Neverending Covid-19 Coronavirus

dbarila said:
Here's what I don't understand about the confirmed numbers. If you are experiencing mild symptoms and you self isolate and recover, there's a very good chance no one would even know that you have it. With lack of tests available would they really make a person like that get tested?
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That's correct. This is why we have no idea about the true scale of this thing. Anyone with very mild to no symptoms is not going to go seek medical advice or testing, and they may very well still shedding virus and infecting others, although there is no data that I know of as to whether they are as infectious as those that will eventually have the standard symptoms (there is a lot of variation there too, with some individuals that shed tons of virus).

The only real clue we have is from the Diamond Princess testing, because the whole population was tested there. 380-ish of the 690-ish covid-19 positives had no symptoms at all (roughly 55% of that population). Good news is that on an individual basis, you are even more likely to get out of this unscathed. Bad news is that on a population level, the sheer number of people spreading this means the most vulnerable are at an incredible risk.

(I posted the article citing the Diamond Princess numbers earlier in this thread)
 
ranbalam said:
A friend texted me that he was going golfing today. I am having the weirdest mix of emotions, none of them particularly healthy. I guess I'm a little envious because he apparently has little fear of going out and I'm certainly headed the other way...I barely want to go to the store. It's a beautiful March day in Michigan and I can't find the joy, and wondering how others can. I realize this is my issue, not his. Golf should be a relatively safe activity right? You're outdoors and can easily stay 6 feet or more away from others.
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You could do a lot worse than golfing. It's not an intimate sport.
 
I saw some confusion about Florida beaches......some remain open including one of the biggest, Clearwater beach. Beach goers have been urged to leave 6 to 10 feet between towels/setups.....

::insert Florida jokes here::
 
Apparently you have to be test negative for the flu first before qualifying for a COVID-19 test.

So for the states that are offering drive-thru testing, many people are showing up and being denied tests because they don't have the proper paper work to show that they have already gone to the doctors office or urgent care center and have been tested for the flu.
 
Jonathan Y said:
I saw some confusion about Florida beaches......some remain open including one of the biggest, Clearwater beach. Beach goers have been urged to leave 6 to 10 feet between towels/setups.....

::insert Florida jokes here::
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Yeah, It wasn't a state wide order but some beaches ordered close yesterday in Florida. And mainly because they were packed with 'spring breakers' and the people who run that beach took the guidelines seriously to limit large gatherings.

I just saw a report that one infected person on a packed beach during 'spring break' could infect as many as 140 people.
 
RenegadeMonster said:
Apparently you have to be test negative for the flu first before qualifying for a COVID-19 test.

So for the states that are offering drive-thru testing, many people are showing up and being denied tests because they don't have the proper paper work to show that they have already gone to the doctors office or urgent care center and have been tested for the flu.
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ARG!! But they are telling people that if they have COVID symptoms, that they shouldn't go to the doctor.
 
"GA Hospital uses 5 months worth of supplies in just 6 days"

Seeing this headline now on CNN and it is just crazy.

Hospitals only have enough supplies on hand for what they need. They don't stock pile for "what if" because it saves money. Manny hospitals are private and for profit. This hospital in Georgia has been scrambling to order supplies and now they are finding that their distributers are out of stock as they are trying to order even more supplies according to the person they just interviewed.

The United States also has fewer ICU beds per 100,000 people than most countries in Europe. Why? They only build for regular capacity and not surge capacity. It a capitalistic society it does not make sense to build extra ICU beds that may only ever be used once ever 11 years at best. It costs money and is not the responsible thing to do for their shareholders. Their responsibility is to generating profits for their shareholders rather than building for "what if" events.


The above two issues will have huge implementations on our healthcare system and fail us during this time of need.



Also, in other news this is why tests are important:

 
Indymisanthrope said:
Although they've demonstrated a preternatural ability to pin failures of that sort on the other party, too. That's maybe as political as we should get about it here, though.

On the other hand, does that perhaps indicate that we're building stronger herd immunity than we realize or than the Imperial College study accounted for? Real question, I don't know.

If they thought millennials killed chain restaurants, wait 'til they see what the coronials do.
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Apologies. I keep forgetting this isn't the Trump thread since there was some discussion over there before this thread.
 
The Governor of NY is currently having a press conference.

He's making it very clear there will be no mandatory quarantine, lockdowns or shelter in place orders in the State of NY. No one will not be allowed to leave their home or go out shopping and get groceries.

There is no need for fear and panic. No one will need to stock up on things as you will be able to go out and get things at anytime.

He also says people been calling him, friends and family with questions like I need to get a test for my daughter.

He said: Has she been in contact with someone who has tested positive?
Them: No
He said: Has she traveled to any hot spot?
Them: No
He Said: Then she doesn't need a test. This is like the flu, have her stay at home, keep her away from grandma and treat this like the flu.

When asked out NYC mayor in support of a shelter in place for NYC the Governor made it clear he does not support this and it wouldn't work. He kind of mocked it as well. He said "I live in queens. If a shelter in place order was issued I would just go over to my friends house in (forget what community) and have a good time. People would not stay in the city and continue along with their lives. For this to work CT, NJ, Long Island would all have to have the same order to prevent people from getting around it.

He also stated that a shelter in place order would close all businesses, stop everyones jobs, prevent people from being able to get food.

Someone mentioned that's not true for the Bay area. The Governor then said, well, it's how you implement it.
 
Indymisanthrope said:
www.irishpost.com

Irish company create coronavirus testing kit which can confirm infection in 15 minutes | The Irish Post

AN IRISH company has invented a COVID-19 testing kit which can produce results in 15 minutes.Ass...
www.irishpost.com www.irishpost.com
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From later in the same article I posted:

Polen says the company is also working on a separate, even faster test that could be available at retail clinics in the US and produce results in about 10 minutes. That test would run on another of the company’s machines — which is handheld and about the size of a cell phone — which tests for flu and strep, and is currently in 25,000 facilities like retail clinics and doctors’ offices. BD scientists are working with U.S. government researchers to identify the right antibody that could be used as a target for that test.
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My takeaway from these contradictory statements is that everyone is still scrambling and trying to get approval for whatever they can to speed up the process. We should be using the tests available on the worldwide market, but I’m all about any improvement available to the current status quo here in the US.
 
A have a friend that is currently self-quarantined. (she's on day 7) She has all the symptoms and has felt pretty awful throughout. She went to a drive-through testing place, (per doctor's recommendation) she was negative for strep and influenza A so they were able to submit her labs for coronavirus. Three days later they contacted her and said they made an error in submitting hers and she has to go get re-tested. She's beyond frustrated.

I can't help but wonder when we will see the spike in numbers, both locally and nationally. My wife's hospital is testing hundreds per day since Sunday but no results have been given back yet to her knowledge.
 
Im not sure what more testing is going to acheive apart from divert resources where perhaps they are more needed. The official figures are clearly very low, but does it matter, id ignore them.
Many people will get the Virus and not show symptoms but still be carriers. Others will have mild symptoms and recover. All these people will likely have been carriers for days prior to any symptoms showing and not need any healthcare.
Covid-19 will spread and nothing can prevent that, but we can slow the curve abd reduce the strain on the health system. The people most at risk can decide if they should isolate themselves (i appreciate a lot will need daily care and thats an issue). The fit and healthy also have a responsibility to stay away from those at risk even if they are loved ones. My father in law is clearly a high risk case, but will not take it seriously, nothing I can say will stop him carrying on as normal. We wont visit but other family members will 🙄- and i bet we are just a classic case.
Its all very difficult, and this will last months - not days or weeks.

I hope everyone Washes their hands - lots ! oh dont touch your face or other people. And please dont stockpile, there are shortages because people stockpile, not because there is a reduced supply.
 
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