Covid And The Rest of Us

[RamblingMad]

Does anyone know what the whole "70%" more infectous means? I mean doesnt Covid already seem to spread like wildfire... 70% more rate seems crazy???? Does this variant, literally hang in the air for days and zoom down into the nostrils of any walker bys???

According to Sky News it increased the R naught by 0.4. That's huge. And we don't know if our existing PCR tests are even detecting it.

 

[Karin1984]

Testing as in clinical trials? This is good news!

Yes, phase 3, 2.000 people till April (total worldwide is 36.500 people), looking at the working and the safety. CureVac is similar to Pfizer in technology.

 

[mousefan73]

According to Sky News it increased the R naught by 0.4. That's huge. And we don't know if our existing PCR tests are even detecting it.

I was watching CNBC Dr. Gottlieb and that was one thing he mentioned. That mutation won’t affect vaccine effectiveness but may be an issue with therapeutics and testing. I think he said all but one most likely will not detectors. I may not be 100% in quoting that “ all but one’type”

 

[mousefan73]

I am also curious to what data they have stating it’s more contagious. Just wondering right now is it simply coincidence? Colder weather driving people indoors? Just happens to be this genetic gnome. Is it human or mutant behavior???? Online and can’t find any specifics. Just that cases are skyrocketing. Pretty sure many factors are cause.

 

[NFLDERS]

Kyton:

So much sympathy being sent to you, and your family. My mom was ill with the same cancer, and Alzheimers. She passed on Dec. 17th, 2006 after 3 years of suffering. We drew some comfort from her becoming another guardian Christmas angel.

 

[NFLDERS]

If and when it is, will you travel? Are Irish citizens (or EU citizens in general) free of restrictions to travel and return home? Canada is under a world-wide travel advisory to avoid all non-essential travel and must quarantine upon return home.

Unfortunately, our Ontario Premier reinterated again today that upon return many are not following isolation requirements.

Then, Toronto's Mayor reported on our Ontario Provincial Police constantly being called to end gatherings, shimmy hockey games late at night, and parties..

 

[NFLDERS]

Statistically, that's not correct. Yes - exponentially more people are being infected but the percentage of them that are dying is way down. Let's take Ontario for example. At August 20, there had been 41,179 cases diagnosed (since mid-March) and 2,796 deaths, equaling a 6.78% mortality rate. As of today, there have been 155,930 cases diagnosed cumulatively and total deaths have risen to 4,150 for a current mortality rate of 2.66%.

Hopefully, those that do not die, are also not long haulers.
My younger brother had Scarlett Fever at 3, and has been a long hauler his whole life.. the most serious being heart surgery at 56ish..

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I am also curious to what data they have stating it’s more contagious. Just wondering right now is it simply coincidence? Colder weather driving people indoors? Just happens to be this genetic gnome. Is it human or mutant behavior???? Online and can’t find any specifics. Just that cases are skyrocketing. Pretty sure many factors are cause.

Just going from memory when they were looking at TX and doing the genome sequencing they noticed the explosion of cases but not much difference in restrictions/activity and that all these new cases shared in the vast majority the same signature so it led to the viewpoint that a new strain that seemed to spread much quicker/infect more people on average was around.

I haven't hooked back up with that information from TX but with the UK strain I think it may be harder to determine. It was easier in late spring-early summer here in the States to do these things because restrictions were mostly staying the same for long enough periods of time meaning indoor restaurants were open for months, gatherings not as restricted, etc so you had more controlled information. But even here in the States since Fall a lot of changes have been going on and a lot of changes in the UK and parts of Europe where it may be harder to figure out just how a mutation impacts cases. If you go back and forth a lot on restriction, eased restriction, restriction, etc it means you don't have as much longevity in time to study just how a strain reacts to spread.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Ireland going back to Level 5 Restrictions

https://www.thejournal.ie/liveblog-cabinet-restrictions-christmas-5308393-Dec2020/

• Rolling restrictions will come in from 24 December and last until 12 January at the earliest
• Restaurants, gastropubs must shut at 3pm on Christmas Eve
• Barbers and hairdressers must also shut on 24 December
• Inter-county travel will be restricted after 26 December, but people who have already left their county can remain in another county until they are due to return home
• Non-essential retail can remain open, but shops have been asked not to have January sales events
• Gyms and swimming pools can remain open
• Hotels open for essential non-social and non-tourist purposes only

 

[Karin1984]

KLM has also cancelled their flights to South Africa.

Also they have published today a video from their series 'Intern on a Mission', where they go into the vaccine transport. They expect to do 20% from the transport worldwide.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2645675378983378

 

[elphaba91]

So, by way of update from Australia:

- Yesterday there were 15 new cases recorded in Sydney from over 38,000 tests, and I think all could be directly linked to the current cluster. Today there were 8 new cases from over 44,000 tests. 7 could definitely be linked, 1 could possibly be linked although they are a nurse involved in the transport of international passengers, including COVID positive people, so that seems more likely. The outbreak seems fairly well contained geographically, although with each day they are adding more locations to the contact tracers' lists.

- Victoria also has a case from NSW today, a teenage girl who just returned from the Sydney Northern Beaches area with her family. They drove home and didn't stop in Victoria (although did stop at a town north of the border) and have had no contact with anyone other than when being tested, although apparently other family members who didn’t travel to Sydney didn’t self isolate before she got her result.

- There are some restrictions in Sydney, although to us in Victoria they really don't seem strong enough. The Northern Beaches area is locked down with only 4 reasons to leave home: to shop for food or other essentials; go to work; visit a sick relative or on compassionate grounds; and to exercise. In Greater Sydney, they can have only 10 people to homes, caps of 300 at venues, only 20 people from a wedding party can dance. They are being 'encouraged' to wear masks but it's not mandated.

- All states are now, at least, requiring people from Sydney to quarantine for 14 days and WA is not allowing any arrivals from NSW at all. Queensland and Victoria both require permits for people from anywhere in NSW. In Victoria anyone from Sydney (including Victorians) has to go into hotel quarantine; Victorians had until midnight last night to come home and quarantine at home instead. On a personal note, my cousin flew down last night, 2 days earlier than planned; she was relying on being able to cross both the Queensland and Victorian borders so decided it wasn't worth the risk of waiting.

 

[Karin1984]

@elphaba91 quick question. Facebook keeps pushing me Jimmy Rees videos about Australia. Is his portrayal of the different moods in the different states accurate?

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2096234147180800

(And is the rest of Australia really that mean to Tasmania ;-) )

 

[NFLDERS]

@elphaba91 quick question. Facebook keeps pushing me Jimmy Rees videos about Australia. Is his portrayal of the different moods in the different states accurate?

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2096234147180800

(And is the rest of Australia really that mean to Tasmania ;-) )

WOW! I'm like the video devoid of any sound, (=as in state of my mind) sound!

 

[BadPinkTink]

@elphaba91 quick question. Facebook keeps pushing me Jimmy Rees videos about Australia. Is his portrayal of the different moods in the different states accurate?

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2096234147180800

(And is the rest of Australia really that mean to Tasmania ;-) )

Omg, thats brilliant, thanks, just what I needed today

 

[cabanafrau]

Good luck with flattening the curve to those in Ontario. Sorry to hear cases have increased and a shutdown was determined necessary.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Thanks for the update @elphaba91 and @Karin1984 thanks for the good laugh....now I need the continuation piece leaving us in the States hanging

 

[Karin1984]

Omg, thats brilliant, thanks, just what I needed today

Thanks for the update @elphaba91 and @Karin1984 thanks for the good laugh....now I need the continuation piece leaving us in the States hanging

This was part 7, there are 6 others before this
I discovered Jimmy Rees when I got forwarded his videos of the guy inventing packaging. Worth checking out when you need a giggle.

 

[BadPinkTink]

The Irish Government are not sugar coating things. Basically the message is we told you not to come home for Christmas, but you didn't listen to us and came home anyway. So now we are are telling you to self isolate for 14 days.

https://www.independent.ie/irish-ne...ne-in-their-bedroom-hse-advises-39894300.html
Advice to people who have arrived from the UK since December 11 to isolate for 14 days means they should eat Christmas dinner alone in their bedroom, the HSE has said today.
Chief Clinical Officer of the HSE Dr Colm Henry told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland that the advice was “painful but necessary”.
Dr Henry said there will be enhanced checks on the 30,000 or so passengers that have arrived in Ireland from Britain since restrictions were lifted on December 8.
The CCO said people should remain in their bedrooms while quarantining at all times unless it’s absolutely necessary to leave.
Mr Henry pleaded with people who have arrived home from the UK to heed public health advice and “not be the agent of transmission” of the new strain of Covid-19 evident in London.
Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan confirmed health officials are examining contact tracing material of people who have travelled home from the UK in the last two weeks.
This comes after an Irish Examiner report that 24 people who have flown into Ireland from London since December 8 have since tested positive for Covid-19 and in the wake of a travel ban with Britain as a new variant of Covid-19, believed to be up to 70pc more transmissible, is spreading widely in London and other areas.
When Minister Ryan was asked on Morning Ireland does he really expect people coming home from the UK for Christmas to isolate for 14 days in a bedroom, he said: “It is very tough advice but we have to heed what they are saying. I expect that Irish people have done this. It’s not easy and is tough as can be.

 

[disneyholic family]

DH and i just got the first dose of the pfizer vaccine.
I sure hope it also works against the new strain.

Updating news from Israel - we've closed our skies again as of today.
No foreigners at all allowed into the country for any reason from any country. Before this they were letting people in from green countries.
Also, Israeli citizens returning from EVERY country in the world (no matter if it's "green") will be taken to a government run corona hotel for 10 or 14 day (10 days if you have 2 negative tests).

I'm sure the new strain has made it to israel, though there's nothing official.
But we have so many people going back and forth to the UK, i can't imagine that it hasn't gotten here before this.

Anyway, we're probably headed into a 3rd lockdown. I feel so sorry for the businesses that have been destroyed.
Who would have imagined this happening!

 

[Karin1984]

Well in between our Covid mess (figures have finally been dropping from 13K to 11k to 9K yesterday) we are in a 'political crisis.
I won't go into the specifics too much, but 26K families have been systematically hurt by the tax-system for several years, and therefore the government, by saying they were committing fraud, in most cases that was not true. People have lost houses over this, marriages broke up because of this, children couldn't go on school trips or have new clothes etc. So major major major impact. Finally after two years of debating and investigating, the conclusion was: the government made huge mistakes. The people involved will get compensated and get the money back they are entitled to, however, can our government stay on?

Our next election is coming up in March, we are in a major health crisis... And while this whole debacle got a lot of media coverage, with all the other issues in the world, it's not top of mind for the majority of the country. Yes, of course for the 26K families and their loved ones who have gone through this. Would it do the country any good if our government leaves now and leave us in between everything till March next year?