COVID-19 in America

[editor]

NYC may temporarily bury coronavirus victims on Hart Island

Some coronavirus victims could be temporarily buried in the Hart Island potter’s field — or even public parks — if New York’s morgues become overwhelmed by the number of dead, officials said Monday…

nypost.com

The did the same for the Spanish flu pandemic in 1918. Terrifying stuff.

 

[platinumsage]

200 COVID deaths per day in New York City occurring in people's homes, the vast majority not counted in official stats:

 

[Treacle Toes]

The Queen of Fucking Stupid in the car and the congregation of fuckwittery

So basically she's admitting to the murder of Mr Jesus who was up until his death and their sacrifice of him, a member of their congregation.

 

[existentialist]

200 COVID deaths per day in New York City occurring in people's homes, the vast majority not counted in official stats:

An unexpected bonus of a healthcare system which excludes a substantial proportion (is it 15% who have no health insurance?) of the population. Trump must be proud.

 

[cupid_stunt]

An unexpected bonus of a healthcare system which excludes a substantial proportion (is it 15% who have no health insurance?) of the population. Trump must be proud.

Probably more now, with millions losing their jobs, and therefore insurance provided by their former employers.

 

[editor]

Probably more now, with millions losing their jobs, and therefore insurance provided by their former employers.

If this doesn't spark Americans into demanding some sort of fair health system, then I guess they'll never get it.

 

[SheilaNaGig]

The Queen of Fucking Stupid in the car and the congregation of fuckwittery

I feel actual hate and rage at this woman.

 

[two sheds]

I feel actual hate and rage at this woman.

You're just not covered in Jesus' blood

 

[SheilaNaGig]

You're just not covered in Jesus' blood

 

[elbows]

You're just not covered in Jesus' blood

If his blood has the right antibodies in it then they might be onto something.

 

[weltweit]

Seattle’s covid-19 lessons are yielding hope

The metropolitan region of about 3.5 million people in Washington State had already documented the first US case of covid-19 on 20 January in a 35 year old man who had visited his family in Wuhan, China. The patient tested positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and was immediately hospitalised in an isolation unit at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, Washington.1

After treatment with remdesivir, the man was released on 3 February. Tracing and monitoring (but not testing) of nearly 70 potential contacts didn’t turn up any signs of covid-19, and state health officials breathed a wary sigh of relief.
..
On 28 February the discovery of two new presumptive cases was announced.
..

on 2 March, Trevor Bedford, a molecular epidemiologist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, delivered another stunning assessment. In a blog post, Bedford explained that genomic evidence strongly suggested a link between the state’s first case in January and the high school student diagnosed in late February. That meant the virus may have been spreading unnoticed for five weeks. Bedford and collaborators at the Institute for Disease Modelling in Bellevue, Washington, estimated that 570 people in the region had already been infected.

This is a long article, I can't do it justice with snippets, best to visit and read the article in full.

..
During a 30 March press briefing to announce the new modelling studies, Jeff Duchin, health officer for Seattle and King County Public Health, said he was “cautiously optimistic,” but warned against letting up and allowing the virus to coming roaring back. “We need to double down on the measures that appear to be working,” he said.

from 06/04/2020 Seattle’s covid-19 lessons are yielding hope

 

[weltweit]

Americans are told to wear cloth masks

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has told Americans to wear cloth masks to prevent coronavirus transmission. President Donald Trump said at a press briefing last week that the advice was voluntary, and he was choosing not to wear one.
..

from 06/04/2020 Americans are told to wear cloth masks

 

[petee]

Americans are told to wear cloth masks

from 06/04/2020 Americans are told to wear cloth masks

i've been on board with everything so far. i don't have a nice little mask so i'd have to use my industrial-grade, two-chamber mask for chemical fumes that makes me look like a bug. and i'd do it. but this mask business has given some people the license to police others, in pretty abusive ways (admitting, even boasting, that they've "screamed' at others for not wearing masks or for not vacating the sidewalk) and i'm not okay with it.

 

[weltweit]

i've been on board with everything so far. i don't have a nice little mask so i'd have to use my industrial-grade, two-chamber mask for chemical fumes that makes me look like a bug. and i'd do it. but this mask business has given some people the license to police others, in pretty abusive ways (admitting, even boasting, that they've "screamed' at others for not wearing masks or for not vacating the sidewalk) and i'm not okay with it.

Yes, these recommendations orders instructions whatever only really work if there is abundant supply of masks so everyone can get one. Or in the US case, people have a bandana they can use to cover their nose and mouth.

I am pretty sure that if the health services had adequate supply and supply for the general public was also good the WHO would be recommending their use by everyone. In not recommending them I think the WHO is being pragmatic practical and probably sensible.

Of course masks have a positive effect, why otherwise would health workers in all ICU departments wear them?

 

[spring-peeper]

Of course masks have a positive effect, why otherwise would health workers in all ICU departments wear them?

There are countless videos on how to make a mask out of household materials.
These masks are not to protect you, they are to protect others from you.
They catch the moisture in your breath and trap it.

As a reference to this, google "trudeau" and "speaking moistly".

 

[Tankus]

33C in Singapore today and the virus seems to be getting a second wind there ....so much for the summer "high temp and it goes away " respite ...maybe

 

[elbows]

New York is "undoubtedly flattening the curve", Governor Andrew Cuomo says, despite reporting the largest single-day death toll - for the second day in a row - with 779 New Yorkers succumbing to the virus on 7 April.

"We are flattening the curve because we are being rigorous about social distancing," Cuomo says. "It's not a time to get complacent."

What else did the governor say?

• Statewide hospitalisation rates have continued to decline, suggesting that the infection rate is beginning to plateau
• Cuomo notes that black and Hispanic people in New York are disproportionately likely to die of the virus. "The poorest people play the highest price," he says. "Why? Let's figure it out, let's do the work."
• All of New York's flags will be flown at half-mast, in honour of those who have died of Covid-19. Cuomo notes that New York lost 2,753 lives on the 11 September attacks, while 6,268 New Yorkers have already died of the virus
• As the disease continues to pummel the eastern state, Cuomo has promised an additional $600 to those who have filed for unemployment.

"I don't think we return to normal," Cuomo says. "If we're smart, we achieve a new normal."

From BBC live updates page at 18:58 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-52208591

 

[gentlegreen]

"Donald Trump said at a press briefing last week that the advice was voluntary, and he was choosing not to wear one. "

It's a good job he plays golf these days and not something more intimate...

 

[weltweit]

I see Trump and the DG of WHO have had a row.

 

[weltweit]

Bleak Records in N.Y. and N.J., but Leaders See Curve Flattening: Live Updates

There were 779 coronavirus-related deaths in the state in the past 24 hours, Governor Cuomo said. It was the highest one-day total yet.
..
New York State now has more confirmed virus cases, 149,316, than any country in the world besides the United States.

from 08/04/2020 paywalled Bleak Records in N.Y. and N.J., but Leaders See Curve Flattening: Live Updates

 

[Gimigimi]

Seattle’s covid-19 lessons are yielding hope
This is a long article, I can't do it justice with snippets, best to visit and read the article in full.
from 06/04/2020 Seattle’s covid-19 lessons are yielding hope

Yeah we've been taking it pretty seriously here in the Northwest and it's yielding good results compared to a lot of places in the US. I'm glad I live where I do, there's a long history of collective action here that's done a lot of good for people, from decent labor unions to respecting lockdown instructions during a pandemic like this one. The state's been making proactive decisions and people are respecting them for the most part. Way back in 1936 the Postmaster General joked "There are 47 states in the Union, and the Soviet of Washington", and it was obviously just a joke but there's always been at least a grain of truth in it, and swift collective action is what's needed to save lives in a situation like this.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Yeah we've been taking it pretty seriously here in the Northwest and it's yielding good results compared to a lot of places in the US. I'm glad I live where I do, there's a long history of collective action here that's done a lot of good for people, from decent labor unions to respecting lockdown instructions during a pandemic like this one. The state's been making proactive decisions and people are respecting them for the most part. Way back in 1936 the Postmaster General joked "There are 47 states in the Union, and the Soviet of Washington", and it was obviously just a joke but there's always been at least a grain of truth in it, and swift collective action is what's needed to save lives in a situation like this.

You should apply to join Canada.

 

[Gimigimi]

You should apply to join Canada.

Cascadia movement - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

It's a work in progress

 

[gosub]

Probably more now, with millions losing their jobs, and therefore insurance provided by their former employers.

The ones who had jobs/health insurance do get cover, the 15% that didn't have it before don't, oh and the bill for serious casae covid treatment is about $80k

 

[existentialist]

The ones who had jobs/health insurance do get cover, the 15% that didn't have it before don't, oh and the bill for serious casae covid treatment is about $80k

Is that all? I was expecting it to be much more than that, given that childbirth and associated care starts from $30,000. They're missing a trick, here.

 

[elbows]

I know we have mixed feelings about the IMHE modelling as discussed on others thread about other countries, but this is just a post to say that it looks like officials in the USA are using it as the source of figures they are coming out with in public.

eg:

Dr. Anthony Fauci: Virus death toll may be ‘more like 60,000 than 100,000 to 200,000’

Joining TODAY live, Dr. Anthony Fauci says that even though the number of deaths validate that this is a bad week in the coronavirus battle, there are “some glimmers of hope” such as stabilizing numbers of hospitalizations in New York. He says that social distancing and behavior changes are...

www.today.com

Dr. Anthony Fauci says that even though the number of deaths validate that this is a bad week in the coronavirus battle, there are “some glimmers of hope” such as stabilizing numbers of hospitalizations in New York. He says that social distancing and behavior changes are “starting to have a real effect” and that the virus death toll may look “more like 60,000 than the 100,000 to 200,000” initially predicted.

When I heard that I went straight to to IMHE model and sure enough, the latest version of it for the USA has a bit over 60,000 deaths.

IHME | COVID-19 Projections

Explore forecasts of COVID-19 cases, deaths, and hospital resource use.

covid19.healthdata.org

 

[ska invita]

Headline from FT -
US weekly jobless claims mount by another 6.6m
Latest figures take cumulative total to almost 17m since March lockdowns began


The real figure of course will be much higher, for those who dont make claims for whatever reason

 

[weltweit]

In NY, people who have recovered from covid-19 are being asked to donate blood which might be used to try to help people who are currently affected:

Convalescent Plasma COVID-19 Donor Request Form
Thank you for your interest in convalescent plasma donation and JOINING OUR FIGHT TO SAVE LIVES.

While COVID has no proven treatment, it is possible that plasma taken from those who have recovered (convalescent plasma), which has antibodies against the virus, could help.

If you had a positive test, AND your symptoms have been gone for 14 days, AND you are willing to DONATE, please complete and submit the form below.

from Convalescent Plasma COVID-19 Donor Request Form | New York Blood Center

 

[weltweit]

This is a NY health service page with lots of links to services etc in NY
including announcements:

All non-essential workers must continue to work from home and schools will be closed through April 29th.

from Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Last Updated: April 9, 2020 at 3:30PM

It looks like the NY lockdown is more stringent than the UK one, all non essential workers must work from home, rather than the UK position where people can go to work if they can't work from home.

 

[zahir]

Strikes and union organising in response to the crisis.

The Coronavirus Recession Is a Critical Test for the Labor Movement

Caught between a pandemic and the pressure to restart the economy, organizers have quickly adapted to fight for workers’ rights.

newrepublic.com