Yeah my heart really goes out to the hourly workers who work at restaurants and retail who must be freaking at the moment. For many of them, their last paycheck has already come. The biggest question as noted though is a lockdown that shuts down grocery stores or at least limits how you but groceries. I personally can do 2-3 weeks but many others don’t have that luxury if a lockdown comes in a couple days that might shut down the supply chain. Honestly it’s time to call in the military and establish makeshift hospitals just specifically for Covid patients and start preparing for rations to be delivered as they would be in wartime. If it ends up being an overreaction that’s great news.
Don't forget the leaders of industry. This calls for unity and a time for the large corporations that have the means to help with logistical support to help (airline comes to mind).
If you don't see a problem correlating those two bolded statements, you're either 1) ignorant of the flu or 2) trolling. Pick one
The virus is not the flu. That is a factual statement. The virus can be transmitted simply through breathing. That is also a true statement. When you breath out air, that can transmit the virus. (The flu is detected in your breath as well). I am not sure what your issue is. All the statements there are true.
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/202...-sharply-south-korea-whats-secret-its-success Coronavirus cases have dropped sharply in South Korea. What’s the secret to its success? Europe is now the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. Case counts and deaths are soaring in Italy, Spain, France, and Germany, and many countries have imposed lockdowns and closed borders. Meanwhile, the United States, hampered by a fiasco with delayed and faulty test kits, is just guessing at its COVID-19 burden, though experts believe it is on the same trajectory as countries in Europe. Amid these dire trends, South Korea has emerged as a sign of hope and a model to emulate. The country of 50 million appears to have greatly slowed its epidemic; it reported only 74 new cases today, down from 909 at its peak on 29 February. And it has done so without locking down entire cities or taking some of the other authoritarian measures that helped China bring its epidemic under control. “South Korea is a democratic republic, we feel a lockdown is not a reasonable choice,” says Kim Woo-Joo, an infectious disease specialist at Korea University. South Korea’s success may hold lessons for other countries—and also a warning: Even after driving case numbers down, the country is braced for a resurgence. Behind its success so far has been the most expansive and well-organized testing program in the world, combined with extensive efforts to isolate infected people and trace and quarantine their contacts. South Korea has tested more than 270,000 people, which amounts to more than 5200 tests per million inhabitants—more than any other country except tiny Bahrain, according to the Worldometer website. The United States has so far carried out 74 tests per 1 million inhabitants, data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show. South Korea’s experience shows that “diagnostic capacity at scale is key to epidemic control,” says Raina MacIntyre, an emerging infectious disease scholar at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. “Contact tracing is also very influential in epidemic control, as is case isolation,” she says. Yet whether the success will hold is unclear. New case numbers are declining largely because the herculean effort to investigate a massive cluster of more than 5000 cases—60% of the nation’s total—linked to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a secretive, messianic megachurch, is winding down. But because of that effort, “We have not looked hard in other parts of Korea,” says Oh Myoung-Don, an infectious disease specialist at Seoul National University. New clusters are now appearing. Since last week, authorities have reported 129 new infections, most linked to a Seoul call center. “This could be the initiation of community spread,” through Seoul and its surrounding Gyeonggi province, Kim says. The region is home to 23 million people. Lessons from MERS South Korea learned the importance of preparedness the hard way. In 2015, a South Korean businessman came down with Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) after returning from a visit to three Middle Eastern countries. He was treated at three South Korean health facilities before he was diagnosed with MERS and isolated. By then, he had set off a chain of transmission that infected 186 and killed 36, including many patients hospitalized for other ailments, visitors, and hospital staff. Tracing, testing, and quarantining nearly 17,000 people quashed the outbreak after 2 months. The specter of a runaway epidemic alarmed the nation and dented the economy. “That experience showed that laboratory testing is essential to control an emerging infectious disease,” Kim says. In addition, Oh says, “The MERS experience certainly helped us to improve hospital infection prevention and control.” So far, there are no reports of infections of COVID-19 among South Korean health care workers, he says. Legislation enacted since then gave the government authority to collect mobile phone, credit card, and other data from those who test positive to reconstruct their recent whereabouts. That information, stripped of personal identifiers, is shared on social media apps that allow others to determine whether they may have crossed paths with an infected person. After the novel coronavirus emerged in China, Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) raced to develop its tests and cooperated with diagnostic manufacturers to develop commercial test kits. The first test was approved on 7 February, when the country had just a few cases, and distributed to regional health centers. Just 11 days later, a 61-year-old woman, known as “Case 31,” tested positive. She had attended 9 and 16 February services at the Shincheonji megachurch in Daegu, about 240 kilometers southeast of Seoul, already feeling slightly ill. Upward of 500 attendees sit shoulder to shoulder on the floor of the church during 2-hour services, according to local news reports. The country identified more than 2900 new cases just in the next 12 days, the vast majority Shincheonji members. On 29 February alone, KCDC reported more than 900 new cases, bringing the cumulative total to 3150 and making the outbreak the largest by far outside mainland China. The surge initially overwhelmed testing capabilities and KCDC’s 130 disease detectives couldn’t keep up, Kim says. Contact tracing efforts were concentrated on the Shincheonji cluster, in which 80% of those reporting respiratory symptoms proved positive, compared with only 10% in other clusters. High-risk patients with underlying illnesses get priority for hospitalization, Chun says. Those with moderate symptoms are sent to repurposed corporate training facilities and spaces provided by public institutions, where they get basic medical support and observation. Those who recover and test negative twice are released. Close contacts and those with minimal symptoms whose family members are free of chronic diseases and who can measure their own temperatures are ordered to self-quarantine for 2 weeks. A local monitoring team calls twice daily to make sure the quarantined stay put and to ask about symptoms. Quarantine violators face up to 3 million won ($2500) fines. If a recent bill becomes law, the fine will go up to 10 million won and as much as a year in jail. In spite of the efforts, the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region ran out of space for the seriously ill. Four people isolated at home, waiting for hospital beds, were rushed to emergency rooms when their conditions deteriorated, only to die there, according to local media. Still, the numbers of new cases have dropped the past 2 weeks, aided by voluntary social distancing, both in the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region and nationwide. The government advised people to wear masks, wash their hands, avoid crowds and meetings, work remotely, and to join online religious services instead of going to churches. Those with fevers or respiratory illnesses are urged to stay home and watch their symptoms for 3 to 4 days. “People were shocked by the Shincheonji cluster,” Chun says, which boosted compliance. Less than 1 month after Case 31 emerged, “The cluster is coming under control,” Oh says. Yet new clusters are emerging, and for 20% of confirmed cases, it’s unclear how they became infected, suggesting there is still undetected community spread. “As long as this uncertainty remains, we cannot say that the outbreak has peaked,” Chun says. More data needed The government hopes to control new clusters in the same way it confronted the one in Shincheonji. The national testing capacity has reached a staggering 15,000 tests per day. There are 43 drive-through testing stations nationwide, a concept now copied in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. In the first week of March, the Ministry of the Interior also rolled out a smartphone app that can track the quarantined and collect data on symptoms. Chun Byung-Chul, an epidemiologist at Korea University, says scientists are eager to see more epidemiological data. “We are literally stamping our feet,” Chun says. KCDC releases the basic counts of patients, their age and gender, and how many are linked to clusters. “That is not enough,” Chun says. He and others would like to study detailed individual patient data, which would enable epidemiologists to model the outbreak and determine the number of new infections triggered by each case, also known as the basic reproductive number or R0; the time from infection to the onset of symptoms; and whether early diagnosis improved patients’ outcomes. (South Korea has had 75 deaths so far, an unusually low mortality rate, although the fact that Shincheonji church members are mostly young may have contributed.) Chun says a group of epidemiologists and scientists has proposed partnering with KCDC to gather and share such information, “and we are waiting for their response.” Kim says medical doctors are also planning to share details of the clinical features of COVID-19 cases in the country in forthcoming publications. “We hope our experience will help other countries control this COVID-19 outbreak.” With reporting by Ahn Mi-Young in Seoul.
Russia at it again - this time trying to hurt US image by blaming coronavirus on us: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...s-russia-disinformation-campaign-us-officials
Yeah is on of dumbest things the government has done. Why the hell are they cracking down on people right now. They are like a zero chance the sick people who have the virus will now want to get tested. They made it spread even more quickly. **** Trump and **** Stephen Miller
This will not happen. It didnt happen in China, it didn't happen in Italy and didnt happen in Spain too. Supermarkets and grocery stores WILL remain open. Get a grip. USA isnt in africa. You wont be left without food available.
As I said earlier I don’t see what changes in regards to essential services during a lock down. It’s the biggest question/concern people have about the change from current state to what’s coming but I don’t think it’s something that is likely to happen as I mentioned. Still I stand by my comment that it is time for the National Guard/military to be activated to create a triage at major hospitals to lift the intake of the healthcare system. The wartime powers can also be used to create supply’s incredibly fast like in WW2. Ventilators and healthcare worker protective gear being the most paramount. And yes, a ration distribution program to those who cannot get to a store or don’t want to risk getting out. No... we are not Africa, but an overreaction here in this case is totally fine. Please don’t tell people to get a grip.
Sure, it is time but you can also search for volunteers for extra work here and there. Austria deployed soldiers (Bundesheer) to help within supermarkets though. Militia would be used for other things.
I am telling you to get a grip, you and many many others here and elsewhere who even contemplate that supermarkets and groceries will close because this is the main reason there is panic and fights over toilet papers. You don't have to worry or be stressed about it. This is a disaster that came from nature but it isn't a natural disaster. Electricity, water and supermarkets no matter what will be available. Neighbours or the state can organise for the ill and old but the food stores will be open. All the best dobro.
How about the supermarkets hiring some more young people? Many will inevitably lose their jobs, while the supermarkets will be doing golden business. Here the work of the supermarkets is at least up by 100%. Instead of delegating it to the army for free, time to also for them to help other citizens put a bread on their table in these hard times. They can only hire people in their 20s if they have to, who are safer from the virus.
The context of your initial post suggested this wasn't the case... and you know it. Covid is a VERY similar ballgame.
HEB sent out an email yesterday saying they are hiring people for short-term periods right now. I'd imagine most grocery chains are looking to hire right now.
There will come a time, sooner than later when Texas should restrict all travel in and out, domestically and from abroad to contain the virus. After all, we have as many people, and are much bigger than many countries in Europe. The last thing we need is thousands of people coming in and out, even to and from other US locations. That's how it spread from Italy to Spain, France, and all over Europe. Take a lesson from abroad.
