Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #83

[CharlestonGal]

The implications of this are overwhelming. A new normal. A new deadly virus that is not going to magically leave even with a vaccine. We are just going to have to find a way to adapt other than pretending it's not a problem. Clearly hospital systems the world over are not prepared to handle this virus infecting us year round and we are going to have to find a way to adapt. We can handle the common coronaviruses because almost none of us need hospitalization from them. Even if we find a vaccine with 50% efficacy we will still have this much greater burden on our healthcare. :/

Someone needs to figure out how bats can carry hundreds of coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV2 without missing a beat. What is it in their immune system that makes them so impervious to illness/death from CoVs? We need some of that, whatever it is.

 

[CharlestonGal]

Or as Faster Pussycat would put it:

I'm on the lame train
I got a first class ticket
On the nonstop to nowhere...

Singapore launches Covid-secure luxury cruises ... to nowhere

The Singapore government has given approval for cruises to nowhere in a bid to help a tourism sector battered by the coronavirus pandemic. Residents of the city-state will from November be allowed to board the cruises, during which they will be confined to the ships for the entire time.

The ships launching from Singapore will only be allowed to carry half their full capacity, with extra cleaning schedules and mandatory masks “at all times”.

Passengers will be obliged to take Covid-19 tests, and mingling will be discouraged.

 

[CSIDreamer]

Or as Faster Pussycat would put it:

I'm on the lame train
I got a first class ticket
On the nonstop to nowhere...

Singapore launches Covid-secure luxury cruises ... to nowhere

The Singapore government has given approval for cruises to nowhere in a bid to help a tourism sector battered by the coronavirus pandemic. Residents of the city-state will from November be allowed to board the cruises, during which they will be confined to the ships for the entire time.

The ships launching from Singapore will only be allowed to carry half their full capacity, with extra cleaning schedules and mandatory masks “at all times”.

Passengers will be obliged to take Covid-19 tests, and mingling will be discouraged.

That sounds super fun. Jmo

 

[MimosaMornings]

Or as Faster Pussycat would put it:

I'm on the lame train
I got a first class ticket
On the nonstop to nowhere...

Singapore launches Covid-secure luxury cruises ... to nowhere

The Singapore government has given approval for cruises to nowhere in a bid to help a tourism sector battered by the coronavirus pandemic. Residents of the city-state will from November be allowed to board the cruises, during which they will be confined to the ships for the entire time.

The ships launching from Singapore will only be allowed to carry half their full capacity, with extra cleaning schedules and mandatory masks “at all times”.

Passengers will be obliged to take Covid-19 tests, and mingling will be discouraged.

Well, if I could sit in a comfortable lounge chair in the sunlight with an adult beverage, choose food from a menu that I liked and I didn’t have to worry about others in my family - I might consider it. What we have in life now is not normal or sustainable for another year, at least for me.
JMO

 

[CharlestonGal]

Well, if I could sit in a comfortable lounge chair in the sunlight with an adult beverage, choose food from a menu that I liked and I didn’t have to worry about others in my family - I might consider it. What we have in life now is not normal or sustainable for another year, at least for me.
JMO

It's the "no mingling" component that is confounding. How do people enjoy time on the deck without mingling? Is there a schedule? How do they eat? Served in their rooms?

I could happily hang out on the deck of my yacht, frozen beverage in hand, while my crew brings me shrimp cocktail. A cruise ship with thousands of other people? I understand why people might be tempted, but no thank you. Not just yet.

 

[beatrixpotter]

Realistically, with this kind of highly contagious, more or less airborne, virus it is no longer possible for any country to detect, identify, and contain something like this before it travels the world. 100 years ago maybe, but we are too globally interconnected now. Millions of passengers are in-flight to destinations all over the world every single day. And millions had traveled from China before anyone knew about the existence of CoVid.

It would have traveled the world no matter where it initially emerged. Which is why most nations have pandemic response plans. Once it infects the hive, the entire hive is at-risk and must respond, quickly and cooperatively. And that is exactly what did not happen. With the exception of a few nations that did have good plans and acted on them decisively, the entire hive is now infected.

This kind of thing is going to continue to happen periodically, and can emerge from any point on the globe. Spanish Flu started in Kansas, USA of all places. When the next outbreak happens, hopefully we will do a better job, globally, and use the experience we've gained having experienced this one. IMO

Yes, it's basically too late at this point. Other countries are at least protecting their citizens till they have better healthcare options and ability to treat. But unless they want to literally wall themselves off for forever this is basically endemic. :/ It's hard to grasp the enormity of it.

 

[MimosaMornings]

It's the "no mingling" component that is confounding. How do people enjoy time on the deck without mingling? Is there a schedule? How do they eat? Served in their rooms?

I could happily hang out on the deck of my yacht, frozen beverage in hand, while my crew brings me shrimp cocktail. A cruise ship with thousands of other people? I understand why people might be tempted, but no thank you. Not just yet.

The no mingling thing had me wondering too. Only so people in a pool at a time? Maybe chairs are assigned by cabin. IDK The private yacht sounds much better.

 

[BayouBelle_LA]

COVID: Hospitalizations up; 11 state records; WHO questions lockdowns

Hospitalizations, which peaked at nearly 60,000 across the nation in July, had fallen by more than half last month. But since dipping below 29,000 on Sept. 20, the number of people being treated in hospitals each day has crept higher, to almost 35,000.

And a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins data through late Saturday shows 11 states set records for new cases for a seven-day period – Alaska, Colorado, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota and Utah. The U.S. has recorded its fourth consecutive day of more than 50,000 new COVID-19 cases, a streak not seen in two months.

From the link -
Dr. David Nabarro, the World Health Organization’s special envoy on COVID-19, urged world leaders this week to stop “using lockdowns as your primary control method" for blunting a virus surge.

This is something the President has been saying all along. IMO

 

[CharlestonGal]

The no mingling thing had me wondering too. Only so people in a pool at a time? Maybe chairs are assigned by cabin. IDK The private yacht sounds much better.

I imagine staring at the ocean for days on end would get pretty monotonous, too, if you can't dock anywhere.

It's likely only a matter of time before a whole cruise ship gets infected again, even without docking anywhere. I wonder if they all have to quarantine when they get back?

I'll invite you on my yacht when the magic pumpkin arrives and blesses me with one. We'll be drinking margaritas on the sea, mamacita.

 

[beatrixpotter]

Understood. And please help me to step off a soapbox as at that time in January, probably only 5% or less understood what POTENTIALLY was coming.

It takes time to understand... that 5% has grown now. And I'm learning (Not well , from how I talk.. just my way) that the best way is to slowly slowly take time to educate. It would be easier if leadership was giving a consistent message.. and I certainly do NOT want to bash as 95% of the US at that time didn't have experience to know what was coming with the information we had. The average Joe in the US in January 2020 had no idea of coronavirus, spread, mitigation, repercussions etc. Educating without blaming folks for not knowing is something I see happening now.

Consistent messaging with how to mitigate...

It's itty bitty steps. @JerseyGirl you have been educating so many at Webslueuths since the beginning, THANKS for being with us from the beginning to do such!

Look at how far we have come just within this small community at Websleuths to share the information and pass it forward to others.

Amazing.

ETA: All above MOO

Those threads were enormously helpful to me in grasping what was coming. Of course it precipitated tons of anxiety I'm already prone to because this idea was so frightening and overwhelming. But basically over and over again almost everything we talked about potentially happening has happened.

The only thing that has not happened is I truly thought states would start shutting down again when things became overwhelmed again. In reality it makes sense to really only apply that to certain areas rather than the entire country as a whole regardless of the state of each individual community.

I guess it remains to be seen what happens this winter....

 

[CharlestonGal]

(49%) say they definitely or probably would not get vaccinated at this time. Intent to get a COVID-19 vaccine has fallen from 72% in May, a 21 percentage point drop.

The share who would definitely get a coronavirus vaccine now stands at just 21% – half the share that said this four months ago.

U.S. Public Now Divided Over Whether To Get COVID-19 Vaccine

 

[MimosaMornings]

(49%) say they definitely or probably would not get vaccinated at this time. Intent to get a COVID-19 vaccine has fallen from 72% in May, a 21 percentage point drop.

The share who would definitely get a coronavirus vaccine now stands at just 21% – half the share that said this four months ago.

U.S. Public Now Divided Over Whether To Get COVID-19 Vaccine

That’s scary.

 

[beatrixpotter]

(49%) say they definitely or probably would not get vaccinated at this time. Intent to get a COVID-19 vaccine has fallen from 72% in May, a 21 percentage point drop.

The share who would definitely get a coronavirus vaccine now stands at just 21% – half the share that said this four months ago.

U.S. Public Now Divided Over Whether To Get COVID-19 Vaccine

That's a pretty big drop. I can't say I'm entirely surprised though. Reading the article it indicates that most people's concerns hinge around worrying that a vaccine will be pushed through before it's properly vetted.

And that's exactly what promising a vaccine by an election date made me personally worry about. I'd rather wait for an effective vaccine than risk one that's not safe. No successful coronavirus vaccines to date. The SARS one actually made people sicker and have a worse reaction to the virus when exposed. I am definitely not jumping to the front of the line just to end up worse off.

That said I truly admire the brave people willing to step up and take the risk for the rest of the world. Their bravery truly deserves to be applauded.

 

[CharlestonGal]

That's a pretty big drop. I can't say I'm entirely surprised though. Reading the article it indicates that most people's concerns hinge around worrying that a vaccine will be pushed through before it's properly vetted.

And that's exactly what promising a vaccine by an election date made me personally worry about. I'd rather wait for an effective vaccine than risk one that's not safe. No successful coronavirus vaccines to date. The SARS one actually made people sicker and have a worse reaction to the virus when exposed. I am definitely not jumping to the front of the line just to end up worse off.

That said I truly admire the brave people willing to step up and take the risk for the rest of the world. Their bravery truly deserves to be applauded.

The dengue vaccine situation plays in the back of my mind. There are several strains of dengue and if you have not already had one of those other strains, the dengue vaccination can cause severe dengue infection. Which they found out the hard way, after approval. Oh, and work on dengue vaccine started all the way back in the 1920's.

The government trying to force the FDA to rush vaccine approval is probably not the best idea. I understand people's concerns.

Dengue vaccine - Wikipedia

 

[musicaljoke]

From the link -
Dr. David Nabarro, the World Health Organization’s special envoy on COVID-19, urged world leaders this week to stop “using lockdowns as your primary control method" for blunting a virus surge.

This is something the President has been saying all along. IMO

The WHO is suggesting that world leaders stop using lockdowns as the primary control method.

Key phrase: "primary control method".

The primary control method ought to be - wear masks, maintain social distancing, avoid crowds, wash your hands. Some world leaders are not using this primary control method, which then makes lock downs necessary in order manage the outcome.

 

[CharlestonGal]

The WHO is suggesting that world leaders stop using lockdowns as the primary control method.

Key phrase: "primary control method".

The primary control method ought to be - wear masks, maintain social distancing, avoid crowds, wash your hands. Some world leaders are not using this primary control method, which then makes lock downs necessary in order manage the outcome.

Add to that: Test, trace, isolate.

 

[GRT]

Dr. David Nabarro, the World Health Organization’s special envoy on COVID-19, urged world leaders this week to stop “using lockdowns as your primary control method" for blunting a virus surge.

“We in the World Health Organization do not advocate lockdowns as the primary means of control of this virus,” Nabarro told "The Spectator." Nabarro said lockdowns can only be justified "to buy you time to reorganize, regroup, rebalance your resources, protect your health workers who are exhausted. But by and large, we’d rather not do it.”

This just makes good sense, JMOO. Dr. Nabarro also said:

“Look what’s happened to smallholder farmers all over the world. Look what’s happening to poverty levels. It seems that we may well have a doubling of world poverty by next year. We may well have at least a doubling of child malnutrition.”

https://nypost.com/2020/10/11/who-warns-against-covid-19-lockdowns-due-to-economic-damage/

 

[musicaljoke]

Add to that: Test, trace, isolate.

Yes, absolutely!

 

[MimosaMornings]

The WHO is suggesting that world leaders stop using lockdowns as the primary control method.

Key phrase: "primary control method".

The primary control method ought to be - wear masks, maintain social distancing, avoid crowds, wash your hands. Some world leaders are not using this primary control method, which then makes lock downs necessary in order manage the outcome.

Masks - sigh.
Cities/businesses aren’t enforcing it.
People aren’t wearing them.
JMO

 

[BUF]

Regeneron CEO says U.S. secured 300k doses of antibody cocktail with $450 million contract

Dr. Leonard Schleifer, the founder and CEO of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, which developed the antibody cocktail heralded by President Trump, estimated Sunday that a $450 million contract the company won from the federal government over the summer will secure roughly 300,000 doses of the treatment.

"They bought from us several hundred thousand, maybe around 300,000 doses, which they are going to make it for free," Schleifer said in an interview with "Face the Nation." "We can't do this alone. We need the entire industry."
......
Mr. Trump was given a single dose of Regeneron's antibody cocktail while he was being treated for COVID-19 and has gone on to praise the treatment, officially known as REGN-COV2, as a "cure" for the virus.

But the treatment has yet to undergo a peer-reviewed drug trial and has only been given to 10 people outside of clinical trials.

Schleifer called Mr. Trump's case a "case report" and said while it is evidence of how the drug worked, it's the "weakest evidence that you can get."

"The real evidence has to come — about how good a drug is and what it will do on average — has to come from these large clinical trials, these randomized clinical trials, which are the gold standard," he said.