Coronavirus Sars-CoV-2/Covid-19 Megathread

[DGuller]

Hopefully it was a case of someone violating the quarantine, and now they don't want to publicize that fact.

[The Brain]

They could reopen the prison in Ushuaia for quarantine stuff.

[Barrister]

https://www.fiercepharma.com/vaccines/merck-ceo-frazier-says-covid-19-vaccine-hype-a-grave-disservice-to-public

Didn't quote the whole article, but some pessimism on the vaccine front.

The cynical optimist in me would point to the concluding paragraphs of the article:

The New Jersey drug giant publicly entered COVID-19 vaccine and drug research back in May, months after some of its pharma peers had started up their own programs or partnerships. In its quest for a COVID-19 vaccine, Merck partnered with nonprofit research group IAVI on a preclinical vaccine candidate based on the same platform used by Merck's Ebola vaccine. The company also bought privately held Swiss biotech Themis for access to a potential COVID-19 vaccine developed by that biotech and its partner, Institut Pasteur.

Both of those programs remain in preclinical stages, whereas some of Merck's biopharma peers are getting ready for or launching phase 3 trials. Moderna, Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson are among the current COVID-19 vaccine frontrunners.

[Iormlund]

Hopefully it was a case of someone violating the quarantine, and now they don't want to publicize that fact.

Or simply a false negative in the test.

[The Larch]

Hopefully it was a case of someone violating the quarantine, and now they don't want to publicize that fact.

Or simply a false negative in the test.

Or an asymptomatic carrier that passed it on to another sailor who also didn't develop symptoms, until somebody did.

[jimmy olsen]

Death rate is climbing in the worst hit states

Yesterday - California 139, Florida 132, Texas 131, Arizona 92
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

[DGuller]

Death rate is climbing in the worst hit states

Yesterday - California 139, Florida 132, Texas 131, Arizona 92
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

It's obviously not good, but this is nothing like New York during the height of the epidemic.  When New York had Florida's numbers of infections, people were officially dying at a rate of 700 per day, and probably another 350 were dying unofficially.  I wonder what factors account for the difference:  more widespread testing driving up the official case numbers for Florida compared to New York, younger population of those sick, or better understanding about how to treat patients instead of finishing them off?

[Threviel]

Relative mortality has been dropping fast here too. One theory I heard is that the virus might be mellowing and becoming less lethal.

[Zoupa]

 

That's not how virii work.

[katmai]

  I wonder what factors account for the difference:  more widespread testing driving up the official case numbers for Florida compared to New York, younger population of those sick, or better understanding about how to treat patients instead of finishing them off?

I'm sure it is bit of each of those factors.

[Threviel]

That's not how virii work.

I don't know the credibility of New Scientist, but a quick googling gives this article discussing how HIV is developing to a less lethal form.

https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26643-hiv-evolves-into-less-deadly-form/

This article from the WP discusses the very issue, coming down on the side of the virus not becoming less lethal.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/experts-dispute-reports-coronavirus-is-becoming-less-lethal/2020/06/01/8f8ace7c-a432-11ea-b619-3f9133bbb482_story.html

Note the quote "All viruses evolve over time, and many infectious-disease experts think the novel coronavirus will eventually become less lethal to human beings, joining four other coronaviruses in causing common colds. "

My comment was based on a news article discussing why corona deaths are falling rapidly in Sweden, one of the explanations (one of several) was that it was possible that the virus itself was developing to a less lethal form. It was clearly stated as a theory and that more proof was needed. I should perhaps have elaborated a bit more in my post.

Makes me curious, are you claiming that viruses don't evolve over time? Or that is is impossible for them to evolve into less lethal forms? Or perhaps that the time span is too short?

[Sophie Scholl]

Madness. Utter madness. 
"Hospital data on coronavirus patients will now be rerouted to the Trump administration instead of first being sent to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed to CNN on Tuesday."
"The Times said hospitals are to begin reporting the data to HHS on Wednesday, noting also that the "database that will receive new information is not open to the public, which could affect the work of scores of researchers, modelers and health officials who rely on C.D.C. data to make projections and crucial decisions.""

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/14/politics/trump-administration-coronavirus-hospital-data-cdc/index.html?fbclid=IwAR2NodWLI2Q3e6gfDL1T9I917zkIJOAGdZvUhQM0CeCNBaCvVxsb6Tu8d9Q

[celedhring]

The virus is having less observed lethality over here too, but most local experts believe it's simply because we're now able to catch far more asymtomatic and mild cases - the age profile of confirmed corona patients is now much lower than in April, for example.

[Tamas]

The virus is having less observed lethality over here too, but most local experts believe it's simply because we're now able to catch far more asymtomatic and mild cases - the age profile of confirmed corona patients is now much lower than in April, for example.

IIRC this was something predicted, that mortality rate would fall as we get better at testing and IDing the virus .

[jimmy olsen]

Madness. Utter madness. 
"Hospital data on coronavirus patients will now be rerouted to the Trump administration instead of first being sent to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed to CNN on Tuesday."
"The Times said hospitals are to begin reporting the data to HHS on Wednesday, noting also that the "database that will receive new information is not open to the public, which could affect the work of scores of researchers, modelers and health officials who rely on C.D.C. data to make projections and crucial decisions.""

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/14/politics/trump-administration-coronavirus-hospital-data-cdc/index.html?fbclid=IwAR2NodWLI2Q3e6gfDL1T9I917zkIJOAGdZvUhQM0CeCNBaCvVxsb6Tu8d9Q

Seems like a pointless attempt to cover things up when every single state, including the blood red ones are going to be releasing that information on their own websites.