President Joe Biden got his second COVID-19 booster shot as his administration rolled out efforts to help Americans live with the virus, including a new website and a renewed push for vaccinations and funding https://t.co/U33ybcrhZA pic.twitter.com/b55CmMIQRW
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 30, 2022
BIDEN: "We're now in a new moment in this pandemic. It does not mean that Covid-19 is over. It means that Covid-19 no longer controls out lives. That's what it means.” pic.twitter.com/6hAHFkc43Z
— Jordan Fabian (@Jordanfabian) March 30, 2022
… Rite Aid said eligible customers may walk in to a store immediately or schedule an appointment online from Wednesday.
Walgreens said people can schedule an appointment to receive the second shot starting on Friday, with walk-in appointments available from Wednesday through Friday, depending on store capacity.
Rival CVS Health (CVS.N) is preparing to administer the second boosters, the company said in an emailed statement to Reuters on Wednesday.
Eligible patients can soon schedule an additional dose four months after their initial booster dose, the company said, adding that same-day or walk-in appointments could be possible but are subject to local demand.
By vaccinating, masking up, testing, and treating we can get through a new wave and control Covid instead of allowing Covid to control us. https://t.co/UmLvrc9u2g
— Dr. Tom Frieden (@DrTomFrieden) March 30, 2022
BREAKING: The Biden administration is expected to end the asylum limits at the U.S.-Mexico border by May 23 that were put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19, sources told @AP. https://t.co/S9vbEmQjAi
— The Associated Press (@AP) March 30, 2022
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The World Health Organization on Wednesday released an updated plan for COVID-19, laying out three possible scenarios for how the pandemic will evolve this year. https://t.co/X5goNPqGVc
— Reuters Health (@Reuters_Health) March 31, 2022
China reports 1,839 new COVID cases for March 30 vs 1,629 a day earlier https://t.co/wUrHURuBD1 pic.twitter.com/K3X633IDHV
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 31, 2022
Authorities began locking down some Western areas of Shanghai two days ahead of schedule as they battle a surge in new daily COVID-19 cases https://t.co/AUTT0Yimka pic.twitter.com/URuLeTdNuZ
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 30, 2022
Hong Kong recorded 6,646 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday. The city also added 119 deaths, including 17 backlogged cases.
Full, trusted coverage on HKFP: https://t.co/w8LTgNxKZy pic.twitter.com/dSte9raY74
— Hong Kong Free Press HKFP (@hkfp) March 31, 2022
(Tomb-Sweeping Day is next Tuesday, April 5th, this year)
After spending two years being socially distanced, Kim Hoe-jun booked a last-minute flight to Hawaii. Vaccinated and boosted, Kim and his wife are among South Koreans joining in a rush to book overseas trips that were delayed by COVID restrictions https://t.co/Z2cG6kUSzQ pic.twitter.com/ypKWFPl2jK
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 31, 2022
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… While the virus is unpredictable, there are clear ways to protect yourself. Here’s what you can do to prepare:
– Pay attention to Covid indicators in your community.
– Have high-quality masks on hand.
– Order home coronavirus tests sooner rather than later.
– Get a booster (when you’re eligible).
– Get a pulse oximeter.
– Make a plan for antiviral drug treatment.
– Have backup plans for social events and travel.
Still coughing after Covid? New research shows coughing may persist for weeks or months after the infection has gone. Around 2.5% of people are still coughing a year after being infected. Here's why that happens & what to do about it https://t.co/xld8IrFkSI
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) March 30, 2022
Leaving out the ‘… exposed to the virus’ clause is not optimal:
… It may be hard to believe that at this stage of the pandemic so many people have still never gotten sick. Perhaps people were asymptomatic and never knew they were infected, or, despite exposure to the virus, they just never tested positive. But even half of the population getting Covid is actually an extraordinary number of infections. The 1918 Spanish flu is estimated to have only infected 25% of the U.S. population at the time, despite causing a huge number of deaths.
Early in the pandemic, Swadling set out to find out more about the lucky few who weren’t getting sick.
“We were particularly interested in people who are exposed to the virus, but control it very quickly, clearing the virus before it can replicate to detectable levels and before it induces an antibody response,” Swadling said. “It may help us better understand what immunity is best at protection from reinfection.”
Swadling, along with colleagues in London, published a study in the journal Nature last November evaluating a group of U.K. health care workers during the first wave of the pandemic. They found evidence that some of the health care workers exposed to the virus were able to rid their bodies of it even before producing Covid-specific antibodies.
It turned out that for those people, exposure to other human coronaviruses, such as those that cause cold-like symptoms, had helped their bodies to fight off the novel coronavirus. This is because T-cells, a critical part of the body’s immune response, were able to recognize and target genetic elements of prior seasonal coronaviruses that also happened to be present in SARS-CoV-2. That meant their bodies were able to attack the novel virus without the production of new antibodies specific to it.
Notably, the T-cells that those health care workers produced targeted a different part of the virus than the T-cells did in people who have a detectable Covid infection. Swadling said the while the T-cells produced by both vaccines and a detectable Covid-19 infection attack the frequently mutating spike protein of a virus, these health care workers’ T-cells instead targeted the virus’ internal machinery. Researchers call these T-cells that appear effective against different coronaviruses “cross-reactive.”
“We identified new parts of the virus that we can put into a vaccine to try to improve it ,” Swadling said. These improvements, he said, could make vaccines better at preventing infection, more effective against new variants and more protective for immunocompromised individuals…
======
I’m seeing this thread all across pandemic twitter…
“Wolf”, cried the boy, as the creature disemboweled more of the flock.
“There is nothing we could have done,” said the townspeople, looking away from their unused wolf-spears and wolf traps.
“Besides, the sheep that died they were the weak ones, the ones about to die anyway.”
Eventually the wolf became full, and wandered off for a snooze in its lupine den.
“You cried wolf,” the townspeople accused the boy, “but now the wolf is gone and there is no longer a need for us. Why did you cry wolf last week when there is no wolf today?”
“But there was a wolf,” the boy said, “and it killed so many. It could come back again. We need to be ready for it.”
“You already wasted our time,” the villagers replied. “You cried wolf; it did no good. Why should we listen to you now?”
“You—not the wolf—are our true enemy.”
“Wolf!”, cried the boy, as he dragged the creature from its den. “Help me get rid of it once and for all!”
“Don’t tell me what to do,” a townsperson said. “It’s my right to live with the wolf,” said another. “Who made you shepherd anyway?” asked a third.
The wolf smiled.
On The Road – Munira – The Seasons – with Haiku
Cliosfanboy
LOVE! the wolf story. Thank you. :)
NeenerNeener
Monroe County, NY:
347 new cases. High numbers two days in a row.
Vaccination % has gone up a wee bit again: 71.7% up from 71.6%
Amir Khalid
Malaysia’s Ministry of Health reported 15,941 new Covid-19 cases yesterday in its media statement, for a cumulative reported total of 4,183,359 cases. It also reported 33 deaths for an adjusted cumulative total of 34,939 deaths – 0.84% of the cumulative reported total, 0.88% of resolved cases.
Malaysia’s nationwide Rt stands at 0.88.
121 confirmed cases are in ICU, 77 of them on ventilators. Meanwhile, 21,186 more patients have recovered, for a cumulative total of 3,941,829 patients recovered – 94.2% of the cumulative reported total.
One new cluster was reported yesterday, for a cumulative total of 6,932 clusters. 207 clusters are currently active; 6,725 clusters are now inactive.
15,773 new cases reported yesterday were local infections. 168 new cases were imported.
The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) administered 51,967 doses of vaccine on 30th March: 4,949 first doses, 1,438 second doses, and 45,480 booster doses. The cumulative total is 68,849,462 doses administered: 27,499,639 first doses, 25,803,265 second doses, and 15,758,429 booster doses. 84.2% of the population have received their first dose, 79.0% their second dose, and 48.3% their booster dose.
Dorothy A. Winsor
Mr DAW and I got our second boosters yesterday. My arm is barely sore
YY_Sima Qian
On 3/30 Mainland China reported 1,803 new domestic confirmed (56 previously asymptomatic), 6,651 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 0 domestic suspect cases.
Guangdong Province reported 11 new domestic confirmed & 8 new domestic asymptomatic cases.
Guangxi “Autonomous” Region reported 11 new domestic asymptomatic cases (6 at Fangchenggang, 3 at Baise, & 2 at Nanning). 5 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 10 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 37 active domestic confirmed (14 at Fangchenggang, 3 each at Baise & Nanning, 16 at Qinzhou, & 1 at Guilin) & 275 active domestic asymptomatic cases (105 at Fangchenggang, 22 at Baise, 51 at Chongzuo, 78 at Qinzhou, 5 at Liuzhou, 6 at Guilin, 4 at Beihai, 3 at Nanning, & 1 at Guigang) in the province. 1 zone at Fangchenggang are currently at Medium Risk. 5 sites at Qinzhou are currently at Medium Risk.
Hunan Province reported 2 new domestic confirmed (1 each at Hengyang & 1 at Xiangxi Prefecture) & 3 new domestic asymptomatic (all at Changsha) cases. All of the cases at Changsha are traced close contacts under centralized quarantine. The cases at Hengyang & Xiangxi are recent arrivals from Shanghai. 2 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 49 active domestic confirmed & 5 active domestic asymptomatic cases 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. 9 sites at Huaihua are currently at Medium Risk, as are 13 sites at Changsha & 1 zone at Shaoyang.
Inner Mongolia “Autonomous” Region reported 1 new domestic confirmed (previously asymptomatic) case, at Chifeng. 2 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 10 active domestic confirmed (3 at Hohhot, 1 at Chifeng & 6 at Tongliao) & 24 active domestic asymptomatic (17 at Hohhot & 9 at Tongliao) cases in the province. 1 residential compound at Chifeng is currently at Medium Risk.
Tianjin Municipality reported 4 new domestic confirmed (2 previously asymptomatic, both mild) & 2 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all of the new domestic positive cases are traced close contacts already under quarantine. 36 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 7 domestic asymptomatic case was released from isolation. There currently are 284 active domestic confirmed & 207 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 7 sites are currently at High Risk. 4 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
Shandong Province reported 2 new domestic confirmed & 25 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 97 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 126 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 521 active domestic confirmed cases & 2,214 active asymptomatic cases in the province. As not all of the administrative divisions in the province provide data on recoveries, I cannot track the count of active cases in all of the administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
Shanxi Province reported 2 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic, both at Xinzhou) & 1 new domestic asymptomatic (at Changzhi) cases, both recently returned from areas w/ active outbreaks & under centralized quarantine. There currently are 6 active domestic confirmed (5 Xinzhou & 1 at Jinzhong) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic (at Changzhi) cases remaining.
Hebei Province reported 5 new domestic confirmed & 78 domestic asymptomatic cases. 22 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 167 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 292 active domestic confirmed & 2,894 active asymptomatic case 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.
Liaoning Province reported 9 new domestic confirmed (2 previously asymptomatic) & 42 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 39 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 15 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 452 active domestic confirmed & 1,457 active domestic asymptomatic cases 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.
Heilongjiang Province reported 19 new domestic confirmed (3 previously asymptomatic, all mild) & 21 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 26 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 44 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 219 active domestic confirmed & 225 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
Jilin Province reported 1,340 new domestic confirmed (20 previously asymptomatic, 1,332 mild, 7 moderate & 1 serious) & 835 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 867 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 344 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. As the province does not consistently break down recoveries by confirmed & asymptomatic cases or by jurisdictions, I can no longer track the count of active case counts in the different jurisdictions.
Beijing Municipality did not report any new domestic positive cases. 1 community remains at Medium Risk.
Shanghai Municipality reported 355 new domestic confirmed (16 previously asymptomatic) & 5,298 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 4,487 of the new domestic positive cases are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine, & the rest from screening of persons deemed at risk of exposure. 20 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 318 domestic asymptomatic case was released from isolation. There currently are 994 active domestic confirmed & 28,860 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 13 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
Shaanxi Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. 34 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 111 active domestic confirmed & 5 active asymptomatic cases 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. 1 residential compound at Tongchuan remains at Medium Risk.
Hubei Province reported 5 new domestic asymptomatic cases (3 at Xiaogan & 1 each at Xiangyang & Huanggang, 3 are recent arrivals from elsewhere & 2 are traced close contacts at Xiaogan. There currently are 2 active domestic confirmed (both moderate, 1 each at Wuhan & Shiyan) & 10 active domestic asymptomatic (3 each at Xiaogan & Huanggang, 2 at Xianning & 1 each at Ezhou & Xiangyang) cases in the province.
Jiangsu Province reported 5 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic) & 41 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 1 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 27 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 46 active domestic confirmed & 409 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As not all of the jurisdictions in the province track recoveries, I cannot track the count of active cases in all of the administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
Anhui Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed (mild, at Huainan) & 66 new domestic asymptomatic (50 at Huainan, 9 at Wuhu, 3 at Fuyang, 2 at Ma’anshan, & 1 each at Bengbu & Tongling) cases. The outbreak at Huainan is concentrated at a factory, but seeded by persons returning from Shanghai. All of the cases at Wuhu & Tongling are traced close contacts under centralized quarantine. The cases at Ma’anshan & Bengbu are recent arrivals from elsewhere. 4 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 17 active confirmed (2 at Ma’anshan, 6 at Wuhu, 2 at Tongling, 5 at Huainan, & 1 each at Hefei & Xuancheng) & 272 active domestic asymptomatic (20 at Ma’anshan, 9 at Haozhou, 46 at Wuhu, 89 at Huainan, 7 at Bengbu, 5 at Hefei, 85 at Tongling, 2 at Suzhou, 2 each at Anqing & Chuzhou, 4 at Fuyang & 1 at Huaibei) cases in the province. 2 sites at Ma’anshan, 3 at Huainan, 3 at Tongling, 1 at Fuyang, & 4 at Wuhu are currently at Medium Risk.
Zhejiang Province reported 10 new domestic confirmed (3 previously asymptomatic) & 17 new domestic asymptomatic case. As the province does not break down recoveries by imported versus domestic cases, I cannot track the count of active domestic cases in the province.
Gansu Province reported 8 new asymptomatic cases. 23 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 34 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 98 active domestic confirmed & 287 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
Fujian Province reported 11 new domestic confirmed (6 previously asymptomatic) & 129 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 28 domestic confirmed case recovered & 50 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 978 active domestic confirmed & 1,803 active domestic asymptomatic cases 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.
Xinjiang “Autonomous” Region reported 1 new domestic confirmed & 23 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 1 active domestic confirmed & 25 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the region.
Hainan Province reported 2 new domestic confirmed & 2 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all at Haikou, all traced close contacts under centralized quarantine.
Guizhou Province reported 1 new asymptomatic case, at Liupanshui, a person returning from Shanghai on 3/28. There currently are 2 active domestic confirmed (1 each at Guiyang & Qiandongnan Prefecture) & 3 active domestic asymptomatic (2 at Zunyi & 1 at Liupanshui) cases in the city.
Jiangxi Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed (mild) & 11 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 7 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 27 domestic asymptomatic case was released from isolation. There currently are 41 active domestic confirmed & 279 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 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.
Henan Province reported 15 new domestic confirmed (all at Zhoukou) & 19 new domestic asymptomatic cases (14 at Zhoukou Luohe, 3 at Zhumadian, & 1 each at Zhengzhou & Xinxiang). 2 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 2 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 105 active domestic confirmed & 87 active domestic asymptomatic cases 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. 2 sites at Zhoukou, as well as 3 at Luohe & 13 at Jiaozuo, are currently at Medium Risk.
Chongqing Municipality reported 2 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic) cases, both via screening of persons deemed at risk of exposure the new domestic positive case is a traced close contact under centralized quarantine. 1 domestic confirmed case recovered. There currently is 14 active domestic confirmed & 4 domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 3 dormitory buildings are currently at Medium Risk.
Sichuan Province reported 3 new domestic confirmed (2 mild & 1 moderate, 2 at Leshan & 1 at Suining) cases, 2 recently arrived from Shanghai & 1 from Changchun in Jilin.
Yunnan Province reported 2 new domestic confirmed & 5 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 7 domestic confirmed case recovered & 25 new domestic asymptomatic were released from isolation. There currently are 45 active domestic confirmed & 250 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.
Imported Cases
On 3/30, Mainland China reported 36 new imported confirmed cases (19 previously asymptomatic, none in Guangdong), 69 imported asymptomatic cases, 2 imported suspect cases:
Overall in Mainland China, 1,403 confirmed cases recovered (71 imported), 1,155 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation (115 imported) & 75 were reclassified as confirmed cases (19 imported), & 24,470 individuals were released from quarantine. Currently, there are 28,599 active confirmed cases in the country (756 imported), 66 in serious condition (all domestic), 54,911 active asymptomatic cases (1,202 imported), 18 suspect cases (all imported). 367,516 traced contacts are currently under centralized quarantine.
As of 3/30, 3,267.14M vaccine doses have been injected in Mainland China, an increase of 4.011M doses in the past 24 hrs.
On 3/31, Hong Kong reported 6,646 new positive cases, 7 imported & 6,639 domestic (2,852 via RT-PCR & 3,787 from rapid antigen tests), 102 deaths (10 fully vaccinated, including 1 boosted) + 17 backlogged deaths.
On 3/31, Taiwan reported 239 new positive cases, 152 imported & 87 domestic.
New Deal democrat
Cases were steady at 30,200, and remain essentially unchanged in the past two weeks. Deaths declined to 693, lower than all but one month in 2020 and three months in 2021.
Cases are down 96% from their Omicron peak; hospitalizations are down 91%; and deaths are down 73%. In the downside of past waves, deaths have declined by roughly the same percentage as hospitalizations. So there is every reason to expect deaths to decline to about 200 in the coming weeks.
Internationally the UK is now slightly down from where they were 10 days ago, confirming that their BA.2 wave peaked after 3 weeks. Ireland and Cyprus appear to be peaking now, 3 and 3.5 weeks into their respective waves. France, Luxembourg, and Malta are still increasing. Every other European country is either flat or declining.
In the US, the Northeast is rising sharply. The West is still declining. The Midwest has been flat this week, but slightly above last week. Similarly, the South is higher than one week ago, but has been declining in the past few days.
In the Northeast, the rise in cases is still accelerating, especially in NY, where cases have doubled in the past 2.5 weeks. Nevertheless, if the Northeast follows Europe’s pattern, this should change within a week as BA.2 becomes 90% of all cases there.
YY_Sima Qian
Shanghai just locked down the entire city, locking down the western half of the city today (1 day ahead of original plan), while the eastern half will not exit lock down tomorrow. While the case counts decreased yesterday, we may simply be sing a reporting delay. Don’t be surprised if we see > 10K positive cases from the city tomorrow.
My “eye balling” estimate is that Shanghai is accounting for > 70% of cases being exported to other parts of China, more if we also count the subsequent cases & clusters that they seed.
There are also reports on Chinese social media of people w/ chronicle illness in Shanghai having trouble obtaining medical care & medicine. Things may be even worse in Changchun in Jilin Province, but very little reporting in Chines media or social media. As has always been the case when it comes to China’s “Dynamic Zero” strategy, the benefits of preventing COVID-19 from rampaging across vulnerable populations (or Long COVID in not so vulnerable populations), has to be weighed against the severe local economic & social disruption, as well as the impact to people suffering from medical emergencies or chronic illnesses. When the outbreaks were sporadic in time & space, the benefits far outweighed the costs. Now that the clusters & outbreaks are frequent in both time & space, crushing each new outbreak much more time consuming (thus, costly) w/ the Omicron BA.2 (see Jilin & Shanghai), & Omicron BA.2 much milder, that calculation has to change.
First, have to make sure a much higher percentage of the most vulnerable cohorts in China are vaccinated & boosted.
rikyrah
Get those boosters
JMG
Bit of a pickle. My pharmacy won’t start giving second boosters until Friday, the very morning Alice and I leave for New York to meet my daughter (in US on business trip), my son and his wife (who live there). I don’t feel particularly unsafe making this trip, but I’d feel even safer with the second boost.
Matt McIrvin
The statement about CVS is odd to me, because I signed up there to get my second booster yesterday and went and got it the same day. Didn’t tell any lies on the sign-up form, though I guess they didn’t ask about it being a first vs. second booster.
I’m traveling on vacation in a few weeks and this gives me some extra peace of mind, with cases starting to rise again.
As with the previous booster, the only symptom I’m feeling is a little soreness in my shoulder. I felt a bit under the weather for the first hour after the shot.
Baud
I think I’m going to be a swinger for my second booster and get Moderna.
Dorothy A. Winsor
@JMG: You can go elsewhere. We used Jewel-Osco. All you need is your vaccination card and your insurance information.
Matt McIrvin
@Baud: Mixing it up seems to provide some marginal advantage. I went Moderna-Moderna-Pfizer-Pfizer.
OzarkHillbilly
A lot of the people who took Ivermectin are still around, proving it doesn’t work so well against parasites either
Baud
@OzarkHillbilly:
Win!
Peale
So cases are up 80% month over month in my county. If BA.2 is going to produce a wave, it’s taking it’s damn time about it. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
Ohio Mom
Part of me thinks maybe we should start a betting pool for when the next big wave starts. My bet would early fall.
I would love to be wrong of course.
Baud
@Matt McIrvin:
I’m currently triple Pfizer.
Elizabelle
@Baud: I’m triple Pfizer — still caught a mild case of the ‘rona; over now for some time — and going for Moderna when I get back to the US of Cray Cray.
Unless someone will give me the vaccine in Europe. Am good with masking.
Peale
I’m eligible for booster 2, but I’ve decided to wait until mid May to get one. No reason other than I want the attention this time for being a hold out.
Baud
@Elizabelle:
I have not caught it yet to my knowledge.
Hildebrand
I have an appointment for my second booster on Monday.
Bruce K in ATH-GR
Greece: Wednesday evening numbers via Kathimerini: there were 22,541 new cases reported Wednesday evening, down from 28,933 on Tuesday; 60 dead, up from 49; currently 348 intubated ICU patients, down from 351 on Tuesday.
Greece is suspending the mandatory vaccination of over-60 citizens punishable by fines, because the burden on the National Health System has eased, according to the Ministry of Health. Experts advising the government, meeting on Wednesday, recommended against any further relaxation in preventive measures until May. There was some discussion of abolition of vaccination certificates, allowing unvaccinated persons into restaurants and bars, abolition of negative-test requirements when entering retail stores, and abolition of mask requirements in most closed venues other than “high risk” areas (hospitals, public transport, supermarkets).
Those relaxations are on hold until May because of the recent increases in numbers.
Cameron
@Matt McIrvin: Yeah, I signed up for 2nd booster at CVS this a.m. and go get shot up this afternoon. No problem.
NeenerNeener
I’m quadruple Moderna, but if another booster is available by year-end for us immune suppressed folks I’ll get Pfizer
I did manage to spend an unmasked 80 minutes in an MRI machine recently without catching the ‘Rona.
MattF
@Matt McIrvin: I just signed up for a second booster at my nearby CVS- the signup questionnaire explicitly let me choose a second booster, so they’re now officially doing it. They didn’t do that yesterday, so it’s a new thing. I signed up for a shot (Pfizer) on Monday for availability at the nearest CVS.
Matt McIrvin
@Peale: It makes sense if what’s happening is that BA.2 is mostly not reinfecting people who already got Omicron, but, rather, its greater transmissibility is just enough that they no longer act as effective firebreaks keeping it from finding the remaining people who didn’t get Omicron. It’s spreading, but because of the landscape of prior infection, not as quickly as it could.
A flatter curve is good–it means the healthcare system is better able to deal with the people who get really sick. But it also means that we live with the situation longer.
MattF
@Ohio Mom: One comment that rang a bell for me was that timing your booster is like trying to time your stock market purchases. It doesn’t work.
Matt McIrvin
@Baud: Similarly, I have not yet caught COVID as far as I could tell. That’s one of the reasons I got myself re-boosted as soon as I could–I figure I’m actually more susceptible to Omicron/BA.2 infection than the average person other things being equal, and I want to do what I can to improve the odds.
Matt McIrvin
@MattF: Yeah–the best time to get boosted is right at the beginning of a big surge, when a lot of doctors are still talking about how the shot isn’t urgent because the surge isn’t happening. You won’t necessarily be able to tell what the situation is. It seems like a lot of behavior is far too reactive. I might have somehow jumped the gun by getting a shot now but, really, I can’t know yet.
All I really know is, northern New England is clearly struggling with Omicron BA.2 though infection levels are nowhere what they were around the turn of the year.
O. Felix Culpa
I’m scheduled for my booster tomorrow morning. 3X Moderna, so I’m switching to Pfizer for this one.
Raven
I got my 4th shot yesterday and I feel like shit!
Jean
@Matt McIrvin: CVS had already updated their site to include second booster info. I signed up online and went to neighborhood CVS for the booster yesterday. The statement about CVS isn’t true in my neck of the woods in VA.
Jean
I am 4X Pfizer; the differences between Moderna and Pfizer look marginal to me. And I decided it wasn’t worth trying to game out when best to get the booster.
lowtechcyclist
So anyone who’s still in the closet, come on out, it’s safer! ;-)
lowtechcyclist
@Ohio Mom: My bet would be July, in the southern tier states.
Tenar Arha
@Matt McIrvin So far I’m Pfizer-Pfizer-Moderna & I guess I’ll take whatever I can get when I get the next one.
Mostly, I’m trying to decide if I should go get a 2nd booster in right away, like in the next 2 days, to make sure I’m 2 weeks before Passover, or hold off until I hit 6 months at the end of April.
O. Felix Culpa
@Raven: Hope you feel better soon!
Bruce K in ATH-GR
I ended up going Pfizer-Pfizer in the US and J&J-Moderna in Greece. (I may have mentioned the bureaucratic headache I had with trying to get a booster shot when the Greek healthcare system didn’t have any way to register my US shots. Long story short, the US thinks I’ve only had two shots and Greece thinks I’ve only had two shots, but two different sets of two shots.)
Scout211
@Jean:
Yes, CVS has updated their site with age 50 and older eligibility.
Our first booster was in October so we are due, plus our primary care doctor recommended that we both get the second booster. We plan to get our second booster in the next week or so. CVS takes appointments and also walk-ins.
Jackie
I’m getting 2nd booster tomorrow – planned to have the wknd to deal with any side effects. I had Pfizer for 1st three shots; plan to get Moderna this time.
CaseyL
@YY_Sima Qian: I really appreciate your posts! An amazing amount of information.
So I have made an appointment for my 4th shot, since it seems that – just this once – I can get the jab faster if I go to a regular pharmacy rather than wait for UW and UW Medicine to provide one.
Weird, to be sure – but the University requires a few more regulatory hoops be jumped through, and RiteAid apparently does not, so…
eachother
Booster #2 this afternoon. Will be taking a Benadryl ahead of . Had hives after vaccine 1 & 2. Booster #1 took Benadryl. No hives.
My interpretation of this #2 booster thrust is its necessity. Not just the time based drop-off of antibodies, but variant concerns being a need-for indicator. Calendar predictions for the next virus wave is a fool’s game. I predict summer.
Matt
“We need to compromise with the wolf because extremism is bad”, said one citizen.
“It’s important to recognize the wolf might be right about some things, after all”, said another.
“If we attack the wolf, aren’t we the REAL predators here?” said yet another.
“The wolf offers an important alternative to communism!” cried a decidedly wolfish-looking critter covered in patchy wool.
JustRuss
Got booster #2 yesterday. Our town is pretty vax friendly, figured I’d beat the rush. Fred Meyer/Kroger pharmacy’s website wouldn’t let me schedule an appointment, but our local clinic took me.
After 3 Pfizers, this was my first Moderna. It’s also the first one that hurt (just a little), don’t know if that’s just a coincidence. Not feeling any side effects today, not even sore arm.
Munira
Getting my second booster a week from today – Rite-Aid – easy to schedule online.
eachother
Canceled my booster #2 appointment. Pharmacist said to get a Pfizer vs Moderna for the 4th shot. Said my reaction was not what they want to see. Scientists are learning. I am flexible in consideration of the changes time and study has revealed. And hives are for bees.
Calling Dr. for opinion and they have the Pfizer.
Soprano2
Here’s a link to an interesting article about sewage surveillance for Covid and other things. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/how-sewage-surveillance-could-aid-public-health-beyond-covid
YY_Sima Qian
@CaseyL: Thank you! We’ll how long I can sustain it.