Wuhan virus (coronavirus) arrives in the USA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is WHO resisting on calling COVID-19 a pandemic?

What’s the criteria?

The WHO announced yesterday or Sunday that it no longer uses the term pandemic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The cat's out of the bag and it isn't going back in. Unless you are going to wear a mask for the rest of your life, there is probably no point. This virus is here to stay and it sounds like it will keep killing. Over time, we will likely develop some kinds of immunity to it. Maybe it will weaken and become like any other cold. Honestly, the human race gets what it deserves. We've known this is a risk for a long time. Didn't stop folks from eating wild animals, however, and it won't stop them now. Most of us will be fine and recover. Some will not.

For now, I've stocked up on a few non-perishables and stopped taking the Metro. It would be good if we could at least get a handle on what treatments are most effective before most of us get sick. I figure if I can delay getting it for a few months, that will be best.

Now, those of us who are considered “at risk population” need to figure out what to do. We may cancel elderly MIL’s non-essential medical appointments.

[Anonymous]

I would like go know more about the health workers who have been infected outside China. So, for instance, the Iranian health minister. One would assume he is washing his hands, not sharing drinks, not greeting people outside his family with a kiss.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Norwegian state media reports that 1000 tourists are quarantined in a hotel in Tenerife on the Canary Islands after a guest, an Italian doctor from Lombardy, tested positive for the virus.

https://www.nrk.no/urix/spansk-avis_-1000-hotellgjester-i-kar

It’s the possibility of this type of situation that has caused me to cancel my trip to Aruba.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is WHO resisting on calling COVID-19 a pandemic?

What’s the criteria?

The WHO announced yesterday or Sunday that it no longer uses the term pandemic.

But it does have “pandemic bonds” outstanding, which would stop paying out to investors if a pandemic is declared, so that the money could be used to fight the pandemic. Hmm....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The cat's out of the bag and it isn't going back in. Unless you are going to wear a mask for the rest of your life, there is probably no point. This virus is here to stay and it sounds like it will keep killing. Over time, we will likely develop some kinds of immunity to it. Maybe it will weaken and become like any other cold. Honestly, the human race gets what it deserves. We've known this is a risk for a long time. Didn't stop folks from eating wild animals, however, and it won't stop them now. Most of us will be fine and recover. Some will not.

For now, I've stocked up on a few non-perishables and stopped taking the Metro. It would be good if we could at least get a handle on what treatments are most effective before most of us get sick. I figure if I can delay getting it for a few months, that will be best.

Now, those of us who are considered “at risk population” need to figure out what to do. We may cancel elderly MIL’s non-essential medical appointments.

PP who wrote "cat's out of the bag" here

Completely agree. The reason I'm now driving to work is that my 85 year old father is asthmatic and I see him all the time. I think me and my kid will probably be OK (45, healthy) and my kid is 14 (touch of asthma), but Dad is clearly in the at-risk population. Scary, but I think he's not especially worried. Not like he has a death wish or anything, but pneumonia is probably what is going to kill him anyway. I just don't want to be the vector that hastens that.

[Anonymous]

It seems like this was somewhat under control until: 1) the outbreak in South Korea that has been traced to some kind of secretive church sect; 2) Iran having the virus and deaths for a while and not doing or saying anything, starting it in the Middle East; and 3) the race to quarantine the virus on cruise ships, with bad results.

I think Iran is going to give the virus its second wind and handle it worse than China.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would like go know more about the health workers who have been infected outside China. So, for instance, the Iranian health minister. One would assume he is washing his hands, not sharing drinks, not greeting people outside his family with a kiss.

It’s a very easy virus to catch and no one has immunity to it. So everyone will get it unless they take Ebola level precautions.

That’s why whole provinces in China have basically shut down. Everyone staying at home as much as possible. No travel that’s not absolutely necessary.

For over a month.

It takes a while for us to adjust to this reality but the pictures and videos you have been seeing out of China weren’t fear mongering. And the Chinese aren’t that different from us here in the US. We keep trying to say, well those are Chinese people. It only affects elderly Chinese man who smoke. And so on. They have that pollution there. They have that healthcare there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would like go know more about the health workers who have been infected outside China. So, for instance, the Iranian health minister. One would assume he is washing his hands, not sharing drinks, not greeting people outside his family with a kiss.

One would assume, but then did you see the video of him literally coming down with the virus at a press conference meant to give the image that all is under control? So. bad.

[Anonymous]

My friend’s Chinese language class (for Chinese Americans) has been cancelled until further notice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the US has just given up on preventing it from coming here. You basically hear nothing about it. My kid who’s now riding the bus with kids who just returned from Vietnam goes to scouts, karate, and indoor soccer. It would spread like wildfire. I feel let down by our governments response.

That’s because you don’t actually know anything.

My office is in weekly calls with CDC and the state health department. There are weekly calls with all providers in county in most updated protocols. If you’re expecting large travel bans and discrimination from people who have traveled to Asian countries where the virus is not widespread, well yea you’re going to be let down because that is not backed by data.

[Anonymous]

I'm glad to see others say the US response has been...underwhelming. I don't feel confident at all we have a good plan. We aren't testing people, we have some limited quarantines for a very small population. What ARE we doing? Who ARE we monitoring? Maybe the CDC really does see the writing on the wall and figures we will just need to deal with the fallout of this spreading. You can't contain a virus that is asymptomatic for weeks while contagious unless you have a reliable, fast, and cheap test. I wish I knew what the top minds were thinking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the US has just given up on preventing it from coming here. You basically hear nothing about it. My kid who’s now riding the bus with kids who just returned from Vietnam goes to scouts, karate, and indoor soccer. It would spread like wildfire. I feel let down by our governments response.

That’s because you don’t actually know anything.

My office is in weekly calls with CDC and the state health department. There are weekly calls with all providers in county in most updated protocols. If you’re expecting large travel bans and discrimination from people who have traveled to Asian countries where the virus is not widespread, well yea you’re going to be let down because that is not backed by data.

At a minimum, the federal government’s communication about this has been abysmal. Glad to hear the CDC is talking to somebody. But most of us have no awareness of that. We just know the CDC is failing on testing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm glad to see others say the US response has been...underwhelming. I don't feel confident at all we have a good plan. We aren't testing people, we have some limited quarantines for a very small population. What ARE we doing? Who ARE we monitoring? Maybe the CDC really does see the writing on the wall and figures we will just need to deal with the fallout of this spreading. You can't contain a virus that is asymptomatic for weeks while contagious unless you have a reliable, fast, and cheap test. I wish I knew what the top minds were thinking.

A petition exists: https://www.change.org/p/the-cdc-should-start-rigorously-testing-for-covid-19-and-transparently-reporting-results?cs_tk=Aljz21KINmeVA5fkVV4AAXicyyvNyQEABF8BvKebi0s5vFe0hiAYd0nEtX8%3D&utm_campaign=a54abcb6e2a84e889cc50ece2048f6cd&utm_content=initial_v0_0_1&utm_medium=email&utm_source=petition_signer_receipt&utm_term=cs

It’s mentioned some pages back in this thread, but I’m reposting here because it’s hard to find things in this behemoth!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the US has just given up on preventing it from coming here. You basically hear nothing about it. My kid who’s now riding the bus with kids who just returned from Vietnam goes to scouts, karate, and indoor soccer. It would spread like wildfire. I feel let down by our governments response.

That’s because you don’t actually know anything.

My office is in weekly calls with CDC and the state health department. There are weekly calls with all providers in county in most updated protocols. If you’re expecting large travel bans and discrimination from people who have traveled to Asian countries where the virus is not widespread, well yea you’re going to be let down because that is not backed by data.

At a minimum, the federal government’s communication about this has been abysmal. Glad to hear the CDC is talking to somebody. But most of us have no awareness of that. We just know the CDC is failing on testing.

Maybe because I work in public health and am constantly tuned in, I don’t feel it’s been abysmal. If you go on the CDC’s FB page there are constant updates