IT'S ALL UNDER CONTROL

[Old School]

Fauci says he was 'absolutely not' surprised Trump got coronavirus after Rose Garden event
BY JOHN BOWDEN - 10/18/20 08:50 PM EDT

https://thehill.com/homenews/admini...bsolutely-not-surprised-trump-got-coronavirus

Dr. Anthony Fauci, a member of the White House's COVID-19 response team, said in a new interview that he was not surprised that President Trump was sickened with coronavirus after seeing him and others maskless at a White House event for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett.

Fauci, who is the nation's top infectious disease expert, told CBS News in an interview that images he saw of the event alarmed him even before it was revealed that numerous attendees had tested positive for the virus. He worried that numerous people would be infected, he said.

"Were you surprised that President Trump got sick?" asked CBS's Dr. Jon LaPook.

"Absolutely not," Fauci responded. "I was worried that he was going to get sick when I saw him in a completely precarious situation of crowded, no separation between people, and almost nobody wearing a mask."

"When I saw that on TV, I said, 'Oh my goodness. Nothing good can come out of that, that's got to be a problem.' And then sure enough, it turned out to be a superspreader event," Fauci continued.

At least 11 people who attended the Sept. 26 event, including both Trump and first lady Melania Trump, as well as numerous journalists and lawmakers tested positive for COVID-19 following their attendance. Photos of the ceremony, at which Trump announced his intent to nominated Barrett to the Supreme Court following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, showed few attendees wearing masks or following social distancing guidelines recommended by Washington D.C. health officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Trump's diagnosis resulted in a multi-day hospitalization at Walter Reed Medical Center, where the president was treated with a steroid regimen as well as an experimental antibody cocktail.

 

[Old School]

CDC: 75 percent of US seeing increases in COVID-19 cases in 'critical phase' of pandemic
Jessie Hellmann 4 hrs ago

https://thehill.com/policy/healthca...increases-in-covid-19-cases-in-critical-phase

The number of COVID-19 cases is increasing in 75 percent of the country as the U.S. approaches a "critical phase" of the pandemic, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials said Wednesday.

"Unfortunately we're seeing a distressing trend here in the United States," Jay Butler, the CDC's deputy director for infectious diseases, said at a media briefing at the agency's headquarters in Atlanta.

The U.S. has confirmed more than 8.1 million cases of COVID-19, though the actual number is likely much higher.

Experts warned all year the U.S. would likely see a surge in cases in the fall and winter as the cold weather forces people to spend more time indoors.

It appears that surge may be here, with the U.S. confirming nearly 60,000 cases a day, nearing the record high set this summer during the wave in the South.

"I recognize that we are all getting tired of the impact that COVID-19 has had on our lives. We get tired of wearing masks, but it continues to be as important as it's ever been, and I would say it's more important than ever as we move into the fall season," Butler said, noting that people will likely be gathering over the holidays.

CDC Director Robert Redfield also attended the briefing and warned that the U.S. is "approaching a critical phase" in the pandemic.

Until a vaccine is available, Americans should continue following public health recommendations, including wearing masks and practicing social distancing, he said.

Butler said he is optimistic there will be one or more COVID-19 vaccines available for distribution by the end of the year but added that the supply likely would be limited. The vaccine would initially be reserved for people at highest risk for serious illness, including the elderly.

The public briefing was the first the CDC had held since August.

Experts have worried about political interference within the CDC by the Trump administration as the agency presents an outlook of the pandemic that is not in line with the president's rosier predictions. Trump said recently that the U.S. is "rounding the turn" on the pandemic, a statement that is demonstrably false as the U.S. approaches a new high in daily COVID-19 cases.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, a Trump appointee, defended the CDC's response Wednesday, arguing the pandemic is too big and damaging to handle alone.

"I think some of the people who comment are - not having actually lived in or led in this organization during this type of a crisis - failing to appreciate that," he said.

The frustration within the CDC among career officials has grown so high that Butler reportedly told co-workers that he was worried people might die "because of what we were forced to do," referencing the agency's watered-down guidance on attending worship services during the pandemic.

Asked about Butler's comments Wednesday at the briefing, Azar demurred.

"I'm not going to talk about my discussions internally here within CDC," he said.

 

[Old School]

U.S. hits all-time high in new coronavirus cases, exceeding 80,000 in a day for the first time

​https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/10/23/coronavirus-covid-live-updates-us/

By
Antonia Noori Farzan,
Rick Noack,
Adam Taylor,
Paulina Villegas,
Kim Bellware,
Jacqueline Dupree,
Hamza Shaban,
Hannah Knowles and
Darren Sands
Oct. 24, 2020 at 6:57 a.m. EDT

The United States hit an all-time high in new coronavirus cases on Friday, surpassing the previous mark set during a summer surge across the Sun Belt. Friday?s tally of new U.S. cases ? the first above 80,000 ? comes as covid-19 hospitalizations are soaring across the country; according to data tracked by The Washington Post, the average number of hospitalizations has jumped in at least 38 states over the past week, a trend that cannot be explained by more widespread testing.

Fourteen states have reported new highs in hospitalized covid-19 patients in the past seven days: Kentucky, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Iowa, Utah, Montana, West Virginia, Missouri and Kansas. Health experts say the current wave is setting the stage for an even greater surge heading into colder months.

Here are some significant developments:
The Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine trial, paused because of a participant?s unexplained illness, will resume soon, and a vaccine candidate from AstraZeneca and Oxford University has been cleared to restart trials in the United States.https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/10/23/jj-vaccine-trial-to-resume/

Data from a project tracking real-time coronavirus statistics yields a particularly vivid illustration of how mask usage influences the prevalence of covid-19 symptoms in a given area. See it here.
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin delivered a downbeat assessment Friday about his economic stimulus talks with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), saying ?significant differences? remain.

The governor of Italy?s third-most-populous region said Friday that he is enacting a strict lockdown, reimposing the rules of March and April that brought life to a standstill.

The Trump administration has been pressuring health experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to endorse the use of border hotels to hold migrant children before deporting them, according to federal health officials.

A travel group report says flying is safe. The doctor whose research it cited says not so fast.

Sign up for our coronavirus newsletter | Mapping the spread of the coronavirus: Across the U.S. | Worldwide | Vaccine tracker | Where states reopened and cases spiked | Has someone close to you died of covid-19? Share your story with The Washington Post.

 

[Old School]

America hits highest daily number of coronavirus cases since pandemic began
William Wan, Jacqueline Dupree 13 hrs ago

America on Friday hit its highest daily number of coronavirus cases since the pandemic began, recording at least 82,600 new infections and surpassing the previous record set during the summertime surge of cases across the Sun Belt.

The rising numbers put the nation on the precipice of what could be its worst stretch to date in the pandemic with some hospitals in the West and Midwest already overwhelmed and death counts beginning to rise.

The current surge is considerably more widespread than the waves from last summer and spring. The unprecedented geographic spread of the current surge makes it more dangerous, with experts warning it could lead to dire shortages of medical staff and supplies. Already, hospitals are reporting shortfalls of basic drugs needed to treat covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

And it?s not simply a matter of increased testing identifying more cases. Covid-19 hospitalizations increased in 38 states over the past week. The number of deaths nationally has crested above 1,000 in recent days.

The last time the country hit a new daily record for coronavirus cases ? 76,533 on July 17 ? just four states accounted for more than 40,000 of those cases: Arizona, California, Florida and Texas, according to a Washington Post analysis.

On Friday, 11 states accounted for that same lion?s share of cases. And in the past two weeks, 24 states have broken their records for single-day highs of cases.

More than 170 counties across 36 states were designated rapidly rising hotspots, according to an internal federal report produced Thursday for officials at the Department of Health and Human Services and obtained by The Post.

?One key way we got through previous waves was by moving health-care workers around. That?s just not possible when the virus is surging everywhere,? said Eleanor J. Murray, an epidemiologist at Boston University.

Equally alarming, Murray said, is that no one knows how high this wave will grow before peaking.

?We are starting this wave much higher than either of the previous waves,? she said. ?And it will simply keep going up until people and officials decide to do something about it.?

More than 8.3 million Americans so far have been infected with the coronavirus, and at least 222,000 have died, according to a database maintained by The Post.

The high case numbers of recent days have stoked concerns because the country has not even hit the stretch of holidays and cold weather, which experts have long warned will send cases soaring even higher. More interactions could mean more transmission during celebrations of Halloween, Christmas and the New Year. The winter?s cold, dry air will also help the virus stay stable longer, even as it drives people to hunker down together indoors.

On Thursday, Chicago Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot (D) announced new restrictions on businesses. Hours later, White House coronavirus response coordinator Deborah Birx warned that closing public spaces may not be enough.

?It won?t be as simple as closing public spaces,? Birx said, pointing to increased gatherings in people?s homes. ?What has happened in the last three to four weeks is that people have moved their social gatherings indoors.?

In some areas of Wisconsin, 90 percent of hospital intensive care unit beds are full, the office of Gov. Tony Evers (D) said. The first patient was admitted Wednesday to a makeshift field hospital erected at a state fairgrounds.

Hospitals from Missouri to Idaho are starting to reach capacity. On Thursday and Friday, America had more than 40,000 current covid-19 hospitalizations ? the first time that level has been reached since August. In the past three weeks, 37 states saw sizable increases in hospitalizations, and the number has more than doubled in Connecticut, Montana, New Mexico and Wyoming.

In Utah, leaders are trying to open a field hospital at an exposition center. State epidemiologist Angela Dunn warned that the health-care system is at capacity, hospital staff are exhausted, and Utahans are getting scared.

?You know, I just, I don?t know what to do anymore,? Dunn said at a Thursday news conference, pleading for residents to be more cautious. ?I?m really not trying to scare anyone. I?m just trying to inform you of what?s going on.?

Experts said the problem facing many hospitals this winter won?t be finding enough beds. It will be ensuring that hospitals have sufficient specialized staffing.

?Creating beds is relatively easy, but what do you do when you outstrip ICU nurses, doctors and teams?? said Michael T. Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota?s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy.

In recent months, health-care workers have been able to lower mortality rates ? the ratio of patients who die once infected. Much of that progress has come through hard-earned expertise by ICU staff ? new approaches and knowledge about how to combat the virus, such as when to use ventilators, the adoption of treatments such as steroids and proning patients, which helps with breathing by shifting them onto their abdomens.

But the hard-won battle to lower mortality rates could be imperiled as hospitals are overwhelmed and staffing gets stretched, Osterholm said. And as the pandemic has seeped into rural swatches of the Midwest, skeleton staffs at smaller hospitals are shrinking further as doctors and nurses fall ill.

A report this week by Osterholm?s center showed shortages in 29 of the 40 basic but critical drugs often used for covid-19 patients. That includes antibiotics, sedatives like propofol that are used to calm patients during intubation and heart medication such as norepinephrine. And because of the widespread nature of the infections, hospitals are finding it harder to draw from excess supplies of such drugs elsewhere.

The nation?s growing fatigue with the pandemic will likely make it even harder to contain a wintertime wave, specialists fear.

Even as hundreds of people are dying each day, ?there?s this false sense of calm right now,? said Tom Inglesby, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. ?We have the president saying, ?We?re rounding the corner.? We have state leaders openly defying public health guidances.?

Inglesby pointed to plans and metrics many states laid out last spring for reopening. ?That?s been completely disregarded in many places,? he said.

In North Dakota ? among the hardest-hit states ? Gov. Doug Burgum (R) put the onus on individuals to wear masks and avoid gatherings.

?It?s not a job for government,? Burgum recently declared.

At Thursday night?s final presidential debate, President Trump claimed the virus was ?going away? and ?we?re learning to live with it.? His Democratic rival, former vice president Joe Biden, responded, ?We?re learning to die with it."

Experts say rapid action is needed by leaders and residents to tamp down virus transmission.

?It?s been framed as this false choice between full shutdowns and doing nothing, but that?s not the case,? said Inglesby, who urged people to wear masks and avoid large gatherings.

Politicians also need to stop minimizing the risk posed by the virus and start discussing openly with the public the hard decisions and trade-offs that lie ahead, Murray said. Is it, for example, worth keeping bars open if it means having to close schools?

?I worry sometimes about being too pessimistic,? she said. ?We are not making predictions and saying this dark winter is somehow inevitable. We?re trying to warn people this is how it will be if we don?t do something about it.

?But it doesn?t have to be that way.?

Lena H. Sun contributed to this report.

 

[Old School]

As cases increase, US coronavirus deaths surpass 225,000
America continues to leads the world in COVID-19 casualties.
ByIvan Pereira

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/cases-increase-us-coronavirus-deaths-surpass-225000/story?id=73821817

The U.S. death toll from the novel coronavirus passed another grim milestone Sunday as the number of cases crossed the 225,000 mark.

The Center for Systems, Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University reported there were 225,111 COVID-19 related deaths across the country as of Sunday afternoon.

By comparison, there were 291,557 American soldiers killed in battle during World War II, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

The U.S. leads the world in coronavirus deaths and in total cases, which are now over 8.6 million, according to Johns Hopkins. Brazil has the second-highest death toll with nearly 157,000 dead, followed by India with nearly 119,000 deaths, according to the data.

The U.S. surpassed 200,000 dead on Sept. 22.

States across the country continue to report jumps in new coronavirus cases.

On Friday, the Covid Tracking Project recorded a record number of new cases in the country, 83,010, a day after it recorded 82,668. The seven-day average of new cases has been steadily increasing this month, going from 42,348 on Oct. 2 to 66,557 on Oct. 24, according to Covid Tracking Project data.

The seven-day average for U.S. newly reported deaths has also increased throughout the month, going from 703 on Oct. 2 to 807 on Oct. 24, the Covid Tracking Project data said.

Several Midwestern states have seen the greatest increase in cases, including Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana, according to the health data.

 

[Wineguy]

If the number doesn't decrease after January 20th, what will you have left to post newswise? Should be half the number Feb 20th, and even less, maybe 1/3 the number from January 19th on March 20th, right old nuts? Joe's number one plan for all of us should be ready to go. Can't wait.

 

[Old School]

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

 

[WhatsHisNuts]

If the number doesn't decrease after January 20th, what will you have left to post newswise? Should be half the number Feb 20th, and even less, maybe 1/3 the number from January 19th on March 20th, right old nuts? Joe's number one plan for all of us should be ready to go. Can't wait.

The Trump administration still has no plan other than to let the states handle it. So, I think we'll be happy with Biden trying to do anything. Re-establishing the PREDICT program, putting the Pandemic Response Team back together, establishing contact tracing and putting a national rapid testing program together is what I would expect. All of that would be a massive improvement on doing JACK FUCKING SHIT!

 

[BigGaycapper]

If we all would just hide in our basements this whole thing could be over....oh wait, the next president is already doing that. :mj07:

 

[ChrryBlstr]

If we all would just hide in our basements this whole thing could be over....oh wait, the next president is already doing that. :mj07:

Quit being so dramatic. No one said "to hide in your basement."

It's quite easy: wear a mask when out in public; social distance; don't engage in precarious activities that put you or others at risk; self-quarantine if you feel that you're getting sick; get checked if you think that there's a chance that you may have the virus. And wash your fucking hands properly. (So many disgusting individuals don't wash their hands after using the bathroom, for example. And this was pre-covid. SO GROSS!!!) Pretty simple, really.

tl/dr Don't be a chud!

Peace!

 

[Old School]

'We're in a crisis stage': Texas border city reels from coronavirus surge
El Paso is dealing with triple the number of Covid cases of its previous peak and the health system is under strain

Trisha Garcia in El Paso
Tue 27 Oct 2020 06.00 EDT

Donald Trump told a campaign rally on Saturday that the US was wasting money on coronavirus tests, claiming mass testing was only inflating the number of cases and fueling a media obsession while, in reality, ?you don?t see death?.

But El Paso is seeing too much death right now.

Local funeral director Jorge Ortiz has been forced to put an overflow of bodies into a chapel at one of his six funeral home locations.

?We actually converted one of our chapels into a cooler. We?re not gonna be able to have visitations there any more, said Ortiz, general manager of Perches Funeral Homes in the west Texas city, on the border with Mexico.

He?s handled 290 coronavirus funerals in the city and four out of five families seeking his services this month are mourning the loss of a loved one who succumbed to the virus.

?We know this is real,? Ortiz said. ?We face Covid every day.?

El Paso is experiencing its worst surge of the coronavirus outbreak and has become a hotspot not just in Texas, where cases and hospitalizations are rising, but in a country facing record infections.

El Paso county is dealing with 11,000 active cases, almost triple the number of cases it recorded in the previous July-August peak, and reported 1,216 new cases on Saturday, the highest single-day increase the county has seen. More than 850 people are now hospitalized with the virus, straining the local system.

Trump said during last week?s presidential debate: ?There was a very big spike in Texas, it?s now gone.?

But even as Trump?s chief of staff, Mark Meadows, said on Sunday that the administration was ?not going to control the pandemic?, El Paso is rushing to try.

County judge Ricardo Samaniego last week wrote to the Texas governor, Greg Abbott, asking for more assistance, including the use of a local army hospital to treat Covid-19 patients.

And on Sunday evening he imposed a 10pm to 5am curfew and urged county residents to stay home for two weeks.

Samaniego warned residents that those breaking curfew could be fined $500, though the curfew does not apply when going to or from work or out for essential services, including grocery stores and healthcare.

And anyone caught without a mask while unable to remain socially distant in public would face fines up to $250. He also declared that all county hospitals had reached capacity

?We are in a crisis stage,? he said.

Abbott is now sending 460 extra medical personnel to the area and announced that the El Paso convention center will be converted into a makeshift hospital to operate up to 100 beds.

A hospital nurse on the frontline in the city, who asked not to be named publicly in case it risked her job, told the Guardian: ?We?ve had no open beds for a couple weeks, and if we do, it?s only for an hour or so before another patient comes in.?

She described a recent tough shift with a man in her care struggling to breathe.

?A patient started declining fast, so we called the ICU doctor who said to intubate. I told him I?d hold his hand the whole time, he never let go, not until we had him completely sedated.?

The man became one of 117 patients on ventilators in the county, a number way above what?s normal there, she said.

?In July, it was busy, but people weren?t as sick when coming in,? she said.

She wants the authorities to ?shut the city down?.

Jacob Cintron, CEO of El Paso county hospital district, acknowledged at a press conference last Thursday that: ?Our hospitals are filling up, there is no doubt about that.?

Mayor Dee Margo explained on Friday in a phone interview with the Guardian that as long as El Paso continues to meet the demand for hospitalizations, he wouldn?t ask the governor for the necessary authorization to shut the city down.

Margo said: ?I think people mostly are suffering from Covid fatigue and they?re letting their guard down.?

He was not talking about tiredness brought on by the virus, but impatience by ostensibly healthy people with having to observe control measures.

As numbers began rising in October, new restrictions were announced, such as restaurants closing at 9pm except for takeout and limiting capacity for other non-essential businesses.

Half of new cases in the October surge involve people under 40, and 22% of people testing positive reported visiting restaurants.

Bars are not technically open, as bars alone, but the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) allows bars to partner with food trucks and operate as restaurants.

?It?s kind of, in my opinion, rigging the system,? Margo said. These pseudo-bar-restaurants have to prove to the TABC that 51% of their revenue is coming from food, not alcohol.

?We?ve heard all kinds of stories of people walking in to buy ?a beer for a dollar and nachos for $15?,? Margo said and has asked the commission to step up the policing of violations.

Schools and colleges are continuing with remote learning for the time being. But while the mayor banned spectators for outdoor sports, exceptions were made for the El Paso Locomotive pro soccer club and the university football team, with reduced crowds.

Another complicated situation is presented by the southern border on the city?s doorstep and, in normal times, a continuous flow of people and vehicles between El Paso and its Mexican sister city, Ju?rez, on the other side of the Rio Grande. Margo said 19% of cases in a two-week period had reported cross-border travel.

?The concern is Mexico,? he said. ?There are some significant spikes in Ju?rez, I have been supportive of making sure our bridges are not open to non-essential travel. I think there?s still some of that going on. If you?re a citizen or have a green card, you can go back and forth.?

Border restrictions are always difficult here, depressing business as well as social and humanitarian movement.

Ciudad Ju?rez last week went into virtual lockdown for two weeks to try to curb infection.

El Paso county?s coronavirus death toll so far is 575, with another 165 deaths listed as ?under investigation?.

Hidalgo county, with similar characteristics to El Paso county, but sitting at the eastern end of the Texas-Mexico border, experienced a catastrophic Covid surge in July, where the death toll went from 238 by 11 July to more than 1,000 three weeks later.

Now public health officials are warning it?s El Paso?s turn for a deadly surge, and Margo said: ?Unfortunately, I think we are prepared for that.?

The Associated Press contributed reporting

 

[Wineguy]

If we all would just hide in our basements this whole thing could be over....oh wait, the next president is already doing that. :mj07:

:bed::bed::bed:

 

[Wineguy]

"putting the Pandemic Response Team back together, establishing contact tracing and putting a national rapid testing program together"


Yep, I am sure Joe has all that ready to roll out starting in January. POOF!!! Pandemic goes away overnight.
Rapid test :mj07::mj07::mj07:that is trustworthy? What company does Joe have working on this in his basement?

Pandemic Response Team......ahhhh, let's let Hunter run it, he does great at things he know nothing about AND gets paid for it.

 

[yyz]

Hard to believe Hunter isnt a Trump!

 

[Wineguy]

Awww, am I "in your head" blankie boy? Anytime I post, you are sure to fricking follow. Count on blankie boy "ZZZ" for boring schtick.

 

[yyz]

Awww, am I "in your head" blankie boy? Anytime I post, you are sure to fricking follow. Count on blankie boy "ZZZ" for boring schtick.

Another award winning zinger!

Go tattle on me some more, you fucking pussy!

:142smilie

 

[WhatsHisNuts]

"putting the Pandemic Response Team back together, establishing contact tracing and putting a national rapid testing program together"


Yep, I am sure Joe has all that ready to roll out starting in January. POOF!!! Pandemic goes away overnight.
Rapid test :mj07::mj07::mj07:that is trustworthy? What company does Joe have working on this in his basement?

Pandemic Response Team......ahhhh, let's let Hunter run it, he does great at things he know nothing about AND gets paid for it.

Check your diaper.

 

[Wineguy]

Check your diaper.

I'm sorry Gary, but I don't get the comment or correlation?

You and I have always had a joking, easy going relationship, and politics is politics. Check your diaper? YYZ, now that is a completely different story. He jabs anyone and everyone no matter what thread, we are all dumbasses and he is king. You on the other hand are just politics which is fun. And a damn good golfer and fun to play with, although we have not been in same foursome last two events. Maybe sometime.

 

[Wineguy]

Another award winning zinger!

Go tattle on me some more, you fucking pussy!

:142smilie

Tattle on you to who? Who would listen to a peon like me against blankie boy? Heard you aren't making the next golf outing no matter what the date is. How do you have conflicts 8-9 months in advance over a 7 week period?

 

[yyz]

Tattle on you to who? Who would listen to a peon like me against blankie boy? Heard you aren't making the next golf outing no matter what the date is. How do you have conflicts 8-9 months in advance over a 7 week period?

Those carts won't wash themselves!