What can we expect for 2020-2021 MBB season

[ShockerFever]

People are starting to get restless right now and we're not even 2 months into quarantine. We may not get back to true "normal" quickly, but something is gonna have to give. You can't shut down everything for 18 months. You can't. That'll cause WAY more harm than this virus does. The highest risk and most vulnerable should probably stay with the same restrictions for a lot longer (until there is a vaccine or proven quality treatments). But the low risk individuals are gonna have to be allowed back into society and start functioning again. Sure, you could put some cautious measures in there for a while but if you continue to stop everything then that would be the equivalent to the virus killing everybody, which it is not.

[Shockm]

It's the Federal Government for Pete's sakes. When have Federal bureaucrats rolled out anything well? There are millions of federal employees in Washington DC and they have a job for life. The federal government isn't an efficient entity ever. They are fat and happy. Never depend on them to do anything well. The Obamacare rollout was a disgrace. The Veterans health Administration is a disgrace. Why do you expect any different when we have no control over our medical supply chains and the feds have to get our medical supplies from China? Everything from PPE's to swabs for medical tests are made in China. I don't say why are there problems with this pandemic in America. I say why wouldn't there be problems.

[pie n eye]

People are starting to get restless right now and we're not even 2 months into quarantine. We may not get back to true "normal" quickly, but something is gonna have to give. You can't shut down everything for 18 months. You can't. That'll cause WAY more harm than this virus does. The highest risk and most vulnerable should probably stay with the same restrictions for a lot longer (until there is a vaccine or proven quality treatments). But the low risk individuals are gonna have to be allowed back into society and start functioning again. Sure, you could put some cautious measures in there for a while but if you continue to stop everything then that would be the equivalent to the virus killing everybody, which it is not.

Totally agree and I think most people do as well. Other countries have shown that life can continue in a relatively normal fashion as long as the necessary steps are taken. But we can’t rush it just because we’re restless. Hopefully the preparations we should have made in the first place are being made now so we’re ready to open back up and do better this time.

[MikeKennedyRulZ]

What do you propose we do?

See ATX. Fev, and Pie's comments. I will let them speak for me so as to not be redundant.

[WstateU]

People are starting to get restless right now and we're not even 2 months into quarantine. We may not get back to true "normal" quickly, but something is gonna have to give. You can't shut down everything for 18 months. You can't. That'll cause WAY more harm than this virus does. The highest risk and most vulnerable should probably stay with the same restrictions for a lot longer (until there is a vaccine or proven quality treatments). But the low risk individuals are gonna have to be allowed back into society and start functioning again. Sure, you could put some cautious measures in there for a while but if you continue to stop everything then that would be the equivalent to the virus killing everybody, which it is not.

I don't recall who mentioned it (not going to search threads), but domestic violence, suicides, murder, depression, etc., are escalating at an alarming rate and will likely kill more people than Covid-19 ever will. I visited with a local person of authority (I can't list the person here or his position) and he confirmed this and said we're reaching a crisis level if things don't change soon.

I'm usually an eternal optimist with a positive outlook about everything in life, but this situation is challenging me in ways I've never been challenged before. My wife and I are both experiencing insomnia (she's never had this problem before, I've experienced it before) which can be related to depression, anxiety, lack of exercise, etc. No, I'm not going to jump off a cliff, but I know a lot of people (family and friends) that are struggling immensely and I'm worried about them.

I'm a person of faith and believe in the power of prayer and trust the lord will guide us through these rough waters. I know I'm going off-topic here, but I'm proud of the small businesses in our area that are still open and continue to do everything within their power to serve their customers. God bless them... they should be commended.

Not trying to bring politics into this, but I'm starting to be concerned there are people who are enjoying the pandemic... it's time to "Wake Up America!"

[pie n eye]

It's the Federal Government for Pete's sakes. When have Federal bureaucrats rolled out anything well? There are millions of federal employees in Washington DC and they have a job for life. The federal government isn't an efficient entity ever. They are fat and happy. Never depend on them to do anything well. The Obamacare rollout was a disgrace. The Veterans health Administration is a disgrace. Why do you expect any different when we have no control over our medical supply chains and the feds have to get our medical supplies from China? Everything from PPE's to swabs for medical tests are made in China. I don't say why are there problems with this pandemic in America. I say why wouldn't there be problems.

That’s a cynical view to take.

In my experience the private sector isn’t any better.

I’ve had good and bad experiences with both.

FWIW there are appx 2 mil federal employees and around 79% of them work outside Washington D.C. Whether they are fat and happy I have no idea. My guess is that, by and large, they try to do the best they can as most people take pride in their work. Same as most people at the private sector businesses I’ve worked at.

But I’m probably just overly optimistic dummy who gives people too much credit.

[ShockingButTrue]

19 per 1 million are dying from it (current numbers), so...

yes-id-like-to-report-some-people-not-living-in-fear.jpg

[Aargh]

From the research I’ve done the shortage of tests is not due to a lack of natural resources. I would be interested to learn more if that is the case.

The problem seems to be more a lack of preparation, aka we didn’t start ramping up when we should have and the virus spread faster than our rate of production. Not to mention a lack of coordination (some areas have excess, others shortage).

My point is that now that this has our full attention I find it hard to believe that we, as the United States of America, are incapable of focusing our vast knowledge, resources, and willpower to create the necessary testing stockpile by August. Maybe I’m wrong and it’s just not possible.

As far as KS, OK, etc the fact that we’re less populated should also mean we require fewer tests to achieve the same results as larger states, no?

My analogy is being taken more literally than intended. There is a worldwide shortage of testing swabs and reagents. Apparently both are sourced out of China. I agree that a lack of preparation led to the current problems, but some may view that as having political implications, so I've tried to avoid mentioning that

Kansas is in a bind due to our low cash reserves. When it's left to the states to handle everything, and the state has no money, and the state isn't allowed to borrow money, it makes it difficult to handle an emergency. Here's an example of what's happening in pricing of medical supplies. Pre-pandemic N95 masks were selling for $.38. Now some are paying as much as $5.75 for them. Evidently price-gouging is OK.

[Woodrow]

According to Dr. Birx there are over 1 million tests distributed that have not been used at this point. They need the labs in the states and counties to do the tests but for a variety of reasons they have not scaled up to do it yet. This is where the Governors and Mayors are going to have to get involved. The feds can't do local area tests. The feds are distributing well over a million tests per week and she said that number will double shortly.
According to all the scientists like Fauci and Birx all of the things we have done do not stop the virus from spreading, it only slows it down so we all don't get it at once. Over 90% of all of the deaths are people 55 and over and most have other health issues. The latest official CDC numbers (which run way behind waiting for official reporting from death certificates from states) show 13,130 deaths from corona and 16 of those were under the age of 25. It doesn't show if they had other health issues. In that same time frame 582,000 Americans died from all causes.
The unofficial count today of corona deaths is 36,000 in USA and I would assume the percentages of age will stay about the same.
Perhaps some of the treatments like hydroxycloroquine and remdesevir will make a difference. Whatever happens we will have no choice but to return to work and school soon.

[Horn28Clem30]

Mental Health issues need to be taken into consideration as well...suicides, addictions, depressions etc are going to skyrocket at this rate...and is that any better or worse then those affected by the virus? It's a very slippery slope for sure, but we can't let all things keep getting worse.

[wsushox1]

According to Dr. Birx there are over 1 million tests distributed that have not been used at this point. They need the labs in the states and counties to do the tests but for a variety of reasons they have not scaled up to do it yet. This is where the Governors and Mayors are going to have to get involved. The feds can't do local area tests. The feds are distributing well over a million tests per week and she said that number will double shortly.
According to all the scientists like Fauci and Birx all of the things we have done do not stop the virus from spreading, it only slows it down so we all don't get it at once. Over 90% of all of the deaths are people 55 and over and most have other health issues. The latest official CDC numbers (which run way behind waiting for official reporting from death certificates from states) show 13,130 deaths from corona and 16 of those were under the age of 25. It doesn't show if they had other health issues. In that same time frame 582,000 Americans died from all causes.
The unofficial count today of corona deaths is 36,000 in USA and I would assume the percentages of age will stay about the same.
Perhaps some of the treatments like hydroxycloroquine and remdesevir will make a difference. Whatever happens we will have no choice but to return to work and school soon.

Part of the "scaling" issues is you literally can only do so many tests per day. In order to "scale up" you need more PCR machines. The fastest PCR machines in the world can only do 1500 samples per hour. There are point of care diagnostics being developed - but they are not nearly as accurate as a PCR test.

There's a lot of tests in regions that are running out of lab time/space to process them and a lot of lab capability in areas where there aren't a lot of test kits. By the time you ship samples to a lab that has space it probably is about the same time to just wait until the lab that is backed up can process the sample.

[wsushox1]

My analogy is being taken more literally than intended. There is a worldwide shortage of testing swabs and reagents. Apparently both are sourced out of China. I agree that a lack of preparation led to the current problems, but some may view that as having political implications, so I've tried to avoid mentioning that

Kansas is in a bind due to our low cash reserves. When it's left to the states to handle everything, and the state has no money, and the state isn't allowed to borrow money, it makes it difficult to handle an emergency. Here's an example of what's happening in pricing of medical supplies. Pre-pandemic N95 masks were selling for $.38. Now some are paying as much as $5.75 for them. Evidently price-gouging is OK.

This article addresses what Aargh and I have been saying. Kansas doesn't have the purchasing clout to buy test kits and doesn't have an ongoing emergent virus threat to get them from FEMA. Kind of in a no man's land.

https://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article242090271.html

[pie n eye]

This article addresses what Aargh and I have been saying. Kansas doesn't have the purchasing clout to buy test kits and doesn't have an ongoing emergent virus threat to get them from FEMA. Kind of in a no man's land.

https://www.kansas.com/news/politics...242090271.html

Right, and that’s today. What I’m talking about is as we move into the future. My assumption is that we are/have been ramping up production and at some point the supply will be enough that the issues we’re seeing now, in terms of KS getting tests, will be alleviated. Is that an unreasonable assumption?

[Atxshoxfan]

Sorry, ive never figured out how to copy/reply to a specific post on my phone. But aargh, the nubers you give in the nursing home are not necessarily real. CDC has instructed doctors to state cause of death as Corona virus, no matter what underlaying problems exist. So while one of the older folks have serious heart issues, kidney issues or lung issues that put them on the brink of death, if the have Corona virus in the lightest form, cause of death will be Corona virus as recorded.
while the travel ban and sheltering have helped slow down the virus, it has given scientists and doctors the chance to discover real cures that are keeping folks alive. I understand that it would take our govt 18 months to approve these meds for use against the virus, fact is they are working and the only bad effects happen when the dosages are too high.
Like I tried to say earlier, time to open shop and stop this shutdown. If this scares you that bad, stay home, never get in a car and never let another visitor in your home.

[MikeKennedyRulZ]

Sorry, ive never figured out how to copy/reply to a specific post on my phone. But aargh, the nubers you give in the nursing home are not necessarily real. CDC has instructed doctors to state cause of death as Corona virus, no matter what underlaying problems exist. So while one of the older folks have serious heart issues, kidney issues or lung issues that put them on the brink of death, if the have Corona virus in the lightest form, cause of death will be Corona virus as recorded.
while the travel ban and sheltering have helped slow down the virus, it has given scientists and doctors the chance to discover real cures that are keeping folks alive. I understand that it would take our govt 18 months to approve these meds for use against the virus, fact is they are working and the only bad effects happen when the dosages are too high.
Like I tried to say earlier, time to open shop and stop this shutdown. If this scares you that bad, stay home, never get in a car and never let another visitor in your home.

The majority of the deaths in the San Diego (where I am) have been people in there 90's or 100's with pre-existing conditions. These are people who likely would have died from catching the seasonal flu.