emblem, in the face of a boycott by the NCAA and SEC. The Commission to Redesign the Mississippi State Flag was tasked with designing a new flag, and it settled on one with a magnolia in the center and the words “In God We Trust” below; the design was approved by voters on Tuesday.● St. Louis, MO Ballot: Voters in the city of St. Louis supported Proposition D, a ballot measure to make it only the second municipality in America to adopt an “approval voting” system for its local elections, by a strong 68-32 margin. Approval voting will be used for the first time early next year when Democratic Mayor Lyda Krewson is up for a second term.As we’ve written before in the Voting Rights Roundup, all the contenders will face off on one nonpartisan ballot, and voters could cast as many votes as there are candidates, with up to one vote per candidate. The top-two vote-getters will then advance to a general election.The goal of this method of voting is to eliminate the “spoiler” problem, where a candidate wins without majority support only because their opposition was divided. The approval approach attempts to ensure that the most broadly acceptable candidate prevails. Fargo, North Dakota is the only other American city that uses approval voting, though unlike the St. Louis system, there is no runoff there.Mayoral● Miami-Dade County, FL Mayor: Sunshine State Democrats got a bright spot on an otherwise dreary Tuesday when Daniella Levine Cava defeated Republican Steve Bovo 54-46, a result that makes her the first woman to lead Florida’s largest county. Levine Cava is also the first Democrat to hold this office since 2004. Redistricting Roundup● Redistricting: Here’s our look at where control over 2020s redistricting stands as of now, which is shaping up to be bleak for Democrats—and democracy:Democrats failed to gain key legislative chambers in 2020 and break the GOP’s full control over Florida, Georgia, Iowa, North Carolina, or Texas, and the Kansas GOP’s supermajorities so that they could uphold the Democratic governor’s vetoes there. Democrats also gained just one of the two Ohio Supreme Court seats needed for a 4-3 majority that could have curtailed GOP gerrymandering there, while Republicans swept every Supreme Court in Texas to maintain their 9-0 majority. Democrats also failed to win the governor’s office or break the GOP’s legislative supermajorities to stop a GOP congressional gerrymander in Missouri.Democrats’ only substantial gain so far was with gaining Oregon’s secretary of state office, which ensures they will control legislative redistricting instead of potentially letting the GOP gerrymander. Democrats did gain a 4-3 majority on Michigan’s Supreme Court in addition to Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s existing veto power, though the ability of both to stop the GOP legislature from gerrymandering could be threatened by the U.S. Supreme Court.One small bit of good news is that Team Blue appears to have stopped the GOP from gaining a filibuster-proof majority that would let them gerrymander Nebraska, though the GOP could always end the filibuster with a simple majority if its various factions can overcome their differences, which is not guaranteed. Democrats additionally stopped the GOP from gaining gerrymandered supermajorities in Wisconsin, but the GOP’s state Supreme Court majority there may yet strip Democratic Gov. Tony Evers of his power to veto new gerrymanders.Finally for Team Blue, New Jersey voters also approved Democrats’ cynical ballot measure that will likely postpone legislative redistricting from 2021 to the 2023 elections. That ballot measure was intended to protect Democratic incumbents both in the primary and general, and while partisan control was unlikely to be at stake in such a blue state, maintaining lines based on the 2010 census hurts New Jersey’s growing Asian and Latino populations.Instead of Democrats making major inroads, Republicans actually gained ground by regaining their gerrymandered majorities in both chambers to assume full control over New Hampshire. Republicans also gained enough seats to deny Democrats and the left-wing Progressive Party the two-thirds supermajority they had enjoyed in Vermont’s state House (they failed to break the Democratic-Progressive Senate supermajority). Independents now hold the key to overriding GOP Gov. Phil Scott’s vetoes, but that looks very unlikely for redistricting and other issues in a state where bipartisan comity remains a rare holdout.Missouri voters also passed the GOP’s deceptive ballot measure that will roll back 2018’s legislative redistricting reform, ensuring that even its bipartisan legislative commission will enact legislative maps that give the GOP an undue advantage. Finally, Republicans have gained at least one North Carolina Supreme Court seat and tentatively lead in two more, potentially cutting the 6-1 Democratic majority down to 4-3 Democratic and weakening a check against their gerrymanders, though many provisional and absentee ballots are yet to be counted and likely lean DemocraticWhile Virginians voted to create a bipartisan redistricting commission that would prevent Democratic gerrymandering, which should ensure that the legislative districts are relatively fair for 2021, the inability of Democrats to control congressional redistricting there only further cements the GOP’s national advantage when red states don’t similarly follow suit.At the national level, Democrats failed to gain enough seats outright to win the Senate, though they may yet do so in Jan. 5 runoffs in Georgia depending on the uncalled GA-Sen-A seat held by GOP Sen. David Perdue; Perdue currently holds just over a majority of the vote with many mail votes left to count. If Democrats don’t take the Senate, they can’t pass HR 1 and ban congressional gerrymandering nationally. Nor can they reform the Supreme Court and get it to stop enabling GOP gerrymanders. Campaign ActionThat target kept shrinking over the course of the day Wednesday as officials counted absentee votes, about 90,000 of which remained to be tallied when we put the Digest to bed—the vast majority in Democratic-leaning counties. Further updates are reportedly not expected until 10:30 AM ET, but with many election officials working hard late into the night, it’s possible that whether or not we have a runoff could be decided before the sun rises.- Advertisement – Here’s where things stand in the key Senate races that the Associated Press had not called as of Wednesday night:AK-Sen: Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan leads independent Al Gross 62-32 with 191,000 votes counted. At least 133,000 absentee and early votes have not yet been counted, and that number will grow since ballots are valid so long as they are postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 13. Absentees will not be counted until next week.NC-Sen: Republican Sen. Thom Tillis leads Democrat Cal Cunningham 49-47 with 5.4 million votes counted. The North Carolina Board of Elections says that about 116,000 absentee ballots remain outstanding, though it’s not clear how many have been returned. Ballots are valid so long as they are postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 12. The News & Observer reports that final tallies will not be known “until next week.”HouseAnd here’s where things stand in the key House races that the Associated Press had not called as of Wednesday night. Currently, Democrats have won or lead in 219 races and Republicans have won or lead in 216 (see our “Summary” tab here). Several of these results are bound to shift, however, as additional votes are tallied.AK-AL: Republican Rep. Don Young leads independent Alyse Galvin 63-37 with 190,000 votes counted.AZ-01: Democratic Rep. Tom O’Halleran leads Republican Tiffany Shedd 52-48 with 310,000 votes counted.AZ-06: Republican Rep. David Schweikert leads Democrat Hiral Tipirneni 50.4-49.6 with 352,000 votes counted.CA-04: Republican Rep. Tom McClintock leads Democrat Brynne Kennedy 53-47 with 327,000 votes counted.CA-21: Republican David Valadao leads Democratic Rep. TJ Cox 51-49 with 110,000 votes counted.CA-25: Democrat Christy Smith leads Republican Rep. Mike Garcia 50.3-49.7 with 271,000 votes counted.CA-39: Republican Young Kim leads Democratic Rep. Gil Cisneros 50.3-49.7 with 275,000 votes counted.CA-48: Republican Michelle Steel leads Democratic Rep. Harley Rouda 50.4-49.6 with 340,000 votes counted.CA-50: Republican Darrell Issa leads Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar 52-48 with 261,000 votes counted for this GOP-held open seat.GA-07: Democrat Carolyn Bourdeaux leads Republican Rich McCormick 51-49 with 362,000 votes counted for this GOP-held open seat.IA-02: Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks leads Democrat Rita Hart 50.04-49.96, a margin of 282 votes, with 393,000 votes counted for this Democratic-held open seat.IL-14: Republican Jim Oberweis leads Democratic Rep. Lauren Underwood 50.1-49.9 with 377,000 votes counted.IL-17: Democratic Rep. Cheri Bustos leads Republican Esther Joy King 52-48 with 296,000 votes counted.MI-11: Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens leads Republican Eric Esshaki 50-48 with 438,000 votes counted.MN-01: Republican Rep. Jim Hagedorn leads Democrat Dan Feehan 49-46 with 366,000 votes counted. MN-02: Democratic Rep. Angie Craig leads Republican Tyler Kistner 48-46 with 423,000 votes counted.NJ-02: Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew leads Democrat Amy Kennedy 51-47 with 279,000 votes counted.NV-03: Democratic Rep. Susie Lee leads Republican Dan Rodimer 48-47 with 349,000 votes counted.NV-04: Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford leads Republican Jim Marchant 50-47 with 279,000 votes counted.NY-01: Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin leads Democrat Nancy Goroff 61-39 with 288,000 votes counted. New York has not counted any absentee ballots yet and likely won’t start tallying them for some time, possibly a week or more. Final results could take many weeks, as was the case following the state’s June primary.NY-02: Republican Andrew Garbarino leads Democrat Jackie Gordon 58-41 with 268,000 votes counted for this GOP-held open seat.NY-03: Republican George Santos leads Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi 50-49 with 273,000 votes counted.NY-11: Republican Nicole Malliotakis leads Democratic Rep. Max Rose 58-42 with 236,000 votes counted.NY-22: Republican Claudia Tenney leads Democratic Rep. Anthony Brindisi 55-43 with 249,000 votes counted.NY-24: Republican Rep. John Katko leads Democrat Dana Balter 58-38 with 266,000 votes counted.PA-07: Republican Lisa Scheller leads Democratic Rep. Susan Wild 51-49 with 326,000 votes counted. Absentee ballots, which have disproportionately favored Democrats, were still being tallied in Pennsylvania on Wednesday. Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar said Wednesday evening that she expects the “overwhelming majority” of ballots to be counted by Thursday.PA-08: Republican Jim Bognet leads Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright 51-49 with 301,000 votes counted.PA-10: Republican Rep. Scott Perry leads Democrat Eugene DePasquale 55-45 with 357,000 votes counted.PA-17: Republican Sean Parnell leads Democratic Rep. Conor Lamb 51-49 with 383,000 votes counted.TX-24: Republican Beth Van Duyne leads Democrat Candace Valenzuela 49-47 with 339,000 votes counted for this GOP-held open seat.UT-04: Democratic Rep. Ben McAdams leads Republican Burgess Owens 48-47 with 242,000 votes counted.VA-07: Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger leads Republican Nick Freitas 51-49 with 450,000 votes counted.WA-03: Republican Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler leads Democrat Carolyn Long 55-45 with 341,000 votes counted.Election RecapsSenate, Gubernatorial, HouseThe following notable Senate, House, and governor races were called by the Associated Press after midnight on election night:AZ-Sen: Democrat Mark Kelly has defeated Republican Sen. Martha McSally, flipping this seat to the Democrats.ME-Sen: Republican Sen. Susan Collins has defeated Democratic challenger Sara Gideon.MI-Sen: Democratic Sen. Gary Peters has defeated Republican challenger John James.MN-Sen: Democratic Sen. Tina Smith has defeated Republican challenger Jason Lewis.MT-Sen: Republican Sen. Steve Daines has defeated Democratic challenger Steve Bullock.NM-Sen: Democrat Ben Ray Lujan has defeated Republican Mark Ronchetti, holding this open seat for the Democrats.MT-Gov: Republican Greg Gianforte has defeated Democrat Mike Cooney, flipping this open seat to the GOP.CO-03: Republican Lauren Boebert, who unseated Rep. Scott Tipton in the GOP primary earlier this year, has defeated Democrat Diane Mitsch Busch, holding this open seat for the GOP.GA-06: Freshman Democratic Rep. Lucy McBath has defeated Republican challenger Karen Handel in a rematch of their 2018 race.IA-01: Republican Ashley Hinson has defeated freshman Democratic Rep. Abby Finkenauer, flipping this seat to the GOP.IA-03: Freshman Democratic Rep. Cindy Axne has defeated Republican challenger David Young in a rematch of their 2018 race.IN-05: Republican Victoria Spartz has defeated Democrat Christina Hale, holding this open seat for the GOP.ME-02: Freshman Democratic Rep. Jared Golden has defeated Republican Dale Crafts. Golden won despite Donald Trump carrying the electoral vote for Maine’s 2nd District.MI-03: Republican Peter Meijer has defeated Democrat Hillary Scholten, flipping this seat, which is held by retiring Libertarian Rep. Justin Amash, to the GOP.MI-06: Republican Rep. Fred Upton has defeated Democratic challenger Jon Hoadley.MI-08: Freshman Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin has defeated Republican challenger Paul Junge.MN-07: Republican Michelle Fischbach has defeated Democratic Rep. Collin Peterson, flipping this seat to the GOP.MT-AL: Republican Matt Rosendale has defeated Democrat Kathleen Williams, holding this open seat for the GOP.NJ-03: Freshman Democratic Rep. Andy Kim has defeated Republican challenger David Richter.NJ-07: Freshman Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski has defeated Republican challenger Tom Kean.NM-02: Republican Yvette Herrell has defeated freshman Democratic Rep. Xochitl Torres Small, flipping this seat to the GOP in a rematch of their 2018 race.NE-02: Republican Rep. Don Bacon has defeated Democratic challenger Kara Eastman in a rematch of their 2018 race. Bacon won despite Joe Biden carrying the electoral vote for Nebraska’s 2nd District.OK-05: Republican Stephanie Bice has defeated freshman Democratic Rep. Kendra Horn, flipping this seat to the GOP.PA-01: Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick has defeated Democratic challenger Christina Finello.PA-06: Freshman Democratic Rep. Chrissy Houlahan has defeated Republican challenger John Emmons.SC-01: Republican Nancy Mace has defeated freshman Democratic Rep. Joe Cunningham, flipping this seat to the GOP.TX-06: Republican Rep. Ron Wright has defeated Democratic challenger Stephen Daniel.TX-07: Freshman Democratic Rep. Lizzie Fletcher has defeated Republican challenger Wesley Hunt.TX-10: Republican Rep. Michael McCaul has defeated Democratic challenger Mike Siegel.TX-21: Freshman Republican Rep. Chip Roy has defeated Democratic challenger Wendy Davis.TX-22: Republican Troy Nehls has defeated Democratic challenger Sri Preston Kulkarni, holding this seat open seat for the GOP.TX-23: Republican Tony Gonzales has defeated Democrat Gina Ortiz Jones, holding this open seat for the GOP.VA-02: Freshman Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria has defeated Republican Scott Taylor in a rematch of their 2018 race.TX-25: Republican Rep. Roger Williams has defeated Democratic challenger Julie Oliver.VA-05: Republican Bob Good, who unseated GOP Rep. Denver Riggleman for his party’s nomination in a convention earlier this year, has defeated Democrat Cameron Webb, holding this open seat for the GOP.WA-10: Democrat Marilyn Strickland has defeated fellow Democrat Beth Doglio in the race to succeed retiring Rep. Denny Heck. (Heck, by the way, defeated fellow Democrat Marko Liias in the open-seat race for Washington’s lieutenant governor.)WI-03: Democratic Rep. Ron Kind has defeated Republican challenger Derrick Van Orden.Legislative- Advertisement – If Perdue does in fact finish below that critical majority threshold, Ossoff will do battle once more in early January alongside fellow Democrat Raphael Warnock, who advanced to a runoff with Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler in the special election for Georgia’s other Senate seat.At the moment, Democrats and Republicans have each won 48 seats in the Senate, though Republicans are likely to wind up with 50 once races in North Carolina and Alaska are called (see our Uncalled Races section below). Should we wind up with a 50-48 Senate favoring the GOP and two runoffs in January, Democrats could seize control of the chamber if they can flip both seats in the event that Joe Biden wins the White House, allowing Kamala Harris to break ties. If that happens, an already wild election season will come to an even wilder finish in Georgia two months from now.Uncalled RacesYou can stay on top of of all uncalled Senate and House races with our key races tracker, which we’ll be updating continually until every last race is settled.Senate- Advertisement – – Advertisement –
Nov 17, 2004 (CIDRAP News) – Clinical trials of a vaccine designed to keep the H5N1 avian influenza virus from sparking a human flu pandemic will begin early in 2005, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) said this week.Under contracts with the NIAID, Aventis Pasteur and Chiron Corp. are each producing 8,000 to 10,000 doses of an H5N1 vaccine based on virus isolated from a human patient who contracted avian flu in Asia this year.In a wide-ranging Nov 15 press briefing on flu research, NIAID Director Anthony Fauci, MD, said, “Production of pilot lots has begun, we expect them to be finished by the end of December, and we expect clinical trials to begin soon thereafter.” He later mentioned January as the month when the trials will probably begin. A recording of the briefing is available on the NIAID Web site.The vaccine will be tested for safety and immunogenicity, or the ability to trigger production of antibodies, Fauci said. Participants will not be exposed to the H5N1 virus, which has caused 44 human cases with 32 deaths in Asia this year.Chiron is making pilot lots of H5N1 vaccine in a plant in Liverpool, England, but it’s not the same plant where contamination problems doomed nearly half of the US flu vaccine supply this fall, Fauci said. The company was expected to supply up to 48 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine to the United States, but the supply was lost when some lots of the vaccine were found to be contaminated and the whole supply was declared unsafe.Fauci said Chiron, which is based in California, has asked the British government to inspect the plant where the H5N1 vaccine is being made. “I do know the Chiron people have asked the UK [United Kingdom] regulators to look at the plant to make sure it’s OK,” he said.Chiron is also under contract to make pilot doses of a human vaccine for H9N2 avian flu, which infected three people in Hong Kong in 1999 and 2003 and is regarded as another possible source of a human pandemic. Fauci said that vaccine is being made in a plant in Siena, Italy.Besides making H5N1 vaccine for the clinical trials, Aventis Pasteur has a separate contract to produce 2 million doses of the vaccine. Fauci said the purpose of that contract is to provide vaccine for public health and laboratory workers and to prepare for mass production of the vaccine in case a pandemic erupts.”It’s going to be much easier for Aventis to go from 2 million up to 50 million than it would be if they were stuck at a pilot of 8,000 to 10,000 [doses],” he said.The H5N1 virus has not yet shown an ability to spread easily from person to person, but many disease experts are worried that it will soon acquire that ability and launch a pandemic. Some experts have said the virus could cause a pandemic on the scale of the Spanish flu of 1918, which killed between 20 million and 50 million people worldwide. Officials have said there is no guarantee that the NIAID’s H5N1 vaccine will work if a pandemic occurs.In response to questions, Fauci said a flu pandemic is probably on the way but not likely to begin in the next few weeks. “If you look at history, it’s unlikely that we’re going to have massive person-to-person spread in December,” he said. “Is it going to happen sometime in the near future? The answer is yes, we’re due for it, but you can’t predict when it’s going to happen.”In other comments, Fauci said he thinks it will be possible, though difficult, to produce a “perennial” flu vaccine—one that doesn’t have to be changed each year to match the circulating strains. “I think we can meet the challenge, but it’s not going to be easy,” he said.Slight changes occur frequently in flu virus surface proteins (hemagglutinin and neuraminidase) that enable the virus to enter and exit human cells. Because these changes permit the virus to evade detection by the immune system and because current vaccines target these proteins, it is necessary to adjust vaccines each year. Flu experts hope to design a vaccine that would target more stable components of the virus, so that it wouldn’t be necessary to change the vaccine every year.Brian Murphy, an NIAID flu expert who attended the roundtable, sounded less optimistic than Fauci about producing a perennial vaccine. He noted that most people have been exposed to many flu strains over the years, yet they become susceptible to the virus again when the surface proteins change.”In order for a perennial vaccine to be effective, you have to make something better [at inducing immunity] than repeated infections with wild-type virus,” he said. “Somebody who has tried to make vaccines for a long time would find that a very difficult task indeed.”See also:NIAID video recording of flu research briefinghttp://videocast.nih.gov/ram/flu111504.ram
(CIDRAP Source Weekly Briefing) – Three very different events in the past 2 weeks underscore that pandemic preparedness fatigue may have evolved into pandemic lethargy—and important lessons are being lost in the process.The events include:Congress, together with the Bush administration, cutting $650 million in 2007 pandemic preparedness fundingWales dealing with an outbreak of avian influenza (H7N2) in poultry, which led to humans becoming sick after contact with infected birds, and then likely subsequent person-to-person transmission of the illnessThe much-publicized episode of an Atlanta lawyer taking two transatlantic flights while he was infected with extensively drug resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB)What, you may ask, does this trifecta of events have to do with H5N1 infection and the next pandemic?The events tell us much about our current state of preparedness for the next pandemic—whatever influenza virus causes it—and the public’s state of mind regarding what priority we place on getting better prepared for that pandemic. Let me explain.Teachable moment #1: Keep your eyes wide open, even if others shut theirsWhat would have been a big flu story 18 months ago drew a big yawn from the media last week. Not one media venue in the United States (except CIDRAP News) covered the fact that Congress, in conjunction with the White House, deleted $650 million for pandemic preparedness from the 2007 emergency spending bill that was subsequently signed by President Bush May 25.Why does this matter? These funds were largely dedicated for vaccines, antivirals, medical supplies, and diagnostic and surveillance tools—a critical part of the nation’s overall preparedness effort. They represent part of the initial commitment that the president made in November 2005 to provide at least $7.1 billion for pandemic preparedness.The cuts are bad enough—but what is even worse is that the media dozed right through it. The teachable moment—that deleting such critical funding is truly short-sighted—came and went. Jay Rosen, the former chair of the Department of Journalism at New York University, once wrote: “Philosophers disagree on whether a tree falling in the forest makes a sound, if no ear hears it. But it is certain that the tree does not make news.”Teachable moment #2: Watch your back and your front and your sidesThe outbreak of H7N2 avian influenza in poultry in Wales may seem insignificant in terms of the number of people affected (12 so far) and its severity (eye infections and a nonserious flulike illness). But such an outbreak is exactly the type of situation that could sneak up on us and suddenly produce the next pandemic influenza virus.The British public health officials appear to have responded to this situation with a comprehensive and timely intervention, but the outbreak is nonetheless worrisome. The teachable moment lost: There will be a next pandemic, and it might not be due to the H5N1 virus. Unfortunately, the world’s media was mostly AWOL on reporting the true significance of this situation.Teachable moment #3: An emerging pandemic cannot be stoppedThe final event of the preparedness trifecta relates to the recent XDR-TB case that has captured the world’s media attention. Ironically, the risk of this patient’s transmitting TB to his fellow passengers was likely very low. Granted, if XDR-TB is transmitted to any of the passengers, the consequences will be high, given the serious outcome of this infection. Today such an infection carries at least a 60% risk of death within a year of the first appearance of symptoms.The circumstances surrounding this event and their implications deserve many words of discussion, though I can’t cover all the ramifications here. I do have to say that I’m troubled by the public’s perception that if the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had just done its job correctly, this infected passenger would never have made it on a plane. I’m troubled because such a perception plays right into the idea that we don’t need to do much more to prepare for these types of events; just do our job. Of course this is dead wrong. The issue that truly deserves examination is the fact that a single passenger with a diagnosed infectious disease stretched our country’s public health capacity to detect and respond to it.When we see the onset of the next pandemic, individuals who are infected with the pandemic virus but not yet ill are likely to be scrambling to leave the geographic area where the pandemic is emerging. They will get on planes and will infect other passengers. Count on many such passengers in those early days. This is one of the reasons that I never have had any faith in our ability to stop an emerging pandemic in the country in which it begins.The lost teachable moment could have helped the public understand that: Trying to stop a respiratory-transmitted infectious disease (such as pandemic influenza) from hopping continents by identifying infected passengers is doomed to fail. Unfortunately, this discussion has been all but absent from the deliberations of the day.Keep the issue front and centerThese events highlight the challenge we have in keeping pandemic preparedness on the front burner. As disappointing as these current events may be with regard to preparedness, we have no choice but to slug it out every day in the preparedness trenches and use every teachable opportunity to further the preparedness agenda.Our future depends on it.—Michael Osterholm
Gentamicin in injectable form is a first-line drug for plague and tularemia, and it has also been used in a saline nebulized form for fighting Pseudomonas respiratory infections, especially in cystic fibrosis patients, the company said. Sep 26 PharmAthene news releasehttp://ir.pharmathene.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=191999&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1202672&highlight PharmAthene, Inc., based in Annapolis, Md., announced last month that it had been awarded a contract worth up to $13.9 million for further development of a human monoclonal antibody called Valortim to be used as an anthrax antitoxin. The company said it is collaborating with Medarex Inc., Princeton, N.J., to develop Valortim, which is designed to target protective antigen, one of the key proteins anthrax uses to attack host cells. In initial work on the product, Medarex has demonstrated a novel mechanism of action, animal efficacy, favorable human safety and pharmacokinetic data, and development of an efficient production process, according to the company news release. Nanotherapeutics, Inc., based in Alachua, Fla., announced it had received a $20 million contract to develop NanoGENT, an inhaled form of the injectable antibiotic gentamicin, for treating pneumonic plague and tularemia. Both contracts were mentioned in an Oct 5 HHS news release about four contracts to develop countermeasures for Category A bioterrorism agents. (The other two contracts were reported previously by CIDRAP News; see Oct 3 link below.) The company said preclinical studies suggest the product may be effective for both prevention and treatment of anthrax. See also: “The latest contract from NIAID/BARDA brings the total amount of government funding allocated to Valortim to over $24 million,” PharmAthene Vice President and Medical Director Valerie Riddle, MD, said in the news release. Oct 5 HHS news releasehttp://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2007pres/10/20071005c.html
According to results reported at the 2006 annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the antitoxin was well tolerated and was not immunogenic in a phase 1 clinical trial, PharmAthene reported. Oct 3 CIDRAP News story “Federal grants support new anthrax countermeasures” The contracts were awarded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), both part of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Working with four other companies, Nanotherapeutics expects to bring NanoGENT to clinical trials in the fourth year of its NIAID-BARDA contract, the statement said. The collaborating companies are Respirics Inc., Next Breath LLC, Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute, and i3 Research. Oct 16, 2007 (CIDRAP News) – The US government recently awarded contracts totaling about $34 million to two companies for development of drugs to treat pneumonic plague, tularemia, and anthrax, three of the diseases terrorists are deemed most likely to try to exploit. In an Oct 11 announcement, Nanotherapeutics said NanoGENT is a powdered formulation of gentamicin to be used as early treatment for people exposed to plague, tularemia, and other respiratory infections. The company said inhaled drugs would be especially useful for providing postexposure prophylaxis and treatment on a large scale. Oct 11 Nanotherapeutics news release PharmAthene announced on Sep 26 that its contract to develop Valortim is worth up to $13.9 million over 2 years, with up to $10.3 million to be awarded in the first year.
To improve adverse-event reporting, the FDA said it has awarded a contract to develop a reportable food registry and has expanded its drug event database to include adverse feed incidents. The agency reported that it has enhanced its data-mining capabilities for adverse events. In a statement yesterday, Jeff Levi, PhD, executive director of Trust for America’s Health (TFAH), a nonprofit health advocacy group based in Washington, DC, said commended the FDA for moving forward on key food safety initiatives, but he said the nation still lacks a real plan for food protection. The agency said it has taken several measures to speed state responses to foodborne illness outbreaks, such as sponsoring 10 incident command training sessions and working with localities to quickly search more than 2,100 Asian markets for baby formula and other milk products that could potentially be contaminated with melamine. In April, TFAH released a report on gaps in the nation’s food safety system, including what it described as obsolete laws, misallocated resources, and inconsistencies among the government agencies responsible for food safety. Response stepsAs a means of improving response to foodborne illness outbreaks, the FDA said it has expanded its geographic information system (GIS) capabilities to better manage emergency response resources. According to the report, the FDA has formed a steering committee to transition a data mining technology tool for screening imported food—the Predictive Risk-based Evaluation for Dynamic Import Compliance Targeting (PREDICT) system—from the pilot phase to agency-wide use. The 13-page report, which appears on the FDA’s Web site, follows up on a 6-month progress report released in July. Yesterday’s report includes the previous accomplishments, plus several more recent ones, such as opening food safety offices in China. “America’s food safety system has not been seriously upgraded in more than 100 years, and too many Americans get sick each year from preventable foodborne illnesses,” Levi said. “The FDA should articulate to Congress and the American people what resources are needed over the long-term to achieve the goals and define milestones for how to measure success.” To boost laboratory capacity, the FDA reported it is using a high-throughput facility in Denver to test food and enhance data quality and has awarded cooperative agreements to all Food Emergency Response Network (FERN) laboratories to upgrade facilities, conduct training on new testing methods, or increase sample analysis capacity. Yesterday’s report details steps in three main areas: prevention, intervention, and response. FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach said in a press release yesterday that cutting-edge technology has helped the agency accomplish some of its Food Protection Plan goals. Prevention measuresIn the report, the FDA said much of its recent work on preventing safety problems has centered on getting other groups on board with its Food Protection Plan. For example, in August the FDA held a 50-state meeting in St Louis that gathered more than 200 partners to discuss food safety challenges and initiatives. Intervention achievementsThe FDA said it inspected 5,930 high-risk food establishments during the 2008 fiscal year and piloted an inspection program for high-risk firms in Denver and Minneapolis during the Democratic and Republican national conventions. Aug 26 CIDRAP News story “12 deaths reported in Canadian Listeria outbreak” Consumer and health advocates weigh inChris Waldrop, director of the Food Policy Institute at the Consumer Federation of America, based in Washington, DC, told CIDRAP News that the FDA has been very active over the past year and that it’s useful to see a list of their accomplishments. However, he said the measures don’t address the underlying need for food safety reforms and better performance standards for food producers. “These issues weren’t in the Food Protection Plan from the beginning,” he said. Also, the FDA said it has launched a host of tools for improving food safety. For example, the FDA has hosted Web seminars to train food industry workers on how to use CARVER, a self-assessment tool for minimizing the risk of intentional contamination. (CARVER is an acronym that stands for criticality, accessibility, recuperability, vulnerability, effect, and recognizability.) The FDA has also translated the ALERT-based Web tool for food defense and preparedness into Spanish and translated other program material into French and Portuguese. Von Eschenbach also commented on the extensive collaboration that has helped the FDA put the plan into practice. “Every day, the FDA is working with foreign countries, state and local governments, regulated industry, and consumer groups to ensure the safety of the food supply,” he said. Dec 2, 2008 (CIDRAP News) – The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a report yesterday detailing the first year of accomplishments in implementing its Food Protection Plan, a road map the agency presented in November 2007 in response to a spate of contamination incidents involving domestic and imported food. According to the report, the agency is soliciting stakeholder comments on a plan to improve industry standards for minimizing pathogens in fresh fruit and vegetables. He also said FDA’s new draft compliance guide on Listeria monocytogenes appears to weaken the government’s zero-tolerance standard for the pathogen. “This is headed in the wrong direction,” Waldrop said, adding that some other nations are pushing to weaken international Listeria standards. He said Canada’s recent Listeria outbreak serves as a reminder of how lethal the pathogen can be, particularly in a cross-contamination setting such as a retail deli. Other prevention accomplishments have included approving the use of irradiation to control pathogens in lettuce and spinach, sponsoring discussions on rapid detection technologies, and developing methods to detect melamine and cyanuric acid in feed ingredients, antibiotics in distiller’s grains, and prohibited proteins in animal feed. The FDA also said it developed a method to detect multidrug-resistant Salmonella in seafood. Dec 1 FDA press release Waldrop said some recent events might give the impression that the FDA is backtracking on food safety issues. For example, he said the agency was believed to be close to issuing a final rule on reducing Salmonella levels in shell eggs, but recently stepped back from it. Jul 2 CIDRAP News story “FDA claims progress on food protection plan” To address prevention efforts aimed at imported foods, the FDA said it has hired staff for its offices in China and India and has drafted its first 12-month work plan for the China office. The agency also sponsored a food defense research symposium for Middle Eastern countries. Following up on the ALERT initiative, the FDA and other federal partners launched a food-defense training kit for front-line employees in the food and agriculture industries. In its ongoing tomato safety initiative, aimed at reducing Salmonella contamination, the FDA said it is planning to include an additional area, northern Florida, and is analyzing its findings from other Florida growing areas and Virginia to prepare a report for the industry and other stakeholders. See also: Release of the progress report comes on the heels of a recent critique from the Pew Charitable Trusts of the federal response to this year’s nationwide Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak. The group said the outbreak, which sickened more than 1,400 people, exposed several gaps in the nation’s food safety system, such as the lack of mandatory safety controls for fresh produce. FDA officials have faulted Congress for not giving the agency the authority it needs to establish such mandates. In order to speed recall alerts, the FDA reported it is developing a searchable recall database that will allow it to more quickly get information from companies and professional associations. To enhance traceability of potentially contaminated food, the FDA said it is working with industry and other stakeholders to determine the best practices for product tracing and has announced two public meetings to address the issue. Apr 30 CIDRAP News story “Health group urges overhaul of US food safety system”
The multi-year trend of increasing the number of overnight stays on the Crikvenica Riviera continues successfully throughout 2017.At the very beginning of the month, on August 1, the number of one million overnight stays was exceeded, a week earlier than last year. Concrete figures for the period from the first seven months of 2017 (from 1 January to 31 July) show that a total of 198.931 arrivals were realized on the Crikvenica Riviera (21% more than in 2016) and 996.399 overnight stays, which is as much as 20,70 % more than in the same period in 2016.Number one on the list of top 10 countries is traditionally held by the Germans, who in the first seven months of 2017 achieved 235.125 overnight stays. They are followed by Croats with 150.218 overnight stays, Slovenes with 91.606 overnight stays, Austrians with 86.091 overnight stays, Hungarians 75.527, Poles 69.072 overnight stays, Slovaks 64.421, Czechs 63.793, Bosnia and Herzegovina took 9th place with 17.163, and Switzerland 10th with 15.980 overnight stays. “This year in the pre-season we were very well filled, even in the month of June we achieved a growth of 46 percent, which certainly contributed to the millionth overnight stay this year a week before. Very good expectations are expected for the post-season, booking and reactions from the field are very good and I am sure that we will achieve excellent results in the post-season. “Points out the director of the Crikvenica Tourist Board, Marijana Biondić, B.Sc. oec.Viewed individually, all types of accommodation recorded an increase in the period from January 1 to July 31, 2017. Thus, households (private accommodation) realized a total of 512.943 overnight stays (an increase of 25%), hotels 210.331 overnight stays (22 % more than in the same period in 2016), other catering facilities for accommodation 190.559 overnight stays (increase of 11,58%) and campsites 82.566 overnight stays (12,35% more than in the first seven months of 2016). New accommodation facilities in Crikvenica While only three and a half years ago, the largest hotel company in the Crikvenica-Vinodol Riviera, Jadran dd, which now owns 8 hotels, 2 camps and 2 settlements, was waiting to go bankrupt, it was completely reconstructed at the beginning of this week. hotel Esplanade received its first guests.The investment in the hotel, which burned down for the most part in 2001 and was partially out of order “heavy”, is a total of 42 million kuna, and consists of 30 rooms and 8 suites with a total of 76 beds in two buildings – the old part built in 1929 was returned to its original condition in which the restaurant is located and the extended part built in the 70’s, which was completely changed by this project. “The Esplanade was a special challenge for us, not only because of the demanding project in business and technical terms but also its historical heritage and the great interest of Crikvenica residents who have a strong emotional connection with the Adriatic, especially with cult hotels such as the Esplanade. There are no standard rooms in the Esplanade, but an individual approach to design, but also to furnishing, decoration and service is required. This is our first design hotel for which we plan to further expand the capacity in today’s administrative building of the Adriatic and the Slavija boarding house, which are located in the immediate vicinity of the hotel, which will make the Esplanade an integral hotel. “, Said the President of the Management Board of Jadran dd Dino Manestar and added that the Esplanade has 35 employees of Jadran, and it is planned that the hotel will be open most of the year.
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Uniline doo is a leading destination management company in the region of Southeast Europe, with a business headquarters in Pula and branches throughout Croatia, offices in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, Serbia, China and South Korea.In order to successfully implement new projects, we are supplementing our team with new members, and we invite all those interested to apply for the competition in order to become part of our team, point out Uniline. The competitions are open until August 16.08.2018, XNUMX, and you can see more details below in the attachment.Key account manager https://goo.gl/3PgTY1Senior programmer C # https://goo.gl/T7rD2LSenior PHP Programmer https://goo.gl/2TsjaESEO / SEM specialist https://goo.gl/VSNCrSBookkeeping specialist https://goo.gl/YHSL7vAssistant for group and FIT travel operations https://goo.gl/tFrvSQGood luck everyone.Related news:UNILINE OPENS NEW BUSINESS HEADQUARTERS AND PRESENTS NEW BUSINESS PHILOSOPHY
The traditional Ilok grape harvest, the most important tourist and wine event in Croatia, will soon begin. In its 51st edition, it returns with a rich cultural and entertainment program and, of course, occasional eno contents. The event starts on August 23 and lasts until September 2, and the central part of this half-century tradition, the organizers announce, will take place on August 31 and September 1 with big concerts by the group Magazin and Miroslav Škora.The main organizer of the 51st Ilok Grape Harvest is the City of Ilok, led by Mayor Marina Budimir, and the event was realized in partnership with the Tourist Board of the City of Ilok. Also, the winemakers of the Srijem Wine Cluster and Ilok cellars are involved in the realization. The Museum of the City of Ilok, the Library and Reading Room, Matica Slovačke, numerous caterers, cultural and artistic societies and many others have enriched the program with their contents.This year, visitors can expect a lot of interactive and interesting content. Those who find themselves in the easternmost city of Croatia at that time will have the opportunity, among other things, to see the old folk custom of guarding the vineyards before the harvest – the so-called Pudarin, then the Danube Chicken Marathon, performances by cultural and artistic societies from Slavonia and Srijem, and the youngest will be able to participate in appropriate educational and entertainment workshops. With the inevitable gastronomic offer of authentic delicacies, visitors will be able to taste some of the top wines and participate in the 6th Night of Wine.Ilok once again profiled itself as the Danube wine kingdom, and wine again proved to be an excellent tourist product that attracts many lovers of good wine. But it also creates additional value – above all a brand that is skillfully positioned on the tourist map of Slavonia, the rest of Croatia, I would dare say the whole region.The Ilok grape harvest originated from the old Srijem-Slavonian custom of gathering people at the time of the beginning of the harvest with the aim of preserving the vineyards, but also more than that – celebrating the good year and the harvest. The entire arrangement of the Ilok grape harvest began in 1962, and over the years this folk custom has grown into one of the most famous and most attractive tourist and cultural-entertaining events.Ilok is still aware of the value that the local wine industry creates for the community and makes full use of the potential of this branch of production. Ilok grape harvests, but also other wine festivals in Ilok are an example of the good rise of this rich, but unfortunately often forgotten area. Evil tongues may say “is it wine again?”, But why reveal hot water, when an established but unpolished tourist product is at hand. The very fact that from year to year the Ilok grape harvest is visited by an increasing number of tourists from all over Croatia, but also from Vojvodina and nearby regions, speaks for itself. Ilok should be applauded because in turbulent times it recognized its strengths and specialized in the tourist offer, which, we repeat, proved to be a recipe for success and a positive story from sleeping Slavonia.You can follow the program of the 51st Ilok grape harvest at the official online headquarters Harrow, To the tourist board i social platforms.
“I am pleased that Airbnb has shown a willingness to work with the European Commission and national consumer protection authorities to improve the way its platform works. I expect other platforms to follow suit”She concluded. Věra Jourová, Commissioner for Justice, Consumer Protection and Gender Equality, said she would “Europeans this summer finally get what they see when they book accommodation. The Internet has made it much easier and easier for consumers to compare and book hotel or private accommodation. Consumers can now also be sure that the price they see on the first page is the final price.” The European Commission has announced that after negotiations, Airbnb has improved and fully clarified the display of accommodation offers that are now in line with EU standards on consumer protection. This is in response to the requests of the European Commission and EU consumer protection bodies from July 2018. Exactly one year after the Commission’s warning, Airbnb has taken responsibility and, in cooperation with the European Commission, will work to improve the protection of the rights of users of their services.
We wrote earlier that the European Commission has warned Airbnb that their terms of use are not in line with European consumer protection laws. Namely, the Commission appealed that the company must transparently present the total costs of the intermediation arrangements, including the costs of services and cleaning. If this cannot be projected in advance, the Commission suggested, the service should at least alert users to possible additional costs that will be added to the price at a later date. Source / photo: European Commission; Airbnb
As I have repeated many times, there are currently too many assumptions and questions, and too few answers about the current development of the coronavirus, so it is very difficult to plan and predict anything because the situation changes from day to day. Of course, when we talk about tourist “underdeveloped” destinations, the challenge is to secure a budget for promotion, let alone now, but simply without investment and promotion there is no success. Now more than ever, because those are the destinations that will be in focus. So, now is the opportunity to accelerate development and to position yourself further. As I mentioned above, people will avoid places where a lot of people gather in one place for a while. Purely out of fear and precaution, this is why holiday homes / villas with pools are ideal places to relax. EDIT: I hope it is clear to everyone, that they will also need to lower and adjust prices, according to the whole situation. And not just accommodation, but the whole destination. And there is a great opportunity for continental destinations as well. Also, the day after the coronavirus, the most important thing will be to activate the domestic economy as soon as possible, in order to save companies from collapse, and all countries will communicate: buy and travel locally. So we can hardly expect more tourists from the countries around us. Of course, the question is also what the situation with the coronavirus will be with them and how open the borders will be. The motive for coming is not accommodation, but destination Zagreb as the capital city with the most people and the economic center Figuratively – show me the groceries, and I will cook my own lunch Give me groceries for lunch, and I’ll choose how I cook it for myself. Will I add more or less salt, or cook it more or less. But give me as many ingredients as possible, both ready-made and various options. That is why it is not realistic to expect, even ask, entrepreneurs to provide someone with a vacation after a “month” of work. There will also be a fear of higher spending, as in the last financial crisis, which is coming to us again. But again, that doesn’t mean no one will travel, but we need to be aware that it won’t go as usual. As always, we can expect the most from the inhabitants of Zagreb, as a target market because it is our capital. Both because of the largest population and the largest financial power. It sells me a story and an experience, not accommodation. As usual, the motive for coming is not accommodation, but a tourist destination. Anyway, now is the time to plan, round up and define tourism products, prepare promotional campaigns and keep them on stand by for the day after the crown, when the market opens. Then it will be crucial to start communicating right away, not to waste time on preparation Be prepared. Weekend travel will be in demand, don’t wait and whine, get moving and seize the opportunity. But one thing is for sure. Tourism has been hit hard this time, and currently realistic predictions are that we can expect the start of recovery only in the spring of 2021, and not of course in the same numbers as before, and the recovery itself will take the next 2-3 years. Also, only when a vaccine / cure is found can we realistically expect a real recovery, because then that psychological and safety barrier, ie the travel brake, will be removed. Every crisis is also an opportunity And that’s why when it comes to promotion and communication, it’s important to promote content, tourism products. Why should I come to, say, Ivanić Grad. What should I do all weekend or one in Ivanić Grad? This is the main question we have to ask ourselves because it creates a motive for us to come. Throughout the story, the key role of tourist boards is to gather people, make ready-made tourist products and do promotion, both paid and by communication through their channels. That is the meaning of tourist boards anyway. To develop and promote tour. destination, generates new tourism products and leads the strategic process of long-term development. That is why the synergy of everyone in the destination is needed. Join forces and make a good tourist story. For example, if someone is selling primarily rural accommodation, offer me options of what I can do if I come to you. Highlight your partners who offer a variety of experiences. From a wine tasting room, restaurant, cooking workshop, bike rental, etc. možete you can put together interesting stories yourself, let alone if you all come together. When we talk about this tourist year, we can hardly be too optimistic and expect a lot of traffic, but we still have to hope, plan and be ready. We have to be realistic, but also optimistic. There is no surrender, the situation is as it is and we must get the most out of it. This season the focus will be on to a domestic guest as well as weekend trips. So, we have to focus on the domestic guest. It is positive that people will finally want to go out of their homes, because they are tired of self-isolation, but again due to the above facts (vacation and budget) the focus will be on and weekend trips. According to the offer, we also create a story about the destination, arrange accommodation, define the price, target such guests and use the communication channels where they are located. If we target the IT sector, where we offer them an “office in nature”, ie to move the office to a new location for a few days, then we must have a strong internet connection, and we will target them through media channels such as Netokracija.hr, Bug.hr, ICTbusiness.info etc.… Also, we need to think about what will work after work in the destination. Can we organize some team activities for them, such as paintball, zipline or rafting. I trivialize, but it’s clear to you in which direction you need to think. That is why the synergy of everyone at the destination is crucial. We often fall into the trap because we look at ourselves. No one can be alone, no matter how big and powerful he is. One does not make a destination. So, you don’t have to do everything yourself, on the contrary, find partners so that everyone can profit, so that tourist spending goes down to as many local entrepreneurs as possible. Some provide accommodation, others family farms for cooking, sewing, drawing workshops…. the third tells a wine story, the fourth provides bike rental, the fifth is a tour guide, and who recommends a visit to the interpretation center after the tour. And so the story spreads. If we want to learn deeper into the story we need to know what and to whom we are offering. Each profile of tourists is different and has different motives for coming. Those who like active holidays are also looking for such facilities, while those who prefer gastro tourism are looking for an autochthonous and quality eno gastronomic offer. If we do not have it in the destination, we cannot expect such guests either. However, not only Zagreb as the primary market, all residents from larger cities (Split, Rijeka…) will want to go to nature, active vacation and explore, while a good part will avoid larger centers, ie places where a lot of people gather in the same place. . Holiday houses with pool Zagreb Ring, Karlovac County, Lika, Slavonia, Gorski kotar, the interior of Istria – this is an opportunity to jump out and position yourself. As I pointed out earlier, the focus will be on the domestic guest. Although one should be aware of a couple of factors that currently affect the domestic guest. Many people have lost their jobs or have their salaries reduced, as well as the fact that a good proportion of private sector employees are currently forced to take annual leave. Also, there will be no annual leave in the private sector, at least not on a larger scale, because when all measures are removed and the economy is launched, there will be a struggle to save and recover companies. Cover photo: Varaždin County Tourist Board