Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

This fight is for everything.

Let’s show the world that autocracy can be defeated.

“That’s what the insurrection act is for!”

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

“Joe Biden deserved better than he got from some folks in his own party.”

The jury literally has a bell they can ring to force Trump to show up on command. Greatest thing ever!

… gradually, and then suddenly.

So many bastards, so little time.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

Stop using mental illness to avoid talking about armed white supremacy.

Israel is using food as a weapon of war. Unforgivable.

The current Supreme Court is a rogue court. Very dangerous.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Trump’s legal defense is going to be a dumpster fire inside a clown car on a derailing train.

Everyone is in a bubble, but some bubbles model reality far better than others!

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

Fight for a just cause, love your fellow man, live a good life.

Everything is totally normal and fine!!!

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Many life forms that would benefit from greater intelligence, sadly, do not have it.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

If you still can’t see these things even now, maybe politics isn’t your forte and you should stop writing about it.

You are here: Home / Healthcare / COVID-19 / COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Wednesday / Thursday, June 23-24

COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Wednesday / Thursday, June 23-24

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Recommendation from expat in Singapore:

… Across the region, countries have adopted a series of prolonged and harsh measures to keep the virus at bay. Authorities have deployed extended border closures, ambush-style lockdowns, forced testing, and massive quarantine operations, as well as fines, jail time, and cancellation of work permits for rule breakers. The results have been positive, but are proving difficult to sustain, particularly as many of these countries struggle to deploy wide-reaching vaccination drives.

Some, such as Hong Kong, paradoxically appear to have been at least partially a victim of their own initial success. With few cases and deaths, many of the city’s people believe there is no rush to be vaccinated, Cowling said. About 17 percent of the population is fully inoculated, despite jabs having been widely available for more than 100 days. The vaccination rate is actually far lower for elderly residents and those living in care homes, who are at higher risk of serious illness or death than the average city resident. According to a study carried out by Cowling and other University of Hong Kong experts, only about 55 percent of the population will be vaccinated by September…

Two other Asian societies that were successful early in the pandemic but that are now struggling—even as they try to continue pursuing an “elimination” strategy—point to the difficulty much of the region is facing in procuring vaccines.

One, Vietnam, has seen an uptick in cases since late April, which Todd Pollack, an infectious-disease expert for Harvard Medical School who is based in Hanoi, attributes to areas surrounding the country having more infections and a more transmissible variant of the virus…

Taiwan has also struggled to get sufficient doses…

Hong Kong:

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From a long thread:

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Reader Interactions

52Comments

  1. 1.

    Mary G

    Scary how many countries who seem to have beaten the virus are struggling now. Delta is bad enough, but Delta plus from India, where they have the killer fungus, is terrifying. I am staying home more than I had planned to.

  3. 3.

    PsiFighter37

    Cuomo decided on a whim to cancel to-go cocktails starting EOD today. Fuck that guy. Makes no sense and frankly something I enjoyed having access to (hard to go to cocktail bars with a kid). Am sure the restaurants made lots of money selling cocktails to keep their businesses afloat the past year plus.

    Lots of other reasons to hate Cuomo, but this is just stupid and reeks of doing a favor for a donor / donors who own a bunch of liquor stores (which did plenty fine during the pandemic).

  4. 4.

    Geminid

    Covid in the Ozarks made the CBS morning radio news yesterday. The lead item was about the Delta variant, with a soundbite from Doctor Fauci on it’s danger to the nation’s unvaccinated population. Then the story shifted to the Covid “hotspot” in the Ozarks. A Missouri doctor explained how the lifting of a mask mandate and the concurrent start of summer vacation season had led to an explosive increase in Covid cases.

    Some Americans have moved on from “old” media, but for many, radio broadcasts are still a major and sometimes their only source of news. I am glad these outlets are not letting the Covid story fade away.

  5. 5.

    Cermet

    In the “Show me State”, one can add that “Stupid is as stupid does”. Much of the South and Appalachia will discover the truth of these morainic statements (apparently, now, both.)

  6. 6.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    Delthia Ricks via Anne Laurie @ Top:

    Here’s what you need to know about the delta variant in the U.S. The variant is now responsible for about 1 in every 5 Covid cases nationwide, and its prevalence has doubled in the last 2 weeks.

    At that rate, the Delta/Delta+ variants will be 80% of US cases in a month. And we can probably expect the daily rate of new cases to go up again with the spread of Covid-19-Delta.

  7. 7.

    Jeffro

    Ugh.

    I’m starting to re-think our family trip to see Utah’s “Big 5” parks next month.  We’re all vaccinated and we’ll be spending a lot of time outdoors, but still.  Masks + takeout-only at a minimum.  Ugh.

  8. 8.

    debbie

    @PsiFighter37:

    Here, most communities have started DORAs, where people can freely roam streets in the declared area with drinks. My apartment building is just inside the DORA and I am really not looking forward to this. I predict my neighborhood will be like a tailgate before a big game.

  9. 9.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Missouri is becoming a cautionary tale for the country:

    Yesterday, the World-o-Meter* said Misery was #2 in the country with 871 new cases, 2nd only to Texas which had 1,2?? (iirc).

    * today, the new cases column is blank for all states. Hmmmm…. Was Big MOther watching me?

  11. 11.

    PsiFighter37

    @debbie: I don’t want people to drink from open containers on the street. But selling to-go or delivery cocktails – no issues with that (particularly delivery). Just a really stupid measure to take that is also going to piss off a lot of people.

  12. 12.

    Amir Khalid

    Malaysia’s Director-General of Heath Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah reports 5,841 new Covid-19 cases today in his media statement, for a cumulative reported total of 716,847 cases. He also reports 84 new deaths today, for a cumulative total of 4,721 deaths — 0.66% of the cumulative reported total, 0.72% of resolved cases.

    There are currently 61,162 active and contagious cases; 869 are in ICU, 438 of them intubated. Meanwhile, 5,411 more patients have recovered, for a cumulative total of 650,964 patients recovered – 90.81% of the cumulative reported total.

    30 new clusters were reported today. Of the cumulative total of 2,720 clusters, 867 clusters are still active; 1,853 clusters are now inactive.

    5,833 new cases today are local infections. Selangor reports 2,070 local cases: 237 in clusters, 1,107 close-contact screenings, and 726 other screenings. Negeri Sembilan reports 781 cases: 270 in clusters, 348 close-contact screenings, and 163 other screenings.

    Sarawak reports 581 cases: 150 in clusters, 351 close-contact screenings, and 80 other screenings. Kuala Lumpur reports 546 local cases: 107 in clusters, 237 close-contact screenings, and 202 other screenings.

    Johor reports 346 cases: 138 in clusters, 161 close-contact screenings, and 47 other screenings.

    Kedah reports 271 cases: 118 in clusters, 108 close-contact screenings, and 45 other screenings. Melaka reports 247 cases: 144 in clusters, 68 close-contact screenings, and 35 other screenings. Labuan reports 212 cases: 27 in clusters, 112 close-contact screenings, and 73 other screenings. Sabah reports 203 cases: 68 in clusters, 112 close-contact screenings, and 23 other screenings.

    Pahang reports 162 cases: 100 in clusters, 49 close-contact screenings, and 13 other screenings. Kelantan reports 135 cases: 50 in clusters, 66 close-contact screenings, and 19 other screenings. Perak reports 120 cases: 90 in clusters, 22 close-contact screenings, and eight other screenings. Penang reports 108 cases: 60 in clusters, 26 close-contact screenings, and 22 other screenings.

    Terengganu reports 29 cases: 10 in clusters, 15 close-contact screenings, and four other screenings. Putrajaya reports 17 cases: 14 close-contact screenings and three other screenings. Perlis reports five cases: four close-contact screenings and one other screening.

    Eight new cases today are imported: six in Kuala Lumpur, two in Selangor.

  13. 13.

    YY_Sima Qian

    On 6/23 China reported 0 new domestic confirmed & 0 new domestic asymptomatic cases.

    Guangdong Province did not report any new domestic confirmed cases.

    • Guangzhou did not reported any new domestic positive cases. To date, the outbreak in the city has accumulated 146 domestic confirmed cases & 7 domestic asymptomatic cases, with 41 domestic confirmed cases having recovered. The last High Risk sub-district has been re-designated as Medium Risk, & 2 sub-districts were re-designated as Low Risk. 1 sub-district & 3 residential compounds are at Medium Risk.
    • Foshan did not reported any new domestic positive cases. 1 residential compound & 1 residential building remain at Medium Risk.
    • Shenzhen did not report any new domestic positive cases. 1 residential compound remains at Medium Risk.
    • Dongguan did not report any new domestic positive cases. 1 residential building & a college campus remain at Medium Risk.

    Imported Cases

    On 6/23, China reported 16 new imported confirmed cases, 18 imported asymptomatic cases, 1 imported suspect case:

    • Foshan in Guangdong Province – 4 confirmed cases, 3 Chinese nationals returning from Cambodia & 1 from Sierra Leone; 3 asymptomatic cases, 2 Chinese nationals returning from Cambodia & 1 from the US; all cases off flights that landed at Guangzhou
    • Guangzhou in Guangdong Province – 2 confirmed cases, a Chinese national returning from Thailand & a foreign national from Iran; 4 asymptomatic cases, 2 Chinese nationals returning from Oman & 1 each from Iran & the UK (via Dublin & Amsterdam Schiphol)
    • Jiangmen in Guangdong Province – 1 confirmed case, a Chinese national returning from Indonesia, off a flight that landed at Guangzhou
    • Zhaoqing in Guangdong Province – 1 confirmed case, a Chinese national returning from Saudi Arabia, off a flight that landed at Guangzhou
    • Dongguan in Guangdong Province – 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national returning from the Maldives, off a flight that landed at Guangzhou
    • Chengdu in Sichuan Province – 3 confirmed cases (1 previously asymptomatic), 2 Mainland Chinese residents returning from Taiwan & a Chinese national returning from Cambodia; 2 asymptomatic cases, a Mainland Chinese resident returning from Taiwan & a Chinese national returning from Cambodia
    • Yunnan Province (locations not specified) – 3 confirmed & 1 asymptomatic cases, all Chinese nationals returning from Myanmar, via land border crossings
    • Shenyang in Liaoning Province – 1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), no information released
    • Fuzhou in Fujian Province -1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), a Chinese national returning from Indonesia
    • Xiamen in Fujian Province – 2 asymptomatic cases, a Chinese national returning from Cambodia & a Taiwanese resident coming from Taiwan
    • Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province – 2 asymptomatic cases, 1 each coming from Japan & Cameroon
    • Jiangsu Province (locations not specified) – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
    • Xi’an in Shaanxi Province – 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national returning from Uzbekistan, off a flight diverted from Beijing
    • Beijing Municipality – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
    • Shanghai Municipality – 1 suspect case, no information released

    Overall in China, 38 confirmed cases recovered, 16 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation & 7 were reclassified as confirmed cases, and 931 individuals were released from quarantine. Currently, there are 492 active confirmed cases in the country (381 imported), 15 in serious condition (9 imported), 463 asymptomatic cases (443 imported), 1 suspect case (imported). 19,292 traced contacts are currently  under quarantine.

    As of 6/23, 1,095.902M vaccine doses have been injected in Mainland China, an increase of 24.119M doses in the past 24 hrs.

    On 6/24, Hong Kong report led 7 new positive cases, 6 imported (1 from Indonesia) & 1 domestic (a ground staff at the airport, source of infection unknown). This is the 1st domestic case in the territory in 16 days.

  19. 19.

    Bruce K in ATH-GR

    Greece is lifting its late-night curfew and loosening outdoor mask restrictions (for “uncrowded public spaces”). Masks are still required in interior places like public transport and shops, so the advice is not to abandon masks entirely.

    There were 520 cases on Wednesday, down from a third-wave peak of over 4,000, and the case positivity index is reportedly 1.3%.

    Oh, and something for the COVIDiot file: there’s an article about a priest in northern Greece who wants to not only ban masks within his church, but prohibit entry to vaccinated members of his flock. Source: https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1160491/priest-decries-coronavirus-safety-measures/

    (This comes on the heels of an incident probably unrelated to COVID, in which a priest in a disciplinary hearing before a gathering of Orthodox bishops – for drug-related offenses – threw acid in the faces of the panel, sending seven bishops and three others to the hospital. If it had been in America, one suspects a gun would have been involved, and several bishops would have been wounded or dead.)

  20. 20.

    New Deal democrat

    There are now 7 States which have a rising trend in new cases over the past 2 weeks: MO, AR, NV, UT, OK, NE, and SD. Four of the 7 have fewer than 40% fully vaccinated. The highest is 45%.

  25. 25.

    rikyrah

    We gotta help Brazil. Need to be sending vaccines to them.

     

    I know in my soul that if Dolt45 had won we would be India and Brazil right now ??

  30. 30.

    Matt McIrvin

    @New Deal democrat: If you look at the county-by-county numbers (see https://covidactnow.org , a great resource), the correlation is stronger. With rare exceptions, these outbreaks are happening in counties where first vaccination is low, usually under 40% and sometimes much lower. They tend to be rural, deep-red areas.

  31. 31.

    NotMax

    @Amir Khalid

    Semoga berjaya.

    Suggest having the first one administered in your dominant arm, as reactions (if any at all) to second shots can be more evident for some people.

  32. 32.

    New Deal democrat

    @Matt McIrvin: Thanks! I knew that the outbreaks were centered on less-vaccinated counties, e.g., southern Missouri, but I really like this map, which unlike others, includes data from all the States.

  33. 33.

    Matt McIrvin

    (It’s clear from those maps that the absolute worst places in the US to be right now are two large patches of Missouri, and the Texas Panhandle and environs–though parts of Kentucky and Georgia are up and coming).

  34. 34.

    Matt McIrvin

    @New Deal democrat: Except that they don’t have county-by-county COVID data for Nebraska. There are a few holes in the vaccination data too, like the Cape and the islands in Massachusetts (I’m not sure why, since the state reports those numbers–those areas are very well-vaccinated).

    edit: I think it’s because Massachusetts aggregates those particular numbers instead of breaking them down by county.

  35. 35.

    Soprano2

    @Geminid: Covid in the Ozarks made the CBS morning radio news yesterday. The lead item was about the Delta variant, with a soundbite from Doctor Fauci on it’s danger to the nation’s unvaccinated population. Then the story shifted to the Covid “hotspot” in the Ozarks. A Missouri doctor explained how the lifting of a mask mandate and the concurrent start of summer vacation season had led to an explosive increase in Covid cases.

    Did they tell you WE HAVE A 1-YEAR-OLD INFANT IN THE HOSPITAL WITH COVID? I’m telling people “Don’t be the reason a 1-year-old is in the hospital with Covid”. What these idiots don’t understand is that the economy will contract, as people stay home and stay away from the tourist areas where Covid is raging right now. It’s enraging to me that our society here, which prides itself on its friendliness and neighborliness, is doing this to itself because of a stubborn refusal to get a safe vaccine, a desire to tell liberals “You’re not the boss of me”, and/or a mistaken belief that Covid is a hoax (it’s so hard to believe at this point that people still think this, but nurses tell me it’s true). I’m vaccinated, so I’m not worried about myself, but I am worried about a lot of my idiot co-workers. I think some of them just think they’re young and healthy and don’t need to be vaccinated, because they think if they get sick it won’t be any worse than a bad cold. Aaaarrrrgggghhhhh………

    ETA – I like that map, but I wish it were weighted somehow for population. For example, Nevada looks really bad, but most of those counties are probably lightly populated.

    ETA1 – And strangely enough, there have only been 2 Covid deaths in Greene County so far in June. I think that’s one thing that will be different – lots of sickness, but many fewer deaths because the sick population is younger. Just like everywhere else, the highest incidence of vaccination here is among the 60+ population.

  36. 36.

    Matt

    Dear Missouri wingnutz: you know what would make me and the other Libs feel really thoroughly OWNED? If you died of COVID now, with a plentiful vaccine right in front of you.

    No seriously: turn up the Fox News in your hospital room as loud as it goes and drown in your own lung secretions, you evil fucks.

  37. 37.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @OzarkHillbilly:  The current day’s stats update irregularly. Click on the “yesterday” tab for more reliable stats (I think they close around 10 pm)

  38. 38.

    Soprano2

    @Matt McIrvin:(It’s clear from those maps that the absolute worst places in the US to be right now are two large patches of Missouri,

    Yep, there will be no BJ meetups in my part of the state! It’s so awful to be in the epicenter of this, because there are so many people who are in complete denial about what’s happening. I’m going to try to talk to our nurse customer who works in the Cox Hospital Covid ICU the next time I see her. Might be awhile…….

  39. 39.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    @Matt:

    No seriously: turn up the Fox News in your hospital room as loud as it goes and drown in your own lung secretions, you evil fucks.

    I believe all the hardcore anti-vaxxers are watching Newsmax or One America News, not Fox.

    I like to refer to the One America News fans as OnANists.

  41. 41.

    Peale

    @PsiFighter37: Yep. Very few people mix cocktails at home, so to go cocktails aren’t hurting liquor store sales. Even if you can afford the hassle of spending $60 on three different liquors that you only need 1 oz each, most aren’t going to bother to muddle their way through making it properly. Might as well ban the sale of to go pizza to help the frozen pizza industry.

  45. 45.

    Barbara

    @Peale: Yes, I wonder how many people actually buy hard liquor in a retail location. Wine and beer, certainly, but you drink those as is. I drink hard liquor or liqueurs so infrequently that I have started pouring little bits of what I have in my paltry inventory over ice cream just so I use them up before I die. I probably bought them in the first place for cooking purposes. But good night, buying a cocktail to go is a pretty darned expensive way to drink at home.

  46. 46.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    @Matt McIrvin: Yes, but the city of St. Louis has a low vaccination rate too. It is only a matter of time before it blows up around me, rather than just the rural parts of my state.

  47. 47.

    NotMax

    @Barbara

    Costco’s spirits area (here) encompasses more floor space than does their meat and seafood aisles. Someone’s buying it.

  48. 48.

    WaterGirl

    @debbie: It looks like they are trying to push people to eat and drink at brick & mortar establishments.  Why not let people make those choices for themselves, and eliminate the take-out drinks once the demand for them has fallen off.

    What if it never falls off?  What would that hurt?

    edit: I now see the comment above that says some states are keeping that permanently. Good to see.

  50. 50.

    Fair Economist

    @Mary G: Mucor mold is an “everywhere fungus”. It’s not clear why India is getting it so much worse than anywhere else, and there have been a few cases elsewhere.

  51. 51.

    Cermet

    @Fair Economist:  Likely a few reasons: first and foremost, much of India is very humid year round and with the huge amount of available waste to grown upon, the fungus has far, far more spores in the air than in most places; also, due to a lack of good anti-fungi meds, all fungi infections are now getting very difficult to treat once they overwhelm the body’s defenses; finally, far too many people are on steroids to suppress the inflammation response due to covid since India has fewer resources/money to use better treatments.

  52. 52.

    Matt McIrvin

    One thing to keep in mind with those county-by-county maps is that in sparsely populated counties, small numbers can cause big apparent fluctuations. If a county only has 5,000 people, 1 person getting sick is 20 out of 100,000, which is “very high risk” on the map. So I’d take the numbers for an individual small rural county with a grain of salt–but when you see the red sprinkled all over, that’s a pattern, that’s something else again.

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