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

[Blitz24]

I don't think it's so much as a promotion as it is a reward. To answer your question, no we don't have an abundant supply of vaccine.

No state does from what I can tell. New York is running extremely short due to the new pool of eligible people. New Jersey is less stressed on it's supply (comparatively) but I doubt my mother (who is now eligible) can get her vaccine in the near future.

 

[novcze]

The best course of action would be to remove the government completely and let health systems and health departments order directly from the manufacturer. Some states are trying to do this, but the federal government isn't allowing it at this moment.

If Biden's plan works as well as Biden thinks it will, we will be in much better shape by spring. If it doesn't, well then we're going to have a long road ahead of us.

You can get better deal if ordered at federal level, no? At least this is what the EU is saying when they bought vaccines for all member states.

 

[KM964]

I work in the pharmacy field, and recently ditched retail when I was offered a job at a local hospital in September, my sister happens to work in the intermediate care unit of this hospital. This is what it's like during all of this.

We are constantly having to mix remdesevir for CV+ patients. If they're not getting that, they are getting ivermectin. We are going through zinc, vitamin C, Solu-Medrol vials, Prismasol CRRT bags, and azithromycin (both pills and IV piggybacks) like crazy - for example, we can restock a medication machine with two 25-count boxes of Solu-Medrol vials and they would last 24-48 hours. Various medications are on backorder, such as albuterol inhalers, zinc, vitamin C, among others. We are constantly having to replenish medication trays from crash carts when CV+ patients code (cardiac arrest for the non-healthcare people). We don't have any CV vaccines at our hospital, but our neighboring hospital does and we could bum some off of them if we wanted to. That's just in the pharmacy.

The hospital as a whole has been over capacity for awhile. It has gotten so bad that our ER is almost always overflowing, with the waiting room full and patients in the hallways - the less severe ones stay in the hall while the higher priority people get exam rooms. Thankfully it's not like that in the regular units. The pre-op section is now being used for overflow rooms, and as a result all elective inpatient surgeries have been stopped. We've also started putting regular and CV+ patients in the post-partum unit, which was always reserved just for that. We converted our post-cardiac procedure unit into another ICU, which nearly doubled our ICU beds.

My sister obviously sees more than I do, since she's an actual nurse, and from what she tells me at least one person a day in her unit ends up dying or comes really close to doing so. And the morgue is usually almost always full at any given point. She's gotten to the point where bagging people up doesn't bother her any more. That's just what I've asked her about, there's probably a whole bunch more that she couldn't even begin to describe that she sees daily. She has been working there for years and hasn't seen it this bad. I don't really have anything to compare it to since I've only just started working in a hospital environment, but this pandemic is making adjusting to it a real challenge at times.

 

[CodeRedR51]

This is the current vaccination plan in my area...

They are currently still on 1A and 1B-1. Hopefully it speeds along fairly quickly, come late spring I'm going to start getting impatient.

 

[Touring Mars]

@KM964 I hope you and your sister can continue to do the great jobs you are both doing - my downstairs neighbour is also on the frontline here in Scotland and I can only imagine how difficult it is, but I just hope that everyone involved in this fight know how much they are appreciated and respected by those of us who depend on them for help when we need it the most.

come late spring I'm going to start getting impatient.

Be thankful there are people working their asses off just so you might get one at all...

 

[Danoff]

This is the current vaccination plan in my area...

They are currently still on 1A and 1B-1. Hopefully it speeds along fairly quickly, come late spring I'm going to start getting impatient.

Colorado is explicitly calling that last group "summer":

 

[Blitz24]

How do they define obesity exactly?

 

[Joey D]

How do they define obesity exactly?

If you have a BMI of more than 30, you're considered obese per the CDC.

 

[Blitz24]

If you have a BMI of more than 30, you're considered obese per the CDC.

I'm definitely in the range based on the calculations I've made. The issue I personally have is that I feel many more people should get the vaccine before me and/or if it's in short supply, I'd rather those with more pressing medical needs receive the vaccine first. I am grateful that I have not had COVID and I have been extremely cautious but I don't want to "jump the line".

 

[JKgo]

I was reading up on the migrant caravan headed to the US getting beaten to a pulp on their way, and a thought suddenly came to me.

Every developed country has undocumented migrants, the so-called "illegal aliens". How are the respective governments planning to inoculate them?

Unlike the regular flu jabs, which you can get at a pharmacy or a GP near you for next to nothing, COVID vaccine distribution is being tightly regulated by the governments involved. Your details need to be captured and stored in an easily-accessible database for the health department workers.

I can already tell that pretty much every undocumented migrant would not want to be tracked by the government in fear of getting deported without warning. You could argue that that won't happen, but will it be enough to convince them? Somehow, I doubt it. There's no guarantee that ICE or for that matter, SA Home Affairs, won't suddenly come to a decision to capitalise on this "opportunity" after the pandemic has been reined in to a degree, after all.

That migrant caravan apparently had a dozen-plus people showing the symptoms of COVID19. All it takes is a handful of people not getting vaccinated and contracting the virus - all the hard work potentially coming undone.

I seriously hope that I'm worried about nothing here, but truth be told, I don't have much faith in RSA's government in this matter. They announced earlier that they'd start issuing "COVID vaccine IDs" to those who got jabbed. This is coming from a government that can't even get their electricity supply issue sorted out for the last ten-plus years.

Some studies suggest that there are over a million undocumented workers from Zimbabwe living in South Africa, and that's not counting the folks from Mozambique, Ghana, Malawi and many other African and Subcontinent countries like Bangladesh. They came here hoping to escape from the desperate poverty and even racial persecution, so it'd suck for them to get sent back home from the double whammy of the pandemic and the government acting very sneaky and the like.

 

[Joey D]

How are the respective governments planning to inoculate them?

We have a huge population of undocumented immigrants here in SLC. Right now, we're trying to figure this out. Chances are it'll be a free clinic where no questions are asked and it won't be run by the health department, but instead by a health system.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

I'm definitely in the range based on the calculations I've made. The issue I personally have is that I feel many more people should get the vaccine before me and/or if it's in short supply, I'd rather those with more pressing medical needs receive the vaccine first. I am grateful that I have not had COVID and I have been extremely cautious but I don't want to "jump the line".

If you're planning on getting it, I wouldn't feel guilty about it.

 

[PzR Slim]

1,820 dead in the UK today. Remember when 500 a day in Italy seemed like hell on earth?

 

[Tired Tyres]

1,820 dead in the UK today. Remember when 500 a day in Italy seemed like hell on earth?

That will be people visiting relatives over Christmas and a government that wouldn't cancel Christmas. Together with a notice period before a status change allowing mass gatherings at train stations. In Winter. Still at least I can ignore a letter I got telling me I could have a free flu jab. Who's catching flu?

 

[UKMikey]

I'm sorry to politicise this thread. But South Dakota is at a 58% positive test rate now because the governor doesn't believe in lockdown. I feel desperately sorry for healthcare workers and first line responders if their experience is anything like Jodi Orth's.

 

[Dennisch]

Keep patients like that on a separate floor and make sure that the normal patients get the care they need. If choices need to be made, weed out the dumb ****s first.

edit.

Our government is still in talks about a curfew, but seeing how they took forever to make a mask mandate happen, I can't see them agree on the terms for it any time soon. Starting January 23 all flights from the UK, South America and South Africa are banned until a mandatory quarantine period is legally allowed.

Our numbers have dropped in 3 weeks lock down from 13000 cases per day to less than 6000, hospitals are still busy but not overwhelmed. Just about all urgent care personnel has had their first shots, and next week will see the 90000 90+ year old get their first shots.
I hope that we receive enough vaccines in the coming weeks because our infrastructure is ready to get everyone injected as soon as possible.

 

[TB]

I'm sorry to politicise this thread. But South Dakota is at a 58% positive test rate now because the governor doesn't believe in lockdown. I feel desperately sorry for healthcare workers and first line responders if their experience is anything like Jodi Orth's.

For a while, North Dakota was the worst in the nation until a state wide mask mandate went into effect on November 13th.

Mask mandate article:
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-st...cted-to-decide-whether-to-extend-mask-mandate

Effect of the mask mandate:
https://www.health.nd.gov/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/north-dakota-coronavirus-cases

I wonder if there's any correlation to the mask mandate and the graph...

As of Monday, the state wide mandate has expired but cities, at least Fargo, still have it in effect until February 18th.

 

[KM964]

Keep patients like that on a separate floor and make sure that the normal patients get the care they need.

Easier said than done. Our hospital is over capacity and we're having to put patients wherever we can. When it first broke out we stuck them in the cardiovascular ICU, but we eventually got so overwhelmed with CV+ people that we have to stick them wherever. We usually put the worst ones in the ICU.

 

[Blitz24]

For a while, North Dakota was the worst in the nation until a state wide mask mandate went into effect on November 13th.

Mask mandate article:
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-st...cted-to-decide-whether-to-extend-mask-mandate

Effect of the mask mandate:
https://www.health.nd.gov/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/north-dakota-coronavirus-cases

I wonder if there's any correlation to the mask mandate and the graph...

As of Monday, the state wide mandate has expired but cities, at least Fargo, still have it in effect until February 18th.

Your brethren in SoDak wanted in on the party.

 

[Joey D]

Your brethren in SoDak wanted in on the party.

And Utah is like that weird cousin who converted to Mormonism and is disappointed the NoDak and SoDak are getting drunk, but understands and will pray for them.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

I was reading up on the migrant caravan headed to the US getting beaten to a pulp on their way, and a thought suddenly came to me.

Every developed country has undocumented migrants, the so-called "illegal aliens". How are the respective governments planning to inoculate them?

Unlike the regular flu jabs, which you can get at a pharmacy or a GP near you for next to nothing, COVID vaccine distribution is being tightly regulated by the governments involved. Your details need to be captured and stored in an easily-accessible database for the health department workers.

I can already tell that pretty much every undocumented migrant would not want to be tracked by the government in fear of getting deported without warning. You could argue that that won't happen, but will it be enough to convince them? Somehow, I doubt it. There's no guarantee that ICE or for that matter, SA Home Affairs, won't suddenly come to a decision to capitalise on this "opportunity" after the pandemic has been reined in to a degree, after all.

That migrant caravan apparently had a dozen-plus people showing the symptoms of COVID19. All it takes is a handful of people not getting vaccinated and contracting the virus - all the hard work potentially coming undone.

I seriously hope that I'm worried about nothing here, but truth be told, I don't have much faith in RSA's government in this matter. They announced earlier that they'd start issuing "COVID vaccine IDs" to those who got jabbed. This is coming from a government that can't even get their electricity supply issue sorted out for the last ten-plus years.

Some studies suggest that there are over a million undocumented workers from Zimbabwe living in South Africa, and that's not counting the folks from Mozambique, Ghana, Malawi and many other African and Subcontinent countries like Bangladesh. They came here hoping to escape from the desperate poverty and even racial persecution, so it'd suck for them to get sent back home from the double whammy of the pandemic and the government acting very sneaky and the like.

In California, at least urban California, undocumented immigrants are treated nearly the same as citizens (by this I mean they don't necessarily/fully occupy a separate sphere of life). I think there is a level of trust between the local governments here and the undocumented community such that I don't believe they would feel hesitant to come forward for vaccinations, especially now that Biden is in the White House and will probably hold ICE on a short leash, at least until the pandemic is behind us. If I remember correctly, most undocumented immigrants here typically have either a CA issued ID or DL, so they are "in the system" agnostic of their immigration status.

 

[ryzno]

https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/ne...ctivate-down-road/KGK5DCZUYBHS3LKGEXR2QY5BEE/

 

[JKgo]

https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/ne...ctivate-down-road/KGK5DCZUYBHS3LKGEXR2QY5BEE/

That's how we get a zombie apocalypse: a brain-"eating" virus.

Perhaps that might explain why there have been so many brain-dead responses to the pandemic.

 

[Joey D]

Does this mean Prime Members get free same-day vaccinations?

Amazon congratulates President Biden and Vice President Harris; lends support to vaccinating Americans

It makes sense though. If there's one company that understands logistics better than any other company out there, it's Amazon.

 

[Joey D]

And boom, vaccinated or at least partially vaccinated.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

It makes sense though. If there's one company that understands logistics better than any other entity, ever, it's Amazon.

FTFY.

 

[Blitz24]

And boom, vaccinated or at least partially vaccinated.

Don't tell my mother. She's driving everyone crazy because she can't get a vaccine and she's now eligible.

 

[CodeRedR51]

It makes sense though. If there's one company that understands logistics better than any other company out there, it's Amazon.

It's most definitely NOT the USPS.

In other news, if you play American Truck Simulator (or Euro Truck Simulator) you can help deliver vaccines through February 7th...

 

[Moglet]

Well I definitely can't see this backfiring...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55760467

Ministers are to discuss proposals to pay anyone in England who tests positive for Covid-19 £500 to self-isolate.

 

[PeterJB]

Well I definitely can't see this backfiring...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55760467

I guess it'll mean your £800 fine for hosting a house/covid party gets offset down to £300. Another Tory brainwave they haven't given a modicum of thought.