Coronavirus Sars-CoV-2/Covid-19 Megathread

[Syt]

Well, we also have a nightly curfew, technically. You're allowed to be outside for necessary errands (shopping groceries, going to work, seeing a doctor), and to get some exercise or getting some fresh air.

[Tamas]

Well, we also have a nightly curfew, technically. You're allowed to be outside for necessary errands (shopping groceries, going to work, seeing a doctor), and to get some exercise or getting some fresh air.

i.e. there's no curfew.

[Liep]

For reasons unknown we're still "pausing" the use of AZ and apparently won't get as many Johnson's vaccine as we hoped for. It's pretty miserable compared to the hope I felt in January.

[Syt]

Well, we also have a nightly curfew, technically. You're allowed to be outside for necessary errands (shopping groceries, going to work, seeing a doctor), and to get some exercise or getting some fresh air.

i.e. there's no curfew.

How DARE you say that!

[mongers]

For reasons unknown we're still "pausing" the use of AZ and apparently won't get as many Johnson's vaccine as we hoped for. It's pretty miserable compared to the hope I felt in January.

[Grey Fox]

Was this AZ's first vaccine?

Quebec got it's share of Pfizer vaccine yesterday, 271k for the week. Moderna is still outstanding with 58k, they suck at delivering. No more AZ in march.

[Sheilbh]

Was this AZ's first vaccine?

Yep. And it is apparently the easiest to make which makes the manufacturing failures all the more annoying.

[Sheilbh]

Reports on new slogans for bits of the UK re-opening. Apparently advertising and PR firms have been helping and the focus is on staying outside, get the fresh air etc.

Only what 10 months after realising that the key to spread is ventilation and we're finally shifting to a message based on that instead of hand-washing and "staying alert"

There's still incredibly few examples of cases being transmitted outdoors and, from my understanding, zero examples around the world of a case being transmitted by surface contact. But the focus has still always been on hand-washing and not focusing on the actual high risks or on the low risk activities. Better late than never I suppose

[DGuller]

To be devil's advocate, just how would one go about confirming a virus transmission by surface contact?  It's not like you can interview the virus and ask it how it managed to infect its host.

[Sheilbh]

To be devil's advocate, just how would one go about confirming a virus transmission by surface contact?  It's not like you can interview the virus and ask it how it managed to infect its host.

True - but they can look at the evidence of how well it survives in an infectious form on surfaces and it just doesn't seem to be a thing. Most of the examples of it surviving on a surface include very high levels of the virus which wouldn't happen by coughing or sneezing for example:
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00251-4

There's also been investigations by countries with very few cases like New Zealand and Australia where they do the normal contact tracing, but also gene sequence swabs so they can confirm genomically where the positive case came from. I don't think they've found any examples of surface transmission but have identified aerosol transmission in an enclosed space in as short a time as 1 minute (particularly in quarantine hotels where there's CCTV in communal areas so they can confirm that it's not by touching things).

Edit: Zeynep Tufekci also wrote an interesting piece on this, including a recent NZ investigation: https://zeynep.substack.com/p/pandemic-theater-the-anniversary

Interesting news on Oxford/AZ - Oxford are apparently looking for volunteers for a trial of delivering the vaccine via a nasal spray instead of an injection I don't think there's many people that scared of needles but it might be easier if we're going to be getting booster shots etc? Maybe it's be quicker and easier to deliver for health services?

[Legbiter]

It's mostly close proximity droplet infection here but one of my neighbors claims to have got it from an infected colleague because they shared a workstation, a keyboard to be specific.

[viper37]

Reports on new slogans for bits of the UK re-opening. Apparently advertising and PR firms have been helping and the focus is on staying outside, get the fresh air etc.

Only what 10 months after realising that the key to spread is ventilation and we're finally shifting to a message based on that instead of hand-washing and "staying alert"

There's still incredibly few examples of cases being transmitted outdoors and, from my understanding, zero examples around the world of a case being transmitted by surface contact. But the focus has still always been on hand-washing and not focusing on the actual high risks or on the low risk activities. Better late than never I suppose

IIRC, the key to spread is still close contact and macro-droplets with 15 minutes or more contact.  Ventilation is certainly a problem, but not that much responsible for most non-crowded places.  Even with good ventilation, if you cram 150 people in an area that shouldn't have more than 50, you will get transmission.  But I guess with excellent ventilation we could have more people inside.  Would that reduce/eliminate contagion, I do not know.  If better ventilation lets us remove the mask, than go for it, make these companies crazy rich dammit.

[viper37]

It's mostly close proximity droplet infection here but one of my neighbors claims to have got it from an infected colleague because they shared a workstation, a keyboard to be specific.

makes sense.  Infected one touches his mouth with his hands, touch the kb, the other one touches the keyboard, than touches his mouth.  It's pretty tough to go an entire day without touching your mouth/face with your hands, or even remembering to wash your hands in between the touching every time.  Pretty damn near impossible.

[Sheilbh]

IIRC, the key to spread is still close contact and macro-droplets with 15 minutes or more contact.  Ventilation is certainly a problem, but not that much responsible for most non-crowded places.  Even with good ventilation, if you cram 150 people in an area that shouldn't have more than 50, you will get transmission.  But I guess with excellent ventilation we could have more people inside.  Would that reduce/eliminate contagion, I do not know.  If better ventilation lets us remove the mask, than go for it, make these companies crazy rich dammit.

Maybe. I basicaly just mean open all the windows and mainly do stuff outside when I'm talking about ventilation - I'm very simple about it

I'm not convinced AC would help if it just recirculates the same air.

[Zanza]

So far, only India has blocked vaccine exports destined for the UK.

Yeah and it feels like the UK and EU will reach an agreement over the Halix doses (as two customers). Ultimately EU export restrictions would only really impact the UK if they hit Pfizer and it feels like it would be weird to use restrictions that are in part drive by AZ's manufacturing and delivery failures to block a company that is delivering from fulfilling other orders they have.

We have the same issue as everyone outside the US with Moderna too - I don't think we've received any yet and we're back of the queue for J&J (I think). As I say - and maybe it isn't luck and the procurement team just did a very good job - but it is striking how easily this could have gone another way if Moderna and J&J were approved first.

Germany has gotten some Moderna.

3.8 million doses AZ so far (with 1.7 million expected next week , then about 450k per week afterwards)
11 million Pfizer/Biontech (1 million more expected next week, then 2.5 million per week expected in April)
1 million Moderna (about 1-1.3 million expected in April)
Nothing yet for J&J or CureVac (Germany's fifth option)