COVID-19 Outbreak Information Updates (Reboot) [over 150.000,000 US cases (est.), 6,422,520 US hospitilizations, 1,148,691 US deaths.] (9 Viewers)

[Eeyore]

The insurance companies are using covid to jack up their rates. Maybe it's legit, maybe not, but it's happening.

The various companies for which our members work are reporting ~20% premium increases. I'm a trustee of our health trust fund and we were told to expect 9.3% for our private insurance.

 

[staphory]

I’m on quarantine as of yesterday (Thursday).
A coworker tested positive on Thursday and called back about 45 minutes from end of shift to let everyone know.
He worked until Wednesday and was supposed to be on vacation until January 4. We knew his wife had been on quarantine because someone she works with had COVID but we didn’t know that she had tested positive over the weekend, he just kept on coming to work like no big deal. We have 12 people in my section and 10 of us are now on quarantine. The other two? They lied but are allowed to work. My section is now at a work stoppage as two men are not enough to make much progress.
I can go back after 7 days with a negative test or 10 of no symptoms. I just went ahead and took vacation until January 4.
This sucks.

 

[AARPSaint]

The insurance companies are using covid to jack up their rates. Maybe it's legit, maybe not, but it's happening.

The various companies for which our members work are reporting ~20% premium increases. I'm a trustee of our health trust fund and we were told to expect 9.3% for our private insurance.

Certainly appropriate inasmuch as your salaries have undoubtedly gone up 20%.

 

[Eeyore]

Just in time for the holidays!

COVID-19: London and South East set for Tier 4 rules - as new COVID variant 'real cause for concern'

Sky News understands the PM will announce new measures for London and the South East with further restrictions around Christmas.

news.sky.com

 

[bclemms]

United Passenger Dies After Lying About COVID Symptoms, Photos Show Chaos

A passenger on a United jet with nearly 200 others onboard was pronounced dead shortly after the pilot made an emergency landing, and it's almost certain the man had COVID.

www.tmz.com

 

[DaveXA]

United Passenger Dies After Lying About COVID Symptoms, Photos Show Chaos

A passenger on a United jet with nearly 200 others onboard was pronounced dead shortly after the pilot made an emergency landing, and it's almost certain the man had COVID.

www.tmz.com

With freedom comes irresponsibly i guess. I hate people sometimes. If you have Covid, please stay the fork home.

 

[Arathrael]

Just in time for the holidays!

COVID-19: London and South East set for Tier 4 rules - as new COVID variant 'real cause for concern'

Sky News understands the PM will announce new measures for London and the South East with further restrictions around Christmas.

news.sky.com

Yeah, our Prime Minister has just basically cancelled Christmas, having unwisely previously decided they wouldn't. They've spent the whole of December telling everyone they can form three-household 'Christmas bubbles' from the 23rd to 27th, and now they've cancelled it entirely, with four days' notice, for everyone in the south-east and east (including London) and for the rest of England it's reduced to just Christmas Day (which is also nonsensical; either do it or don't, there's no point half-doing it, it's not like the virus would spread if people gather indoors for hours across two or three days, but it'll take Christmas Day off).

They're saying, "Oh, it's a mutation of the virus," but frankly that's not it. There may well be a genuine mutation and that may be more contagious, but they lifted November's lockdown way too soon, didn't increase subsequent restrictions sufficiently, and the number of cases was always going to spike back up like this. Do the same things, expect the same results.

They've basically made a complete shambles of it. To enable relaxation at Christmas, and to do the right thing in general, they needed to lock down sufficiently and for long enough to minimise the presence of the virus in the community, and then escalating, aggressive, localised measures might be able to be effective enough to keep on top of it. That's been the case since day one. That's what's worked elsewhere. But no.

This'll go down terribly as well. It'd be one thing to announce restrictions over Christmas right at the start, it's another to let people make plans, get food in, buy tickets, and then put in restrictions (having reassured them that they wouldn't and that to do so would be 'inhuman' just a few days ago). So for example, we had minimal plans to see my wife's parents - we're all completely isolated, I'm working from home, they're retired, our son isn't in school yet - and she feels like she's just been kicked. Restricting gathering is right thing to do now, sure, but it's only the right thing now because they've done the wrong things over and over again before.

I predict there will be a lot of ignoring of these measures. It's going to be a messy end of the year and a tough start to the new one I suspect.

 

[bclemms]

They're saying, "Oh, it's a mutation of the virus," but frankly that's not it. There may well be a genuine mutation and that may be more contagious, but they lifted November's lockdown way too soon, didn't increase subsequent restrictions sufficiently, and the number of cases was always going to spike back up like this. Do the same things, expect the same results.

This was exactly my thought when I read about the mutations. There may be a mutation but it's probably not any more contagious. It probably just appears that way because half assed measures aren't working in peak season for spread.

 

[St. Widge]

Yeah, our Prime Minister has just basically cancelled Christmas, having unwisely previously decided they wouldn't. They've spent the whole of December telling everyone they can form three-household 'Christmas bubbles' from the 23rd to 27th, and now they've cancelled it entirely, with four days' notice, for everyone in the south-east and east (including London) and for the rest of England it's reduced to just Christmas Day (which is also nonsensical; either do it or don't, there's no point half-doing it, it's not like the virus would spread if people gather indoors for hours across two or three days, but it'll take Christmas Day off).

They're saying, "Oh, it's a mutation of the virus," but frankly that's not it. There may well be a genuine mutation and that may be more contagious, but they lifted November's lockdown way too soon, didn't increase subsequent restrictions sufficiently, and the number of cases was always going to spike back up like this. Do the same things, expect the same results.

They've basically made a complete shambles of it. To enable relaxation at Christmas, and to do the right thing in general, they needed to lock down sufficiently and for long enough to minimise the presence of the virus in the community, and then escalating, aggressive, localised measures might be able to be effective enough to keep on top of it. That's been the case since day one. That's what's worked elsewhere. But no.

This'll go down terribly as well. It'd be one thing to announce restrictions over Christmas right at the start, it's another to let people make plans, get food in, buy tickets, and then put in restrictions (having reassured them that they wouldn't and that to do so would be 'inhuman' just a few days ago). So for example, we had minimal plans to see my wife's parents - we're all completely isolated, I'm working from home, they're retired, our son isn't in school yet - and she feels like she's just been kicked. Restricting gathering is right thing to do now, sure, but it's only the right thing now because they've done the wrong things over and over again before.

I predict there will be a lot of ignoring of these measures. It's going to be a messy end of the year and a tough start to the new one I suspect.

They cynic in me, and let's be honest, 99% of of me is cynic, makes me think he did this so everyone would spend money on buying presents before he basically cancelled Christmas.

 

[SaintInBucLand]

Yeah, our Prime Minister has just basically cancelled Christmas, having unwisely previously decided they wouldn't. They've spent the whole of December telling everyone they can form three-household 'Christmas bubbles' from the 23rd to 27th, and now they've cancelled it entirely, with four days' notice, for everyone in the south-east and east (including London) and for the rest of England it's reduced to just Christmas Day (which is also nonsensical; either do it or don't, there's no point half-doing it, it's not like the virus would spread if people gather indoors for hours across two or three days, but it'll take Christmas Day off).

I'm sorry, but you cannot tell people they can't see family members on the holidays. I can understand limiting parties and large gatherings, but you cannot tell people they aren't allowed to go visit loved ones.

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

They cynic in me, and let's be honest, 99% of of me is cynic, makes me think he did this so everyone would spend money on buying presents before he basically cancelled Christmas.

That’s some grade A cynicism there
and probably correct

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

I'm sorry, but you cannot tell people they can't see family members on the holidays. I can understand limiting parties and large gatherings, but you cannot tell people they aren't allowed to go visit loved ones.

Why not?

 

[SaintInBucLand]

Why not?

I guess you can tell them, but you cannot enforce that.

Do you want law enforcement going into homes to arrest people for getting together with family?

 

[faceman]

I guess you can tell them, but you cannot enforce that.

Do you want law enforcement going into homes to arrest people for getting together with family?

This is true. It can be mandated, Martial law is enforced after hurricanes. The problem with Covid is there are not enough
officials to enforce it.

 

[Arathrael]

They cynic in me, and let's be honest, 99% of of me is cynic, makes me think he did this so everyone would spend money on buying presents before he basically cancelled Christmas.

Have to say, it does look remarkably dodgy; right after the schools close, on the Saturday before Christmas week, just as Parliament enters recess (so there won't be a vote on the new measures I think, presumably the legislation necessary to enforce the changes will be done through secondary legislation).

Also, three days ago Johnson was attacking the opposition for 'wanting to cancel Christmas', even though the rapid rate of rising cases was already apparent. I mean, earlier this week his administration literally threatened legal action to force a council to keep schools open (the council wanted to ask their schools to close because of the rising cases).

So there was clearly a case for this earlier, and they were not only adamantly against it, but using legal threats to actively prevent councils acting on it, but now they've abruptly flipped? Just like that? I think cynicism is reasonable here.

This is true. It can be mandated, Martial law is enforced after hurricanes. The problem with Covid is there are not enough
officials to enforce it.

It is true, but it remains to be seen what the legislation will look like here, what powers there will be to enforce this, and whether they'll actually expect the police to do so. Johnson was asked about it and just said he’s "sure the bulk of people will continue to take this seriously."

I think it is possible to ask people to not see each other, and expect most people to follow, but probably not so much if you repeatedly tell them they can and then reverse it with four days notice. And if people aren't willing to voluntarily follow the measures, it'd be very difficult to enforce.