***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.”

[BigRedChief]

The #COVID19 global spread now officially surpasses 93,000 cases.
I assume there will be an outcry when the "100,000" point is reached.https://t.co/TT1w9O55Qr pic.twitter.com/J9J4et1Brl

— Laurie Garrett (@Laurie_Garrett) March 4, 2020

[BigRedChief]

Growthers refers to the notion of exponential growth.

�� Indeed, the number of Covid-19 cases appears to be following an exponential pattern.

Scientists have estimated that the number of cases doubles about every seven days https://t.co/ua7b47qu3L pic.twitter.com/EBT6PlZLgY

— Bloomberg Opinion (@bopinion) March 3, 2020

[Deberg_1990]

Are you one of these people?

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.usa...amp/4950835002

Fears about a worsening coronavirus outbreak have led shoppers in the U.S. and other hard-hit countries to begin stocking up on supplies to fill "pandemic pantries," a new report from Nielsen suggests.

Sales of sought-after hand sanitizers have risen 73% in dollar value in the four weeks ending Feb. 22, compared with the same period in 2019, Nielsen says. Similarly, medical masks sales spiked 319%, aerosol disinfectants rose 47% and thermometers increased 32%.

Among food goods with skyrocketing sales: oat milk. Sales of the product rose 305% in the week ending Feb. 22.

"Consumers around the world are actively stockpiling emergency supplies as concerns grow that the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) could become a worldwide pandemic," reads the report titled, "Nielsen Investigation: 'Pandemic Pantries' Pressure Supply Chain Amid COVID-19 Fears."

Nielsen, which tracks more than 900,000 stores in 100 countries, found "significant spikes in the hoarding of emergency supplies" in the U.S., China and Italy.

The repercussions could be severe. The World Health Organization said Wednesday that panic buying and hoarding have contributed to a global shortage of face masks, which puts health care workers at risk.

Store shelves in Taiwan, China and Japan have been emptied of hand sanitizer, toilet paper, bleach and cleaning pads, and the U.S. is seeing similar patterns. At the same time, some sellers have begun to hike prices of desired products to gouge buyers. Amazon, eBay and Walmart have all said they are taking action to stop price gouging.


The demand is out there. Nielsen's report found sales of medical face masks in San Francisco drugstores are up 541% over a year ago and that sales so far this year have already surpassed those for all of 2019. Sales of medical face masks in Los Angeles drugstores rose 340%, Nielsen says.

Sales of household maintenance masks are skyrocketing nationwide, too, up 262% over the previous month.

"Stocks of hand sanitizers and medical face masks have already dried up in some markets, with no clear indication of when supplies will be replenished," Nielsen said.

The panic buying "ripple effect" is going beyond emergency items such as canned goods, flour, sugar and bottled water, to other non-food essentials such as vitamins, fruit snacks and first aid kits, says the report from Nielsen's consumer goods and retail research division.


Sales of dried beans rose 10.1%, while frozen fruit sales were up 7% in the week ending Feb. 22, the report says.

"Fresh food items are expected to face challenges as shoppers steer away from anything that may have travelled long distances, such as fruit and vegetables, or may have been exposed to the airborne virus," said Scott McKenzie, global intelligence leader at Nielsen.

Current shopping and stockpiling behavior is similar to that seen before snowstorms, he says. "That said, beyond the traditional focus on milk, bread and eggs, consumers now are even more focused on packaged products without extensive, direct contact, that perhaps were packaged during less severe stages of the outbreak," McKenzie said.

Nielsen research found that in Vietnam, 45% of consumers surveyed say they have increased what they’re stocking at home and 25% are buying more online.


"Beyond health preparedness, U.S. consumers aren’t waiting until it’s too late to stock up on shelf-stable essentials, which parallels what we’ve seen in other regions," the report says. "We do expect online shopping to rise as people become increasingly interested in reducing their exposure to others, as the virus appears to be spread via coughs and sneezes."

Other products beginning to see sales increases include air cleaners and air purifiers, sales of which rose 3% in the week ending Feb. 22.

The next possible product shortage? Hand and body lotion.

"Simply because an increased focus on hand washing and disinfecting will have a negative effect on skin," Nielsen says.

[Bearcat]

This has been discussed at length in this thread that's been on the front page forever, so I'm not sure why we'd need a second one.

[loochy]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

The panic buying "ripple effect" is going beyond emergency items such as canned goods, flour, sugar and bottled water, to other non-food essentials such as vitamins, fruit snacks and first aid kits, says the report from Nielsen's consumer goods and retail research division.

Fruit snacks are essential? No wonder we have a nation full of fat pieces of crap. Also, I find it interesting that they consider fruit snacks as non food.

[InChiefsHeaven]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

MAP: More than 120 confirmed coronavirus cases now in the US. https://t.co/155zo76OtS pic.twitter.com/vDcapCSX05

— NBC News (@NBCNews) March 3, 2020

The cases in Nebraska are due to people being flown here for treatment at Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. Makes the numbers a little disingenuous...

[InChiefsHeaven]

Seriously though, H1N1 was way worse than this and it was only 11 years ago...why is this such a huge panic by some? Yeah, it's a virus, and it's in multiple countries, but it's not the end of the bloody world.

[Beef Supreme]

Originally Posted by loochy

Fruit snacks are essential? No wonder we have a nation full of fat pieces of crap. Also, I find it interesting that they consider fruit snacks as non food.

You're goddamn right they're essential!

[Mecca]

Originally Posted by InChiefsHeaven

Seriously though, H1N1 was way worse than this and it was only 11 years ago...why is this such a huge panic by some? Yeah, it's a virus, and it's in multiple countries, but it's not the end of the bloody world.

Because this is the world we live in, panic and hysteria over everything.

[Beef Supreme]

Panic is good for ratings.

[suzzer99]

Originally Posted by InChiefsHeaven

Seriously though, H1N1 was way worse than this and it was only 11 years ago...why is this such a huge panic by some? Yeah, it's a virus, and it's in multiple countries, but it's not the end of the bloody world.

H1N1 had a lower death rate than this (0.01-0.08%). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_flu_pandemic

[suzzer99]

Just spoke with ER doc who say he's seeing cases he's 99% sure are #coronavirus. Negative for flu, recent travel, work in airports. Not allowed to test. Patients return to work because they can't take time off w/out a firm diagnosis. Other ER docs seeing the same thing.

— Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) March 4, 2020

From the replies seems like this is going on in a lot of places. This one is in New Hampshire.

[Donger]

162 cases now.

[Donger]

(CNN)A former cruise ship passenger has died from coronavirus almost two weeks after he returned home, marking California's first death from the illness and the 11th death across the US.

Now the same ship is headed back to California from a different voyage with 2,500 passengers on board -- including dozens who went on the same trip as the California man who died.

At least 11 passengers and 10 crew members currently on board Princess Cruises' Grand Princess ship have developed symptoms, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by InChiefsHeaven

Seriously though, H1N1 was way worse than this and it was only 11 years ago...why is this such a huge panic by some? Yeah, it's a virus, and it's in multiple countries, but it's not the end of the bloody world.

The thing about H1N1 is it can affect healthy young adults less indiscriminately to older people. I don't have the data, but it's possible H1N1 (which is still infecting many people to this day) is almost or more dangerous to an adult under 50 than Covid-19.