New Year Covid

[NewOrleans]

This thread is not meant for @ content.


The Covid omicron XBB.1.5 variant has nearly doubled in prevalence over the past week and now represents about 41% of new cases in the U.S., according to CDC data.

XBB.1.5 is highly immune evasive and appears to bind better to cells than other members of the XBB omicron subvariant family.

Scientists at Columbia University have warned that the rise of subvariants such as the XBB family could "result in a surge of breakthrough infections as well as re-infections."

Fauci said he was encouraged by the case of Singapore, which had a major surge of infections from XBB but did not see hospitalizations rise at the same rate. Pekosz said XBB.1.5, in combination with holiday travel, could cause cases to rise in the U.S. But he said the boosters appear to be preventing severe disease.

www.cnbc.com/amp/2022/12/30/covid-news-omicron-xbbpoint1point5-is-highly-immune-evasive-and-binds-better-to-cells.html

[erbear]

Anyone heard anything about the next round of boosters? Is that going to be a thing?

[MrsAxilla]

Whichever variant it is, it knocked me out.

[neverfstop]

My mom & MIL's boyfriend both got COVID at xmas or xmas eve. I finally convinced hubby to get his bi-booster yesterday (he had covid in early November) and got the rest of my family their bi-vax today, so hopefully we'll be a little better protected going forward.

I did get my bi-booster when they came out in September, but I got COVID in mid-November...but ZERO symptoms. I'm guessing that my immunity is probably wearing off and/or not great against a new variant.

The pharmacist today way saying she thinks it may go to an annual shot, but I don't see that happening anytime soon.

The news out of China is nuts....I'm hoping it doesn't spark a new global wave.

[fernweh]

Jan 1, 2023 14:24:14 GMT -5 erbear said:

Anyone heard anything about the next round of boosters? Is that going to be a thing?

I haven’t heard anything recently. I thought when the bi-booster came out they announced it would be an annual booster?

[seeyalater52]

Jan 1, 2023 17:28:24 GMT -5 fernweh said:

Jan 1, 2023 14:24:14 GMT -5 erbear said:

Anyone heard anything about the next round of boosters? Is that going to be a thing?

I haven’t heard anything recently. I thought when the bi-booster came out they announced it would be a really booster?

At this point that is the official plan but it just may not be possible without sacrificing a HUGE number of lives and continuing to add to the overwhelm of the health system in the process. We will see where the political will takes us. Administration has also backed off of their timeline to end the public health emergency so it’s less clear when some of the authorities that provide for funding (assuming Congress can appropriate anything given the swap in leadership in the House…) and updated vaccine approvals will end.

Regulators are scheduled to meet about the future of vaccines in Jan so we should get more insight from that discussion.

[seeyalater52]

While I’m definitely concerned about the situation in China spurring new variants it is worth noting how absolutely bullshit and xenophobic the CDC’s handling of covid travel precautions from China are in the context of unfettered covid infection and new variants from here in the US while we do less and less and less to stop the spread. Going to yearly boosters will only make this worse of course. We need a damn transit mask mandate back, at the very least.

[curbsideprophet]

Jan 1, 2023 18:06:04 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Jan 1, 2023 17:28:24 GMT -5 fernweh said:

I haven’t heard anything recently. I thought when the bi-booster came out they announced it would be a really booster?

At this point that is the official plan but it just may not be possible without sacrificing a HUGE number of lives and continuing to add to the overwhelm of the health system in the process.

The Biden administration seems fine with sacrificing large numbers of lives and overwhelming the health system. So needless to say I am less than optimistic about the future.

There is so much more they could do to slow the spread and the CDC Director is saying we can not stop transmission. Obviously there is a ton of Covid here in the US and more needs to be done about that. Make everyone flying in the US have a negative test result, require masks on planes and other mass transit,etc.

I mean what the fuck? This statement is infuriating.

We can't stop the spread of #COVID19, but pre-departure testing and the requirement to show a negative test result when flying from China to the U.S. can help slow the spread as we work to identify and understand any potential new variants. Read the Order: bit.ly/

[karinothing]

Jan 1, 2023 17:28:24 GMT -5 fernweh said:

Jan 1, 2023 14:24:14 GMT -5 erbear said:

Anyone heard anything about the next round of boosters? Is that going to be a thing?

I haven’t heard anything recently. I thought when the bi-booster came out they announced it would be an annual booster?

What do you mean by "really booster"?

[fernweh]

Jan 1, 2023 23:08:02 GMT -5 karinothing said:

Jan 1, 2023 17:28:24 GMT -5 fernweh said:

I haven’t heard anything recently. I thought when the bi-booster came out they announced it would be an annual booster?

What do you mean by "really booster"?

I just edited- it’s meant to say annual booster.

[seeyalater52]

curbsideprophet. Oh I know. Infuriating. I keep thinking there is no way they can sink even lower when it comes to covid policy and then stuff like this happens and… here we are.

[NewOrleans]

Jan 1, 2023 22:59:12 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Jan 1, 2023 18:06:04 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

At this point that is the official plan but it just may not be possible without sacrificing a HUGE number of lives and continuing to add to the overwhelm of the health system in the process.

The Biden administration seems fine with sacrificing large numbers of lives and overwhelming the health system. So needless to say I am less than optimistic about the future.

and then the story is always “bunches of them had comorbidities aw shucks well that’s to be expected.” 🙃  And we’re treated to another round of ableist justifications. 

[NewOrleans]

Jan 1, 2023 22:59:12 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Jan 1, 2023 18:06:04 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

At this point that is the official plan but it just may not be possible without sacrificing a HUGE number of lives and continuing to add to the overwhelm of the health system in the process.

There is so much more they could do to slow the spread and the CDC Director is saying we can not stop transmission. Obviously there is a ton of Covid here in the US and more needs to be done about that. Make everyone flying in the US have a negative test result, require masks on planes and other mass transit,etc.

I don’t know how I missed this section the first time I read but this shit country is violently, pathologically committed to no masks.  As for the tweet, wasn’t the tagline of 2020 literally “stop the spread” or “slow the spread”?  Now it’s like “get your happy ass back to work.”

This was my list, when I was asked on the board how were supposed to protect the vulnerable:

Require masking in healthcare settings and public transit. Enforce it.
Incentivize with tax credit an overhaul of ventilation and filtration, grants for small business to do so. Paying for school buildings to do so. Oversight of its completion.
Continued free testing. Incentivizing it in workplaces.
Continued remote work.
Vaccine incentives. This can be done through taxes, workplaces, and/or insurance companies themselves. I say mandates but I don’t even know the legal waters of this anymore.
Treating vaccine refusal as a public health crisis that requires research to arrive at effective and culturally responsive messaging
Similar with masks ⬆️
Science-based public health plans for moving to endemic. Maybe these are being crafted but I haven’t heard of it.
Immediate stop to all “well they had comorbidities” commentary from every official and every individual.
Address disability bias in health care and healthcare training / schooling.
Center disability in every move made related to Covid.
the big social nets: PTO, etc.

[karinothing]

Jan 1, 2023 23:08:41 GMT -5 fernweh said:

Jan 1, 2023 23:08:02 GMT -5 karinothing said:

What do you mean by "really booster"?

I just edited- it’s meant to say annual booster.

oooh lol. Okay that makes sense! Thanks. 

[fortnightlily]

Anecdotally, I've been surprised how little mask wearing I've been seeing the past few weeks, both in my blue county and when I traveled out of state, and even amongst populations I used to see mask more, like senior citizens. Last week I was at several super crowded tourist spots in Manhattan and there and on the subway maybe 1 in 10 people were masked.

[scm1011]

I got my bi-booster yesterday and feel like hot garbage today. I've been putting it off because I always have terrible side effects.

As for masking, I wear mine on public transit and in most indoor places but I do still dine out (unmasked) so... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I'm trying to find a balance of being cautious and living my life.

[audette]

I just spent the morning at the Iowa City VA hospital. DH needed an escort for a thing.


Mandatory masking. For everyone. No exceptions except some patients during procedures (DH's mask had been removed when I got back to him in the recovery room, but he put it back on once they disconnected him from everything).


It was refreshing to see. Not everyone masked perfectly, and the woman near me for the latter half of the morning kept complaining about masking, but on the whole, very few noses in sight. DH asked about masks when asking for directions this morning, and the response made it obvious they have had some folks get annoying about it. (We assumed masks would be needed, but wanted to confirm... it's the only hospital in our area that has mandatory masking everywhere...)

[NewOrleans]

Coronavirus found in wastewater samples from 96% of flights in Malaysia (small study, like 30 planes)

www.audacy.com/wwjnewsradio/news/national/coronavirus-found-in-samples-from-96-percent-of-flights

However, CDC is now doing it for incoming flights from China. Reactive shit Instead of proactive measures like requiring negative tests for all passengers to board, or mask…

CDC has tested wastewater from aircraft amid concerns over Covid-19 surge in China. amp.cnn.com/cnn/2023/01/05/health/airplane-wastewater-covid-testing/index.html

[Bad Dingo]

My brother and SIL have covid for the 1st time. Luckily she's not feeling too bad but he's been hit pretty hard.

[rubytue]

I’m current reading Cabin Fever, which is the story of Covid on the Zaandam in March 2020. I haven’t finished it yet, but is bringing back so many memories of the fear we all had. And I do remember discussing it here when the ships got back to Florida, after being denied docking at so many ports around South America. It’s a really interesting read from the perspective of the ship and the people on it.

smile.amazon.com/Cabin-Fever-Harrowing-Journey-Pandemic-ebook/dp/B09GW1HFDH/

[lilac05]

Jan 5, 2023 15:24:21 GMT -5 audette said:

I just spent the morning at the Iowa City VA hospital. DH needed an escort for a thing.

Ugh…I messed up the quote. Sorry.
I’m glad you had such a great experience. I work in a hospital where masks are “required.” Staff wears them, though occasionally I see someone wearing them improperly when they’re at the station away from patients and when visitors aren’t around. But masks apparently aren’t required of patients or visitors once they are in their rooms. And doors are generally open, unless they’re under contact/airborne precautions.

I’ve been surprised to find, however, that I feel “safer” working closely with a Covid+ patient than I do just going to the store. Devil you know, I guess…

[babsbunny]

We had our makeup xmas (included flights) last weekend. DH has had a low fever, painful throat, and small cough this week but tested negative twice. I still assume it's covid but wish it would show up on a dang test. It would be his first. My first was T-day so I'm not as worried about getting it from him.

I think his mom gave it to him. She was still coughing a little from her case and easily could have still been sick or on a rebound. We wore masks on the flights.

[Bad Dingo]

Jan 12, 2023 22:23:45 GMT -5 babsbunny said:

We had our makeup xmas (included flights) last weekend. DH has had a low fever, painful throat, and small cough this week but tested negative twice. I still assume it's covid but wish it would show up on a dang test. It would be his first. My first was T-day so I'm not as worried about getting it from him.

I think his mom gave it to him. She was still coughing a little from her case and easily could have still been sick or on a rebound. We wore masks on the flights.

Home tests are not that great, is there a reason he doesn't want to take a PCR?  It might be helpful to know for sure just in case there are any long covid issues.  I hope he feels better soon and it doesn't spread in your household.

My poor sister, it's her bday today.  Last year she had to cancel out of town guests because she (and the whole household) came down w/covid.  This year the same friends had to cancel because they all have covid.

[babsbunny]

I'm sorry for your sister Bad Dingo. I hope she still has some fun today.

To answer your question... natural male stubborness? We're both annoyed at medical stuff right now because unexpected, small bills keep coming in from his September colonoscopy. I leave the choice to him and won't nag (since it will likely make him do the opposite).

[hermione]

Apropos of nothing, FB memories shows that I got my first vaccine exactly 2 years ago today. It feels like a lifetime ago.

[gretchenindisguise]

Jan 13, 2023 12:39:50 GMT -5 hermione said:

Apropos of nothing, FB memories shows that I got my first vaccine exactly 2 years ago today. It feels like a lifetime ago.

Me too!

And I feel so naive for it. I really thought vaccines would be the beginning of the end and yet here we still are.

[wanderingback]

My family member was testing every couple of days cause he’s in a theater show, so the whole team was testing. On his 2nd round of tests he got a very faint positive (no symptoms), then took another test same day and it was negative. But took a pcr and it was positive. He was testing negative on home rapid tests my day 4.

Very sneaky virus!
I’m going to assume that vaccines are providing us with a lot more protection than is realized.

[erbear]

Jan 12, 2023 12:37:58 GMT -5 rubytue said:

I’m current reading Cabin Fever, which is the story of Covid on the Zaandam in March 2020. I haven’t finished it yet, but is bringing back so many memories of the fear we all had. And I do remember discussing it here when the ships got back to Florida, after being denied docking at so many ports around South America. It’s a really interesting read from the perspective of the ship and the people on it.

smile.amazon.com/Cabin-Fever-Harrowing-Journey-Pandemic-ebook/dp/B09GW1HFDH/

I just finished this book about 5 minutes ago. I didn’t know this story, and it reinforced for me that cruises are not my jam. I was anxious reading about what they went through (and it was really really sad)

[rubytue]

Jan 13, 2023 20:23:49 GMT -5 erbear said:

Jan 12, 2023 12:37:58 GMT -5 rubytue said:

I’m current reading Cabin Fever, which is the story of Covid on the Zaandam in March 2020. I haven’t finished it yet, but is bringing back so many memories of the fear we all had. And I do remember discussing it here when the ships got back to Florida, after being denied docking at so many ports around South America. It’s a really interesting read from the perspective of the ship and the people on it.

smile.amazon.com/Cabin-Fever-Harrowing-Journey-Pandemic-ebook/dp/B09GW1HFDH/

I just finished this book about 5 minutes ago. I didn’t know this story, and it reinforced for me that cruises are not my jam. I was anxious reading about what they went through (and it was really really sad)

I leave for one in 10 days 😬😬 Probably the wrong time to read it. 

[babsbunny]

Hey all, I need some help. DH has felt bad for 7 days now and is not getting better. I'm trying to talk him into going to the doc tomorrow. His concerns are (1) they'll want to first do a pcr test and won't do anything until the results come back in 3 days, and (2) they won't be able to give him anything to help him feel better or get better faster.

He's had a low (99.5) fever for a week and bad coughing for 4-5 days. He doesn't sound too congested. 3 negative rapid tests.

What might the doc do for him?