Tell Me :
Talk
Evolution of Covid
"In theory, viruses tend to evolve mutations that make them more transmissible and less virulent. That's because a virus that's easily passed around has obvious fitness advantages in terms of opportunities to reproduce and pass along its genes. On the flip side, highly virulent viruses, such as Ebola, are not so successful because they kill their hosts too fast and limit their spread, Bollinger said."
The whole issue of "long-term effect" has always been used as an excuse. Even smokers use it on and off. The long-term effect of smoking is known for many decades now, but still many smoke heavily, totally ignorent that knowledge. Other smokers say "Ah well, maybe I don't live that long anyway, so why worry about old age cancer". Of many medicine still the long-term effect is not known, but when the health condition is not good, people easily accept them.
The long-term effects of flu (and other illnesses) vaccines is well known and hardly ever upset people. The whole Covid vaccine refusal is nothing more than a mind setting and I dare to say "a stupid, total lack of intelligence mind-setting". Cheers.
I'm a GHOST living in a ghost town
Why don't you try actually arguing my points, if you care to argue, rather than dragging in whether you PM was right on his death count predictions. What the hell does that have to do with anything. I don't live in the UK, I don't care what your PM thinks...he thought COVID was the flu and ended up in the hospital,
[www.bmj.com]
This is official government statistics, most of the cases are now the delta varient in the UK, very few are dying from it, so its weaker, happy now.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-04 14:46 by Rocktiludrop.
the plague might move on but the medieval spin seems to persist[/quote]
Well, I won’t be burning mine, of course.
Myself? I’ll of course wear the covering when mandatory; otherwise, no. It’s each to their own, as they say. I can understand the caution of some, certainly.
Fair stance I suppose with mandates lifted and if you're only considering your own well being.
But, how tough is it really by now to just wear one out of consideration of others? Considering the preteen kids that haven't been able to get vaxxed, and the slight possibility you could pass it on to them still, as well as to give them some peace of mind, can't see not wearing one indoors whether required or not.
This is where I am. I wouldn’t put him in charge of a sweetie shop. I won’t be a complete Hermit but I’ll certainly still be wearing a mask and sanitising in enclosed public spaces like supermarkets and public transport for the safety of others. The SG’s stance is very necessary because I believe Scotland now has Europe’s highest Covid rates, especially along the Central belt. I still would not feel comfortable in a football crowd or at a gig just yet.
I’m originally from Hamilton but live in rural South West Oxfordshire where the rate is low, but is now rising, Like everywhere else.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-06 02:42 by grzegorz67.
Believe me, it already has been a long summer. In addition to what you mentioned am dealing with some potentially real bad medical stuff on a personal level. I'm in some trouble, the question is how much. I hope (sort of) to find out in the next few days. Fingers crossed it's only a little trouble.
Thank you, Rockman
I'm sending all my best wishes for a good report regarding your health.
Thank you
Best wishes CR...I hope things improve for you soon.
thank you
Hoping for the best for you crholmstrom.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
Talk about your favorite band.
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Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
kovach
()
Date: June 30, 2021 22:33
Quote
bvQuote
RocktiludropQuote
daspyknowsQuote
RocktiludropQuote
bv
Studies to date suggest the Delta variant is between 40 and 60 percent more transmissible than the Alpha variant first identified in the U.K.
There is some indication that the Delta variant may also result in more severe disease. A study in Scotland, published in the Lancet, found the hospitalization rate of patients with that variant was about 85 percent higher than that of people with the Alpha variant.
How Dangerous Is the Delta Variant, and Will It Cause a COVID Surge in the U.S.? (Scientific American June 29, 2021)
Perhaps more important than how transmissible the Delta variant is, or any other strain come to think of it, more importantly is whether it's killing people or not, all viruses throughout history become weaker over time, why would we assume this virus is any different ?
Yes it's more transmissible but is it more of a threat ? Possibly it is, maybe it is, possibly maybe, the article is not very specific, still using the fear factor, initially restrictions were to prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed, i really hope people try to move on with their lives now, looking over your shoulder for variants that could possibly be a threat is over reacting, be cautious yes, overreact no, it's bordering on obsessional behaviour, how much of this is a real threat and how much of it is just looking for things, if you look hard enough you tend to find what you are looking for, somewhere in the world people are dying, that's a fact, it's nothing new.
Personally i live in one Country, one Town in that Country, looking at what's happening on the other side of the planet is not healthy, if England had a bad winter with record deaths from Flu and Influenza would it be of concern to someone living in India or Brazil, no it wouldn't and it never has before this.
It's simple if we are worried about India or Brazil then restrict travel from those Countries and get on with living our lives where we live, obviously help those Countries as much as possible and live your life, the summer's here, enjoy.
Not true. If what you said was true only China would have been affected. One sick person with the new variant getting on a plane and arriving at your town would be enough to start a local outbreak of those unvaccinated.
I see what you mean, and you are correct, but historically viruses become weaker over time.
The new corona virus is not "just another new virus". Do you have a medical reference of a serious kind stating what you say? So far the ALPHA and DELTA variants have gone worse, more fatal statistically, and they take more lives, until more than 90% of the population is vaccinated. Also, DELTA is probably the main concern of any tour plans, including the Stones. They do not make tour plans on wishful thinking.
Evolution of Covid
"In theory, viruses tend to evolve mutations that make them more transmissible and less virulent. That's because a virus that's easily passed around has obvious fitness advantages in terms of opportunities to reproduce and pass along its genes. On the flip side, highly virulent viruses, such as Ebola, are not so successful because they kill their hosts too fast and limit their spread, Bollinger said."
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
georgie48
()
Date: June 30, 2021 22:52
Quote
JN99
It's curious too how many folks will say "we don't know the long-term effects of the vaccine" as a reason for hesitancy or outright refusal to be vaccinated. Yet, they are okay with the equally unknown long-term effects of getting covid, just so long as they don't die?
The vaccine is also the best defense against emerging and potentially more dangerous variants, which also is a concept that seems lost on some of the anti-vax crowd.
The whole issue of "long-term effect" has always been used as an excuse. Even smokers use it on and off. The long-term effect of smoking is known for many decades now, but still many smoke heavily, totally ignorent that knowledge. Other smokers say "Ah well, maybe I don't live that long anyway, so why worry about old age cancer". Of many medicine still the long-term effect is not known, but when the health condition is not good, people easily accept them.
The long-term effects of flu (and other illnesses) vaccines is well known and hardly ever upset people. The whole Covid vaccine refusal is nothing more than a mind setting and I dare to say "a stupid, total lack of intelligence mind-setting". Cheers.
I'm a GHOST living in a ghost town
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
JAF4JJF
()
Date: July 1, 2021 00:04
In regards to live music, some bands have already rescheduled and others have not. At this point I would think if the band were rescheduling in 2021 in the United States, it would be advertised. I am still holding on to my tickets to see The Rolling Stones from 2020 but I have not received any information to say that their shows are happening this year.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
treaclefingers
()
Date: July 1, 2021 00:17
Quote
RocktiludropQuote
treaclefingersQuote
RocktiludropQuote
bvQuote
RocktiludropQuote
daspyknowsQuote
RocktiludropQuote
bv
Studies to date suggest the Delta variant is between 40 and 60 percent more transmissible than the Alpha variant first identified in the U.K.
There is some indication that the Delta variant may also result in more severe disease. A study in Scotland, published in the Lancet, found the hospitalization rate of patients with that variant was about 85 percent higher than that of people with the Alpha variant.
How Dangerous Is the Delta Variant, and Will It Cause a COVID Surge in the U.S.? (Scientific American June 29, 2021)
Perhaps more important than how transmissible the Delta variant is, or any other strain come to think of it, more importantly is whether it's killing people or not, all viruses throughout history become weaker over time, why would we assume this virus is any different ?
Yes it's more transmissible but is it more of a threat ? Possibly it is, maybe it is, possibly maybe, the article is not very specific, still using the fear factor, initially restrictions were to prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed, i really hope people try to move on with their lives now, looking over your shoulder for variants that could possibly be a threat is over reacting, be cautious yes, overreact no, it's bordering on obsessional behaviour, how much of this is a real threat and how much of it is just looking for things, if you look hard enough you tend to find what you are looking for, somewhere in the world people are dying, that's a fact, it's nothing new.
Personally i live in one Country, one Town in that Country, looking at what's happening on the other side of the planet is not healthy, if England had a bad winter with record deaths from Flu and Influenza would it be of concern to someone living in India or Brazil, no it wouldn't and it never has before this.
It's simple if we are worried about India or Brazil then restrict travel from those Countries and get on with living our lives where we live, obviously help those Countries as much as possible and live your life, the summer's here, enjoy.
Not true. If what you said was true only China would have been affected. One sick person with the new variant getting on a plane and arriving at your town would be enough to start a local outbreak of those unvaccinated.
I see what you mean, and you are correct, but historically viruses become weaker over time.
The new corona virus is not "just another new virus". Do you have a medical reference of a serious kind stating what you say? So far the ALPHA and DELTA variants have gone worse, more fatal statistically, and they take more lives, until more than 90% of the population is vaccinated. Also, DELTA is probably the main concern of any tour plans, including the Stones. They do not make tour plans on wishful thinking.
Well in the past viruses have got weaker, that's common knowledge, viruses need us to be alive to infect us. I'm not saying these variants are weaker, I'm saying we don't know for a fact they are stronger, especially as so many people have been vaccinated now, hopefully it's not going to be a major threat.
First of all, we know for a fact that these particular variants are stronger. You personally may not know that, but don't presume that information isn't out there, just because you haven't accessed it.
Secondly, you say we don't know that they are stronger, particularly because so many people have been vaccinated now. Just because people are vaccinated doesn't mean the virus isn't stronger. It means that more people are protected against it, despite it being stronger. It can still be stronger, especially for those not vaccinated, which is rather the point we're trying to make here.
Additionally, there are a lot of 'break-through' cases where people that are double vaxxed that get ill, go into the hospital and even die. The numbers here are significantly smaller than those not being vaccinated, but just evidence that this particular variant is not weaker, but more virulent.
It has also been shown to be more dangerous to young people.
As far as your armchair notation that in the past, virus' get weaker, that is a fact. OK, even if that is the case, that is in the 'long run'. The current evidence is not pointing to this with this virus which of course may change...or not.
No we don't know they are stronger, the link BV sent said it's possible they are, maybe they are, we keep hearing doom and gloom and nothing comes of it, Boris was predicting four thousand deaths per day before Christmas it didn't happen.
Everyone has been banging on about the Indian variant for ages, are you actually saying things are worse now than when covid started with hardly anyone in the UK dying directly as a result of covid, that's stretching it a bit, never mind you completely miss the point.
Why don't you try actually arguing my points, if you care to argue, rather than dragging in whether you PM was right on his death count predictions. What the hell does that have to do with anything. I don't live in the UK, I don't care what your PM thinks...he thought COVID was the flu and ended up in the hospital,
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Rocktiludrop
()
Date: July 1, 2021 01:52
Quote
treaclefingersQuote
RocktiludropQuote
treaclefingersQuote
RocktiludropQuote
bvQuote
RocktiludropQuote
daspyknowsQuote
RocktiludropQuote
bv
Studies to date suggest the Delta variant is between 40 and 60 percent more transmissible than the Alpha variant first identified in the U.K.
There is some indication that the Delta variant may also result in more severe disease. A study in Scotland, published in the Lancet, found the hospitalization rate of patients with that variant was about 85 percent higher than that of people with the Alpha variant.
How Dangerous Is the Delta Variant, and Will It Cause a COVID Surge in the U.S.? (Scientific American June 29, 2021)
Perhaps more important than how transmissible the Delta variant is, or any other strain come to think of it, more importantly is whether it's killing people or not, all viruses throughout history become weaker over time, why would we assume this virus is any different ?
Yes it's more transmissible but is it more of a threat ? Possibly it is, maybe it is, possibly maybe, the article is not very specific, still using the fear factor, initially restrictions were to prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed, i really hope people try to move on with their lives now, looking over your shoulder for variants that could possibly be a threat is over reacting, be cautious yes, overreact no, it's bordering on obsessional behaviour, how much of this is a real threat and how much of it is just looking for things, if you look hard enough you tend to find what you are looking for, somewhere in the world people are dying, that's a fact, it's nothing new.
Personally i live in one Country, one Town in that Country, looking at what's happening on the other side of the planet is not healthy, if England had a bad winter with record deaths from Flu and Influenza would it be of concern to someone living in India or Brazil, no it wouldn't and it never has before this.
It's simple if we are worried about India or Brazil then restrict travel from those Countries and get on with living our lives where we live, obviously help those Countries as much as possible and live your life, the summer's here, enjoy.
Not true. If what you said was true only China would have been affected. One sick person with the new variant getting on a plane and arriving at your town would be enough to start a local outbreak of those unvaccinated.
I see what you mean, and you are correct, but historically viruses become weaker over time.
The new corona virus is not "just another new virus". Do you have a medical reference of a serious kind stating what you say? So far the ALPHA and DELTA variants have gone worse, more fatal statistically, and they take more lives, until more than 90% of the population is vaccinated. Also, DELTA is probably the main concern of any tour plans, including the Stones. They do not make tour plans on wishful thinking.
Well in the past viruses have got weaker, that's common knowledge, viruses need us to be alive to infect us. I'm not saying these variants are weaker, I'm saying we don't know for a fact they are stronger, especially as so many people have been vaccinated now, hopefully it's not going to be a major threat.
First of all, we know for a fact that these particular variants are stronger. You personally may not know that, but don't presume that information isn't out there, just because you haven't accessed it.
Secondly, you say we don't know that they are stronger, particularly because so many people have been vaccinated now. Just because people are vaccinated doesn't mean the virus isn't stronger. It means that more people are protected against it, despite it being stronger. It can still be stronger, especially for those not vaccinated, which is rather the point we're trying to make here.
Additionally, there are a lot of 'break-through' cases where people that are double vaxxed that get ill, go into the hospital and even die. The numbers here are significantly smaller than those not being vaccinated, but just evidence that this particular variant is not weaker, but more virulent.
It has also been shown to be more dangerous to young people.
As far as your armchair notation that in the past, virus' get weaker, that is a fact. OK, even if that is the case, that is in the 'long run'. The current evidence is not pointing to this with this virus which of course may change...or not.
No we don't know they are stronger, the link BV sent said it's possible they are, maybe they are, we keep hearing doom and gloom and nothing comes of it, Boris was predicting four thousand deaths per day before Christmas it didn't happen.
Everyone has been banging on about the Indian variant for ages, are you actually saying things are worse now than when covid started with hardly anyone in the UK dying directly as a result of covid, that's stretching it a bit, never mind you completely miss the point.
Why don't you try actually arguing my points, if you care to argue, rather than dragging in whether you PM was right on his death count predictions. What the hell does that have to do with anything. I don't live in the UK, I don't care what your PM thinks...he thought COVID was the flu and ended up in the hospital,
[www.bmj.com]
This is official government statistics, most of the cases are now the delta varient in the UK, very few are dying from it, so its weaker, happy now.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-04 14:46 by Rocktiludrop.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Hairball
()
Date: July 1, 2021 07:11
The latest from CNN:
Here's what is known about the Delta variant of coronavirus
Delta
The Delta variant of the coronavirus is worrying officials around the world. Four major Australian cities went into a four-day "circuit-breaker" lockdown this week to try and stop it from spreading. Australia's Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, announced looser vaccination policies to try to get more people immunized before the variant could spread. Ireland delayed plans to resume indoor service in bars and restaurants and US officials urged Americans to get vaccinated to stop its spread. The World Health Organization says the Delta variant, also known as B.1.617.2, has spread to at least 85 countries since it was first identified in India last fall.
Here's what is known about the variant so far:
It's spreading fast
By mid-June, the Delta variant accounted for 99% of Covid-19 cases in the UK, according to Public Health England, and it is set to account for 90% of cases in Europe by the end of August, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. In the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now estimates the variant accounts for 26% of new Covid-19 cases -- or at least, that it did as of June 19. It's been reported in all 50 states, plus Washington, D.C. It accounted for 10% of lineages as of June 5, meaning its prevalence more than doubled in just two weeks. Genetic testing company Helix tells CNN it estimates Delta accounts for 40% of cases in the US at present. "Every two weeks for the last month or two this has been doubling," Dr. Mark Mulligan, director of the NYU Langone Vaccine Center, told an International Antiviral Society--USA briefing Tuesday. "The data from England has shown that it outcompeted the Alpha variant in that population. That is strong head to head evidence that it is a better transmitter," Andrew Pekosz, a professor of immunology and molecular microbiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told CNN. "Here in the US it is doing very similar things. It seems to be on its way to becoming the dominant lineage in the US." Testing for any variant is imperfect. Standard tests to diagnose Covid-19 cannot tell which variant someone is infected with. Samples must be shipped to special labs for genomic testing, so the CDC and companies such as Helix extrapolate from the actual test results they get back.
It's more transmissible
"Delta is the most transmissible of the variants identified so far," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, said Friday. The virus carries a cluster of mutations, including one known as L452R, that helps it infect human cells more easily. "We learned this virus, a variant of Covid, is highly transmissible -- the most transmissible we've seen to date," US Surgeon-General Dr. Vivek Murthy told CNN Wednesday. "This is, again, a serious threat and we are seeing it spread among unvaccinated people." The ECDC estimates its about 40% to 60% more transmissible than the Alpha variant -- making it about half again as contagious.
Vaccines protect against it - but not perfectly
Real life and laboratory evidence both suggest that fully vaccinated people are protected against the Delta variant. "The good news is if you are vaccinated -- and fully vaccinated means two weeks after your last shot -- then there is good evidence that you have a high degree of protection against this virus," Murthy told CNN's Erica Hill Wednesday. "But if you are not vaccinated, then you are in trouble." Vaccine maker Moderna released results Tuesday showing that blood taken from vaccinated people could neutralize Delta, as well as other variants including Alpha, the Beta or B.1.351 variant first seen in South African, and Gamma, or P.1, which has swept Brazil. "Vaccines can handle it," Mulligan said. "In most cases, we have a cushion of magnitude in circulating antibody and other cellular responses. The vaccines are able to handle this." And in US states with lower vaccination rates, the Delta variant is more prevalent than in states where the majority of the populations are immunized. In Missouri, for example, data from Johns Hopkins University shows the infection rate is about 3.5 times the national average. And CDC data shows Delta accounts for about 57.5% of cases in the region that includes Missouri, where under 40% of the population is fully vaccinated, compared to 47% of the US population overall. But none of the coronavirus vaccines are 100% effective, so there can be infections even in fully vaccinated people. "It is possible that you will see people who are infected get breakthrough infections," Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN's Don Lemon Tuesday. "We haven't formally proven yet how much diminution there is in the likelihood of transmitting it to someone else -- including children -- and that's one of the reasons why you've got to be careful when you're dealing with something like the Delta variant," said Fauci, who is director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "With millions of people getting vaccinated against COVID-19, some people who are fully vaccinated will still get sick if they are exposed," CDC spokesperson Jade Fulce told CNN in an email Friday. "However, people with breakthrough infections may get less severely ill or have a shorter illness than they would have if they had not been vaccinated."
Everyday measures prevent transmission
There's nothing about the Delta variant that makes it different in terms of how it transmits. Coronaviruses are passed in the air and, to a smaller degree, on surfaces that people may touch. Masks, physical distancing and good ventilation all work to prevent transmission, as does handwashing and keeping surfaces clean.
It's not clear whether it it's more dangerous
While some public officials have said they believe the Delta variant is more dangerous that other lineages of the virus, there's no hard evidence showing this. The cluster of defining mutations on Delta indicate it is more transmissible and can hide to a small degree from the body's immune response, but none suggest it is more virulent or more pathogenic -- that is causes more severe disease. It does not carry two other worrying mutations known as E484K and N501Y -- which are seen in the B.1.1.7 or Alpha variant first seen in Britain, which swept many countries at the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021, and also in the B.1.351 variant of Beta variant first seen in South Africa, and well as the P.1 or Gamma variant. "It has a few unique mutations, particularly in the spike protein, that would suggest it is able to bind to human cells better and perhaps evade antibody responses that target the spike protein," Pekosz said. That could mean people who were infected with earlier lineages of coronavirus and recovered could more easily get infected with Delta. It also suggests antibody-based treatments might be slightly less effective. But as shown in laboratory tests, the vaccines cause an overwhelming immune response, stronger and broader than natural infection, that should protect most vaccinated people against serious illness and even mild infection.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
Here's what is known about the Delta variant of coronavirus
Delta
The Delta variant of the coronavirus is worrying officials around the world. Four major Australian cities went into a four-day "circuit-breaker" lockdown this week to try and stop it from spreading. Australia's Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, announced looser vaccination policies to try to get more people immunized before the variant could spread. Ireland delayed plans to resume indoor service in bars and restaurants and US officials urged Americans to get vaccinated to stop its spread. The World Health Organization says the Delta variant, also known as B.1.617.2, has spread to at least 85 countries since it was first identified in India last fall.
Here's what is known about the variant so far:
It's spreading fast
By mid-June, the Delta variant accounted for 99% of Covid-19 cases in the UK, according to Public Health England, and it is set to account for 90% of cases in Europe by the end of August, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. In the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now estimates the variant accounts for 26% of new Covid-19 cases -- or at least, that it did as of June 19. It's been reported in all 50 states, plus Washington, D.C. It accounted for 10% of lineages as of June 5, meaning its prevalence more than doubled in just two weeks. Genetic testing company Helix tells CNN it estimates Delta accounts for 40% of cases in the US at present. "Every two weeks for the last month or two this has been doubling," Dr. Mark Mulligan, director of the NYU Langone Vaccine Center, told an International Antiviral Society--USA briefing Tuesday. "The data from England has shown that it outcompeted the Alpha variant in that population. That is strong head to head evidence that it is a better transmitter," Andrew Pekosz, a professor of immunology and molecular microbiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told CNN. "Here in the US it is doing very similar things. It seems to be on its way to becoming the dominant lineage in the US." Testing for any variant is imperfect. Standard tests to diagnose Covid-19 cannot tell which variant someone is infected with. Samples must be shipped to special labs for genomic testing, so the CDC and companies such as Helix extrapolate from the actual test results they get back.
It's more transmissible
"Delta is the most transmissible of the variants identified so far," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, said Friday. The virus carries a cluster of mutations, including one known as L452R, that helps it infect human cells more easily. "We learned this virus, a variant of Covid, is highly transmissible -- the most transmissible we've seen to date," US Surgeon-General Dr. Vivek Murthy told CNN Wednesday. "This is, again, a serious threat and we are seeing it spread among unvaccinated people." The ECDC estimates its about 40% to 60% more transmissible than the Alpha variant -- making it about half again as contagious.
Vaccines protect against it - but not perfectly
Real life and laboratory evidence both suggest that fully vaccinated people are protected against the Delta variant. "The good news is if you are vaccinated -- and fully vaccinated means two weeks after your last shot -- then there is good evidence that you have a high degree of protection against this virus," Murthy told CNN's Erica Hill Wednesday. "But if you are not vaccinated, then you are in trouble." Vaccine maker Moderna released results Tuesday showing that blood taken from vaccinated people could neutralize Delta, as well as other variants including Alpha, the Beta or B.1.351 variant first seen in South African, and Gamma, or P.1, which has swept Brazil. "Vaccines can handle it," Mulligan said. "In most cases, we have a cushion of magnitude in circulating antibody and other cellular responses. The vaccines are able to handle this." And in US states with lower vaccination rates, the Delta variant is more prevalent than in states where the majority of the populations are immunized. In Missouri, for example, data from Johns Hopkins University shows the infection rate is about 3.5 times the national average. And CDC data shows Delta accounts for about 57.5% of cases in the region that includes Missouri, where under 40% of the population is fully vaccinated, compared to 47% of the US population overall. But none of the coronavirus vaccines are 100% effective, so there can be infections even in fully vaccinated people. "It is possible that you will see people who are infected get breakthrough infections," Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN's Don Lemon Tuesday. "We haven't formally proven yet how much diminution there is in the likelihood of transmitting it to someone else -- including children -- and that's one of the reasons why you've got to be careful when you're dealing with something like the Delta variant," said Fauci, who is director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "With millions of people getting vaccinated against COVID-19, some people who are fully vaccinated will still get sick if they are exposed," CDC spokesperson Jade Fulce told CNN in an email Friday. "However, people with breakthrough infections may get less severely ill or have a shorter illness than they would have if they had not been vaccinated."
Everyday measures prevent transmission
There's nothing about the Delta variant that makes it different in terms of how it transmits. Coronaviruses are passed in the air and, to a smaller degree, on surfaces that people may touch. Masks, physical distancing and good ventilation all work to prevent transmission, as does handwashing and keeping surfaces clean.
It's not clear whether it it's more dangerous
While some public officials have said they believe the Delta variant is more dangerous that other lineages of the virus, there's no hard evidence showing this. The cluster of defining mutations on Delta indicate it is more transmissible and can hide to a small degree from the body's immune response, but none suggest it is more virulent or more pathogenic -- that is causes more severe disease. It does not carry two other worrying mutations known as E484K and N501Y -- which are seen in the B.1.1.7 or Alpha variant first seen in Britain, which swept many countries at the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021, and also in the B.1.351 variant of Beta variant first seen in South Africa, and well as the P.1 or Gamma variant. "It has a few unique mutations, particularly in the spike protein, that would suggest it is able to bind to human cells better and perhaps evade antibody responses that target the spike protein," Pekosz said. That could mean people who were infected with earlier lineages of coronavirus and recovered could more easily get infected with Delta. It also suggests antibody-based treatments might be slightly less effective. But as shown in laboratory tests, the vaccines cause an overwhelming immune response, stronger and broader than natural infection, that should protect most vaccinated people against serious illness and even mild infection.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Hairball
()
Date: July 3, 2021 22:55
From CNN:
Unvaccinated people are "variant factories," infectious diseases expert says
Mutations and Variants
Unvaccinated people do more than merely risk their own health. They're also a risk to everyone if they become infected with coronavirus, infectious disease specialists say. That's because the only source of new coronavirus variants is the body of an infected person. "Unvaccinated people are potential variant factories," Dr. William Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told CNN Friday. "The more unvaccinated people there are, the more opportunities for the virus to multiply," Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said. "When it does, it mutates, and it could throw off a variant mutation that is even more serious down the road." All viruses mutate, and while the coronavirus is not particularly mutation-prone, it does change and evolve. Most of the changes mean nothing to the virus, and some can weaken it. But sometimes, a virus develops a random mutation that gives it an advantage -- better transmissibility, for instance, or more efficient replication, or an ability to infect a great diversity of hosts. Viruses with an advantage will outcompete other viruses, and will eventually make up the majority of virus particles infecting someone. If that infected person passes the virus to someone else, they'll be passing along the mutant version. If a mutant version is successful enough, it becomes a variant. But it has to replicate to do that. An unvaccinated person provides that opportunity. "As mutations come up in viruses, the ones that persist are the ones that make it easier for the virus to spread in the population," Andrew Pekosz, a microbiologist and immunologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told CNN. "Every time the viruses changes, that gives the virus a different platform to add more mutations. Now we have viruses that spread more efficiently."
Viruses that don't spread cannot mutate.
Variants have arisen all over the world -- the B.1.1.7 or Alpha variant was first seen in England. The B.1.351 or Beta variant was first spotted in South Africa. The Delta variant, also called B.1.617.2, was seen first in India. And the US has thrown up several of its own variants, including the B.1.427 or Epsilon lineage first seen in California and the B.1.526 or Eta variant first seen in New York. Already, one new variant has swept much of the world. Last summer, a version of the virus carrying a mutation called D614G went from Europe to the US and then the rest of the world. The change made the virus more successful—it replicated better -- so that version took over from the original strain that emerged from China. It appeared before people starting naming the variants, but it became the default version of the virus. Most of the newer variants added changes to D614G. The Alpha variant, or B.1.1.7, became the dominant variant in the US by late spring thanks to its extra transmissibility. Now the Delta variant is even more transmissible, and it's set to become the dominant variant in many countries, including the US. The current vaccines protect well against all the variants so far, but that could change at any moment. That's why doctors and public health officials want more people to get vaccinated. "The more we allow the virus to spread, the more opportunity the virus has to change," the World Health Organization advised last month.
Vaccines are not widely available in many countries. But in the US, there is plenty of supply, with slowing demand. Just 18 states have fully vaccinated more than half their residents, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Currently, approximately 1,000 counties in the United States have vaccination coverage of less than 30%. These communities, primarily in the Southeast and Midwest, are our most vulnerable. In some of these areas, we are already seeing increasing rates of disease," CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told a White House briefing Thursday. "Every time we see the virus circulating in the population, particularly a population that has pockets of immune people, vaccinated people, and pockets of unvaccinated people, you have a situation where the virus can probe," Pekosz said. If a virus tries to infect someone with immunity, it may fail, or it may succeed and cause a mild or asymptomatic infection. In that case, it will replicate in response to the pressure from a primed immune system. Like a bank robber whose picture is on wanted posters everywhere, the virus that succeeds will be the virus that makes a random change that makes it look less visible to the immune system. Those populations of unvaccinated people give the virus the change not only to spread, but to change. "All it takes is one mutation in one person," said Dr. Philip Landrigan, a pediatrician and immunologist at Boston College.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
Unvaccinated people are "variant factories," infectious diseases expert says
Mutations and Variants
Unvaccinated people do more than merely risk their own health. They're also a risk to everyone if they become infected with coronavirus, infectious disease specialists say. That's because the only source of new coronavirus variants is the body of an infected person. "Unvaccinated people are potential variant factories," Dr. William Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told CNN Friday. "The more unvaccinated people there are, the more opportunities for the virus to multiply," Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said. "When it does, it mutates, and it could throw off a variant mutation that is even more serious down the road." All viruses mutate, and while the coronavirus is not particularly mutation-prone, it does change and evolve. Most of the changes mean nothing to the virus, and some can weaken it. But sometimes, a virus develops a random mutation that gives it an advantage -- better transmissibility, for instance, or more efficient replication, or an ability to infect a great diversity of hosts. Viruses with an advantage will outcompete other viruses, and will eventually make up the majority of virus particles infecting someone. If that infected person passes the virus to someone else, they'll be passing along the mutant version. If a mutant version is successful enough, it becomes a variant. But it has to replicate to do that. An unvaccinated person provides that opportunity. "As mutations come up in viruses, the ones that persist are the ones that make it easier for the virus to spread in the population," Andrew Pekosz, a microbiologist and immunologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told CNN. "Every time the viruses changes, that gives the virus a different platform to add more mutations. Now we have viruses that spread more efficiently."
Viruses that don't spread cannot mutate.
Variants have arisen all over the world -- the B.1.1.7 or Alpha variant was first seen in England. The B.1.351 or Beta variant was first spotted in South Africa. The Delta variant, also called B.1.617.2, was seen first in India. And the US has thrown up several of its own variants, including the B.1.427 or Epsilon lineage first seen in California and the B.1.526 or Eta variant first seen in New York. Already, one new variant has swept much of the world. Last summer, a version of the virus carrying a mutation called D614G went from Europe to the US and then the rest of the world. The change made the virus more successful—it replicated better -- so that version took over from the original strain that emerged from China. It appeared before people starting naming the variants, but it became the default version of the virus. Most of the newer variants added changes to D614G. The Alpha variant, or B.1.1.7, became the dominant variant in the US by late spring thanks to its extra transmissibility. Now the Delta variant is even more transmissible, and it's set to become the dominant variant in many countries, including the US. The current vaccines protect well against all the variants so far, but that could change at any moment. That's why doctors and public health officials want more people to get vaccinated. "The more we allow the virus to spread, the more opportunity the virus has to change," the World Health Organization advised last month.
Vaccines are not widely available in many countries. But in the US, there is plenty of supply, with slowing demand. Just 18 states have fully vaccinated more than half their residents, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Currently, approximately 1,000 counties in the United States have vaccination coverage of less than 30%. These communities, primarily in the Southeast and Midwest, are our most vulnerable. In some of these areas, we are already seeing increasing rates of disease," CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told a White House briefing Thursday. "Every time we see the virus circulating in the population, particularly a population that has pockets of immune people, vaccinated people, and pockets of unvaccinated people, you have a situation where the virus can probe," Pekosz said. If a virus tries to infect someone with immunity, it may fail, or it may succeed and cause a mild or asymptomatic infection. In that case, it will replicate in response to the pressure from a primed immune system. Like a bank robber whose picture is on wanted posters everywhere, the virus that succeeds will be the virus that makes a random change that makes it look less visible to the immune system. Those populations of unvaccinated people give the virus the change not only to spread, but to change. "All it takes is one mutation in one person," said Dr. Philip Landrigan, a pediatrician and immunologist at Boston College.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Big Al
()
Date: July 5, 2021 08:41
For those in the U.K. Will you be ditching the covering on ‘Freedom Day’?
I’m sure we’ll have to continue wearing one on public transport, hospitals and clinics, but nowhere else will it seemingly be mandatory. Boris has pretty much stated that it’s ‘up to us’ I wonder if there will be mass burnings of PPE?
I’m sure we’ll have to continue wearing one on public transport, hospitals and clinics, but nowhere else will it seemingly be mandatory. Boris has pretty much stated that it’s ‘up to us’ I wonder if there will be mass burnings of PPE?
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Nikkei
()
Date: July 5, 2021 12:00
"mass burnings of PPE?[/quote]
the plague might move on but the medieval spin seems to persist
the plague might move on but the medieval spin seems to persist
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
teleblaster
()
Date: July 5, 2021 12:36
I'll go by the Scottish Government advice and plan to continue to wear a mask on public transport, in supermarkets, etc. I would not feel comfortable attending a gig, large or small, while the Delta variant is still rife and wouldn't go to see the Stones if they played my home town tonight. I don't have faith in Boris Johnson's advice, I'm afraid. I have found him to be woefully lacking in knowledge, integrity and leadership throughout this pandemic and I suspect that is how his premiership will be remembered in history.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
yorkshirestone
()
Date: July 5, 2021 13:24
Nope. I’ll be continuing to wear mine in shops and public transport - it’s no big deal for me personally and may make others more comfortable too. Whilst I’m double vaccinated I still would like to do what I can to avoid a (likely non fatal) dose and to not spread to othersQuote
Big Al
For those in the U.K. Will you be ditching the covering on ‘Freedom Day’?
I’m sure we’ll have to continue wearing one on public transport, hospitals and clinics, but nowhere else will it seemingly be mandatory. Boris has pretty much stated that it’s ‘up to us’ I wonder if there will be mass burnings of PPE?
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Beast
()
Date: July 5, 2021 14:41
If the choice is between advice from the British Medical Association and scientists and advice from a bumbling blustering excuse of a PM, then I know what I'm likely to be doing.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
yorkshirestone
()
Date: July 5, 2021 15:09
Exactly!!Quote
Beast
If the choice is between advice from the British Medical Association and scientists and advice from a bumbling blustering excuse of a PM, then I know what I'm likely to be doing.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
bv
()
Date: July 5, 2021 18:07
Burning your masks? Pandemic is over? Sure?
I remember buying masks when I went for the Stones tour in Singapore Hong Kong etc in 2003. SARS was a big problem there, a fatal virus. The pharmacist asked me why I would need masks private, normally only nurses and doctors were shopping masks. I got my set of masks and went to Singapore. Then I went on to Hong Kong. Wearing my masks of course. SARS had a fatality rate of 15% in average, and above 50% for people age 65 and older.
I am still wearing my masks, in crowded areas, even if I am fully vaccinated, and there is not much covid-19 in Norway. Why? Because there is 10% chance I might get mild covid-19, through or non-vaccinated kids, or adults arriving from abroad, or from others who do not keep a distance. Then I might bring covid-19 on to others, people who are at risk. You do know who they are. Party people. Careless people. The world is full of people with their own mind, who do not care about public health and others.
The pandemic will be around in the world for a long time still. Africa has got some 1% vaccination rate. There will be mutants. And there might be new virus coming. SARS, MERS, COVID-19, they all happened within two decades. People do travel more and more. I think I will keep my extra masks, in fact, I will get some extras, just in case, for the next tour, and for the next virus.
Bjornulf
I remember buying masks when I went for the Stones tour in Singapore Hong Kong etc in 2003. SARS was a big problem there, a fatal virus. The pharmacist asked me why I would need masks private, normally only nurses and doctors were shopping masks. I got my set of masks and went to Singapore. Then I went on to Hong Kong. Wearing my masks of course. SARS had a fatality rate of 15% in average, and above 50% for people age 65 and older.
I am still wearing my masks, in crowded areas, even if I am fully vaccinated, and there is not much covid-19 in Norway. Why? Because there is 10% chance I might get mild covid-19, through or non-vaccinated kids, or adults arriving from abroad, or from others who do not keep a distance. Then I might bring covid-19 on to others, people who are at risk. You do know who they are. Party people. Careless people. The world is full of people with their own mind, who do not care about public health and others.
The pandemic will be around in the world for a long time still. Africa has got some 1% vaccination rate. There will be mutants. And there might be new virus coming. SARS, MERS, COVID-19, they all happened within two decades. People do travel more and more. I think I will keep my extra masks, in fact, I will get some extras, just in case, for the next tour, and for the next virus.
Bjornulf
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Hairball
()
Date: July 5, 2021 18:52
Fewer than half of US states have reached the White House's July 4th vaccine goal as the Delta variant threatens the nation's progress
Vaccination
(CNN)Twenty states have reached the Biden administration's goal to partially vaccinate 70% of American adults by the Fourth of July as the Delta variant spreads and people gather for holiday celebrations across the country.
White House officials acknowledged last month that they would fall short of their goal, which was set in early May when the US was vaccinating people at a much faster pace than it is now. The US reached its highest vaccination rate in mid-April when the seven-day average of doses administered daily topped 3.3 million. At that time, 1.8 million new people became fully vaccinated each day. But that rate was not sustained, dropping to a seven-day average of 1,121,064 doses given per day as of Saturday. About 685,472 people are becoming fully vaccinated daily. However, the administration did come close to its goal of vaccinating 160 million adults by the holiday -- 157 million adults were fully vaccinated as of Saturday, federal data shows. "As a nation, as a whole, we are doing very well," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday.
Health experts have been sounding the alarm on the risk low vaccination rates pose in some areas as the Delta variant of the coronavirus is now detected in all 50 US states and Washington, DC. The Delta variant, which is highly contagious and causes even more severe illness, has been spreading so rapidly in some areas that officials brought back their mask guidance even if people are fully vaccinated. "There are some states where the level of vaccination of individuals is 35% or less," Fauci said. "Under those circumstances, you might expect to see spikes in certain regions, in certain states, cities or countries. I don't think you are going to be seeing anything nationwide, because fortunately we have a substantial proportion of the population vaccinated. So it's going to be regional." Health officials in Los Angeles County suggested last week that people in the county should wear masks while in public indoor spaces, regardless of their vaccination status. After California relaxed most of its Covid-19 restrictions on June 15, the state's Covid-19 test positivity rate doubled from 0.7% at the time to 1.5% on July 2, state health data shows. The Delta variant represents 36% of all new Covid-19 cases in California, and that number is expected to rise, a state health officer said Friday.
Health experts and studies have said the Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are highly effective in protecting people from severe illness and hospitalizations related to Covid-19 and some of its dangerous variants. Yet Barbara Ferrer, who heads Los Angeles County's Public Health Department, told CNN Saturday the county's new mask guidance is an extra precaution against the rise of Covid-19 cases there. "There are lots of settings where even though we know that the vaccines provide powerful protection to those who are vaccinated, the slight risk that a vaccinated person could shed enough virus to infect somebody else, coupled with just creating less and less risk in those settings where there are many unvaccinated people, makes it a prudent tool that I think has its place in this full reopening that we've done in LA County," Ferrer said. She added that the county is not requiring people to wear masks. "We just made a strong recommendation, if you're indoors, in a setting where you don't know everybody else's vaccination status ... it is best at this point to prevent another surge here in LA County by having everyone in those settings, where it could be crowded and you're indoors, often with poor ventilation, to keep those face coverings on," she said. California is one of 19 states to have fully vaccinated more than half its population. The other 18 are: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington state, as well as Washington, DC.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
Vaccination
(CNN)Twenty states have reached the Biden administration's goal to partially vaccinate 70% of American adults by the Fourth of July as the Delta variant spreads and people gather for holiday celebrations across the country.
White House officials acknowledged last month that they would fall short of their goal, which was set in early May when the US was vaccinating people at a much faster pace than it is now. The US reached its highest vaccination rate in mid-April when the seven-day average of doses administered daily topped 3.3 million. At that time, 1.8 million new people became fully vaccinated each day. But that rate was not sustained, dropping to a seven-day average of 1,121,064 doses given per day as of Saturday. About 685,472 people are becoming fully vaccinated daily. However, the administration did come close to its goal of vaccinating 160 million adults by the holiday -- 157 million adults were fully vaccinated as of Saturday, federal data shows. "As a nation, as a whole, we are doing very well," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday.
Health experts have been sounding the alarm on the risk low vaccination rates pose in some areas as the Delta variant of the coronavirus is now detected in all 50 US states and Washington, DC. The Delta variant, which is highly contagious and causes even more severe illness, has been spreading so rapidly in some areas that officials brought back their mask guidance even if people are fully vaccinated. "There are some states where the level of vaccination of individuals is 35% or less," Fauci said. "Under those circumstances, you might expect to see spikes in certain regions, in certain states, cities or countries. I don't think you are going to be seeing anything nationwide, because fortunately we have a substantial proportion of the population vaccinated. So it's going to be regional." Health officials in Los Angeles County suggested last week that people in the county should wear masks while in public indoor spaces, regardless of their vaccination status. After California relaxed most of its Covid-19 restrictions on June 15, the state's Covid-19 test positivity rate doubled from 0.7% at the time to 1.5% on July 2, state health data shows. The Delta variant represents 36% of all new Covid-19 cases in California, and that number is expected to rise, a state health officer said Friday.
Health experts and studies have said the Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are highly effective in protecting people from severe illness and hospitalizations related to Covid-19 and some of its dangerous variants. Yet Barbara Ferrer, who heads Los Angeles County's Public Health Department, told CNN Saturday the county's new mask guidance is an extra precaution against the rise of Covid-19 cases there. "There are lots of settings where even though we know that the vaccines provide powerful protection to those who are vaccinated, the slight risk that a vaccinated person could shed enough virus to infect somebody else, coupled with just creating less and less risk in those settings where there are many unvaccinated people, makes it a prudent tool that I think has its place in this full reopening that we've done in LA County," Ferrer said. She added that the county is not requiring people to wear masks. "We just made a strong recommendation, if you're indoors, in a setting where you don't know everybody else's vaccination status ... it is best at this point to prevent another surge here in LA County by having everyone in those settings, where it could be crowded and you're indoors, often with poor ventilation, to keep those face coverings on," she said. California is one of 19 states to have fully vaccinated more than half its population. The other 18 are: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington state, as well as Washington, DC.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
daspyknows
()
Date: July 5, 2021 19:21
This is like last summer for the unvaccinated but last summer that was everybody.
[www.sfgate.com]
California virus cases rising as delta variant spreads
AMY TAXIN and STEFANIE DAZIO
,
Associated Press
July 1, 2021
Updated: July 2, 2021 12:11 p.m.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California broadly reopened its economy barely two weeks ago and since then an especially contagious coronavirus variant has spread among the unvaccinated, a development that has health officials on edge and already has prompted Los Angeles County to strongly recommend everyone resume wearing masks inside.
The nation's most populous state is averaging close to 1,000 additional cases reported daily, an increase of about 17% in the last 14 days. Officials expected an increase when capacity limits were lifted for businesses and most mask restrictions and social distancing requirements were eliminated for vaccinated people.
But public health officials raised concern this week with the more transmissible delta variant spreading among the unvaccinated, who comprise the vast majority of new infections. LA County, where a quarter of the state's nearly 40 million people live, recommended Monday that vaccinated residents resume wearing face coverings indoors after detecting that about half of all cases were the delta variant.
The county Department of Public Health on Thursday reported 506 new cases, the highest number in a day since mid-April and more than double the figure from two weeks ago.
“Given that 4 million residents in L.A. County are not yet vaccinated, the risk of increased spread is very real," a department statement said.
“The new wrinkle in this is really this new variant. It just sort of rips very quickly through people who are susceptible to being infected, which overwhelmingly is people who are not vaccinated,” said Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, professor of epidemiology at the University of California, San Francisco. “We just opened up two weeks ago, everything was hunky dory.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom lifted a series of pandemic-related restrictions on June 15 after a final push to get more people vaccinated. Everyone 12 and older is eligible for shots and among that population 59% is fully vaccinated and another 10% has received a first dose.
In Contra Costa County, where 72% of eligible residents are fully vaccinated, officials recently began publishing virus case rates by vaccination status. Since the county has a high inoculation rate, the number of new coronavirus cases is generally low but unvaccinated residents remain at risk, said Dr. Chris Farnitano, the county's health officer.
For example, the seven-day average of new virus cases per 100,000 people in the county was recently 7.0 for those who are unvaccinated, and 0.4 for those who are vaccinated.
“The overall numbers don't look that concerning, but we know that there's this population that hasn't been vaccinated that still is at very high risk, and those overall numbers can give a false sense of security thinking COVID is still under control where it's still spreading quite rapidly among the unvaccinated population,” Farnitano said.
On Thursday, state officials drew the names of six winners of vacation packages at popular California tourist destinations including Disneyland. Vaccinated residents were automatically entered in the drawing, one of several incentives employed by state health officials to try to encourage people to take the shots.
Dr. Tomás Aragón, the state’s public health officer, said the state would continue to offer $50 cards to residents who get vaccinated and that some vaccination sites are offering free amusement park tickets.
“These vaccines are saving lives every day. The proof is in the data and the science that we study every day,” Aragón said before the drawing. “Here’s the bottom line: Californians who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 are extremely vulnerable right now to this fast-moving variant.”
In Los Angeles, a mix of masked and unmasked people walked around Echo Park Lake on Wednesday. G. Williams, who waited for a bus nearby, wore a black cloth mask over a blue surgical one — something she expects she'll do for years to come.
The 69-year-old isn't vaccinated, saying she still has concerns about possible long-term side effects. She supports her county's latest recommendation and said she doesn't understand why people wouldn't wear a mask to protect others.
“To me, my mask is as important as any article of clothing,” she said.
At Raven Things Collected, an LA gift shop selling crystals, tarot cards and jewelry, a table full of merchandise has been pulled in front of the counter to keep everyone distanced.
Employee Yesenia Rego said she feels protected because she’s vaccinated and distanced from customers. Most people wear masks when they come in anyway, she said, adding those who don't rarely ask if they should.
“They don’t even care anymore,” said Rego, 23, who wore a green cloth mask.
Vaccination rates vary widely across California. A San Francisco ZIP code reports more than 95% of those eligible are fully inoculated, while one in rural Modoc County has a 37% rate, according to state data.
Health officials said areas with low vaccination rates are especially at risk as the delta variant, first reported in India, spreads across the United States. The variant — which accounts for a fifth of new U.S. infections — was found in 15% of specimens sequenced in California in June, up from 5% in May.
In Orange County, the variant accounts for 45% of sequenced cases in the most recent week, said Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong, the county’s deputy health officer. Contact tracers reaching out to those infected with the virus find 95% are unvaccinated, and the few who are vaccinated report minor symptoms and aren't hospitalized, she said.
“Because we're starting to see these highly transmissible strains, it is only a matter of time for us to be exposed again,” she said. “So the question is how severe is the illness going to be when you actually get COVID.”
Public health officials said they hope measures like the one taken by Contra Costa County might help encourage more people to get the shots.
“It’s a demonstration in the real world, outside of the clinical trials, of the power of the vaccine,” said Andrew Noymer, a public health professor at University of California, Irvine. “COVID is going to seek out unvaccinated populations. The virus has a way of just sort of bouncing around until it finds a host it can infect, and those will be unvaccinated people.”
———
Taxin reported from Oran
[www.sfgate.com]
California virus cases rising as delta variant spreads
AMY TAXIN and STEFANIE DAZIO
,
Associated Press
July 1, 2021
Updated: July 2, 2021 12:11 p.m.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California broadly reopened its economy barely two weeks ago and since then an especially contagious coronavirus variant has spread among the unvaccinated, a development that has health officials on edge and already has prompted Los Angeles County to strongly recommend everyone resume wearing masks inside.
The nation's most populous state is averaging close to 1,000 additional cases reported daily, an increase of about 17% in the last 14 days. Officials expected an increase when capacity limits were lifted for businesses and most mask restrictions and social distancing requirements were eliminated for vaccinated people.
But public health officials raised concern this week with the more transmissible delta variant spreading among the unvaccinated, who comprise the vast majority of new infections. LA County, where a quarter of the state's nearly 40 million people live, recommended Monday that vaccinated residents resume wearing face coverings indoors after detecting that about half of all cases were the delta variant.
The county Department of Public Health on Thursday reported 506 new cases, the highest number in a day since mid-April and more than double the figure from two weeks ago.
“Given that 4 million residents in L.A. County are not yet vaccinated, the risk of increased spread is very real," a department statement said.
“The new wrinkle in this is really this new variant. It just sort of rips very quickly through people who are susceptible to being infected, which overwhelmingly is people who are not vaccinated,” said Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, professor of epidemiology at the University of California, San Francisco. “We just opened up two weeks ago, everything was hunky dory.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom lifted a series of pandemic-related restrictions on June 15 after a final push to get more people vaccinated. Everyone 12 and older is eligible for shots and among that population 59% is fully vaccinated and another 10% has received a first dose.
In Contra Costa County, where 72% of eligible residents are fully vaccinated, officials recently began publishing virus case rates by vaccination status. Since the county has a high inoculation rate, the number of new coronavirus cases is generally low but unvaccinated residents remain at risk, said Dr. Chris Farnitano, the county's health officer.
For example, the seven-day average of new virus cases per 100,000 people in the county was recently 7.0 for those who are unvaccinated, and 0.4 for those who are vaccinated.
“The overall numbers don't look that concerning, but we know that there's this population that hasn't been vaccinated that still is at very high risk, and those overall numbers can give a false sense of security thinking COVID is still under control where it's still spreading quite rapidly among the unvaccinated population,” Farnitano said.
On Thursday, state officials drew the names of six winners of vacation packages at popular California tourist destinations including Disneyland. Vaccinated residents were automatically entered in the drawing, one of several incentives employed by state health officials to try to encourage people to take the shots.
Dr. Tomás Aragón, the state’s public health officer, said the state would continue to offer $50 cards to residents who get vaccinated and that some vaccination sites are offering free amusement park tickets.
“These vaccines are saving lives every day. The proof is in the data and the science that we study every day,” Aragón said before the drawing. “Here’s the bottom line: Californians who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 are extremely vulnerable right now to this fast-moving variant.”
In Los Angeles, a mix of masked and unmasked people walked around Echo Park Lake on Wednesday. G. Williams, who waited for a bus nearby, wore a black cloth mask over a blue surgical one — something she expects she'll do for years to come.
The 69-year-old isn't vaccinated, saying she still has concerns about possible long-term side effects. She supports her county's latest recommendation and said she doesn't understand why people wouldn't wear a mask to protect others.
“To me, my mask is as important as any article of clothing,” she said.
At Raven Things Collected, an LA gift shop selling crystals, tarot cards and jewelry, a table full of merchandise has been pulled in front of the counter to keep everyone distanced.
Employee Yesenia Rego said she feels protected because she’s vaccinated and distanced from customers. Most people wear masks when they come in anyway, she said, adding those who don't rarely ask if they should.
“They don’t even care anymore,” said Rego, 23, who wore a green cloth mask.
Vaccination rates vary widely across California. A San Francisco ZIP code reports more than 95% of those eligible are fully inoculated, while one in rural Modoc County has a 37% rate, according to state data.
Health officials said areas with low vaccination rates are especially at risk as the delta variant, first reported in India, spreads across the United States. The variant — which accounts for a fifth of new U.S. infections — was found in 15% of specimens sequenced in California in June, up from 5% in May.
In Orange County, the variant accounts for 45% of sequenced cases in the most recent week, said Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong, the county’s deputy health officer. Contact tracers reaching out to those infected with the virus find 95% are unvaccinated, and the few who are vaccinated report minor symptoms and aren't hospitalized, she said.
“Because we're starting to see these highly transmissible strains, it is only a matter of time for us to be exposed again,” she said. “So the question is how severe is the illness going to be when you actually get COVID.”
Public health officials said they hope measures like the one taken by Contra Costa County might help encourage more people to get the shots.
“It’s a demonstration in the real world, outside of the clinical trials, of the power of the vaccine,” said Andrew Noymer, a public health professor at University of California, Irvine. “COVID is going to seek out unvaccinated populations. The virus has a way of just sort of bouncing around until it finds a host it can infect, and those will be unvaccinated people.”
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Taxin reported from Oran
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Big Al
()
Date: July 5, 2021 19:41
Quote
Nikkei
"mass burnings of PPE?
the plague might move on but the medieval spin seems to persist[/quote]
Well, I won’t be burning mine, of course.
Myself? I’ll of course wear the covering when mandatory; otherwise, no. It’s each to their own, as they say. I can understand the caution of some, certainly.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
MisterDDDD
()
Date: July 6, 2021 01:10
Quote
Big Al
Myself? I’ll of course wear the covering when mandatory; otherwise, no. It’s each to their own, as they say. I can understand the caution of some, certainly.
Fair stance I suppose with mandates lifted and if you're only considering your own well being.
But, how tough is it really by now to just wear one out of consideration of others? Considering the preteen kids that haven't been able to get vaxxed, and the slight possibility you could pass it on to them still, as well as to give them some peace of mind, can't see not wearing one indoors whether required or not.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
treaclefingers
()
Date: July 6, 2021 01:42
Quote
MisterDDDDQuote
Big Al
Myself? I’ll of course wear the covering when mandatory; otherwise, no. It’s each to their own, as they say. I can understand the caution of some, certainly.
Fair stance I suppose with mandates lifted and if you're only considering your own well being.
But, how tough is it really by now to just wear one out of consideration of others? Considering the preteen kids that haven't been able to get vaxxed, and the slight possibility you could pass it on to them still, as well as to give them some peace of mind, can't see not wearing one indoors whether required or not.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
grzegorz67
()
Date: July 6, 2021 02:37
Quote
teleblaster
I'll go by the Scottish Government advice and plan to continue to wear a mask on public transport, in supermarkets, etc. I would not feel comfortable attending a gig, large or small, while the Delta variant is still rife and wouldn't go to see the Stones if they played my home town tonight. I don't have faith in Boris Johnson's advice, I'm afraid. I have found him to be woefully lacking in knowledge, integrity and leadership throughout this pandemic and I suspect that is how his premiership will be remembered in history.
This is where I am. I wouldn’t put him in charge of a sweetie shop. I won’t be a complete Hermit but I’ll certainly still be wearing a mask and sanitising in enclosed public spaces like supermarkets and public transport for the safety of others. The SG’s stance is very necessary because I believe Scotland now has Europe’s highest Covid rates, especially along the Central belt. I still would not feel comfortable in a football crowd or at a gig just yet.
I’m originally from Hamilton but live in rural South West Oxfordshire where the rate is low, but is now rising, Like everywhere else.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-06 02:42 by grzegorz67.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
GasLightStreet
()
Date: July 6, 2021 06:59
California up through British Columbia...
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
crholmstrom
()
Date: July 6, 2021 11:02
Quote
GasLightStreet
California up through British Columbia...
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
Believe me, it already has been a long summer. In addition to what you mentioned am dealing with some potentially real bad medical stuff on a personal level. I'm in some trouble, the question is how much. I hope (sort of) to find out in the next few days. Fingers crossed it's only a little trouble.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Rockman
()
Date: July 6, 2021 11:23
heck crholmstrom ....
Things dont sound good ....
Hope all goes well for ya ....
Stay Safe .... wont ya
ROCKMAN
Things dont sound good ....
Hope all goes well for ya ....
Stay Safe .... wont ya
ROCKMAN
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
crholmstrom
()
Date: July 6, 2021 11:46
Quote
Rockman
heck crholmstrom ....
Things dont sound good ....
Hope all goes well for ya ....
Stay Safe .... wont ya
Thank you, Rockman
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
steffialicia
()
Date: July 6, 2021 14:00
Quote
crholmstromQuote
GasLightStreet
California up through British Columbia...
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
Believe me, it already has been a long summer. In addition to what you mentioned am dealing with some potentially real bad medical stuff on a personal level. I'm in some trouble, the question is how much. I hope (sort of) to find out in the next few days. Fingers crossed it's only a little trouble.
I'm sending all my best wishes for a good report regarding your health.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
TheflyingDutchman
()
Date: July 6, 2021 14:36
New corona mutants are spreading quite fast. The vaccines that we use now lose their effect, let alone against new upcoming mutants. That's what Ducth OMT-professionals predict. By the time winter has set in we are almost back to zero. A complete lockdown. The virus is not the real problem, it's just a consequence of overpopulation / human behaviour. Vaccines are a temporary short-term solution. Within now and 40 years life on this planet has become unbearable, in each and every way, maybe with the exception of the (un)happy few.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
crholmstrom
()
Date: July 6, 2021 14:45
Quote
steffialiciaQuote
crholmstromQuote
GasLightStreet
California up through British Columbia...
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
Believe me, it already has been a long summer. In addition to what you mentioned am dealing with some potentially real bad medical stuff on a personal level. I'm in some trouble, the question is how much. I hope (sort of) to find out in the next few days. Fingers crossed it's only a little trouble.
I'm sending all my best wishes for a good report regarding your health.
Thank you
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
treaclefingers
()
Date: July 6, 2021 16:44
Quote
crholmstromQuote
steffialiciaQuote
crholmstromQuote
GasLightStreet
California up through British Columbia...
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
Believe me, it already has been a long summer. In addition to what you mentioned am dealing with some potentially real bad medical stuff on a personal level. I'm in some trouble, the question is how much. I hope (sort of) to find out in the next few days. Fingers crossed it's only a little trouble.
I'm sending all my best wishes for a good report regarding your health.
Thank you
Best wishes CR...I hope things improve for you soon.
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
crholmstrom
()
Date: July 6, 2021 16:48
Quote
treaclefingersQuote
crholmstromQuote
steffialiciaQuote
crholmstromQuote
GasLightStreet
California up through British Columbia...
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
Believe me, it already has been a long summer. In addition to what you mentioned am dealing with some potentially real bad medical stuff on a personal level. I'm in some trouble, the question is how much. I hope (sort of) to find out in the next few days. Fingers crossed it's only a little trouble.
I'm sending all my best wishes for a good report regarding your health.
Thank you
Best wishes CR...I hope things improve for you soon.
thank you
Re: Coronavirus COVID-19 status around the world
Posted by:
Hairball
()
Date: July 7, 2021 00:29
Quote
crholmstromQuote
treaclefingersQuote
crholmstromQuote
steffialiciaQuote
crholmstromQuote
GasLightStreet
California up through British Columbia...
How do fires and anti-vaxxers weigh up?
Sound mean? It's realistic.
Gonna be a long summer.
Believe me, it already has been a long summer. In addition to what you mentioned am dealing with some potentially real bad medical stuff on a personal level. I'm in some trouble, the question is how much. I hope (sort of) to find out in the next few days. Fingers crossed it's only a little trouble.
I'm sending all my best wishes for a good report regarding your health.
Thank you
Best wishes CR...I hope things improve for you soon.
thank you
Hoping for the best for you crholmstrom.
_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......
This Thread has been closed