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A trading buddy got the booster. He just walked into a pharmacy, asked for it and got it.
Just got my mother a booster shot. I signed-up online at Walgreens.com for "an additional dose", which their system still treats as a second dose (CVS's website explicitly allows for third dose). When we got there we just said it was for a booster and the pharmacist said, "Oh, okay."

We checked off a box on a form they gave her that she qualifies, and that was it. No scrutiny of what condition she might have. I think the qualifications are just a formality.
 
Just got my mother a booster shot. I signed-up online at Walgreens.com for "an additional dose", which their system still treats as a second dose (CVS's website explicitly allows for third dose). When we got there we just said it was for a booster and the pharmacist said, "Oh, okay."

We checked off a box on a form they gave her that she qualifies, and that was it. No scrutiny of what condition she might have. I think the qualifications are just a formality.

We asked our trading buddy what his condition or age was and he said that he wasn't old nor did he have any condition. It sounds like anyone can get a booster right now.
 
My grandfather-in-law(who just hit 90 a few weeks ago) walked into Walgreens on Saturday and they gave him one without any trouble. Grandmother tried but apparently didn't have a qualifying health condition(and apparently in her mid-80s isn't a qualifying condition).

This article suggests that boosters will soon be recommended for all


Albeit the timeline stated is 8 months after your second dose. That will be December for me...
 
My grandfather-in-law(who just hit 90 a few weeks ago) walked into Walgreens on Saturday and they gave him one without any trouble. Grandmother tried but apparently didn't have a qualifying health condition(and apparently in her mid-80s isn't a qualifying condition).

This article suggests that boosters will soon be recommended for all


Albeit the timeline stated is 8 months after your second dose. That will be December for me...

She might just try going to another pharmacy.

I was at Dana Farber Cancer Institute for bloodwork and oncologist meeting. While waiting, I looked at the stuff in their store. I was there before the store opened though. It would be handy to have a t-shirt or hat with their logo so that people wouldn't ask about wearing a mask.
 
I’m in south Florida currently on vacation, I have to say, even though this is a ‘free state’, I’m actually surprised how serious people are taking masking and social distancing here. I’ve been to multiple restaurants sitting outside, everything is 6 feet apart, and regardless of your vaccine, resort staff is masking and even restaurant staff. I don’t know if it’s because the decline Florida is in right now with case logs, but it’s kind of pathetic that they are taking things more seriously here than back in my ‘home state’, where people are treating it like a joke with the spike of cases/hospitalizations.

Oh, and flying was actually interesting. So the flights are now using some type of like ‘decontaminate aerosol’ in between flights, there’s no beverage/food service served through the airline I used, and apparently there’s a new type of filtration system that they’re using on the planes to trap more circulation of particles. To be honest, flying has never been safer from my experience. (I’ve flown thousands of miles, and this was easily the most sterile process I’ve been through.)
 
I’m in south Florida currently on vacation, I have to say, even though this is a ‘free state’, I’m actually surprised how serious people are taking masking and social distancing here. I’ve been to multiple restaurants sitting outside, everything is 6 feet apart, and regardless of your vaccine, resort staff is masking and even restaurant staff. I don’t know if it’s because the decline Florida is in right now with case logs, but it’s kind of pathetic that they are taking things more seriously here than back in my ‘home state’, where people are treating it like a joke with the spike of cases/hospitalizations.

Oh, and flying was actually interesting. So the flights are now using some type of like ‘decontaminate aerosol’ in between flights, there’s no beverage/food service served through the airline I used, and apparently there’s a new type of filtration system that they’re using on the planes to trap more circulation of particles. To be honest, flying has never been safer from my experience. (I’ve flown thousands of miles, and this was easily the most sterile process I’ve been through.)

I guess the media attention to hospitalizations and deaths has had some effect on local behavior.

I also wish that people took it more seriously in my state as well. School starts pretty soon and we'll see how things work out.
 
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I've come back around to the idea that the biggest problem with the SARScov2(?)/COVID-19 issue is that it's something new. People came around to accepting the Polio vaccine, although there was controversy surrounding the two competing vaccines. I remember lining up in the school gym to get my vaccine-injected sugar cube. So, even if I'm confusing the details on that, the point is that eventually there were enough people willing to get the vaccine and/or have their children get it.

COVID presents the "It's a free country, isn't it?" crowd with a new thing to rally around, even though the issue itself is nothing new. There has been plenty of information presented by infectious disease experts, and repeated explanations that since this is a new strain, there are things to learn and therefore recommendations will change as more investigating takes place. It's a simple concept. But, information is not the cure for vaccine hesitancy, which is not there because of a lack of information. We can present all kinds of information, but it will not sway the anti-vaxxer with his heels dug in. He's not listening.
 
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COVID in itself has some similarities to the HIV/AIDS epidemic that happened some 20+ plus years ago. There were some attitudes that contributed to the rise of that disease, namely liberal sexual activities, but over the years and many deaths later, HIV/AIDs convinces those deniers to the disease and who don't listen to eventually face the truth by the disease itself. Thankfully, many of those who denied the disease, got the disease and are living with the disease are living productive lives with the advancement of HIV/AIDS treatment we have today. So much so that President Obama lifted the ban on US visitation and immigration from HIV countries in 2009 and allow them back in.

So what we had seen from the HIV/AIDS epidemic is that information can still remain useful when these people decide to turn around and accept reality. The fact of the matter is that Delta is here to stay. COVID is becoming an endemic. Many countries have planned booster shots, which is signalling that we are going to be in it with COVID for the long haul and for how many years? We don't really know.

Time can sway even the most hardened fools against vax and virus mitigation; which was why it took decades for HIV/AIDS with some changing attitudes towards sex and for the US some 22 years later to lift the ban on people in HIV countries to travel and immigrate into the US again. For many countries, many countries are now imposing some travel restrictions with vaccine passport and some will even mandate that in work and perhaps public places in place of lockdowns. We may face a few years of a more restrictive society as a result of people who think they are living a free country and can do whatever they want. It's ironic that COVID may take their freedom away as they protest their personal freedom in a free country that partially led to the current situation we are facing today.
 
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I've come back around to the idea that the biggest problem with the SARScov2(?)/COVID-19 issue is that it's something new. People came around to accepting the Polio vaccine, although there was controversy surrounding the two competing vaccines.
[...]
COVID presents the "It's a free country, isn't it?" crowd with a new thing to rally around, even though the issue itself is nothing new.
Yeah, and even during the 1918 Spanish Flu in America, there were similar fights over masking. It's all new, and yet it's all the same.

 
Well, I had my wedding last week, just in the nick of time since apparently the venue or town the venue started mandating masks again on Monday. One of guest’s wife (both are doctors, both obviously vaccinated) tested positive the day before the wedding, so of course both were unable to attend. Today, one of my employees (vaccinated as well) tested positive after developing symptoms, thankfully he has been on vacation for the past week and his scenario very unlikely he passed it to other staff or patients.

I ordered a few cases (#120) of the Abbott rapid tests just to be safe and have a little extra stockpile in case they become more difficult to obtain. We of course also can send out nasal samples for PCR testing, but having a rapid result can be quite helpful in a residential medical facility.


I'd skip the surgical masks. The experts are saying for Delta you should stick purely with N95. Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel was on the news today with a graphic showing surgical masks were about 40% effective, cloth masks 20% and real NIOSH-approved N95 masks about 95% effective against Delta:
View attachment 1817562

They're also easy to get now. I was ordering them for friends all through the peak season in the winter. Two good sources:



Another thing in addition to the proper fit (incl. N95’s don’t fit children) and the fact facial hair inhibits their protection, one should also remember there is a specific protocol to take the N95 on and off so as not to contaminate the mask or inhale all the previously filtered germs.

Even with the surgical masks, you see people wear them, then shove them into their pocket, then pull them out again, get their hands all over it, and then put it on their face. They literally cost like $0.10-0.20 at this point. Throw it away and put on a new one. Personally, I spent an extra few dollars and buy the individually rapped ones.

The other big factor is disposing of the respirators/masks when necessary as they are intended to be *disposable*. N95’s can be reused 2-3 days in a clinical setting (presumably 8-12hrs straight?) before they loose their integrity. If they get wet or dirty or obviously damaged they have to be tossed. They can be reused but the recommendation is to have several masks and rotate them daily so any germs die.

I’ve seen some pretty nasty disposable masks worn and N95’s caked with dirt. And I’ve never liked the idea of cloth masks 1. Because there are huge differences between materials and 2. I’m willing to be 95% of people never wash them. They just seem like the perfect germ collector.

I wouldn’t say it’s practical to make a blanket statement like “skip surgical masks”. 40% is an extremely significant number. A lot of pharmaceutical companies would love a 40% efficacy rate in their drugs.

N95’s aren’t great for people with breathing difficulties- asthma, COPD, old age, obesity, people in hot weather, etc. I’m perfectly healthy, in shape, and in my early 30’s, and after a couple hours into a 8hr shift of wearing an N95 I’m about to pass out. I’m not sure it’s even so much the partially restricted airflow as it is having to work harder to breath continuously.

N95’s are also substantially more expensive than surgical masks and I suspect they cost far more in store than online. A lot of people don’t have flexibility in their budget. N95’s are reasonably priced these days, but earlier on they were $10-12+ each. If things ramp up again prices likely will too.

I think there’s an argument for sensible decisions making here. If you’re young, healthy, and taking your dog for a walk alone in the woods but the park requires masks, an N95 is completely superfluous. If you’re 85 years old or severely immunocompromised and around a bunch of people in close quarters, then a N95 makes sense (or better yet avoiding the situation, but you get my point). If I go to the store and no one’s around, I’m not going to waste an N95. If I have to take an airplane somewhere or visiting my 95 YO grandfather, that’s a different story.

Obviously if you fall into a category or situation where extra precautions are necessary, by all means take them. If you wish to wear an N95 constantly, that’s your decision, it’s just probably not a great source of resources.

I didn’t look at the study where those numbers came from, but I suspect they’re under idealized, laboratory conditions that don’t really reflect the real world. To do such a test in the real world would basically be impossible/unreliable because there’s too many variables that simply cannot be controlled.

And to whoever made that graphic, N95’s are technically respirators, not masks. :D
 
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Congrats on getting married. I imagine that a lot of couples tried to squeeze it in this summer.

I have been shaving more often to use the masks. I don't like the feeling of facial hair catching on the masks. It must make Gillette happy as the trend has been towards more facial hair as the prices of razors has gone into the stratosphere.

I have 100 N95s and need to watch some videos on using them. One thing that I notice is that a lot of people wear a surgical mask over the N95 and I wonder if it is to protect the N95. I ordered 100 surgical masks but they got lost in shipping so I'm trying to decide if I should order another package or just go to Costco or Home Depot to get a box or two. I do agree that 40% is significant. Decreasing infection odds nationwide by 40% (more as there is the compounding effect) would mean far less stress on our healthcare system, far less infection and death.
 
Masks are mostly about reduction of shedding from an infected person, not about preventing you from getting infected. They are one tool to reduce the R0.

It's an outward sign of care and concern for other people. A lot of people don't realize this though.

I was at Dana Farber on Tuesday. Everyone wears a mask. No exceptions. They give you a surgical mask at the entrances and you use theirs, not your own. You are supposed to pre-COVID check on your smartphone or PC before you come in to save time. They weren't doing temperature checks (I don't think that those worked unless you had a really high temperature). The did allow visitors and they asked me my vaccination status, which vaccine I had and the dates of vaccination. So it's in my medical records which I suppose I could use as proof if I lost my vaccination card.

MA has 3,000 new cases this past Monday. They are no longer reporting active cases which is really annoying. I have taken to adding up the new cases for the past ten days as a proxy for active cases. A quick look at Worldometers shows about ten states no longer reporting active cases.

I said that I expected our state to be at 2,000 active cases about 12 days ago by this Friday. We are currently at 1,910 and growing around 100 cases per day. The worst city for cases is a relatively poor small city - it has always been the worst place in the state. In general, most cases are concentrated near the NH-MA border so I suspect MA is seeing far more cases than we are seeing. We are up 1,100% from the low. We're nowhere near as bad as the Southeast but we worry that we could get there.
 
Yeah, and even during the 1918 Spanish Flu in America, there were similar fights over masking. It's all new, and yet it's all the same.

Even during the Black Plague you had deniers, I guess they come with every pandemic.
 
Even during the Black Plague you had deniers, I guess they come with every pandemic.
Wouldn't use the Black Plague as an example as they also had the fear of the so called "untori", which basically caused the murder of men, women, and children that did absolutely nothing other than being caught somehow in the silly suspicion that they were spreading the plague. Very well described in the Betrothed novel written by Manzoni.
 
New Federal policy for Nursing Homes that accept Medicare and Medicaid to ensure that all of their employees are vaccinated. That will be a significant challenge for Nursing Homes in my state. Our vaccination rate is 76% for long-term care workers but nursing homes are finding it extremely challenging finding employees. Nursing Homes are lower on the pecking order than restaurants for those looking for work. It is hard work that pays poorly.

When the supply of labor is poor, it's makes it harder to be choosy.
 
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New Federal policy for Nursing Homes that accept Medicare and Medicaid to ensure that all of their employees are vaccinated. That will be a significant challenge for Nursing Homes in my state. Our vaccination rate is 76% for long-term care workers but nursing homes are finding it extremely challenging finding employees. Nursing Homes are lower on the pecking order than restaurants for those looking for work. It is hard work that pays poorly.

When the supply of labor is poor, it's makes it harder to be choosy.
It just means that Robotics for nursing and nurse assistive robots will finally make inroads. This is the same even with restaurants who run "Ghost Kitchens" with just robot cooks. They never get sick, never get COVID and never go on strike and ask for a pay raise either and neither do they need to be vaccinated for any disease.

When I was working in nursing, there was some talk already with using nursing robots even pre-pandemic, because getting good help are hard with such a high turnover rate with health care workers. But because the low pay of a human care aide/care giver and most of them are willing immigrants as part of their entry job to higher positions such as training to being a nurse or a doctor outweighs the costs of implementing those robots.

Japan is one country that use nursing robots and I think eventually other countries who are strained with finding health care employees due to the pandemic will push companies like Hanson Robotics to finally mass produce a lot of Grace and Sophia and they can allow interfacing via new telemedicine platform.

Meet Grace, the healthcare robot COVID-19 created | Celebrity Humanoid Robot Sophia | Robot Nurse - YouTube

ROBEAR: The experimental nursing care robot - YouTube
 
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Local grocery stores are mandating masks for their employees. Market Basket (New England grocer), and Whole Foods locally are two in this category. I imagine the large chains like Trader Joes, Costco and WalMart will be doing this in the near future.
 
I think as we are moving through the "oh no, not this again" phase, the decisions to return to masking, physical distancing, fastidious hygiene, and, especially, limiting the number of people gathering as well as to only family members who live together, will come slowly. Having the vaccine now will help to mitigate the transmission of the virus, but vigilance is crucial, and delay is potentially deadly.
 
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Friend got his booster shot. He said the symptoms were much worse than the 2nd shot. Not looking forward to it, but I'll do it anyways.
 
Friend got his booster shot. He said the symptoms were much worse than the 2nd shot. Not looking forward to it, but I'll do it anyways.
My Mom (81) got the booster three days ago. She had basically zero reaction to the first two shots, but this one is giving her a lot of night sweating and more arm pain.
 
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I am really confused. Has the FDA approved a specific booster shot for mRNA vaccines? Or, is this just a third shot that is identical in every way to the second shot?

What really confuses me is that San Francisco is giving boosters to J&J vaccinated people. What exactly is the booster shot for J&J that SF is distributing? Does this have FDA approval, or is SF just doing their own thing? I thought the CDC was still studying the J&J situation for possible boosters.

Like I said, I am confused about this booster business.
 
I am really confused. Has the FDA approved a specific booster shot for mRNA vaccines? Or, is this just a third shot that is identical in every way to the second shot?

What really confuses me is that San Francisco is giving boosters to J&J vaccinated people. What exactly is the booster shot for J&J that SF is distributing? Does this have FDA approval, or is SF just doing their own thing? I thought the CDC was still studying the J&J situation for possible boosters.

Like I said, I am confused about this booster business.

It's just a third shot.

Pfizer started clinical trials of the third shot at the beginning of this month. I don't think that Moderna did trials.
 
It's just a third shot.

Pfizer started clinical trials of the third shot at the beginning of this month. I don't think that Moderna did trials.
By a third shot, do you mean that it is exactly the same dosage and content as the second shot?
 
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