Coronavirus in the United States - news and thoughts

The virus is still new.

Fauci told ABC News Sunday there are 75,000 virus test kits in the United States, but that number will "radically" increase in the next couple of weeks.

On Thursday, Vice President MIke Pence said the U.S. did not have enough tests "to meet what we anticipate will be the demand going forward." But the vice president said kits for 1.2 million should be available next week, the BBC reported

They can't just snap their fingers and give everybody a test. Hindsight is always 20/20. Still, I'm sure there are certain thresholds that have to be met with any virus before the CDC starts spending millions on testing. I'm confident this is no different than the way they've handled any other viral outbreak. That's the whole point.. you're expecting massive testing for an entire nation over something that, until less than a week ago, had only 16 infections that were not people who had been stuck together on a cruise ship. They can't order tests en masse for every little ailment that floats around. Logistically, that is completely unrealistic.

 

What can you say? Some people just enjoy being scammed.

 

First, let me know when one of your predictions becomes true. So I'll take your claims on credibility with the complete lack of credibility of the source.

Second, it is amazing how the "mistakes" (and it is almost universally accepted that we aren't running testing well) happens to steer into the narrative the political people are serving up about the lack of cases. There is a reason that he put a political person in charge of response instead of a professional.

 

So a few reactions:

1. What is Michael Dominguez's background in medicine or infectious diseases?
2. Do you think that his role as CEO of a hotel chain, not normally a position held by public health experts, might have something to do with this? Is he motivated to take a certain position here by his bottom line?
3. What is his basis for saying 1/100,000? That seems completely baseless. Also, anybody with a basic background in this would say that a number that takes your risk in already getting this (which, he doesn't even quote correctly) and determining that to be your risk going forward is nonsense.

 

Indeed. Most of us would prefer not to get our disease risk assessments from hotel chain CEOs.

 

The risk of being stuck by lightning in a given year is 1 in 700,000. We don't know what the risk of getting coronavirus is because it's just getting started. It might end up being 1 in 100,000 or it might end up being 1 in 10.

 

We only know about the people that have symptoms bad enough to require hospitalization and testing. If they tested everybody in Wuhan the number infected would likely be exponentially higher

 

That might be true currently but since authorities don't have a complete grasp of the outbreak, it is a misleading comparison. As the outbreak continues to grow, the likelihood of being infected goes up. Authorities have been hesistant to call it a pandemic since it alarms people more, but I think it meets the criteria.

Lightening strikes are wholly different since lightening is a routine if irregular and random occurrence. Not so for Covid 19 and infectious disease generally..

 

And to add more perspective, this is the current position of Michael Dominguez (from the link).

Not only doesn't Dominguez have any expertise in epidemiology, he has a direct financial interest in promoting travel and tourism and dissuading people from isolating themselves. And I also agree that we have absolutely no idea regarding the probability of contracting the coronavirus. Maybe we will have an educated estimate after we compile data over the next several months but there is no way that we can rely a number that was obviously pulled out of the air.

 

Not sure why your intent in spreading misinformation. That 3,000 number should have sounded awfully suspicious to you.

 

Will be interesting to see how this affects the crowds at Trump's rally's, I think that, and his myopic focus on himself are all that really matter to him

 

The Jacksonville Home & Patio show was packed. No one's staying home.

 

Who needs scientists or a CDC?

President Donald Trump says he's getting his information on coronavirus from Fox News

 

Just realized UF basketball carries a higher mortality rate for me than Coronavirus. Going to be sick tonight.

 

This is another piece of evidence about why he is a menace to society. He is the chief purveyor of dangerous ignorance.

 

The 1 in 3,000 is your lifetime chance of getting struck by lightning. On a yearly basis it is about 1 in 700,000.

Flash Facts About Lightning

 

That was a tough ending.

Bike Week attendance appears to be quite strong. Of course, bikers are risk takers.

 

How does Trump’s leadership compare to other countries?

 

Damn, both depressing and funny at the same time.

 

Well, that didn't inspire confidence

Inside Trump Administration, Debate Raged Over What to Tell Public