COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Tuesday / Wednesday, March 15-16

21Comments

1. 1.

   NeenerNeener

   March 16, 2022 at 7:06 am

   Monroe County, NY:

   128 new cases on 3/15. We’re headed in the wrong direction again.

2. 2.

   Baud

   March 16, 2022 at 7:06 am

   FTA

   Bloomberg reviewed data for more than 530 sewage monitoring sites, looking at the most recent data reported during the 10-day window from March 1 to March 10. Out of those sites, 59% showed falling Covid-19 trends, 5% were roughly stable, and 36% were increasing. Rises or declines are measured over a 15-day period.

3. 3.

   Amir Khalid

   March 16, 2022 at 7:09 am

   Malaysia’s Ministry of Health reported 26,534 new Covid-19 cases yesterday in its media statement, for a cumulative reported total of 3,872,135 cases. It also reported 95 deaths for an adjusted cumulative total of 33,994 deaths – 0.88% of the cumulative reported total, 0.95% of resolved cases.

   Malaysia’s nationwide Rt stands at 0.95.

   152 confirmed cases are in ICU, 90 of them on ventilators. Meanwhile, 31,234 more patients have recovered, for a cumulative total of 3,533,994 patients recovered – 91.3% of the cumulative reported total.

   Four new clusters were reported yesterday, for a cumulative total of 6,887 clusters. 366 clusters are currently active; 6,521 clusters are now inactive.

   25,843 new cases reported yesterday were local infections. 691 new cases were imported.

   The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) administered 56,585 doses of vaccine on 15th March: 17,939 first doses, 1,728 second doses, and 36,918 booster doses. The cumulative total is 68,275,177 doses administered: 27,350,442 first doses, 25,776,961 second doses, and 15,357,069 booster doses. 83.7% of the population have received their first dose, 78.9% their second dose, and 47.0% their booster dose.

4. 4.

   New Deal democrat

   March 16, 2022 at 7:28 am

   Nationwide cases continued to decline slowly, to 31,100, over 20% down from one week ago, and lower than all but 2 months last year and 3.5 months in 2020. Deaths also declined to 1023. If deaths decline as much as cases – down over 96% from their Omicron peak – then in about a month or so deaths will be down to about only 100 per day.

   Cases increased in AK, AR, AZ, DE, IL, and TX. Cases were unchanged for the week in WA. This is a significant increase in the number of States which are not in decline.

   The worst State, once again, was AK, at 52 cases per 100,000, followed by ID at 39, then VT, WV, AR, RI, WA, and CO, declining from 20 to 15. The best jurisdictions were HI, at 2.2 cases per 100,000, followed by NE, LA, IN, KS, SD, MD, IA, UT, and OH, all under 5.

   The share of BA.2 variant cases in the US is up to 29%. Its share is increasing by 10% a week and increasing. In a month or so, it should be over 80%. I suspect cases will increase at some point during this period, as BA.2 picks up some infections among the vulnerable that BA.1 missed, but I am anticipating only a wavelet and not a wave, as countries that have completely gone over to BA.2 have maintained declines.

5. 5.

   Mousebumples

   March 16, 2022 at 7:40 am

   With a 2 year old, I’ve been waiting anxiously for news on an under 5 vaccine for covid. Sounds like Moderna data may be available this week, or at least by the end of the month.

   Molly (@MamaWeasleyy) tweeted at 1:13 PM on Tue, Mar 15, 2022:

   One of my followers, @paulsaario, listened in in the background and summarized Moderna’s event:

   Data within days for 6 month old to 5 years old, “imminently”. It’s possible data may be ready by vaccine day 3/24 but not certain but by end of 1Q and no later than that

   1/2

   (https://twitter.com/MamaWeasleyy/status/1503796585083412484?t=hIPKV57Zx3DQDV9UK8DCPQ&s=03)

   It sounds like Pfizer data is likely in early April. But the Moderna dose seems higher (25 mcg versus 3 mcg) in this population. Provided there aren’t super bad side effects, I’d happily have my daughter join Mr. Mouse and I on #TeamModerna.

6. 6.

   Elizabelle

   March 16, 2022 at 7:46 am

   @Mousebumples:  The big sister to be, on Team Moderna.

   Good luck with tiny jackal en route, due by this weekend.

7. 7.

   YY_Sima Qian

   March 16, 2022 at 7:51 am

   On 3/15 Mainland China reported 1,860 new domestic confirmed (53 previously asymptomatic), 1,338 new domestic asymptomatic cases.

   Guangdong Province reported 59 new domestic confirmed & 54 new domestic asymptomatic cases.

   • Dongguan reported 1 new domestic confirmed (mild) & 16 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 10 at the epicenter Dalang Township, 3 at Songshanhu, 2 at Shipai Township, 1 each at Dongkeng & Hengli Townships. 13 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine, 2 via mass screening, 1 from regular screening of persons in high risk occupations, & 1 from fever clinic. 1 zone has been elevated to High Risk. 8 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Shenzhen reported 55 new domestic confirmed & 37 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 39 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine, 24 via screening in areas under movement restrictions, 15 via screening of persons deemed at risk of exposure, & 14 via community screening. 1 residential building is currently at High Risk. 14 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Guangzhou reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine since 3/13.
   • Shaoguan reported 1 new domestic confirmed case, a person arriving from Shenzhen on 3/11, last tested negative on 3/10.
   • Zhuhai reported 1 new domestic confirmed case, a person arriving from Quanzhou in Fujian on 3/12.
   • Zhongshan reported 1 new domestic confirmed case, a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine since 3/13.

   Guangxi “Autonomous” Region reported 5 new domestic confirmed (4 at Qinzhou & 1 at Nanning, all mild) & 20 new domestic asymptomatic cases (6 at Qinzhou, 2 at Beihai, 1 each at Baise & Fangchenggang & 10 at Chongzuo). There currently are 77 active domestic confirmed (48 at Fangchenggang, 15 at Baise, 11 at Qinzhou, 2 at Nanning, & 1 at Chongzuo) & 113 active domestic asymptomatic cases (45 at Fangchenggang, 13 at Baise, 38 at Chongzuo, 11 at Qinzhou, 4 at Liuzhou, & 2 at Beihai) in the province. 1 zone at Fangchenggang are currently at Medium Risk.

   Hunan Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed case, at Changsha, a person arriving from elsewhere on 3/13, a traced close contact of the domestic positive case reported on 3/14 & already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 4 active domestic confirmed cases in the province (2 at Changsha, & 1 each at Xiangtan & Huaihua).

   Inner Mongolia “Autonomous” Region reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case. 11 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 34 active domestic confirmed & 2 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.

   • At Hohhot 9 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 13 active domestic confirmed cases in the city. 6 sites remain at Medium Risk.
   • The rest of the province reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, at Tongliao, a traced close contact of domestic positive cases reported elsewhere. 2 domestic confirmed case recovered. There currently are 21 active domestic confirmed (8 each at Baotou & Manzhouli in Hulun Buir, 3 at Erdos & 2 at Alxa League) & 2 active domestic asymptomatic (1 each at Bayan Nur & Tongliao) cases remaining. 3 communities at Manzhouli in Hulun Buir remain at Medium Risk.

   Tianjin Municipality reported 51 new domestic confirmed (4 previously asymptomatic, all mild) & 17 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 65 are traced close contacts already under quarantine, 2 from screening of residents in areas under movement restrictions & 1 from screening of persons deemed at risk of exposure. 2 domestic confirmed case recovered. There currently are 271 active domestic confirmed & 35 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 3 sites are currently at High Risk. 9 sites are currently at Medium Risk.

   Shandong Province reported 75 new domestic confirmed (21 previously asymptomatic, 64 mild & 2 moderate) & 105 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 1,029 active domestic confirmed cases & 1,389 active asymptomatic cases in the province.

   • Qingdao reported 35 new domestic confirmed (8 previously asymptomatic, all mild) & 25 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 828 active domestic confirmed & 939 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 residential compound & 1 middle school are currently at High Risk. 2 villages, 1 middle school & 1 residential compound are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Weihai reported 7 new domestic confirmed (all previously asymptomatic) & 21 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all in the same district. There currently are 43 active domestic confirmed & 294 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 office building & 1 bath house are currently at High Risk. 9 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Dezhou reported 8 new domestic confirmed cases (5 previous asymptomatic), all of the new domestic positive cases are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 57 active domestic confirmed & 3 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 business is currently at High Risk.
   • Zibo reported 8 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic) & 18 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 40 active domestic confirmed & 82 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 village is currently at High Risk. 30 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Binzhou reported 14 new domestic confirmed (18 mild & 1 moderate) & 33 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all from voluntary testing. There currently are 38 active domestic confirmed (20 mild & 4 moderate) & 36 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 business is currently at High Risk. 1 village is currently at Medium Risk.
   • Weifang reported 7 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 8 active domestic confirmed & 23 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 2 villages have been elevated to Medium Risk.
   • The rest of the province reported 3 new domestic confirmed (2 at Linyi & 1 at Yantai, all mild) & 1 new domestic asymptomatic (at Yantai) cases. All of the new domestic positive cases are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 15 active domestic confirmed (8 at Yantai, 5 at Rizhao, 2 at Linyi) & 12 active domestic asymptomatic (11 at Yantai & 1 at Liaocheng) cases.1 residential building at Yantai is currently at Medium Risk.

   At Shanxi Province there currently are 23 active domestic confirmed cases in the province (12 at Jinzhong, 5 each at Yuncheng & Taiyuan & 1 at Jincheng).

   Hebei Province reported 38 new domestic confirmed & 239 domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 233 active domestic confirmed & 671 active asymptomatic case in the province.

   • Langfang reported 32 new domestic confirmed & 225 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 104 active domestic confirmed & 604 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 township is currently at High Risk. 2 villages are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Cangzhou reported 5 new domestic confirmed & 14 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all are traced close contacts already under quarantine. There currently are 59 active domestic confirmed & 57 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 residential compound is currently at Medium Risk.
   • Xingtai did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 40 active domestic confirmed & 6 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 village is currently at Medium Risk.
   • The rest of the province reported 1 new domestic confirmed case, at Handan,. There currently are 30 active domestic confirmed (13 at Shijiazhuang, 10 at Baoding & 7 at Handan) & 4 active asymptomatic (all at Shijiazhuang) cases.

   Liaoning Province reported 32 new domestic confirmed & 12 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 5 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 155 active domestic confirmed & 32 active domestic cases in the province.

   • Shenyang reported 8 new domestic confirmed & 5 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all traced close contacts or residents in areas under lock down. There currently are 27 active domestic confirmed & 10 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 3 residential compounds have been elevated to Medium Risk.
   • Dalian report 13 new domestic confirmed (12 mild & 1 moderate) & 6 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 1 traced close contact already under centralized quarantine & the rest are from screening of residents in areas under movement restricts or persons deemed at risk of exposure. There currently are 22 active confirmed & 14 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 6 residential building units are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Yingkou reported 11 new domestic confirmed cases (9 mild & 2 moderate), all traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 24 active domestic confirmed & 1 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
   • At Huludao 5 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 78 active domestic confirmed cases remaining in the city.
   • The rest of the province reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, at Fuxin, a traced close contact of already under centralized quarantine since 3/11. There currently are 4 active domestic confirmed (2 at Tieling & 1 each at Fuxin & Panjin) & 7 active domestic asymptomatic (5 at Dandong & 2 at Fuxin) cases in the city.

   Heilongjiang Province reported 15 new domestic confirmed & 11 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 4 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 54 active domestic confirmed & 77 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.

   • Harbin reported 15 new domestic confirmed & 11 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all are traced close contacts already under quarantine. There currently are 45 active domestic confirmed & 32 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 8 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Suifenhe in Mudanjiang did not report any new domestic positive cases. 1 domestic asymptomatic case was released from isolation. There currently are 8 active domestic confirmed & 38 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 3 sites are currently Medium Risk.
   • In the rest of the province 3 domestic asymptomatic case were released from isolation. There currently are 1 active domestic confirmed (at Heihe) & 7 active domestic asymptomatic (4 at Heihe, 2 at Jixi & 1 at Qiqihar) cases in the city. All areas in Heihe are now at Low Risk.

   Jilin Province reported 1,456 new domestic confirmed (21 previously asymptomatic, 1,441 mild, 13 moderate & 2 serious) & 397 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 7,480 active domestic confirmed & 2,967 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. There are another 1,427 cases that are preliminarily positive, awaiting confirmation.

   • Yanbian Prefecture reported 7 new domestic confirmed (all mild) & 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 86 active domestic confirmed (81 mild & 5 moderate) & 40 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 4 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Jilin City reported 393 new domestic confirmed (18 previously asymptomatic, 381 mild, 11 moderate & 1 moderate) & 376 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 4,472 active domestic confirmed & 2,697 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 village is currently at High Risk. 30 sites are currently Medium Risk.
   • Changchun reported 1,044 new domestic confirmed (3 previously asymptomatic) & 3 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 2,895 active domestic confirmed & 188 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 14 sites in the city have been elevated to Medium Risk.
   • The rest of the province reported 12 new domestic confirmed (11 at Siping & 1 at Baicheng) & 17 new domestic asymptomatic (16 at Siping & 1 at Songyuan) cases. The case at Songyuan is a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine, & the case at Baicheng is found via voluntary screening. There currently are 27 active domestic confirmed (24 at Siping, 2 at Songyuan & 1 at Baicheng) & 42 active domestic asymptomatic cases (10 at Meihekou, 27 at Siping, 3 at Songyuan, & 1 each at Baishan & Liaoyuan).

   Beijing Municipality reported 9 new domestic confirmed (8 mild & 1 moderate) & 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 7 are traced close contacts already under home or centralized quarantine, & 3 from fever clinics. 5 of the cases are students at multiple schools, 3 of whom had already developed symptoms (as early as 3/10). Given how fast Omicron BA.2 spreads in a school environment, there is likely cryptic community transmission in the eastern part of the city. 1 village has been elevated to Medium Risk.

   Shanghai Municipality reported 5 new domestic confirmed & 197 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 139 of the new domestic positive cases are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine & 63 from screening of persons deemed at risk of exposure. 3 domestic asymptomatic case was released from isolation. There currently are 95 active domestic confirmed & 961 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 11 sites are currently at Medium Risk.

   Shaanxi Province reported 28 new domestic confirmed cases (26 mild & 2 moderate). There currently are 273 active domestic confirmed cases in the province.

   • Baoji reported 13 new domestic confirmed cases (12 mild & 1 moderate), 9 are traced close contacts already under quarantine, 2 via screening of persons at risk of exposure, & 2 via screening of residents in areas under movement restrictions. There currently are 162 active domestic confirmed cases in the city. 1 restaurant is currently at High Risk. 19 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Xi’an report 8 new domestic confirmed cases (7 mild & 1 moderate), all traced close contacts & all but 1 already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 85 active domestic confirmed cases in the city. 15 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Hanzhong reported 5 new domestic confirmed cases, all are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 20 active domestic confirmed cases in the city. 2 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • The rest of the province reported 2 new domestic confirmed cases, 1 each at Tongchuan & Xianyang, both traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 6 active domestic confirmed cases (3 at Tongchuan, 2 at Xianyang & 1 at Yangling) remaining.

   Hubei Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed case, at Shiyan. 3 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 1 domestic asymptomatic case was released from isolation. There currently are 24 active domestic confirmed (18 mild & 6 moderate, 23 at Wuhan & 1 at Shiyan) & 4 active domestic asymptomatic (3 at Wuhan & 1 at Xianning) cases in the province..

   Jiangsu Province reported 13 new domestic (1 previously asymptomatic) & 60 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 4 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 170 active domestic confirmed & 173 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.

   • Lianyungang reported 5 new domestic (3 mild & 2 moderate) & 12 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. 2 active domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 137 active domestic confirmed & 85 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 99 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Suzhou reported 12 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. 2 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 3 active domestic confirmed & 29 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
   • Changzhou reported 5 new domestic (1 previously asymptomatic) & 6 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 23 active domestic confirmed & 11 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 construction site is currently at High Risk. 8 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Nanjing reported 1 new domestic (moderate) & 26 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 15 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine, & 12 via screening of residents in areas under movement restrictions. There currently are 3 active domestic confirmed (all moderate) & 32 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 residential compound has been elevated to High Risk. 5 sites have been elevated to Medium Risk.
   • The rest of the province reported 2 new domestic confirmed (both mild, 1 each at Suqian & Zhenjiang) & 4 new domestic asymptomatic (2 at Wuxi & 1 each at Yangzhou & Zhenjiang) cases, 2 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine & 4 recently arrived from Shanghai. There currently are 4 active domestic confirmed (2 at Suqian & 1 each at Zhenjiang & Xuzhou) & 16 active domestic asymptomatic (7 at Yangzhou, 3 each at Wuxi & Nantong, & 1 each at Taizhou, Suqian & Zhenjiang) cases. 1 village at Suqian is currently at Medium Risk.

   Anhui Province reported 2 new domestic confirmed (both mild, 1 each at Tongling & Ma’anshan) & 5 new domestic asymptomatic (3 at Ma’anshan & 1 each at Tongling & Suzhou) cases, 4 traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine, 3 at fever clinics & 1 recently arriving from elsewhere. There currently are 3 active confirmed (2 at Ma’anshan & 1 at Tongling) & 20 active domestic asymptomatic (12 at Ma’anshan, 3 at Suzhou, 2 at Tongling & 1 each at Anqing, Chuzhou & Haozhou) cases in the province.

   Zhejiang Province reported 23 new domestic confirmed & 6 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 127 active domestic confirmed & 14 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.

   • Jiaxing reported 7 new domestic confirmed cases, 6 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine & 1 via screening of residents under lock down. There currently are 26 active domestic confirmed cases in the city.
   • Quzhou reported 15 new domestic (all mild) & 2 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 39 active domestic confirmed & 4 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
   • Hangzhou reported 2 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 54 active domestic confirmed & 6 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
   • The rest of the province reported 1 new domestic confirmed (at Ningbo) & 2 new asymptomatic (1 each at Huzhou & Wenzhou) cases, a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine & a logistics worker at an express delivery warehouse found via regular screening. There currently are 8 active domestic confirmed (3 each at Wenzhou & Huzhou, & 1 each at Ningbo & Jinhua) & 4 active domestic asymptomatic (2 each at Huzhou & Wenzhou) cases.

   Gansu Province reported 5 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic) & 16 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 145 active domestic confirmed & 138 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.

   • Lanzhou reported 5 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic) & 15 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 127 active domestic confirmed & 108 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 village is currently High Risk. 1 hotel & a village are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Baiyin reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case. There currently are 17 active domestic confirmed & 28 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 village is currently at High Risk.
   • The rest of the province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 1 active domestic confirmed (at Jiuquan) & 2 active domestic asymptomatic (1 each at Linxia Prefecture & Tianshui) cases remaining.

   Fujian Province reported 23 new domestic confirmed (2 previously asymptomatic) & 15 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 67 active domestic confirmed & 44 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.

   • Quanzhou reported 21 new domestic confirmed (2 previously asymptomatic) & 15 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 62 active domestic confirmed & 43 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 hotel is currently at High Risk. 3 residential buildings are currently at Medium Risk.
   • The rest of the province reported 2 new domestic confirmed cases, both at XiamenI, both traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 5 active domestic confirmed (all at Xiamen) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic (at Zhangzhou) cases remaining.

   At Xining in Qinghai Province there currently are 2 active domestic confirmed cases in the city.

   Henan Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 7 active domestic confirmed (5 at Puyang & 1 each at Shangqiu & Zhengzhou) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic (at Puyang) cases in the province. 7 sites at Puyang are currently Medium Risk.

   Chongqing Municipality reported 11 new domestic confirmed (2 previously asymptomatic, all mild) & 3 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently is 35 active domestic confirmed & 6 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 3 dormitory buildings are currently at Medium Risk.

   Yibin in Sichuan Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 2 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.

   Yunnan Province reported 6 new domestic confirmed & 32 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 3 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 4 new domestic asymptomatic were released from isolation. There currently are 70 active domestic confirmed & 329 active domestic asymptomatic cases remaining in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.

   • Kunming did not report any new domestic positive cases. 1 college campus, 1 residential compound & 1 residential building is currently at Medium Risk.
   • Zhenkang County in Lincang reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine. 3 business buildings are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Dehong Prefecture reported 4 new domestic confirmed & 27 new asymptomatic cases, 25 at Ruili & 6 at Longchuan County, 16 from screening of residents in areas under movement restrictions, & 15 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. 2 villages, 2 communities & 1 shopping center are currently at Medium Risk.
   • Hekou County in Honghe Prefecture reported 2 new domestic confirmed & 4 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 2 via screening of residents in areas under movement restrictions & 4 are a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine. 1 zone has been elevated to Medium Risk.

   Imported Cases

   On 3/15, Mainland China reported 92 new imported confirmed cases (20 previously asymptomatic, 4 in Guangdong), 144 imported asymptomatic cases, 1 imported suspect case:

   • Chongzuo in Guangxi “Autonomous” Region – 24 confirmed (2 previously asymptomatic) & 6 asymptomatic cases, all coming from Vietnam
   • Shenzhen in Guangdong Province – 14 confirmed & 16 asymptomatic cases, 29 coming from Hong Kong & 1 from Japan
   • Zhuhai in Guangdong Province – 4 confirmed & 4 asymptomatic cases, all coming from Hong Kong
   • Guangzhou in Guangdong Province – 2 confirmed cases, coming from Bahrain & South Korea; 12 asymptomatic cases, 3 coming from Myanmar, 2 from Bangladesh & 1 each from Laos, Kyrgyzstan, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, New Zealand & Mozambique
   • Jiangmen in Guangdong Province – 1 confirmed & 1 asymptomatic cases, both coming from Hong Kong
   • Foshan in Guangdong Province – 4 asymptomatic cases, 2 coming from Vietnam & 1 each from the Malaysia & Ecuador
   • Zhongshan in Guangdong Province – 1 asymptomatic case, coming from Hong Kong
   • Shanghai Municipality – 10 confirmed cases, 2 each coming from Hong Kong, South Korea & Taiwan, & 1 each from Japan, Malaysia, Israel & the US; 1 symptomatic case, coming from the US; 1 suspect case, no information released
   • Jinan in Shandong Province – 6 confirmed & 21 asymptomatic cases , all coming from Ukraine
   • Qingdao in Shandong Province – 5 confirmed cases, all coming from South Korea
   • Chengdu in Sichuan Province – 9 confirmed cases (6 previously asymptomatic), 4 coming from Hong Kong, 3 from South Korea & 1 each from Algeria & Canada; 4 asymptomatic cases, 3 coming from Hong Kong & 1 from Egypt
   • Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province – 5 confirmed cases (all previously asymptomatic); 6 asymptomatic cases, all coming from Ukraine
   • Beijing Municipality – 3 confirmed cases, 2 coming from Hong Kong & 1 from Austria; 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
   • Dalian in Liaoning Province – 2 confirmed & 48 asymptomatic cases, no information released
   • Shenyang in Liaoning Province – 5 asymptomatic cases, no information released
   • Tianjin Municipality – 2 confirmed cases (1 previously asymptomatic), no information released, yet
   • Zhengzhou in Henan Province – 2 confirmed (both previously asymptomatic) & 2 asymptomatic cases, no information released
   • Xiamen in Fujian Province – 2 confirmed cases, no information released
   • Putian in Fujian Province – 3 asymptomatic cases, no information released
   • Yunnan Province (location not specified) – 1 confirmed case, coming from Myanmar, via land border crossing
   • Kunming in Yunnan Province – 3 asymptomatic cases, all coming from Thailand
   • Jiangsu Province (location not specified) – 5 asymptomatic cases, no information released
   • Wuhan in Hubei Province – 1 asymptomatic case, coming from Indonesia

   Overall in Mainland China, 156 confirmed cases recovered (113 imported), 51 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation (39 imported) & 73 were reclassified as confirmed cases (20 imported), & 8,101 individuals were released from quarantine. Currently, there are 13,870 active confirmed cases in the country (2,591 imported), 11 in serious condition (2 imported), 9,864 active asymptomatic cases (1,695 imported), 6 suspect cases (all imported). 214,982 traced contacts are currently under centralized quarantine.

   As of 3/15, 3,203.688M vaccine doses have been injected in Mainland China, an increase of 5.416M doses in the past 24 hrs.

   On 3/16, Hong Kong reported 29,272 new positive cases, 11 imported & 29,261 domestic (14,443 via RT-PCR & 14,818 from rapid antigen tests), 217 deaths (29 fully vaccinated, including 2 boosted) + 61 backlogged deaths.

   On 3/16, Taiwan reported 90 new positive cases, 87 imported & 3 domestic.

8. 8.

   YY_Sima Qian

   March 16, 2022 at 7:51 am

   The China National Health Commission just updated its guidances on treatment of COVID-19 cases:

   1. Only moderate (flu like symptoms w/ light pneumonia), serious (needing oxygen support) & critical (needing intubation & ICU) will be treated at designated COVID-19 hospitals; all asymptomatic & mild cases that do not require medical intervention will be sent to medical isolation in temporary hospitals for monitoring, to be moved to designated hospitals if their conditions progress to moderate or worse
   2. Threshold for negative RT-PCR tests determining if a case has recovered from COVID-19 has decreased from CT >= 40 to CT >= 35 (more in line w/ international practices), still needs 2 negative tests at least 24 hrs apart to be deemed recovered
   3. Recovered cases are no longer required to be placed under centralized quarantine for another 14 days after release from hospital; instead, there is an at home health monitoring period where the person is to minimize activities outside, & needs to be tested multiple times
   4. Paxlovid & a domestic monoclonal antibody drug have been included in the officially approved treatment plan

   The above changes make sense & are probably long over due. Hospitalizing every positive case was never necessary, & is no longer sustainable when Omicron BA.2 can quickly cause an outbreak of thousands of cases in a location. Reducing the CT threshold for negative RT-PCR result will greatly shorten hospital (including temporary hospitals for asymptomatic/mild cases) stays of positive cases, from 3 – 6 weeks down to 1 – 2 weeks. The older policies often resulted in positive cases being stuck in hospitals & centralized quarantine for 2 or more months. People put up w/ it when the risk of infection has been extremely low, but w/ the risk of infection now higher (especially in places w/ active outbreaks), the onerous requirements will simply encourage non-compliance by segments of the population, which is the greatest threat to any NPI measure. These changes will also reduce the load on hospitals, as well as avoiding taking productive members of the population out of circulation for unnecessarily long periods of time.

9. 9.

   NorthLeft12

   March 16, 2022 at 7:53 am

   Ely’s tweet (the last one in the thread) really hit home with me and the Mrs.  Especially the part about not giving a shit about others.

   A lot of people have shown exactly who they are and what they value over the last two years.

10. 10.

    Kay

    March 16, 2022 at 7:58 am

    @Mousebumples:

    My grandaughter participated in a Moderna trial. She’s two. It ended about a month ago- they had their last follow up appointment. She had no side effects of all but of course she may not have gotten the real vaccine.

11. 11.

    Mousebumples

    March 16, 2022 at 7:59 am

    @Elizabelle: thanks! Even if the big sister gets vaccinated, I’m still going to be pretty cautious with a baby in the house. My mom was asking about Easter plans, and I really don’t know at this point. We’ll see, I guess, what risk levels are like in a month…

12. 12.

    Mousebumples

    March 16, 2022 at 8:00 am

    @Kay: I think you mentioned that in an earlier thread, a few weeks/months ago. ? Here’s hoping she got the real thing, and that her contributions to science will help other little kiddos soon!

13. 13.

    Kay

    March 16, 2022 at 8:04 am

    @Mousebumples:

    The vaccination rate is so low for kids. It’s only 30%. Maybe it will pick up when people are more comfortable with it but I fear it’s been put in this special “controversial” category by political actors so it will always have a kind of stigma.

14. 14.

    Mousebumples

    March 16, 2022 at 8:21 am

    @Kay: yeah, agreed. I can only vaccinate my kids and try to convince friends and family to follow suit. The right wing politics here is nonsense.

15. 15.

    sdhays

    March 16, 2022 at 8:28 am

    @Mousebumples: I have a three year old and have been waiting to hear the status of the Moderna trials too. Thanks for the link! That’s fantastic news!

    Good luck this weekend!

16. 16.

    Another Scott

    March 16, 2022 at 8:45 am

    “Language was invented to hide man’s thoughts.”

    I understand that it’s headlines and Twitter, but I get annoyed (and concerned) by reporters using “lockdown” and “restrictions” as if those words have fixed meaning independent of context. They don’t.

    The BBC is particularly bad about that. For them, rules about indoor group sizes are apparently the same as welding apartment doors shut… And it feeds the monsters who want to stop doing anything to end the pandemic.

    Thanks as always for the roundup, AL.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

17. 17.

    sab

    March 16, 2022 at 8:46 am

    My city’s public school system has decided that now is a good time to drop the mask mandate. I wish they could have held out until the end of the school year.

18. 18.

    Suzanne

    March 16, 2022 at 9:15 am

    @Mousebumples: We’re eagerly awaiting a vaccine for Spawn the Youngest, too! Most everyone in the family is now mixed, vaccine-wise. I heard that was better, to get the booster other than the one you got for the main shot sequence.

    Good luck with the mini! Keep us updated, we’re all thinking about you!

19. 19.

    smith

    March 16, 2022 at 9:17 am

    The new CDC genomic surveillance data shows that nearly 40% of infections in the Northeast are now BA.2. There’s not yet any sign of widespread increases in cases there, though.

20. 20.

    Barney

    March 16, 2022 at 11:05 am

    The Scottish government shows a welcome willingness to change plans as infection rates change:

     

    Scotland’s rules on face coverings in shops and on public transport will remain in place until April due to a rise in cases of Covid-19.

    All other restrictions on businesses and services are to move from legal requirement to guidance from 21 March.

    But First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said it would be “prudent” to keep mask rules in place due to a spike in cases.

    These will be reviewed again in two weeks, and are likely to be converted to guidance by 4 April.
    …

    The average number of new cases reported each day in Scotland is more than 12,000, up from an average of 6,900 per day three weeks ago.

    There has also been a rise in the number of people in hospital with Covid-19, from 1,060 three weeks ago to 1,996 today.

    Ms Sturgeon said the BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron was now the dominant strain of the virus in Scotland, accounting for more than 80% of cases – adding that while it spreads much more quickly, there is no evidence it causes more severe illness than previous variants.

    Under the government’s strategic framework for managing the virus, remaining legal restrictions – including mask-wearing and the need for businesses to record customer contact details and follow other guidance – were to be lifted on 21 March.

    The rules for businesses will be dropped as planned, but Ms Sturgeon said she needed to “ask everyone to be patient for a little while longer on face coverings”.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-60750364

21. 21.

    Sloane Ranger

    March 16, 2022 at 11:08 am

    Tuesday in the UK we had 109,802 new cases. The rolling 7-day average is up 52.4%. New cases by nation,

    England – 64,313

    Northern Ireland – 2605

    Scotland – 38770 (covers 4 days worth of data)

    Wales – 4114.

    Deaths – There were 200 deaths within 28 days of a positive test yesterday. The rolling 7-day average is down 2.1%. 168 deaths were in England, 5 in Northern Ireland, 25 in Scotland (covers 4 days) and 2 in Wales.

    Testing – 811,934 tests took place on 14th March. The rolling 7-day average is up by 9.3%.

    Hospitalisations – As of Monday, 14th there were 13,548 people in hospital and 280 on ventilators but figures for England have not been updated due to a processing issue. As of 10th March the weekly average for hospital admissions was up by 18.4%.

    Vaccinations – As of 14th March, 91.7% of all UK residents aged 12+ had had 1 shot, 85.6% had had 2, and 67% had had a 3rd shot/booster.