***NON-POLITICAL COVID-19 Discussion Thread***

[JakeF]

A couple of reminders...

Originally Posted by Bwana

Once again, don't come in this thread with some kind of political agenda, or you will be shown the door. If you want to go that route, there is a thread about this in DC.

Originally Posted by Dartgod

People, there is a lot of good information in this thread, let's try to keep the petty bickering to a minimum.

We all have varying opinions about the impact of this, the numbers, etc. We will all never agree with each other. But we can all keep it civil.

Thanks!

Click here for the original OP:

Spoiler!

Apparently the CoronaVirus can survive on a inanimate objects, such as door knobs, for 9 days.

California coronavirus case could be first spread within U.S. community, CDC says
By SOUMYA KARLAMANGLA, JACLYN COSGROVE
FEB. 26, 2020 8:04 PM

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating what could be the first case of novel coronavirus in the United States involving a patient in California who neither recently traveled out of the country nor was in contact with someone who did.

“At this time, the patient’s exposure is unknown. It’s possible this could be an instance of community spread of COVID-19, which would be the first time this has happened in the United States,” the CDC said in a statement. “Community spread means spread of an illness for which the source of infection is unknown. It’s also possible, however, that the patient may have been exposed to a returned traveler who was infected.”

The individual is a resident of Solano County and is receiving medical care in Sacramento County, according to the state Department of Public Health.

The CDC said the “case was detected through the U.S. public health system — picked up by astute clinicians.”

Officials at UC Davis Medical Center expanded on what the federal agency might have meant by that in an email sent Wednesday, as reported by the Davis Enterprise newspaper.

The patient arrived at UC Davis Medical Center from another hospital Feb. 19 and “had already been intubated, was on a ventilator, and given droplet protection orders because of an undiagnosed and suspected viral condition,” according to an email sent by UC Davis officials that was obtained by the Davis Enterprise.

The staff at UC Davis requested COVID-19 testing by the CDC, but because the patient didn’t fit the CDC’s existing criteria for the virus, a test wasn’t immediately administered, according to the email. The CDC then ordered the test Sunday, and results were announced Wednesday. Hospital administrators reportedly said in the email that despite these issues, there has been minimal exposure at the hospital because of safety protocols they have in place.

A UC Davis Health spokesperson declined Wednesday evening to share the email with The Times.

Since Feb. 2, more than 8,400 returning travelers from China have entered California, according to the state health department. They have been advised to self-quarantine for 14 days and limit interactions with others as much as possible, officials said.

“This is a new virus, and while we are still learning about it, there is a lot we already know,” Dr. Sonia Angell, director of the California Department of Public Health, said in a statement. “We have been anticipating the potential for such a case in the U.S., and given our close familial, social and business relationships with China, it is not unexpected that the first case in the U.S. would be in California.”

It is not clear how the person became infected, but public health workers could not identify any contacts with people who had traveled to China or other areas where the virus is widespread. That raises concern that the virus is spreading in the United States, creating a challenge for public health officials, experts say.

“It’s the first signal that we could be having silent transmission in the community,” said Lawrence Gostin, director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center on National and Global Health Law. “It probably means there are many more cases out there, and it probably means this individual has infected others, and now it’s a race to try to find out who that person has infected.”

On Tuesday, the CDC offered its most serious warning to date that the United States should expect and prepare for the coronavirus to become a more widespread health issue.

“Ultimately, we expect we will see coronavirus spread in this country,” said Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. “It’s not so much a question of if, but a question of when.”

According to the CDC’s latest count Wednesday morning, 59 U.S. residents have tested positive for the new strain of coronavirus — 42 of whom are repatriated citizens from a Diamond Princess cruise. That number has grown by two since Messonnier’s last count Tuesday, although the CDC was not immediately available to offer details on the additional cases.

More than 82,000 cases of coronavirus have been reported globally, and more than 2,700 people have died, with the majority in mainland China, the epicenter of the outbreak.

But public health leaders have repeatedly reminded residents that the health risk from the novel coronavirus to the general public remains low.

“While COVID-19 has a high transmission rate, it has a low mortality rate,” the state Department of Public Health said in a statement Wednesday. “From the international data we have, of those who have tested positive for COVID-19, approximately 80% do not exhibit symptoms that would require hospitalization. There have been no confirmed deaths related to COVID-19 in the United States to date.”

CDC officials have also warned that although the virus is likely to spread in U.S. communities, the flu still poses a greater risk.

Gostin said the news of potential silent transmission does not eliminate the possibility of containing the virus in the U.S. and preventing an outbreak.

“There are few enough cases that we should at least try,” he said. “Most of us are not optimistic that that will be successful, but we’re still in the position to try.”

[O.city]

Originally Posted by Marcellus

I'm not saying school would even open back up just like normal, there would be precautions necessary like making the kids wash hands more often, probably social distancing them more etc...

We have a food plant operating right now with 700 employees, 24hrs a day 7 days a week so far with no issues. We are taking employee temps as they enter the building, we have staggered shift starts to have less people arriving at the same time etc...

There are ways to do things different without just throwing in the towel and saying nope, can't do it. There is middle ground between where we were and being at full stop, people need to start realizing this.

IIRC, there are quite a few large plants shutting down due to infection. I cant' remember who was talking about it in here though.

[Donger]

[Donger]

[O.city]

Eventually, we're going to return back to normal with precautions. What those will be at this point i'm not sure.

[Donger]

An article in the San Francisco Chronicle on October 25, 1918

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by petegz28

Yeah, I have not heard that one. Got some info?

Well, I guess a better way of putting it is they are still determining the science but other coronavirus did not spread that way.

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...ptoms-n1140106

There is no documented proof that any of them is spread asymptomatically, said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security in Baltimore, and a spokesperson for the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

“We don’t have definitive evidence that that type of phenomenon is occurring" with the new virus, Adalja said. “There is some possibility that it’s occurring, but we haven’t seen that before with other viruses in the family, and so we have to kind of view any claims of that with a little bit of skepticism and they need to be properly studied.”]

[Mecca]

Hey Florida thinks the WWE is an essential business........that's weird as ****.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by O.city

IIRC, there are quite a few large plants shutting down due to infection. I cant' remember who was talking about it in here though.

It was a major pork production plant in the NE. There was a Schreiber cheese plant somewhere that shut down and did a clean after a positive then reopened production. We have obviously made contingency plans.

[Bugeater]

Masks! Now we're talking! I kinda like this one...seems fitting.

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by Marcellus

First off by fall there shouldn't be much risk of a large scale outbreak. Secondly kids to this point have been extremely mildly affected to compared to adults which makes transmission much more difficult. Not impossible but less likely.

You do have an issue with kids keeping their hands washed etc...but there are easily implemented mitigation techniques. That goes for school employees as well.

At some point you gotta move on. Talk about closing schools for another etc..is just absolutely ridiculous. Kids are much lower risk and adults who work with kids can take precautions.

During the 1918 flu pandemic October was the deadliest month. I would be careful not to make any predictions.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

During the 1918 flu pandemic October was the deadliest month. I would be careful not to make any predictions.

I'm just spitballing like everyone else. (pun not intended)

[dlphg9]

Originally Posted by Marcellus

Are you seriously saying you haven't read where asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic people are less likely to spread the virus?

Link? I think it would make sense that being asymptomatic would keep you from spreading the virus as much because you are not sneezing or coughing, but on the flip side these people don't know they have it so they are not quarantining themselves like they should.

I think you might mean that they are less likely to spread the virus because they aren't shedding as much of the virus. If that's the case I would love to see a link to that info.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by DaFace

"No issues" isn't actually all that convincing since it's likely you just haven't had anyone infected at all. "We had someone test positive but didn't otherwise see any community spread" would be compelling, though.

I would prefer to not test that theory myself.

[BigCatDaddy]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

During the 1918 flu pandemic October was the deadliest month. I would be careful not to make any predictions.

I think by October we will have made significant progress in treatments for the Rona.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by dlphg9

Link? I think it would make sense that being asymptomatic would keep you from spreading the virus as much because you are not sneezing or coughing, but on the flip side these people don't know they have it so they are not quarantining themselves like they should.

I think you might mean that they are less likely to spread the virus because they aren't shedding as much of the virus. If that's the case I would love to see a link to that info.

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...ptoms-n1140106

According to this article by Johns Hopkins no evidence shows asymptomatic spread and other variants of coronavirus did not spread that way. Like every single thing you read on this topic take it for what it's worth since someone else will contradict it. But like you said, it makes sense.