Coronavirus General Discussion

[dualstow]

Probably just a matter of time.

[WiseOne]

A bit of good news from Cuomo's bitch session this AM. (Sorry I call it that but his presentations are about 1/3 useful data & info, and 2/3 bitching about Trump & federal government's failings - some of which is justified but the lecturing is getting annoying).

Anyway....

To measure the slope of the curve of case increases, I've been dividing new cases by total cases each day. The ratio has been over 30% for several days running. Today it's 26%. That might not be significant, but with increased testing I would expect a higher number not a lower one - so cautious optimism that the peak may be within sight.

[dualstow]

A bit of good news from Cuomo's bitch session this AM.
...

The Danny DeVito part made me smile, though.
https://youtu.be/RxH_uHFwj30

[Tortoise]

The Danny DeVito part made me smile, though.
https://youtu.be/RxH_uHFwj30

All these public and celebrity announcements imploring people to stay home to avoid spreading the virus reminds me of those reply-all email bombs at work where the thread explodes to hundreds of replies in under 10 minutes, mostly consisting of people replying all to write, "STOP REPLYING ALL!"

[dualstow]

God bless gmail’s Mute Conversation feature.
My block likes to email each other, which is useful, but the Reply All is used too liberally.

[pmward]

This is ridiculous... in the middle of all of this crap.... the ice cream truck is literally driving through my neighborhood right now.

[dualstow]

This is ridiculous... in the middle of all of this crap.... the ice cream truck is literally driving through my neighborhood right now.

Everyone gets a free sample, but we only have one spoon.

[CT-Scott]

On the bit of good news side...someone in my hospital got the brilliant idea of figuring out a way to put two patients on one ventilator. They're testing that now and plan to push it out to general use in the next few days.

I'm sort of new here, and I haven't read this entire thread (and probably won't), but after many months (years?) of my wife nagging me about my snoring/apnea, I finally gave in early this year and got a CPAP machine. I'm ignorant about ventilators, but had the idea the other day of whether a CPAP machine could be used as a "not-as-good-but-maybe-good-enough" ventilator substitute. Sure enough, a Google search turned up some hits on this idea. Here's one:

Ventilator Supply Mitigation Strategies: Letter to Health Care Providers
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/let ... -providers

[Smith1776]

I have what my doctor calls mild sleep apnea. I tried a CPAP machine, but even after a month I found that the machine and mask disturbed my sleep more than helped it. As a part-time employee I don't have any medical benefits that would cover it either. Maybe once I'm graduated and full-time that will change.

Vancouver update: It's a ghost town here. Basically everything shut down except for grocery stores and other essential businesses. Police are out questioning people at roadblocks as to what they're going out for. Trudeau just announced $1000 that every citizen can apply for as a bolster against lack of income. There are some qualification of course, but basically if you're out of work you probably are eligible.

Still, there are enough people not taking this seriously to the point in which you just know that this lockdown is going to go on longer than it would have needed to otherwise.

[CT-Scott]

I have what my doctor calls mild sleep apnea. I tried a CPAP machine, but even after a month I found that the machine and mask disturbed my sleep more than helped it. As a part-time employee I don't have any medical benefits that would cover it either.

Sadly, mine is supposedly not "mild" at all. I, too, don't love wearing it, though. I guess I sleep OK, but I find myself waking up several times and fiddling with it, as I get some air leakage. Regarding the cost, they told me that my insurance would cover it, but I've got an HDHP/HSA so I think I'm going to end up paying for it all as part of meeting my deductible.

[Smith1776]

I have what my doctor calls mild sleep apnea. I tried a CPAP machine, but even after a month I found that the machine and mask disturbed my sleep more than helped it. As a part-time employee I don't have any medical benefits that would cover it either.

Sadly, mine is supposedly not "mild" at all. I, too, don't love wearing it, though. I guess I sleep OK, but I find myself waking up several times and fiddling with it, as I get some air leakage. Regarding the cost, they told me that my insurance would cover it, but I've got an HDHP/HSA so I think I'm going to end up paying for it all as part of meeting my deductible.

That's my issue too. Having that thing on my face all night is incredibly uncomfortable. I did everything I could to fiddle with it, but even after a month it just wasn't working out. The fact that it was so pricey just cinched the idea that it wasn't for me.

[Smith1776]

This isn't like 2008. Businesses aren't just seeing slow traffic -- they're downright shutting down. That's a totally different level of economic slowdown compared to previous crises.

In addition, given our low interest rates and already saturated money supply, normal policy tools for stimulus just aren't as effective as they used to be.

Hong Kong, after letting its guard down, has now seen a surge of new cases. COVID-19 is the medical equivalent of cockroaches in your kitchen. Going to go out on a limb and say that the there's a 20% chance that posterity will use the phrase "Second Great Depression" in reference to this era.

[Smith1776]

You guys might want to talk to your dentist about a snoring appliance if you can't tolerate a CPAP. While it likely won't be covered by either medical or dental insurance, you can use flex benefits (in the US, not sure how it works in Canada). In my office the more basic appliances cost under $800 and I have had good success with reducing if not eliminating snoring and some OSA. It is not as good as a CPAP, but it's an affordable alternative if you can't tolerate and/or afford one. Certainly better than nothing. YMMV, please consult your own MD and DDS.

Thanks, my friend. Will look into this. I had the sleep guy simulate having one of those mouth guard looking type dealies in my mouth while I was in his office, and I could definitely tell my airway was more clear.

[dualstow]

On the bit of good news side...someone in my hospital got the brilliant idea of figuring out a way to put two patients on one ventilator.
...

I'm ignorant about ventilators, but had the idea the other day of whether a CPAP machine could be used as a "not-as-good-but-maybe-good-enough" ventilator substitute.
...
Ventilator Supply Mitigation Strategies: Letter to Health Care Providers
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/let ... -providers

Both very clever ideas!

[yankees60]

My county is Franklin...

Vinny

Capture.JPG (91.35 KiB) Viewed 6978 times

[dualstow]

My county is Franklin...
{ table of counties of state of Mass. }

I have a relative in Middlesex County. Appears to be the virus epicenter of New England.

[pmward]

Good lord, the CDC just released the fact that the coronavirus lived on surfaces for 17 full days after the last passenger had left the diamond princess ship https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/23/cdc-cor ... -left.html

[dualstow]

Good lord, the CDC just released the fact that the coronavirus lived on surfaces for 17 full days after the last passenger had left the diamond princess ship https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/23/cdc-cor ... -left.html

Oh my. Should I still bother to let my mail sit for 24 hours?

[ochotona]

Good lord, the CDC just released the fact that the coronavirus lived on surfaces for 17 full days after the last passenger had left the diamond princess ship https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/23/cdc-cor ... -left.html

Oh my. Should I still bother to let my mail sit for 24 hours?

Handling mine with gloves.

What about delivered groceries???

[dualstow]

Good lord, the CDC just released the fact that the coronavirus lived on surfaces for 17 full days after the last passenger had left the diamond princess ship https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/23/cdc-cor ... -left.html

Oh my. Should I still bother to let my mail sit for 24 hours?

Handling mine with gloves.

What about delivered groceries???

Groceries are the hardest part for us to figure out. We don’t take delivery, but we wipe down things like cans. Anything that’s peeled and cooked is not a problem. But, things that come in boxes and are not cooked, like crackers: not sure. It’s not like we open the package and scrub yet again before partaking. Like that jokey visual meme that’s going around, our hands are starting to look like the terminator-as-skeleton’s hands.

[pmward]

Yeah I don't know how to handle groceries. That's a tough one. I have been going to the grocery store right when it opens the last few weeks to minimize the people that have handled it that day. The one good thing they did say in that article is although it was 17 days for all virus to be dead, there was a decrease day to day. I imagine it likely that after a couple days what virus is alive is also likely very weak.

[yankees60]

My county is Franklin...
{ table of counties of state of Mass. }

I have a relative in Middlesex County. Appears to be the virus epicenter of New England.

I think that there may have been where the Biogen conference was.

Vinny

[CT-Scott]

What about delivered groceries???

I went for another grocery run yesterday. I got home and wiped just about everything down with single Clorox wipe. Part of me wondered if using a single Clorox wipe for everything was "good enough" but I figured it was probably much better than 90% of the population is still doing.

There's a part of me (the conspiracy anti-state part of me) that still wonders if this could be some big wealth-transfer scam, but I already feel pretty good about where my money is at, and where our health/safety is concerned, better to be safer than sorry.

If the news gets worse, before it gets better, I'll be employing an N95 mask for my errands.

[dualstow]

My county is Franklin...
{ table of counties of state of Mass. }

I have a relative in Middlesex County. Appears to be the virus epicenter of New England.

I think that there may have been where the Biogen conference was.

Vinny

That’s correct.

[I Shrugged]

Ok this will sound like, “A guy told me.” But the source is good.

Someone I am close to spoke to his sister in law who is a surgeon. She had hung out with an ER doc and his family. Which entire family has since been found to have CV19. But the SIL is not doing anything about it. Not getting tested because she has no symptoms. She’s still going to the hospital, and in fact is performing surgery tomorrow on an elderly man. And her child goes to day care. We think the hospital doesn’t know. But then...

the hospital is telling the ER doc that they hope to figure out how to get him back ASAP. This is a major hospital in a Midwestern city.

What in the hell?