Coronavirus/Covid-19 Discussion Thread

[dragonflies]

Ugh first Eric Clapton and now Travis Tritt

 

 

[victoria foxton]

 

 

 

  

 

  

[amybrickwallace]

Not surprised by Travis Tritt. I never have and never will go to one of his concerts.

[DramatistDreamer]

The U.K., from what I have read, had dropped many of their COVID mitigation measures several months ago, and so it appears, everyone is now living with the results.

[Ponds]

We have friends from the UK and they indeed dropped their COVID regs this summer.  Our friends have health issues so they maintained theirs.

[OzFrog]

Yeah the UK Government are pushing ahead with vaccines being their #1 defence strategy against the virus, seemingly at the expense of other mitigation measures (and I can say this firsthand as someone who lives in London). With the winter flu season coming up as well, the hospitals here are going to be feeling a lot of strain, and there is the danger that the NHS will get too overloaded (we already have 5.7 million people on hospital waiting lists for elective surgery, and that is growing by the thousands every day).

[DramatistDreamer]

After having just placed an order for KN95 masks for myself and family members, the realization that as of next month, it will be two full years since the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19 has entered humanity and upended all our lives.

It's somewhat hard not to feel a bit depressed about this.

Also, after two years, shouldn't production of masks be widespread enough that N95 masks are available to the general population, in addition to hospital, healthcare and frontline workers? 

Instead, supply chain issues appear to have just gotten worse (there have been new warnings about toilet paper shortages). Shouldn't all those overpaid technocrats have already solved this problem?

[amybrickwallace]

I hear you. As a home health aide, I'm required to wear a mask on the job. My colleagues and I have to constantly reuse our N95s and KN95s.

God forbid these companies should stop counting their billions actually help us real people. It's infuriating.

[DramatistDreamer]

There needs to be a better way. Vaccination is very important but making high-quality masks available is still also very important. 

Yeah, I haven't tried to buy N95 because I know it's important for healthcare and frontline workers to have ready access to the N95 masks-- I don't want to be a maskhole. Two years later, and we're still having these kinds of issues gives inconsistent mask wearers cover to only sometimes wear masks. Fortunately, where I live, at least, masks are required in all public indoor spaces. 

[amybrickwallace]

You're in the NYC area, right? Thank you for your kind words and actions.

[DramatistDreamer]

Yes, metro but no longer residing in the actual city anymore.

 

[amybrickwallace]

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[Soaplovers]

Supply chain issues are occurring for a number of reasons.  Higher sudden demand, lack of workers, supply shortages due to natural weather issues etc.

Someone recently told me if all products were made locally vs the globalization route...supply chain issues wouldn't be as bad.  I pointed out even if these products were made in the USA, there are ample shortages of truck drivers to deliver the product, and some raw materials aren't available locally either but overseas.

There is a mask mandate where I am, but it's not strict at all...thankfully.  Plus, there is proof of vaccination needed..so that also is a big help.

 

Edited October 25, 2021 by Soaplovers

[Ponds]

I have been double masking (paper and cloth) since late August.  It gives me a more secure feeling than just one mask alone.  

[DramatistDreamer]

Oh, I double mask anytime I am in indoor spaces with others. 

Also, there has been a global shortage of drivers for years, which has now been exposed with this pandemic. I did hear experts say that the national stockpile diminished for reasons that have little to do with supply chain issues. Supply chain issues are the reasons for toilet paper, disinfecting wipes and paper towels being scarce, as well as the reason why even used cars have become as expensive as some new vehicles. But the national stockpile issues are somewhat connected but not entirely. It's one of the reasons why politicians who once believed that manufacturing returning to the U.S. was impractical and virtually impossible are now pushing for manufacturing corridors, though mostly modest. The  pandemic has shown shortfalls in patients being able to procure simple generic blood pressure medicines, as most are made in either China or India. So the idea of a cluster of manufacturing hubs, rather than huge factories has, at least for the moment become more than a talking point for nationalist minded politicians. 

Edited October 25, 2021 by DramatistDreamer