***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.”

[PAChiefsGuy]

Got a bad feeling NFL season is going to see stadiums with hardly any fans

[petegz28]

Originally Posted by KCChiefsFan88

And re-open the haircut places.

Yes haircuts by appointment only type thing

[Bearcat]

Originally Posted by jd1020

Are you taking into account how much business they need to bring in to make a profit?

Theres no point in opening back up if restrictions left in place mean they are operating at a loss. They'll just remain closed.

Yeah, some restaurants around here are surviving off carryout and delivery while others have ended up closing due to lack of volume.... low margin businesses need volume.

[FloridaMan88]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath15

Call me crazy, but I'd like to have a much, MUCH better idea of who actually has this virus and is asymptomatic before letting them all loose on society again.

Or keep the 80 million or so Americans in the high risk group under social distancing measures and let everyone else return to normal.

Keeping 25% of the population under shelter in place is better than keeping the current 97% of the population under shelter in place as a first step.

[Donger]

It's not about days, or weeks, or patience. It's about numbers. Opening up without having a clear and demonstrated decline in new case growth would be a very foolish decision.

[OnTheWarpath15]

Originally Posted by KCChiefsFan88

Or keep the 80 million or so Americans in the high risk group under social distancing measures and let everyone else return to normal.

Keeping 25% of the population under shelter in place is better than keeping the current 97% of the population under shelter in place as a first step.

LOL if you think only 25% of the population is in the high risk group.

[Mecca]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath15

Call me crazy, but I'd like to have a much, MUCH better idea of who actually has this virus and is asymptomatic before letting them all loose on society again.

That is way to rational and logical for some that are posting here.

[limested]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath15

LOL if you think only 25% of the population is in the high risk group.

He is clueless. You shouldn't waste your time responding to him.

[Mecca]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath15

LOL if you think only 25% of the population is in the high risk group.

I don't think he grasps that the American lifestyle means probably 65-70% are in that group and that's being conservative.

[petegz28]

799 new deaths out of NY today so far

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by KCChiefsFan88

Bill Gates is a "medical expert"?

He's an infectious disease expert at least. People still think of him as the Microsoft guy, but he's been working full-time at his Foundation for years now.

[Monticore]

Originally Posted by BigCatDaddy

Yes. Movie theaters could open but limit the numbers of viewers and have them separated out for example

Having to fully disinfect the theatre between shows would be difficult.

[kgrund]

Originally Posted by Donger

It's not about days, or weeks, or patience. It's about numbers. Opening up without having a clear and demonstrated decline in new case growth would be a very foolish decision.

I would argue that only number initially is who has had it. Do we really care if new cases are going up if over 70% of the population has already had it and the most vulnerable are protected in some capacity? We obviously care as lives are at risk, but context in those whole thing is huge. Step #1 going forward: Determine how big of a problem we have.

[BleedingRed]

Originally Posted by DaFace

He's an infectious disease expert at least. People still think of him as the Microsoft guy, but he's been working full-time at his Foundation for years now.

That doesn't make him a expert. And some of the stuff he has done in Africa has a questionable record.

Just saying...

[FloridaMan88]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath15

LOL if you think only 25% of the population is in the high risk group.

If you look at the recent data for the COVID-19 deaths in New York, 86% of all deaths were among people who had underlying health issues, specifically hypertension and diabetes. (Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...es/2960151001/)

That is a very defined high risk group category.

About 100 million Americans have hypertension and diabetes.

Roughly about 30% of the population have those conditions.

That's still better than having 97% of the population under total social distancing measures.