Coronavirus COVID-19

The idea of being able to be tested frequently is almost incomprehensible here in the USA.  I've been tested three times, it took days to find a place that would even take me, the first test took about 16 days before I got results, the second took just under three full weeks, the third a doctor had to pull some strings to get me tested at all because having symptoms and being told to get tested by my PCP didn't meat the requirements to be tested at the time (late August).

It does sound like home testing might be available soon though, that would help even if it's less accurate.

  On 12/7/2020 at 10:58 PM, TubularCorporation said:

The idea of being able to be tested frequently is almost incomprehensible here in the USA.  I've been tested three times, it took days to find a place that would even take me, the first test took about 16 days before I got results, the second took just under three full weeks, the third a doctor had to pull some strings to get me tested at all because having symptoms and being told to get tested by my PCP didn't meat the requirements to be tested at the time (late August).

It does sound like home testing might be available soon though, that would help even if it's less accurate.

 

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Recently Fauci has said that he regrets not pushing for more widely available testing for everyone, not just people showing symptoms.  He said he might try to get some traction with that once Biden is in office so it could still change.

It's kind of absurd that Fauci is kind of waiting around to be able to do his job since Chump isn't letting him get on with it.

For a second I thought that was video from this week and he was just smearing Covid on her.

  On 12/7/2020 at 10:00 AM, Cryptowen said:

Now that it's getting to be wintertime in Canada, the masks are kinda nice actually. They keep my lower face warm when I'm outside, which means I won't have to grow another nasty-ass goatee that makes me look like i just got back from tying some chick to railroad tracks

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  On 12/7/2020 at 10:30 AM, zkom said:

Here in Finland the same, when it's about 0C and windy the mask feels actually pretty nice. But I'm not sure how it will be when the temperature drops to -20C and the humidity from breathing actually freezes on the mask. Maybe need to add a scarf over the mask also. Have to see when that time comes.

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Although I find that advantage is kind of cancelled out by having to wait in long-ass queues outside of stores in the winter cold bc. only one or two customers are allowed inside at any given time.

lmao if the world trade centre was full of old people America would have responded like "meh it's a shame but there's more where they came from"

  On 12/10/2020 at 6:40 PM, ignatius said:

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goddamn fucking asshole piece of shit.

  On 12/10/2020 at 6:48 PM, Blir said:

lmao if the world trade centre was full of old people America would have responded like "meh it's a shame but there's more where they came from"

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Right? What a fucked up way to think 

Moving soon, so it's gonna be a one man Winter-long quarantine, which is nice since I'm immunocompromised.  Fuck this Federal Govt.

  On 12/10/2020 at 6:55 PM, Rubin Farr said:

Moving soon, so it's gonna be a one man Winter-long quarantine, which is nice since I'm immunocompromised.  Fuck this Federal Govt.

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safe travels. i hope wherever you're going you land in a good place and all that. 

  On 12/10/2020 at 6:53 PM, Hugh Mughnus said:

Right? What a fucked up way to think 

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100% agree. but sadly shit like this is not at all surprising when you have the orange clown crew pushing all sorts of dog eat dog agendas out there. IIRC they were trying to prioritize getting ventilators to red states over blue states months ago, because you know, that's where the people need to be saved because the good votes come from there.

  On 12/7/2020 at 10:58 PM, TubularCorporation said:

The idea of being able to be tested frequently is almost incomprehensible here in the USA.  I've been tested three times, it took days to find a place that would even take me, the first test took about 16 days before I got results, the second took just under three full weeks, the third a doctor had to pull some strings to get me tested at all because having symptoms and being told to get tested by my PCP didn't meat the requirements to be tested at the time (late August).

It does sound like home testing might be available soon though, that would help even if it's less accurate.

 

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Testing is key.. testing availability is worse here in Mexico than the US, which is why this disease is nowhere near under control.

Here for example, you still have to pay equivalent of an average week's salary to quickly get a rapid covid test, which is insanity.  There are free clinics but they are so limited that you have to have a long interview and report all the symptoms (or lie that you have all the symptoms) before they will give you a free test..  So of course the rich people take tests as needed and can take precautions, but 95% of the population here is "flying blind", so to speak.
 

  On 12/10/2020 at 7:07 PM, zero said:

100% agree. but sadly shit like this is not at all surprising when you have the orange clown crew pushing all sorts of dog eat dog agendas out there. IIRC they were trying to prioritize getting ventilators to red states over blue states months ago, because you know, that's where the people need to be saved because the good votes come from there.

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That’s just messed up .

but you’re right, I’m really not surprised...

My sister and Niece have it. My mom is on Chemo. Tough year

  On 12/10/2020 at 7:20 PM, Hugh Mughnus said:

That’s just messed up .

but you’re right, I’m really not surprised...

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Early on a federal agency was actually seizing PPE because the Trump administration had made a deal with some big pharmaceutical company or other to have an exclusive deal to distribute the stuff nationally.

This was probably the most high profile incident:

https://www.wcvb.com/article/3-million-masks-ordered-by-massachusetts-were-confiscated-in-port-of-new-york/32021700#

  On 12/7/2020 at 12:50 PM, jaderpansen said:

actually make that 14 and counting.

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a week later and we doubled our body count to 28. won't visit my family on christmas, which i usually only see once or twice a year anyway. germany blew it and i'm not happy about it.

oof.

    Quote

Ambulances Waiting 4 Hours To Offload Patients As L.A. Has Just 56 Adult ICU Beds Left, Orange County Has None

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According to Dr. Christina Ghaly, director of L.A. County Health and Human Services, there were only 370 available hospital beds for the county of 10 million. ICU availability was even worse, with just 56 adult ICU beds remaining. That is only the second time availability has dipped below 100, she said.

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https://deadline.com/2020/12/los-angeles-covid-19-l-a-just-56-adult-icu-beds-left-orange-county-0-icu-1234656346/

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Televangelist Joel Osteen's megachurch in Houston received a $4.4 million Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan.

The loan received by Osteen's Lakewood Church was the first time federal lawmakers provided direct financial assistance for a house of worship, the Houston Chronicle reported.

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https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/530322-joel-osteens-texas-megachurch-received-44-million-covid-19-stimulus-loan

.

  On 12/15/2020 at 12:22 PM, jaderpansen said:

a week later and we doubled our body count to 28. won't visit my family on christmas, which i usually only see once or twice a year anyway. germany blew it and i'm not happy about it.

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My mates who work in healthcare are all sorta traumatised, people die like flies. A lot of people on the palliative stations can't even receive visits from their family in their last days and die alone. It's so terrible.

It's especially enraging if you think that only a small percentage of the spreaders are responsible for a large percentage of the transmission. It only takes one of these people who for whatever reason spread their germs more uncontrollably than others to infect a nursing home and end the lives of dozens of old people. I wish people were less stupid.

Full lockdown in NL in effect. All shops closed. Except for essential ones. Essential shops are; supermarkets, any shops that have parcel pickup, shops that sell pet food and such, chocolate shops, action (sorta like Walmart I guess), zeeman (cheap clothing shop, it’s essential because they sell kids and winter clothes), hardware/diy shops (pickup only tho), and optometrist/opticians (need to be able to get a new pair of glasses).  Oh, and guitar shops. As well as places that sell Christmas trees and such (as long as it’s outside) and outdoor foodmarkets. And I guess the place I work at is still open too, but I expecting to be shut down by the cops today or tomorrow. 
Sporting venues closed. Except the ones that are outside and kids can still train as teams. 
 

It’s a total fucking mess and very difficult to take my government seriously anymore tbh. 
Also find it unfathomable that instead of the public health spokespeople there aren’t more heads of ic etc appealing to the public. Our head of public health is a total idiot that thought it wise to share his doubts on the effects of facemasks after the government asked everyone to please wear one. 
It’s like I’m eating crazy pills. I mean. I am, but they normally don’t have this effect. 

  On 12/16/2020 at 12:03 PM, user said:

It’s a total fucking mess and very difficult to take my government seriously anymore tbh. 
Also find it unfathomable that instead of the public health spokespeople there aren’t more heads of ic etc appealing to the public. Our head of public health is a total idiot that thought it wise to share his doubts on the effects of facemasks after the government asked everyone to please wear one. 
It’s like I’m eating crazy pills. I mean. I am, but they normally don’t have this effect. 

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Government is actually doing their best, but they're confronted with a a population that has a large and very loud contingent of whining entitled sissies that's making it very hard to get anything done.

They've been telling people to work from home since March but because you can't actually have police in every office building to enforce this, people keep coming in to work at their seriously non-essential bullshit jobs.

They've been telling people to limit their social interaction since September but because you can't very well have police checking behind every front door to enforce this, people keep hanging out with friends and family and spreading COVID-19 that way.

They've been telling people to stop traveling to foreign countries since May but because you can't very well ground every civilian airplane without seriously disrupting international freight transport (which for a large part makes use of civilian airplanes) people decide to go on trips abroad anyway.

Unlike China, the Netherlands - and other Western European countries, which are all going through the same thing now - is not a police state. This seriously limits what the government can do.

Head of public health going public with his doubts about the efficacy of face masks the day their use was made mandatory is a big  though. In that you're right.

It's finally hitting hard in my hometown area (rural Ohio).  I think it's hitting especially hard there because Ohio actually locked down early on when things were starting to get bad in the NE and NYC areas.  They probably didn't have to lock down just yet, but they did it anyway, and as a result everyone there has serious lockdown fatigue and is going all, "fuck it I'm going out and eating in a restaurant and walking around with no mask and getting together with my family".

Just heard that a bunch of my old friends' parents have it.  Some are in more serious condition than others.  I was hoping to go home and see my folks for the holidays but that's not going to happen now.