Covid

[KCLion]

Missouri new cases:

May 25: 182
June 7: 326 (two weeks later)

Nothing to see here, move on.

I found this interesting - for what it’s worth:

CNN
No cases of coronavirus have been linked to two Missouri hairstylists who saw 140 clients last month while symptomatic, county health officials said.

Both stylists worked at the same Great Clips location in Springfield. The clients and the stylists all wore face coverings, and the salon had set up other measures such as social distancing of chairs and staggered appointments, the Springfield-Greene County Health Department said this week.
Of the 140 clients and seven co-workers potentially exposed, 46 took tests that came back negative. All the others were quarantined for the duration of the coronavirus incubation period. The 14-day incubation period has now passed with no coronavirus cases linked to the salon beyond the two stylists, county health officials said.
During the quarantine, those who did not get tested got a call twice a day from health officials asking whether they had symptoms related to Covid-19, said Kathryn Wall, a spokeswoman for the Springfield-Green County Health Department.

"This is exciting news about the value of masking to prevent Covid-19," said Clay Goddard, the county's director of health.

"We are studying more closely the details of these exposures, including what types of face coverings were worn and what other precautions were taken to lead to this encouraging result."

Eight days of exposure
In addition to the importance of masks, the case highlights how crucial contact tracing and isolation are after exposure to help stop the spread of the disease.
The salon kept impeccable records that made contact tracing possible, Goddard said.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated that about a third of coronavirus infections are asymptomatic -- so it's possible some of the people may have been infected but not tested due to lack of symptoms.

But county health officials called the salon outcome encouraging, and they're using the case as a way to get additional insight on how to stop the spread of coronavirus. And they're also reiterating the importance of masks.

One hairstylist had worked with 56 clients at the salon while the second one had seen 84 customers and seven coworkers. The stylists went to the salon for about eight days ending on May 20.
Studies have found that physical distancing and the use of a mask are the two best ways to prevent coronavirus transmission.


WHO calls on nations to encourage the public to wear fabric face masks.
This month, a study published in the Lancet medical journal found people should stay six feet apart and wear face coverings. It said the chance of transmission without a face mask was 17.4%, while that fell to 3.1% when a mask was worn. The World Health Organization has urged nations to encourage the general public to wear fabric masks in areas where coronavirus is spreading.
In a statement, Great Clips said it welcomed the results.
"All customers who were tested for Covid-19 after visiting a franchised Great Clips salon in Springfield have confirmed negative test results. Together with our 1,100 independent franchisees, we care deeply about the well-being of customers, salon staff and the communities we serve, and we are grateful for the health of these individuals," it said in a statement to CNN affiliate KYTV.

 

[le duke]

What about us on this board, don't we qualify as a close interaction?

I've been in one restaurant twice since March to pick up take-out. I've gotten drive-up take-out from several others, but limit that to smaller family-owned places as they have fewer employees that I figure are likely more conscientious than the average fast-food employee. I am, however, the main grocery-getter for two households, one of which includes an ornery 100 yo, who's always on the go. I pretty much do my shopping in the mornings. Had one tele-health doctor's appt, but have cancelled/postponed dental work. I've been cutting my own hair for years since I got tired of paying by the piece.

Your situation mirrors my own. My wife and I assist her parents with doing things for her grandparents, who are 90 something and 100 years old. The 100 year old recently cut down several pine trees on his property, which required some assistance to clean up. His wife is legally blind, and has dementia. My wife's parents are in their late 60s and early 70s.

My wife is also pregnant. So, every time we go out in public, we wear masks. We use alcohol hand sanitizer every time we get back in the car, and wash our hands every time we get back from from walking the dog (which involves opening multiple gates on a fence on public land). My wife has been cutting my hair for years, and started cutting her dad's hair, too.

My work has opened and re-closed several times. A working group that had been required to keep showing up just got shut down and sent home for 14 days because one of them tested positive and demonstrated symptoms; he didn't get tested until it was so obvious that others demanded he go to a clinic. The senior-most person there is a 70+ guy who smokes at least a pack a day. Masks are required inside the building, but you can't control what people do on their own time at home or out in public outside of work hours. So, while I wish people were more responsible for their own safety, I don't trust them to act in my best interest.

 

[Cali_Nittany]

I want to thank everyone for sharing their personal experiences. I thought this thread would turn into a dumpster fire but I didn't give my fellow Penn State fans nearly enough credit. Yinz stay safe and vigilant.

 

[Pennstate1985]

Here in South Carolina, we had a record number of cases yesterday. 770. That beat the record set the day before. So the virus is expanding here. The governor oddly enough issued a new state of emergency reminding the public to practice proper distancing, etc while at the same time opening up all businesses to full operational capacity. I call it virus fatigue. At some point you realize you can’t stop it, and that the best option is to shield the elderly and health compromised against the rest of society.

 

[Lyons212]

Here in South Carolina, we had a record number of cases yesterday. 770. That beat the record set the day before. So the virus is expanding here. The governor oddly enough issued a new state of emergency reminding the public to practice proper distancing, etc while at the same time opening up all businesses to full operational capacity. I call it virus fatigue. At some point you realize you can’t stop it, and that the best option is to shield the elderly and health compromised against the rest of society.

Your last sentence says it all. Back in March the experts said most of us will eventually get the virus. Now we know, unless you are elderly and unhealthy, getting the virus is no big deal, about half of people have zero symptoms (granted there are cases of bad outcomes for healthy people...just like the flu). Protect the elderly and vulnerable and the rest of us get on with our lives. I believe all the virus has done is pulled forward the death of the very sick elderly who would have most likely died sometime this year.

Neill Ferguson from Imperial college that had the horrible models in mid-March, 10 days later he revised his models and stated exactly that...over half the deaths would occur in people who would have died at some point this year. CDC all mortality death data is starting to confirm this, weekly deaths for 2020 at this point are now comparable to those in 2018 and 2019 (using mid May as a reference).

 

[nittinsc]

 

[nittinsc]

I found this interesting - for what it’s worth:

CNN
No cases of coronavirus have been linked to two Missouri hairstylists who saw 140 clients last month while symptomatic, county health officials said.

Both stylists worked at the same Great Clips location in Springfield. The clients and the stylists all wore face coverings, and the salon had set up other measures such as social distancing of chairs and staggered appointments, the Springfield-Greene County Health Department said this week.
Of the 140 clients and seven co-workers potentially exposed, 46 took tests that came back negative. All the others were quarantined for the duration of the coronavirus incubation period. The 14-day incubation period has now passed with no coronavirus cases linked to the salon beyond the two stylists, county health officials said.
During the quarantine, those who did not get tested got a call twice a day from health officials asking whether they had symptoms related to Covid-19, said Kathryn Wall, a spokeswoman for the Springfield-Green County Health Department.

"This is exciting news about the value of masking to prevent Covid-19," said Clay Goddard, the county's director of health.

"We are studying more closely the details of these exposures, including what types of face coverings were worn and what other precautions were taken to lead to this encouraging result."

Eight days of exposure
In addition to the importance of masks, the case highlights how crucial contact tracing and isolation are after exposure to help stop the spread of the disease.
The salon kept impeccable records that made contact tracing possible, Goddard said.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated that about a third of coronavirus infections are asymptomatic -- so it's possible some of the people may have been infected but not tested due to lack of symptoms.

But county health officials called the salon outcome encouraging, and they're using the case as a way to get additional insight on how to stop the spread of coronavirus. And they're also reiterating the importance of masks.

One hairstylist had worked with 56 clients at the salon while the second one had seen 84 customers and seven coworkers. The stylists went to the salon for about eight days ending on May 20.
Studies have found that physical distancing and the use of a mask are the two best ways to prevent coronavirus transmission.


WHO calls on nations to encourage the public to wear fabric face masks.
This month, a study published in the Lancet medical journal found people should stay six feet apart and wear face coverings. It said the chance of transmission without a face mask was 17.4%, while that fell to 3.1% when a mask was worn. The World Health Organization has urged nations to encourage the general public to wear fabric masks in areas where coronavirus is spreading.
In a statement, Great Clips said it welcomed the results.
"All customers who were tested for Covid-19 after visiting a franchised Great Clips salon in Springfield have confirmed negative test results. Together with our 1,100 independent franchisees, we care deeply about the well-being of customers, salon staff and the communities we serve, and we are grateful for the health of these individuals," it said in a statement to CNN affiliate KYTV.

An opportunity was lost by not testing, perhaps multiple times, all of the potentially exposed clients and employees. Health officials calling and asking if those quarantining were experiencing symptoms did not rule out asymptomatic cases. It possibly cost more to make the calls than to just test. As it is, the efficacy of mask use is only highly suggestive, when it could have been backed by a more complete data set.

 

[PAHURDLER]

Wearing a mask is so darn easy, it’s embarrassing that anyone has made it a political talking point.

 

[KCLion]

An opportunity was lost by not testing, perhaps multiple times, all of the potentially exposed clients and employees. Health officials calling and asking if those quarantining were experiencing symptoms did not rule out asymptomatic cases. It possibly cost more to make the calls than to just test. As it is, the efficacy of mask use is only highly suggestive, when it could have been backed by a more complete data set.

True, but can you force someone to test? In Missouri anyone that wants a test can be tested. In Springfield (where this took place) they opened the fairgrounds and set up drive through testing for anyone who wanted a test.

I would imagine (don’t know for sure) those who were called were offered a test and likely declined.

 

[nittinsc]

True, but can you force someone to test? In Missouri anyone that wants a test can be tested. In Springfield (where this took place) they opened the fairgrounds and set up drive through testing for anyone who wanted a test.

I would imagine (don’t know for sure) those who were called were offered a test and likely declined.

While you certainly can't force testing, I wonder if anything could have been done to get more testing than the 31% that were tested. Not enough information in the article to do anything but speculate.

 

[NoVa Lion]

While you certainly can't force testing, I wonder if anything could have been done to get more testing than the 31% that were tested. Not enough information in the article to do anything but speculate.

Only if somehow testing is 100% safe. I have been 99% self isolated and figure the chances I have the virus are basically ZERO so I have no desire to expose myself to a bunch of people that want to get tested because they may or DO have the virus.