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 ghak99:
It's rather simple. If a doctor screws up, there are outlets for settlement. If a company produces a product that gets linked to a disease even decades later, there are outlets for settlement. Whether they actually understand it or not, some people have/had a problem with the bullet points above the signature required when volunteering to become part of the experiment.
I found it more interesting that so many people suddenly became pro big Pharma after years of claiming they were the devil willing to do anything for a buck. I'm not sure many of them even realized they flipped a switch, which makes it a bit comical.
This whole ordeal has been eye opening in numerous ways.
Wtf are you talking about? How the fuck is getting a vaccine "Pro Big Pharma"? [Reply]
Originally Posted by dlphg9:
Wtf are you talking about? How the fuck is getting a vaccine "Pro Big Pharma"?
People seem to ignore that someone getting sick and requiring thousands of dollars to keep them alive is a pretty good money maker for the industry as a whole. [Reply]
Originally Posted by dlphg9:
Wtf are you talking about? How the fuck is getting a vaccine "Pro Big Pharma"?
I take it you don't have organic hippy friends, family, or customers who have made the flip?
Pre covid they thought Pfizer was the devil. For years I never mentioned I've given tens of thousands of vaccinations made by these big companies. If I was to mention the above, I myself would have been labeled a heathen. Today, fear has them on the pulpit throwing fire and brimstone at those who won't get the jab, even if those people are pointing out similar concerns to what they would have pre covid. [Reply]
I found it more interesting that so many people suddenly became pro big Pharma after years of claiming they were the devil willing to do anything for a buck. I'm not sure many of them even realized they flipped a switch, which makes it a bit comical.
This whole ordeal has been eye opening in numerous ways.
You can be pro vaccine without being pro big pharma.
Big pharma has spent way too much money advertising and lobbying and developing lifestyle me-too drugs for things like cholesterol. And fighting against generics. And not developing needed drugs that are only taken briefly like antibiotics.
But their accomplishments with covids were/are impressive and this was a situation where throwing tax payers money at it and not worrying too much about penny pinching was absolutely money well spent.
But yeah, the big pharma industrial complex leaves plenty to be desired. [Reply]
Just tested POS for Covid this morning. My symptoms felt like a sinus infection, which I usually get once per year. I was scheduled to get the booster on Thursday, so I no longer have to do that :-) [Reply]
Originally Posted by TLO:
What's the hold up on getting some preliminary vaccine effectiveness data against omegatron?
Do you want fast data or accurate data? Those are somewhat contradictory, and the desire for the former is part of why everyone perceives the messaging on this to have been so shaky. [Reply]
This is kind of neat. MIT has a test for antibodies (so it would test positive for either vaccinated or recent infection) that only takes around 10 minutes.
It does require a drop of blood, so unfortunately it's probably not something that people will be doing outside sporting events to test for who can be let in, but more options are better than no options.
Originally Posted by DaFace:
Do you want fast data or accurate data? Those are somewhat contradictory, and the desire for the former is part of why everyone perceives the messaging on this to have been so shaky.
COVID: First signs that vaccine protects against Omicron – health minister
So far, Israel has registered four cases infected with the new variant, while general morbidity remains low.
Later in the evening, a report by Channel 12 said the Pfizer vaccine is just slightly less effective in preventing infection with Omicron than with Delta – 90% as opposed to 95% – while it is as effective – around 93% – in preventing serious symptoms at least for those vaccinated with a booster.
According to the report, the ability of the variant to infect is higher than Delta but not as much as feared – around 1.3 times higher.
