Generate an explanation for the given claim using the provided supporting material from the paragraph. Please consider the following points while generating an output. 1) The claim will always have supporting proof in the paragraph, and the paragraph will have a clear point of view supporting the claim. 2) There can be instances where direct correlation to the claim is not available. Make use of the sentences in the paragraph to provide a corresponding output supporting the claim. 3) The explanation should be at least one and at most twelve sentences long.
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Question: Paragraph: The Wichita Eagle reports that the Kansas Department of Health and Environment says two deaths in the state have already been directly attributed to influenza as of Monday. Pneumonia has been the direct cause of death in another 38 deaths, and the flu or pneumonia has been contributing factors in an additional 132 deaths. In last week’s KDHE flu report for Kansas, there were 101 outpatient visits for influenza-like illnesses. The newborn to 4 years old age group had 29 reported cases for the first week of the flu season. Flu shots are generally recommended for anyone age 6 months and older. Flu symptoms include a fever, body aches, chills, tiredness, cough and headache. ___ Information from: The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle, http://www.kansas.com Claim: Kansas records its first flu death of the season.

Answer: Health officials say Kansas has recorded its first flu deaths of the season.


Question: Paragraph: An early barrage of illness in the South has begun to spread more broadly, and there’s a decent chance flu season could peak much earlier than normal, health officials say. The last flu season to rev up this early was in 2003-2004 — a bad one. Some experts think the early start may mean a lot of suffering is in store, but others say it’s too early to tell. “It really depends on what viruses are circulating. There’s not a predictable trend as far as if it’s early it’s going to be more severe, or later, less severe,” said Scott Epperson, who tracks flu-like illnesses for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There are different types of flu viruses, and the one causing illnesses in most parts of the country is a surprise. It’s a version that normally doesn’t abound until March or April. That virus generally isn’t as dangerous to older people — good news, since most flu hospitalizations and deaths each winter occur in the elderly. However, such viruses can be hard on children and people younger than 50. Louisiana was the first state to really get hit hard, with doctors there saying they began seeing large numbers of flu-like illnesses in October. Children’s Hospital New Orleans has already seen more flu cases this fall than it saw all of last winter, said Dr. Toni Gross, the hospital’s chief of emergency medicine. Last month was the busiest ever at the hospital’s emergency department. Officials had to set up a triage system and add extra shifts, Gross said. “It is definitely causing symptoms that will put you in bed for a week,” including fever, vomiting and diarrhea. But the hospital has not had any deaths and is not seeing many serious complications, she said. Health officials tend to consider a flu season to be officially underway when — for at least three weeks in a row — a significant percentage of U.S. doctor’s office visits are due to flu-like illnesses. That’s now happened, CDC officials said this week. The agency on Friday estimated that there have already been 1.7 million flu illnesses, 16,000 hospitalizations, and 900 flu-related deaths nationally. The most intense patient traffic had been occurring in a six states stretching from Texas to Georgia. But in new numbers released Friday, CDC officials said the number of states with intense activity rose last week to 12. Flu is widespread in 16 states, though not necessarily at intense levels in each, the CDC said. Last flu season started off as a mild one but turned out to be the longest in 10 years. It ended with around 49,000 flu-related deaths and 590,000 hospitalizations, according to preliminary estimates. It was bad, but not as bad as the one before it, when flu caused an estimated 61,000 deaths and 810,000 hospitalizations. Those 2017-2018 estimates are new: The CDC last month revised them down from previous estimates as more data — including actual death certificates — came in. In both of the previous two flu seasons, the flu vaccine performed poorly against the nasty predominant virus. It’s too early to say how well the vaccine is performing right now, Epperson said. Epperson said there’s a chance the flu season will peak this month, which would be unusually early. Flu season usually doesn’t hit fever pitch until around February. The early start suggests a lot Americans may be sick at the same time, said Dave Osthus, a statistician who does flu forecasting at Los Alamos National Laboratory. “This could be a precursor to something pretty bad. But we don’t know,” he said. Gross is pessimistic. “I, personally, am preparing for the worst,” she said. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Claim: US flu season arrives early, driven by an unexpected virus.

Answer: The U.S. winter flu season is off to its earliest start in more than 15 years.


Question: Paragraph: Thailand and neighbouring Cambodia were among Southeast Asian countries accused by New York-based Human Rights Watch of using the pandemic to crack down on criticism. Both countries reject the accusations and say their measures are needed to keep order and combat disinformation. Thailand has the region’s second highest number of virus cases after Malaysia, with a total of 827 after 106 new infections were reported on Tuesday. Four people have died. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who first seized power in a 2014 coup, said he would invoke powers to help suppress the virus that has swept the world since January, killing some 16,500 people and infecting more than 375,000. The emergency decree is due to take effect on Thursday and Prayuth said details of the specific powers to be used would be set out later. Among the powers in the decree is that “to censor or shut down media if deemed necessary.”  Prayuth ruled by decree until an election early last year which opponents say was engineered to keep him in office, an allegation he denies  Other regional leaders have also taken on additional powers and ordered emergency security measures. The Philippines congress granted President Rodrigo Duterte extra powers overnight as infections also soared there and across the region - rising more than 20-fold across Southeast Asia to more than 4,500. With growing concern in Thailand over the spread of the virus, the government said a man had been arrested after posting false statements about a lack of coronavirus screening at Bangkok’s main international airport. “The post created panic for the public and eroded their confidence in Suvarnabhumi Airport,” the ministry of digital affairs said. Artist Danai Ussama, 42, posted that he had gone through no health screenings and been given no instructions by officials when he arrived on a flight from Barcelona. He was charged under the Computer Crime Act, punishable by up to five years in prison. The Thai Lawyers for Human Rights said Ussama was granted bail later on Tuesday and would appear in court on May 12. U.S.-based Human Rights Watch accused Southeast Asian countries of using the virus as an excuse to crackdown on dissent, saying that 17 people had been arrested in Cambodia over social media posts. “What these government ministers forget is in the era of COVID-19, they need the cooperation of the people to share information and act responsibly, and slamming people into prison will achieve the exact opposite,” said the group’s deputy Asia director, Phil Robertson. Claim: Thai leader to invoke emergency powers as virus infections climb.

Answer:
Thailand’s leader said on Tuesday he would invoke sweeping emergency powers in the face of surging coronavirus infections, and in a sign of toughening official action a man was arrested over allegations of creating panic on social media.