April Covid

[NewOrleans]

this thread is not meant for ableism or @ content


The COVID-19 guidelines that for the past three years kept casts and crews safe during production amid the pandemic will expire May 12.

The current iteration of the pact, negotiated by industry unions and top studios and streaming companies represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), will remain in place through May 11. After that point, the agreement will expire

www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/hollywood-ends-covid-19-safety-agreement-1235364230/

[curbsideprophet]

I do not understand what we are doing. This seems like a bad idea. Ending the public health emergency seems like a bad idea. Covid still exists and is still a threat. It does not care that many want to pretend it is over.

[macmars45]

Apr 1, 2023 21:34:51 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

I do not understand what we are doing. This seems like a bad idea. Ending the public health emergency seems like a bad idea. Covid still exists and is still a threat. It does not care that many want to pretend it is over.

In my state covid apparently listens to arbitrary dates as well. *rolls eyes* Masks requirements in medical facilities end tomorrow.

[1yeartogo]

If you have been following the national end of the public health emergency also means states can begin mass dis-enrolling people from Medicaid who they couldn’t unenroll over the past 3 years. If people miss their renewals or no longer qualify due to their personal circumstances they will end up without insurance. So, expect things to get bad for a lot of people who rely on Medicaid for health services, sigh.

[seeyalater52]

Apr 2, 2023 11:53:37 GMT -5 1yeartogo said:

If you have been following the national end of the public health emergency also means states can begin mass dis-enrolling people from Medicaid who they couldn’t unenroll over the past 3 years. If people miss their renewals or no longer qualify due to their personal circumstances they will end up without insurance. So, expect things to get bad for a lot of people who rely on Medicaid for health services, sigh.

Yup. This mess is about half my job right now. I’m actually extra annoyed because both Dems and Republicans voted to end Medicaid continuous coverage (instituted when the pandemic started) beginning April 1. It was supposed to buy some additional time for the rest of the pandemic state of emergency to continue longer (state stakeholders from all parties have been critical of the Medicaid provision even though the feds heavily incentivized it.) And then fucking Biden went and ended the SOE anyways, only a month later. Unhelpful my dude.

15-18 million people are projected to lose Medicaid coverage over the next year as people are redetermined, and as you noted everyone has to respond for redetermination (and every state is doing it differently, and some are not trying to make it easy for people) and a lot of people who are still eligible will also be caught up in this process. In Medicaid non-expansion states a lot of people who lose eligibility will fall right back into the Medicaid gap which is just heartbreaking.

[seeyalater52]

I’m extra annoyed this week bc I leave for Montgomery in the morning for work and the state folks and regional team have all been pretty annoying about my masking preferences. I do still mask everywhere in public when I’m home and on most work trips but I’m not a sadist, I’m aware that I can’t mask at the Alabama statehouse and I wasn't planning to but it would be nice if other parts of this work trip could try to accommodate be not being indoors unmasked. It isn’t THAT hard.

[curbsideprophet]

Apr 2, 2023 16:17:15 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

I’m aware that I can’t mask at the Alabama statehouse and I wasn't planning to but it would be nice if other parts of this work trip could try to accommodate be not being indoors unmasked. It isn’t THAT hard.

Why can't you mask at the Alabama statehouse?

[seeyalater52]

Apr 2, 2023 18:06:26 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Apr 2, 2023 16:17:15 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

I’m aware that I can’t mask at the Alabama statehouse and I wasn't planning to but it would be nice if other parts of this work trip could try to accommodate be not being indoors unmasked. It isn’t THAT hard.

Why can't you mask at the Alabama statehouse?

We are there for lobbying and they are just too hostile. At this point I dont even think you can go through security to get in while wearing a mask and members won’t meet with you if you wear one. If I truly needed to keep my mask on at all times my boss could have exempted me from this trip but it’s a major part of my job and unfortunately I cant afford to take a hit to my professional credibility right now bc I’ve spent all my political capital on insisting (mostly fruitlessly) that my workplace be less transphobic.

I mask absolutely everywhere else even when it’s really hard logistically or inconvenient so please don’t judge too harshly.

These red state statehouses are straight up dangerous and it’s super unfair and unfortunate.

[wanderingback]

Holy shit, I didn’t realize places were refusing to let you enter or talk if you have a mask on. That’s so so fucked up. Even before Covid immunocompromised people would often where masks. That’s a big fuck you to your constituents. So sorry you’re dealing with that.

[curbsideprophet]

Apr 2, 2023 18:13:34 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Apr 2, 2023 18:06:26 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Why can't you mask at the Alabama statehouse?

We are there for lobbying and they are just too hostile. At this point I dont even think you can go through security to get in while wearing a mask and members won’t meet with you if you wear one. If I truly needed to keep my mask on at all times my boss could have exempted me from this trip but it’s a major part of my job and unfortunately I cant afford to take a hit to my professional credibility right now bc I’ve spent all my political capital on insisting (mostly fruitlessly) that my workplace be less transphobic.

I mask absolutely everywhere else even when it’s really hard logistically or inconvenient so please don’t judge too harshly.

These red state statehouses are straight up dangerous and it’s super unfair and unfortunate.

I don't judge you. I just don't understand what an immunocommpromised person is supposed to do in a situation like this. This is not ok. Those rules would make the building inaccessible for some people.

[nothingcontroversial]

Apr 2, 2023 18:31:03 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Apr 2, 2023 18:13:34 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

We are there for lobbying and they are just too hostile. At this point I dont even think you can go through security to get in while wearing a mask and members won’t meet with you if you wear one. If I truly needed to keep my mask on at all times my boss could have exempted me from this trip but it’s a major part of my job and unfortunately I cant afford to take a hit to my professional credibility right now bc I’ve spent all my political capital on insisting (mostly fruitlessly) that my workplace be less transphobic.

I mask absolutely everywhere else even when it’s really hard logistically or inconvenient so please don’t judge too harshly.

These red state statehouses are straight up dangerous and it’s super unfair and unfortunate.

I don't judge you. I just don't understand what an immunocommpromised person is supposed to do in a situation like this. This is not ok. Those rules would make the building inaccessible for some people.

"It's a feature, not a bug."

[seeyalater52]

Apr 2, 2023 18:31:03 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Apr 2, 2023 18:13:34 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

We are there for lobbying and they are just too hostile. At this point I dont even think you can go through security to get in while wearing a mask and members won’t meet with you if you wear one. If I truly needed to keep my mask on at all times my boss could have exempted me from this trip but it’s a major part of my job and unfortunately I cant afford to take a hit to my professional credibility right now bc I’ve spent all my political capital on insisting (mostly fruitlessly) that my workplace be less transphobic.

I mask absolutely everywhere else even when it’s really hard logistically or inconvenient so please don’t judge too harshly.

These red state statehouses are straight up dangerous and it’s super unfair and unfortunate.

I don't judge you. I just don't understand what an immunocommpromised person is supposed to do in a situation like this. This is not ok. Those rules would make the building inaccessible for some people.

100% it is not accessible in any way. It’s awful. My primary reason for continuing to mask is for the safety of others around me so it’s definitely a sore spot.

Some covid denying legislators are still refusing to take meetings at all because they stopped when the pandemic started and even though they deny it is ongoing they never started agreeing to meetings again (and whole legislatures like in GA just decide they won’t let people lobby in the building for months at a time for no particular reason.) It’s an absolute dangerous shitshow. I’m hoping enough of the legislators and their staff have burned through covid in the last month they’ve been meeting that it isn’t circulating as actively but that’s a huge wildcard.

Obviously my job is very red state legislature heavy so it isn’t exactly unprecedented for it to be unhinged but in this context it really sucks. I’m also mindful that as a visibly queer person it will most likely be extra difficult to mask without being harassed, so that’s another fun layer. One of the big bosses who will be there has never seen my haircut in person and I was warned when he does I might be pulled off of meetings anyways so maybe I won’t need to go inside. 😬

[seeyalater52]

Apr 2, 2023 18:21:21 GMT -5 wanderingback said:

Holy shit, I didn’t realize places were refusing to let you enter or talk if you have a mask on. That’s so so fucked up. Even before Covid immunocompromised people would often were masks. That’s a big fuck you to your constituents. So sorry you’re dealing with that.

It’s beyond fucked up, but remember this is a party that refused to be accessible to constituents long before the pandemic. nothingcontroversial nailed it - it’s a feature not a bug. Exclusion is the point.

[lo]

Apr 2, 2023 19:32:20 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Apr 2, 2023 18:21:21 GMT -5 wanderingback said:

Holy shit, I didn’t realize places were refusing to let you enter or talk if you have a mask on. That’s so so fucked up. Even before Covid immunocompromised people would often were masks. That’s a big fuck you to your constituents. So sorry you’re dealing with that.

It’s beyond fucked up, but remember this is a party that refused to be accessible to constituents long before the pandemic. nothingcontroversial nailed it - it’s a feature not a bug. Exclusion is the point.

I don’t know why I’m shocked reading your posts in this thread, but I am. I wish you safety and hope your efforts are successful!!

[wanderingback]

I returned to work today and it seems as though everyone is still masking. I work with mostly Black women, so it’s not surprising, thankfully. Still not sure what the official policy is for patients, so we’ll see how that goes when I find out.

[wanderingback]

So I’m flying to a conference next month, I was asked to speak at 2 events there. First one since the pandemic. I’ll obviously wear my n95 the whole time. Masks are required at the conference and they’re requesting everyone to test before leaving and upon arrival and every 48 hours, although they are not supplying tests or looking at results. So overall I feel pretty good about it.

However, there are SO MANY social events happening and I’m not sure how I want to navigate that. The line of work I do, the community is small and due to the pandemic everyone is excited to see each other in person. But I’m involved in several different projects so they all separately want to have gatherings, and 1) it sounds exhausting and 2) I don’t want to bring back covid.
I know most people are behaving like normal, so I wonder what the balance is.

Decisions, decisions.

[seeyalater52]

Apr 5, 2023 11:28:52 GMT -5 wanderingback said:

So I’m flying to a conference next month, I was asked to speak at 2 events there. First one since the pandemic. I’ll obviously wear my n95 the whole time. Masks are required at the conference and they’re requesting everyone to test before leaving and upon arrival and every 48 hours, although they are not supplying tests or looking at results. So overall I feel pretty good about it.

However, there are SO MANY social events happening and I’m not sure how I want to navigate that. The line of work I do, the community is small and due to the pandemic everyone is excited to see each other in person. But I’m involved in several different projects so they all separately want to have gatherings, and 1) it sounds exhausting and 2) I don’t want to bring back covid.
I know most people are behaving like normal, so I wonder what the balance is.

Decisions, decisions.

I’ve been balancing this since I returned to work travel last Sept. It can be really frustrating! I’m glad the conference has some common sense precautions. Is the location someplace where you could have the gatherings outdoors? I find that more enjoyable anyways and it does help to bring the risk level down a little. When I’ve suggested it colleagues have been pretty receptive even when it meant bundling up a little due to weather. I also double check with the people I’m gathering with if we are friends to make sure they did their covid tests and try to stick to places where I’m not congregating with anyone who is not part of our group/affiliated with the conference that has the precautions. While cases were higher in the fall and winter I mostly masked indoors even at social events that had food and drink and it was exceptionally awkward and esp at a loud or crowded event more difficult to be heard/communicate but I didn’t get covid and that was worth it to me.

It’s a really hard balance! I value bonding with colleagues but also very mindful of the barriers this puts up for people who have higher risk from covid and my own desire not to spread it to anyone else (but especially within my household.)

[macmars45]

I'm on a planning committee for an Earth Day Fair. We started planning last September. At the first meeting I was the only one who came in masked. In that meeting all but one put on masks when they saw me in mine. For months now the expectation has been everyone masks. Most of the ladies on the committee are older adults and I have two life long disabilities already so it's win win for everyone. We're in a red city where covid has been over for years so it's especially nice to see.

[basilosaurus]

I was pleasantly surprised they're still enforcing masks in the capital on the metro, even while waiting outside. Ride share drivers are also masked, although I don't think passengers have to be anymore.

seeyalater52, that sounds so frustrating, enraging. I'm in awe at you just keep on fighting the good fight against such nasty opposition.

[NewOrleans]

Those itchy, red eyes you have that you assumed were just the start of allergy season? It could very well be something called "Arcturus" instead.

XBB.1.16, a subvariant of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus that has acquired that unusual stellar label, appears to be spreading quickly in some parts of the world. it's growing in the United States as well. The CDC's variant tracker, updated Friday, shows XBB.1.16 has nearly doubled its proportion in the last week, and is now at 7.2% of all samples sequenced, though may be as high as 11.3%.

@ reference in article www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/new-itchy-covid-symptom-going-around-as-arcturus-subvariant-increases-in-ny-area/4241301/

And the Arcturus variant is considered highly contagious, yay

[NewOrleans]

latest evidence that coronavirus has retreated from public view as the pandemic winds down.
But retreat is not the same thing as eradication: Federal health officials say that covid remains one of the leading causes of death in the United States, tied to about 250 deaths daily, on average, mostly among the old and immunocompromised. (So no big deal then, right?)

Few Americans are treating it as a leading killer, however — in part because they are not hearing about those numbers, don’t trust them or don’t see them as relevant to their own lives.

“We’re not presenting the data in a way that resonates with the American people,” said Deborah Birx, who served as the first White House coronavirus coordinator. (I just think people just can’t be bothered)

www.washingtonpost.com/health/2023/04/16/covid-deaths-per-day/

[seeyalater52]

People can’t be bothered but it is also really hard as someone who is still trying to make informed decisions about risk but cannot completely eliminate risk due to life circumstances because the data that is still being collected and reported kind of sucks. And Twitter is becoming a cesspool and I’m worried I’ll have no way to get a good read on things long before it stops being something worth worrying about.

[Bad Dingo]

I think there's something like 7-10 deaths a week from Covid in CT right now. I feel like people accept that as totally normal. But if this was 2019 and there was this new disease that was killing 28-40 people in the state a month, people would be freaking out.

[nothingcontroversial]

FDA clears extra Covid booster for some high risk Americans.


triblive.com/news/health-now/fda-clears-extra-covid-booster-for-some-high-risk-americans/