GRAND OPENING - GRAND CLOSING (Florida)

[jlwhitney]

I can't speak for Florida as a whole, but in my little corner I've noticed mask compliance go from you being the weird one if you were wearing a mask to nearly 100% over the last couple months. Granted I don't go many places. Today I went to Walmart for the first time since early March and was pleasantly surprised to see only two masks worn below noses and one dangling from an ear. Also, people seemed to try to stay out of each others' way. I just got back from a week at Disney and compliance was just as good at Walmart. I do most of my shopping at Publix and never see anyone without a mask and almost all are worn properly. Even at the gas station most people wear the mask at the pumps. This is waaaay different than what I was seeing even just a month ago. I think people are just doing better.

my county in Florida does not have a mask mandate and people only wear where they are required for the most part and even then many are half attempts . Walmart publix target and such require but none enforce . Church is only recommended. Very very few wear at my daughters dance or sons little gym. Most are mad their kids have to wear it schools (3rd-12 only ).

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Yet the areas like south Florida that require masks for the longest still is the area with the most cases and worst outbreak.

How does your county compare in population & tourism to South Florida?

 

[LiteBrite]

I can't speak for Florida as a whole, but in my little corner I've noticed mask compliance go from you being the weird one if you were wearing a mask to nearly 100% over the last couple months. Granted I don't go many places. Today I went to Walmart for the first time since early March and was pleasantly surprised to see only two masks worn below noses and one dangling from an ear. Also, people seemed to try to stay out of each others' way. I just got back from a week at Disney and compliance was just as good at Walmart. I do most of my shopping at Publix and never see anyone without a mask and almost all are worn properly. Even at the gas station most people wear the mask at the pumps. This is waaaay different than what I was seeing even just a month ago. I think people are just doing better.

Same where we are. In April and May, maybe 20% in our Florida city were wearing masks, but when a mask mandate went into effect in June, it jumped up to maybe 80% overnight, and it's gotten better from there.

On the other hand, the county our city belongs to does not have a mandate, and as soon as you get outside the city limits, you see much less mask wearing. So at least where I am, it seems like the mandate has made a huge difference. Nearby cities also do not have a mandate, and my friend who lives in one of those says she is still the weirdo when she wears a mask in public.

 

[RamblingMad]

Same where we are. In April and May, maybe 20% in our Florida city were wearing masks, but when a mask mandate went into effect in June, it jumped up to maybe 80% overnight, and it's gotten better from there.

On the other hand, the county our city belongs to does not have a mandate, and as soon as you get outside the city limits, you see much less mask wearing. So at least where I am, it seems like the mandate has made a huge difference. Nearby cities also do not have a mandate, and my friend who lives in one of those says she is still the weirdo when she wears a mask in public.

Even if you don’t get 100% compliance, it will slow the spread. Lots of people look less ugly with masks. So it’s a win/win.

 

[sam_gordon]

A study was released today about the first documented case of reinfection. In a nutshell, the man no longer had the antibodies. However, his immune system kicked into gear and he was asymptomatic the second time.

A few things, it’s one case out of how many that have been infected, 25 million? It was determined that he was infected with a different strain the second time. This is a good thing. Having your body adapt to the virus and being able to fight it off. But let’s not get excited over one case.

They mentioned this on the Today show this morning. What was reported was this was a "healthy" 33(?) year old male. When he had his first positive in March, it was a "mild" case, but he was hospitalized. So if it was mild, why be hospitalized. Then in August he had a second positive, was asymptomatic, but again was hospitalized. Why go into the hospital if you're asymptomatic?

 

[Pyotr]

They mentioned this on the Today show this morning. What was reported was this was a "healthy" 33(?) year old male. When he had his first positive in March, it was a "mild" case, but he was hospitalized. So if it was mild, why be hospitalized. Then in August he had a second positive, was asymptomatic, but again was hospitalized. Why go into the hospital if you're asymptomatic?

I don’t understand it either.

 

[RamblingMad]

I don’t understand it either.

This is why I stick to UK Sky News.

 

[iheartglaciers]

They mentioned this on the Today show this morning. What was reported was this was a "healthy" 33(?) year old male. When he had his first positive in March, it was a "mild" case, but he was hospitalized. So if it was mild, why be hospitalized. Then in August he had a second positive, was asymptomatic, but again was hospitalized. Why go into the hospital if you're asymptomatic?

It happened in Hong Kong, so maybe he was required to after he tested positive.

 

[Pyotr]

This is why I stick to UK Sky News.

I read the pre-print article. I have issues with making policy recommendations based on one case.

 

[sam_gordon]

This is why I stick to UK Sky News.

It's not the reporting we're questioning, it's why someone with mild symptoms (the first positive) or NO symptoms (the second positive) would be hospitalized.

 

[RamblingMad]

I read the pre-print article. I have issues with making policy recommendations based on one case.

Me too.

The sensationalized reporting bothers me.

 

[RamblingMad]

It's not the reporting we're questioning, it's why someone with mild symptoms (the first positive) or NO symptoms (the second positive) would be hospitalized.

It’s a one off in a population of 330 million people.

 

[godisney14]

They mentioned this on the Today show this morning. What was reported was this was a "healthy" 33(?) year old male. When he had his first positive in March, it was a "mild" case, but he was hospitalized. So if it was mild, why be hospitalized. Then in August he had a second positive, was asymptomatic, but again was hospitalized. Why go into the hospital if you're asymptomatic?

Hong Kong has a low enough infection rate that they make hospitalization mandatory for anyone who test positive, regardless of whether asymptomatic. It’s a way for them to reduce community spread.

 

[littlejimmy]

Lots of people look less ugly with masks. So it’s a win/win.

Now I could definitely get behind this. Well played.

 

[montreid]

Hong Kong has a low enough infection rate that they make hospitalization mandatory for anyone who test positive, regardless of whether asymptomatic. It’s a way for them to reduce community spread.

Exactly. When caseload is in double digits for 7+Million people-- you can isolate and contact trace effectively. Also they probably want to see why he's reinfected and track that down too. Best to hospitalize and isolate in this case.

 

[Jrb1979]

my county in Florida does not have a mask mandate and people only wear where they are required for the most part and even then many are half attempts . Walmart publix target and such require but none enforce . Church is only recommended. Very very few wear at my daughters dance or sons little gym. Most are mad their kids have to wear it schools (3rd-12 only ).

That is why cases were as high as they have been in Florida and in other places. Its also why schools are going to fail with in person classes. I hope it doesn't happen but won't be surprised when cases start rising again.

 

[bavaria]

It's not the reporting we're questioning, it's why someone with mild symptoms (the first positive) or NO symptoms (the second positive) would be hospitalized.

I'm not sure if it's the same, but in Japan people who tested positive were hospitalized even with no symptoms at the start of this ie from January. They have a very different healthcare system and people are in hospital for things we would not do and for much longer in general. It was their way of 'isolating' them I think?

In HK, at the beginning quarantine was by electronic bracelet like for prisoner home monitoring. Then they moved to sending people to camps, like the old TB outdoor camps from the 1930s. That was for anyone who was exposed, not just those who tested positive.

But I agree with you, I'm always suspicious of these stories of someone 'catching it twice!' as they don't seem to make sense and then fade away or are disputed.

 

[godisney14]

But I agree with you, I'm always suspicious of these stories of someone 'catching it twice!' as they don't seem to make sense and then fade away or are disputed.

It’s difficult for media to report follow-ups on a previous case in the US because that would require good contact tracing and privacy consent by a patient. A really hard “no” for many, if not most, in the US.

There’s nothing to be suspicious of with this latest report from HK because it is based on whole genome resequencing of the same exact patient at two different time points. I’ve been with a company that specializes in one method of WGS. This is definite proof of reinfection. The fact that this was shown to occur in Hong Kong (or any Asian country) is not surprising. And, it happened by chance, since this subject patient probably would not have been investigated had he not flown internationally. Its hard for me to believe that any US lab has collected, sequenced, and stored any one patient’s sample—again due to privacy regulations.

 

[Pyotr]

Cases has significantly dropped in my county. We have gone from 270-300 a day to in the 30s. Let’s hope it keeps up.

 

[RamblingMad]

Cases has significantly dropped in my county. We have gone from 270-300 a day to in the 30s. Let’s hope it keeps up.

186 cases today. I expect we’ll hit a steady state and stay at it until a vaccine comes out. I’m expecting future spikes around holiday gatherings. But it should be manageable.