Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #90

[sds71]

Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan jailed for reporting on early COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan
Chinese journalist who documented Wuhan coronavirus outbreak jailed for 4 years - CNN

 

[dixiegirl1035]

I was on my phone during previous post and couldn't figure out how to do link for questions for you guys. Went back online, and here is the link for folks to ask questions (they are soliciting for that date queries) in their comment sections for them to answer on January 4th. LOTS of queries as to ivermectin MOO.

Reposting so y'all here can put your questions in this for our favorite two docs we follow here at Websleuths. Dr. Seheult and Dr. Campbell

https://www.youtube.com/post/UgztzMxKI_1i4AmPIrV4AaABCQ

ETA: This isn't coming up like most youtubes as it's only an announcement through youtube? It already has 1,067 comments within the link

 

[ilovewings]

I wonder if these new, “more infectious” variants could also possibly increase the risks of surface transmission?

That is a very good question!

 

[GRT]

Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan jailed for reporting on early COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan
Chinese journalist who documented Wuhan coronavirus outbreak jailed for 4 years - CNN

From your link -- I don't think we westerners can really appreciate the horrors of living in China still today.

"Her lawyer Zhang Keke, who visited Zhang earlier this month while she was in detention, described on social media that Zhang had a feeding tube attached to her nose and mouth. He said her hands were tied to prevent her from removing the device, and that she suffered from constant headache and pain in her stomach and throat."​

 

[MimosaMornings]

Family blames haircut after couple dies from COVID-19 just 10 days apart

So the sister that worked in a hair salon got a false negative test? Is that what this article is saying?

 

[GRT]

Family blames haircut after couple dies from COVID-19 just 10 days apart

So the sister that worked in a hair salon got a false negative test? Is that what this article is saying?

It's kind of hard to follow the reasoning in that story. I think the sister who cut hair tested negative but she quarantined four days anyway before going to her brother's and taking her mother along. Assuming the sister was the trigger for the following infections, the brother thinks his haircut was the tipping point. Maybe so, but I have to wonder if the sister has been taking her mother on other jaunts. Interesting. And, very sad.

 

[ilovewings]

It's kind of hard to follow the reasoning in that story. I think the sister who cut hair tested negative but she quarantined four days anyway before going to her brother's and taking her mother along. Assuming the sister was the trigger for the following infections, the brother thinks his haircut was the tipping point. Maybe so, but I have to wonder if the sister has been taking her mother on other jaunts. Interesting. And, very sad.

I'm scratching my head on this one-- not sure about the sequence of events: not enough information to blame that situation for the infection.

 

[weepingangel]

He’s getting the Magic beans (as I call it)
Trump and Friends Got Coronavirus Care Many Others Couldn’

UpdatedDec. 23,2020 Ben Carson, Chris Christie and Donald Trump are not the sturdiest candidates to conquer the coronaviruslder, in some cases overweight,male and not particularly fit. Yet all seem to have gotten through Covid-19,and all have gotten an antibody treatment in such short supply that some hospitals and states are doling it out by lottery.

No doubt Greg Norman will be feeling hunky-dorey pretty soon. "[I'm on] the path to full recovery. Hoping to be out later today," he said on Instagram, adding he was receiving an infusion of antibodies.
The 65-year-old said: "This virus kicked the crap out of me like nothing I have ever experienced before."
'Kicked the crap out of me': Greg Norman back in hospital with COVID-19

 

[weepingangel]

In Massachusetts, retired teacher is first long-term care resident to get vaccine
More at link
Shirley Nolan, a retired teacher, was the first resident at Benjamin Healthcare Center in Boston to receive a COVID-19 vaccine as the doses started going out to long-term care facilities in Massachusetts.

The nursing and rehabilitation center resident received the first of two shots Monday morning at the first floor dining room. Most members of the media were not allowed in to witness the vaccination.



CVS, Walgreens to start administering COVID vaccines at Mass. long-term care facilities
More at link
More than 150,000 residents of long-term care facilities in Massachusetts are expected to soon receive their coronavirus vaccines, officials said.

Starting Monday, CVS Health will travel to roughly 2,000 long-term care facilities across the Bay State to vaccinate around 173,000 people, according to a statement from the company. Teams from Walgreens are also expected to administer doses at several locations.

 

[SoCalDavidS]

Walter Reed Doctor Who Blasted Drive-By Says 'I Regret Nothing' After Final Shift

A doctor who criticized the president's decision to leave Walter Reed National Military Medical Center while hospitalized with COVID-19 to wave to supporters from the back of an SUV said he has no regrets after working his last shift at the hospital.

Dr. James Phillips blasted the president's drive-by stunt outside the hospital in Bethesda, Maryland while infected with coronavirus in October as "insanity."

Phillips, the chief of disaster medicine at George Washington University (GWU) who was working as an attending physician at Walter Reed on a contract basis, said the president was risking the lives of the Secret Service agents in the vehicle "for political theater."

In a tweet following his final shift at Walter Reed on Sunday, Phillips hinted his removal was linked to his public criticism of the president, but said he stood by his words.


James P. Phillips, MD
@DrPhillipsMD
Today, I worked my final shift at Walter Reed ER. I will miss the patients and my military and civilian coworkers - they have been overwhelmingly supportive. I’m honored to have worked there and I look forward to new opportunities. I stand by my words, and I regret nothing.
6:22 PM · Dec 27, 2020

Walter Reed Doctor Who Blasted Trump Drive-By Says 'I Regret Nothing' After Final Shift

 

[Marysmith]

That's probably a good course of action, because, ultimately, the home and its policies are responsible.

That said, a long-term care facility near me is the second-largest cluster in the state and they've followed strict safety protocols. They really have no clue how the virus was able to spread like wildfire, but one theory is that one of the new residents might have been in an early stage of infection when admitted and did not test positive at that point. Another is that a priest who came in to say last rights might have brought it in. There's so much guessing and assuming at this point.

I work in a long term care facility as well and it has been spreading like wildfire through there and we are locked down tight. Some of the Resident’s testing positive have been directly linked to an asymptomatic staff. Hopefully the staff is getting swabbed along with the Resident’s. I tested positive myself initially having no symptoms, but have developed some. None of the Resident’s I saw were or have become positive and I strongly believe I got it from a co-worker. This virus is relentless as we know.

 

[Marysmith]

From your link -- I don't think we westerners can really appreciate the horrors of living in China still today.

"Her lawyer Zhang Keke, who visited Zhang earlier this month while she was in detention, described on social media that Zhang had a feeding tube attached to her nose and mouth. He said her hands were tied to prevent her from removing the device, and that she suffered from constant headache and pain in her stomach and throat."​

Totally unreal honestly - just so awful.

 

[margarita25]

Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan jailed for reporting on early COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan
Chinese journalist who documented Wuhan coronavirus outbreak jailed for 4 years - CNN

This is upsetting. Jmo.

 

[astheworldfallsdown]

COVID-19: UK records 41,385 new coronavirus cases and 357 more deaths

The UK has recorded its highest daily increase in coronavirus cases since the pandemic began with 41,385 positive tests.

It is the first time the daily number of cases reported in the UK has topped 40,000, however testing has increased significantly.

 

[margarita25]

Here’s a wild thought - this likely could very well not be the case, but considering the US only performs genomic sequencing/surveillance on a “fraction of one percent” of samples, it wouldn’t surprise me if the new UK variant actually came from the USA. Just a thought.

 

[Rose in SC]

Not looking good in South Carolina! Over the Christmas weekend, South Carolina reported a record-breaking number of daily cases AND the second-highest percent positive since October.

S.C. reports 1,540 new COVID-19 cases, 2nd-highest percent-positive since pandemic began

"The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) reported 1,540 newly-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state Monday, the day after reporting the single-highest daily total since the pandemic began.

Monday’s report included the results of 5,397 tests with a percent positive of 28.5%, the highest percent-positive rate reported this month and the second-highest listed since DHEC began providing the measure.

The highest single day percent-positive rate, 32.6%, was reported on Oct. 3, according to DHEC records.

DHEC’s Christmas Day report included 4,370 newly-confirmed cases, the highest single-day total of new cases reported since the pandemic began in March."

275,285 confirmed positive cases (+1,540)
4,782 confirmed deaths (+18)

Total Tests Received - 3,511,806
Percent Positive - 28.5%

 

[margarita25]

—

'Hellish': Covid deaths have struck younger Latinos. Here's the economic, social fallout.

“As of Dec. 23, Covid-19 had killed more than 54,000 Latinos, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention'sCOVID Tracking Project, which acknowledges that its numbers are incomplete.

The coronavirus exploited many Latinos' long-standing gaps compared to white Americans in income, education and access to health care — including fewer doctors' visits to treat diabetes, hypertension and higher rates of obesity while having less savings and lower wealth, as well as limited business capital.
It thrived on many Latinos' employment in jobs that can't be done from home, as well as language barriers for some.

"The only state where Latinos are not overrepresented in cases and casualties is in New Mexico, and that is because Native Americans have been hammered," said Gabriel Sanchez, director of the University of New Mexico Center for Social Policy, earlier this month. By late December, Latinos in New Mexico, who are 49 percent of the population, made up 55 percent of the coronavirus cases and 37 percent of deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University and Medicine's tracking.

Exploiting the gaps, Covid-19 ripped up the foundations of family and work and toppled what progress many Hispanics had made toward better economic standing.“

[...]

"“Once you adjusted for age, you really see clearly that Latinos were dying at rates more than three times as high as the white population," Sáenz said. "Texas continues to be the only state where more than half of the people who have died from Covid are Latino."

An even more shocking truth is that Covid-19 has killed greater shares of the youngest members of the Latino population than other groups, according to states' race and ethnicity numbers.

Latinos have the greatest share of deaths in age groups under 54, according to CDC data, while among whites, the greatest share of deaths has occurred in age groups over 65.“

(more at link)

 

[Marysmith]

Here’s a wild thought - this likely could very well not be the case, but considering the US only performs genomic sequencing/surveillance on a “fraction of one percent” of samples, it wouldn’t surprise me if the new UK variant actually came from the USA. Just a thought.

It could have for sure...
Kind of off the subject but this is like 2 people in close contact testing positive at the same time and one blaming the other for the result. Really bugs me.

 

[margarita25]

It could have for sure...
Kind of off the subject but this is like 2 people in close contact testing positive at the same time and one blaming the other for the result. Really bugs me.

Imo, based on what professionals have said, and my own instincts, I have zero doubt that the UK variant is already here, probably full blown unleashed by now, jmo.

What the heck is going on in California? Is it the UK strain?

Imo, it is likely only a matter of time before we hear about its official identification, which may occur in California, as they are currently doing the genomic sequencing in LA County to look for this variant. I wonder how long of a process this is before we get results on this genomic testing.

Additionally, as I expressed earlier, I am very concerned about these new variants - just because right now it’s not being correlated as being more severe, it’s still at least 50 percent more infectious, which means more cases, more hospitalizations, and ultimately more deaths. Also, the evolution of these new variants clearly represents and demonstrates the potential of what could happen in the future, wrt to strains that may indeed cause more severe illness, like what happened in 1918.

IMO, I am not fully convinced yet at this early time that these new variants do not for certain cause more severe disease, including in young persons, and will only be convinced about that once we’ve had a couple weeks to study the data and see it’s effects. AND I am also interested in this “higher viral load” business, as related to disease severity, as mentioned here.

IANAD, just a layperson trying to keep up. But FTR, I am again concerned that we have such intense transmission, meanwhile new more infectious variants popping up...

What about the next one? Or the next one after that? Again, the more time this virus circulates and lives, the more time it has to change, for the worse.

The vaccines are of course excellent, and a source of hope. I just have this worrying nagging feeling/worry that we may be here longer than expected, maybe a few years, like 1918. I worry about this for a couple of reasons, vaccine confidence (or lack there of), mutations.

On another note, I just fired up the above WHO conference - I had to turn it off because it hit me like a ton of bricks. “Today marks one year since...”

Sob.

 

[LadyL]

Doctor who discovered Ebola warns of new deadly diseases