Viruses / Vaccines

mace1229

tempo_n_groove said:

Did anyone think doctors would take sexual favors to write a script and risk their careers?

That was my thought. If a doctor is willing to run a pill mill, there probably are doctors who give out fake vax cards. Probably isn’t common, but I’m sure it happens. 

I don’t know why anyone would pay $500 when there is basically no security behind them.

mickeyrat

 https://apnews.com/article/covid-omicron-variant-symptoms-hospitalization-less-likely-8ed5a786604ac1df349464296aa7e3c8

Coronavirus pandemic Public health

UK data suggests hospitalization is less likely with omicron

By JILL LAWLESS and LAURA UNGAR

Today

LONDON (AP) — Preliminary data suggests that people with the omicron variant of the coronavirus are 50% to 70% less likely to be hospitalized than those with the delta strain, Britain’s public health agency announced Thursday in a finding that one researcher called “a small ray of sunlight.”

The findings from the U.K. Health Security Agency add to emerging evidence that omicron produces milder illness than other variants. But scientists caution that any reductions in severity must be weighed against the fact that omicron spreads much faster than delta and is better at evading vaccines.

Based on cases in the U.K., a person with omicron is estimated to be 31% to 45% less likely to go to a hospital emergency department compared to someone with delta, “and 50 to 70% less likely to be admitted to hospital,” the agency said.

It cautioned that the analysis is “preliminary and highly uncertain” because of the small number of omicron patients in hospitals and the fact that most were in younger age groups. As of Dec. 20, 132 people had been admitted to U.K. hospitals with confirmed omicron. Fourteen of them died, all between the ages of 52 and 96.

Countries around the world are looking closely at Britain, where omicron is now dominant and where COVID-19 cases have surged by more than 50% in a week.

Experts not involved with the analysis called it encouraging.

“To me, it’s a small ray of sunlight among all the dark clouds,” said Dr. Jonathan Li, director of the Harvard/Brigham Virology Specialty Laboratory.

The signs that omicron may cause less severe disease than delta also align with lab data suggesting omicron does not grow as well in cells derived from lungs, Li said.

The findings add to similar data from South Africa, added Dr. Bruce Walker, director of the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard.

---

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Walker said there are still unknowns, such as the relative severity of omicron in someone who’s been vaccinated compared with someone who’s had COVID-19 before or someone who is unvaccinated and has not had the disease.

Vaccination remains crucial, he said.

“The bottom line is the best way that somebody can prepare for this new wave is to get immunized, and if somebody is already immunized, to get a booster,” said Walker, who is an investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which also supports The Associated Press’ Health and Science Department.

The British agency’s research said the protection a vaccine booster shot gives against symptomatic omicron infection appears to wane after about 10 weeks, though protection against hospitalization and severe disease is likely to hold up for longer.

The analysis “shows an encouraging early signal that people who contract the omicron variant may be at a relatively lower risk of hospitalization than those who contract other variants,” said the chief executive of the U.K. HSA, Jenny Harries.

But she added that “cases are currently very high in the U.K., and even a relatively low proportion requiring hospitalization could result in a significant number of people becoming seriously ill.”

The analysis follows two studies, from Imperial College London and Scottish researchers, that found patients with omicron were 20% to 68% less likely to require hospital treatment than those with delta.

Even if the early studies are borne out, the new variant could still overwhelm health systems because of the sheer number of infections. The British health agency said omicron appeared able to re-infect people more easily than previous variants, with 9.5% of omicron cases found in people who had already had COVID-19 — a figure it said was likely an underestimate.

Britain reported nearly 120,000 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases on Thursday, the highest yet during the pandemic and the second day the number has topped 100,000.

Britain’s Office for National Statistics estimated that about 1 in 45 people in private households in England — 1.2 million individuals — had COVID-19 in the week to Dec. 16, the highest level seen in the pandemic.

Britain’s Conservative government this month reinstated rules requiring face masks in shops and ordered people to show proof of vaccination or a negative coronavirus test before entering nightclubs and other crowded venues in an attempt to slow omicron’s spread.

The government said Thursday that it would not impose any new restrictions before Christmas, but might do so soon after.

Officials also urged people to get tested regularly and to cut back on socializing. Many in Britain have heeded that advice, leaving entertainment and hospitality businesses reeling at what should be their busiest time of the year.

Experts pointed out that staying out of the hospital should not be the only goal; people should also try to avoid long COVID-19, which can result from mild infections.

“We’re all excited to hear that this is immediately less severe in terms of disease," Walker said. "But do we know what the possibility of long COVID is? No, we don’t. There hasn’t been enough time (that has) passed to have any sense of whether omicron is associated with long COVID.”

Louis Mansky, director of the Institute for Molecular Virology at the University of Minnesota, said there’s not enough data to know how omicron will play out in the U.S.

“It gets back to the health status of the average American," Mansky said. "We have other epidemics going on in terms of obesity, cardiovascular disease,” he said, explaining that “the general health of the individual" will be an important factor in how sick they might get from omicron.

___

Ungar reported from Louisville, Kentucky.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Follow AP’s coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic.

Meltdown99

Booster protection wanes against symptomatic Omicron infections, British data suggests.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/23/health/booster-protection-omicron.html

The Juggler

mace1229 said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Did anyone think doctors would take sexual favors to write a script and risk their careers?

That was my thought. If a doctor is willing to run a pill mill, there probably are doctors who give out fake vax cards. Probably isn’t common, but I’m sure it happens. 

I don’t know why anyone would pay $500 when there is basically no security behind them.

The sexual favors thing is much more believable to me than a doctor physically injecting a syringe into a garbage can for 500 bucks....when these cards appear quite easy to duplicate for much less than that. 

mickeyrat

wow, very thorough website....

https://www.nfid.org/infectious-diseases/frequently-asked-questions-about-covid-19-vaccines/

mickeyrat

hope you arent flying today or tomorrow...

Thousands of flights delayed globally for Christmas holiday as omicron hits staffs  https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2021/12/23/airlines-cancel-flights-omicron-staff/ 

Thousands of flights delayed globally for Christmas holiday as omicron hits staffs
By María Luisa Paúl and Hannah Knowles
December 24 at 8:33 AM EST
Thousands of Christmastime flights have been canceled around the world as airlines say the fast-spreading omicron variant of the coronavirus is preventing staffers from working.
More than 3,000 flights were canceled globally for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, according to the website FlightAware, while another 2,000 flights were scrapped on Thursday. FlightAware said more than 20 percent of those canceled for Friday involved travel within, into or out of the United States.
United Airlines had said in a statement Thursday that it was canceling 120 flights on Friday, Christmas Eve, because the variant has had “a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation.” Delta said in a statement that its teams had “exhausted all options and resources — including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover schedules flying” before canceling over 90 flights on Christmas Eve due to weather events and staffing issues.
In Australia, a Sydney Airport spokesman told the Sydney Morning Herald that 80 domestic cancellations on Friday would affect more than 500 flights, while about 50 flights in and out of Melbourne Airport were reportedly canceled as well.
The U.S. airlines said they were working hard to accommodate as many passengers as possible, but the disruption comes during one of the busiest travel periods in years. Many people who spent the holidays at home last year had planned a return to airports for the first time since the advent of the pandemic.
[Omicron is upending the holidays for international travelers]
According to data from the Transportation Security Administration, since Dec. 16 more than 2 million people have passed through its security checkpoints almost every day — approximately double the number recorded on the same days last year. With 2,081,297 passengers recorded on Wednesday, the statistics surpassed the number of travelers reported the same day in 2019, before the pandemic.
United — which had struggled with profitability under last year’s restrictions on nonessential travel and slump in traveling — was on the road to recovery. The Chicago-based carrier predicted it would reach about 87 percent of the number of people it flew in 2019 — forecasting an average of 420,000 passengers a day from Dec. 16 through Jan. 3, the company said.
Even as omicron pushes some to debate whether to rethink their trips over the holidays, United spokeswoman Kimberly Gibbs said the company has not seen an increase in customer cancellations. Delta said late Thursday it still has nearly 3,100 flights scheduled for Christmas Eve.
Delta had already displayed concern over its ability to handle the holiday rush earlier this week. The airline’s CEO sent a letter Tuesday to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asking the agency to reconsider its recommendation for a 10-day quarantine following a coronavirus infection. Delta proposed a 5-day waiting period for vaccinated employees who sustain breakthrough cases.
“Our employees represent an essential workforce to enable Americans who need to travel domestically and internationally,” the letter reads. “With the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, the 10-day isolation for those who are fully vaccinated may significantly impact our workforce and operations.”

nicknyr15

mickeyrat said:

hope you arent flying today or tomorrow...

Thousands of flights delayed globally for Christmas holiday as omicron hits staffs  https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2021/12/23/airlines-cancel-flights-omicron-staff/ 

Thousands of flights delayed globally for Christmas holiday as omicron hits staffs
By María Luisa Paúl and Hannah Knowles
December 24 at 8:33 AM EST
Thousands of Christmastime flights have been canceled around the world as airlines say the fast-spreading omicron variant of the coronavirus is preventing staffers from working.
More than 3,000 flights were canceled globally for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, according to the website FlightAware, while another 2,000 flights were scrapped on Thursday. FlightAware said more than 20 percent of those canceled for Friday involved travel within, into or out of the United States.
United Airlines had said in a statement Thursday that it was canceling 120 flights on Friday, Christmas Eve, because the variant has had “a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation.” Delta said in a statement that its teams had “exhausted all options and resources — including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover schedules flying” before canceling over 90 flights on Christmas Eve due to weather events and staffing issues.
In Australia, a Sydney Airport spokesman told the Sydney Morning Herald that 80 domestic cancellations on Friday would affect more than 500 flights, while about 50 flights in and out of Melbourne Airport were reportedly canceled as well.
The U.S. airlines said they were working hard to accommodate as many passengers as possible, but the disruption comes during one of the busiest travel periods in years. Many people who spent the holidays at home last year had planned a return to airports for the first time since the advent of the pandemic.
[Omicron is upending the holidays for international travelers]
According to data from the Transportation Security Administration, since Dec. 16 more than 2 million people have passed through its security checkpoints almost every day — approximately double the number recorded on the same days last year. With 2,081,297 passengers recorded on Wednesday, the statistics surpassed the number of travelers reported the same day in 2019, before the pandemic.
United — which had struggled with profitability under last year’s restrictions on nonessential travel and slump in traveling — was on the road to recovery. The Chicago-based carrier predicted it would reach about 87 percent of the number of people it flew in 2019 — forecasting an average of 420,000 passengers a day from Dec. 16 through Jan. 3, the company said.
Even as omicron pushes some to debate whether to rethink their trips over the holidays, United spokeswoman Kimberly Gibbs said the company has not seen an increase in customer cancellations. Delta said late Thursday it still has nearly 3,100 flights scheduled for Christmas Eve.
Delta had already displayed concern over its ability to handle the holiday rush earlier this week. The airline’s CEO sent a letter Tuesday to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asking the agency to reconsider its recommendation for a 10-day quarantine following a coronavirus infection. Delta proposed a 5-day waiting period for vaccinated employees who sustain breakthrough cases.
“Our employees represent an essential workforce to enable Americans who need to travel domestically and internationally,” the letter reads. “With the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, the 10-day isolation for those who are fully vaccinated may significantly impact our workforce and operations.”

Man I was so close to going to Florida to get away from this cold weather for a few days but decided against it. So glad I did. I could wait another few weeks. Merry Christmas everyone. This one feels tough, hope everyone stays safe. 

mace1229

We fly tomorrow. So far it’s not canceled. Keeping our dinners crossed.
Our kids are too young to read a calendar, so we pretend it’s Christmas today and fly out on the 25th for 1/4 the price. Usually pretty easy traveling on Christmas Day, but probably not if they are making up for canceled flights.

lastexitlondon

The omicron is looking very mild so far here just to calm the nerves.  All the family all had very mild and recovered.  The unvaxxed had it a bit rough but  not at all serious. . Just to update. Have the best time you can.  Love

nicknyr15

If I hear one more person say “no one saw this coming” I’m gonna lose it. We’ve been warned about variants for over a year now. 

HughFreakingDillon

sister flies to mexico tomorrow. returns NYD. my parents are very nervous about this.....

HughFreakingDillon

Meltdown99 said:

Booster protection wanes against symptomatic Omicron infections, British data suggests.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/23/health/booster-protection-omicron.html

yay

nicknyr15

The Juggler said:

mace1229 said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Did anyone think doctors would take sexual favors to write a script and risk their careers?

That was my thought. If a doctor is willing to run a pill mill, there probably are doctors who give out fake vax cards. Probably isn’t common, but I’m sure it happens. 

I don’t know why anyone would pay $500 when there is basically no security behind them.

The sexual favors thing is much more believable to me than a doctor physically injecting a syringe into a garbage can for 500 bucks....when these cards appear quite easy to duplicate for much less than that. 

Again, a fake card is different from being entered in the data base. 

brianlux

You couldn't pay me enough to get on an airplane right now.

nicknyr15 said:

If I hear one more person say “no one saw this coming” I’m gonna lose it. We’ve been warned about variants for over a year now. 

True.  That's been widely talked about for some time.  Has anyone actually said "no one saw this coming"?  I hadn't heard that.

Meltdown99

Speaking of calling the cops..would any of you call the police on your neighbour if he was digging a big hole in his backyard?  That’s a tough one, what if the hole is for you?  Hmmm.

is there any evidence that doctors are involved in the black market  vaccine passport bs.  

It seems easier just to get the vaccine than have to wonder if the law will catch up with you…

of course it appears the vaccine is majorly flawed…might be best to quit telling folks in Canada 🇨🇦 that the vaccine is the way back to normal…lmfao.  The federal politicians are hiding again…they’ll show up to call another 600 million dollar election.

in the week that the politician began preaching their fear, in Ontario ICU cases  have dropped…nothing to do with latest measures…looks like this variant is similar to SA.  Lots sick with the sniffles…

Meltdown99

These numbers have stressed out Canadas world class healthcare…

mace1229

brianlux said:

You couldn't pay me enough to get on an airplane right now.

nicknyr15 said:

If I hear one more person say “no one saw this coming” I’m gonna lose it. We’ve been warned about variants for over a year now. 

True.  That's been widely talked about for some time.  Has anyone actually said "no one saw this coming"?  I hadn't heard that.

We watched Elf last night with our kids for the first time. During the scene where he was eating gum off the bridge my wife and I said “eww1” our 5 year old asked “why is that eww?”
Flying on a plane is pretty low risk compared to the what we go through in the every day life of a 5 year old.

brianlux

mace1229 said:

brianlux said:

You couldn't pay me enough to get on an airplane right now.

nicknyr15 said:

If I hear one more person say “no one saw this coming” I’m gonna lose it. We’ve been warned about variants for over a year now. 

True.  That's been widely talked about for some time.  Has anyone actually said "no one saw this coming"?  I hadn't heard that.

We watched Elf last night with our kids for the first time. During the scene where he was eating gum off the bridge my wife and I said “eww1” our 5 year old asked “why is that eww?”
Flying on a plane is pretty low risk compared to the what we go through in the every day life of a 5 year old.

Not in the middle of a pandemic, and not for a aerophobe who has been in two major airline close-calls!   Ohhhhh no.  I'm not doing that "three-strikes and your out" shit, lol!

lindamarie73

brianlux said:

You couldn't pay me enough to get on an airplane right now.

nicknyr15 said:

If I hear one more person say “no one saw this coming” I’m gonna lose it. We’ve been warned about variants for over a year now. 

True.  That's been widely talked about for some time.  Has anyone actually said "no one saw this coming"?  I hadn't heard that.

Ya, the mush brain in office own VP said it the other day…..How CNN even dared to report this is beyond me.   

https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/18/politics/kamala-harris-biden-administraton-delta-omicron-variant/index.html

josevolution

lindamarie73 said:

brianlux said:

You couldn't pay me enough to get on an airplane right now.

nicknyr15 said:

If I hear one more person say “no one saw this coming” I’m gonna lose it. We’ve been warned about variants for over a year now. 

True.  That's been widely talked about for some time.  Has anyone actually said "no one saw this coming"?  I hadn't heard that.

Ya, the mush brain in office own VP said it the other day…..How CNN even dared to report this is beyond me.   

https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/18/politics/kamala-harris-biden-administraton-delta-omicron-variant/index.html

lol do you remember when C19 hit? Who was the president then? And what he stated? From what I remember he said to the effect of “ this virus it will disappear by Easter” and can you tell us how many Americans died during 2020? I’m not excusing VP for her statement I’m sure at some point she might try to clarify!