COVID-19/Coronavirus Information and Support Thread (see OP for useful links)

[Barra333]

Curious to know if and how much the suicide rates have gone up since this 🤬 started.

I'm certain they are up, but good luck finding a jurisdiction that will release that data.
My neighbour is a first responder and he said he's been to more suicide calls than normal.

 

[Dotini]

Speaking of suicide, local BLM activists have made it a daily matter to block traffic on I-5 in the heart of downtown Seattle. Finally the inevitable happened and a black dude (on meth?) drove his Jaguar the wrong way up an off-ramp at night around the blocking vehicles and struck two people at high speed, blasting them high into the air before splattering down onto the pavement. A 24 year old woman is dead and and an older lady still serious. These daily I-5 protests have been tolerated by officials, as well as media and citizens. WSP has now voiced concerns that these are too dangerous to continue. But I expect they will continue in some fashion, as they are very effective. The social protests involving scores of thousands of people are said to have negligible effect on the spread of coronavirus, according to local media.

 

[McLaren]

Dallas' health & human services had to dispel some of the myths today. I knew these conspiracy idiots must have thought everything is being recorded on toilet paper, that's why it all gets reported the same.

1. DCHHS only reports positive PCR test results. DCHHS does not include antibody test results in our daily COVID cases.
2. DCHHS does not report “probable” COVID cases. Only cases confirmed by a PCR test are reported.
3. If an individual receives multiple COVID tests, DCHHS only reports 1 positive case for that individual. DCHHS uses software to identify people who have received multiple tests (by matching name and birthday) and will eliminate any repeat results from our daily reports.

 

[Touring Mars]

Cases in New York state continue to stay flat, in spite of dramatic increases in new cases elsewhere.

Meanwhile, the NYT reports that some neighbourhoods are recording extremely high levels of antibodies, up to 68% in one (very appropriately named) neighbourhood in Queens. Although this is by no means the case everywhere in NY, it could well at least partly explain how NY appears to be avoiding a second wave - for now at least.

Elsewhere, however, it is indeed looking increasingly grim, and death rates are starting to increase in those states that are currently spiking in new cases.

 

[McLaren]

Elsewhere, however, it is indeed looking increasingly grim, and death rates are starting to increase in those states that are currently spiking in new cases.

60, 98, 100+ were the last reported death tolls over the last 3 days for Texas, all reportedly record numbers. Gov. Abbott commented that next week looks worse.

We are still extremely low on deaths per 100,000 though compared to most states, but the data I'm going off of, shows New York & New Jersey remaining at the top even though they actually took the first major hit months back & are fine for the most part now. I feel Texas' giant population is also extremely spread out in such a large state compared to other locations, which must account for some discrepancy? Or maybe just more to our advantage.

 

[novcze]

Finally I was able to find and buy FFP3 respirators from 3M (I don't want no-name China products) and now I need to check where is our order of black nitril gloves, it's been already few weeks since we ordered them, we have some blue ones but I prefer black, one need to look stylish amid virus crisis .

And one well known youtuber who was all gangsta at the beginning of Covid-19 situation got sick and almost died from pneumonia.

 

[Joey D]

Florida is about to have a really bad time.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...ly-half-states-icus-least-90-full/5409773002/

About half of all ICUs in Florida are 90% full and 46 ICUs are completely full. Given that so many northerner retire to Florida, it does have a high-ish older population, which I'm sure isn't helping. It's shaping up to be a pretty grim situation and I'm guessing many hospitals are on the verge of breaking out one of their doomsday plans. I'm sure there's room in hospitals, just not in the ICU, which means hospitals will need to make decisions on who gets an ICU bed over a regular bed. This is going to result in people dying. Nevermind if someone needs the ICU and isn't a COVID patient, they're pretty much screwed.

And speaking of older people, I found this study by the National Bureau of Economic Research to be interesting:

OLDER PEOPLE ARE LESS PESSIMISTIC ABOUT THE HEALTH RISKS OF COVID-19
(Funded by Harvard, University of Oxford, and Università Bocconi)

Looking through the data, it appears that the researchers determined that people over the age of 50 aren't as worried about COVID-19 as people in the 18-49 bracket. That's a bit concerning since people over the age of 50 are at a higher risk of dying than people under the age of 50. If anything the trend should be reversed with younger people caring less about the virus and older people being more concerned. I get people over the age of 70 being less concerned though since they are probably of the mindset that if it's their time to go, then it's their time to go, but between 50-70 is a pretty prime time in life where your kids are typically grown, you're becoming a grandparent, you're still young enough to do things, you're probably on the verge of retirement, and you're probably pretty financially stable.

Thankfully, I've managed to convince my parents, who are in the 50-70 bracket to take things very seriously. I know they were always a bit concerned, but they were in the camp of "it's just the flu". I essentially played the grandparent card and told them I wanted my little dude to have them around. It got them thinking and now they take it seriously and understand it's not just the flu.

I really do wish older people were more concerned about the virus.

 

[Barra333]

black nitril gloves, it's been already few weeks since we ordered them, we have some blue ones but I prefer black, one need to look stylish amid virus crisis

Please tell me these are for work, and not just everyday out-and-about stuff? If you are capable of washing your hands, gloves are completely unnecessary and the supply should be left for those who need them for work.

 

[GBO Possum]

I feel Texas' giant population is also extremely spread out in such a large state compared to other locations, which must account for some discrepancy? Or maybe just more to our advantage.

You might say Australia has a "spread out" population, possibly similar to Texas's density.

Yet even though Australia's infections started way earlier than Texas, they have only reached 4 deaths per million, whereas Texas has already reached 105 deaths per million and is just taking off. And there's Hong Kong, one of the densely populated areas of the planet (but with a sensible, virus-experienced, mask-wearing populace), and they are still only at 0.9 deaths per million.

I have yet to trip over any studies which try to correlate population density with COVID-19 metrics.

(I don't mean to single out Texas for criticism, although, back in early May, when Governor Abbott raved on about "opening up the state" under pressure from Trump, I looked at their own DOH data and said "WTF, this is BAD timing". I didn't know just how bad it was going to get).

 

[Joey D]

I have yet to trip over any studies which try to correlate population density with COVID-19 metrics.

This study was published in the Journal of the American Planning Association and the only reason I know about it is due to one of the authors is a professor here at the University of Utah.

Does Density Aggravate the COVID-19 Pandemic?

What they determined is that density doesn't matter as much as connectivity does. Or to put it another way, the more urban sprawl an area has a higher likelihood of infections. This makes sense for America since most of our large cities have huge urban sprawls where people live in one city and work in another larger city.

 

[Barra333]

Density wouldn't tell you the whole story anyway. 6 people in a 1500ft² apartment is higher risk than 3 couples in 500ft² studios.

 

[ryzno]

Another reason the "corona stimulus" was a waste of tax dollars...https://www.ajc.com/news/after-lobb...-federal-relief-funds/EyQoQCQLnTP4fWJPACi9MN/

 

[McLaren]

Medical Examiner in Corpus Christi, has requested a morgue trailer from FEMA.

 

[Joey D]

Paper published in July's Pediatrics, the medical journal for the American Academy of Pediatrics.

COVID-19 Transmission and Children: The Child Is Not to Blame
(University of Vermont)

This is the main takeaway from the paper:

Almost 6 months into the pandemic, accumulating evidence and collective experience argue that children, particularly school-aged children, are far less important drivers of SARS-CoV-2 transmission than adults. Therefore, serious consideration should be paid toward strategies that allow schools to remain open, even during periods of COVID-19 spread. In doing so, we could minimize the potentially profound adverse social, developmental, and health costs that our children will continue to suffer until an effective treatment or vaccine can be developed and distributed or, failing that, until we reach herd immunity

Based on the data, the researchers found the school-aged children are less likely to pass COVID-19 onto another person. This is good information as we're getting closer to the new school year and something that could help put the minds of parents at ease a little bit. However, it's probably important to note that just because school-aged children have a reduced chance of passing on COVID-19, it doesn't mean that teachers are immune to it. Teachers will be working in close proximity to other teachers and I'm sure even parents. They'll also be around items brought from home that could have a viral load on it.

When it comes to schools reopening, I'm not really sure what the best course of action is. I don't think the remote learning model for everyone is sustainable and I think for some students, it's really hurting their education. It almost seems like a hybrid model would be better with students being on campus and at home for distance learning. Those who thrive in the home environment and have the means to do remote learning could stay home, while those that don't have that opportunity or don't function well in it, could be in the classroom. At the very least, you'd see a reduced number of kids in the classroom, which would make physical distancing more obtainable.

 

[McLaren]

I would figure out of all school children, high school is where the concern would be most, esp. since it would easily allow for 3-5 chances daily to spread significantly as the halls pack due to classes changing & an age group that's just old enough for the virus to pick apart anyone with underlying issues.

I would propose maybe looking at how countries that have successfully culled the virus are approaching ways to prevent their school systems from restarting the virus, and maybe adopt those preventative procedures if possible.

 

[MaxAttack]

So, in my recent walks around my local area - very lovely thanks, woods leading to sleepy Shanklin town, and then on to the beach (where I haven't set foot all year) - I've begun to notice something disturbing.

The camp sites are filling up, and they're filling up rapidly.

This is a double edged sword, of course, as nothing is so straightforward, so firstly I will say that yes, we are a tourism based economy and, yes, the fact that our population nearly triples in the summer months means we rely heavily on holidaymakers to keep things ticking and, yes, the campsites have the right to accept business now just like the pubs do, if they want to keep their doors open.

H o w e v e r . . .

I am not happy about it. There's no semblance of social distancing as people from all over the country set up their tents and caravans on the typically crowded pitches, and the narrow impractical pavements of Shanklin town are starting to fill up with tourists gawking at the tat on sale.

I should preface the more venomous part of my rant with this - the Isle of Wight has one of the most elderly populations in the UK, with an average age of 46 years compared to the UK at large's average of 40. With only one hospital that has struggled for years before the outbreak, we are a community that could really do without a serious presence of COVID-19.

We have done really well so far limiting the spread, islanders took social distancing seriously, we didn't flood the beaches like over in Bournemouth. Most people are very aware of how disproportionately devastating a serious spread could be here.

So it comes to mind that many people have their European - and further afield - summer holidays cancelled by the virus. Yes, it sucks. I empathise with them. People need a break, especially in such trying times. But as I watch the campsites swell (and they are looking to have a VERY good summer so far), I can't help but feel that a lot of people have thought "Well, I can't go to Spain, so I'll go to the Isle of Wight, that's in England, so I can't possibly be doing anything wrong!"

This flies in the face of the fact that we just spent months with reduced ferry services, with only essential crossings allowed. I anticipate people are not going to be cautious and observe social distancing while holidaying here, because it's England, so they consider it on the same "lockdown timeline" as whatever grim Midlands industrial town they drove down from in their hideously oversized SUV.

Please don't come on holiday on my island. There is a care home every 20 metres here. Our hospital can barely handle the number of drunkards that gash open their legs on union street on Saturday nights in the summer. If all this leads to an accelerated spread of the virus, it could be really, really ugly.

I wish people would consider that people live here. Many of us work hard every summer to make this a desirable place to come and spend a few days. That does not make us a doormat. Just because it's actually sunny and pleasant here doesn't give you the right to completely ignore the risks.

So this is my public service announcement: Holidaymakers! We can tell who you are. We can tell by your oversized car, your sunburnt skin, and your screaming kids. You cannot hide and feign that you are a local. You are being irresponsible by needing a holiday so bad that you're willing to put a seriously elderly population at risk. We would like holidays too - we aren't going on them. Please take your three disgusting, Typhoid Mary-ass children, pile them into your overpriced range rover, and get your goldbricking asses out of my beach community.

But please come again next year.

 

[x3ra]

Edit apologies to Danoff, don't know how that happened!!

OLDER PEOPLE ARE LESS PESSIMISTIC ABOUT THE HEALTH RISKS OF COVID-19
(Funded by Harvard, University of Oxford, and Università Bocconi)

Looking through the data, it appears that the researchers determined that people over the age of 50 aren't as worried about COVID-19 as people in the 18-49 bracket. That's a bit concerning since people over the age of 50 are at a higher risk of dying than people under the age of 50. If anything the trend should be reversed with younger people caring less about the virus and older people being more concerned. I get people over the age of 70 being less concerned though since they are probably of the mindset that if it's their time to go, then it's their time to go, but between 50-70 is a pretty prime time in life where your kids are typically grown, you're becoming a grandparent, you're still young enough to do things, you're probably on the verge of retirement, and you're probably pretty financially stable.

50-70 bracket, Wisest age group, let that sink in for a moment............

The bottom line is that most people now know that Covid doesn’t threaten them. They’re not that worried if they get it. And they’re right to think that because the truth (that the Government doesn’t like to publicise) is that your chances of dying from Covid or even being seriously ill from it are minuscule unless you are in a very small subset of the population that is vulnerable. And it’s that dawning realisation that coronavirus isn’t Ebola or Smallpox or Bubonic Plague, combined with an increasing suspicion that the authorities have both overreacted and been incompetent, that leads to a little rebellion, an urge to regain control of your own decisions and risk assessment. And my guess is that the more the busybodies exhort people to wear a mask or keep you distance or keep working from home, the more likely it is they won’t.


Question about vaccines.... If having had Covid-19 doesn't give you immunity from Covid-19 then would a vaccine work?

We are probably all going to get Covid-19 and we are all going to keep getting it. The only purpose of lockdown was to protect the health service from being overwhelmed, which did not happen. The end result is that lockdown was a waste of time. It cannot be continued forever.

Also more cases doesn't mean the virus is escalating, it could mean you are doing many more tests. In the UK we are doing more testing and the numbers are going down https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/uk/

 

[Joey D]

The bottom line is that most people now know that Covid doesn’t threaten them. They’re not that worried if they get it. And they’re right to think that because the truth (that the Government doesn’t like to publicise) is that your chances of dying from Covid or even being seriously ill from it are minuscule unless you are in a very small subset of the population that is vulnerable. And it’s that dawning realisation that coronavirus isn’t Ebola or Smallpox or Bubonic Plague, combined with an increasing suspicion that the authorities have both overreacted and been incompetent, that leads to a little rebellion, an urge to regain control of your own decisions and risk assessment. And my guess is that the more the busybodies exhort people to wear a mask or keep you distance or keep working from home, the more likely it is they won’t.

Your chance of dying isn't exactly high, but your chance of having long term complications from the virus is. I don't really want to deal with being on blood thinners or having decreased lung capacity for the rest of my life.

Also, it's not a small subset of the population that's having complications. People from all age groups and with various degrees of health are dying or having issues. The truth is, we just don't know why yet.

 

[Danoff]

50-70 bracket, Wisest age group, let that sink in for a moment............

The bottom line is that most people now know that Covid doesn’t threaten them. They’re not that worried if they get it. And they’re right to think that because the truth (that the Government doesn’t like to publicise) is that your chances of dying from Covid or even being seriously ill from it are minuscule unless you are in a very small subset of the population that is vulnerable. And it’s that dawning realisation that coronavirus isn’t Ebola or Smallpox or Bubonic Plague, combined with an increasing suspicion that the authorities have both overreacted and been incompetent, that leads to a little rebellion, an urge to regain control of your own decisions and risk assessment. And my guess is that the more the busybodies exhort people to wear a mask or keep you distance or keep working from home, the more likely it is they won’t.


Question about vaccines.... If having had Covid-19 doesn't give you immunity from Covid-19 then would a vaccine work?

We are probably all going to get Covid-19 and we are all going to keep getting it. The only purpose of lockdown was to protect the health service from being overwhelmed, which did not happen. The end result is that lockdown was a waste of time. It cannot be continued forever.

Also more cases doesn't mean the virus is escalating, it could mean you are doing many more tests. In the UK we are doing more testing and the numbers are going down https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/uk/

That wasn't my quote.

 

[Biggles]

Florida is about to have a really bad time.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...ly-half-states-icus-least-90-full/5409773002/

About half of all ICUs in Florida are 90% full and 46 ICUs are completely full. Given that so many northerner retire to Florida, it does have a high-ish older population, which I'm sure isn't helping. It's shaping up to be a pretty grim situation and I'm guessing many hospitals are on the verge of breaking out one of their doomsday plans. I'm sure there's room in hospitals, just not in the ICU, which means hospitals will need to make decisions on who gets an ICU bed over a regular bed. This is going to result in people dying. Nevermind if someone needs the ICU and isn't a COVID patient, they're pretty much screwed.

And speaking of older people, I found this study by the National Bureau of Economic Research to be interesting:

OLDER PEOPLE ARE LESS PESSIMISTIC ABOUT THE HEALTH RISKS OF COVID-19
(Funded by Harvard, University of Oxford, and Università Bocconi)

Looking through the data, it appears that the researchers determined that people over the age of 50 aren't as worried about COVID-19 as people in the 18-49 bracket. That's a bit concerning since people over the age of 50 are at a higher risk of dying than people under the age of 50. If anything the trend should be reversed with younger people caring less about the virus and older people being more concerned. I get people over the age of 70 being less concerned though since they are probably of the mindset that if it's their time to go, then it's their time to go, but between 50-70 is a pretty prime time in life where your kids are typically grown, you're becoming a grandparent, you're still young enough to do things, you're probably on the verge of retirement, and you're probably pretty financially stable.

Thankfully, I've managed to convince my parents, who are in the 50-70 bracket to take things very seriously. I know they were always a bit concerned, but they were in the camp of "it's just the flu". I essentially played the grandparent card and told them I wanted my little dude to have them around. It got them thinking and now they take it seriously and understand it's not just the flu.

I really do wish older people were more concerned about the virus.

Joey ... you & other "young people" on GTPlanet consistently misunderstand & misrepresent the mentality of "old people". People in their 60's, '70's & '80's - even '90's - are not blasé about the possibility of dying, or even of getting seriously ill, from Covid (or anything else). The vast majority of reasonably healthy older people still feel dedicated to the idea of living!

It's possible it may be somewhat different in Utah & it may be true that Trump followers down-play the threat from Covid, but living where I do, with a high proportion of older people, most of them highly educated, successful & affluent & liberal, I see everyone being very cautious in their approach to the pandemic.

 

[JKgo]

...Yesterday, South Africa officially recorded a higher number of total infected than Italy or the UK. We went past 250,000 and the rate of infection seems to get worse and worse every single day.

Yet the government here has basically 'given up' at this point and rather than concentrating on coming up with policies or measures to curb the rising infection rate, they are concentrating more on fighting the lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the lockdown regulations such as ban on sales of cigarettes and alcohol.

When this whole ordeal comes to an end, heads better roll or else. Knowing the whole ANC cadre thing, I doubt anyone will get the chop, though.

 

[Joey D]

Joey ... you & other "young people" on GTPlanet consistently misunderstand & misrepresent the mentality of "old people". People in their 60's, '70's & '80's - even '90's - are not blasé about the possibility of dying, or even of getting seriously ill, from Covid (or anything else). The vast majority of reasonably healthy older people still feel dedicated to the idea of living!

It's possible it may be somewhat different in Utah & it may be true that Trump followers down-play the threat from Covid, but living where I do, with a high proportion of older people, most of them highly educated, successful & affluent & liberal, I see everyone being very cautious in their approach to the pandemic.

It's what the study shows. I'm more than willing to read any study that contradicts it though, but I haven't found one yet (not saying it's not out there, just I personally haven't seen it).

As for it only being Utah, it's not a Utah thing at all, it's an American thing. The 50-70 age bracket were the ones who voted for Trump with the greatest percentage and that demographic still supports him to this day. It's not a miscategorization at all, it's reality and it's also a reality that Trump supporters are less likely to be afraid of COVID. Where you live could be vastly different, I don't know, I only know about what it's like in America based on what's being reported and studied.

 

[GBO Possum]

I really do wish older people were more concerned about the virus.

Where I live, the community is predominantly over 60 (average in the low-to-middle 70s I'd guess), predominantly cautious and predominantly liberal.

It's obvious that in this community, those few who are not liberal are the ones who don't even carry masks, let alone wear them, and brush off the risks.

Maybe they are relying on "an afterlife" if this one doesn't work out so well?

I'm 78, enjoying the path to 79, and simply squeezing unnecessary risk out of the processes of life. The social life in our neighborhood is great. No more hugs but lots of smiles and laughter. (Some of the laughs being at the expense of my 5 months growth of hair).

I'm glad your folks have seen the light! Well done.

 

[Biggles]

It's what the study shows. I'm more than willing to read any study that contradicts it though, but I haven't found one yet (not saying it's not out there, just I personally haven't seen it).

As for it only being Utah, it's not a Utah thing at all, it's an American thing. The 50-70 age bracket were the ones who voted for Trump with the greatest percentage and that demographic still supports him to this day. It's not a miscategorization at all, it's reality and it's also a reality that Trump supporters are less likely to be afraid of COVID. Where you live could be vastly different, I don't know, I only know about what it's like in America based on what's being reported and studied.

Ah ... statistical stereotyping, the cornerstone of libertarian philosophy.

Why focus on age? I guess almost everybody I know is a college grad & therefore statistically more likely to NOT be a Trump supporter than the the average "old person".

 

[McLaren]

We are probably all going to get Covid-19 and we are all going to keep getting it. The only purpose of lockdown was to protect the health service from being overwhelmed, which did not happen. The end result is that lockdown was a waste of time. It cannot be continued forever.

It didn't happen because of the lockdown. My state is a case in point. We locked down to lower the curve, which it did. We prematurely ended lockdown, the curve went back up, and now our hospitals across the state are reporting capacity issues.

This is well beyond common sense by now, but the fact you want to be a skeptic & ignore the science shows how little of value your input actually is.



The newest 7-day average of deaths, as reported by the NYT today, shows an uptick starting. This is the breakdown by states.

 

[Joey D]

Ah ... statistical stereotyping, the cornerstone of libertarian philosophy.

I have no idea what you're implying here. Do we not use statistics and findings as evidence to support an opinion?

Why focus on age? I guess almost everybody I know is a college grad & therefore statistically more likely to NOT be a Trump supporter than the the average "old person".

It's what the study was on, how different age groups see COVID-19. You questioned it, so I was responding to you about it and backing it up with sources. As I said, I'm more than willing to read a paper that contradicts the findings that people over the age of 50 are less concerned about COVID-19.

 

[TheGeologist]

The only purpose of lockdown was to protect the health service from being overwhelmed, which did not happen. The end result is that lockdown was a waste of time.

The main purpose of the lockdown was to prevent the health care system from being overwhelmed.

The healthcare system did not get overwhelmed due to the lockdown.

Therefore the lockdown was a waste?

What?

 

[Danoff]

Colorado is headed for a 2nd peak it seems. We're starting to take off. Not sure if it's influx from neighboring states vacationing, or just refusal to wear masks and everyone heading inside for air conditioning. Regardless, we're headed in the wrong direction. Our local school is a few days away from telling us what they intend to do for the fall, so this is bad timing.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

The gym situation will be interesting. I'm guessing some people won't be coming back at all. A lot of people go to the gym mainly for cardio, which can be done pretty much anywhere.

 

[Barra333]

The only purpose of lockdown was to protect the health service from being overwhelmed, which did not happen. The end result is that lockdown was a waste of time

. Hospitals not being overloaded means that lockdown WORKED. Proof being tbat now that lockdown got lifted in a bunch of states, hospitals are now bursting at the seams.

If I buy home insurance and the house doesn't burn down, was it a waste of time?