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.”
Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins:
And their per capita fatality rate is 5x that of Norway and 7x that of Finland despite 40% reduction in transit and 25% in the workplace
Which is meaningless unless you think Finland and Norway plan to remain on lockdown until after a vaccine or effective treatment is developed. Sweden's plan all along was to do just enough to keep their medical facilities from being overrun. They've done that easily.
Sweden also has a huge immigrant population which may be affecting the numbers.
In the end, Sweden will be proven wrong if one of two things happen... 1)herd immunity is an unachievable goal or 2)hospitals end up getting overrun at some point. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Ninerfan11:
I think that's why Sweden said "fuggit" and opened up everything without killing their economy.
I think the comparisons to Sweden are rough for a few reasons.
Number one, compared to their neighbors Finland and Denmark and Norway, Sweden looks like Italy. Way way more cases.
Two, people have been social distancing there and not going out as much. It's not like life is going on completely as normal.
Three, and this will start a fight I have zero interest in participating in... but they are just a way different society than America. I just can't imagine anyone here calling for the economy to re-open would ever be okay with how Sweden is set up. I imagine it is probably easier for people to say "screw it" when you don't have to worry about medical bills. And that's not necessarily right or wrong, but it's a different system. [Reply]
Originally Posted by AustinChief:
Which is meaningless unless you think Finland and Norway plan to remain on lockdown until after a vaccine or effective treatment is developed. Sweden's plan all along was to do just enough to keep their medical facilities from being overrun. They've done that easily.
Sweden also has a huge immigrant population which may be affecting the numbers.
In the end, Sweden will be proven wrong if one of two things happen... 1)herd immunity is an unachievable goal or 2)hospitals end up getting overrun at some point.
It's not meaningless because you are presenting a false dichotomy. There also exists a possibility wherein you can reduce the spread of the virus through mitigation methods to a point where herd immunity is not needed, and there are more examples of that method that we've seen to this point (Asian countries) than the Sweden model.
Sweden will be proven wrong if they have excess cases and deaths that could have been prevented through better testing and contact tracing, which is what Norway was out in front of, perhaps better than any other country in Europe. [Reply]
Making the rounds on local news. Nursing home network getting hit hard. One location allegedly hired a contractor to build tables inside the home who later died of covid-19 :-)
Originally Posted by :
CHICAGO — A nursing home in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood reports that over 70 percent of their residents have tested positive for COVID-19.
The Symphony South Shore nursing home is part of the Symphony Care Network. Several homes in this network have been hit hard by the virus. Most notably, Symphony of Joliet staff where 26 people have died and more than 80 have gotten sick.
So this came out last night. Time to go back and look at those early flu like deaths in January - early Feb.
JUST IN: Santa Clara County Public Health in California has announced autopsy results showing a patient who died on Feb. 6 had COVID-19 — 23 days before the first novel coronavirus death was declared in the U.S. https://t.co/yRxHre2gti
Wow there was 3 deaths that early now confirmed. Maybe this is why California isn't having a huge outbreak like NY. Though so many people from China fly into NY it had be there just as early but not noticed.
Originally Posted by :
The County of Santa Clara Medical Examiner-Coroner has identified three individuals who died with COVID-19 in Santa Clara County before the COVID-19 associated death on March 9, 2020, originally thought to be the first death associated with COVID-19 in the county.
The Medical Examiner-Coroner performed autopsies on two individuals who died at home on February 6, 2020 and February 17, 2020. Samples from the two individuals were sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Today, the Medical Examiner-Coroner received confirmation from the CDC that tissue samples from both cases are positive for SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19).
Additionally, the Medical Examiner-Coroner has also confirmed that an individual who died in the county on March 6 died of COVID-19.
These three individuals died at home during a time when very limited testing was available only through the CDC. Testing criteria set by the CDC at the time restricted testing to only individuals with a known travel history and who sought medical care for specific symptoms. As the Medical Examiner-Coroner continues to carefully investigate deaths throughout the county, we anticipate additional deaths from COVID-19 will be identified.
