Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Just because you believe it, that does not make it true.

Nothing says ‘pro-life’ like letting children go hungry.

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

Come on, man.

Trump should be leading, not lying.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

Conservatism: there are people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

A norm that restrains only one side really is not a norm – it is a trap.

Hey hey, RFK, how many kids did you kill today?

There is no compromise when it comes to body autonomy. You either have it or you do not.

Well, whatever it is, it’s better than being a Republican.

When you’re a Republican, they let you do it.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

We can show the world that autocracy can be defeated.

This blog will pay for itself.

We still have time to mess this up!

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

the 10% who apparently lack object permanence

We will not go back.

These are not very smart people, and things got out of hand.

Anne Laurie is a fucking hero in so many ways. ~ Betty Cracker

Everything is totally normal and fine!!!

You are here: Home / Healthcare / COVID-19 / COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Thursday/Friday, Oct. 29-30

COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Thursday/Friday, Oct. 29-30

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Something genuinely good, for a change:

Back to our regularly scheduled grind…


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Thread:

Several Idaho lawmakers appeared in an Idaho Freedom Foundation video published Tuesday in which they question the existence of the coronavirus pandemic and state that they will ignore any state or local emergency orders that they claim violate their rights.

The video features cameos from Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin, state representatives Tammy Nichols, R-Middleton; Dorothy Moon, R-Stanley; Bryan Zollinger, R-Idaho Falls; Christy Zito, R-Hammett; Chad Christensen, R-Ammon; Priscilla Giddings, R-White Bird; Tony Wisniewski, R-Post Falls and Heather Scott, R-Blanchard; and Ron Nate, R-Rexburg, and Karey Hanks, R-St. Anthony, both of whom are unopposed for election to the House in November. The lawmakers’ script is a “declaration to Idaho residents and officials” that the Idaho Freedom Foundation published on its website in early October…

“The fact that a pandemic may or may not be occurring changes nothing about the meaning or intent of the state constitution in the preservation of our inalienable rights,” reads Hanks in the video.

The declaration goes on to “demand an end to the emergency orders issued by state and local government officials and the restoration of our constitutionally protected rights.”…

Reader Interactions

29Comments

  1. 1.

    NotMax

    By this time tomorrow Germany will become country #16 with cumulative reported cases over 500k.

    More than 45,000,000 reported cases planet-wide. U.S. + India + Brazil account for 50% of that number.

  2. 2.

    low-tech cyclist

    Yesterday, per Worldometer, 32 states had Covid deaths in double digits.  The day before, 36 states did.

    Unlike the first two waves, which hit specific regions hard but most of the country was still OK, this one’s everywhere.

    As far as I know, Maryland, where I live, is still following a plan for continued reopening.  Maybe that made sense a month ago, but we need to reverse direction on that now.  It’s gonna be a dangerous winter.

  3. 3.

    NotMax

    FYI.

    Mayor Michael Victorino recently announced the launch of a free COVID-19 community testing program sponsored by the County of Maui and administered by Minit Medical.

    Residents do not need insurance or meet any criteria to get tested for free.… Source

    Unclear which flavor of test will be provided; that’s not to pooh-pooh the initiative.

  4. 4.

    mrmoshpotato

    Just the Lieutenant Governor of Idaho, driving around with a gun and a Bible protesting #COVID19 restrictions

    You shoot that virus!  Shoot it dead! Then tell it how it’s going to Hell! ??????

    ETA

    The declaration goes on to “demand an end to the emergency orders issued by state and local government officials and the restoration of our constitutionally protected rights.”…

    You also tell that virus ’bout the ‘Muurican Constitooshun!  It has no right to tell you what to do!  No rights for viruses in the ‘Muurican Constitooshun in the land of the free and home of “Fuck you, virus!  No one can tell me what to do even if it’s for my own protection against a suffocating virus!  ‘Muurica!  Fuck you, virus!”

  5. 5.

    YY_Sima Qian

    Yesterday, China reported 1 new domestic confirmed case and 14 new domestic asymptomatic cases. The asymptomatic cases are all at Shufu County in Kashgar Prefecture, in Xinjiang “Autonomous” Region, from close contacts already under medical quarantine. The county has just completed a 2nd round of mass screening, all other results negative. There are currently 45 confirmed (including 4 in serious condition) and 152 asymptomatic cases there. Xinjiang Regional Health Commission has announced that all cases, confirmed and asymptomatic, will be moved to Ürumqi for better care over the next 2 days. The 3 serious cases are not yet on ventilator as of last night. Given the distance from Kashgar to Ürumqi is the same as that from NYC to Chicago, this is a surprising decision, and serve to highlight the relative dearth of top level medical sources in Kashgar and other poor regions of Xinjiang, despite state media reports that Kashgar is urgently adding dedicated ICU and standard beds for COVID-19 patients. Probably wants to avoid adding to the death count. Ürumqi itself lags behind the coastal cities in terms of health care resources. Chronic underfunding of health care and especially underinvestment in public health has been identified as a top issue by national and local authorities coming out of the pandemic, and will likely be a top priority going forward.
    The lone domestic confirmed case is reported by Qingdao in Shandong Province, a nurse working in COVID-19 isolation ward at People’s No. 3 Hospital there. The hospital is designated a reserve hospital for COVID-19 patients. After the nosocomial cluster at the Pulmonology hospital, all COVID-19 patients were transferred here. Apparently nurses working COVID-19 wards also stay at designated dormitories/hotels during their rotation, and the nurses had consistently tested negative before starting her rotation in the isolation ward from 10/18. Qingdao Municipal Health Commission claimed that she was infected via accidental exposure, and not a breach in protocol or lapse in management, and that there is no risk of transmission to the community. Not sure what that means, was it a struggle with a patient that tore the nurse’s PPE?
    Yesterday, China reported 24 new imported confirmed cases and 39 imported asymptomatic cases and 6 imported suspect cases:

    • Shanghai Municipality – 6 confirmed cases, 7 Chinese nationals returning from the Philippines, 2 from Spain (1 via Schipol), 1 from Morocco (via Paris CdG), a Yemeni national coming Yemen (via Germany), a Columbian national coming from Columbia (via Paris CdG) and a Filipino crew member off a cargo ship; 6 suspect cases, no information released
    • Xiamen in Fujian Province – 4 confirmed cases, 1 Chinese national each returning from the Philippines, Singapore, Canada and Italy
    • Tianjin Municipality – 2 confirmed cases (1 previously asymptomatic), 1 Chinese national each returning from Spain and the Philippines
    • Guangzhou in Guangdong Province – 2 confirmed case, 1 Chinese national each returning from Cambodia and Guinea; 3 asymptomatic cases, 2 Chinese nationals returning from Saudi Arabia and 1 from Ethiopia
    • Foshan in Guangdong Province – 16 asymptomatic cases, 13 Chinese nationals returning from Iraq, and 1 each from the UAE, the Ukraine and Kazakhstan
    • Shenzhen in Guangdong Province – 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national returning from India
    • Chengdu in Sichuan Province – 2 confirmed cases, 1 Chinese national each returning from Saudi Arabia and the Philippines; 5 asymptomatic cases, all Chinese nationals returning from the Philippines
    • Kunming in Yunnan Province –  1 confirmed case, a Chinese national returning from Myanmar
    • Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province – 5 asymptomatic cases, 3 Chineses national returning from Iraq and 1 each from Egypt and Syria
    • Changsha in Hunan Province – 5 asymptomatic cases, no information released
    • Nanjing in Jiangsu Province – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
    • Xi’an in Shaanxi Province – 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national returning from Spain
    • Zhengzhou in Henan Province – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released

    The authorities in Puyang in Henan Province reported that they have identified 277 Tiers 1 & 2 close contacts of the imported asymptomatic case from yesterday, all have tested negative. They have collected 13 environmental samples, also negative. The asymptomatic case reported yesterday returned from Guinea (via Paris CdG) and arrived at Tianjin Municipality on 10/8. He passed through the mandatory 14 day quarantine there and tested negative twice. The case returned to Puyang on 10/23, went out to dinner and KTV with family and friends on the even of 10/23, before reporting to mandatory centralized quarantine on 10/24. He tested positive on 10/27, while under quarantine. Clearly, there is a breach in protocol here.
    Today, Hong Kong reported 6 new cases, 1 from local transmission, source of transmission has been identified.

  6. 6.

    Brachiator

    NEW: Top officials working with the WH COVID-19 task force say Trump and Atlas have embraced the concept of herd immunity and have created a policy around it.

    What I find baffling is that the herd immunity and anti-lockdown “experts” in the US and Europe also insist that the coronavirus is “just another flu,” and yet ignore, and have no way of dealing with, the increase in hospitalizations and fatalities.

    And Trump’s policy seems to be “ignore the pandemic until the vaccine gets approved.”

  7. 7.

    TS (the original)

    Just the Lieutenant Governor of Idaho, driving around with a gun and a Bible protesting #COVID19 restrictions

    The virus is going to win this shootout

  8. 8.

    YY_Sima Qian

    Uhh, spacing between paragraphs seems to get screwed up when I compose in Notes or Pages and then paste here…

  9. 9.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @Brachiator: Well, GOP’s election platform has amounted to insinuating that COVID-19 is a biologically attack on American by China, yet according to Mark Meadows the only viable response left is essentially to raise the white flag and let God sort out who survives.

  10. 10.

    mrmoshpotato

    @TS (the original): 

    The virus is going to win this shootout 

    But will it win the beating it’s going to get from the Bible and the ‘Muurican Constitooshun?

    RIP virus.  A beatdown of godly freedom is coming your way!

  12. 12.

    Mary G

    That story about Orange County surprises me. I wonder if we have a less lethal virus going around. We are still at a 3.2% positive rate of tests and 5.1 new daily cases per 100,000 residents. Of 703 available ICU beds only 59 are occupied by Covid patients and of more than 2,900 regular hospital beds only 122 are occupied by Covid patients.

  13. 13.

    Brachiator

    A little tidbit from Los Angeles County health authorities:

    Los Angeles County health officials continued to say yesterday that sit-down restaurant and bar experiences are a contributing factor in the spread of the coronavirus. County public health director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said in a press conference yesterday that LA County has “seen somewhere between 10 and 15 percent of cases being connected to a dining experience.”

    She added: This makes sense, because when people go to restaurants and bars they often spend a prolonged period of time in the presence of others who are outside of their household without their face coverings, and often engaged in conversations. Those are all strategies for increasing the spread of COVID-19.

    Despite this, some restaurants which offer outdoor dining are pushing to return to some degree of indoor dining.

  14. 14.

    Geminid

    A “strategy” of herd immunity is nothing but a retroactive justification of incompetence and malfeasance on the part of the trump administration, and a flimsy argument for more incompetence and malfeasance going forward.

  17. 17.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Geminid: So you’re saying it’s no strategy at all?

    Are you trying to make the mobster manbaby have a fat, orange fascist sad with your seeing-through-their-bullshit?

  19. 19.

    Amir Khalid

    Malaysia’s daily Covid-19 numbers. DG of Health Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah reports 799 new cases today, for a cumulative reported total of 30,889 cases. He reports three deaths, for a total of 249 deaths — 0.81% of the cumulative reported total, 1.21% of resolved cases.

    Meanwhile, 491 more patients recovered and were discharged today, for a total of 20,248 patients recovered — 65.55% of the cumulative reported total.

    Eight new clusters have been identified: Rumah Merah, Telipok, and Sembulan in Sabah; Merpati and Astaka in Selangor; Galar in Negeri Sembilan; Titian in Labuan; and Meldrum in Johore.

    All 799 new cases today are of local origin. Sabah has 466 cases: 56 in older clusters, 56 in the Rumah Merah cluster, 10 in the Telipok cluster, four in the Sembulan cluster, 193 close-contact screenings, and 147 other screenings. Selangor has 150 cases: 40 in older clusters, 45 in the Merpati cluster, 31 in the Astaka cluster, 20 close-contact screenings, and 12 other screenings. Negeri Sembilan has 23 cases: 18 in older clusters, two in the new Galar cluster, one close-contact screening, and two other screenings. Kedah has five cases, all in existing clusters.

    KL has 19 cases: eight in existing clusters, eight close-contact screenings, and three other screenings. Labuan has 65 cases: 43 in existing clusters, 11 in the Titian cluster, and 11 close-contact screenings. Penang has 35 cases: 29 in in existing clusters, five close-contact screenings, and one other screening. Johore has nine cases, four in existing clusters, and five in the Meldrum cluster. Sarawak has 16 cases: nine in existing clusters, two close-contact screenings, and five other screenings. Perak has 10 cases: nine in existing clusters, and one other screening. Putrajaya has one case, in other screening.

    Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, and Melaka have reported no new cases today.

    10,392 active and contagious cases are currently in hospital; 90 are in ICU, of whom 20 are on ventilators.

    The three deaths, all reported in Sabah, are a 70-year-old man with hypertension; a 53-year-old man; and a 60-year-old woman with hypertension ad stroke.

  22. 22.

    Sloane Ranger

    Here is the report from the UK on our position yesterday.

    There were 23,065 new cases. This is down by about 1700 from the day before and the trend line seems to be levelling off, at least for now. Figures by home nation are,

    England – 19,740 (down @1500)

    Northern Ireland – 822 (down 18)

    Scotland – 1128 (down 100)

    Wales – 1375 (down @75).

    Deaths – there were 280 deaths, down 30 from the day before but the trend continues upwards. Deaths were distributed as follows, 214 in England, 8 in Northern Ireland, 37 in Scotland and 21 in Wales.

    Testing – 308,763 tests were processed out of a capacity of 467,512. Higher numbers processed than the last few days. Between 23 – 29th October, 18,005 people tested positive, which is a 13.2% increase from the previous 7 day period.

    Hospitalisations – 1404 people were admitted to hospital on Sunday, 25 October, 10,308 people were actually in hospital on Tuesday, 27 October and 957 were on ventilators on Wednesday, 28th. All trending upwards.

    No significant new coronavirus general news. All the air time is currently being taken up with the Labour anti-Semitism report and Jeremy Corbyn’s expulsion.

  24. 24.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    they’re not pursuing herd immunity, they’re pursuing a buffalo jump

    That’s why Trump said “Herd Mentality” , like the discount Nazi Trump is, Trump believes in eugenics.

  25. 25.

    Sloane Ranger

    @YY_Sima Qian: Definitely not good at maths. Sometimes I still need to count on my fingers! But until the last 3 days our testing capacity has been in the medium to high 3 hundred thousands, so it looks like there has been a significant increase.

    As to why it’s not fully utilised, you need to understand that, in the UK, while some testing is compulsory (in order to have an operation, for example), the vast majority of it is voluntary. If they don’t come, you can’t test them!

    Also, there may be some delay in processing tests, due to time and lab. capacity issues and that will feed into the daily figures, although I’d assume it would even out over time.

  26. 26.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @Sloane Ranger: Thanks for the explanation! Has the authorities advertised the sharp increase in testing capacity to the population to encourage more people to get tested? The UK has been nearly maxing out the ~ 300K testing capacity for weeks, surely there is pent up demand.

    Delay in obtaining results may also be a reason. I remember reading that UK is flying some samples to the UAE for testing (if so, they are probably using the “Fire Eye” labs that BGI has set up in the country), is access to foreign capacity counted in the new capacity number?

    As an aside, participation in mass screenings in China is not compulsory in the strictest sense, either. Swabbing tents set up in residential compounds stay there even after 99% of residents have been swabbed to serve stragglers, medical personnel would repeatedly blare from bull horns to alert stragglers, and community workers will check against lists of residents and relentlessly nag the stragglers with phone calls and WeChat messages. Ultimately, though, no one is forced to take the test during these screening campaigns.  I have read about (but do not personally know) people in Wuhan, Beijing and Dalian that for whatever reason declined to get tested during the mass screenings there (very small percentage of people). There have been no consequences reported for such cases. Some resorted to lying to the community workers by claiming that they are out of town or in another area of the city. No one knocked on their doors to round them up to be tested. So the authorities do not appear to be accessing GPS or cell tower positioning data for such purposes.

    By the time of recent Qingdao nosocomial cluster and mass testing campaign, those who do not participate would have their health codes turned yellow, which means going outside of residential compounds for shopping or pleasure become rather difficult. With the recent Kashgar factory cluster, people who do not participate are asked to self-quarantine for 14 days, monitored by community workers. Since the mass screenings are free, there is really no down side to getting tested, if only for peace of mind. That is why participation rates have probably been 99.9%.

    Slovakia is attempting a variation of the Chinese strategy with mass screening of all residents in the country by rapid antigen tests (as opposed to RT-PCR swabs used in China), over 2 weekends. Participation is voluntary, but those who do not participate apparently are asked to self-quarantine at home for 10 days. Of course, Slovakia probably does not have the means to enforce self-quarantine.

  27. 27.

    Sloane Ranger

    @YY_Sima Qian: Sorry for the delay in responding, I was on a Zoom meeting. Also, thanks for the information about what happens in China. I found it interesting

    I haven’t seen any increase in publicity for the increase in testing  capacity but it has only been available over the last few days so they may be working on an advertising campaign. Given that we have a Tory government, they would probably want to outsource any campaign to an advertising agency and there would be a delay for tenders and then development. If I notice any new advertising, I’ll post here when I do my report.

    I can’t speak for the other home nations but in England, the government has set up test centres across the country. My nearest is a walk-in centre on our Market Square (7 minutes walk away) but there are 2 others (one a drive-through) nearby. I walk past the one on the Square often and I’ve never seen anything resembling a queue there and our local figures are on the up. During the Zoom meeting our Chair said that we might be heading into Tier 2. I think a lot of people are either in denial, or believe the conspiracy theories that it’s a hoax or no worse than the flu. Or, like me, don’t want to take a test away from someone who might need one so won’t have a test unless we get symptoms or are told that we have been in contact with someone who was positive.

    As far as I know, the testing capacity includes all capacity, wherever it is located.

    Does that help?

  28. 28.

    Robert Sneddon

    @YY_Sima Qian: The testing availability quoted in news headlines covers the entire country but the big increases in infections are mostly occurring in certain regions like the north of England and west central Scotland so some testing capacity in other areas is “stranded”, at least temporarily. Shipping tests across the country to underutilised testing centres can be done but that increases the delay to return a result.

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