Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #107

[ilovewings]

I would never forgive myself if I infected an older relative by being careless. My mother died during this pandemic of unrelated causes and before that I only dared visiting her regularly because I was able to work from home and was pretty much isolating for a while. With omicron's contagiousness and everyone back to work I would rather wait. Mom would understand.

I am sorry about the loss of your mom-it sounds like you were super careful
when visiting her.

 

[LaborDayRN]

Good to hear hubby is getting better and that you are still negative!
fingers crossed his recovery continues and you remain negative!!

Thanks @ilovewings

 

[ilovewings]

Not to make light of anything but I think you can "love someone to death" with this awful virus.

Truer words were never spoken!!!!

 

[KALI]

We have a viral virus.
No matter how big and powerful you are. This virus will do it's thing.
Which is to infect any hosts it comes across.
Rich, poor, healthy or otherwise. A virus does not think..
I am truly sorry to know that these games are going ahead in China..
I hope that those who may be infected don't lose their lives..
What a worldwide curse this virus is.

Tomorrow is Chinese New Year, and millions of people will be travelling to their hometowns around the country. The CCP hasn't banned travel during Chinese New Year this year, but they are encouraging people not to travel.

If there are enough covid cases that occur during the Olympics, there is concern that Beijing will close its borders and that re-entry may be difficult for Beijing residents who visited their families in regions outside of Beijing during the week-long New Year holiday.

Prior to spring 2020 and covid, my husband and I travelled to Beijing every spring to spend Chinese New Year with family, and I had an agreement with my employer that I would work in Beijing every spring semester so that we could be with family each year as my mother in law and father in law were aging and this allowed us to spend some time with them every year. That stopped abruptly in spring 2020, of course, with Covid.

We haven't been able to return yet, but are hoping that we can do so by this summer. At the present time, foreigners can enter if they have a Chinese green card (residence permit) - which I have - they are issued for work or family reasons. For awhile, they were requiring negative antibody tests plus a PCR test to enter Beijing and obtain a health declaration QR code (after the 14 day quarantine and another negative PCR test). The guidelines keep changing, so not sure what they will be about a month or two after the Olympics and its impact. We'll know more then.

Good article below on some of the vaccines that China is developing - some with Germany - and its own mRNA vaccine under development, and the challenges they are facing with the Winter Olympics.

China’s zero-COVID strategy: what happens next?

"China’s stringent zero-COVID strategy is likely to face its toughest test yet in the next few weeks, as millions of people travel around the country for Chinese New Year, and the Winter Olympics begin in Beijing."

 

[CrimeAway]

One Million Deaths: The Hole the Pandemic Made in U.S. Society

 

[Sundog]

Scientists speak out about how they were ignored, even silenced, when they suggested a lab leak in 2020

 

[Teche]

I am sorry your parents are gone, but let me ask you a question ---::
Given the highly contagious virus we are presently living with,
Would you visit your elderly parents knowing you could expose
Them to. this potentially deadly virus??

My parents were 89 and 93 when they died. I am vaccinated and boosted and my parents would comply with the vaccines/booster. I would quarantine, have 2 negative PCR test results, drive, mask, social distance and visit. It would be a tough and well thought decision but I find it important to visit before they are facing a short time on earth.

 

[Teche]

Is that school's guidelines to wait 10 days? And then another 10 days?

Does the school policy reflect the new CDC guidelines?

 

[SouthAussie]

I finally found the risk calculator and chart.

It references AZ and Pfizer vaccination status, and unvaccinated status, and booster status. And is based on 90% Omicron and 10% Delta transmission.

It might be interesting to our UK members, as they are heavily AZ and Pfizer vaccinated also.

This is the chart.


newsGP - COVID-19 chart updated with Omicron risk of death, benefits of boosters

Here is the risk calculator.
Covid Risk Calculator | Immunisation Coalition

 

[margarita25]

NYC Starts Free Same-Day Delivery of COVID Antiviral Pills

This is great, if it works correctly. If I should get Covid I would get this because I'm high-risk. I just have to analyze which medications I take that are contraindicated for the Covid pills.

Thanks for bringing up the contraindications. I saw the list a while back and meant to post them - I remember thinking they seemed quite significant, and I hope people really know about them.

—

Eta: Bringing forward quick reference, contraindications may have already been addressed here, sorry for rehash:

Pfizer's Covid pills may be risky with other medications
Dec 26, 2021

“One of the two drugs in the antiviral cocktail could cause serious interactions with widely used prescriptions, including statins, blood thinners and some antidepressants.”

—-

Eta2:

Shouldn't doctors prescribe these through a pharmacy?

Yeah, I can just see it now, black market, hoarding, bunch of people on antidepressants taking them and not knowing about the contraindications...

 

[margarita25]

Omicron variant: What we know so far about this COVID-19 strain | UC Davis Health
Updated Jan. 28, 2022

“What is the omicron variant BA.2? How is it different than the original omicron variant?

The new omicron variant BA.2 appears to be about 50% more transmissible than the original omicron strain BA.1. Preliminary data suggests omicron BA.1 causes the same severity of disease and symptoms, but it's affecting younger people more.

We don't know how common reinfection is, but there are reports that several people have been infected with omicron BA.1, and within a month infected with omicron BA.2. It appears that this version of omicron is either so much more highly infectious that it can overcome vaccine or previous infection immunity, or it can evade immunity due to the mutations that it has.”

 

[Fika]

Omicron variant: What we know so far about this COVID-19 strain | UC Davis Health
Updated Jan. 28, 2022

“What is the omicron variant BA.2? How is it different than the original omicron variant?

The new omicron variant BA.2 appears to be about 50% more transmissible than the original omicron strain BA.1. Preliminary data suggests omicron BA.1 causes the same severity of disease and symptoms, but it's affecting younger people more.

We don't know how common reinfection is, but there are reports that several people have been infected with omicron BA.1, and within a month infected with omicron BA.2. It appears that this version of omicron is either so much more highly infectious that it can overcome vaccine or previous infection immunity, or it can evade immunity due to the mutations that it has.”

If it is 50% more transmissible then I don’t think there will be anyone left here who wouldn’t have had it by April . At this time almost all people I know either had it recently or have it right now( covid I mean not specific variant) . It is worrying about reinfections I would like to see more data on that. Who are those people who had it so soon after first? Vaccinated, natural immunity from previous infections etc .

 

[tabitha111]

I expect in the worst case scenarios, people will catch Covid over and over and over again. MOO

 

[Fika]

I expect in the worst case scenarios, people will catch Covid over and over and over again. MOO

Here the authorities believe that we will have to get shot every year just like the flu. I would be okay with that. I’m just afraid that we will be able catch it few times a year. I surly don’t want to catch covid every few months with the possibility of long covid each time.

 

[Elley Mae]

Abstract
This systematic review and meta-analysis are designed to determine whether there is empirical evidence to support the belief that “lockdowns” reduce COVID-19 mortality. Lockdowns are defined as the imposition of at least one compulsory, non-pharmaceutical intervention (NPI). NPIs are any government mandate that directly restrict peoples’ possibilities, such as policies that limit internal movement, close schools and businesses, and ban international travel. This study employed a systematic search and screening procedure in which 18,590 studies are identified that could potentially address the belief posed. After three levels of screening, 34 studies ultimately qualified. Of those 34 eligible studies, 24 qualified for inclusion in the meta-analysis. They were separated into three groups: lockdown stringency index studies, shelter-in-place- order (SIPO) studies, and specific NPI studies. An analysis of each of these three groups support the conclusion that lockdowns have had little to no effect on COVID-19 mortality. More specifically, stringency index studies find that lockdowns in Europe and the United States only reduced COVID-19 mortality by 0.2% on average. SIPOs were also ineffective, only reducing COVID-19 mortality by 2.9% on average. Specific NPI studies also find no broad-based evidence of noticeable effects on COVID-19 mortality.
While this meta-analysis concludes that lockdowns have had little to no public health effects, they have imposed enormous economic and social costs where they have been adopted. In consequence, lockdown policies are ill-founded and should be rejected as a pandemic policy instrument.


https://sites.krieger.jhu.edu/iae/f...ffects-of-Lockdowns-on-COVID-19-Mortality.pdf

 

[indicolite22]

To lock down or not to lock down - this article is from last August:

A year and a half after Sweden decided not to lock down, its COVID-19 death rate is up to 10 times higher than its neighbors

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Virus infections for Olympic athletes, coaches rising faster (clickondetroit.com)

BEIJING – Athletes and team officials are testing positive for COVID-19 at much higher rates than other people arriving in China for the Beijing Olympics, organizers said Tuesday.

Figures released by local organizers showed 11 positive tests for COVID-19 among 379 athletes and officials arriving Monday. They have been taken into isolation hotels to limit the spread of the infection and could miss their events.

The positive test rate of 2.9% for athletes and officials compared to 0.66% for Olympic “stakeholders,” a group which includes workers and media, in the same period. There were 1,059 people in that category...

The Games haven't even officially begun, and there is already a rising number of Covid cases among athletes and coaches. The Winter Games should have been cancelled or postponed. JMO

 

[SouthAussie]

Abstract
This systematic review and meta-analysis are designed to determine whether there is empirical evidence to support the belief that “lockdowns” reduce COVID-19 mortality. Lockdowns are defined as the imposition of at least one compulsory, non-pharmaceutical intervention (NPI). NPIs are any government mandate that directly restrict peoples’ possibilities, such as policies that limit internal movement, close schools and businesses, and ban international travel. This study employed a systematic search and screening procedure in which 18,590 studies are identified that could potentially address the belief posed. After three levels of screening, 34 studies ultimately qualified. Of those 34 eligible studies, 24 qualified for inclusion in the meta-analysis. They were separated into three groups: lockdown stringency index studies, shelter-in-place- order (SIPO) studies, and specific NPI studies. An analysis of each of these three groups support the conclusion that lockdowns have had little to no effect on COVID-19 mortality. More specifically, stringency index studies find that lockdowns in Europe and the United States only reduced COVID-19 mortality by 0.2% on average. SIPOs were also ineffective, only reducing COVID-19 mortality by 2.9% on average. Specific NPI studies also find no broad-based evidence of noticeable effects on COVID-19 mortality.
While this meta-analysis concludes that lockdowns have had little to no public health effects, they have imposed enormous economic and social costs where they have been adopted. In consequence, lockdown policies are ill-founded and should be rejected as a pandemic policy instrument.


https://sites.krieger.jhu.edu/iae/f...ffects-of-Lockdowns-on-COVID-19-Mortality.pdf

"This systematic review and meta-analysis are designed to determine whether there is empirical evidence to support the belief that “lockdowns” reduce COVID-19 mortality."

I find the premise for this review of statistics severely lacking.

1. The point of lockdowns is to stop the spread (which we have clear evidence of success, in my country), stopping the spread reduces the deaths

2. They reviewed no stats from countries that have had success with lockdowns - selectively choosing the US and Europe, neither areas locking down 'properly' in comparison

3. The only part of my country's economy that was severely hit was the travel and tourism sector (which we tried to support by having staycations)

4. Would lockdowns have worked everywhere? No they wouldn't. Because some countries have many multigenerational households, cramped living conditions, and/or far too many non-compliant citizens

5. The point of locking down is to stop people mingling, until the virus has been squelched because it can't find any new hosts. It has to be done early, hard, and fast - in order to work

imo

 

[Turkeytrot]

Husband tested positive on a rapid today, 2 days after me. Similar mild symptoms between the two of us so far

 

[sds71]

Pfizer asks for U.S. authorization of COVID shots for kids under 5