Coronavirus Sars-CoV-2/Covid-19 Megathread

[crazy canuck]

I definitely did not have COVID, had significant side effects on the first shot, really nothing with the second shot.

[Sheilbh]

I definitely did not have COVID, had significant side effects on the first shot, really nothing with the second shot.

Yeah I didn't have covid at all (unless it was totally asymptomatic) but had side effects on the first shot and nothing on the second.

[Tamas]

I definitely did not have COVID, had significant side effects on the first shot, really nothing with the second shot.

Yeah I didn't have covid at all (unless it was totally asymptomatic) but had side effects on the first shot and nothing on the second.

Same here with AZ. Based on a lot of anecdotal evidence, it seems little to do with prior infection and all to do with the type of vaccine used.

[Tamas]

Also: I  remembered how the early stages of the pandemic were used by some hospitals/doctors to practice de facto eugenics on people with various disabilities (issuing -on account of overload I assume- a do not resusciate order on them) here in the UK. I am kind of wondering if the more cynical thinking behind "if not now then when" is the fact that it's the poorer / more immigrant heavy areas of the country that remain under vaccinated? The white middle class in the South is unlikely to be decimated by the imminent surge, unlike the North. 

[DGuller]

I've taken a stroll down a row of Korean restaurants in Manhattan.  I noticed that most of them have built up temporary wooden enclosed structures on the side of the road, complete with large room air conditioners. 

What is the fucking point, what am I missing?  Isn't it just indoors dining on the side of the road, except with ventilation systems that will likely more efficiently spread the virus around?

[Sheilbh]

Also: I  remembered how the early stages of the pandemic were used by some hospitals/doctors to practice de facto eugenics on people with various disabilities (issuing -on account of overload I assume- a do not resusciate order on them) here in the UK. I am kind of wondering if the more cynical thinking behind "if not now then when" is the fact that it's the poorer / more immigrant heavy areas of the country that remain under vaccinated?

But is that right? It's definitely a thing of areas with relatively high numbers of immigrants or minority populations having a lower vaccination rate - but those areas are also, generally, younger and age is a very big indicator of vaccination rate because of the way it's been prioritised. I don't see much in this map to back up the idea that there's a big divide - the striking thing for me is cities (especially cities with universities) are lower, but as I say they are younger and they have more transient populations (so I've been in a flat for three years now but before that I moved flat every year, I was speaking to a friend who realised he had to book his vaccine with the GP in a really inconvenient area because he'd not needed to register in about 5 years):
https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/details/interactive-map/vaccinations

Obviously a lot more needs to be done to reach young people and get them vaxxed (and I'm now coming round to the idea of internal vaccine passports to drive this) as well as outreach in the community for minority groups to make sure that we get everyone dosed (and keep reaching out to people who decided not to in the first round to check if they want the vaccine now). Take up is a lot lower among the 20-somethings than I'd want.

The white middle class in the South is unlikely to be decimated by the imminent surge, unlike the North.

I'd slightly push back on the "white middle class" South idea. The South-East is about as diverse as the East Midlands, East of England, Yorkshire and the North-West. It's an average region in England. The two least diverse areas in England are the North-East and the South-West - obviously all of them are miles behind London and, to a lesser extent, the West Midlands.

If you include "White Other" so largely European migrants then the South-East is the third most diverse area of England (interestingly the South-East is second only to London in terms of mixed-race population).

More generally on the "if not now, when" - I think there are some positive signs. From Scotland cases down in every age group except the 75+ (which is bad but from very low numbers) - and looking at that 20-24 age group I really think there's a Euros connection of people watching in pubs. Scotland's tournament ended on the 22 June:


Also striking is the ratio between cases and hospitalisation is still falling - I thought this would have bottomed out by now but this is why I want more information on what the projections are of cases and the impact on hospitalisation/death:

What is the fucking point, what am I missing?  Isn't it just indoors dining on the side of the road, except with ventilation systems that will likely more efficiently spread the virus around?

Yeah - it makes no sense to me. Here they are all open so they might be covered but there'll only be walls to sort of waist height, or you get basically marquee material hung above an alley or whatever to provide some cover. Plus lots more outdoor spaces/seizing the roads which I love. Eg - in Soho:

[Barrister]

This is a fairly horrifying news article I found:

The state of Tennessee Department of Health is stopping all vaccine outreach for kids (not just Covid, but all vaccines).  Vaccine clinics will no longer be held in school gyms.  If teens have received their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, they will not be sent a reminder for their second shot.

All because of pressure from Republican lawmakers, of course.

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/health/2021/07/13/tennessee-halts-all-vaccine-outreach-minors-not-just-covid-19/7928701002/

[Sheilbh]

That's going to be a disaster. Covid isn't that bad for kids - but the diseases we inoculate kids for can be awful

[Josquius]

Also: I  remembered how the early stages of the pandemic were used by some hospitals/doctors to practice de facto eugenics on people with various disabilities (issuing -on account of overload I assume- a do not resusciate order on them) here in the UK. I am kind of wondering if the more cynical thinking behind "if not now then when" is the fact that it's the poorer / more immigrant heavy areas of the country that remain under vaccinated? The white middle class in the South is unlikely to be decimated by the imminent surge, unlike the North. 

I have definitely heard some people supportive of the sentiments of just let those who are going to die die

[ulmont]

Also: I  remembered how the early stages of the pandemic were used by some hospitals/doctors to practice de facto eugenics on people with various disabilities (issuing -on account of overload I assume- a do not resusciate order on them) here in the UK. I am kind of wondering if the more cynical thinking behind "if not now then when" is the fact that it's the poorer / more immigrant heavy areas of the country that remain under vaccinated? The white middle class in the South is unlikely to be decimated by the imminent surge, unlike the North. 

I have definitely heard some people supportive of the sentiments of just let those who are going to die die

To paraphase the old joke, "I sent you a mask and 3 vaccines!"

[Legbiter]

From an evolutionary standpoint the virus has gone about as far as it's possible for a virus to go since matching the measles virus in airborne infectivity. I think for the next few seasons we'll have booster shots but I'm very optimistic this virus will go extinct once we vaccinate enough people globally. The downside is if you're middle aged with underlying conditions and unvaccinated, the new viral varieties will basically cause you to self-combust. 

[Jacob]

My worry is that it evolves to be more damaging to children (esp. younger children) since they're unvaccinated.

[Legbiter]

My worry is that it evolves to be more damaging to children (esp. younger children) since they're unvaccinated.

Yeah, the only saving grace is that it doesn't cause any severe illness or even symptoms in the under 10 except very rarely. In a sense we got lucky, the next Chinese culinary experiment/ accidental lab leak might not be as kind as this one.

[celedhring]

I just don't get it. Trump was trying to take all credit for the vaccine a few months ago, and now the official GOP stance is to be anti-vaxxer. This people are really confusing.

[Tamas]

"This is very much in line with what we expected - even wanted - to happen."

Transport Secretary @GrantShapps says he 'wanted' and 'expected' some transport organisations to keep on enforcing masks after July 19.