Coronavirus (Covid-19) informational thread

[ericgtr12]

I haven't been here for a while but the past week has seen a marked increase in the number of people in the gym. I'd say that it's back to pre-pandemic numbers. The only reason you'd know it's a pandemic is people wearing masks. We have a city mask mandate that expires at the end of February and I've heard that it isn't getting renewed. Our high active cases was over 20K and it's at 3K right now and falling sharply. Hospitalizations are at one-quarter peak. Deaths are still relatively high but that's the laggiest indicator. It feels like we are just about over in our part of the state.

Of course I would not say that in Massachusetts where I think the restrictions will last somewhat longer.

I now personally know six people who have had COVID. My former manager who got wild (took two months to get over and still tired), a tennis friend in July 2020 who had long COVID and was in the ICU and was disabled for 18 months, a young adult who got hit hard but recovered, one of the desk people at the gym, my oncologist and a friend of my daughters. The latter three were vaccinated and boosted and in good health so no big deal for them.

I run into people on r/HermanCainAward who know multiple people that have died and lots of people who have had COVID so there are clearly places where the experience is far different from what I've seen. Nobody in my extended family has had it except for one distant relative (before vaccines) who was not expected to make it but did survive. I never met the relative - was only told by a closer relative. It will be nice when this thing is really over.

I personally know several people who have had it and two of them that died as a result, in both cases they were unvaccinated. My brother got two doses but no booster and ended up getting hit pretty bad with it but he didn't care about the risk and went out socially all the time at the peak of high infection rates, when every other person has it you're going to get it too.

All I can say is regardless of one's politics or beliefs it makes me sad to see people die as a result of not getting vaccinated, it's a terrible way to go but it's now nearly 100% avoidable if they choose.

 

[iOS Geek]

We (Illinois) are dropping our mask mandate next Monday. Chicago, which has sort of been doing their own thing, is dropping their mask mandate on Monday as well. Chicago and Cook County are also dropping their proof of vaccination requirement for businesses.

Only thing left is masks for healthcare workers (which I think we’ll have for a while yet ?), Chicago is requiring vaccination for city employees. Also remaining is a mask mandate for schools…which is a bit of a question mark since that’s currently tied up in a legal battle. Most districts in my area (including my town’s district) masks are optional due to a ruling from a recent lawsuit. We’re pretty much done here.

 

[pshufd]

We (Illinois) are dropping our mask mandate next Monday. Chicago, which has sort of been doing their own thing, is dropping their mask mandate on Monday as well. Chicago and Cook County are also dropping their proof of vaccination requirement for businesses.

Only thing left is masks for healthcare workers (which I think we’ll have for a while yet ?), Chicago is requiring vaccination for city employees. Also remaining is a mask mandate for schools…which is a bit of a question mark since that’s currently tied up in a legal battle. Most districts in my area (including my town’s district) masks are optional due to a ruling from a recent lawsuit. We’re pretty much done here.

I received emails from my hospitals and they are maintaining their masking requirements and still recommending vaccinations for their patients. I expect this to continue for a while, especially at Dana Farber Cancer Institute. We're getting to the point where requirements are being lifted in places where the Omicron wave is almost over and I think that makes sense. If you're unvaccinated or immunocompromised, then you will have to continue to be careful though I think that this group had to be careful before the pandemic as well.

 

[BornAgainMac]

I wonder how many people we lost in these forums or even in this thread from Covid.

 

[44267547]

my hospitals and they are maintaining their masking requirements

Of course they would. No hospital/urgent care would drop mask requirements given the sensitivity of such environments. I mean, I never heard/can’t recall any time any hospital has entirely removed masking from the time this pandemic started.

The only tendency reduced in our area, they don’t administer temperature checks at the login station anymore.

 

[pshufd]

Of course they would. No hospital/urgent care would drop mask requirements given the sensitivity of such environments. I mean, I never heard/can’t recall any time any hospital has entirely removed masking from the time this pandemic started.

The only tendency reduced in our area, they don’t administer temperature checks at the login station anymore.

My hospitals just ask you if you've had a fever. Even my dentist does this as well though it's via a mobile website. Dana Farber had some masking requirements pre-pandemic. They are a high-volume cancer center and bringing in a virus can kill a lot of people there.

 

[bradl]

I'm wondering if fears of repercussions from the midterm election year are fueling the dropping of mandates, especially when there is another subvariant on the loose..

More contagious version of omicron spreads in U.S., fueling worries

The omicron BA.2 variant spreads about 30% more easily and has caused surges in other countries. Its steady increase in the U.S. raises questions about the wisdom of rolling back COVID restrictions.

www.npr.org

I'm hoping that the lifting of mandates aren't being done in haste..

BL.

 

[pshufd]

I'm wondering if fears of repercussions from the midterm election year are fueling the dropping of mandates, especially when there is another subvariant on the loose..

More contagious version of omicron spreads in U.S., fueling worries

The omicron BA.2 variant spreads about 30% more easily and has caused surges in other countries. Its steady increase in the U.S. raises questions about the wisdom of rolling back COVID restrictions.

www.npr.org

I'm hoping that the lifting of mandates aren't being done in haste..

BL.

As with Omicron, watch the countries that get it earlier than us.

 

[bradl]

As with Omicron, watch the countries that get it earlier than us.

It's already here.

Omicron subvariant BA.2 has arrived in NC

Some laboratories in North Carolina have detected the presence of the latest COVID-19 variant, a subvariant of omicron called BA.2.

www.wral.com

BL.

 

[iOS Geek]

I'm wondering if fears of repercussions from the midterm election year are fueling the dropping of mandates, especially when there is another subvariant on the loose..

More contagious version of omicron spreads in U.S., fueling worries

The omicron BA.2 variant spreads about 30% more easily and has caused surges in other countries. Its steady increase in the U.S. raises questions about the wisdom of rolling back COVID restrictions.

www.npr.org

I'm hoping that the lifting of mandates aren't being done in haste..

BL.

Looking on a state level and then projecting that out to federal...given that my governor made a very quick turnaround to end our mandates (he isn't exactly popular right now and he's up for reelection this year), I wouldn't doubt this. At all.

Putting aside whether you agree with the mandates/mitigations or not, at this point, it seems like any politician that is in favor of them continuing...it could be a career ending stance.

 

[pshufd]

It's already here.

Omicron subvariant BA.2 has arrived in NC

Some laboratories in North Carolina have detected the presence of the latest COVID-19 variant, a subvariant of omicron called BA.2.

www.wral.com

BL.

The reason you watch early countries is to see the shape of the new cases, active cases, hospitalization and death curves so that you can know what to expect.

 

[pshufd]

Looking on a state level and then projecting that out to federal...given that my governor made a very quick turnaround to end our mandates (he isn't exactly popular right now and he's up for reelection this year), I wouldn't doubt this. At all.

Putting aside whether you agree with the mandates/mitigations or not, at this point, it seems like any politician that is in favor of them continuing...it could be a career ending stance.

The two states that I am most familiar with, New Hampshire and Massachusetts, have left things to the cities and towns. So the Governors don't take any heat. That's about as much as I'll say so as not to veer into the political.

 

[iOS Geek]

The two states that I am most familiar with, New Hampshire and Massachusetts, have left things to the cities and towns. So the Governors don't take any heat. That's about as much as I'll say so as not to veer into the political.

That’s reasonable…and what the mayor of Chicago said is going to happen in the city as well. While she is pulling Chicago’s mask and proof of vaccine mandates, businesses are free to continue requiring them. Your business…your rules!

 

[pshufd]

That’s reasonable…and what the mayor of Chicago said is going to happen in the city as well. While she is pulling Chicago’s mask and proof of vaccine mandates, businesses are free to continue requiring them. Your business…your rules!

Businesses here liked the city mask mandate as they could just cite it instead of being criticized. I think that everyone prefers someone else do it so that they can just cite someone else. Our grocery store has a sign outside stating that the city requires masks and other stores do this as well. The big national chains just issue policy from corporate and the local stores have to deal with any blowback.

 

[iOS Geek]

Businesses here liked the city mask mandate as they could just cite it instead of being criticized. I think that everyone prefers someone else do it so that they can just cite someone else. Our grocery store has a sign outside stating that the city requires masks and other stores do this as well. The big national chains just issue policy from corporate and the local stores have to deal with any blowback.

I think here, businesses were more ok with the mask mandate than the proof of vaccination mandate. (Worth noting that proof of vaccination was only a thing in Chicago and Cook County. That was never a statewide thing and once you got out of Cook County, the number of towns who did their own proof of vaccination was probably in the single digits, if even that). I think they're happy to get rid of the proof of vaccination one. There were quite a few news stories here about how businesses in Cook County saw a pretty steep drop in customers. Proof of vaccination wasn't exactly a popular move, even among vaccinated people. Myself included. Two doses and a booster. Pro-vax nurse! But I'm not giving my money to businesses enforcing it. I work in Cook County but don't live in it...so going elsewhere wasn't exactly an inconvenience for me.

Personally, I don't think that mandate did anything other than hit the city, county, and business owners in the wallet. That mandate started in early January and our case counts absolutely SKYROCKETED afterwards. We put up some of our worst numbers of the pandemic and that was with mask mandates, proof of vaccination in some areas, and a pretty decent vaccination rate. Which I'm sure is part of what's fueling the anger that's resulting in the mandates being lifted, because people are looking at those measures like they were ineffective. And honestly, when you look at the numbers we had...I can't say I blame them for thinking that. We had a lot going for us and we were ravaged anyway.

 

[contacos]

I wish the only thing we had to worry about was a mask but living in the country with the most restrictions while literally every other country in the EU surrounding us is opening up is getting really exhausting.

Here are just a few examples on what kind of restrictions we have compared to the US

Contacts
only 3 unvaccinated people are allowed to meet
only 10 vaccinated people are allowed to meet
- granted, no one follows this rule anymore

Public Transport
You need to be vaccinated or have a negative test of that day

Culture, e. g. Cinemas
You need to be vaccinated AND have a test to go to the cinema (unless you are boostered)
only 50 % (?) capacity and you are supposed to wear a mask at all times, even during the movie (granted, no one is doing that either)

Clubs and Bars
closed since early December (again)
soon to open but you will have to be fully vaccinated or boostered and show a negative test of that day

Events
closed, I think the last concert I was able to go to was in February 2020

Masks
you have to wear a FFP2 / N95 mask
medical masks are not enough

there is a lot more I can't think of right now

 

[bradl]

The reason you watch early countries is to see the shape of the new cases, active cases, hospitalization and death curves so that you can know what to expect.

I agree; however the point I’m getting at is that in this instance, we in the US are the early country.

BL.

 

[pshufd]

I agree; however the point I’m getting at is that in this instance, we in the US are the early country.

BL.

I think that it was in the UK before it was here. Maybe some other European countries as well. I first heard about it from Dr. Cambpell quite some time ago and we're just hearing about it in the US last week.

 

[pshufd]

 

[Mainsail]

Per the NYTimes:

The C.D.C. Isn’t Publishing Large Portions of the Covid Data It Collects​

The agency has withheld critical data on boosters, hospitalizations and, until recently, wastewater analyses.

The C.D.C. Isn’t Publishing Large Portions of the Covid Data It Collects

The agency has withheld critical data on boosters, hospitalizations and, until recently, wastewater analyses.

www.nytimes.com

Per CNN:

CDC scientist says new metrics to guide Covid-19 restrictions could come as early as Friday​

CDC's updated metrics to guide Covid-19 restrictions expected Friday | CNN

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will announce new metrics to guide Covid-19 restrictions such as mask-wearing on Friday, according to a senior CDC official.

www.cnn.com

 

[44267547]

View attachment 1964119

This is old news. The ‘stealth’ Omicron variant has been around for the better part of just over a month (I think it was first named/discovered somewhere around the 15th of January.) As a matter fact, there’s already been ‘suspected’ cases in our state that was reported back somewhere around the latter part of January, as I even posted something in this very thread of the exposure for three individuals, all who were vaccinated/boosted.

 

[pshufd]

This is old news. The ‘stealth’ Omicron variant has been around for the better part of just over a month (I think it was first named/discovered somewhere around the 15th of January.) As a matter fact, there’s already been ‘suspected’ cases in our state that was reported back somewhere around the latter part of January, as I even posted something in this very thread of the exposure for three individuals, all who were vaccinated/boosted.

Sure. But that was my point.

That it has been around for a while and it has been around in other countries for even longer.

 

[SactoGuy18]

The Alpha and Delta waves were particularly deadly (in my opinion!) because its very genome did not allow humans to fight off these variants easily. The Omicron wave isn't as deadly becase its genome is close to that of coronavirus-based common cold viruses, something most humans have a better chance of fighting off. In fact, people who have studied the Omicron BA.2 variant think its effect could be like a common cold virus just like Omicron BA.1.

 

[pshufd]

The Alpha and Delta waves were particularly deadly (in my opinion!) because its very genome did not allow humans to fight off these variants easily. The Omicron wave isn't as deadly becase its genome is close to that of coronavirus-based common cold viruses, something most humans have a better chance of fighting off. In fact, people who have studied the Omicron BA.2 variant think its effect could be like a common cold virus just like Omicron BA.1.

It was far more infectious, though, which means that the death rate and hospitalization rate went much higher than Alpha and Delta. We're still at 1,000 deaths per day just from Omicron so it still killing a lot of people. NPR reported an estimated 200,000 Orphans as a result of COVID.

 

[SteveManila1960]

Its been a hard 2 years for everyone everywhere. I am a kind of believer in it can't go on forever. We have to move from Pandemic to Endemic.

Personally (given the UK has lifted all restrictions) I am going to do my own thing. Wear a face mask in shops, supermarkets, trains and buses. Use alcohol hand rub frequently. As far as possible distance myself from crowded situations.

Not in an antisocial way as such, just to do some things to protect myself and others. Masks don't bother me at all and in the cold weather lately they have quite a cozy feeling. Maybe not so much if we get a summer here but that is not a given! Gotta love the UK weather.

It has been refreshing to not have had a cold, cough, sneezing fit or flu over the last 2 years. I have gone through two winters without feeling unwell at all. That is good enough for me!