It’s too bad that we can’t threaten those who won’t take the vaccine with hefty fines and/or jail time. I’m actually somewhat surprised that some of these harsher nations scattered around the world haven’t done so. They punish their citizens severely for even less, mearly speaking out against their own government, for example.
I just don’t see why getting two shots in the arm within a month is such a “sacrifice” for some people. We as a planet “should” be near the very end of this pandemic, but…the variants have other ideas unfortunately.
You are correct about a country like Russia. It has plenty of vaccines, but only a small percentage of the population wants them. Russia is an authoritarian state, at least in some respects, so you would think that it could make vaccinations mandatory.
South Africa and Indonesia are different in that part of their problem is a genuine shortage of vaccines. At the same time, governments there have been lax in organizing an efficient vaccination campaign.
For all of our troubles throughout the pandemic the one thing we did very well compared to most countries is vaccinate.
With regard to your last paragraph, for that much we can be grateful.
I don’t think you can fine or punish someone for not having g a vaccine that is yet to be approved fully. With the heart problem showing up for younger kids, it is clear that the vaccine is not perfect. If it caused a minor heart issue for me and one daughter, I’d say something is up. I also guess that for those problems being reported, there are maybe 15-50% the number who are not reporting. I wonder if many adults bothered reporting the irregular heartbeat both pfeizer and moderna caused.
True, Vicki. This said, FDA and EMA (and other agencies) could have already granted regular approval to these vaccines for the adult population but just haven’t bothered doing so. It’s inexplicable. If the vaccines are granted regular approval they certainly can be made mandatory, though perhaps not for younger folks as I suspect the FDA will want to review data for the pediatric population.
I am on the fence on that but do understand your comment. Mandatory has a lot of exceptions. Do you know what vaccines are mandatory for adults?
For instance, I’ve never had MMR or chicken pox vaccines.
Adding that if fines or punishment were in place, I’d have a serious problem. I’d prefer to give it a few more years. We absolutely know they have some sort of an impact on the heart
I had no idea that you and your daughter had a heart issue, even though a minor
one. Sorry about that, Vicki.
Certain vaccines were mandatory at Framingham State College (now University). I applied in 1985.
Currently, all MA state universities require the Covid vaccine for all students.
Thanks, Philip. Do you recall which ones? That goes beyond IMO since it is still not approved.
Thank you sir. It was no more than irregular heartbeat. I can have that with prednisone for gout which ironically I am taking now with a gout flare. I put it off for over a week but wasn’t getting better so am taking a lesser dose. Fingers crossed
I did report mine since I was part of the program. My daughter didn’t.
Vicki, I’m sorry to hear about the irregular heart issues.
As with all mandates there are medical and religious exemptions. But, from my own experience in the U.S. every town we lived in had mandatory vaccinations for the children in order to enroll in school. Also, every place of employment for me in the U.S. has had mandatory vaccinations plus several tests like the TB Mantoux test: Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Tufts University. All immigrants to the U.S. seeking a green card not only must be vaccinated they have to go through a rigorous physical, which includes things like an HIV test and other STD tests.
While I’m sure many employers in the U.S. do not require vaccinations, many do. And, the employer mandates are actually stricter here than they are in the Netherlands. And, the vaccinations and boosters required run the gamut, from varicella (or proof of having had chickenpox to hepatitis B to MMR to diphtheria to tetanus. Before I could register at Harvard to do my research program I submitted my vaccination forms to the registrar. They were not good enough. I `needed’ multiple boosters, which I got at a local hospital.
Thanks Joshua. I do understand immigrants. I do know that schools require as my kids all had required vaccines . I do understand immigrants. I also know Mac and family had required vaccines before moving abroad. I was thinking more adults. It is assumed we had Mumps measles etc. but not all did and not all who did still have immunity. I’ve never been asked for proof.
I wonder how proven these all were before required. I say this all as you know having chosen to be vaccinated. I simply feel we are not close to ready to force these. If they force younger kids before fall I fully believe it will be remarkably irresponsible. It is a parents choice and not a government that has not been above board…, especially when it would fully approve for younger in what seems to be less time than adults when it should be at least twice as long.
Just my be view now. It may well change as testing increases
Adding. I suspect colleges/universities etc have a requirements because many attend from abroad and are not vaccinated for many and also carry many. I also understand this. If someone chooses to attend, then it is his/her decision and as such should conform to the rules
Portugal is one of several European countries welcoming U.S. tourists into the country so long as they’re fully vaccinated. The hitch this week is that Greater Lisbon is under a mini lockdown of sorts due to the Delta variant surge in the city. Police are at checkpoints flagging down cars and making sure that Lisboans stay within a certain radius. I was just watching the Portuguese news on RTP and the police were turning people back who were trying to enter the metropolitan area. I wonder what they would do with Americans.
U.S./Canada border remains shut for at least 1 more month. inexplicable, if you ask me, especially given that the Canadian caseload is now very low AND in the U.S. there are no more Covid restrictions (which means that local transmission is far more likely than from Canadians entering this country). https://twitter.com/thehill/status/1406032486023536640
My guess is the U.S. will continue to close the border to UK and EU citizens for a while longer. Again, an inexplicable measure, at least for the fully vaccinated.
Yet, the U.S. allows South Americans in as tourists – some of whom are here to get vaccinations. All they have to do is present a negative Covid test. Can someone explain this to me? I’m a patient person, but I’ve run out of patience with the Biden Administration on this weirdly inconsistent travel policy that is clearly not science-based.
Is Covid breaking through the vaccines in the countries you mentioned? And allowing folks entrance to receive vaccines doesn’t make a lot of sense. What if they bring whatever variant here. A negative test is only good for that day. Maybe that is why Canada is closed to us.
Is there a site that shows how us states are doing individually?
This has a color-coded map and you can click on a state for more information: https://covidactnow.org/
I hope this helps!
Thank you very much
This is great. I am successfully fighting a headache so just played a bit but will look in depth tomorrow.
Joshua now that my headache is gone I see you meant we closed the border from Canada to here. I can see why they would prefer we stay here but agree with you re allowing Canadians to come here.
C-19 for 6-19 is ready.
Comments are closed.
Your no-hype southeastern New England weather blog!
Indonesia is facing a significant wave (may suggest Sinovac’s lack of efficacy; Chile has already demonstrated this):
https://twitter.com/EricTopol/status/1405883685606354945
Russia, too, but here vaccine hesitancy plays a big role.
https://twitter.com/EricTopol/status/1405916495138287617
South Africa, too, and a lackluster vaccination campaign plays a role.
https://twitter.com/natashaloder/status/1405917090247233537
It’s too bad that we can’t threaten those who won’t take the vaccine with hefty fines and/or jail time. I’m actually somewhat surprised that some of these harsher nations scattered around the world haven’t done so. They punish their citizens severely for even less, mearly speaking out against their own government, for example.
I just don’t see why getting two shots in the arm within a month is such a “sacrifice” for some people. We as a planet “should” be near the very end of this pandemic, but…the variants have other ideas unfortunately.
You are correct about a country like Russia. It has plenty of vaccines, but only a small percentage of the population wants them. Russia is an authoritarian state, at least in some respects, so you would think that it could make vaccinations mandatory.
South Africa and Indonesia are different in that part of their problem is a genuine shortage of vaccines. At the same time, governments there have been lax in organizing an efficient vaccination campaign.
For all of our troubles throughout the pandemic the one thing we did very well compared to most countries is vaccinate.
With regard to your last paragraph, for that much we can be grateful.
I don’t think you can fine or punish someone for not having g a vaccine that is yet to be approved fully. With the heart problem showing up for younger kids, it is clear that the vaccine is not perfect. If it caused a minor heart issue for me and one daughter, I’d say something is up. I also guess that for those problems being reported, there are maybe 15-50% the number who are not reporting. I wonder if many adults bothered reporting the irregular heartbeat both pfeizer and moderna caused.
True, Vicki. This said, FDA and EMA (and other agencies) could have already granted regular approval to these vaccines for the adult population but just haven’t bothered doing so. It’s inexplicable. If the vaccines are granted regular approval they certainly can be made mandatory, though perhaps not for younger folks as I suspect the FDA will want to review data for the pediatric population.
I am on the fence on that but do understand your comment. Mandatory has a lot of exceptions. Do you know what vaccines are mandatory for adults?
For instance, I’ve never had MMR or chicken pox vaccines.
Adding that if fines or punishment were in place, I’d have a serious problem. I’d prefer to give it a few more years. We absolutely know they have some sort of an impact on the heart
I had no idea that you and your daughter had a heart issue, even though a minor
one. Sorry about that, Vicki.
Certain vaccines were mandatory at Framingham State College (now University). I applied in 1985.
Currently, all MA state universities require the Covid vaccine for all students.
Thanks, Philip. Do you recall which ones? That goes beyond IMO since it is still not approved.
Thank you sir. It was no more than irregular heartbeat. I can have that with prednisone for gout which ironically I am taking now with a gout flare. I put it off for over a week but wasn’t getting better so am taking a lesser dose. Fingers crossed
I did report mine since I was part of the program. My daughter didn’t.
Vicki, I’m sorry to hear about the irregular heart issues.
As with all mandates there are medical and religious exemptions. But, from my own experience in the U.S. every town we lived in had mandatory vaccinations for the children in order to enroll in school. Also, every place of employment for me in the U.S. has had mandatory vaccinations plus several tests like the TB Mantoux test: Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Tufts University. All immigrants to the U.S. seeking a green card not only must be vaccinated they have to go through a rigorous physical, which includes things like an HIV test and other STD tests.
While I’m sure many employers in the U.S. do not require vaccinations, many do. And, the employer mandates are actually stricter here than they are in the Netherlands. And, the vaccinations and boosters required run the gamut, from varicella (or proof of having had chickenpox to hepatitis B to MMR to diphtheria to tetanus. Before I could register at Harvard to do my research program I submitted my vaccination forms to the registrar. They were not good enough. I `needed’ multiple boosters, which I got at a local hospital.
Thanks Joshua. I do understand immigrants. I do know that schools require as my kids all had required vaccines . I do understand immigrants. I also know Mac and family had required vaccines before moving abroad. I was thinking more adults. It is assumed we had Mumps measles etc. but not all did and not all who did still have immunity. I’ve never been asked for proof.
I wonder how proven these all were before required. I say this all as you know having chosen to be vaccinated. I simply feel we are not close to ready to force these. If they force younger kids before fall I fully believe it will be remarkably irresponsible. It is a parents choice and not a government that has not been above board…, especially when it would fully approve for younger in what seems to be less time than adults when it should be at least twice as long.
Just my be view now. It may well change as testing increases
Adding. I suspect colleges/universities etc have a requirements because many attend from abroad and are not vaccinated for many and also carry many. I also understand this. If someone chooses to attend, then it is his/her decision and as such should conform to the rules
Portugal is one of several European countries welcoming U.S. tourists into the country so long as they’re fully vaccinated. The hitch this week is that Greater Lisbon is under a mini lockdown of sorts due to the Delta variant surge in the city. Police are at checkpoints flagging down cars and making sure that Lisboans stay within a certain radius. I was just watching the Portuguese news on RTP and the police were turning people back who were trying to enter the metropolitan area. I wonder what they would do with Americans.
U.S./Canada border remains shut for at least 1 more month. inexplicable, if you ask me, especially given that the Canadian caseload is now very low AND in the U.S. there are no more Covid restrictions (which means that local transmission is far more likely than from Canadians entering this country). https://twitter.com/thehill/status/1406032486023536640
My guess is the U.S. will continue to close the border to UK and EU citizens for a while longer. Again, an inexplicable measure, at least for the fully vaccinated.
Yet, the U.S. allows South Americans in as tourists – some of whom are here to get vaccinations. All they have to do is present a negative Covid test. Can someone explain this to me? I’m a patient person, but I’ve run out of patience with the Biden Administration on this weirdly inconsistent travel policy that is clearly not science-based.
Is Covid breaking through the vaccines in the countries you mentioned? And allowing folks entrance to receive vaccines doesn’t make a lot of sense. What if they bring whatever variant here. A negative test is only good for that day. Maybe that is why Canada is closed to us.
Is there a site that shows how us states are doing individually?
This has a color-coded map and you can click on a state for more information:
https://covidactnow.org/
I hope this helps!
Thank you very much
This is great. I am successfully fighting a headache so just played a bit but will look in depth tomorrow.
Joshua now that my headache is gone I see you meant we closed the border from Canada to here. I can see why they would prefer we stay here but agree with you re allowing Canadians to come here.
C-19 for 6-19 is ready.