Corona virus (Page 3)

Do you remember the H1N1 Pandemic??.....

"From April 12, 2009 to April 10, 2010, CDC estimated there were 60.8 million cases (range: 43.3-89.3 million), 274,304 hospitalizations (range: 195,086-402,719), and 12,469 deaths (range: 8868-18,306) in the United States due to the (H1N1)pdm09 virus."

Yeah, me neither....maybe we would if it was during an election year. LOL

I suspect the actual threat of this to lie somewhere in between that of the panicked media and that of those on the right who think it's a big nothingburger. (Which is pretty much the case for everything these days, no?)

The major news outlets in the US are sharing a lot of hyped up headlines, but honestly not a lot of useful scientific information, and the CDC doesn't seem to be sharing a ton of useful information either. I'm a science nerd, so I've been following the twitter feeds of a bunch of epidemiologists and scientists, and there's some really useful information out there, and some really smart people doing some amazing work on this. It's actually kind of fascinating. There is much more scientific info available in news sources outside of our country, fwiw. 

The disease seems to have a similar RO to the flu, which means it can/will infect populations quickly. So far, 80% of cases experience mild symptoms, which is great news if you're young and healthy, but doesn't mean we should just stick our heads in the sand and pretend it's nothing. 15% of cases are presenting with serious symptoms that require medical intervention. That's a big deal compared to the flu, and if it spreads like the flu means that hospitals are likely to see a huge increase in the number of patients requiring respiratory care. Whether they die or not, it would be irresponsible to pretend nothing is happening and not prepare for the likelihood of some strain on our medical system. 

The most logical thing I read today was this - why we shouldn't panic, but why a little bit of preparation can provide some "slack" in the system and make things work out better in the end (think you have to show the thread to read her entire point): https://twitter.com/firefoxx66/status/1233666678841597952 

Other than he fact that it's a novel virus that we haven't seen before,  I find the coverage of this Coronavirus to be truly bizarre.  By all the latest accounts it's likely less severe (maybe MUCH less) than infuenza.....yet the world seems to be in meltdown mode over it.  Why?  

Here's a perfect example....."Costco Banning Free Samples Over Corona Virus"......well, OK, way to ramp it up another level.   Why have they not banned free samples over the flu?  Or the common cold?  Who eats that stuff anyway?  And if we're doing that, why aren't we banning restaurants?  This is all craziness.

Other than to stoke fear.....what would be the point of running a story about Costco banning samples?  How is that news to ANYONE?   The NBA has sent out a memo that the players should get ready to play their playoffs to empty arenas, because it's to much of a danger to let that many people congregate with the spreading virus.  LOL

I don't care much for Labron James......mostly because I'm just not a fan of the NBA, or basketball in general outside of March Madness....but he has stated that he will not play to an empty house, because what's the point if there are no fans......good for Labron.   Maybe he just made a new fan.