COVID 3/22

[NewOrleans]

As another poster expressed a COVID loss in the previous thread, I started this one.  

Michigan surging rather badly. 😣

abcnews.go.com/Health/covid-19-increasing-michigan-warning/story?id=76544164

[NewOrleans]

As of a week ago, Navajo Nation had reported no deaths for 2 days. 🙏
I hope that trend has continued.
www.usnews.com/news/best-states/arizona/articles/2021-03-14/navajo-nation-reports-15-more-covid-19-cases-3-more-deaths

[NewOrleans]

Do Moderna and Pfizer protect against these new variants of UK and South Africa and whatever the hell else is lurking?
Why about Johnson and Johnson?
I’m still scared.

[Velar Fricative]

I’ve noticed the biggest surges are in northern states (NY, NJ, MI, etc.) I wonder how much winter travel to warmer locations has played a role in the surges (too early for spring break impacts, IMO). I refuse to believe a significant amount of people weren’t letting their guards down while on vacation and bringing shit back. Overall though, pandemic fatigue seems to be the biggest commonality, which includes travel.

[pixy0stix]

I've got a gnarly bruise on my arm from the pfizer vaccine (dose 1).

[abs]

Mar 22, 2021 8:38:55 GMT -5 NewOrleans said:

Do Moderna and Pfizer protect against these new variants of UK and South Africa and whatever the hell else is lurking?
Why about Johnson and Johnson?
I’m still scared.

UK yes.  South Africa still yes but less so especially for J&J.  It still protects against severe illness and death though which shouldn't be overlooked.

I get it.  These next few weeks are crucial.  I still feel mostly hopeful but it's not over.

[formerlyak]

For the first time in the pandemic, Los Angeles County is one of the lowest around - just under 6/100,000 case rate and 1.3% positivity rate in the last 7 days. I hope this continues. Weather has been good. Lots of people outside. Maybe that’s helping.

DH gets his second shot today. And this weekend I get to see my brother for the first time in almost a year! I talk to him almost daily, but miss him so much. Even in college, we never went this long between seeing each other.

[aprilsails]

There was some back and forthing, but it appears as though Health Canada is officially moving forward with a plan to delay second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine to 4 months after the initial shot. We will be the only country to date that has done this, but the epidemiologists have crunched the numbers and decided that with our lack of available vaccines it is worth the risk. My Mom’s second dose appointment was just cancelled and will be rescheduled for July.

www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/immunization/national-advisory-committee-on-immunization-naci/rapid-response-extended-dose-intervals-covid-19-vaccines-early-rollout-population-protection.html

[MeMyselfandI]

I'm getting vaccinated today!!!!

[meganew]

Mar 22, 2021 8:46:34 GMT -5 formerlyak said:

For the first time in the pandemic, Los Angeles County is one of the lowest around - just under 6/100,000 case rate and 1.3% positivity rate in the last 7 days. I hope this continues. Weather has been good. Lots of people outside. Maybe that’s helping.

DH gets his second shot today. And this weekend I get to see my brother for the first time in almost a year! I talk to him almost daily, but miss him so much. Even in college, we never went this long between seeing each other.

LA’s surge was so, so bad I’m wondering if they’re hitting some local herd immunity- if that’s even a thing

[aurora]

Mar 22, 2021 8:48:51 GMT -5 aprilsails said:

There was some back and forthing, but it appears as though Health Canada is officially moving forward with a plan to delay second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine to 4 months after the initial shot. We will be the only country to date that has done this, but the epidemiologists have crunched the numbers and decided that with our lack of available vaccines it is worth the risk. My Mom’s second dose appointment was just cancelled and will be rescheduled for July.

www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/immunization/national-advisory-committee-on-immunization-naci/rapid-response-extended-dose-intervals-covid-19-vaccines-early-rollout-population-protection.html

I'm sorry your Mom's second dose was delayed. I know there has been a lot of discussion and controversy over this strategy, and I hope it works out well for Canada.

Isn't the UK doing something similar? Maybe the delay period is shorter?

[fernweh]

Mar 22, 2021 8:38:55 GMT -5 NewOrleans said:

Do Moderna and Pfizer protect against these new variants of UK and South Africa and whatever the hell else is lurking?
Why about Johnson and Johnson?
I’m still scared.

Michigan has also been easing a lot of restrictions recently as well especially pertaining to indoor dining and bar capacity. Every bar and restaurant I drive past always has packed parking lots.

[glitzy07]

My husband is getting vaccinated today! Our state just recently opened up the phase that includes retail food workers and his company, which has a pharmacy in stores, set aside enough doses for all employees who want them. I'm not sure which one he's getting, but the next two days are his days off so hopefully if he reacts he'll be able to rest up before being required to be back at work again.

[aurora]

Mar 22, 2021 8:39:34 GMT -5 Velar Fricative said:

I’ve noticed the biggest surges are in northern states (NY, NJ, MI, etc.) I wonder how much winter travel to warmer locations has played a role in the surges (too early for spring break impacts, IMO). I refuse to believe a significant amount of people weren’t letting their guards down while on vacation and bringing shit back. Overall though, pandemic fatigue seems to be the biggest commonality, which includes travel.

Some states have two spring breaks (in Feb and April; I guess the Feb one could be called a winter break), so it could be related to travel from that one. The article NewOrleans posted says that a lot of the cases are related to a prison outbreak (could be a useful fact for those arguing that prisoners shouldn't be prioritized).

I know from the article that they are testing for variants and have found the UK one in MI. I also wonder if we'll eventually find our own new variant there.

[erbear]

I’m really struggling to see why everyone is lifting restrictions now. I recognize that I come from a place of extraordinary privilege with this (jobs are carrying on, we can be outside) but if feels like we are so close (relatively speaking) and moving in the right direction. Why can’t we hold out for a couple more months? It’s so frustrating.

[breezy8407]

Mar 22, 2021 9:18:35 GMT -5 erbear said:

I’m really struggling to see why everyone is lifting restrictions now. I recognize that I come from a place of extraordinary privilege with this (jobs are carrying on, we can be outside) but if feels like we are so close (relatively speaking) and moving in the right direction. Why can’t we hold out for a couple more months? It’s so frustrating.

Me too. The numbers in MN have been going back up.

[ny96]

Mar 22, 2021 8:55:26 GMT -5 meganew said:

Mar 22, 2021 8:46:34 GMT -5 formerlyak said:

For the first time in the pandemic, Los Angeles County is one of the lowest around - just under 6/100,000 case rate and 1.3% positivity rate in the last 7 days. I hope this continues. Weather has been good. Lots of people outside. Maybe that’s helping.

DH gets his second shot today. And this weekend I get to see my brother for the first time in almost a year! I talk to him almost daily, but miss him so much. Even in college, we never went this long between seeing each other.

LA’s surge was so, so bad I’m wondering if they’re hitting some local herd immunity- if that’s even a thing

This is what is believed to have happened.

[NewOrleans]

Mar 22, 2021 9:18:35 GMT -5 erbear said:

I’m really struggling to see why everyone is lifting restrictions now. I recognize that I come from a place of extraordinary privilege with this (jobs are carrying on, we can be outside) but if feels like we are so close (relatively speaking) and moving in the right direction. Why can’t we hold out for a couple more months? It’s so frustrating.

Because when you personally get a vaccine or 2, or can get one soon, it means no one else can get COVID anymore if COVID ever existed. 🥳

[mrssandro]

Anybody want to take a stab on when Texas will announce their next age group? It has to be soon right? I have noticed their seems to be more open appointments in DFW. I am ready to get my shot!

[chickadee77]

Mar 22, 2021 8:43:34 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

I've got a gnarly bruise on my arm from the pfizer vaccine (dose 1).

I did, too. Felt like someone hit me with a bat for about three days.

[wildrice]

Mar 22, 2021 9:18:35 GMT -5 erbear said:

I’m really struggling to see why everyone is lifting restrictions now. I recognize that I come from a place of extraordinary privilege with this (jobs are carrying on, we can be outside) but if feels like we are so close (relatively speaking) and moving in the right direction. Why can’t we hold out for a couple more months? It’s so frustrating.

Same. It seems very premature. And, the numbers have been trending down but they are not great most places. My state (Maryland) has fewer restrictions now, when we're averaging around 1k case a day, than we did last summer when we were around 500 most days. Why? It makes no sense to me. This thing is still not under control!

Even my own work seems to be giving up. I have to start going into the office part time in a few weeks, and my supervisor seems to think we'll be back at full capacity in June. I'm not sure if that's actually going to happen or not, but I can't imagine how that will be ok from a public health perspective. Just because our cubicles are technically 6 feet apart doesn't mean the air in the building won't be circulating further than that...

[abs]

Mar 22, 2021 9:33:15 GMT -5 mrssandro said:

Anybody want to take a stab on when Texas will announce their next age group? It has to be soon right? I have noticed their seems to be more open appointments in DFW. I am ready to get my shot!

Next week? We have 6,000 appointments open today in Houston that they can’t seem to give away, I find that very concerning.

[mrssandro]

Mar 22, 2021 9:54:24 GMT -5 abs said:

Mar 22, 2021 9:33:15 GMT -5 mrssandro said:

Anybody want to take a stab on when Texas will announce their next age group? It has to be soon right? I have noticed their seems to be more open appointments in DFW. I am ready to get my shot!

Next week? We have 6,000 appointments open today in Houston that they can’t seem to give away, I find that very concerning.

I find it interesting that Houston has vaccine appointments and DFW is still having issues with supply vrs demand. Send them to the north! That said I hope they say April 1st the next age group can be announced. Our county has almost reached their entire waitlist. They had 415,000 and they are at like 400,000. Crossing my fingers it will be soon. 

[formerlyak]

Mar 22, 2021 8:55:26 GMT -5 meganew said:

Mar 22, 2021 8:46:34 GMT -5 formerlyak said:

For the first time in the pandemic, Los Angeles County is one of the lowest around - just under 6/100,000 case rate and 1.3% positivity rate in the last 7 days. I hope this continues. Weather has been good. Lots of people outside. Maybe that’s helping.

DH gets his second shot today. And this weekend I get to see my brother for the first time in almost a year! I talk to him almost daily, but miss him so much. Even in college, we never went this long between seeing each other.

LA’s surge was so, so bad I’m wondering if they’re hitting some local herd immunity- if that’s even a thing

It’s certainly possible. We’ve also done a pretty good job of getting shots in arms, especially for vulnerable populations compared to other areas. I think that’s helping as well.

[formerlyak]

www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/vaccine/vaccine-dashboard.htm#65

The distribution data is fascinating to me.

[lemoncupcake]

Mar 22, 2021 9:33:15 GMT -5 mrssandro said:

Anybody want to take a stab on when Texas will announce their next age group? It has to be soon right? I have noticed their seems to be more open appointments in DFW. I am ready to get my shot!

A friend pointed out that the Texas site says this:

www.dshs.texas.gov/covidvaccine/
“
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a more complete list of health conditions that do or may increase the risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19, according to the latest scientific research. People with medical conditions listed there qualify for vaccination in Texas. Other conditions may increase the risk from COVID-19. Talk to your health care provider for more information.”

And the linked CDC site has a longer list of conditions (including BMI over 25) that weren’t previously communicated as part of the Texas rollout.

I’m not sure when they added that verbiage, but it would include some more people before the next official phase.

[jamaicam]

Mar 22, 2021 9:08:45 GMT -5 aurora said:

Mar 22, 2021 8:48:51 GMT -5 aprilsails said:

There was some back and forthing, but it appears as though Health Canada is officially moving forward with a plan to delay second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine to 4 months after the initial shot. We will be the only country to date that has done this, but the epidemiologists have crunched the numbers and decided that with our lack of available vaccines it is worth the risk. My Mom’s second dose appointment was just cancelled and will be rescheduled for July.

www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/immunization/national-advisory-committee-on-immunization-naci/rapid-response-extended-dose-intervals-covid-19-vaccines-early-rollout-population-protection.html

I'm sorry your Mom's second dose was delayed. I know there has been a lot of discussion and controversy over this strategy, and I hope it works out well for Canada.

Isn't the UK doing something similar? Maybe the delay period is shorter?

Uk is doing it with the astra zenneca - going 3 months between the two vaccine shots. 

[mcppalmbeach]

I’m really starting to get vaccine envy...more and more of my peers seem to be getting the shot with no medical condition or other qualifiers (early 40s). Mostly because sites are being identified where no questions are asked and it’s on the honor system. These people are all “shots in arms!” And I’m still over here waiting my turn. I might try stopping by a store I frequent and see if they have a cancellation list. There is a site 2hours from me opening up to 40+ next week, but it’s county run and reservation only so we’ll see what happens.

[Velar Fricative]

Mar 22, 2021 8:55:26 GMT -5 meganew said:

Mar 22, 2021 8:46:34 GMT -5 formerlyak said:

For the first time in the pandemic, Los Angeles County is one of the lowest around - just under 6/100,000 case rate and 1.3% positivity rate in the last 7 days. I hope this continues. Weather has been good. Lots of people outside. Maybe that’s helping.

DH gets his second shot today. And this weekend I get to see my brother for the first time in almost a year! I talk to him almost daily, but miss him so much. Even in college, we never went this long between seeing each other.

LA’s surge was so, so bad I’m wondering if they’re hitting some local herd immunity- if that’s even a thing

It might be. It could explain why NYC saw such low numbers after last spring. It also could explain states like South Dakota which pretty much didn't do anything when their rates skyrocketed seeing their rates drop considerably after their surges too. Which unfortunately would make anti-restriction/mask people assume that whatever goes up must come down so we might as well keep doing nothing.

[neverfstop]

Mar 22, 2021 10:21:56 GMT -5 lemoncupcake said:

Mar 22, 2021 9:33:15 GMT -5 mrssandro said:

Anybody want to take a stab on when Texas will announce their next age group? It has to be soon right? I have noticed their seems to be more open appointments in DFW. I am ready to get my shot!

A friend pointed out that the Texas site says this:

www.dshs.texas.gov/covidvaccine/
“
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a more complete list of health conditions that do or may increase the risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19, according to the latest scientific research. People with medical conditions listed there qualify for vaccination in Texas. Other conditions may increase the risk from COVID-19. Talk to your health care provider for more information.”

And the linked CDC site has a longer list of conditions (including BMI over 25) that weren’t previously communicated as part of the Texas rollout.

I’m not sure when they added that verbiage, but it would include some more people before the next official phase.

Thanks crazy....at 5'6" and 155 lbs. I qualify?!?!?  I'll try signing up tomorrow- today's appointments are gone. I guess one of the few perks of gaining some pandemic pounds?