Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #65

[BetteDavisEyes]

BioNTech, Pfizer

Another company selected as part of Operation Warp Speed, Pfizer (NY, USA) and their German partner BioNTech (Mainz, Germany) started developing their candidates in March. Like Moderna, they are pushing the swift yet unproven mRNA technique, but have this time developed multiple candidates, each of them representing a different combination of mRNA and a target antigen.

Pfizer and BioNTech have since begun Phase I and Phase II clinical trials in Germany and the US, with further tests to follow. Although the vaccine is still under trial, the company is already preparing plans to manufacture millions of doses starting this year, with Pfizer’s CEO stating that he hopes to have a vaccine available for use by the end of October.[/QUOTE]

<respectfully snipped>
DH told me a couple of weeks ago that, in the midst of the pandemic when most of our stocks have tanked, our Pfizer stock has increased exponentially We've always believed that pharmaceuticals are good investments and hope that Pfizer is on the cutting edge with COVID-19 therapeutics and/or vaccine.

 

[10ofRods]

https://twitter.com/sfchronicle/status/1278543840367050757



People going to the meeting questioned the wisdom of holding an in-person gathering of that many, and now...

Presumably indoors, right? Article says they followed the Public Health Department's "strict guidelines." So presumably also wearing masks?

Santa Clara County, where this occurred, has had a big uptick in cases (had lots of cases early on, had a successful shutdown, seemed to be really slowing CV-19). I wonder how much these principals contributed to the County's uptick.

I wonder how long these kinds of stories are going to be leading the news cycle.

 

[CSIDreamer]

Thanks for that.

This is Indiana @CSIDreamer .

America’s COVID warning system

I'm going to try to find another source. I'm taking exception with New Yorks's supposed 100%. Although, nothing surprises me. Jmo

Edit. I was probably misunderstanding the table.

 

[weepingangel]

I just can’t even deal with this type of crap. I don’t wanna and you can’t make me. Waa waa waaa *eyeballs rolling painfully*

I know at least a few IRL
Folks who are still claiming it’s all just a big conspiracy to throw our upcoming election in a specific direction. O M G

Seminole Mask Order Protesters in Sanford: "My Body, My Choice"

SANFORD, Fla. — On the first day of Seminole County’s new ordinance that mandates people wear masks in public, the measure faced pushback.

A group of people marched down 1st Street in Sanford Wednesday night, chanting “my body, my choice as they protested the new ordinance.

“Just because the government says to do something doesn’t mean it’s constitutional, or it’s the right thing to do,” said Anthony Dipalma.

Dipalma says whether the masks are effective or not, he says people should have the right to choose whether they wear them or not.

 

[anneg]

I get an emailed newsletter (The Morning Briefing) from The New York Times every day. Today the briefing addresses declining death rates for COVID-19 (see link below) and describes two main reasons for the decline: (1) improved medical treatment for COVID-19, and (2) older people taking precautions to avoid getting the virus.

The briefing notes that deaths may be going to rise again soon, due to increased social activity among younger people and the recent big increases in cases.

Coronavirus in the U.S.: Latest Map and Case Count

 

[CSIDreamer]

That site is just comparing the number of contact tracers to the number of new infections. In theory New York has enough tracers to handle all the new infection cases. In practice that job is complicated by the paranoia and distrust in our society.

Aha! That explains it.

 

[CharlestonGal]

Huge spike in COVID-19 cases overwhelms S. Carolina tracers

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina reported more people in the hospital and more deaths from COVID-19 on Wednesday than any day since the pandemic began in March, overwhelming the ability to track cases and try to slow the spreading outbreak, the state’s top infectious disease specialist said.

The spike in cases started just after the Memorial Day weekend. With the July 4th holiday weekend looming, state Epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said she fears unless people take precautions against the virus seriously, hospitals will be strained to the limit and the death toll will be stunning.

South Carolina ranks third in the nation in newly diagnosed cases over the past 14 days adjusted by population, trailing only Arizona and Florida.

South Carolina reported 1,497 new, diagnosed COVID-19 cases Wednesday, the Department of Health and Environmental Control said.

Twenty-four new deaths were reported, the most in a single day. The death toll is now 759 with more deaths under investigation, officials said.

Deaths had been lagging behind other alarming figures including the 19% rate of positive tests and the record 1,160 people hospitalized Wednesday with COVID-19.

Once newly diagnosed cases top 1,000 a day — as they have in 11 of the past 13 days — tracing the contacts of everyone infected becomes virtually impossible and that makes it harder to fight the virus by isolating infected people, Bell said.

 

[tabitha111]

U.S. FARMERS SCRAMBLE FOR HELP AS COVID-19 SCUTTLES IMMIGRANT WORKFORCE

https://www.agriculture.com/markets/newswire/us-farmers-scramble-for-help-as-covid-19-scuttles-immigrant-workforce?

7/2/2020By Mark Weinraub and Julie Ingwersen



CHICAGO, July 2 (Reuters) - The novel coronavirus delayed the arrival of seasonal immigrants who normally help harvest U.S. wheat, leaving farmers to depend on high school students, school bus drivers, laid-off oilfield workers, and others to run machines that bring in the crop.

As combines work their way north from the Southern Plains of Texas and Oklahoma, farmers and harvesting companies are having a hard time finding and keeping workers.


Any delays in the harvest could send wheat prices higher and cause a scramble to secure supplies to make bread and pasta.

Harvesting companies and farmers interviewed by Reuters said their new U.S. employees have required more training and quit at higher rates than usual, as the combines head north and begin to bring in other major export crops.

[...]

This year, Beckley had no foreign laborers on his crew. He has struggled to find replacement workers, with many Americans unwilling to sign up for months of traveling through the U.S. farm belt.


“They called back and said, 'Hey man, I just don’t think I should leave home with all this stuff going on,’” he said


[...]


But many of those workers were unable to make it to the United States by the time the harvesters set off on their annual trek, according to eight harvesting companies and farmers interviewed by Reuters. Travel restrictions, tighter border controls, and virus fears around the globe led to delays in workers getting out of their home countries.


WISHY-WASHY’



Ryan Haffner, owner of Kansas-based High Plains Harvesting, had planned for 10 workers with H-2A visas to make up the bulk of his workforce when harvest began. But only four made it to the United States in time.

He described his American replacements as “very noncommittal and wishy-washy.” A laid-off oil worker backed out before his first day,

Doug Zink, a North Dakota grower with 28,000 acres, was left shorthanded this spring as two farmhands from South Africa did not arrive until late June.



“We had a lot of trouble getting our foreign workers over here,” he said. “They could not get flights.”



If workers keep quitting, the wheat harvest in northern stretches of the Plains and the harvest of the fall crops could be at risk.
[...]

more at link...
BBM & SBM

 

[weepingangel]

Likewise Massachusetts

I’m going look later to see if I can find specifics re Massachusetts tracing success. I know a while back they where only reaching maybe 50% of contacts.

 

[Victoria Chambers]

Is that a fact, or your opinion? I'm asking because I'm not sure that the US' political decision not to pay their fees has a lot to do with this. The WHO is THE world wide health organisation, and a country like the US just can't simply turn their back on it, even if they don't contribute financially. I believe it's much more integrated into US public health, and not so exposed to the whims of an officious president. Especially during a pandemic, the world has to work as an integrated unit through the communal gathering of information, co-operative research, universal protocols, etc. Rich or poor, no country gets to gather their marbles and go home.

jmo .. but I'm going to see if I can find out more facts.

Trump administration reportedly set to restore partial funding to World Health Organization

I think our Human Rights will see to it that eventually all Countries will have access to any vaccine or medicines as and when they become available. There would be uproar if any Country was left out regardless of wether they contribute monentarily or scientifically towards the cause. X

 

[musicaljoke]

And yet....so many places in NW FL still having July 4 celebrations:

4th of July in Northwest Florida: Most celebrations continue on, some cancelled

FIREWORKS ROUNDUP: Who is having fireworks and who is not?

It's hard not to be angry about this. Is there no one at the helm?

Yesterday was Canada Day and we celebrated with a fine online show that celebrated the front line workers, thanked Canadians for working hard and sacrificing much to get CoVid under control. The PM addressed the nation from broccoli field where he and his family were helping with the harvest for the food bank. Fireworks were put on hold until next year.

 

[WildOrchid]

Tuscaloosa students throwing dangerous 'COVID parties,' city councilor warns


These kids apparently are “playing a game” to get infected on purpose.

 

[Victoria Chambers]

I just can’t even deal with this type of crap. I don’t wanna and you can’t make me. Waa waa waaa *eyeballs rolling painfully*

I know at least a few IRL
Folks who are still claiming it’s all just a big conspiracy to throw our upcoming election in a specific direction. O M G

The behaviour and beliefs of some people are truly bizarre! So out of touch with reality that it is mind boggling! X

 

[KALI]

Good idea officials. This is leadership imo.

Party Guests Won’t Talk After 9 Test Positive. Now They Face Subpoenas.

On June 17, a crowd of up to 100 people, most of them in their early 20s, attended a party at a home in Rockland County, N.Y.

The event violated a state order in effect at the time that capped gatherings at 10 people in an effort to slow the coronavirus’s spread.

For local officials, that was just the start of the problem.

The party’s host, who was showing signs of being sick at the time, later tested positive for the virus. So did eight guests.

County officials, eager to keep the cluster from growing, dispatched disease tracers to try to learn who else might have been exposed to the virus at the party.

The tracers hit a wall.

“My staff has been told that a person does not wish to, or have to, speak to my disease investigators,” Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert, the county’s health commissioner said. Of those being contacted about the party, she added: “They hang up. They deny being at the party even though we have their names from another party attendee.”

Frustrated by the response, county officials took the unusual step of issuing subpoenas to eight people who they believe were at the June 17 party. Those who do not comply and share what they know by Thursday will face fines of $2,000 a day, officials said.

 

[neesaki]

I bet there won’t a bit of a problem with social distancing and mask wearing at this concert. SMH

In Austin, Where Nearly All Concerts are Canceled, Vanilla Ice Set to Perform Friday

 

[WildOrchid]

I personally know some who believe this is a hoax just to obtain political goals. Yep, you’re right. These people scoff right in my face when I refuse to not wear masks and they laughed at me when I started to prep in January when I saw this mess coming (although the degree has shocked me). I have people I love very much who have worked “ground zero” in this horror. The things they saw wrecked them emotionally. And the conspiracy theorists I know had the audacity to respond that “maybe we imported bodies to make it look like a lot of death”. I can’t. I just can’t. I am very passionate about this and I can get snippy and judgmental when I see or read people acting (IMO) the fool. And I won’t apologize for my incredulity because it wouldn’t be a sincere “sorry”. I feel like I’m surrounded by dolts where I live.

The behaviour and beliefs of some people are truly bizarre! So out of touch with reality that it is mind boggling! X

 

[anneg]

The Coronavirus Spread In A Dallas Megachurch’s Choir And Orchestra. Then It Hosted Mike Pence.

"A group of First Baptist Dallas choir and orchestra members contracted COVID-19 in the lead-up to Vice President Mike Pence’s visit on Sunday. An infectious disease expert called it “appalling.”"
Rosalind Adams
Posted on July 1, 2020, at 6:11 p.m. ET

Mike Pence Hosted By Megachurch With A COVID-19 Cluster

 

[neesaki]

There are, however, businesses that are thriving and growing.

Online shopping, and entities that utilise that
Parcel delivery, other delivery services
Catering
Face mask makers
A ukele business ... offering Skype teaching
Piano lessons ... offering Skype teaching (one of my friends used this for his daughter during restrictions)
Home improvement (do it yourself, or have others do it for you)
Personal training/gym sessions ... by Skype
Online gaming
IT for education
Uber Eats
And, no doubt, others that I can't think of at the moment.


It takes innovation, change, and the ability to respond to the changed marketplace. Set up a website, get online orders coming in, arrange delivery. At least until the covid landscape changes.
Offer something that others aren't offering - a seniors discount, a juniors discount, Taco Tuesday, promote yourself as a 'local' business and locals will use your services/product.

3 businesses thriving despite COVID-19 lockdown - MYOB Pulse
Op-Ed: Analysis of 8 billion page views shows where the next hot start-up can thrive
https://www.businessaustralia.com/h...ries-likely-to-thrive-as-a-result-of-covid-19
How-to: Keep your business thriving during COVID-19

Good post. I’m surprised more restaurants in my semi-rural area haven’t offered home delivery. We don’t have any of those restaurant delivery services. Which leaves us with.... drumroll ..... Pizza Hut or Dominos. I guess that’s better than nothing though.

 

[anneg]

It's hard not to be angry about this. Is there no one at the helm?

Yesterday was Canada Day and we celebrated with a fine online show that celebrated the front line workers, thanked Canadians for working hard and sacrificing much to get CoVid under control. The PM addressed the nation from broccoli field where he and his family were helping with the harvest for the food bank. Fireworks were put on hold until next year.

 

[weepingangel]

Bahaha the local news person joked on that story This morning . Nice giggle to start my day.

I bet there won’t a bit of a problem with social distancing and mask wearing at this concert. SMH

In Austin, Where Nearly All Concerts are Canceled, Vanilla Ice Set to Perform Friday