Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #80

[MrX]

Ontario reported an additional 700 cases of coronavirus on Monday, the most on a single day since the outbreak began in late January.

Ford says the province is experiencing a second wave of the virus and has said nothing is off the table to address the increase.

Meanwhile, Toronto's top doctor is warning that it's time for people in the city to stop allowing social bubbles, and to now limit interactions with anyone outside their immediate household or essential supports.

Over the past week, the premier has been making daily announcements about the province's fall preparedness plan.

It's expected that Ford will continue to roll out that plan in the coming days which could include further measures to protect residents of long-term care homes.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-covid-19-september-29-1.5742927

Arizona reports 675 new coronavirus cases, 9 more deaths

AZ has almost exactly 50% the population of Ontario, we reported 675 cases today, and it's business as usual. Such a striking difference.

 

[tresir2012]

Yesterday at the White House press briefing, the President announced the roll out of 150 million point-0f-care rapid tests by Abbott (Abbott BinaxNOW rapid tests) that can give results in 15 minutes. They are already being sent to nursing homes, assisted living centers, to the Indian Health Service, hospices, and HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities), and other venues. Also, 100 million of the tests will be sent to governors for their distribution as deemed best.

At the press briefing, Admiral Giroir demonstrated how easy these rapid tests are to use, with nasal swabs in both nostrils (not the kind of nasal swabs that go high up into the nose), and six drops of liquid onto a piece of paper/cardboard that has a lot of antibodies and incredible technology built into it.

They have also already shipped 65,000 tests to disaster operations in California, Oregon, Texas, and Louisiana.

Remarks by President Trump in an Update on the Nation's Coronavirus Testing Strategy | The White House

I think these are the same tests referred to in my WHO post/link. They are the same company, Abbott. Really good news.

 

[LadyL]

this is out of control now here in Canada - the virus and the people!

~

While surveys suggest Canadians generally have a high level of trust in public health officials, the human mind hates uncertainty, Veissiere explained in an interview. And, as confirmed COVID-19 infections surge in parts of Canada, uncertainty is spreading.

In the U.S., public health officials are facing “unprecedented hostility” in the midst of the pandemic, S tanford and Johns Hopkins university experts wrote in August in JAMA , the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The harassment “is extraordinary in its scope and nature, use of social media, and danger to the ongoing pandemic response,” the authors wrote. The bullying — and worse — reflects “misunderstanding of the pandemic, biases in human risk perception, and a general decline in public civility.”

'He was looking to meet me': Public health leaders face threats, harassment over COVID-19

 

[MimosaMornings]

“Why are we pretending it’s all over?” Miami restaurants wrestle with new COVID rules — Miami Herald

“Jimmy Flanigan walked into his family’s packed Flanigan’s Restaurant in Coconut Grove Friday night, three hours after Gov. Ron DeSantis approved 100 percent inside seating, and thought it looked too busy.

A crowd gathered to watch the Miami Heat play an 8:30 p.m. playoff game Sept. 25 on more than a dozen televisions. Patrons were standing shoulder-to-shoulder. The bar was steadily serving drinks.

“It was a little scary walking into a Flanigan’s after six months and seeing it full,” said Flanigan, CEO and president of the South Florida-based chain of 24 sports-bar-style restaurants. “It was too busy. So we backed off to 50 percent.”

New state guidelines for restaurants and bars, released after 4 p.m., and a delay of more than a day before Miami-Dade clarified its own rules to stem the spread of coronavirus, caused confusion across the county among patrons and restaurant owners.“
——————-
Such confusion for everyone in Florida.

 

[LadyL]

'I wasn't going to give up': Woman gives birth to son while battling COVID-19

 

[anneg]

I have much hope. We've come a LONG way since the first days.

What really restored my hope was a neighbour family. I see the daughter (30ish, 100 lbs overweight) walk daily, we chat and I stop by on my am and pm walks. I noticed no one was home for several weeks, the end of July til the first of Sept. Two weeks ago on my walk the mother, daughter and small children we all outside and shared their journey.

They had COVID. A visiting daughter, nurse at NH unknowing exposed the family. The mother 63, 100 lbs overweight, 4 year kidney transplant recipient, CHF, COPD and obstructive sleep apnea was hospitalized on the 7th day. After 24 hrs at the local hospital, a major hissey fit and phone calls from the UVA transplant team she was transferred to UVA in Charlottesville Virginia. Her prognosis grim, almost comatose and minutes from a ventilator her Dr. sought permission for EU plasma for the UVA -NIH trial. Thirty patients total, she was number 27, and the only kidney transplant in the trial. After the first dose of plasma, within hours she was able to speak with her daughter's. After second dose, next day she was moved out of ICU. A total of 16 days in UVA, mostly due to follow up on the plasma trial. She said, they call everyday and she has lab work twice a week.

It is miracle she survived with multiple comorbidities She lost 78 lbs, blood sugars have improved, reduced insulin, is on home oxygen at 2 LPM, and her sats are improving daily.

Her daughter, that lives with her, was very ill and had to take care of two young children 8 and 6. She had difficulty breathing, layed on the floor, on her stomach, with arms over her head to breath. The two children never became ill and tested negative for antibodies at UVA, 6 weeks later. She lost 75 lbs and looks great.

They did not tell anyone in the neighbour until 2 weeks ago. They stayed in for 4 weeks after recovery to protect everyone. I felt so bad they were sick and no one knew and could not help.

Their story is an inspiration of how far we have come with treatment and therapeutics. It was a blessing to hear their story.

Wow, that's quite a story. The mother was so fortunate to be treated at UVA and to get the convalescent plasma. It sounds like she would have died otherwise.

The daughter was evidently not hospitalized, but I guess she must have had medical care. It's interesting that she used proning (lying on stomach) to breathe. I wonder if a doctor told her to do that, and if she got supplemental oxygen to use at home.

A question that comes to mind is--will they be able to keep the excess weight off now that the Covid crisis is over? I hope they are getting support for making needed lifestyle changes. It would be amazing if having Covid led to better health for them both.

 

[Trino]

“Why are we pretending it’s all over?” Miami restaurants wrestle with new COVID rules — Miami Herald

“Jimmy Flanigan walked into his family’s packed Flanigan’s Restaurant in Coconut Grove Friday night, three hours after Gov. Ron DeSantis approved 100 percent inside seating, and thought it looked too busy.

A crowd gathered to watch the Miami Heat play an 8:30 p.m. playoff game Sept. 25 on more than a dozen televisions. Patrons were standing shoulder-to-shoulder. The bar was steadily serving drinks.

“It was a little scary walking into a Flanigan’s after six months and seeing it full,” said Flanigan, CEO and president of the South Florida-based chain of 24 sports-bar-style restaurants. “It was too busy. So we backed off to 50 percent.”

New state guidelines for restaurants and bars, released after 4 p.m., and a delay of more than a day before Miami-Dade clarified its own rules to stem the spread of coronavirus, caused confusion across the county among patrons and restaurant owners.“
——————-
Such confusion for everyone in Florida.

When the cases and death rates go even higher, maybe these persons will take the virus seriously.

 

[Simply Southern]

Wow, that's quite a story. The mother was so fortunate to be treated at UVA and to get the convalescent plasma. It sounds like she would have died otherwise.

The daughter was evidently not hospitalized, but I guess she must have had medical care. It's interesting that she used proning (lying on stomach) to breathe. I wonder if a doctor told her to do that, and if she got supplemental oxygen to use at home.

A question that comes to mind is--will they be able to keep the excess weight off now that the Covid crisis is over? I hope they are getting support for making needed lifestyle changes. It would be amazing if having Covid led to better health for them both.

They received ONE phone call from the VDH for the positive test, told to quarantine for 14 days and NEVER heard from them again. A contact tracer ever called.

No the daughter did not have medical care. She said, she had to take care of the kids, but did almost go to the hospital on the 9th night. She did not know the stomach position was being used in the hospitals. She couldn't believe it when I told her. She had no oxygen and no medication.

They both look great, said they feel great and the weight loss has really helped. Yes, they are continuing to work toward another 20 lb loss. Neither have had any long term effects so far.

It was great to see them and hear the story. We sat out on the patio for hours talking.

 

[Trino]

I am sure there are many who care, mostly older vulnerable people, while young people don't care and party on---- so DeSantis isn't sacrificing everybody ( in his mind) - only those he doesn't care about (older people) IMO

DeSantis is 42 years old. That says it all.

 

[tresir2012]

In memoriam

Coronavirus: Your tributes to those who have died

• 25 September 2020
• Coronavirus pandemic

From nurses to shopkeepers, doctors to bus drivers, more than 40,000 people have died with coronavirus across the UK. People who were dearly loved, people who may have had many more years ahead of them had the pandemic not engulfed the world.

Every day, BBC News reports the statistics, and our teams seek out the stories. Here we have gathered tributes from family, friends and colleagues to some of those who have died.

Remembering coronavirus victims
These are the names of, and tributes to, 515 of the people who have died in the UK due to coronavirus

Here are only some of those who have died. To see all of them would take more than 113 hours.

The tributes are displayed at random, which means that you will see different faces each time you visit. A list of those included is available here.

 

[MimosaMornings]

I have much hope. We've come a LONG way since the first days.

What really restored my hope was a neighbour family. I see the daughter (30ish, 100 lbs overweight) walk daily, we chat and I stop by on my am and pm walks. I noticed no one was home for several weeks, the end of July til the first of Sept. Two weeks ago on my walk the mother, daughter and small children we all outside and shared their journey.

They had COVID. A visiting daughter, nurse at NH unknowing exposed the family. The mother 63, 100 lbs overweight, 4 year kidney transplant recipient, CHF, COPD and obstructive sleep apnea was hospitalized on the 7th day. After 24 hrs at the local hospital, a major hissey fit and phone calls from the UVA transplant team she was transferred to UVA in Charlottesville Virginia. Her prognosis grim, almost comatose and minutes from a ventilator her Dr. sought permission for EU plasma for the UVA -NIH trial. Thirty patients total, she was number 27, and the only kidney transplant in the trial. After the first dose of plasma, within hours she was able to speak with her daughter's. After second dose, next day she was moved out of ICU. A total of 16 days in UVA, mostly due to follow up on the plasma trial. She said, they call everyday and she has lab work twice a week.

It is miracle she survived with multiple comorbidities She lost 78 lbs, blood sugars have improved, reduced insulin, is on home oxygen at 2 LPM, and her sats are improving daily.

Her daughter, that lives with her, was very ill and had to take care of two young children 8 and 6. She had difficulty breathing, layed on the floor, on her stomach, with arms over her head to breath. The two children never became ill and tested negative for antibodies at UVA, 6 weeks later. She lost 75 lbs and looks great.

They did not tell anyone in the neighbour until 2 weeks ago. They stayed in for 4 weeks after recovery to protect everyone. I felt so bad they were sick and no one knew and could not help.

Their story is an inspiration of how far we have come with treatment and therapeutics. It was a blessing to hear their story.

I’m glad they are doing well in their recovery!
I hope the other sister is doing well also.
Makes me think - I’m going to make sure that I have emergency numbers posted in the house somewhere - perhaps a neighbor, church contact, ex, someone that would be able to assist with groceries, food, etc.
That’s a lot of weight to lose in a short amount of time!

 

[anneg]

'I wasn't going to give up': Woman gives birth to son while battling COVID-19

Another great story with a happy ending!

 

[tresir2012]

SeaWorld San Diego announces 'Spooktacular' Halloween is still on

The SeaWorld parks in San Diego, Orlando and San Antonio keep things on the mild side with family-friendly Spooktacular events.
SEAWORLD ENTERTAINMENT

San Diego proceeds with 'Spooktacular' Halloween event while other California parks remain closed
MORGAN HINES | USA TODAY
6 hours ago

"It’s a tricky year for Halloween" given the pandemic but SeaWorld San Diego says it's moving ahead with its annual "Spooktacular" festivities, scheduled for weekend evenings from Oct. 2 to Nov. 1.

Continued at above link.

Santa Barbara County meets state guidelines to improve COVID rank to red tier - NewsChannel 3-12

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Santa Barbara County says it will move into the red tier of COVID-19 restrictions Wednesday morning at 8 a.m. That's a significant improvement.

Governor Gavin Newsom made the announcement today along with the California Department of Health and Human Services.

Santa Barbara County joins San Luis Obispo County in the red tier. Ventura has not qualified yet and remains in the purple tier.


The County of Santa Barbara Health order will be out this afternoon, and it will begin Wednesday.

Santa Barbara County Public Health Officer Van Do-Reynoso says last week
the adjusted case rate was 6.7 per 100,000 and this week it is 4.5.

 

[MrX]

When the cases and death rates go even higher, maybe these persons will take the virus seriously.

Unless it mutates into something that causes Ebola-like symptoms, I suspect it's too late to instill fear in those that aren't afraid. Interesting that the restaurant was packed to capacity. We are allowed 50% capacity, here, and I haven't seen anything that looks close to that.

 

[MimosaMornings]

‘Super healthy’ 19-year-old Appalachian State student dies from COVID-19, family says — The Charlotte Observer

“A former basketball star from central North Carolina died due to complications from the coronavirus, his parents and former team said in a statement Monday.

Chad Dorrill, from Thomasville, was 19 years old.”

 

[24Roses]

Iowa news today: As of 10:00-11:00 a.m., we had 667-786 (IMO) new confirmed cases for a total of 87,507 (news)-87,626 (IDPH) confirmed cases of which 67,4112 (news)-67,461 (IDPH) had recovered (+1,221-1,270) 7-8 (IMO) more had passed away for a total of 1,324 or 1,325. Sept. 29: 667 new cases, 7 additional deaths as hospitalizations rise
Iowa COVID-19 Information
Gov. Reynolds reveals adjustments to self-quarantine guidelines IMO-I don't think this is going over very well.

 

[tresir2012]

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Forecasts of COVID-19 Deaths
Updated Sept. 24, 2020

Observed and forecasted new and total reported COVID-19 deaths as of September 21, 2020.

Interpretation of Forecasts of New and Total Deaths

• This week CDC received forecasts of national COVID-19 deaths over the next 4 weeks from 41 modeling groups. Of the 41 groups, 36 provided forecasts for both new and total deaths, three groups forecasted total deaths only, and two forecasted new deaths only.
• This week’s national ensemble forecast indicates an uncertain trend in new COVID-19 deaths reported over the next four weeks and predicts that 3,400 to 7,400 new deaths will likely be reported during the week ending October 17, 2020. The national ensemble predicts that a total of 214,000 to 226,000 COVID-19 deaths will be reported by this date.
• The state- and territory-level ensemble forecasts predict that over the next 4 weeks, the number of newly reported deaths per week may decrease in 5 jurisdictions and increase in one jurisdiction, which are indicated in the forecast plots below. Trends in numbers of future reported deaths are uncertain or predicted to remain stable in the other states and territories.

See CDC graphs and more info at link.

 

[LadyL]

A US friend said to me a couple of days ago "there are rumours that the border between the US and Canada are going to open". (Meaning between NYS and Ontario.)
He has a mate whose girlfriend lives in Canada.
Umm ... probably not.

IMO

not a chance IMO
are they not reading the news??

Ontario's 2nd wave of COVID-19 forecast to peak in October

 

[musicaljoke]

DeSantis is 42 years old. That says it all.

Yeah, but there are countless wonderful, caring people who are in that age range. There's got to be something more behind his thinking than just lack of concern for his constituents. There's a photo in the news report linked below, showing him holding a chart with the "survival rates" by age group.

He is deceiving the people.

Florida reports 107 new COVID-19 deaths on first day after restaurants reopened

 

[SouthAussie]

Here are the Iowa numbers from Monday, September 28. My apologies for not being able to post yesterday. I know I'm also missing some news lately. We had 611 new cases for a total of 86,840 of which 66,191 had recovered (+409 IMO). 2 more had passed away for a total of 1,317. 611 COVID-19 cases, 2 deaths reported in Iowa Monday
Iowa COVID-19 Information
Jesup preschool class quarantined after one tests positive for COVID-19
Medical experts warn of unprecedented flu season due to COVID-19, meanwhile local childcare agency taking extra precautions
Five more COVID-19 cases in Hawkeye athletics among hundreds of negative tests
Waterloo asking residents to skip door-to-door trick-or-treating due to COVID-19
Cedar Falls announces trick-or-treat times
Johnson County Public Health issues Halloween coronavirus recommendations
Physicians Struggle to Tell the Difference Between Allergies and COVID-19 Symptoms | who13.com

In reading your last linked article, I am really glad to see at least one hospital is preparing for greater covid testing.
As we meandered through our winter, we were told that if we had any symptoms we must go and be tested. I am sure we tested thousands of people who didn't have covid, but it is good to be sure. It is the only way to be proactive about minimising any outbreaks. imo