Covfefe-19 The 12th Part: The Only Thing Worse Than This New Board Is TrumpVirus2020

[SJHovey]

First when I heard about 20M doses in December, I thought that was a lofty goal. Today I decided to research how many flu shots occur each year and in what time frame. From August through December 192.3 million doses of flu vaccine were distributed, with an average of 19.1M per week in the month of September.
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/prevent/vaccine-supply-distribution.htm
So, 20 million over 3 weeks seems completely doable.

Now, I know there are some storing and handling complications with the Covid vaccine, but it seems that there is already in infrastructure set up to distribute a large number of vaccines during ~4 months a year. Why aren't we tapping those same resources?

Also, for as much as we hear about super cold storage for the Pfizer vaccine, it has to be thawed before it goes in someone's arm, and from what I've read it still has a shelf life of 3-5 days at refrigerated temps. So while the storage does complicate things, I don't think it's to the degree (pun intended) that some make it out to be.

I think two things have slowed it down.

The first is one of the things I've complained about here before, which is that we're spending too much time with the vaccine sitting in freezers while we make sure that we administer it in the precise order that we, as a state, have decided that it should be administered.

Second, I think that if a state gets say 100,000 doses, some states are only looking to vaccinate 50,000 people, holding back half to do the second dose. My personal preference would be to get the first doses into people and use future deliveries for the second shot.

 

[MichVandal]

I think two things have slowed it down.

The first is one of the things I've complained about here before, which is that we're spending too much time with the vaccine sitting in freezers while we make sure that we administer it in the precise order that we, as a state, have decided that it should be administered.

Second, I think that if a state gets say 100,000 doses, some states are only looking to vaccinate 50,000 people, holding back half to do the second dose. My personal preference would be to get the first doses into people and use future deliveries for the second shot.

IMHO, you are overthinking the situation. Seeing the "distribution centers" as well as the "first come first serve" notion around them, the real problem is the total lack of planning and how to distribute the vaccine.

Again, the simple pharmacy solution also identifies the more sensitive people in the population- health issues, allergy problems, age, ect- modern pharmacies track all of that. So once a criteria would be basically set, they would quickly be able to put a list together and then contact their customers to see if they can set up a specific time or not.

The lack of a pretty easy set up tell me that this came as some kind of surprise to a lot of states.

So it's not a micromanage problem, it's a lack of manage problem. Which is endemic of how this has been lead, as a country.

 

[ScoobyDoo]

Poor planning, poor management. Shocking considering who is in charge. Just shocking. I never would have guessed that it would end up all fucked up.

 

[SJHovey]

IMHO, you are overthinking the situation. Seeing the "distribution centers" as well as the "first come first serve" notion around them, the real problem is the total lack of planning and how to distribute the vaccine.

Again, the simple pharmacy solution also identifies the more sensitive people in the population- health issues, allergy problems, age, ect- modern pharmacies track all of that. So once a criteria would be basically set, they would quickly be able to put a list together and then contact their customers to see if they can set up a specific time or not.

The lack of a pretty easy set up tell me that this came as some kind of surprise to a lot of states.

So it's not a micromanage problem, it's a lack of manage problem. Which is endemic of how this has been lead, as a country.

No one has put me in charge of it, as of yet, so I don't know that I'm overthinking anything.

All I know is that each state is receiving doses, and there is a big disparity among the states as to the percentage of those doses they've administered, with Kansas and Georgia on the low end at 17% and SD leading the way with 70%.

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/covid-vaccine-tracker-global-distribution/

 

[psych]

No one has put me in charge of it, as of yet, so I don't know that I'm overthinking anything.

All I know is that each state is receiving doses, and there is a big disparity among the states as to the percentage of those doses they've administered, with Kansas and Georgia on the low end at 17% and SD leading the way with 70%.

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/covid-vaccine-tracker-global-distribution/

Is South Dakota giving it to anyone who wants one, or are they following the original guidelines?

 

[rufus]

It's pretty easy to hit 70% when you only get 20 doses.

But hey, they got half the population covered, so there's that. The ones left alive, anyway.

 

[SJHovey]

Is South Dakota giving it to anyone who wants one, or are they following the original guidelines?

Not sure.

I talk to my family back in North Dakota. The roll out seems to be doing ok there.

My brother is an emt, so he received a dose within a day or so of the doses getting delivered to the state. In fact, I think his second shot is this week.

My dad said that the head of the public health department in their county announced that people over a certain age can sign up, if they are available and willing to come down and get a shot on very short notice. Basically they are giving the shots to nursing home residents and workers, and other first responders, but as the public health nurse told my dad, some days they find themselves with a few dozen extra doses and no one to give them to, thus the list.

 

[dxmnkd316]

I'm reading an article from CNBC citing the British Health Minister saying that the South African variant is much more worrisome than the UK variant... My crude understanding is that the spike protein has some changes to it in the SA variant that the UK one doesn't. So there are more questions about the vaccine's effectiveness about the SA variant.

 

[Wayuphere]

I, by no means, know anything about epidemiology, but virus mutations have always been the BIG fear, correct? With how widespread Covid-19 is, a virus mutation to a much more lethal one is not a growing concern? There HAS to be someone, maybe in SA, that has a covid and Ebola type infection simultaneously. What, if anything, would emerge?
By mutations, I mean the merging of Covid-19 with a much nastier virus that has a much higher fatality rate combined with covids aerosolized easy transmission.

 

[leswp1]

I'm reading an article from CNBC citing the British Health Minister saying that the South African variant is much more worrisome than the UK variant... My crude understanding is that the spike protein has some changes to it in the SA variant that the UK one doesn't. So there are more questions about the vaccine's effectiveness about the SA variant.

I have been sort of off the grid. Now I need to go look at that. (I did, not much where I am looking so far) https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/943195#vp_1
Just got in the queue for vaccine so I can teach at a LTC facility one day a week. This wasn't what I wanted to see.

 

[Drew S.]

I, by no means, know anything about epidemiology, but virus mutations have always been the BIG fear, correct? With how widespread Covid-19 is, a virus mutation to a much more lethal one is not a growing concern? There HAS to be someone, maybe in SA, that has a covid and Ebola type infection simultaneously. What, if anything, would emerge?
By mutations, I mean the merging of Covid-19 with a much nastier virus that has a much higher fatality rate combined with covids aerosolized easy transmission.

Saw a thread on Twitter that if you wanted to try to get a virus to mutate into something worse you would do pretty much exactly what we have done.

 

[BassAle]

I think two things have slowed it down.

The first is one of the things I've complained about here before, which is that we're spending too much time with the vaccine sitting in freezers while we make sure that we administer it in the precise order that we, as a state, have decided that it should be administered.

I think many states are over-thinking distribution. They are too worried that someone "more deserving" might get vaccinated after someone "less deserving" that they overly complicate the prioritization and end up delaying the vaccination of the vulnerable even more than if they just did something super simple that was primarily based on age. Basically what the UK did was prioritize healthcare workers and elderly.

Second, I think that if a state gets say 100,000 doses, some states are only looking to vaccinate 50,000 people, holding back half to do the second dose. My personal preference would be to get the first doses into people and use future deliveries for the second shot.

I've been told by someone involved in the vaccination program administration in a hospital that the Feds don't want them holding onto doses. Use all the doses you get, don't hold half in a freezer for the second dose.

 

[Deutsche Gopher Fan]

I, by no means, know anything about epidemiology, but virus mutations have always been the BIG fear, correct? With how widespread Covid-19 is, a virus mutation to a much more lethal one is not a growing concern? There HAS to be someone, maybe in SA, that has a covid and Ebola type infection simultaneously. What, if anything, would emerge?
By mutations, I mean the merging of Covid-19 with a much nastier virus that has a much higher fatality rate combined with covids aerosolized easy transmission.

African nations have been advanced on border control and Ebola screening for years, which works in their favor. I believe current Ebola cases are limited to west Africa but the countries that do have Ebola could certainly also have covid .

and yes letting this virus run roughshod over everyone as a strategy was also a disaster in terms of mutations.

 

[Deutsche Gopher Fan]

Hospital in Uk with full icu had to remove people from corridors this week- taking pics of empty hallways to claim the virus was a hoax

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-55531589

 

[dxmnkd316]

Just found out my wife gets her first shot tomorrow. I'm tearing up I'm so happy.

 

[dxmnkd316]

I, by no means, know anything about epidemiology, but virus mutations have always been the BIG fear, correct? With how widespread Covid-19 is, a virus mutation to a much more lethal one is not a growing concern? There HAS to be someone, maybe in SA, that has a covid and Ebola type infection simultaneously. What, if anything, would emerge?
By mutations, I mean the merging of Covid-19 with a much nastier virus that has a much higher fatality rate combined with covids aerosolized easy transmission.

My gut feeling is they need to be pretty similar to merge. Flu with flu, corona with corona, etc. But take that for what it's worth, I have almost zero knowledge of the subject. Happy to be corrected (or maybe scared in this case)

 

[Deutsche Gopher Fan]

My gut feeling is they need to be pretty similar to merge. Flu with flu, corona with corona, etc. But take that for what it's worth, I have almost zero knowledge of the subject. Happy to be corrected (or maybe scared in this case)

Ebola is so different- and is definitely not transmissible by air. Needs to be direct contact with fluids

 

[BassAle]

My gut feeling is they need to be pretty similar to merge. Flu with flu, corona with corona, etc. But take that for what it's worth, I have almost zero knowledge of the subject. Happy to be corrected (or maybe scared in this case)

they need to be similar genetically, but two strains of RNA viruses can recombine if they infect the same cell. I don't think ebola and SARS-COV-2 would undergo recombination, and if somehow they did, it would result in a jumbled mess of genes.

 

[Handyman]

One thing I would like to ask the powers that be is if schools aren’t safe to be open in UK why are they safe here?

Something something...socialism. Something something...FREDUMB!!!

 

[Handyman]

No one has put me in charge of it, as of yet, so I don't know that I'm overthinking anything.

All I know is that each state is receiving doses, and there is a big disparity among the states as to the percentage of those doses they've administered, with Kansas and Georgia on the low end at 17% and SD leading the way with 70%.

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/covid-vaccine-tracker-global-distribution/

Which is why you don't leave it up to the states...if we had a semi functional Federal Government we would be way ahead of where we are.