I don’t know if posting tweets are against TOS so I‘ll just post that Gov. Cuomo has issued directive requiring NY health insurers to waive cost sharing associated with testing for CV including emergency room, urgent care and office visits.
What could be some of the reasons for the failure? Poor leadership? Lack of funding? Arrogance?
“I don’t know if posting tweets are against TOS so I‘ll just post that Gov. Cuomo has issued directive requiring NY health insurers to waive cost sharing associated with testing for CV including emergency room, urgent care and office visits.”
I thought the news conference he ran today struck just the right tone. Very impressed with him on this.
Now every other state needs to follow suit.
I don’t think it was lack of funding, at least at the decision making level. For potential public health emergencies, there should be plan Bs, plan Cs, etc. Maybe these were in place. As someone who works in the scientific field, with viruses, with experience at the government interface and also has seen/been a part of other responses at the national level, my guess is that this was an oversight or leadership problem. I doubt there was a lack of imagination. I hope it wasn’t because that’s pure incompetence. Someone was overseeing this process and should have had a contingency in place, sounded the alert to other national agencies, etc. From the Jon Cohen pieces in Science, it sounds like DHHS finally decided to intercede, getting FDA involved such that local health care agencies in the US (we many excellent ones with highly competent dedicated staff) could move more quickly.
I purposely quoted scientists in the Times article because that’s the exact frustration that colleagues and I in related areas experienced learning of our extremely delayed and limited testing capability. The people being quoted aren’t trying to score partisan points. It’s not a political issue. As you alluded to, it’s a competency and management issue.
Yep. They know the patient who started the Washington epidemic (they can tell because of gene sequencing). This person returned to Washington from Wuhan Jan. 15. Contact tracing missed the person that was first infected by this traveler, but that person infected others, and the infection chain continued. But, unfortunately, symptomatic people along the infection chain could not be tested, and so the infections continued on.
Now, probably, there are a probably few hundred people infected there, and five have died. This infection chain could have been interrupted, at least someone, if the intermediate people who were symptomatic had been tested and isolated. But the CDC would not test them, because someone at the CDC or its bosses decided they didn’t want to know about community transmission. Or because they incompetently didn’t have enough tests.
Twitter encourages all employees to work from home
"Twitter is asking all of its employees worldwide to stay away from their offices until further notice to avoid spreading the novel coronavirus, the company said in a message posted Monday on the its official blog.
“Beginning today, we are strongly encouraging all employees globally to work from home if they’re able,” wrote Jennifer Christie, chief human resources officer.
The guidance is not mandatory for most employees, and Christie said Twitter’s offices will remain open.
The company will be deep cleaning its facilities to protect employees who feel they need to come to work. Christie said they are taking steps “out of an abundance of caution and the utmost dedication to keeping our Tweeps healthy.”
Employees based in Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea are now required to work from home, due partially to government restrictions already in place in those countries.
The company announced Saturday it was suspending all non-critical business travel and events." (CNN)
44-story downtown Seattle tower closes amid coronavirus concerns
"The 44-story F5 Tower in downtown Seattle closed for cleaning Monday after F5 learned an employee had been in contact with someone who tested positive for coronavirus, according to The Seattle Times.
Rob Gruening, a spokesman for the company, told the Times the employee tested negative, but the building was closed as a precaution." (CNN)
First responders in Washington to begin wearing protective gear for all calls
"Kirkland emergency medical technicians will now wear protective clothing every time they are called out to respond to a sick patient, even if that person does not tell them about any coronavirus symptoms, city spokeswoman Kellie Stickney told CNN.
Stickney said there were two recent cases in which first responders treated people without any special protection, learning only after the fact that the patients had been experiencing flu-like symptoms." (CNN)
Was there someone overseeing this though? The positions of those overseeing pandemic response were vacated a few years ago and never replaced.
So who would’ve been in charge of coordination?
Washington governor says people should reconsider attending large events because of coronavirus concerns
"Washington Gov. Jay Inslee advised residents to stay home more in order to avoid the spread of novel coronavirus.
“We think folks should begin to think about avoiding large events and assemblies,” Inslee said in a news conference Monday.
Washington is the only state in the United States so far where people have died as a result of coronavirus. There are six confirmed fatalities out of 18 total cases in Washington.
Inslee said he has the power to declare an emergency and force large events to be canceled, but he does not think that step is necessary right now.
The governor also said he has the ability to call up the National Guard if needed to assist medical teams and provide security. Inslee says he discussed the possibility of eventually using military assets in a phone call with Vice President Mike Pence, the head of the Trump administration’s coronavirus task force." (CNN)
US officials press airlines to collect more traveler data to aid coronavirus response
"US officials are pressing airlines to collect and share more data on international travelers while federal health officials combat the coronavirus, two officials tell CNN.
The data request includes contact information that would help health officials follow up with potential carriers of the coronavirus, or fellow travelers who may have come into contact with an infected person.
The request itself is outlined in an interim final rule the CDC and Department of Health and Human Services issued in mid-February. It requests airlines provide, within 24 hours of a CDC request, each passenger’s name, “address while in the United States,” email address, and both a primary and secondary phone number.
The only issue is that many air carriers don’t currently collect some of the contact details the CDC is requesting, according to an industry official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Bookings made through a third party search engine, for example, may include highly limited information about a passenger." (CNN)
Redmond, Washington, declares state of emergency amid coronavirus concerns
"The city of Redmond, Washington, declared a state of emergency due to the coronavirus…The state of emergency does not call for any immediate changes by the government or residents. The city said the declaration is intended to make it easier to ask for additional resources to deal with coronavirus.
Redmond is best known as the worldwide headquarters of Microsoft and is only 4 miles from Kirkland, Washington, where six patient died." (CNN)
President Trump zeroes in on vaccine timetable; health official emphasizes vaccine can’t be rushed
During a meeting at the White House on Monday, President Donald Trump pushed pharmaceutical company heads on when they’d be able to deliver a coronavirus vaccine, but experts at the table repeatedly emphasized that a vaccine can’t be rushed to market before it’s been declared safe for the public.
The pushback was most visible during an interaction toward the end of the meeting.
“I don’t know what the time will be,” Trump said. “I’ve heard very quick numbers, that of months. And I’ve heard, pretty much a year, would be an outside number. So I think that’s not a bad range.”
But Dr. Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, clarified the timing for the President:
“A vaccine that you make and start testing in a year is not a vaccine that’s deployable,” Fauci said. Fauci added the vaccine may be deployable within a year, or year and a half, at the earliest.” (CNN)
There are now 102 cases of coronavirus in the US
(CNN)
There are 102 cases of the novel coronavirus in the United States.
There are 48 cases from repatriated citizens, according to the CDC.
There are 54 cases in 11 states, according to CNN Health’s tally of US cases that are detected and tested in the United States through US public health systems.
This brings the total number of coronavirus cases to 102.
Here is the breakdown by state of cases in the United States:
Arizona – 1
California – 20
Florida - 2
Illinois - 4
Massachusetts - 1
New York - 1
Oregon - 3
Rhode Island - 2
Washington state - 18 (includes 6 fatalities)
Wisconsin - 1
US Sen. Patty Murray: Test kits in Washington ‘not nearly enough’
"US Sen. Patty Murray of Washington…said she is pushing to make sure the federal government reimburses state and local governments for costs incurred by testing people who may have the coronavirus. They want such language to be included in the emergency spending bill.
“The biggest thing I hear at home now … is the lack of tests. … They are scrambling as fast as they can to urge the CDC to get more tests out. … They think they can do 100 a day right now – that’s not nearly enough," Murray said." (CNN)
Texas governor slams CDC for releasing patient who later tested positive for coronavirus
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott slammed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday for releasing a woman who had tested negative twice for the coronavirus before a subsequent third test came back positive in San Antonio.
"It appears to be a case of negligence with regard to allowing this person who had the coronavirus to leave the Texas Center for Infectious Disease and go back into the general population,” Abbott told reporters in Austin.
The woman was evacuated from Wuhan, China, to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio on a flight chartered by the US State Department. She was released from the Texas Center for Infectious Disease on Saturday, according to San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg…
“What the CDC must do is that they must improve their protocols and they must be absolutely certain that before they allow anybody to be released from any location in San Antonio, that they can assure the public that whoever they are releasing does not have the coronavirus,” Abbott said.” (CNN)
** First 2 Cases Confirmed in Georgia**
Both patients are residents of the same household, and one of the individuals with the virus had recently traveled to Italy. The patients are now in isolation at their home. The test results were confirmed by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This makes the 12th state with confirmed cases
2nd positive case of novel coronavirus identified in Massachusetts
"A woman in her 20s who recently traveled to Italy with a school group. It is the first positive result in Massachusetts since testing started on February 28. If confirmed by the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), this would be the state’s second confirmed positive novel coronavirus case.
The woman lives in Norfolk County. After her trip to Italy with a school group, she was symptomatic and recovering at home.
has there been any information about how the millions quarantined in Wuhan fared regarding whether they suffered a mild version of the virus? I imagine many people dealt with a mild version in their homes and did not seek help?
were people allowed to quarantine at home as it is suggested here in the U.S.? aren’t we giving the virus to everyone in our home when we stay at home for 14 days?
https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/first-cases-coronavirus-confirmed-georgia/4P22YK37OBF2ZIC5VY2YOX7KDE/ 2 cases confirmed in Georgia.
USA: NBA tells basketball players to stop high-fives
"The world’s top basketball league, the NBA, has told teams avoid high-fiving fans and strangers and avoid taking any item for autographs.
In a memo sent to teams on Sunday and obtained Monday by The Associated Press, offered 10 recommendations to players with hopes of decreasing risks of getting the virus – among them, not taking items such as pens, markers, balls and jerseys from autograph-seekers. Here’s AP’s report:
The NBA also told teams that it is consulting with infectious disease experts, including the Centers for Disease Control and infectious disease researchers at Columbia University in New York." (Guardian)
About the SATX incident: the coronavirus positive woman went to a popular local mall and ate at the food court for several hours. It is out.
Also, the swine flu hit hard here in Central Texas. Panic? I don’t remember that, but do remember that people were lining up to pay lots of money for the small amount of vaccine that became available. We would hear rumors that some doctor’s office had some and to go there quickly with x dollars. And then everyone had vaccine and the public schools offered it free a few months later.
Cruise ship protests in Réunion over coronavirus fears
"Passengers from Australia, New Zealand and the UK on board a Princess Cruises liner have been met by violent protests in Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean due to fears over coronavirus.
The Sun Princess docked early on Sunday with 2,000 passengers on board. It is operated by Princess Cruises, the same company that operated the Diamond Princess which quarantined by Japanese authorities with 3,700 on board in Yokohama after a passenger tested positive for Covid-19."
Police at Pointe des Galets used teargas on the protesters who had tried to block the cruise ship, which had already been turned away from nearby Madagascar. About 30 protesters had gathered at the north-western port to demand health checks of tourists…The locals tried to prevent visitors leaving the port, forcing the police to intervene. The protesters threw pebbles and bottles at the security forces…"
full story below:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/03/sun-princess-passengers-threatened-by-protesters-on-reunion-island-as-coronavirus-fears-rise
Chinese state media is reporting another seven new cases of of the virus in people returning from Italy.
"The pharmaceutical company Pfizer says it has identified certain antiviral compounds it had in development that have the potential to inhibit coronaviruses and is engaging with a third party to screen the compounds
The company said it hopes to have the results from that screening by the end of March and if any of the compounds are successful, it would hope start testing them by the end of the year.
Pfizer’ chief scientific officer, Mikael Dolsten, was one of a number of pharmaceutical executives who met with President Trump at the White House on Monday." (Reuters)
Speaking of pharmaceutical companies, the President met at the White House today with pharmaceutical companies. I suggest looking up some videos highlights of that meeting.
^^^^THIS