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

[Famine]

Eric Clapton and Van Morrison have released an anti-lockdown single which compares COVID restrictions to slavery, and a bizarre line about Dick Turpin being a mask-wearer...

https://variety.com/2020/music/news...n-anti-lockdown-stand-and-deliver-1234867073/

 

[TexRex]

While they're whining, isn't Brian May actually doing something useful?

 

[Outspacer]

While they're whining, isn't Brian May actually doing something useful?

Probably writing an anti-cloud song tonight!

 

[novcze]

While they're whining, isn't Brian May actually doing something useful?

yeah, keeping himself fit, which is good to see after his small heart attack earlier this year

 

[Touring Mars]

Eric Clapton and Van Morrison have released an anti-lockdown single which compares COVID restrictions to slavery, and a bizarre line about Dick Turpin being a mask-wearer...

https://variety.com/2020/music/news...n-anti-lockdown-stand-and-deliver-1234867073/

Van certainly feels very strongly about lockdown... infact he is adamant.

-

The certainty levels on the supposed increased transmissibility of this new variant of SARS-CoV-2 has been upgraded from 'moderate' to 'high'.

Sky News are also reporting one source (from UCL) that the new variant also gives rise to 'much higher viral loads', though I've yet to see the evidence of this first hand.

 

[UKMikey]

Van certainly feels very strongly about lockdown... infact he is adamant.

This is a pun on the song being called "Stand And Deliver", right?

Needless to say people are remembering how Eric has been on the wrong side of history in the past.

https://www.newsweek.com/clapton-morrison-lockdown-single-1550863

 

[Nessy]

Eric Clapton and Van Morrison have released an anti-lockdown single which compares COVID restrictions to slavery, and a bizarre line about Dick Turpin being a mask-wearer...

https://variety.com/2020/music/news...n-anti-lockdown-stand-and-deliver-1234867073/

That's disgraceful.

If i was a multi-millionaire - had singing and song writing talents, and could somehow buy the instrumental music rights to Clapton's 'Behind the mask', I'd put out a 'pro-mask wearing' cover of it. 'Put on your mah-aaa-ah-esk'.

*Grabs coat

 

[FPV MIC]

Too late. First confirmed case of new variant in Italy today. 2200 flights out of the UK yesterday. It'll be around the world in the next few weeks.

It's been confirmed to be in Australia in quarantined returned citizens as well but luckily it's not out in the public.... yet.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-12...ed-in-australian-returned-travellers/13002382

 

[UKMikey]

That's disgraceful.

If i was a multi-millionaire - had singing and song writing talents, and could somehow buy the instrumental music rights to Clapton's 'Behind the mask', I'd put out a 'pro-mask wearing' cover of it. 'Put on your mah-aaa-ah-esk'.

*Grabs coat

It's Riuichi Sakamoto and Chris Mosdell's "Behind The Mask" with some input from Michael Jackson. Clappers just did a cover version as he did with Marley.

 

[Joey D]

If you're curious to see where states are in terms of administered COVID vaccines, John Hopkins now has a dashboard for that:

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/vaccines

 

[RacingGrandpa]

It looks like the French government are already acting to prevent some disruption, but there's not much detail on what that means... either way, this is going to be a bad day to be a lorry driver in the UK.

Meanwhile, spare a thought for the poor buggers in Denmark whose job it is this week to dig up the rotting (and exploding) corpses of millions of mink they attempted to bury a few weeks ago.

I believe they wait six months to make sure the virus died before digging them up for incineration

 

[Danoff]

If you're curious to see where states are in terms of administered COVID vaccines, John Hopkins now has a dashboard for that:

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/vaccines

Colorado has already currently administered 10% as many vaccines (30k) as the total case count in the state (300k).

 

[Touring Mars]

The UK has so far managed around 500,000 vaccinations in 13 days... or about 40000 per day, which is quite impressive.

That said, given that everyone requires two shots, even at a rate of 50000 shots per day, it would take a staggering 7 years to complete the rollout, so in order to be effective within 6-12 months, we really need a vaccination rate closer to 7-14 times higher than present, or averaging around 500,000 vaccinations per day.

Meanwhile, no lorries or Vans can leave or enter the UK until further notice... not a bad idea given how awful Van Morrison's latest 'music' has been (and let's hope they extend that ban to Eric Clapton too.)

 

[PeterJB]

The UK has so far managed around 500,000 vaccinations in 13 days... or about 40000 per day, which is quite impressive.

That said, given that everyone requires two shots, even at a rate of 50000 shots per day, it would take a staggering 7 years to complete the rollout, so in order to be effective within 6-12 months, we really need a vaccination rate closer to 7-14 times higher than present, or averaging around 500,000 vaccinations per day.

Meanwhile, no lorries or Vans can leave or enter the UK until further notice... not a bad idea given how awful Van Morrison's latest 'music' has been (and let's hope they extend that ban to Eric Clapton too.)

Matt Hancock had originally said the lockdown would be lifted when everyone in the most vulnerable category had been vaccinated but now he's had enough foresight to realise Tier 4 restrictions need to stay around probably till Easter so who knows what to think anymore...

 

[McLaren]

Hearing a report that the vaccine is still effective against the new strain in a brief news coverage tonight.

 

[kikie]

 

[Joey D]

Hearing a report that the vaccine is still effective against the new strain in a brief news coverage tonight.

This is how it was explained to me yesterday:

Essentially, since the vaccine targets the spike proteins that allow the virus to infect cells, a very specific mutation would need to occur to make the vaccine not work. It's certainly possible, just not probable. Also, if the virus mutated to change that protein, it also might lose its ability to infect cells, which would cause it to extinct rather quickly.

I'm paraphrasing a bit here since there's a ton of science I don't really understand behind it so I hope I at least got the gist of it. I'm sure there's way more to it though, I just haven't had the time to sit around reading research papers like I normally would.

 

[Famine]

COVID-19 reaches Antarctica.

https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19...-as-36-test-positive-at-chilean-base-12169876

 

[TB]

COVID-19 reaches Antarctica.

https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19...-as-36-test-positive-at-chilean-base-12169876

 

[Joey D]

This seems like a bad call:

US health officials: No need to ban flights from UK even as it battles new coronavirus variant

While the variant is likely already in the US, I'm not sure not limiting or banning flights from Europe is the correct call here. If it's here, we have a better chance of containing it than if we just leave everything open...oh who am I kidding, the US couldn't contain a lethargic sloth. Still, leaving travel open like this is definitely a recipe for a huge influx in cases.

 

[XJ40]

So, a colleague went from a higher tier to a lower one, not allowed under the rules. He duped the hotel about his address to get a room.
Another colleague came into work with a symptom after a relative had the virus.
Another colleague is constantly blowing his nose with the same hanky he has had for what looks like 40 years (not virus related but minging nonetheless.
Managers response: theres only so much we can do.
Most of my workmates are playing by the rules including someone who cancelled a weekend away after reading up on the travel restrictions, but it's going to take just one person to bring it into the workplace and we are all exposed.
I cant help feeling that there is a general 'won't happen to me so I'll be alright' feeling among my workplace despite at least 2 people having it, one is struggling with the after affects.
I'm still keeping myself safe first and foremost and by doing that I should be looking after anyone who uses facilties/machine ery after me.
Still 🤬 myself though.

Edit: I should add that the boss also said that sickness absence across employees due to tummy bugs, vomiting etc has fallen. He likes the new hygiene stuff

 

[Touring Mars]

Hearing a report that the vaccine is still effective against the new strain in a brief news coverage tonight.

My former boss made a model of the spike protein(s) which was used in a graphic on the UK news last night:

This is how it was explained to me yesterday:

Essentially, since the vaccine targets the spike proteins that allow the virus to infect cells, a very specific mutation would need to occur to make the vaccine not work. It's certainly possible, just not probable. Also, if the virus mutated to change that protein, it also might lose its ability to infect cells, which would cause it to extinct rather quickly.

I'm paraphrasing a bit here since there's a ton of science I don't really understand behind it so I hope I at least got the gist of it. I'm sure there's way more to it though, I just haven't had the time to sit around reading research papers like I normally would.

That's pretty much it.

The spike protein on the surface of the virus allows it to bind to cells via the ACE2 receptor, but it is far from a perfect match - it just happens to have enough of the correct structure and amino acids in helpful positions to enable efficient binding and to allow the virus to then do its stuff and enter the cell (and replicate). As such, subtle changes in the structure of the spike protein will only affect this process marginally, and as you suggest, a mutation that causes the virus to lose its ability to bind to cells efficiently would, by definition, not be successful at replicating; hence mutations that enhance binding are selected for preferentially.

What would be good is if a very successful mutant that was clinically less harmful would start to dominate, and this can't be ruled out as the ultimate fate of SARS-CoV-2. Indeed, most other coronaviruses out there are only mildly harmful. This was even suggested on Twitter by my favourite COVIDIOT, Michael Yeadon, when he said that a 'asymptomatic strain' that became dominant would effectively be a natural vaccine. This is arguably true, but, as per usual, he neglects to point out the fact that, as far as we know right now, there is currently no such thing as an 'asymptomatic strain' of SARS-CoV-2, nor does he have many answers when it comes to the fact that there are multiple strains out there already and none have been identified as less harmful than any other.

 

[Outspacer]

What would be good is if a very successful mutant that was clinically less harmful would start to dominate, and this can't be ruled out as the ultimate fate of SARS-CoV-2. Indeed, most other coronaviruses out there are only mildly harmful. This was even suggested on Twitter by my favourite COVIDIOT, Michael Yeadon, when he said that a 'asymptomatic strain' that became dominant would effectively be a natural vaccine. This is arguably true, but, as per usual, he neglects to point out the fact that, as far as we know right now, there is currently no such thing as an 'asymptomatic strain' of SARS-CoV-2, nor does he have many answers when it comes to the fact that there are multiple strains out there already and none have been identified as less harmful than any other.

I'm sure there are many other problems with that notion, but the main one I can see is that that combination doesn't appear to be common - most mild illnesses are not highly transmissible, for example the common cold has not much more than half the R0 of most COVID strains, and much less than this new strain.

More likely (in my not-a-doctor opinion) is that after mass vaccination some strains will prevail that will, hopefully, be both less infectious and less harmful.

Foolish Mike Yeadon's notion is basically just a variant of the "just let it give us herd immunity" nonsense that doesn't consider what the human cost is along the way.

 

[SestoScudo]

Before masks were mandated I had the habit of wearing one along with my brother, mother and father.

After watching Japanese scientists doing tests on coughing and sneezing how the particles are like glitter hence why masks are effective seeing how common place it is among Japanese and Koreans to wear masks even before covid 19 shows how effective masks are in protecting yourself and others.

 

[Joey D]

So while the Trump administration dropped the ball weeks ago by not ordering more Pfizer vaccines, they got their stuff together and cut a deal to get 100 million doses.

U.S. Orders 100 Million More Pfizer COVID Vaccines, Aims for All To Get It By June

That's huge since it means 50 million more people can potentially get the vaccine and, per the Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, we should have enough doses by June to get everyone vaccinated. Logistically I have no idea how you plan to vaccinate 320 million people in six months, especially with healthcare systems that are already stretched thin. I suppose they could work with Walgreens and CVS to have them give vaccines in their stores. This would really help since in America there's a drug store on every corner (hell within a 3-mile radius of my place, there are at least 7). Throw in grocery stores with pharmacies and that would expand the ability to give it too.

It's a lofty goal for sure, but it's an important one.

The last I saw, the US has vaccinated roughly 800,000 people over the last 9 days or about 89,000 a day. At the current rate, that's 3,600 days to vaccinate everyone in the US or to put it another way, nearly 10 years. I know things will ramp up, but I think this shows just how much of a monumental undertaking this is. It almost seems like developing the vaccine was the easiest part of all this.

 

[Touring Mars]

The difficulty with rollout will also be compounded by the fact that people are supposed to get two shots spaced a few weeks apart... while a single shot should still work, it is more effective if two shots are given.

At least the infrastructure exists in the US to provide vaccines to pretty much everyone, but there's also the thorny question of cost. How do flu shots work in the US? Flu shots are free to vulnerable groups in the UK, but otherwise they are around £14/$17 a pop. I don't know how much any COVID vaccine might be, but given that people may need to get shots more regularly than once a year, it could be quite expensive.

 

[Novalee]

Republicans dancing it up in NewYork like covid never existed .



Strange behaviour in a pandemic .

 

[Joey D]

How do flu shots work in the US?

Almost every insurance plan (including Medicaid and Medicare) cover the flu vaccine. Sometimes you need to pay an office visit copay, but most health systems bill them as a nurse visit, which typically doesn't require a copay.

If you don't have insurance, prices can be all over the board. I think Costco is typically the cheapest at $20 or so and places like Walgreens charge something like $40, but offer coupons and other discounts. Most universities give them out for free and if you contact the health department in your area you can typically get it free or for a couple of bucks. Many charitable organizations give them out for free or low cost as well, as do many employers. If you work for a health system, you'll just get it through employee health. Where I work, in a normal year nurses set up in a conference room and administer the shots all day so you don't even need to leave the office. This year, we did a drive-through flu shot clinic that worked really well.

Basically, if you don't have insurance, you really shouldn't ever pay more than a few bucks for the shot, unless you want the convenience of going to the drug store.

Non-profit and not-for-profit health systems will also give out doses for free or at a low cost as well, it just depends on the system you go to. A for-profit health system though would probably charge you $200-$300 for a flu vaccine though, but no one in their right mind would go to a for-profit health system (even though millions do).

 

[Blitz24]

I actually have two members of my family (well, my brother-in-law and his father, both doctors) who have received the first shot of the vaccine in the past week. I will report back if they for some reason grow a third arm in an unusual fashion (as opposed to the standard method).

 

[TexRex]

Republicans dancing it up in NewYork like covid never existed .



Strange behaviour in a pandemic .

It's not that strange when you consider that they believe the pandemic was conjured up by the left as an attack on their bronzer daddy and that restrictions purported to be an attempt to curb spread and not cripple the healthcare system are just an attack on their freedoms.

They're delusional, you see.