# Coronavirus COVID-19 (2019-nCoV) Thread - 2020 Breaking News **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [February 11, 2020, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758 "2020-02-11T01:16:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 64
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1263 "2020-03-22T07:02:19Z")
India has about 3% of its population over 60 USA has about 20% Italy - over 25% They’re not going to get nearly as many serious cases. In many places (including a lot of the west) cases are primarily being caught on the grounds that they’re among the most serious cases, with pneumonia etc ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1264 "2020-03-22T07:50:31Z")
India has a life expectancy about 10 years less than the US. You might ask why. Assuming that the mortality rate for Covid-19 is simply a function of years is unlikely to work. For a start I would take the US mortality rate for each decade of life and drop it a decade for India. Probably get you a better estimate. Add to that the lack of hospital capacity per capita. It isn’t going to be good. ---
**Author:** ![Arjuna34](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Arjuna34](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arjuna34)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1265 "2020-03-22T12:18:26Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > What we do _today_ likely won’t impact death rate growth for more than three weeks, won’t impact ICU admissions until two weeks out (-ish) … and will only impact first symptoms in about 5d. Shelter in place orders from a week back won’t effect death rates for two weeks. > > The single best hope is that the highest risk (those over 70 and some others) were already social distancing 3 weeks ago, and that those who were sick were already self-isolating then as well. Or maybe that the unknown rate of asymptomatic infections is a very very huge iceberg. Or both. If so then the exponential rise in death rates flattens out before three weeks out. Maybe the flattening has begun? I only trust the death stats (at least in the US). According to the [Worldometers](https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/) website, the US deaths per day has dropped two days in a row. That’s about 10 days from the day when the NBA canceled games (my marker for when isolation started to get serious). ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1266 "2020-03-22T12:48:00Z")
> [@Arjuna34](#): > > Maybe the flattening has begun? I only trust the death stats (at least in the US). According to the [Worldometers](https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/) website, the US deaths per day has dropped two days in a row. That’s about 10 days from the day when the NBA canceled games (my marker for when isolation started to get serious). The thing to watch out for on that website is that they constantly update the numbers during the day. Many countries give one daily consolidated report, but it seems that the US reports are partial and at different times, so today’s numbers will usually be too low until the end of the day. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1267 "2020-03-22T12:52:32Z")
> [@Arjuna34](#): > > Maybe the flattening has begun? I only trust the death stats (at least in the US). According to the [Worldometers](https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/) website, the US deaths per day has dropped two days in a row. That’s about 10 days from the day when the NBA canceled games (my marker for when isolation started to get serious). Wait til the Spring Breakers get back home to mom/dad, grandma/grandpa: > [@](#): > > …No place highlighted the country’s conflicting moods more than Florida. Footage of crowded beaches spread. Shutting down spring break proved difficult. Some students, high on sunshine and beers and obliviousness, relied on their youth as a shield and ignored warnings they could carry the virus back to their parents and grandparents. > > “It’s like this thing blew up in my face,” said Parker Simms, a student from the University of Kentucky who came to Fort Lauderdale last Saturday with 50 friends and big plans. “It blew up during my spring break week.” > > In the debate between economics and epidemiology, local officials generally took the side of money and revelry. Late in the week, though, many joined the shutdown trend. > > By Thursday, the beach in Fort Lauderdale was eerily empty, save for stacked chairs and lifeguard towers. A cluster of college students with roller bags and floppy straw hats walked toward a waiting SUV headed to the airport. > … > [Source](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/22/us/deniers-and-disbelievers-if-i-get-corona-i-get-corona.html) Yeah, Parker, you’re the only one whose day was ruined. :smack: More from that article: > [@](#): > > NOVATO, Calif. — A climbing destination on the remote eastern side of the snow-capped Sierra Nevada, Bishop, Calif., was packed last weekend, as crowded as any holiday, despite growing calls for isolation in advance of a predicted wave of coronavirus cases. > > “People were like, ‘Social distancing? I’m going to Bishop. Can’t get any more distant than that,’” resident and climber Jeff Deikis said. > > It turned out the coffee shops and the brewery were jammed. Outside of Bishop, a four-hour drive from Los Angeles and six hours from San Francisco, climbers scaled the nearby boulders and canyons, sharing fresh air and, perhaps, infectious disease. > > “Climbers from around the country have descended upon Bishop as though a global pandemic were some sort of hall pass from responsibility and magnanimity,” a climbing blog reported. > … > > In Rhode Island, among businesses cited for ignoring social-distance warnings was Wonderland, a strip club, where customers were still receiving lap dances last weekend. (Its website says it has since closed temporarily.) > … > > And in the Midwest, Uline, a major distributor of packaging materials and industrial supplies, kept its work force going through the week, despite complaints from employees, including those crowded into its call centers, working side-by-side in cubicles. > > “Nothing’s really changed,” one employee said. “It’s just nerve-racking.” > > Employees received an email Thursday from the Uihlein Family, owners of the $5.8 billion company and big donors to Republican causes, thanking them for their efforts and saying that the “White House called upon us twice with huge orders” this week. > > The same day, a manager at one Uline call center sent a note to employees. > > “If you, or family members, are under the weather with cold/allergies — or anything aside from Covid-19,” it read, “please do NOT tell your peers about the symptoms & your assumptions. By doing so, you are causing unnecessary panic in the office.” > … So, if you DO start showing symptoms, FFS don’t tell anyone! We might lose some business! :smack: Then there’s the _carpe diem_ approach and fuck everyone else: > [@](#): > > …Kay Seeling, 69, and two friends made the trip to Florida from Seattle a week ago, not expecting the crisis to follow them, exploding as it did. Now they had few options, as bars and many restaurants closed. > > “We’re taking precautions,” Denise Algie, a companion, said, noting her hand sanitizer. > > “But we’re not,” Ms. Seeling argued. “We have masks, but we’re not wearing them.” > > “You’re going to die of something at our age anyway,” Ms. Algie said. “You can’t stop life.” > > They hopped on their rented golf cart and left. Next stop: an airboat ride on the Florida Everglades. They hoped it was still open. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1268 "2020-03-22T12:53:22Z")
Good article about India’s fight in The Economist. They seem to be doing a lot. But so does Russia, far less credibly. Didn’t realize how much Vegas was shut down. Good article in today’s ( Sunday 22 March) Washington Post. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1269 "2020-03-22T13:06:27Z")
The response is mostly piecemeal, state by state, and it’s uneven. It’s great that New York, California, Nevada, and Illinois are imposing “draconian” restrictions, but people are still getting out and about even in these places, and you have another 46 states that aren’t doing nearly as much. Airports are still open. Highways still have lots of traffic. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1270 "2020-03-22T13:09:46Z")
As this crisis progresses, let’s think about how many of Trump’s officials, secretaries, and directors in key roles are “acting” directors, “acting” secretaries," and “acting” officials. The OPM director was just forced out - by a 29-year-old Trump loyalist and all-around frat boy who had been previously forced to resign over ethical concerns. It’s comforting to know who’s influencing personnel decisions at a time like this, and I’m sure we can all rest easy and feel reassured that “only the best people” have been put into place to handle this situation. _“I can handle things, I’m smart. Not like everybody says, like dumb. I’m smart, and I want respect!”_ ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1271 "2020-03-22T14:06:21Z")
[India’s trains are a problem](https://apnews.com/f0d7006c74214c4cbc2c86795bc920ba) > [@](#): > > Indian migrant workers attempting to reach their home villages crowded a railway station in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, defying a 14-hour “people’s curfew” that Prime Minister Narendra Modi called to stem a surge in coronavirus cases in the world’s second-most populous country. > [@](#): > > Earlier Sunday, thousands of people from Mumbai and elsewhere in the western state of Maharashtra, which has confirmed the highest number of cases in India, jostled at a railway station in the city of Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state. Police struggled from a distance to control the crowds, who were waiting to be taken to their villages by buses and taxis that appeared unlikely to come. > [@](#): > > Indian Railways later suspended all passenger train services until March 31, although freight services will continue. It was unclear what this would mean for people stranded at railway stations. > > In recent days, migrant workers hauling backpacks have swarmed overcrowded trains across many Indian cities, an exodus among panic-stricken day laborers that has sparked fears the virus could spread to the countryside. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1272 "2020-03-22T14:53:21Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Wait til the Spring Breakers get back home to mom/dad, grandma/grandpa: > Yeah, Parker, you’re the only one whose day was ruined. :smack: > > More from that article: So, if you DO start showing symptoms, FFS don’t tell anyone! We might lose some business! > > :smack: > > Then there’s the _carpe diem_ approach and fuck everyone else: I think you could make a case for U-line ( a company mentioned in a quoted article) being an essential business. Essential goods still need to be transported. That means they need to be packaged and packed. And companies need the supplies in order to do that. U-line also sells respirators and protective masks. We were actually looking at them in the U-line catalog yesterday. That said, it seems like there are a lot of commercial/industrial businesses that are still running and I guess to some extent they have been deemed essential. I noticed that plumbers and electricians, for example, have been deemed essential. Yes, if you have a pipe burst or a breaker go bad, you need to be able to get someone to fix it. But the bulk of what electricians and plumbers do is new construction. And there is a huge supply chain of factories and distributors behind them, providing the materials that they need. I was in that business until a couple of months ago, and I’m disturbed that some of these businesses still seem to be open. You might need an electrician to replace your circuit breaker, but does the circuit breaker factory need to stay open? It might, especially if the governments are building out temporary hospitals. And they might also make parts needed for ventilators. A lot of what we do as a society is essential. And we you start digging into what businesses are essential, and the products and services they need in order to stay open, it’s a really long list. We actually haven’t shut down THAT much of the economy, just a highly visible sector involving entertainment and luxury consumer goods. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1273 "2020-03-22T15:05:52Z")
I didn’t suggest and am not suggesting that U-Line should close. If you thought I was saying that, then I welcome the opportunity to clarify. Yes, they are an essential business. I’m talking about this attitude: > [@](#): > > …The same day, a manager at one Uline call center sent a note to employees. > > “If you, or family members, are under the weather with cold/allergies — or anything aside from Covid-19,” it read, “please do NOT tell your peers about the symptoms & your assumptions. By doing so, you are causing unnecessary panic in the office.” ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1274 "2020-03-22T15:18:17Z")
**[Even the best coronavirus scenario is terrible](https://www.axios.com/coronavirus-cases-deaths-scenarios-a452dd00-81eb-4683-9050-83a93e40b538.htmlhttp://)** > [@](#): > > Sadly, the more we learn about the coronavirus pandemic, on both the medical and economic sides, the worse the best-case scenarios become. > > **Why it matters:** Some readers tell us they think virus coverage has been overly dramatic. So we wanted to share with you the consensus of what the most clear-eyed, serious, optimistic people are saying, as a way to focus our minds. > > **Tens of thousands of Americans die** , we have double-digit unemployment for months, countless businesses die, retirements are wiped out, and the nation is saddled with once unimaginable debt. > > ``` > [ul] > > ``` > > [li]That, folks, is the best case scenario we’re facing.[/li][li] That’s if we’re lucky — and doesn’t even mention the lost graduations, honeymoons, weddings, and other important missed milestones.[/li][/ul] > > **Here’s an example:** A survey of epidemiology experts in academia, government and industry, posted by a scholar at UMass Amherst and reported by FiveThirtyEight, predicted that the number of cases reported by the end of this month would most likely fall somewhere between 10,500 and 81,500. > > ``` > [ul] > > ``` > > [li]The survey was taken Monday and Tuesday. [March 16 & 17][/li][li] We’re already right around 20,000 cases, so the lower end of those estimates is out the window.[/li][/ul] > The same survey anticipates about 200,000 deaths in the U.S this year, but experts have established a range that stretches from as few as 19,000 deaths to as many as 1.2 million. > > ``` > [ul] > > ``` > > [li]A true best-case scenario would look a lot like the response in places like Singapore and South Korea, which were able to quickly “flatten the curve” and bring the number of new cases under control.[/li][li] But the U.S. simply has not been doing the things that worked in those countries, so whatever our best-case scenario may be, it’s not that good.[/li][/ul] > … More at the link. (Formatting copied from original) ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1275 "2020-03-22T18:08:34Z")
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson just announced that they are sending letters to 1.5m people with underlying health conditions or who take immunosuppressant drugs telling them they should try not to leave their homes for 12 weeks. They are going to set up hubs around the country to offer them delivery of free food and prescription medicine - and they are using the army to coordinate the logistics. Quite a good idea I think - but will see how smoothly it goes. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1276 "2020-03-22T18:09:36Z")
Rand Paul who showed no signs of coved 19 has tested positive. If there is a blood type component to the virus India has a low percentage of type a. > **[Blood type distribution by country](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_type_distribution_by_country)** > > This list concerns blood type distribution between countries and regions. Blood type (also called a blood group) is a classification of blood, based on the presence and absence of antibodies and inherited antigenic substances on the surface of red blood cells (RBCs). These antigens may be proteins, carbohydrates, glycoproteins, or glycolipids, depending on the blood group system. > .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{displa... ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1277 "2020-03-22T18:42:11Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > The response is mostly piecemeal, state by state, and it’s uneven. It’s great that New York, California, Nevada, and Illinois are imposing “draconian” restrictions, but people are still getting out and about even in these places, and you have another 46 states that aren’t doing nearly as much. Airports are still open. Highways still have lots of traffic. Unfortunately, I’m skeptical that the kind of coordinated “draconian” response you’d hope for is just not possible. Not to say that Trump couldn’t do a lot more, but the nature of the country (geographically, politically, and socially) makes me think that this was inevitable. I mean, Italy has daily news all over the country about deaths, and Italians are STILL apparently breaking quarantine. Never mind the hazards in giving Trump the powers he would need to even consider starting. I honestly don’t think that anyone (okay, most) would question such measures if there were a sense that they could be implemented and would work (and had any confidence of support afterward). I’m not sure what to do, myself, but wishing for some kind of national lockdown with troops enforcing a shelter in place decree across the continent, like Reddit seems to, doesn’t seem like a good use of emotional resources. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1278 "2020-03-22T18:53:59Z")
Holy cow, [Worldometer](https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/) has US Covid-19 cases up 14,550 so far today. And I know reporting happens throughout the day, so it’s going to climb higher by this evening. When I looked yesterday, there were ~20k cases, now it’s almost double that. Ouch! Edit: most of the increase is New York, with \>12k cases alone. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1279 "2020-03-22T19:22:29Z")
> [@rocking\_chair](#): > > Rand Paul who showed no signs of coved 19 has tested positive. > > … Wonder how long it will take to spread through the Senate? ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1280 "2020-03-22T19:24:16Z")
> [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](#): > > UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson just announced that they are sending letters to 1.5m people with underlying health conditions or who take immunosuppressant drugs telling them they should try not to leave their homes for 12 weeks. They are going to set up hubs around the country to offer them delivery of free food and prescription medicine - and they are using the army to coordinate the logistics. Quite a good idea I think - but will see how smoothly it goes. Yes, this seems a very good idea. I hope we will replicate this here. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1281 "2020-03-22T19:26:40Z")
[12-year-old girl with no known underlying medical issues fighting for her life in GA.](https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/22/us/georgia-coronavirus-girl-hospitalized/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2020, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/1282 "2020-03-22T19:27:04Z")
[Angela Merkel is in quarantine](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-22/merkel-in-quarantine-at-home-after-contact-with-infected-doctor) after contact with a doctor that subsequently tested positive for COVID-19. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758.md?page=63) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758.md?page=65)