Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The words do not have to be perfect.

Bark louder, little dog.

Americans barely caring about Afghanistan is so last month.

But frankly mr. cole, I’ll be happier when you get back to telling us to go fuck ourselves.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

Sadly, there is no cure for stupid.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

Let there be snark.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

Their freedom requires your slavery.

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

You can’t love your country only when you win.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

Battle won, war still ongoing.

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Infrastructure week. at last.

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

We still have time to mess this up!

You are here: Home / Healthcare / COVID-19 Coronavirus / COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Tuesday / Wednesday, Jan. 11-12

COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Tuesday / Wednesday, Jan. 11-12

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… Australian businesses are grappling with the growing toll of workers out sick or ordered to isolate for being close contacts. But the virus is also scaring customers away from airlines, entertainment and hospitality sectors, already battered by several lockdowns over the past two years.

“Essentially (small businesses) are in a lockdown … there is little support out there to help them keep their doors open,” Alexi Boyd, head of the Council of Small Business Organisations, told broadcaster ABC on Wednesday.

Australia’s daily infections on Wednesday lingered near records with around 100,000 reported so far. Forty-two new deaths were registered, with New South Wales suffering its worst day of the pandemic with 21 deaths…

An excuse for a little… radical honesty about the actual statistics?

Freedumb ain’t free…

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Reader Interactions

70Comments

  1. 1.

    NeenerNeener

    Monroe County, NY:

    Monroe County website:

    There were 1136 new laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 on 1/11.
    There were 1587 new positive COVID home tests reported on 1/11.

    My nephew lost taste and smell yesterday; I guess it’s Delta instead of Omicron. He’s supposed to see his doctor today.

  2. 2.

    NotMax

    FYI.

    Red Cross Declares First-ever Blood Crisis amid Omicron Surge

    The American Red Cross is facing a national blood crisis – its worst blood shortage in over a decade, posing a concerning risk to patient care. Amid this crisis, doctors have been forced to make difficult decisions about who receives blood transfusions and who will need to wait until more products become available. Blood and platelet donations are critically needed to help prevent further delays in vital medical treatments.
    [snip]
    The Red Cross has experienced a 10% decline in the number of people donating blood since the beginning of the pandemic and continues to confront relentless issues due to the pandemic, including ongoing blood drive cancellations and staffing limitations. Adding to the concern is the surge of COVID-19 cases. The Red Cross has experienced low donor turnout ever since the delta variant began spreading in August, and that trend continues as the Omicron variant takes over.
    [snip]
    Supplying 40% of the nation’s blood, the Red Cross has had to limit blood distributions to hospitals in recent weeks. In fact, on certain days, some hospitals may not receive as much as one-quarter of the blood products requested.…

  3. 3.

    NotMax

    Ain’t no such thing as Zoom meating.

    Rising COVID-19 infections among U.S. workers have forced meat plants to slow production and the government to replace slaughterhouse inspectors, according to meat companies and union officials.
    [snip]
    The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated beef processors killed 112,000 cattle on Friday, down about 6% from a year earlier and matching Jan. 3 levels that were the lowest since October. Pig slaughtering, meanwhile, was down about 5% from last year on Friday, the USDA said.
    [snip]
    COVID-19 cases as of Jan. 3 had increased over the previous 14 days in 26 of the 30 counties where the nation’s biggest beef production plants are located, according to Steiner Consulting Group. Source

  4. 4.

    MagdaInBlack

    @NotMax: Yet another reminder of just who the workers are that keep this country running.

    Eta: In my little part of the world, collision repair, the problem now is not parts so much as staffing at the parts suppliers.

  6. 6.

    YY_Sima Qian

    On 1/11 China reported 166 new domestic confirmed (none previously asymptomatic) & 4 new domestic asymptomatic cases.

    Shaanxi Province reported 8 new domestic confirmed cases. 125 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There are currently 1,501 active domestic confirmed cases in the province.

    • Xi’an reported 8 new domestic confirmed cases (all mild), all from persons already under home or centralized quarantine. 122 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 1,480 active confirmed cases in the city. 2 university campuses & 1 sub-district remain at High Risk. 3 sub-districts & 4 communities have been re-designated to Low Risk. 37 sub-districts & 4 communities remain at Medium Risk.
    • At Yan’an 2 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 9 active domestic confirmed cases in the city. 5 communities, 1 residential compound, 1 village & 1 company remain at Medium Risk.
    • In the rest of the province 1 domestic confirmed case recovered. There currently are 9 active domestic confirmed cases in the rest of the province (8 at Xianyang & 1 at Weinan)

    At Yuncheng in Shanxi Province there currently is 1 active domestic confirmed case, a person arrived from Xi’an in Shaanxi.

    Guangdong Province reported 7 new domestic confirmed & 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 2 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 22 active domestic confirmed cases (18 at Dongguan & 4 at Shenzhen) in the province.

    • Shenzhen reported 7 new domestic confirmed & 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all are traced close contacts or have had crossed paths w/ previously reported domestic positive cases. There are 11 active domestic confirmed & 1 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city, all in the same transmission chain. 1 residential compound & 1 residential building are currently at Medium Risk.
    • At Dongguan 2 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 16 active domestic confirmed cases remaining, a secondary outbreak seeded by travels returning from Xi’an in Shaanxi.

    At Guangxi “Autonomous” Region there currently are 17 active domestic confirmed (all at Dongxing in Fangchenggang) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic (at Chongzuo) cases in the province.

    Tianjin Municipality reported 33 new domestic confirmed & 3 new domestic asymptomatic cases. The city is commencing the 2nd round of mass screening, & is shutting down for half a day on 1/12 to freeze movement. There currently are 67 active domestic confirmed & 16 active domestic asymptomatic cases (all presumed Omicron) in the city, concentrated at Jinnan District. 3 residential compounds have been elevated to High Risk. 5 residential compounds have been elevated to Medium Risk.

    At Shanghai Municipality there currently are 16 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 

    At Jiangsu Province there currently are 1 active domestic confirmed (at Nanjing) & 3 active domestic asymptomatic cases (all at Wuxi) in the province.

    At Zhejiang Province 39 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 176 active domestic confirmed cases (spread across Shaoxing, Ningbo, Hangzhou & Jinhua) in the province. A factory & a village at Jinhua remain at Medium Risk. A factory & a village at Beilun District in Ningbo remain at Medium Risk.

    At Xiamen in Fujian Province there currently is 1 active domestic confirmed case remaining, a quarantine hotel worker.

    Henan Province reported 118 new domestic confirmed cases. 1 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 503 active domestic confirmed cases in the province.

    • Zhengzhou reported 12 new domestic confirmed cases. 1 domestic confirmed case recovered. There are 117 active domestic confirmed cases in the city (none serious or critical). As all cases in the past 4 days have been discovered from persons under quarantine or hot zone areas under lock down, the authorities will halt city-wide mass screenings, & will instead concentrate on daily screening of the hot zone areas. 8 residential compounds & 2 residential buildings are currently at Medium Risk.
    • At Zhoukou there currently are 7 active domestic confirmed cases in the city. Outside of the areas under lock down or w/ movement restrictions (which are larger than the areas designated as Medium Risk), the rest of the city has tested negative in the community in the past 3 rounds of mass screening.
    • At Luoyang there currently are 9 active domestic confirmed cases in the city, all at Xin’an County. 1 community & 1 village are currently at Medium Risk.
    • Xuchang reported 41 new domestic confirmed cases. This is a major increase from the recent decreasing trend. There are 275 active domestic confirmed cases (227 mild & 48 moderate) in the city, all at Yuzhou. Yuzhou has completed 8 rounds of mass screening. 1 township, 1 sub-district, 4 villages, 3 residential compounds, 1 community, 1 residential building & a school are currently at High Risk. All of Yuzhou is currently at Medium Risk (except for the High Risk areas there).
    • Anyang reported 65 new domestic confirmed cases (all mild), all at Tangyin County. There are 91 active domestic cases in the city (all milder, all presumed Omicron). 1 village & 1 school at Tangyin County are currently at High Risk. All of the rest of Tangyin County is currently at Medium Risk, as are 1 village, 1 residential compound & 1 residential building unit elsewhere in the city.
    • At Xinyang there currently are 2 active domestic confirmed cases in the city, both at Gushi County, both returned from Zhengzhou in Henan on 1/3.
    • At Shangqiu there currently are 2 active domestic confirmed cases in the city, part of the transmission chain from Zhengzhou.

    At Yunnan Province 1 domestic confirmed case recovered & 3 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 11 active domestic confirmed (6 at Dehong Prefecture & 5 at Kunming) & 3 active domestic asymptomatic (1 at Dehong Prefecture & 2 at Sipsongpanna Prefecture) cases in the province.

    At Tongren in Guizhou Province there currently is 1 active domestic confirmed case in the city, a person who returned from Jinghong, Sipsongpanna Prefecture in Yunnan.

    Imported Cases

    On 1/9, China reported 55 new imported confirmed cases (4 previously asymptomatic), 28 imported asymptomatic cases, 1 imported suspect case:

    • Shanghai Municipality – 20 confirmed cases, 6 Chinese nationals returning from the US, 5 from Canada, 2 from Finland & 1 each from Hungary (via Vienna), Russia & Serbia (via Vienna), 2 US nationals coming from the US, a French national coming from France & a Japanese national coming from Japan; 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national coming from the US, who had arrived at Shanghai on 12/21, passed through the 14 days of centralized quarantine & tested negative 4 times, the case was tested 2 more times during the 7 days of health monitoring period post-quarantine, testing positive the 2nd time, 37 close contacts & 4,815 related persons have been traced & tested & all negative, of the 568 environmental samples tested only 17 from the case’s residence tested positive; 1 suspect case, no information released
    • Guangzhou in Guangdong Province – 19 confirmed cases, 13 Chinese crew members off a cargo ship w/ last port of call in the Philippines, 3 Chinese nationals returning from the US, 2 from France & 1 from Australia; 9 asymptomatic cases, 5 Chinese nationals returning from the US, 2 from France & 1 each from Malaysia & the Philippines
    • Foshan in Guangdong Province – 1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), coming from Australia, off a flight that landed at Guangzhou
    • Tianjin Municipality – 4 confirmed cases, 3 Chinese nationals returning from Italy & 1 from Madagascar (via Paris CdG)
    • Xiamen in Fujian Province – 4 confirmed cases, 2 Chinese nationals returning from Australia & 1 from Hungary (via Amsterdam Schiphol), & a US national coming from the US
    • Putian in Fujian Province – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
    • Beijing Municipality – 2 confirmed cases (both previously asymptomatic), a Canadian national coming from Italy & a US national coming from the US; 2 asymptomatic cases, no information released
    • Guangxi “Autonomous” Region (location not specified) – 2 confirmed & 3 asymptomatic cases, no information released
    • Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province – 1 confirmed case, coming from Egypt; 4 asymptomatic cases, 2 coming from Mexico & 1 each from Australia & Peru
    • Suzhou in Jiangsu Province – 1 confirmed case, a Taiwanese resident coming from Taiwan, off a flight that landed at Shanghai
    • Jiangsu Province (location not specified) – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
    • Chengdu in Sichuan Province – 1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), a Chinese national returning from Thailand
    • Yunnan Province (location not specified) – 7 asymptomatic cases, 5 Chinese nationals returning from Laos & 2 from Myanmar, via land border crossings

    Overall in China, 203 confirmed cases recovered (35 imported), 25 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation (22 imported) & 4 were reclassified as confirmed cases (all imported), & 2,699 individuals were released from quarantine. Currently, there are 3,476 active confirmed cases in the country (1,150 imported), 14 in serious condition (2 imported), 724 active asymptomatic cases (681 imported), 1 suspect case (imported). 47,638 traced contacts are currently under centralized quarantine.

    As of 1/11, 2,912.178M vaccine doses have been injected in Mainland China, an increase of 6.65M doses in the past 24 hrs.

    On 1/12, Hong Kong reported 22 new positive cases, 17 imported & 5 domestic (4 traced close contacts & from community transmission). All schools in the city have shifted to remote learning.

    On 1/12, Taiwan reported 96 new positive cases, 92 imported (34 from the US, 4 each from Australia, the Philippines & Vietnam, 2 from the UAE & 1 each from France, Germany & the UK) & 4 domestic (3 are close contacts from the Taoyuan outbreak).

  7. 7.

    YY_Sima Qian

    As of 2PM on 1/12, there is a total of 137 positive cases (all presumed Omicron) in Tianjin Municipality, of whom 76 are confirmed cases (50 mild & 26 moderate) & 17 asymptomatic, 44 yet to be diagnosed. 130 are at Jinnan District). The outbreak contains 11 family clusters to date, as well as cluster at 2 schools & an after school instruction facility. Other than the 2 index cases reported on 1/8, 5 cases were found from mass screening, & the remaining 130 cases were all traced close contacts or residents in hot zones (under lock down or movement restrictions). Of the 1st 107 cases, 103 cases were fully vaccinated (including 36 boosted), 3 were partially vaccinated, & 1 child was unvaccinated. All schools & universities in the city are entering winter break early from 1/12, all public & private indoor businesses closed & events cancelled. Based on timing for onset of symptoms, the cases started to increase sharply from 1/4, reaching peak on 1/8, but plateaued on 1/9 & 1/10. The authorities are hoping the rapid response after discovery of the outbreak on 1/7 is already taking effect. Given the short incubation periods of the Omicron Variant,  one might see the impact from NPI measures more quickly.

    As of 8 AM on 1/12, Anyang in Henan Province reported another 32 positive cases (all mild, 31 at Tangyin County & 1 at Hua County), to be included in tomorrow’s data dump, for 123 cases total (all mild, all presumed Omicron). 

  10. 10.

    satby

    For two years as this has raged on, there’s been a hardcore refusal by several of the farmers (oh hell, basically all of them) to mask up at the farmers market. And somehow most of them seem to have evaded serious covid, though I doubt they would admit it if they were sick and not hospitalized. Luck has started to run out for at least a couple of them, including the guy whose booth is opposite mine. I stopped in yesterday to a nearly empty market to do inventory, and heard he’s down with pneumonia. And it may be there and not the doctor’s office where I caught it.

  11. 11.

    OzarkHillbilly

    My youngest and his wife both have covid, who knows which type. He suffers from asthma so we’ll see how it goes for him

  13. 13.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @NotMax: I have to wonder how much of that is self inflicted by Red Cross management. Some of their employees are on strike.

    eta and none of the rest are happy.

  17. 17.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @satby: Yep. I have a friend who’s worked there for as long as I’ve known her, thankfully she should be getting close to retirement.

  20. 20.

    Mousebumples

    My triple vaxxed 80+ year old grandmother had a monoclonal infusion yesterday (tested positive Monday), which went well.

    My triple vaxxed aunt (with a history of multiple myeloma and subsequent stem cell transplant), who is also a retired nurse, drove her to the appointment, i guess thinking that she was already exposed this weekend, so she might already have it?

    Not my first choice in transportation, but when I don’t hear about it until after the fact, not much I can do about it. I’ll just be hoping that my aunt doesn’t come down with covid too.

    Well wishes for all Juicers (and related friends & family) that are dealing with Covid infections.

  21. 21.

    New Deal democrat

    No significant changes from yesterday in the US. NY, NJ, DE, DC, OH, IL, and PR have hit peaks. Wastewater shows MA peak close at hand. Hospitalizations, ICU admissions, and deaths continue to increase (but deaths remain about 20% below Delta peak).

    In Canada, ON and BC have joined QE as peaking, but deaths are increasing sharply. A similar story for the U.K.

    In South Africa, deaths have started to decline from their peak of 15x pre-Omicron low. Cases are down 70% from Omicron peak, which was about 80x previous low. But this means that cases are continuing at about 25x previous intraday-wave lows. In other words, Omicron has not completely receded, but is continuing to infect remaining available targets.

    The longer South Africa does not return to pre-Omicron lows, the worse the outlook for other countries like the US where millions of targets will remain even after the wave peaks.

  23. 23.

    germy

    @OzarkHillbilly:  My youngest and his wife both have covid, who knows which type. He suffers from asthma so we’ll see how it goes for him

    Same here.  My oldest and his fiance both tested positive.  He has asthma, so he’s still coughing weeks later while she seems recovered.  Both  vaccinated, but I worry about him.  No booster yet.

  25. 25.

    Matt McIrvin

    @satby: I don’t have asthma but I do find that every cold I get ends up making my chest gluey for a long time, and once several years ago it did turn into bronchitis that required antibiotics and an inhaler (an opportunistic bacterial infection, I guess). That’s one of the reasons that I’ve been trying my damndest to avoid this thing, even with my whole family vaxxed and boosted to the hilt.

    Now that I think about it, I haven’t had one of those terrible gluey colds in two years and that’s unusual in itself–though I still have to deal with constant low-level allergies.

  26. 26.

    Ken

    @Baud: It’s eight smaller charts in two columns of four. The two columns are high vs low occupancy. The four rows are the combination of whether you’re masked, and how long the interaction is.

    Once you’ve found the minichart, there are three columns for whether it’s outdoor, good ventilation, or poor ventilation. Then four rows for type of activity.  The final color is the risk category.

    From the areas that are green the main takeaway is to mask, limit exposure time, and avoid crowds and indoor spaces. Which leads to the most puzzling aspect of the chart, why this is considered news since we’ve been hearing this for nearly two years.

  27. 27.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @debbie: My DiL family are all over NOLA and her mother lives with them. Mom is negative so far, but if it’s Omicron she probably already has it.

    @Baud: Good thing I’m not one to follow all the latest fads.

  28. 28.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Ken: A lot of people have the idea that being outdoors is a 100% preventative shield to the point that they get angry at other people who dare to mask up outdoors. “Outdoors is safe” was actually close enough to a true statement with wild-type COVID or Alpha that it could be endorsed as a simple and easy rule, but not so much now–the risk of contagion has generally increased.

  29. 29.

    Geo Wilcox

    @OzarkHillbilly: My daughter got it as well. Not sure where as she is vaccinated and boosted and always wears a mask. My guess is the pet store in Bloomington where she buys her pets’ food. She uses store pick up for groceries but goes into the store to pick out the food for the pets.

    She’s asthmatic as well but not all the time. So far so good as she has omicron symptoms not delta. I am hoping the fact that omicron targets the upper respiratory system that she won’t get that deep lung hacking crap.

  32. 32.

    Gin & Tonic

    @NotMax: I’d go donate (to my local blood center, not affiliated with Red Cross AFAIK) but I’m on the deferred list, again, until mid-2023. Oh, well, their loss.

  33. 33.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Baud: I follow a lot of roller-coaster enthusiasts on YouTube, and most of them have kept right on going to amusement parks when they can, but also following park rules concerning masks and such when they exist. I saw a commenter chew one of them out the other day for wearing a mask on a roller coaster when this was required by the park. Included the odd statement that “this all ends when people stop wearing masks”, as if the person believed “this” was primarily the mitigation measures rather than the virus.

    Actually wearing a mask on a roller coaster–well, I’ve done it myself, when I hit Six Flags New England last summer. One the one hand people are screaming in close contact, on the other hand it’s about the best-ventilated situation you can be in. But the real problem is waiting in line, especially if the queue is covered or indoors. I figured it was better to be safe than sorry given that I was there in the first place and almost nobody else was masked. I wasn’t wearing N95s then and I did find that on a coaster that pulled a lot of positive Gs, like SFNE’s Batman: The Dark Knight, that would pull the mask off my nose a lot.

  34. 34.

    NeenerNeener

    I just got a close look at that chart and I think I should cancel my annual MRI in March. Two hours at that facility, masked or not, and I’m going home with COVID.  I’ll have to make apologies to my neurologist.

  35. 35.

    Scout211

    West Virginia Governor has COVID and is feeling “extremely unwell.”

    Regarding quality masks:  I tried to order KN95 masks for my 3 grandkids and it took me a long time to find some on Amazon that had positive reviews and would ship immediately. Most were shipping in February or March.

    I finally found some and ordered them.  Hopefully, they will arrive tomorrow. The reviews were mostly very positive, except for more recent reviewers who complained that the price had doubled from last month. I paid $92 for a pack of 50. Last month they cost half that. It’s worth it to me for my grandkids but most parents can’t afford that.

    Since jackals here have been sounding the alarm about better masks, I had a drawer full of adult-sized ones that I ordered over last year. I sent a bunch of them to my daughter, a school teacher. Again, most quality masks now have at least a 2 week delay until shipping and prices are steadily climbing. It’s really tough on parents right now. If you haven’t already purchased the higher quality masks for your kids, good luck. They are hard to find and are getting more expensive.

  36. 36.

    Fair Economist

    @New Deal democrat:

    The longer South Africa does not return to pre-Omicron lows, the worse the outlook for other countries like the US where millions of targets will remain even after the wave peaks.

    That’s a very disturbing possibility. Delta in the US and UK looked like it had reached a disturbingly high steady state, with large numbers continuing to be hospitalized and dying. If Omicron is as infectious as it seems to be, the caseload steady state could be even higher. Even with a lower direct mortality, it could still be a huge public health problem.

  37. 37.

    lowtechcyclist

    @NotMax:  Ain’t no such thing as Zoom meating.

    Just want to say I enjoy your puns, even the groaners.

    But on a serious note, maybe if the connection can be drawn in the minds of the unvaxxed and unmasked between the continuation of this pandemic and higher burger prices, maybe it would make them feel like they had a steak in helping bring it to an end.

  39. 39.

    lee

    Day 5 of whatever I have and I’m feeling much better. My overnight fever broke on its own (and woke up up in the process).

    Nasal congestion is down. I’ve got that ‘congestion voice’ thing going but don’t feel congestion in my chest and not coughing much.

    Wife started getting a tickle in her throat yesterday morning. She woke up this morning with some nasal congestion. Looks like she is a couple days behind me.

    Both kids either got it and shrugged it off without symptoms or never caught it. Both are in their early 20’s and remarkably fit/healthy.

    I did a telemed session with my GP yesterday. She really stressed getting tested but other than that said I should be fine. Recommended fluids, Vitamins B & C

    Getting tested in Texas is damn near impossible. Just not enough testing centers and tests to get everyone tested.

  40. 40.

    Nelle

    Daycare closed this week, so we are helping with the unvaxed 2 and 4 year old.  I know it is a risk but one that we choose to take.  I have to go to the ortho today, though, as my knee has collapsed on me and we need to see what gives.  Other doctor appts are waiting until this passes.  (I realized that I haven’t worn shoes or a coat this year…inside with slippers the whole time, as some days, I need a walker to get around and it is icy out there.  This morning, I hunt for some actual shoes!)

    My husband refused to go to a mandatory meeting for pilots with the volunteer group he flies for, even under the threat of it affecting his flying status.  Why not Zoom?  This is Iowa where we don’t need no stinking mitigation measures.  The petty tyrant is furious with him but as my husband is the senior pilot, who knows how he will be punished (husband is nearly 78 but looks about 60-65, swims 45 minutes most days, and is quite fit, but still, that age is high risk.  I don’t think the other pilots realize his actual age).

  42. 42.

    Soprano2

    I still don’t have any symptoms, so I’m crossing my fingers that I didn’t catch Covid from my co-worker; the fastest I could get in to test is tomorrow afternoon. According to the guidelines my city has you should test 5 days after contact with someone who has Covid, but there were no test slots open for today. The truth is, I could have had contact with someone who has Covid almost any day and never known it.

    The truth is that it sounds like right now you could go into a room with no one in it and if someone with Covid was there two hours ago, you could get it that way, at least according to something I read earlier this week. I wish people would quit beating themselves up over how they might have gotten Covid, because it’s not a moral issue or a case of being “bad” if you got it. I agree with Amanda Marcotte that we should learn from the sexually transmitted disease community that having the attitude that catching a disease shows some kind of moral failing is a losing strategy.

  43. 43.

    sab

    @Scout211: Miami Herald had an article about reusing N95 masks, citing various government experts,  which we are following. Since good masks are expensive. We number our masks (1 to 5, in our case.)  Everyone has his own set of masks. Every day we switch to a new mask, and save the old mask. The numbers help us keep track of the order of masks use. After three or four days of airing out the old mask should be safe to reuse.

  44. 44.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Fair Economist: I think there is almost certain to be an effective Omicron-targeted booster at some point in the spring. That could bring the steady state down… where people are willing to get it.

    The reason the US is having so much worse outcomes than the UK is almost certainly that the vast majority of people, including seniors, haven’t gotten booster shots. The metrics we emphasize for vaccination are out of date because we’re treading water trying to reach antivaxxers.

  45. 45.

    Scout211

    @sab:

    Thanks. I read an article that interviewed an MD recommending that process and told my daughter about it. They have been using some surgical masks but mainly the cloth masks that I made for them in 2020(!) The 8 year old loses everything so we’ll see if the numbering process works for him. Fingers crossed that 50 masks will be enough for 3 kids.

  48. 48.

    Matt McIrvin

    @NeenerNeener:

    My nephew lost taste and smell yesterday; I guess it’s Delta instead of Omicron.

    Based on admittedly anecdotal information I am pretty sure this DOES happen with Omicron, though at lesser frequency than with previous variants. Lindsay Beyerstein lost taste and smell when she caught COVID during the NYC Omicron wave. There was also another wave of “my candle arrived and it had no scent” complaints from Yankee Candle customers.

  50. 50.

    Matt McIrvin

    Massachusetts’ latest vaccination report shows 2,353,623 booster doses given, in a state of almost 6.9 million. That’s a lot of unboosted people, in a state that gets described as 90+% vaccinated by the old one-dose standard. We really need to be thinking in different terms.

  51. 51.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Soprano2: Cheryl Rofer pointed out the other day that if you’re in any public place right now you’re “swimming in virus soup”. You can ward it off to some degree with an N95 but short of Spring 2020-level hard isolation you’re not going to avoid exposure entirely. And right now, society is not set up to make isolation even as easy as it was then.

  52. 52.

    pajaro

    @Ascap_scab:

    I feel like there’s an Abbott and Costello (who’s on first) routine waiting to be done on the Kansas Senators, one of whom is Senator Moran, and the other of whom is Senator Moron.

  54. 54.

    Matt McIrvin

    @lee: I am, however, guessing that among the vaxxed-and-boosted there are a lot of cases that are entirely or nearly asymptomatic and never detected.

  55. 55.

    Sloane Ranger

    Tuesday, 11 January, we had 120,821 new cases. This is a reduction of 13.1% in the rolling 7-day average. New cases by nation,

    England – 104,833 (down 11,165)

    Northern Ireland – 3420 (up 714)

    Scotland – 10,392 (down 1435)

    Wales – 2176 (down 9517 (but Monday’s numbers covered cases not reported over the weekend)).

    Deaths – There were 379 deaths within 28 days of a positive test reported yesterday, but this figure will include some deaths that occured over the weekend. The rolling 7-day average is up by 80.8%. 358 deaths were in England, 1 in Northern Ireland, 16 in Scotland and 4 in Wales.

    Testing – 1,617,386 tests took place on Monday, 10 January. This is an increase of 18.1% in the rolling 7-day average. The PCR testing capacity reported by labs on this date was 793,121.

    Hospitalisations – As of Monday, 10th, there were 19,828 people in hospital and 820 on ventilators. The 7-day average for hospital admissions had increased by 17.8% as of 6 January.

    Vaccinations – As of Monday, 10th, 51,992,559 people had had 1 shot of a vaccine, 47,745,458 had had 2 and 35,813,659 had had a 3rd shot/booster. This means that, as of that date, 90.4% of all UK residents aged 12+ have had 1 shot of a vaccine, 83% had had 2 and 62.3% had had a 3rd shot/booster.

    In other news, Boris Johnson has apologised for attending the bring a bottle party held in Downing Street during the first lockdown. His excuse, it was held to thank everyone for their hard work during the pandemic. Is this his 2nd or 3rd apology for partying while COVID burned? I can’t remember.

  56. 56.

    Another Scott

    @WaterGirl: That’s a great graphic.  Thanks.

    I saw something out of Japan very early in the pandemic that I’ve been unable to find again.  Two simple line-drawn faces, facing each other.

    Neither masked – (roughly) 99% transmission

    One person masked – (roughly) 55% transmission

    Both people masked – (roughly) 5% transmission

    It was clear, easy to grasp, and to the point.  It should have been posted everywhere…

    (sigh)

    Thanks again.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  57. 57.

    lowtechcyclist

    @lee: The unvaxxed are going to have a tough time when they catch [Omicron].

    Good.  I’ve lost all patience with those fuckers.

    I’m starting to think the only thing that’ll save us is if enough of them die before Election Day to tip the balance in some key races.

  58. 58.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Another Scott: If I recall correctly, though, those numbers were essentially pulled out of thin air and not sourced at all, which is why a lot of public-health people were bothered by it. The principle was solid, but the numbers were not.

  61. 61.

    WaterGirl

    @Another Scott: Just to repeat… it is a year old so risk values may have changed because of Omicron.

    That said, it’s probably somewhat useful at least in that we are reminded of what the highest risk activities were, even with wild Covid – and if anything those activities are surely higher risk now with Omicron than they were before.

  62. 62.

    WaterGirl

    @YY_Sima Qian: I have not heard from Amir in response to my email.

    You never know whether the email address used for Balloon Juice is real, or whether it even gets checked, but it does look like a legitimate gmail address.

    If anyone has corresponded with Amir by email then they could confirm whether the email that’s listed is one that Amir checks.

    Fingers crossed that we hear from Amir soon. ?

  63. 63.

    lee

    @Matt McIrvin: My two daughters would probably fit in that category. It is tough to imagine that with all 4 of us in close proximity for 10 days that 2 would get it and 2 would not.

  67. 67.

    TriassicSands

    @Matt McIrvin: …it’s about the best-ventilated situation you can be in…

    What if you’re in the last car? Think of all spittle being hurled back at you on 60mph winds. On the other hand, being in the first car…

  68. 68.

    TriassicSands

    @NeenerNeener:

    Don’t cancel now. A week before the scan should be fine if conditions at that time warrant cancelation.

    If you cancel early and conditions improve markedly, you could have a long wait for an opening.

  69. 69.

    TriassicSands

    @Scout211:

    Don’t buy on Amazon¹. If you want to get my email address from a front pager, I’ll give you the address of an excellent source of either N-95 or KN-95 masks. The N-95 are significantly more expensive, but may be no better. If you do that, let me know by replying to one of my comments -I don’t check that address every day.

    The CDC is now moving to recommending (K)N-95 masks. That means they could become hard to get. As usual, the CDC is late in their advice.  I’ve become convinced that Walensky is Biden’s worst appointment. She may be a brilliant doctor, but she shouldn’t be the public face/voice of the CDC. IMO.

    ¹ Last year they were selling fake (K)N-95 masks on Amazon. There’s no way Amazon is going to be able to guarantee the quality of masks sold on their site.

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