***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.”

[Frosty]

Originally Posted by loochy

I got a moderna booster on Friday. I had a backache Friday night and Saturday, and that's it. The shot site didn't even get sore.

Nice. I got my Moderna booster a couple of weeks ago. My arm hurt at the injection site so much I couldn't sleep on that side for a couple of days after. The morning after the shot, I hurt from head to toe. So much that it was tough walking down the stairs. The next day, I was fine except for the sore arm, so it wasn't that much of a big deal.

I had to get my shot at the Walmart pharmacy as it was the only local place I could get in right away. The weird thing was the lady at the counter when I checked in ****ed around with my insurance card for almost 20 minutes. She never could get it to work and, in the end, it didn't matter anyway (I didn't pay anything). I don't even know why they bothered with the card?

Oh well, it was all worth it. I live in the middle of Spreadneckistan and my wife works at an elementary school. I'm not taking any chances.

[TLO]

Latest CDC data by vaccine status:

Unvaccinated: 451 cases per 100k
Vaccinated: 134 cases per 100k
Boosted: 48 cases per 100k

Unvaccinated: 6.1 deaths per 100k
Vaccinated: 0.5 deaths per 100k
Boosted: 0.1 deaths per 100k

— Ryan Struyk (@ryanstruyk) December 20, 2021

[Braincase]

Chargers just placed Bosa, Ekeler, and Linsley on the COVID list. Wonder if there will be any more Chiefs gutpunched before the end of the week.

[loochy]

Originally Posted by Braincase

Chargers just placed Bosa, Ekeler, and Linsley on the COVID list. Wonder if there will be any more Chiefs gutpunched before the end of the week.

I thought they were done doing that crap

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by lawrenceRaider

Why do you say that? Reports out of SA say people with preexisting infections are getting Omicron at a pretty high rate.

This does not pass the smell test.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by TLO

Looking at data from London.

Hospitalizations due to covid are going up. However about half of them weren't admitted for covid. They were found to be infected when they were brought in to the hospital.

This is consistent with the South Africa data.

Dude......

[Braincase]

Originally Posted by loochy

I thought they were done doing that crap

Only for the fully-vaccinated. They specifically noted Bosa isn't vaccinated.

[ghak99]

Originally Posted by Braincase

Only for the fully-vaccinated. They specifically noted Bosa isn't vaccinated.

Interesting.

I'd kind of like to know our player's individual status, for selfish fan reasons, but it's really none of my business and they should tell me to go **** myself for even wanting to know.

I bet someone somewhere has a database on the players for betting and fantasy reasons.

[TLO]

Originally Posted by Marcellus

Dude......

That was my point. They're not being hospitalized for covid, but they're still going under the statistics

[lawrenceRaider]

Originally Posted by TLO

That was my point. They're not being hospitalized for covid, but they're still going under the statistics

Which is pretty messed up.

[loochy]

Originally Posted by TLO

That was my point. They're not being hospitalized for covid, but they're still going under the statistics

I swear we'd be amazed at the number of positives if every single person in the US was tested. I bet 25% would test positive.

[sedated]

Originally Posted by loochy

I swear we'd be amazed at the number of positives if every single person in the US was tested. I bet 25% would test positive.

I kinda thought the same thing was being said about 18 months ago.

[Braincase]

Originally Posted by ghak99

Interesting.

I'd kind of like to know our player's individual status, for selfish fan reasons, but it's really none of my business and they should tell me to go **** myself for even wanting to know.

I bet someone somewhere has a database on the players for betting and fantasy reasons.

Now I see Kelce is in the box. Had Bosa in his face half the night.

[Donger]

Omicron sweeps across nation, now 73% of US COVID-19 cases

https://apnews.com/article/omicron-m...17935f65c896cf

NEW YORK (AP) — Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S., accounting for 73% of new infections last week, federal health officials said Monday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers showed nearly a six-fold increase in omicron’s share of infections in only one week.

In much of the country, it’s even higher. Omicron is responsible for an estimated 90% or more of new infections in the New York area, the Southeast, the industrial Midwest and the Pacific Northwest. The national rate suggests that more than 650,000 omicron infections occurred in the U.S. last week.

Since the end of June, the delta variant had been the main version causing U.S. infections. As recently as the end of November, more than 99.5% of coronaviruses were delta, according to CDC data.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said the new numbers reflect the kind of growth seen in other countries.

“These numbers are stark, but they’re not surprising,” she said.

Scientists in Africa first sounded the alarm about omicron less than a month ago and on Nov. 26 the World Health Organization designated it as a “variant of concern.” The mutant has since shown up in about 90 countries.

Much about the omicron variant remains unknown, including whether it causes more or less severe illness. Early studies suggest the vaccinated will need a booster shot for the best chance at preventing omicron infection but even without the extra dose, vaccination still should offer strong protection against severe illness and death.

“All of us have a date with omicron,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “If you’re going to interact with society, if you’re going to have any type of life, omicron will be something you encounter, and the best way you can encounter this is to be fully vaccinated.”

Adalja said he was not surprised by the CDC data showing omicron overtaking delta in the U.S., given what was seen in South Africa, the U.K. and Denmark. He predicted spread over the holidays, including breakthrough infections among the vaccinated and serious complications among the unvaccinated that could stress hospitals already burdened by delta.

Dr. Eric Topol, head of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, said other countries had seen omicron’s fast growth, but the U.S. data showed “a remarkable jump in such a short time.”

Topol also said it’s unclear how much milder omicron really is compared with other variants.

“That’s the big uncertainty now,” Topol said. “We have to count on it being a lot of hospitalizations and a lot severe disease from omicron.”

CDC’s estimates are based on thousands of coronavirus specimens collected each week through university and commercial laboratories and state and local health departments. Scientists analyze their genetic sequences to determine which versions of the COVID-19 viruses are most abundant.

In the week that ended Dec. 11, omicron’s share of new infections in the U.S. increased to 2.9% from 0.4% the week before, the CDC previously reported.

But CDC on Tuesday said they are revising some of the earlier numbers, after analyzing more specimens. The new numbers indicate that about 13% of the infections the week of Dec. 11 were omicron, and not 3%, CDC officials said.

Though there remain a lot of new infections caused by the delta variant, “I anticipate that over time that delta will be crowded out by omicron,” Walensky said.

[Chief Pagan]

Originally Posted by O.city

Nah. I wouldn't fret to much.

We've baked in so much immunity not to this thing from previous infections and vaccinations, there's not nearly as much bite.

So some of the semi technical stuff I've been reading says that previous infections and vaccines are baking in resistance to severe illness and death.

But no, its not baking in immunity to getting sick.

Although a third booster of Pfizer or moderna offers some additional immunity, any other vaccine or prior infection doesn't do much as far as getting sick.

And 'mild' cases aren't always as mild as a cold, but by definition I don't think they involve hospital care.

And of course, if the 80% or so of the population including a large percentage of over 65 who don't have a third shot get sick. Some small percentage will get really sick even with vaccination or prior infection.

I don't see much realistic to be done about it. More just a reality check and a recognition that our health system and health workers are likely to continue to be hammered.

And the rest of us shouldn't be oblivious to that.