Apparently Martin Kulldorf doesn't know where the word "Quarantine" came from or know much about history. In ever great plague there have been people blamed for transmitting the disease and also attempts made to isolate them.
but i kind of agree w @Commodore in this case. Ideally we would do lots of testing, even of vaccinated people. (My current job provides take home antigen tests for anyone who wants, and we're basically all vaxxed.) the idea of the vaccine as this absolutely binary reality for COVID is, unfortunately, very misleading. It is our best most-practical tool to keep our society open and reduce mortality, yes. But it faces limitations too.
As someone who as recently as this week had to look reference OSHA rules regarding building safety yes, the Federal government does have the ability to mandate workplace safety. Note OSHA rules are not handled through criminal laws and neither are these mandates that the Biden Admin. is putting in but are handled through civil laws. For example a contractor working on a high rise who doesn't provide safety harnesses for iron workers is liable to getting sued by their workers. Other regulations are enforced through regulatory powers. That same contractor is also likely not going to be able to get building permits for improper workplace safety.
It's often said "We should never forget 911" and "911 changed everything". Yes seeing 3,000 people die that day horrifically is something that we should never forget and yes it changed many things. In the week after 911 air travel in the US was completely shut down and since then we are now required to do things like take our shoes off and limit how much fluids we can carry onto a plane. When we buy a ticket and before we board we are required to show documents proving who we are. Homeland Security led to an unprecedented amount of surveillance on us with the tools that can monitor who we talk to and where we travel too. Thousands of US troops made the ultimate sacrifice for us fighting in foreign lands in the name of 911. 20 years later every two days we are losing about a 911 amount of Americans to another enemy. Rather than dying in a fireball or in the collapse of a building they are dying a slow painful wasting death filling our ICU's. Yet many of those who talk about "Never forget 911" are not willing to make even the small sacrifices to fight this war. Wearing masks isn't fun, feeling aches and chills from the vaccine wasn't fun, having to show proof of vaccination isn't fun but compared to the sacrifices and changes made to our freedoms following 911 these are far less inconvenient or imposing. If we are to never forget 911 we can never forget COVID-19. It is a far more dangerous and insidious enemy than Al Qaeda ever could dream of being. It's one that we can fight and if everyone does their part defeat.
Good post. Workplaces have stipulations for air quality and # of bathrooms provided, etc. It's all somewhat tedious but most stipulations follow basic health logic.
They are believed to be more likely to spread the infection. And the more people that are vaccinated, the less spread there will be. Which means less strain on our hospital systems and less death. No serious person disputes this. Even Republican governors are urging people to get vaccinated.
I agree, ideally. But we live in a messy non-ideal world. Still, one thing I'm disappointed with the Biden admin is a lack of focus on cheap home testing for the mass from the very start. It is misleading (vaccine isn't binary for anything) but the other way to look at it is when is it good enough. I doubt @Commodore is thinking of mass testing to slow down spread (if there was such a mandate for all, I'm sure he's against that). While I think you would be for that and I know plenty of people that have been advocating for that (me included early on). To me, here in the US, at this time, a much more practical reality is to open up everything as normal amongst all vaccinated and restrict non-vaccinated. For non-vaccinated (including for kids in school who haven't or can't yet vaccinate), regularly testing to slow spread. We also know that testing isn't binary - it works great but it isn't perfect and there will be plenty of false negatives. But it's practical and good enough, for now.
The point of testing is that if you test positive you should quarantine and take other measures, whether vaccinated or not. It's not just the testing but what happens after the test. And yes those vaccinated should still get tested if they think they have been exposed. To someone infected. Two weeks ago I had a possible situation with someone who might've been infected. Last night I was at a concert that even though required proof of vaccination and masks still had a lot of exposure so I might get tested this week just to make sure.
One of the persistent myth I see out there is mRNA vaccines changes DNA. With that, other antivax rumors (see post above for example), and times needed to confirm miscarriage risk, it's not surprising that pregnant women have a low rate of vaccination. The impact it seems, in this case in MS, a doubling rate of stillborn. Stillbirths have doubled during covid in Mississippi. Officials are sounding the alarm. (yahoo.com) Brittany Shammas Thu, September 9, 2021, 3:47 PM·3 min read Mississippi has recorded 72 fetal deaths in unvaccinated pregnant women infected with the coronavirus, state health officials announced Wednesday, sounding the alarm on the virus's danger in pregnancy. Speaking during a news conference, Mississippi State Health Officer Thomas Dobbs said those deaths had occurred since the start of the pandemic. The number, which includes only deaths that occurred past 20 weeks of gestation, "is twice the background rate of what would be expected," he said. "That's quite a number of tragedies that, sadly, would be preventable right now," Dobbs said, referring to the availability of vaccines. He said the state is also investigating the deaths of eight pregnant women who were infected with the virus. Those deaths occurred over approximately the past four weeks, during the delta variant-fueled surge, he said. Many underwent emergency Caesarean sections in an attempt to save their babies. Citing those cases, Dobbs and other state health leaders urged those who are pregnant to get the shot that can protect them from the virus. "We encourage you to please get vaccinated," said State Epidemiologist Paul Byers, noting that his daughter had recently delivered a healthy baby after rolling up her sleeve. "That's going to be the best way to ensure that you and your babies stay healthy." Research has found that pregnant and recently pregnant women face a higher risk of becoming severely ill from covid-19, with an increased likelihood of requiring hospitalization, intensive care and use of a ventilator. Those who contract the virus in pregnancy are also at greater risk of preterm birth. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last month began urging coronavirus vaccination in pregnant women, after studies found no increased risk of miscarriage among those who got the shots. Immunization rates are low in the expectant population, with just 24% having received at least one shot, according to the CDC.
people with serious medical issues that require being in the ICU should be given priority over unvaccinated morons…matter of fact, they should designate a small amount of beds for unvaccinated people with Covid, and that’s it
Yes, but where else would he have the freedom to try 43 different hospitals before he died of a treatable acute condition?
