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.
Yes, we have a February break we generally refer to as winter break, and our spring breaks generally fall around Easter and/or Passover, which is often much later than spring breaks in other states (and in colleges). Local departments of health may be making those observations re: travel while contact tracing but I'm not sure if data has been publicized yet (probably still too early).
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.
Yes, in last week's thread I posted a piece (I think - man my mind is a blur lol) that said the UK's gamble with delaying second shots has so far appeared to pay off. Canada is adding another month but hopefully can see similar successful results.
I can relate to the shot envy. My husband got lucky and got a cancellation shot when he took his parents. He is 38 and does not qualify under any of the conditions. My MIL said she saw all these young people get the shot but they could have been teachers etc. I am 40 so I was hoping they call the 40's soon. They are still telling me to sign up but I can't yet.
Blackfeet Nation is currently reporting 95% of eligible enrolled members are vaccinated. IHS data from the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux tribes and the Chippewa Cree of Rocky Boy’s reservation show a third of tribal members in these areas are now vaccinated compared to about 15 percent of Montana as a whole as of Friday.
Our state rate is being pulled up nationally by the First People's vaccinations. It's amazing after a year ago where they had some of the highest infection rates and death tolls in our state.
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.
Weird random thing I just realized... I’m scheduled to have minor surgery tomorrow, and they didn’t call me for a covid test beforehand. I’m wondering if this means they are going to cancel it, or if they aren’t doing that anymore.
Weird random thing I just realized... I’m scheduled to have minor surgery tomorrow, and they didn’t call me for a covid test beforehand. I’m wondering if this means they are going to cancel it, or if they aren’t doing that anymore.
Maybe it depends on the hospital? I am having a biopsy next Monday and i have to get one.
Related question - do places usually take a COVID test from anywhere? My test is scheduled at the hospital where i am having the procedure, but I realized there are more convenient places closer to me that i could probably go.
Weird random thing I just realized... I’m scheduled to have minor surgery tomorrow, and they didn’t call me for a covid test beforehand. I’m wondering if this means they are going to cancel it, or if they aren’t doing that anymore.
Maybe it depends on the hospital? I am having a biopsy next Monday and i have to get one.
Related question - do places usually take a COVID test from anywhere? My test is scheduled at the hospital where i am having the procedure, but I realized there are more convenient places closer to me that i could probably go.
I’m sure this varies but I had surgery in September and they were adamant they would not accept it from anyone else than the same hospital.
Post by Velar Fricative on Mar 22, 2021 12:46:46 GMT -5
I'm so heartened by the vaccinations happening among my work teams since they've all been eligible as front-facing public workers since Wednesday. One manager told me his entire cohort that he works on-site with has been partially vaccinated already!
Weird random thing I just realized... I’m scheduled to have minor surgery tomorrow, and they didn’t call me for a covid test beforehand. I’m wondering if this means they are going to cancel it, or if they aren’t doing that anymore.
I think you will be asked any covid-symptom or related questions when you arrive. My dad had a minor surgery and they didn't ask for a test, only took temp and asked about symptoms/exposure. Oh and my mom had a root canal last week, and it was the same for her - not test, but did have to have temp/symptom-exposure check. But back in September when she had some oral surgery she did get a test 3 days before. Weird - it must have changed some places/hospitals.
Massachusetts is back in the red on the Covid act now map, yet today we go into phase 4 of reopening where stadiums and large venues can open.
ETA - I know our population density in the northeast is working against us but it is disheartening to see other states doing far better when they never took it that seriously. We have a decent % vaccinated and mask wearing has been generally very high in MA, Yet here we are.
Post by eponinepontmercy on Mar 22, 2021 13:08:30 GMT -5
Guys, my mom actually scheduled her first shot! She's not anti-vaccine except for herself because she's afraid of side effects. Not that she has talked to her doctor about it - just talking to random friends and coworkers that have gotten it. (She does seem to get every side effect for every medication she takes.) I was really worried she wouldn't get it - she turned it down when her workplace (hospital) had them previously.
My dad had the first shot and is scheduled for the second.
My brother isn't technically eligible, but a friend works at a pharmacy and is going to call him if they have any leftover at the end of the day.
My sister had covid after Christmas and still has a few more weeks before she is allowed to get the vaccine, but I don't think she's eligible yet.
My family annoys the fuck out of me on a regular basis, but I'm so excited that I'll be able to hug them and spend time together this summer.
For the areas where cases are going up, are hospitalization and deal that also rising? I know deaths lag behind case numbers, so we might not know, but I’m living life knowing that I can still get Covid even though I’m vaccinated, but I won’t die or be hospitalized. So is it possible there’s an increase in individual cases, but the hospitalization/death numbers look ok?
Massachusetts is back in the red on the Covid act now map, yet today we go into phase 4 of reopening where stadiums and large venues can open.
ETA - I know our population density in the northeast is working against us but it is disheartening to see other states doing far better when they never took it that seriously. We have a decent % vaccinated and mask wearing has been generally very high in MA, Yet here we are.
I admit to having very similar feelings here in my northeast state. I don't *want* cases to be high anywhere. State leaders do not reflect all of their residents, and having lower cases everywhere helps us all especially with people traveling more. But I am seriously WTF with how low numbers are in certain places and how high they are here. People here are certainly "opening up" a little too much in their personal lives (like one of my staff who held a large birthday party in a party hall and half the attendees got covid, wtf), so I don't want to say we bear no responsibility as a community for our bad luck, but I also suspect variants are playing a role here. NYC has its own identified variants. CA variants were identified when CA was surging a few months ago. I just hope we can blunt this more as more people get vaccinated.
For the areas where cases are going up, are hospitalization and deal that also rising? I know deaths lag behind case numbers, so we might not know, but I’m living life knowing that I can still get Covid even though I’m vaccinated, but I won’t die or be hospitalized. So is it possible there’s an increase in individual cases, but the hospitalization/death numbers look ok?
In NJ, hospitalizations are ticking up again after falling off for a little bit after the January surge. We are nowhere near the lows we saw last summer.
And anecdotally, I was in the ER with a family member a few weeks ago and it was like a war zone in there. Tons of patients in hallways because beds/bays were full, people coughing all over and a lot of people on oxygen. It was terrifying.
For the areas where cases are going up, are hospitalization and deal that also rising? I know deaths lag behind case numbers, so we might not know, but I’m living life knowing that I can still get Covid even though I’m vaccinated, but I won’t die or be hospitalized. So is it possible there’s an increase in individual cases, but the hospitalization/death numbers look ok?
Hospitalizations are decreasing in NY, but still way higher than they were over the summer and early fall. Nothing close to what it was last spring (12,000 hospitalizations last April versus about 2,700 now), so I suspect there are feelings of complacency because it's still not as bad as it was last year (and never got close to spring levels even a few months ago when hospitalizations spiked). So, this could reflect more younger people getting infected and/or vaccinations, masks, etc. blunting symptoms. One of my team members with multiple underlying conditions is currently covid+ but had received one dose of Pfizer a couple of weeks after testing positive. She's been asymptomatic for the last 10 days since she tested positive so she's chalking it up to her vaccine dose since she was otherwise scared because of her underlying conditions.
Massachusetts is back in the red on the Covid act now map, yet today we go into phase 4 of reopening where stadiums and large venues can open.
ETA - I know our population density in the northeast is working against us but it is disheartening to see other states doing far better when they never took it that seriously. We have a decent % vaccinated and mask wearing has been generally very high in MA, Yet here we are.
Here in NY and specifically NYC is is frustrating that we're just kind of stuck at a high level. Vaccines+prior infection* should put us around 30% to 40% of of the population with some protection from the virus but it doesn't seem to be creating the nose dive in cases I'd hoped for. I am guessing it is because the new variants are easier to spread and immunity is actually highest among groups that are less likely to spread the virus Seniors have high vaccine rates relative to young adults who might be working front line jobs. We're also relaxing many restrictions that helped contain spread. Indoor dinning is opening as are sporting events.
*NYC has about 800,000 confirmed cases but that is an large underestimate. Last I heard is serology studies indicate about 20% of the city had the virus at some point so closer to 1.7 million folks and we're approaching 2 million with one vaccine and approx. 1 million with complete vaccine doses. I know these overlap to some degree but it does show that a high level of vaccines and/or containment measures are needed for this virus to really stop spreading.
Post by suburbanzookeeper on Mar 22, 2021 13:59:50 GMT -5
I'm two weeks out from my second Pfizer vaccine - moving around with the second really helped with the soreness (because good lord it felt like someone gave it to me with an impact drill).
The husband's second one is Friday! He ended up having to get it from our home county instead of his employer's city/county because they had enough people refuse the vaccine it no longer made sense for the van/station to come out. He's so upset with his co-workers (FF/EMTs) who've opted to not get it.
Massachusetts is back in the red on the Covid act now map, yet today we go into phase 4 of reopening where stadiums and large venues can open.
ETA - I know our population density in the northeast is working against us but it is disheartening to see other states doing far better when they never took it that seriously. We have a decent % vaccinated and mask wearing has been generally very high in MA, Yet here we are.
I admit to having very similar feelings here in my northeast state. I don't *want* cases to be high anywhere. State leaders do not reflect all of their residents, and having lower cases everywhere helps us all especially with people traveling more. But I am seriously WTF with how low numbers are in certain places and how high they are here. People here are certainly "opening up" a little too much in their personal lives (like one of my staff who held a large birthday party in a party hall and half the attendees got covid, wtf), so I don't want to say we bear no responsibility as a community for our bad luck, but I also suspect variants are playing a role here. NYC has its own identified variants. CA variants were identified when CA was surging a few months ago. I just hope we can blunt this more as more people get vaccinated.
I wonder if that is playing a role in our numbers, in addition to being able to be outside and pretty far apart due to the amount of open space we have here and entering some spring-like conditions. Montana was sooo high in September-December, and now our Covid-19 occurrence has gone down a lot.
We have, so far, had the UK, California, and New York variants active in our state recently (https://www.mtpr.org/post/montana-coronavirus-and-covid-19-news), but not the South Africa variant. I wonder if that matters some too... how long they have been active in each state in addition to density. Overall, there are sooo many less cases, even when surging in certain counties/small areas than previously. So that does bode well for everyone and opening up some. And just remember that just because I'm in a red state who has a governor who did away with the mask mandate as quickly as possible, doesn't mean we all are throwing that out. Most all of the city/county boards of health in over half the state are still enforcing restrictions and are not happy with the governor's Trumpian ways... the guy only won with 54% of the vote, so about 46% of our people are not with him on most of his decisions. It just sucks b/c we have flipped recently.
For the areas where cases are going up, are hospitalization and deal that also rising? I know deaths lag behind case numbers, so we might not know, but I’m living life knowing that I can still get Covid even though I’m vaccinated, but I won’t die or be hospitalized. So is it possible there’s an increase in individual cases, but the hospitalization/death numbers look ok?
locally, we have the opposite. our case numbers have dropped dramatically, but it looks like hospitalizations and deaths are creeping back up in the last week or two. I hope it’s a statistical anomaly and not a new pattern. The deaths had previously been highly concentrated among institutionalized people - ie. Mostly elderly nursing home residents. Their deaths seemed to have stopped (and their percentage of overall deaths is dropping).
Weird random thing I just realized... I’m scheduled to have minor surgery tomorrow, and they didn’t call me for a covid test beforehand. I’m wondering if this means they are going to cancel it, or if they aren’t doing that anymore.
My H is scheduled for a colonoscopy in early April. At his consult in February, they sent him home with instructions for a covid test (I think they actually gave him a mail-in test). Last week, they called him and told him the covid test was no longer necessary unless he has a known exposure within a week of his appt.
For the areas where cases are going up, are hospitalization and deal that also rising? I know deaths lag behind case numbers, so we might not know, but I’m living life knowing that I can still get Covid even though I’m vaccinated, but I won’t die or be hospitalized. So is it possible there’s an increase in individual cases, but the hospitalization/death numbers look ok?
Weird random thing I just realized... I’m scheduled to have minor surgery tomorrow, and they didn’t call me for a covid test beforehand. I’m wondering if this means they are going to cancel it, or if they aren’t doing that anymore.
My H is scheduled for a colonoscopy in early April. At his consult in February, they sent him home with instructions for a covid test (I think they actually gave him a mail-in test). Last week, they called him and told him the covid test was no longer necessary unless he has a known exposure within a week of his appt.
So, it’s not required. But not because of that, because THEY AREN’T PLANNING TO PUT ME OUT!!!
All they told me was no covid test. But when I asked how long I need to be NPO, they said no NPO requirements. And, nothing said about having a ride home. 20 minutes after I hung up, I added it all together. So now, rather than stressing about this, I get to stress about how I AGAIN have to do something awake that I don’t want to. And, I’ve had this procedure before, and last time, I was twilighted. I hated that because I woke up in the middle. But WTF people. Can’t a girl get some help here?!?!
sorry... not covid related. But I needed to get it out.
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.
BMI over 25 made me eligible back in January in my county (DFW area). I still think a lot of people don’t realize they qualify based on this.