wuhan - coronavirus

[Aura]

Things have really blown up in Georgia today. Tons of closings. Schools all around Atlanta are closing. Our local school district is closing (info not in the link below), and we're not even part of metro Atlanta.

https://www.ajc.com/news/latest-atlanta-coronavirus-news-what-next-for-hawks-after-nba-season-suspended/iUCSnaFbaphfSaA2rmUfEL/

I have to admit to feeling slightly vindicated for making everyone sit out of events that are now cancelled.

But I am concerned about single parents and those who cannot take off work. I don't want to get too political, but I'm really feeling the need for an emergency UBI to be implemented ASAP. I think that would go a long ways to helping in this situation.

ETA: Our county has NO confirmed cases.

Edited March 13, 2020 by Aura

[Arcadia]

Crosspost 😒

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/inslee-orders-all-private-public-k-12-schools-in-king-pierce-snohomish-counties-to-close-through-april-24/

“Across the three counties, nearly 563,600 attend public or charter schools. Roughly 216,700 of them qualify for subsidized meals, leaving many of the 43 school districts there scrambling to plan for feeding children during an extended closure.

Students with disabilities and children experiencing homelessness also are likely to bear the brunt of long periods without schools open. For many students who don’t have stable housing arrangements, school can be the one constant in their lives.

Inslee acknowledged that the mandated closures would prove a burden for many families, especially those trying to find and afford child care. He has asked superintendents to provide child care at no cost for families that work in the medical field or first responders.”

[MarieCurie]

2 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

I called my parents (early 80's) a couple of days ago and gave them an earful.  My dad had plans to go to a yearly conference in Baltimore (we're in MA) with a bunch of other old guys this weekend.  Noooooo!  He was being stubborn, but miraculously I talked him out of it. Mom had been trying to dissuade him, but he was resisting. Mom's also cancelled her ballet plans with the ladies, and I think her other plans are being cancelled for her (like mine - I had something I'd been looking forward to that would have been a small gathering, that I figured I'd count as my last hurrah before hibernating - but it was cancelled anyway...).  Fortunately my mom has freezers full of food, so hopefully they can hang tight.  Mom whined 'what about fresh fruit?' and I reminded her that she had half a peach tree's worth of peaches in one of her freezers... (they actually have a peach tree, and it had a bumper crop year before last... think there are still some in my freezer too...)

 

[MarieCurie]

The Smithsonian museums in DC are closing on March 14 including the zoo.

[Arcadia]

@Pen@Ausmumof3

https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/big-data-helps-taiwan-fight-coronavirus

“Big Data Helps Taiwan Fight Coronavirus

... Taiwan officials from the beginning of the viral outbreak “did a very detailed mapping of who got it from whom,” and were able to stop a lot of transmission early, says Chih-Hung Jason Wang, director of the Center for Policy, Outcomes and Prevention at Stanford University, who co-authored the opinion article.

Notably, officials integrated Taiwan’s national health insurance database with its immigration and customs database. This enabled the government to track the 14-day travel histories and symptoms of its citizens, nearly all of whom have an identifying national health insurance (NHI) card. All hospitals, clinics and pharmacies were given access to this information for each patient.

Taiwan restricted entry for foreign travelers from the most affected regions, and for those allowed entry, officials tracked them with mobile technologies. Foreign visitors are asked to scan a QR code that takes them to an online health declaration form where they provide contact information and symptoms. People placed under quarantine are given government-issued mobile phones and monitored with calls and visits.

“They incentivized people to be truthful” on their health declaration forms, says Wang. “If you are placed in the high risk group, the government will help you get care. If you get sick by yourself, you’ll have to wander around the hospital trying to get help.”

Taiwan also relied on old-fashioned face-to-face check-ins. Households were grouped into wards, or sections, and a chief was named for each ward. “So [authorities] will say to the chief, ‘There’s a person under quarantine in your ward, why don’t you go check on them and bring them some food,’” says Wang. “In an epidemic, you have to be nice to people, otherwise they’ll hide their symptoms.”

To manage resources, Taiwanese officials used IT to estimate the region’s supply of masks, negative pressure isolation rooms, and other health provisions. They set price limits on masks and rationed them using individuals’ NHI cards and an online ordering mechanism. Soldiers were sent to work at mask factories to ramp up production.

... Penalties for noncompliance with the temporary orders are steep. Profiteering off prevention products like masks, or spreading false information about COVID-19 can bring a penalty of years in jail and fines over a hundred thousand US dollars. One couple was fined USD $10,000 for breaking a 14-day quarantine rule. Three Hong Kong visitors who “disappeared for a week” were tracked down, fined USD $2,350 each, and transferred to designated quarters for medical isolation, according to the JAMA report.

Taiwan’s heavy-handed government actions might not go over well in a country such as the United States. But Wang says the measures, so far, have been well received in Taiwan, in part because they were planned ahead and implemented on a temporary basis.

He and his coauthors write that it is unclear “whether the intensive nature of these policies can be maintained until the end of the epidemic and continue to be well-received by the public.”

Taiwan’s emergency measures have probably not halted community-based transmission of COVID-19. Like the rest of the world, the number of officially confirmed cases in Taiwan is likely far fewer than the true number on the ground, since there are people who have the disease and don’t know it, or have such mild symptoms that they don’t seek care or get tested. “It’s impossible not to have more cases,” says Wang.”

[Ausmumof3]

1 minute ago, Arcadia said:

@Pen@Ausmumof3

https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/big-data-helps-taiwan-fight-coronavirus

“Big Data Helps Taiwan Fight Coronavirus

... Taiwan officials from the beginning of the viral outbreak “did a very detailed mapping of who got it from whom,” and were able to stop a lot of transmission early, says Chih-Hung Jason Wang, director of the Center for Policy, Outcomes and Prevention at Stanford University, who co-authored the opinion article.

Notably, officials integrated Taiwan’s national health insurance database with its immigration and customs database. This enabled the government to track the 14-day travel histories and symptoms of its citizens, nearly all of whom have an identifying national health insurance (NHI) card. All hospitals, clinics and pharmacies were given access to this information for each patient.

Taiwan restricted entry for foreign travelers from the most affected regions, and for those allowed entry, officials tracked them with mobile technologies. Foreign visitors are asked to scan a QR code that takes them to an online health declaration form where they provide contact information and symptoms. People placed under quarantine are given government-issued mobile phones and monitored with calls and visits.

“They incentivized people to be truthful” on their health declaration forms, says Wang. “If you are placed in the high risk group, the government will help you get care. If you get sick by yourself, you’ll have to wander around the hospital trying to get help.”

Taiwan also relied on old-fashioned face-to-face check-ins. Households were grouped into wards, or sections, and a chief was named for each ward. “So [authorities] will say to the chief, ‘There’s a person under quarantine in your ward, why don’t you go check on them and bring them some food,’” says Wang. “In an epidemic, you have to be nice to people, otherwise they’ll hide their symptoms.”

To manage resources, Taiwanese officials used IT to estimate the region’s supply of masks, negative pressure isolation rooms, and other health provisions. They set price limits on masks and rationed them using individuals’ NHI cards and an online ordering mechanism. Soldiers were sent to work at mask factories to ramp up production.

... Penalties for noncompliance with the temporary orders are steep. Profiteering off prevention products like masks, or spreading false information about COVID-19 can bring a penalty of years in jail and fines over a hundred thousand US dollars. One couple was fined USD $10,000 for breaking a 14-day quarantine rule. Three Hong Kong visitors who “disappeared for a week” were tracked down, fined USD $2,350 each, and transferred to designated quarters for medical isolation, according to the JAMA report.

Taiwan’s heavy-handed government actions might not go over well in a country such as the United States. But Wang says the measures, so far, have been well received in Taiwan, in part because they were planned ahead and implemented on a temporary basis.

He and his coauthors write that it is unclear “whether the intensive nature of these policies can be maintained until the end of the epidemic and continue to be well-received by the public.”

Taiwan’s emergency measures have probably not halted community-based transmission of COVID-19. Like the rest of the world, the number of officially confirmed cases in Taiwan is likely far fewer than the true number on the ground, since there are people who have the disease and don’t know it, or have such mild symptoms that they don’t seek care or get tested. “It’s impossible not to have more cases,” says Wang.”

Thanks.  I can’t like your post because I’m out of likes.  It’s really interesting to see the different ways it’s been handled.  South Korea seem to have taken some similar measures.  It seems like widespread testing and information sharing is so far being somewhat successful.

[mom2scouts]

Aww, I feel so sorry for older people who really look forward to their once a month club meeting or their yearly conference and then it's cancelled by this virus. My son is in a club that's almost entirely made up of men age 60 and up. They only meet once a month and some of them drive quite a distance for the meeting. It's one of the few times they get out of the house and they're really disappointed when the meetings can't be held.🙁

Edited March 13, 2020 by mom2scouts

[ElizabethB]

2 hours ago, mellifera33 said:

https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/coronavirus-all-k-12-schools-king-snohomish-pierce-counties-be-closed-through-april-24/XIDPHMLVOJAAREQ5YCL75367PU/

I've been wondering when this would be announced--all k-12 schools in King (main city Seattle) Snohomish (main city Everett) and Pierce (main city Tacoma) counties are closed through April 24. Our local hs music program has been moved online, and our coop is canceled. This will be interesting, locally--Tacoma school district and our local, smaller district are both high poverty districts. Hopefully they can continue nutrition and health services to families in need. 

My nephew is in a district near Renton, my brother has subbed and then interned for the last few years and now almost has his teaching degree, he has said that there is a vast difference is some of the schools, he subbed in all kinds in that area.  

When we lived in Illinois near St. Louis, many Illinois churches helped with making and delivering sack lunches for children from East St. Louis schools.  (They also have them backpacks with school supplies at the beginning of each school year.) E. St. Louis has terrible poverty, it is on the Illinois side and is its own area, the average income is $6,000 per year.

ETA: the sack lunch delivery was during summer for sure and possibly during spring and winter breaks, I'm not sure of the breaks.

Edited March 13, 2020 by ElizabethB

[Farrar]

I'm feel very grateful to the people in charge who are making the hard calls. It's SO tough to be the one to make a call. All I had to call off was a tiny homeschool Shakespeare production and I AGONIZED over it and put it off and almost let it go tomorrow and then I just couldn't. I kept thinking, someone make this call for me. Surely the county will cancel and make it so we can't use the space. Surely. Surely. And then I finally did it... and the governor canceled everything just after. But it SUCKED. 

So I just say... this is why everything needs to be canceled from the top. Cancel it all. Don't let us feel guilty or second guess. People in charge just need to do the dirty work because the rest of us can't be trusted.

And hold them in the light, all these county executives, mayors, governors, bishops, and heads of large organizations that they'll have the courage to do the right thing.

[Matryoshka]

Just now, mom2scouts said:

Aww, I really feel sorry for older people who really look forward to their once a month club meeting or their yearly conference and then it's cancelled by this virus. My son is in a club that's almost entirely made up of men age 60 and up. They only meet once a month and some of them drive quite a distance for the meeting. It's one of the few times they get out of the house and they're really disappointed when the meetings can't be held.🙁

Yeah, that's pretty much how my dad felt... but I said, if you want to see your old buddies again next year, you need to not all give each other Coronavirus this year...

[Arcadia]

1 minute ago, Ausmumof3 said:

.  It seems like widespread testing and information sharing is so far being somewhat successful.

 

It does involve a lot of “Big Brother” measures that the authors have said won’t work for a long period of time in Taiwan. 

[Arcadia]

2 minutes ago, Farrar said:

So I just say... this is why everything needs to be canceled from the top. Cancel it all. Don't let us feel guilty or second guess. People in charge just need to do the dirty work because the rest of us can't be trusted.

 

When CDC recommended keeping gatherings under 250 people for my county, some locals complain on Facebook. When the California governor says the same sentence, people kept quiet.

[73349]

NC today:

Quote

Chapel Hill/Carrboro Schools	Closed March 16-27 Remote classes March 30-Apr 3
Orange County Schools	Closed March 16-April 6

UPDATE: Durham will be closed starting Monday.

Edited October 2, 2020 by Carolina Wren

[Ausmumof3]

4 minutes ago, Arcadia said:

 

It does involve a lot of “Big Brother” measures that the authors have said won’t work for a long period of time in Taiwan. 

Yes I can’t imagine people in US being happy with that level of tracking.  I also suspect it’s probably more useful when you’ve got cases coming in from limited localities versus cases coming in from all over and many mini clusters.  People would be more relaxed about some tracking here I think based on the usual care level but some would worry.

[Ausmumof3]

CORONAVIRUS SCHOOLS UPDATE: major announcement concerning all SA public schools at 2.30pm. I’ll have the latest details

@7NewsAdelaide

4pm 6pm
this from my local news.  I’m interested because DS is supposed to be playing his tennis final tomorrow and I suspect if the schools get cancelled kids sports are going to start going as well.  Wouldn’t surprise me if he gets his tennis in but not footy next week.

[lewelma]

10 minutes ago, Ausmumof3 said:

Thanks.  I can’t like your post because I’m out of likes.  It’s really interesting to see the different ways it’s been handled.  South Korea seem to have taken some similar measures.  It seems like widespread testing and information sharing is so far being somewhat successful.

Here is the response in NZ.  We are still at the tracking close contacts phase, and checking daily the 252 people in self isolation.  All 5 of our cases have been completed and released, so we are currently at zero for 6 days. I bolded the parts that I thought were most interesting. 

 

Ms Ardern expects to announce the new travel restrictions over the weekend.

At the moment, foreign travellers arriving from mainland China and Iran are banned from entering the country. Travellers from South Korea and Italy are asked to self-isolate for two weeks on arrival.

Ardern also said New Zealand had a responsibility as a gateway to the Pacific to do everything it could to stop the spread of Covid-19 there.

Auckland's Pasifika Festival has been cancelled, amid concerns about the virus being transmitted to the Pacific Islands.

Ardern said if Covid-19 was to spread in the Pacific, it would be hugely damaging to its health system.

Ardern said a large number of people were travelling from the Islands for the event and letting it go ahead was a risk Cabinet was not willing to take.

Officials are yet to decide if Polyfest, which is set to take place in the city next weekend, will still go ahead.

Two patients who were in hospital - one confirmed case and one probable - have both been discharged and are recovering at home with daily checks.

Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield said Healthline was busy but coping with twice the usual number of calls.

He said all 252 close contacts of the confirmed cases in self-isolation were being monitored daily and planning was underway for scaling up New Zealand's ability to contact trace individuals exposed to others with the coronavirus.

"Our key advice, which is fundamental to our response, is not putting yourself or others at risk if you are unwell. This means not going to work or going to places where there are other people if you are sick. All of us have a role to play in stopping further spread. I need to emphasise how critical this is as New Zealand responds to Covid-19," Dr Bloomfield said.

"This is particularly important for concerts and other large gatherings we have coming up, including this weekend. Please stay home if you're unwell."

[Lecka]

My nearby town said they would keep the St Patrick’s Day Party in downtown.  It is cancelled now because the governor said no gatherings of over 500 people.  I think it is the right decision!  But I can see why they didn’t want to cancel it, too.

[Terabith]

Eldest child said, "We're out of milk."  So I sallied forth to the grocery store for milk.  Said grocery store was like the apocalypse, and people were saying things like, "The CDC is going to close all grocery stores."  

Sigh.  

The community college where eldest attends has not closed, although they have spring break next week, and I'm going to be shocked if they actually return afterwards.  Younger kid's school district has not closed.  It's standardized test season, and while I think they should close, I'm not sure they will.  

I emailed the pastor last night about church and if they had thought through various possibilities, and at 2 pm she sent me a text saying that they had never considered closing and that I was being alarmist.  At 6 pm a church wide message went out saying church was closed more or less "for the duration."  

[73349]

1 minute ago, Ausmumof3 said:

Yes I can’t imagine people in US being happy with that level of tracking.  I also suspect it’s probably more useful when you’ve got cases coming in from limited localities versus cases coming in from all over and many mini clusters.  People would be more relaxed about some tracking here I think based on the usual care level but some would worry.

Not only would people not like it, it's virtually impossible. There are ~15x as many people as Taiwan. We don't have a national health service; Medicaid is state by state, most people are insured through an employer, Medicare is federal for retirement-aged people, and some people have nothing at all. There's nobody tracking interstate travel. No two states necessarily even have the same information on birth certificates--comparing mine to DH's was quite shocking.

The US is very well organized for war. Everything else, we let the locals and/or the market take care of. It's amazingly ad-hoc. It's not run by any coherent planning at all.

I will be interested to see how the census is affected. It's supposed to be starting.

[itsheresomewhere]

Walt Disney World resort and Disneyland will close March 15 until March 30.  

[Ausmumof3]

6 minutes ago, lewelma said:

Here is the response in NZ.  We are still at the tracking close contacts phase, and checking daily the 252 people in self isolation.  All 5 of our cases have been completed and released, so we are currently at zero for 6 days. I bolded the parts that I thought were most interesting. 

 

Ms Ardern expects to announce the new travel restrictions over the weekend.

At the moment, foreign travellers arriving from mainland China and Iran are banned from entering the country. Travellers from South Korea and Italy are asked to self-isolate for two weeks on arrival.

Ardern also said New Zealand had a responsibility as a gateway to the Pacific to do everything it could to stop the spread of Covid-19 there.

Auckland's Pasifika Festival has been cancelled, amid concerns about the virus being transmitted to the Pacific Islands.

Ardern said if Covid-19 was to spread in the Pacific, it would be hugely damaging to its health system.

Ardern said a large number of people were travelling from the Islands for the event and letting it go ahead was a risk Cabinet was not willing to take.

Officials are yet to decide if Polyfest, which is set to take place in the city next weekend, will still go ahead.

Two patients who were in hospital - one confirmed case and one probable - have both been discharged and are recovering at home with daily checks.

Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield said Healthline was busy but coping with twice the usual number of calls.

He said all 252 close contacts of the confirmed cases in self-isolation were being monitored daily and planning was underway for scaling up New Zealand's ability to contact trace individuals exposed to others with the coronavirus.

"Our key advice, which is fundamental to our response, is not putting yourself or others at risk if you are unwell. This means not going to work or going to places where there are other people if you are sick. All of us have a role to play in stopping further spread. I need to emphasise how critical this is as New Zealand responds to Covid-19," Dr Bloomfield said.

"This is particularly important for concerts and other large gatherings we have coming up, including this weekend. Please stay home if you're unwell."

Would you like to swap leaders?

sounds positive that the numbers are still so low.  

[Arcadia]

abc7news reporter twitter account of local stores  inventory. Lighthearted with lots of photos of Costco, Trader Joe’s and other stores.

https://mobile.twitter.com/MelissaABC7

“4:35 PM - Safeway on Tice Valley Blvd. is off the beaten path in Walnut Creek and this store was completely out of toilet paper. The nice clerk said they will get a ship in overnight but they expect to be out by tomorrow morning at 10 AM.”

[73349]

United Methodist Churches in NC closing for 2 weeks.

[Pen]

@lewelma I sent you a pm

[Ausmumof3]

ABC reports - Live Nation, one of the world's biggest promoters, has postponed all "large-scale" events worldwide.

 

The US-based company is part of a coalition of music promoters and booking agencies who will suspend large-scale tours and postpone major shows scheduled worldwide for March.

 

"We continue to support that small-scale events follow guidance set by their local government officials," a statement provided by Live Nation said.

 

A spokesperson in Australia said that locally, "we are still waiting on advice from the Chief Health Officers Council regarding local advice on mass gatherings".

 

Live Nation tours currently underway in Australia include Tim Minchin, Kingswood and metal festival Download.

 

Download this morning announced it would not be going ahead in Sydney and Melbourne next week after headliner My Chemical Romance cancelled their Australian tour because of coronavirus fears.

 

Live Nation has seen its share price dropped significantly as coronavirus has led to mass cancellations of festivals and concerts in Australia and overseas.

 

Meanwhile, Golden Plains festival, outside Melbourne, has clarified the repercussions from a case related to its event last weekend.

 

It said on Friday morning that after an investigation by Victorian health officials, a person who attended and later tested positive for COVID-19 was not unwell while at the festival.

 

"As a result, no further public health action is required by festival attendees, including workers, volunteers and artists," a statement from organisers said.

[Ausmumof3]

 

 

 

[Arcadia]

@mathnerd

The numbers don’t add up for my county. 8 + 19 + 16 < 66

https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Coronavirus-live-updates-Six-dead-in-Washington-15100710.php

“5:06 p.m. Santa Clara County reports 18 new cases: The county recorded 18 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 66, according to public health officials. Of those, 31 are hospitalized, one has recovered, one has died. In terms of transmission, officials said eight are travel-associated, 19 were close contacts of known cases and 16 were community transmission.”

[Arcadia]

“5:21 p.m. Cases surge in Washington state: The state reports 457 cases, including 270 in King County and 108 in Snohomish County, and 31 deaths, according to new information released by public health officials. One of the cases is a state public health employee. Yesterday, the state had 366 cases and 29 deaths.” https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Coronavirus-live-updates-Six-dead-in-Washington-15100710.php

[edelweiss]

3 hours ago, lewelma said:

My MIL is going into isolation.  She is 90, has respiratory issues, and lives in Ohio.  Luckily, she lives alone!

My mom is in her early 70s and healthy, but she is doing the same thing.  She lives alone, so she is able to do it effectively.

 

[Arcadia]

“5:40 p.m. West Contra Costa Unified School District closes all schools for three weeks: District officials announced that all of its schools will be closed for three weeks beginning on Monday, March 16. District officials will move up spring break from the week of April 6 to the week of March 30, and classes will resume on Monday, April 6.

While there are no confirmed cases of the new coronavirus within the district, officials said “several students and staff” have had contact with people who have potentially contracted the new coronavirus.

Superintendent Matthew Duffy said the decision to close all of the school was not easy, but said the “uncertainty surrounding the outbreak has increased the confusion and anxiety in our community.”

The district serves more than 30,000 students in Richmond, Kensington, El Cerrito, San Pablo, Pinole, El Sobrante and Hercules.”  https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Coronavirus-live-updates-Six-dead-in-Washington-15100710.php

[Ausmumof3]

4 minutes ago, Arcadia said:

@mathnerd

The numbers don’t add up for my county. 8 + 19 + 16 < 66

https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Coronavirus-live-updates-Six-dead-in-Washington-15100710.php

“5:06 p.m. Santa Clara County reports 18 new cases: The county recorded 18 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 66, according to public health officials. Of those, 31 are hospitalized, one has recovered, one has died. In terms of transmission, officials said eight are travel-associated, 19 were close contacts of known cases and 16 were community transmission.”

Maybe they haven’t worked out the others yet?

[Arcadia]

3 minutes ago, Ausmumof3 said:

Maybe they haven’t worked out the others yet?

Maybe. But could have added an unknown category. From the county’s webpage

“Total Confirmed Cases

66

Hospitalized

31

Recovered

1

Deaths

1

Travel-Associated

8

Close Contacts of Known Cases

19

Presumed Community Transmission

16”

[TravelingChris]

3 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

I called my parents (early 80's) a couple of days ago and gave them an earful.  My dad had plans to go to a yearly conference in Baltimore (we're in MA) with a bunch of other old guys this weekend.  Noooooo!  He was being stubborn, but miraculously I talked him out of it. Mom had been trying to dissuade him, but he was resisting. Mom's also cancelled her ballet plans with the ladies, and I think her other plans are being cancelled for her (like mine - I had something I'd been looking forward to that would have been a small gathering, that I figured I'd count as my last hurrah before hibernating - but it was cancelled anyway...).  Fortunately my mom has freezers full of food, so hopefully they can hang tight.  Mom whined 'what about fresh fruit?' and I reminded her that she had half a peach tree's worth of peaches in one of her freezers... (they actually have a peach tree, and it had a bumper crop year before last... think there are still some in my freezer too...)

One of my chores tomorrow is to clear out our freezer of old food kids put in there.  Then I will send dh out on shopping trip on Saturday,  Tomorrow they are having a trial work at home.  I am not quite sure how that works due to the nature of his work and he is very skeptical that the computer system will actually work but whatever.

[Pen]

14 minutes ago, Ausmumof3 said:

 

 

 

 

So glad I still had a “like” available today!

I like the wink better than elbow bumps.

 

[Eos]

Swiss efficiency combined with old-fashioned analog tools: at dd's concert tonight in Geneva a woman was stationed by the door to take down every audience member's name, phone number, address, and email on a clipboard, in case they need to be contacted in future for quarantine.  All gatherings over 150 are banned, so there were only 25 concert-goers.

My shy dd is rejoicing that the Swiss kiss-kiss-kiss greeting has been truly abandoned.

 

[Pen]

4 minutes ago, Arcadia said:

Maybe. But could have added an unknown category. From the county’s webpage

“Total Confirmed Cases

66

Hospitalized

31

Recovered

1

Deaths

1

Travel-Associated

8

Close Contacts of Known Cases

19

Presumed Community Transmission

16”

 

I’d presume that of 66 those who aren’t in hospital,  dead or recovered are in isolation at home.

and of the 66 transmission is still being investigated and at this point for those not in travel, close contact or presumed community transmission group

[Arcadia]

@Pen @Acadie @Lanny @Ausmumof3

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/coronavirus-covid-19-us-hospitals-cabanas-conference-rooms-12533734

“NEW YORK: U.S. hospitals, bracing for a surge in demand as more Americans are infected with the novel coronavirus, plan to use tents, conference rooms and cafeterias to house overflow patients.

Members of the American Hospital Association have been advised to prepare for 96 million cases in the next few months, with 4.8 million additional admissions, 1.9 million intensive care unit (ICU) admissions and 480,000 excess deaths - or about 10 times the number caused by a severe flu season.

"If we have a full-blown outbreak, as is predicted by almost all the modellers, we may have a situation where we are 75,000 to 100,000 ICU beds short," Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of Columbia University's national centre for disaster preparedness (NCDP), told Reuters.

Experts estimate that about 80 per cent of people infected with the virus, SARS-CoV-2, will have only mild symptoms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that these patients remain at home, isolating themselves as much as possible.

...

There are currently 95,000 ICU beds in the United States, the NCDP says.

The number of coronavirus cases in the country has risen steadily to 1,323, with 38 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

Scripps Health, which operates five hospital campuses in San Diego County, is starting to set up tents outside its clinics to screen people for the virus. 

"By Friday we will have what we are euphemistically calling COVID cabanas at two of our clinics," Chris Van Gorder, its chief executive, told Reuters.

The 1,400-bed hospital group has 99 negative pressure isolation rooms used to contain airborne contaminants, three of which are in use - including one patient with COVID-19.

If the number of COVID-19 patients surpasses that, Van Gorder said temporary air handlers can be brought in to convert standard rooms - or even an entire wing or floor of a hospital - into isolation units. Tents could also be used to house patients if needed, he said.

California Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday issued an executive order clearing the way for the state to "commandeer property," such as hotels, to quarantine or treat COVID-19 patients.

"A lot of our care we are planning to do remotely via telemedicine or video medicine," the Scripps CEO said. "Hospital beds would be reserved for seriously ill patients."

Scripps has been working to make sure personnel are "fit tested" for masks, including reusable powered air purifying respirators, or PAPRs, that can be cleaned in about 25 minutes.

"We generally have about 1,000 beds that are free on any given day for a surge in illness," Los Angeles County Public Health Department Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said at a press conference this week.

Ferrer said an influx of seriously ill patients who need treatment in an intensive care unit could overwhelm hospitals in the nation's most populous county.

"We are going through the process of identifying decommissioned beds, and other areas within the hospital where we have the ability to expand," said Jeremy Baker, executive director clinical quality, risk and safety at two Los Angeles-area hospitals run by Providence St. Joseph Health, a 51-hospital chain. 

"We are constantly reviewing our surge capacity plan to identify other units we could use, such as conference rooms, for less acute treatment."

He said Providence is also looking to put up screening tents at its clinics to isolate possible COVID-19 patients from emergency rooms, and could shift some non-coronavirus care to its associated nursing homes.

"As part of our normal disaster planning process, we do have the ability to put out a call for physicians. We do have an emergency credential process for that," Baker said.

In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Thursday that they were entering "a situation where the only analogy is war, and a wartime dynamic," referring to how the city will deal with a surge in demand for hospital beds.

"Hospitals will create brand new capacity," de Blasio said at a news conference.

"I'll take a parking lot and put up a tent and turn it into an ICU. We'll turn a cafeteria into an ICU."”

[YaelAldrich]

2 hours ago, Ausmumof3 said:

I know this sounds nuts but I’m concerned about an uptick in antisemitism on top of the xenophobia with this.  I have seen several conspiracy theories suggesting it’s all a financial plot.  Why do these times bring out the best in some people but the absolute worst in others? 

 

2 hours ago, square_25 said:

Oh goodness, just what we need. I wouldn't be surprised, although of course it's the height of idiocy -- over here, the Jewish community (especially the Orthodox) is the hardest hit so far... 

 

2 hours ago, Pen said:

 

Im very concerned too.  When Dr John Campbell did a live chat feed version of his videos there were huge numbers of antsemitic anti Jewish comments on the feed (he didn’t repeat any, but they were visible ).  It was very distressing and concerning.  

It's true.  I have at least two Orthodox Jewish friends who have been verbally assaulted in the last couple of days.

[YaelAldrich]

This is the Trader Joe's in Brookline MA this evening.  I haven't been scared before, but I'm honestly worrying now.  This place even before a blizzard is full of food.

[Pen]

6 minutes ago, Arcadia said:

@Pen @Acadie @Lanny @Ausmumof3

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/coronavirus-covid-19-us-hospitals-cabanas-conference-rooms-12533734

“NEW YORK: U.S. hospitals, bracing for a surge in demand as more Americans are infected with the novel coronavirus, plan to use tents, conference rooms and cafeterias to house overflow patients.

Members of the American Hospital Association have been advised to prepare for 96 million cases in the next few months, with 4.8 million additional admissions, 1.9 million intensive care unit (ICU) admissions and 480,000 excess deaths - or about 10 times the number caused by a severe flu season.

"If we have a full-blown outbreak, as is predicted by almost all the modellers, we may have a situation where we are 75,000 to 100,000 ICU beds short," Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of Columbia University's national centre for disaster preparedness (NCDP), told Reuters.

Experts estimate that about 80 per cent of people infected with the virus, SARS-CoV-2, will have only mild symptoms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that these patients remain at home, isolating themselves as much as possible.

...

There are currently 95,000 ICU beds in the United States, the NCDP says.

The number of coronavirus cases in the country has risen steadily to 1,323, with 38 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

Scripps Health, which operates five hospital campuses in San Diego County, is starting to set up tents outside its clinics to screen people for the virus. 

"By Friday we will have what we are euphemistically calling COVID cabanas at two of our clinics," Chris Van Gorder, its chief executive, told Reuters.

The 1,400-bed hospital group has 99 negative pressure isolation rooms used to contain airborne contaminants, three of which are in use - including one patient with COVID-19.

If the number of COVID-19 patients surpasses that, Van Gorder said temporary air handlers can be brought in to convert standard rooms - or even an entire wing or floor of a hospital - into isolation units. Tents could also be used to house patients if needed, he said.

California Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday issued an executive order clearing the way for the state to "commandeer property," such as hotels, to quarantine or treat COVID-19 patients.

"A lot of our care we are planning to do remotely via telemedicine or video medicine," the Scripps CEO said. "Hospital beds would be reserved for seriously ill patients."

Scripps has been working to make sure personnel are "fit tested" for masks, including reusable powered air purifying respirators, or PAPRs, that can be cleaned in about 25 minutes.

"We generally have about 1,000 beds that are free on any given day for a surge in illness," Los Angeles County Public Health Department Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said at a press conference this week.

Ferrer said an influx of seriously ill patients who need treatment in an intensive care unit could overwhelm hospitals in the nation's most populous county.

"We are going through the process of identifying decommissioned beds, and other areas within the hospital where we have the ability to expand," said Jeremy Baker, executive director clinical quality, risk and safety at two Los Angeles-area hospitals run by Providence St. Joseph Health, a 51-hospital chain. 

"We are constantly reviewing our surge capacity plan to identify other units we could use, such as conference rooms, for less acute treatment."

He said Providence is also looking to put up screening tents at its clinics to isolate possible COVID-19 patients from emergency rooms, and could shift some non-coronavirus care to its associated nursing homes.

"As part of our normal disaster planning process, we do have the ability to put out a call for physicians. We do have an emergency credential process for that," Baker said.

In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Thursday that they were entering "a situation where the only analogy is war, and a wartime dynamic," referring to how the city will deal with a surge in demand for hospital beds.

"Hospitals will create brand new capacity," de Blasio said at a news conference.

"I'll take a parking lot and put up a tent and turn it into an ICU. We'll turn a cafeteria into an ICU."”

 

Well, I’m glad they are working on it.  

I felt a little relieved in a way to see that they are paying attention — though I think conversion of parking lots to effective hospitals that can give good care is easier said than done. 

[Pen]

3 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

This is the Trader Joe's in Brookline MA this evening.  I haven't been scared before, but I'm honestly worrying now.  This place even before a blizzard is full of food.

 

The situation is very serious.

 

 

[Arcadia]

9 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

This is the Trader Joe's in Brookline MA this evening.  I haven't been scared before, but I'm honestly worrying now.  This place even before a blizzard is full of food.

 

A lot worse than my county and we have the highest number of cases in California. We only had empty shelves of toilet paper, sanitizers, tub/cylinder wipes and bottled/gallon jug water. 

[Matryoshka]

5 minutes ago, Arcadia said:

A lot worse than my county and we have the highest number of cases in California. We only had empty shelves of toilet paper, sanitizers, tub/cylinder wipes and bottled/gallon jug water. 

It's hitting the fan here in MA. I've been stocking up slowly  for weeks, but dh asked me to go in to Market Basket for probably the last fresh oj in a while, and oh, my. Not as empty as the pics Yael sent, but super crowded, full carts, and long lines. I was thinking, oh, no, I am not practicing social distancing atm!! At least I could use the 12-items or less line and get out of there quicker - the new said people were waiting 45 min just in line at some MBs.  I think there's going to be a mass hunker after today or tomorrow.  Schools are closing and people are being told to work from home, just over the last two days.

[Ausmumof3]

https://7news.com.au/news/travel/up-to-100-flight-centre-stores-to-close-as-coronavirus-plunges-tourism-sector-into-chaos--c-743190.amp?__twitter_impression=true
 

Big chain travel agency here is closing 100 stores.  They have been through shaky times before and pulled through.  They say they are moving staff to other stores.

[YaelAldrich]

7 minutes ago, Arcadia said:

 

A lot worse than my county and we have the highest number of cases in California. We only had empty shelves of toilet paper, sanitizers, tub/cylinder wipes and bottled/gallon jug water. 

I went to my regular grocery shop in a Somerville (Next to Cambridge) Market Basket yesterday at 3pm.  I thought the place would be dead and I could hop in and out in less than 30 minutes since I have stocked up very nicely already - just stocking up on dairy, fruit, and veggies.  The parking lot was like the day before a blizzard and the aisles were insane.

My friend went to Costco in Dedham MA today and she said the lines were out the door and the queue for the cash registers wound from the beginning of the store around the back and back to the front again.  Lots of stuff was gone.  I'm going to try Tuesday morning.  I think it's becoming real for more and more people. 

All the schools in the immediate Boston suburbs have cancelled school for at least two weeks; everyone but the actual City of Boston and rumors are that it is just a couple more days until they do - our percentage of poor/homeless/food insecure is much higher than the other districts.  The Modern Orthodox day school has shut down, the right wing ones are rumored to be shutting by next week at the latest.  This is a very productive time for Jewish schools right before the holiday of Passover and I think people both want it done now and are scared to death about the kids being home while Passover preparations are going on (you have to switch out all your foodstuffs, pots/pans, dishes, utensils; then clean the house to rid it of leavened foods, then cook enough food to float a boat for eight days of "Mom!  I'm hungry!").

[73349]

City of Raleigh, North Carolina, is suspending water shut-offs for unpaid bills.

Edited October 2, 2020 by Carolina Wren

[YaelAldrich]

6 minutes ago, Matryoshka said:

It's hitting the fan here in MA. I've been stocking up slowly  for weeks, but dh asked me to go in to Market Basket for probably the last fresh oj in a while, and oh, my. Not as empty as the pics Yael sent, but super crowded, full carts, and long lines. I was thinking, oh, no, I am not practicing social distancing atm!! At least I could use the 12-items or less line and get out of there quicker - the new said people were waiting 45 min just in line at some MBs.  I think there's going to be a mass hunker after today or tomorrow.  Schools are closing and people are being told to work from home, just over the last two days.

The scary thing is that I was in that TJ's yesterday - no lack of food.

[lmrich]

All the major school districts in Metro Atlanta have announced closures. 

[Ausmumof3]

Justin Trudeaus wife Sophie tested positive 

https://mobile.twitter.com/CBCAlerts/status/1238281703334055946

Edited March 13, 2020 by Ausmumof3

[carriede]

4 minutes ago, lmrich said:

All the major school districts in Metro Atlanta have announced closures. 

Which means all of us in Middle GA should close too. So many people travel back and forth to ATL daily.