20 thoughts on “C-19 Chat Post – June 26 2021”

    1. That is good news. New England, the Mid-Atlantic states, and the Midwest continue to do well.

      The concern at this point is focused on a number of states in the South and middle of the country as well as a few mostly rural states in the Northwest.

      1. Very good news. One of mine and family plans to drive to Charleston this summer at some point. Mid Atlantic states and SC of course are being watched carefully

  1. Joshua, who exactly makes up the FDA anyway? A team of medical experts who “think” they know more than Dr. Fauci and other virologists we see every day on the tv news??

      1. Indeed.

        Philip, FDA, CDC, and also Fauci’s division (infectious diseases) are distinct, though they do work together. FDA’s mission in terms of pharmaceuticals is to review them for safety, efficacy, and quality of manufacturing practices. FDA is made up of many career civil servants, who are often MDs. It is also advised by advisory committees made up of independent physicians and clinical researchers. The only political appointee is the commissioner. Biden hasn’t named one yet, so a career civil servant, Janet Woodcock (whom I’ve met several times at conferences), is the interim commissioner.

  2. UK data are in. For a Saturday it’s not looking good: 18,270 new cases (most in almost 5 months; jump of 2,500 from yesterday); hospitalizations and ICU up.

    The good news is that cases and hospitalizations (and deaths) are not following parallel paths. Case growth is steeper. There has been some decoupling, if you will. Undoubtedly this is due to most new cases being detected in young people. Nevertheless, the fact that hospitalizations are rising along with deaths shows that the Delta variant is having an impact.

    This will likely happen in parts of the U.S., too, and I think will have a more pronounced impact on hospitalizations and deaths here. We have more unvaccinated people, and especially more older (>50) unvaccinated folks. We also have a healthcare system that currently is not performing as well as the NHS in terms of saving lives. I would NOT have expected this. But facts are facts.

    Our current deaths and death rate – even now – far exceed the UK’s. This has been an ongoing theme for about 3 months. This should be investigated. Are people being diagnosed too late (testing in the U.S. is way down)? Are people not being treated with the right medications or procedures?

    1. In just 1 week in the UK there’s been a 23% increase on patients on ventilators and deaths have gone up 61%. The absolute numbers of deaths are relatively low (23 today), but the fact that it’s rising this much is concerning. Almost all the people on ventilators and dying are younger than 60.

  3. Because of Covid-19 protocols, North Carolina State is out of the College World Series. Today’s final game against my Vanderbilt Commodores was declared a no-contest at 2 am today. Not a lot of news coming from the NCAA, so I am assuming that the Wolfpack couldn’t field a team for today’s game. NC State only had 13 players available for yesterday’s game.

    Vanderbilt advances to the finals Monday night against the winner of tonight’s Texas-Mississippi State game.

    1. Vaccinations should be required, if not by colleges themselves, at least by the NCAA itself for all athletes. I hope we’re not going to start up these “Covid protocols” again to kick off the football season, and other fall/winter sports as well.

      Btw, all MA State Colleges require all students vaccinated for the upcoming academic year 2021-22. I believe private schools BU and BC as well.

      MA went from “worst to first” these first six months, no doubt about it in terms of controlling Covid. I believe only VT is better at 80% vaccination rate.

  4. Matt Hancock, UK’s health minister, has resigned. Not because of the Delta variant, but because he broke Covid rules last month. Well, there’s more to it than that. He was having an affair with one of his senior aides, and he was caught on camera in or near his Westminster office in an a intimate embrace with Gina Coladangelo. Both Hancock and Coladangelo are married.
    https://twitter.com/business/status/1408841201814548481

    Meanwhile there’s a large protest underway in London. It’s a mix of people . Some are merely opposed to the government’s Covid-19 rules and want the country to fully reopen. Others are also anti-vaxxers and against `vaccine passports’ which have been and will continue to be in widespread use throughout Britain (to get into venues, etc ..).

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