# Coronavirus COVID-19 (2019-nCoV) Thread - 2021 Breaking News **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [January 1, 2021, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428 "2021-01-01T08:03:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**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:** [January 2, 2021, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/21 "2021-01-02T20:49:56Z")
California’s funeral homes are full of corpses: > **[California funeral homes run out of space as COVID-19 rages](https://apnews.com/article/los-angeles-coronavirus-pandemic-california-united-states-c7f6c6d07abb092f536cce191e62a932)** > > LOS ANGELES (AP) — As communities across the country feel the pain of a surge in coronavirus cases, funeral homes in the hot spot of Southern California say they must turn away grieving families as they run out of space for the bodies piling up... ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/22 "2021-01-02T21:18:36Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > What we are now seeing is a group of “experts” (JCVI) recommending that the vaccine be used differently, and indeed in a manner that was never even investigated. Weird. Better hope it works. Why the scare quotes? Are you disputing that the JCVI are experts? And what is weird? Have you not noticed that there is a massive public health crisis, and that some decisions must be made based on imperfect information? I mean, make your arguments as to why it may be the wrong call, but these are not “experts”, they are experts, and the decision may turn out to be right or wrong, but it is hardly weird. Hospitals are full, and we’re in an massive crisis. We do have evidence that the first shot provides a high proportion of the total protection, although we don’t know how long that lasts. But experience with other vaccines tells us that the extended interval for the second shot _probably_ will be okay. So administering twice the number of first shots may be the best risk/reward call to get the crisis under control. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/23 "2021-01-02T21:27:04Z")
Pennsylvania House Representative Mike Reese (R-Westmoreland/Somerset) has died of an apparent brain aneurysm. He was 42. On December 7, he was diagnosed with COVID-19. He had been self-quarantining for a week and reportedly had only a mild case. News reports so far say that it is unclear if the aneurysm was related to the COVID infection. As I recall, blood vessel damage is one of the less common side effects of having or having had COVID-19. I’m curious what an autopsy would show. I’m sorry for his wife and children. > **[Pa. Republican Rep. Mike Reese dies at 42](https://www.pennlive.com/politics/2021/01/republican-rep-mike-reese-dead-at-42.html)** > > He died of an apparent brain aneurysm almost a month after announcing he'd tested positive for the coronavirus. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/24 "2021-01-02T21:34:45Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Why the scare quotes? Are you disputing that the JCVI are experts? And what is “weird”? Well, having worked for decades in medicines licensing, I have never seen anything remotely like this before. One arm of government (the MHRA) examines the data, does the science, agrees that the drug - a novel drug class, at that - should be used in the way that has been shown to work; and another arm of government says, nah, use it in this completely untested way - _on everyone_. We can disagree about this, but I think it’s weird. j ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2021, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/25 "2021-01-02T21:56:27Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > I have never seen anything remotely like this before. Have you really not noticed that these are rather exceptional circumstances? > [@Treppenwitz](#): > > One arm of government (the MHRA) examines the data, does the science, agrees that the drug - a novel drug class, at that - should be used in the way that has been shown to work; and another arm of government says, nah, use it in this completely untested way - _on everyone_ . You are insinuating that the MHRA are diligently looking at the scientific evidence, while the JCVI as “another arm of government” are unqualified bureaucrats or something. This is the composition of the JCVI: > - Professor Andrew Pollard, Chair (University of Oxford) > - Professor Wei Shen Lim, Chair COVID-19 immunisation (Nottingham University Hospitals) > - Professor Anthony Harnden, Deputy Chair (University of Oxford) > - Professor Judith Breuer (University College Hospital) > - Dr Peter Elton (Greater Manchester, Lancashire, South Cumbria Strategic Clinical Network) > - Dr Maggie Wearmouth (East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust) > - Professor Matt Keeling (University of Warwick) > - Alison Lawrence (lay member) > - Professor Robert Read (Southampton General Hospital) > - Professor Anthony Scott (London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine) > - Professor Adam Finn (University of Bristol) > - Dr Fiona van der Klis (National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Netherlands) > - Professor Maarten Postma (University of Groningen) > - Professor Simon Kroll (Imperial College London) > - Dr Martin Williams (University Hospitals Bristol) > - Professor Jeremy Brown (University College London Hospitals) To assert that this protocol is to “use it in this completely untested way” is just hyperbole. If we have tested two doses, we have obviously tested one dose. There is no plausibly greater _safety_ concern with the delayed second dose. And we _do_ have limited efficacy data for single dose, suggesting that a high proportion of the total protection comes from the first dose, at least for some period. The _only_ aspect that’s uncertain is the efficacy of prolonged immunity with a delayed second dose. I certainly don’t have the expertise to know for sure if this is the right decision. But it’s obvious, not “weird”, why they are making the call. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/26 "2021-01-03T00:08:03Z")
Here’s a sweet story: > **[Coronavirus vaccine appointment turns into surprise marriage proposal | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/02/health/vaccine-engagement-south-dakota/index.html)** > > A Covid-19 vaccine appointment at a Canton, South Dakota hospital turned into a marriage proposal for one healthcare couple. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/27 "2021-01-03T01:01:42Z")
Hmmm… dunno if it really fits here but… well, it is not just here in the Land of the Free that people are flouting restrictions because they’d rather party on… > **[More than 2,500 people gathered for an illegal, 2-day rave in France to...](https://www.insider.com/france-illegal-rave-new-years-arrests-national-curfew-2021-1)** > > Partygoers broke France's national curfew to attend the illegal rave. At least 1,000 were fined for attending, and five have been arrested. > **[Illegal French New Year’s Eve party that drew 2,500 ends after 36 hours and a...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/01/02/france-party-new-years-eve-coronavirus/)** > > Regional authorities set up a coronavirus testing site near the party location and urged all participants to quarantine for seven days. ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/28 "2021-01-03T01:35:35Z")
…NZ update. New Zealand have announced new restrictions on New Zealanders returning from the UK and the USA. They are now required to return a certified negative PCR test 72 hours prior to departure. That’s on top of another new procedure for returnees from the UK and the US: on arrival they are required to have a test on Day Zero (in addition to the testing on Day 3 and Day 12). > **[NZ to require pre-departure Covid tests for UK, US travellers](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-coronavirus-nz-to-require-pre-departure-tests-for-uk-us-travellers/NGW6CSPMMV5MNSW4YAVXCDRTK4/)** > > Similar rules are likely "for travellers using most other long-haul routes", Hipkins says. Reading between the lines, the surges in the respective countries and the new, more virulent strains are the reasons for the changes. And the Ministry says that while they are confident that 14 days quarantine is still enough for the new mutant strains, they are “monitoring the situation”. We had **19 new cases** at the borders today. We have six in isolation with the UK variant. The numbers are getting bigger. This ain’t good. Its heartbreaking for many New Zealanders overseas because now its even harder to get home. But its a clear sign that even with the vaccine things are far from over. Hunker down everyone. The surges from Christmas and New Years are going to be brutal. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/29 "2021-01-03T04:33:48Z")
Louis Gossett Jr. was hospitalized with COVID-19 in a GA hospital but was so “freaked out” by all the deaths that he checked out against advice. > **[Louis Gossett, Jr. Hospitalized with COVID But Left Out of Fear](https://www.tmz.com/2020/12/31/louis-gossett-jr-covid-19-left-hospital-out-coronavirus/)** > > Louis Gossett, Jr. can tell you how bad COVID is ... he has it, was hospitalized for it, but left because it's a s\*\*\* show inside. ---
**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:** [January 3, 2021, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/30 "2021-01-03T05:05:36Z")
84,979,651 total cases 1,843,442 dead 60,096,319 recovered In the US: 20,904,701 total cases 358,682 dead 12,361,387 recovered Yesterday’s numbers for comparison: > [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > 84,382,650 total cases > 1,835,391 dead > 59,641,739 recovered > > In the US: > > 20,617,346 total cases > 356,445 dead > 12,175,841 recovered ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/31 "2021-01-03T06:59:23Z")
> [@Morgyn](#): > > Louis Gossett Jr. was hospitalized with COVID-19 in a GA hospital but was so “freaked out” by all the deaths that he checked out against advice. Aside from COVID, I’m just praying that I don’t get any random “normal” thing that needs hospital care for the next 6 months. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/32 "2021-01-03T14:52:57Z")
The number of states reporting record high numbers of new cases (seven day average) has risen since the beginning of the year. It seems a bit early for the expected Christmas surge, but maybe that’s just because people traveled _before_ Christmas. New “highest ever” daily new cases since New Year’s Eve: Maine New York Massachusetts Connecticut New Jersey West Virginia Virginia Maryland North Carolina Arkansas Kansas Arizona Mississippi Alabama Georgia Texas Florida After going down for several weeks, the US as a whole has hit a new high in daily reported cases (seven day average), as well. The UK is up, too.And South Africa. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/33 "2021-01-03T15:28:06Z")
> **[Dr. Fauci advises against the British approach of delaying a second dose of...](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/01/world/dr-fauci-advises-against-the-british-approach-of-delaying-a-second-dose-of-vaccine.html)** ---
**Author:** ![Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heffalump_and_roo/32/7691_2.png) [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/34 "2021-01-03T15:45:23Z")
Larry King has been hospitalized for Covid for 10 days. > **[Larry King has been hospitalised after contracting COVID-19](https://www.nme.com/news/tv/larry-king-has-been-hospitalised-after-contracting-covid-19-2847442)** > > Broadcasting legend Larry King has been hospitalised in Los Angeles after contracting coronavirus, reports say. A San Jose Kaiser hospital staff member went to the ward in an inflatable costume to cheer up people on the ward. It may have led to infections. > **[Kaiser employee dies after San Jose ER outbreak possibly tied to Christmas...](https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/43-staffers-infected-at-Kaiser-emergency-room-in-15842340.php)** > > A coronavirus outbreak in the emergency department at Kaiser Permanente San Jose includes... ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/35 "2021-01-03T15:56:07Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > What we are now seeing is a group of “experts” (JCVI) recommending that the vaccine be used differently, and indeed in a manner that was never even investigated. Weird. Better hope it works. Using a different jab for the booster is just as a last resort. [National Institute for Health and Care Excellence - Scenario: Immunization](https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ZevEzPB4cCUJ:https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/coronavirus-covid-19/management/immunization/+&cd=8&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us) > [@](#): > > Every effort should be made to determine which vaccine the individual received and to complete with the same vaccine as there is no evidence on interchangeability. > > - For individuals who started the schedule and who attend for vaccination at a site where the same vaccine is not available, or if the first product received is unknown, it is reasonable to offer a single dose of the locally available product. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/36 "2021-01-03T16:49:15Z")
Not quite sure why this is directed to me - what I was referring to was the decision to delay the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine to 12 weeks, a dose regimen that has never been tested. I gather that there has been an erroneous report in the NYT about using a different vaccine for a second shot. [BBC reports](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55519042) > The editor of the British Medical Journal has asked the New York Times to correct an article that says UK guidelines allow two Covid-19 vaccines to be mixed. > > The US publication reported that UK health officials would allow patients to be given a second dose that is a different vaccine to their first… > > … She said [the NYT’s headline claiming UK guidelines say such substitutions “may happen”](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/01/health/coronavirus-vaccines-britain.html)was “seriously misleading”. j ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/37 "2021-01-03T17:01:40Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > The number of states reporting record high numbers of new cases (seven day average) has risen since the beginning of the year. It seems a bit early for the expected Christmas surge, but maybe that’s just because people traveled _before_ Christmas. I think it’s as likely an echo from the Thanksgiving surge. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/38 "2021-01-03T18:07:40Z")
I really hope it does not go the way it has in the UK. We had a short period when things looked like they were down and stabilising just after Christmes, although a bouncback was expected, instead it has taken off again largely due to this new and more infectious mutation - some of that might be catch-up over the holiday period but the talk here is of even further restrictions. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/39 "2021-01-03T18:19:48Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > The number of states reporting record high numbers of new cases (seven day average) has risen since the beginning of the year. It seems a bit early for the expected Christmas surge, but maybe that’s just because people traveled _before_ Christmas. This is almost certainly data backlog from the holiday. Note that cases dipped _massively_ over the long Christmas weekend – people didn’t actually stop getting sick then, they just stopped getting tested and the results of those tests stopped getting reported by the various stage agencies. The daily average is now back to more or less exactly where it was before Christmas, but the Atlantic’s Covid Tracking Project, which is a great resource for making sense of the numbers, says [not to expect normal reporting](https://covidtracking.com/analysis-updates/all-eyes-on-hospitalizations-dec-30) until around the middle of January. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428/40 "2021-01-03T21:27:18Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > I gather that there has been an erroneous report in the NYT about using a different vaccine for a second shot. [BBC reports](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55519042) I subscribe and didn’t see any error [in the newspaper article](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/01/health/coronavirus-vaccines-britain.html). As for the headline, I don’t believe in judging newspaper stories by the headline, but the current headline (“Britain Opens Door to Mix-and-Match Vaccinations, Worrying Experts”) seems to me accurate. It would have been more accurate if it read Britain Slightly Opens Door. But, given the way print newspapers are put together, it isn’t reasonable to judge newspaper headlines closely. Now, personally, I don’t agree with the worried experts, because, as I have posted before, mix and match will (a) Be rare and (b) Won’t likely hurt much anyway However, some experts disagree with me. My views are not news. Theirs are. As for the BMJ (formerly British Medical Journal), it is an outstanding medical journal. But, in this case anyway, it is a questionable source for media criticism. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2021-breaking-news/929428.md?page=3)