Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #98

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Another life enjoyment denied due to this virus.
Just one out of thousands.


BetteDavisEyes said:
No lines at the buffet, daily onboard testing: Here's what it's like to take a cruise right now (nbcnews.com)

Confused about cruising? You're not alone.

Cruise lines resuming service from ports in the U.S. and around the world are setting sail with a long list of health protocols in place to help keep passengers and crew members safe from the coronavirus.

Negative Covid tests or proof of vaccination for all passengers and crew members are the most common prerequisites operators have for boarding and moving about ships unmasked. Escalated protocols include the e-Mist electrostatic spraying system, which Uniworld River Cruises uses to disinfect its ships, and the labs that Viking Cruises built on its oceangoing ships (and onshore for river cruises) to facilitate processing the daily PCR tests all passengers are required to take.

With a surge in cases of the delta variant of the coronavirus, many cruise lines are tightening and adjusting their rules...
Click to expand...
 
KALI said:
Great outside of the box thinking by these guys.
I am ALL in for this.
Anything to stop this killing machine.
Click to expand...

This is definitely a great way to keep tabs on possible community outbreaks. Good job, there!

We've been doing this nationally here in NZ since last year. There are still areas where it could expand to, though. It's possible there's a govt funding issue.

I think Australia has an even more extensive wastewater testing program.

Some info here if people are curious:

COVID-19: Wastewater testing
 
https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/covid-19-delta-variant-children-teens-us-versus-canada-1.6139379

Right now, experts say Canada isn't seeing the surge of pediatric cases and hospitalizations that the southern U.S. is experiencing. That includes at one of the country's largest children's hospitals.

"SickKids has not seen any increases in COVID-19 hospitalizations or disease severity due to the delta variant," a spokesperson for the Toronto hospital said in an email to CBC News. "Throughout the pandemic, we have monitored COVID-19 trends in other jurisdictions and we continue to do so closely."

One of the reasons it hasn't happened, experts say, is Canada's much higher vaccination rate. According to CBC's vaccine tracker, 71 per cent of the eligible population — currently anyone 12 years and older — has been fully vaccinated in Canada.

"Vaccination in Canada seems to be less of a political issue and more of a health-related issue — and we are lucky for that," said Dr. Jeff Pernica, an infectious disease specialist at McMaster University in Hamilton.
 
MimosaMornings said:
Do you think there is some central data base tracking it? I’ve never contemplated it.
How long did your cold last? Sounds awful!
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I don't know about any "database". As it is, in the United States, it is already a giant cluster regarding the vaccine. There is definitely no tracking on that. And there probably should have been.

The Vaccine Cards Are the Wrong Size

But, a lot of people are pretty irrational about things now. There is no actual discussion about it, but they just believe that there are huge government databases tracking everyone and everything. Forget trying to reason with them.

Yes, my "cold" was bad.
 
ilovewings said:
The only thing that comes to my mind is that there are more unvaccinated people contracting the virus in Texas than in Florida. 44% of the population in Texas is vaccinated vs. approx 50% fully vaccinated in Florida and almost 60% vaccinated with one dose in Florida. Beyond that, I am stumped.
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There could also be a difference in how cause of death is reported in Florida and Texas.

Report: Florida May Have Undercounted Its COVID-19 Deaths by Thousands

also...

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and other independent public health experts suggest that Florida’s total death toll from the pandemic is actually understated. Experts noted that Governor DeSantis’ administration has used a COVID-19 infection rate that gives “more weight to negative test” results, and thus skews the results. Governor DeSantis has used the skewed rate to justify reopening schools and businesses. In response to criticism, Mr. Piccolo denied that Governor was attempting to question the official death toll, stating “[n]o one in the administration is trying to cast doubt on the number of COVID deaths, we are trying to get to the facts.”

COVID-19 Data Misrepresented by Florida Governor | Sabin Center for Climate Change Law
 
mickey2942 said:
I don't know about any "database". As it is, in the United States, it is already a giant cluster regarding the vaccine. There is definitely no tracking on that. And there probably should have been.

The Vaccine Cards Are the Wrong Size

But, a lot of people are pretty irrational about things now. There is no actual discussion about it, but they just believe that there are huge government databases tracking everyone and everything. Forget trying to reason with them.

Yes, my "cold" was bad.
Click to expand...
I’ve heard some wacky things from a friend, the vaccine is “alien dna” and/or it’s tied into the new 5G tower. There is no reasoning with that thought process.
 
Florida Gov. DeSantis deploys COVID-19 antibody 'rapid response unit' — Fox News

“Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis mobilized a "rapid response unit" this week to administer monoclonal antibody treatments to state residents infected with COVID-19.

The rapid response unit is based in Jacksonville. Additionally, DeSantis is deploying "strike teams" to administer treatments to vulnerable populations at the state’s long-term care facilities.

"This is the most effective treatment that we've yet encountered for people who are infected with Covid-19," DeSantis said at a press conference Thursday. "This, applied early and properly, has the ability to reduce your likelihood of being hospitalized."

“The governor touted the effectiveness of antibody treatments for reducing severe symptoms, adding its use should increase alongside efforts to promote vaccinations.

"I don’t think it’s an either or," DeSantis said. "We have people in society that are not vaccinated. We also have people who are vaccinated who are still testing positive. Either way, if you get in that situation, particularly in these high-risk categories, this should be your stop."
 
musicaljoke said:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/covid-19-delta-variant-children-teens-us-versus-canada-1.6139379

Right now, experts say Canada isn't seeing the surge of pediatric cases and hospitalizations that the southern U.S. is experiencing. That includes at one of the country's largest children's hospitals.

"SickKids has not seen any increases in COVID-19 hospitalizations or disease severity due to the delta variant," a spokesperson for the Toronto hospital said in an email to CBC News. "Throughout the pandemic, we have monitored COVID-19 trends in other jurisdictions and we continue to do so closely."

One of the reasons it hasn't happened, experts say, is Canada's much higher vaccination rate. According to CBC's vaccine tracker, 71 per cent of the eligible population — currently anyone 12 years and older — has been fully vaccinated in Canada.

"Vaccination in Canada seems to be less of a political issue and more of a health-related issue — and we are lucky for that," said Dr. Jeff Pernica, an infectious disease specialist at McMaster University in Hamilton.
Click to expand...
There's no school or colleges going yet, IMO the story will change when that starts.
 
MimosaMornings said:
Florida Gov. DeSantis deploys COVID-19 antibody 'rapid response unit' — Fox News

“Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis mobilized a "rapid response unit" this week to administer monoclonal antibody treatments to state residents infected with COVID-19.

The rapid response unit is based in Jacksonville. Additionally, DeSantis is deploying "strike teams" to administer treatments to vulnerable populations at the state’s long-term care facilities.

"This is the most effective treatment that we've yet encountered for people who are infected with Covid-19," DeSantis said at a press conference Thursday. "This, applied early and properly, has the ability to reduce your likelihood of being hospitalized."

“The governor touted the effectiveness of antibody treatments for reducing severe symptoms, adding its use should increase alongside efforts to promote vaccinations.

"I don’t think it’s an either or," DeSantis said. "We have people in society that are not vaccinated. We also have people who are vaccinated who are still testing positive. Either way, if you get in that situation, particularly in these high-risk categories, this should be your stop."
Click to expand...

So, the people who won't get vaccinated (because lord knows what could be in those vaccines) will be happy to be infused/injected with lab-made antibodies after they fall deathly ill with covid? Okay.

From what I understand, monoclonal antibody treatments are super expensive.
Vaccines much less expensive.
I wonder who is going to be paying for all of these monoclonal antibody treatments?
 
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Justin Senior, the CEO of the Safety Net Hospital Alliance Of Florida, noted that doses of the monoclonal antibody treatments are difficult to manufacture. There is enough of the treatment in Florida today, but if this wave of the virus persists — and thousands of patients seek the treatment at once — it could pose supply problems, he said.

“Those are very, very difficult treatments to scale,” Senior said.

They’re also pricey treatments. Last year, the federal government bought 300,000 doses of the Eli Lilly treatment for $1,250 per dose. Some facilities across the country may also charge patients for the cost of administering the drug.

However, Lilly noted in an October release that coronavirus hospitalizations, which the treatments are supposed to prevent, are much pricier: $22,000 per person on average. :eek:

The governor’s office did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment Wednesday about the cost of the monoclonal antibodies to the state. (ie. taxpayer)

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/coronavirus/article253260773.html
 
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I'm behind in news today but a friend rang and said our whole state of New South Wales is going into lockdown today at 5pm for seven days.
I had heard rumours that it would happen at midnight last night.

I searched and it said it was regional New South Wales. I've been expecting it, I'm glad now that I got my Woolworths grocery delivery a week or so back.

I
 
mickey2942 said:
What seems to me, on the futility of Contact Tracing, is that many people do not get a Covid test, so, that misses at least 40% of the potential positive cases right there.
Click to expand...

Respectfully snipped for focus. Testing should be free. If it's not, we're always going to have people who suffer at home and not bother going to get tested.

At this link, you'll see the flyer for the local hospital, which is the only place within about 13 miles that's offering testing for Covid--at a cost of $152.46. Plus, you need a doctor's order. Look at the small line of text just under the words...

"Important information for patients and visitors"

It reads..."As required by Section 3202(b) of the CARES Act, our cash charge for the COVID-19 diagnostic test is $152.46 with a physician order."

For those who have insurance, the cost is likely covered. Those who don't are just out of luck.

If we can't test efficiently, contact tracing means nothing.

This whole virus has been handled so poorly in the US from the get-go. The vaccine, masking, and social distancing are probably our best bets, but all the rest of the stuff..contact tracing, shutdowns, quarantines, all of that is a band-aid on a severed limb because there's no uniformity or consistency. What works in other nations will not work here because too many people resist. I'm not coming down on those who resist, they have their opinions and those opinions are just as valid as mine, but I'm disappointed in our leadership--both the old leadership and the new leadership.
 
KALI said:
Great outside of the box thinking by these guys.
I am ALL in for this.
Anything to stop this killing machine.
Click to expand...


They've been testing sewage in various places for quite a while now, and I think it's a valuable tool in predicting a coming outbreak. Last fall, I read that if researchers find an uptick in the virus in sewage, they can predict a rising death toll in something like three weeks. That was with the original Covid, but I think it should also hold true to some extent with Delta and other variants.

I don't think it can pinpoint the individuals who are infected, however, because they don't know whose poop they're testing.
 
GRT said:
They've been testing sewage in various places for quite a while now, and I think it's a valuable tool in predicting a coming outbreak. Last fall, I read that if researchers find an uptick in the virus in sewage, they can predict a rising death toll in something like three weeks. That was with the original Covid, but I think it should also hold true to some extent with Delta and other variants.

I don't think it can pinpoint the individuals who are infected, however, because they don't know whose poop they're testing.
Click to expand...

We have been testing waste water for a long time now, all around Australia.
If covid is found in the waste there will be concern for an outbreak, and testing is ramped up in specific areas, looking for positive cases.
Sometimes nothing happens ... and they deduce it is someone shedding an old infection.

Still, it has been a valuable tool for us for at least a year, if not longer.
 
TootsieFootsie said:
I'm behind in news today but a friend rang and said our whole state of New South Wales is going into lockdown today at 5pm for seven days.
I had heard rumours that it would happen at midnight last night.

I searched and it said it was regional New South Wales. I've been expecting it, I'm glad now that I got my Woolworths grocery delivery a week or so back.
Click to expand...

You will still be fine with your groceries, Toots. Deliveries will still happen ... probably even more than before. :)

The statewide lockdown is well overdue. I read that Gladys was put under pressure from all the other state leaders yesterday, at National Cabinet. Her approach to tackling Delta has put far too many people at risk, and all of us other states have been bracing for the leaks into our states.
It is very stressful ... as we all try to ramp up vaccinations as quickly as we can, now that we have supply.
 
I'm glad the lockdown has happened. I agree it should have happened sooner.

I did notice that just about all the toilet paper is gone again, Woolworths online. I have enough for maybe two months. Same as always, I like to have two packets of four 3ply double length.

Just shows how people panic I guess.

No I'm not worried about getting groceries. About a month ago the deliveries were booked out a week in advance but I was fine waiting, because although I'm not a bulk buyer, I like to have enough to last for awhile, just in case.




SouthAussie said:
You will still be fine with your groceries, Toots. Deliveries will still happen ... probably even more than before.
Click to expand...
 
I am surprised at the amount of people I know who wouldn't have more than a few days supply of food in their house.
Hence the need to go shopping at least once a week. Some shop every few days.
I love shopping, even for groceries but it would annoy the hell out of me having to think about it every few days. I'd rather be doing other things.

I now realise why the panic in some people, even when it's just a long weekend or a public holiday.
 
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