The COVID-2019 Thread

[Joe 90]

Everyone here carries on, nobody does tests and it's already accepted as a way of life cos it isn't gonna kill you.

Same here for most.

[hallelujah]

Covid lockdown ‘prevented only 0.2pc of deaths in first wave’

Researchers say the costs of lockdowns to society far outweighed the benefits and argue that they should be ‘rejected out of hand’

Steve Hanke, a professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University and another of the study’s authors, said: “Lockdowns in Europe and the US decreased Covid-19 mortality by a measly 0.2 per cent on average, while the economic costs of lockdowns were enormous. I find zero evidence to support lockdowns.”

[Loy Toy]

^ Not rocket science Hal.

The response to this Covid flu by governments globally has been astonishingly wrong.

[baldrick]

0.2 per cent

enormous

I admire his quantitative skills

[Buckaroo Banzai]

Lockdowns in Europe and the US decreased Covid-19 mortality by a measly 0.2 per cent on average,

As opposed to no lock down?
Was there a country the went through the pandemic without any lock downs for comparison?

[harrybarracuda]

As opposed to no lock down?
Was there a country the went through the pandemic without any lock downs for comparison?

A better question would be: Were there any lockdowns that were properly enforced? (except in chinkystan, obviously).

Their mortality figures are probably higher than they admit, but still much lower than anyone else's.

[happynz]

Were there any lockdowns that were properly enforced?

Aotearoa New Zealand enters the chat.

Of course, there are always a minority of loud dead-enders who push back.

[harrybarracuda]

Aotearoa New Zealand enters the chat.

Of course, there are always a minority of loud dead-enders who push back.

Actually NZ did enforce a fierce border closure, which was very effective. You can do that when you're an island nation in the middle of nowhere.

Tonga doesn't really have that luxury at the moment.

[misskit]

‘Take back life’: More nations ease coronavirus restrictions

Late-night partying at clubs. Elbow-to-elbow seating in movie theaters. Going without masks in public, especially in Europe and North America: Step by step, many countries are easing their COVID-19 restrictions amid hopes the omicron wave may have passed its peak.


The early moves to relax precautions, based on declining or flattening case counts in recent days, represent what could be another turning point in a nearly two-year pandemic that has been full of them.


The extraordinarily contagious omicron has fueled more cases worldwide over the past 10 weeks — 90 million — than were seen during all of 2020, the outbreak’s first full year.

But the World Health Organization this week said some countries can now consider carefully relaxing the rules if they have high immunity rates, their health care systems are strong and the epidemiological trends are going in the right direction.


New cases worldwide for the week of Jan. 24-30 were similar to the level of the previous week, though the number of new deaths increased 9% to more than 59,000, reflecting the usual lag between infection and death, according to the U.N. health agency.


The most pronounced pullbacks in restrictions are in Europe, for many months the world’s epicenter of the pandemic, as well as in South Africa — where omicron was first announced publicly — and the United States. In Britain and the U.S., as in South Africa before them, COVID-19 cases skyrocketed at first but are now coming down rapidly.


In the U.S., local leaders have served up a hodgepodge of responses. The city of Denver is ending requirements for proof of vaccination and mask rules for businesses and public spaces, while keeping them for schools and public transportation.


New York’s governor plans in the next week to review whether to keep the state’s mask mandate at a time when cases and hospitalizations have plummeted in the early omicron hotspot. New York City is averaging 4,200 cases a day, compared with 41,000 during the first week of January.


The U.S. as a whole is on a similar trajectory, with infections plunging from an average of over 800,000 a day 2 1/2 weeks ago to 430,000 this week.


England, France, Ireland, the Netherlands and several Nordic countries have taken steps to end or loosen their restrictions. In some places, like Norway and Denmark, the easing comes even though case counts are still hovering near their highs. Some governments are essentially betting that the pandemic is ebbing.


“Rest assured that the worst days are behind us,” said Health Minister Fahrettin Koca of Turkey, where the number of daily infections topped 100,000 on Tuesday, the highest on record in the country of over 80 million.


Last week, England ended almost all domestic restrictions. Masks aren’t required in public, vaccine passes are no longer needed to get into public venues, and the work-from-home order has been lifted. One lingering condition: Those who test positive still have to isolate.


On Tuesday, Norway lifted its ban on serving alcohol after 11 p.m. and the cap on private gatherings of no more than 10 people. People can sit elbow-to-elbow again at events with fixed seating, and sports events can take place as they did before the pandemic.


“Now it’s time for us to take back our everyday life,” Norwegian Health Minister Ingvild Kjerkol said Tuesday. “Tonight, we scrap most measures so we can be closer to living a normal life.”


In the capital of Denmark, which on Tuesday took the lead among European Union members by scrapping most restrictions, many people were still wearing masks on the streets and in stores a day later.


“I still wear a mask because I want to protect myself and others whose health is not so good, or who have health issues,” said retiree Kjeld Rasmussen, 86, in Copenhagen. “I have several things (health conditions) and so for me, it is also a good way to say to others, ‘Keep your distance.’”


More than 370 million cases and over 5.6 million deaths linked to COVID-19 have been reported worldwide.


The loosening of omicron’s grip in many places has given rise to hope that the outbreak is about to enter a new phase in which the virus will become, like the flu, a persistent but generally manageable threat that people can live with.


Switzerland on Wednesday scrapped work-at-home and quarantine requirements and announced plans for an easing of other restrictions in coming weeks, saying: “Despite record high infection figures, hospitals have not been overburdened and the occupancy of intensive care units has fallen further.”


“There are increasing signs that the acute crisis will soon be over and the endemic phase could begin,” the government said.


While omicron has proved less likely to cause severe illness than the delta variant, experts are warning people against underestimating it or letting their guard down against the possibility of new, more dangerous mutant varieties.


“We are concerned that a narrative has taken hold in some countries that because of vaccines — and because of omicron’s high transmissibility and lower severity — preventing transmission is no longer possible and no longer necessary,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Gheybreysus said Tuesday. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”


WHO’s emergencies chief, Dr. Michael Ryan, warned that political pressure could lead some countries to open back up too soon — and “that will result in unnecessary transmission, unnecessary severe disease and unnecessary death.”


As throughout the pandemic, many countries are going their own way: Italy has tightened its health pass requirements during the omicron surge. As of Monday, it began requiring at least a negative test within the previous 48 hours to enter banks and post offices, and anyone over 50 who hasn’t been vaccinated risks a 100-euro ($113) fine.


Austria, which was the first European country to impose a vaccine mandate, is planning to loosen COVID-19 restrictions this month and take such steps as letting restaurants stay open later. Greece has ordered fines for people 60 and over who refuse to get vaccinated.


In Germany, where infections are still setting daily records, curbs on private gatherings and requirements for people to show proof of vaccination or recovery to enter nonessential stores remain in place.


“I think that the moment we have the feeling that we can loosen responsibly, federal and state governments will take that step,” German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said Monday. “But at the moment, it is still a bit premature.”


Other continents are being even more cautious. Some of the world’s highest vaccination rates are in Asia, and its leaders are holding to stricter lockdown measures or even tightening them for now.


The Pacific island country of Tonga went into lockdown Wednesday after discovering infections in two port workers helping to distribute aid following a volcanic eruption and tsunami. The country had been virus-free.


New Zealand will ease its strict border controls, freeing vaccinating New Zealanders from having to stay in quarantine hotels run by the military. But the unvaccinated still must quarantine, and most foreigners will still have to wait until October to visit quarantine-free.


Just days ahead of the Beijing Olympics, China is sticking to its zero-COVID policy. It imposes strict lockdowns and quarantines quickly when any cases are detected, mandates masks on public transportation, and requires people to show “green” status on a health app to enter most restaurants and stores.


South Africa this week announced that it has exited the fourth wave, saying scientific studies show immunity has hit 60% to 80%. Masks are still mandatory, but a curfew has been lifted and schools are required to fully – not just partially — open for the first time since March 2020.


Dr. Atiya Mosam of the Public Health Association of South Africa said such steps are a “practical move towards acknowledging that COVID-19 is here to stay, even though we might have a milder strain.”


“We are acknowledging how transmission occurs, while basically balancing people’s need to live their lives,” Mosam said.


‘Take back life’: More nations ease coronavirus restrictions | Taiwan News | 2022-02-03 09:57:00

[harrybarracuda]

I can't believe people are still pumping out sheep dewormer misinformation. Anything for a buck.

False claim spreads about Japanese ivermectin study, despite correction | AP News

[Little Chuchok]

Aotearoa New Zealand enters the chat.

Of course, there are always a minority of loud dead-enders who push back.

It's not dead enders pushing back, it's people going out of business.

Plus the odd cancer patient that has to have their treatment postponed.

[misskit]

After two years of closed borders, Australia welcomes the world back

SYDNEY, Feb 7 (Reuters) – Australia said on Monday it will reopen its borders to vaccinated travellers this month, ending two years of misery for the tourism sector, reviving migration and injecting billions of dollars into the world No. 13 economy.


The move effectively calls time on the last main component of Australia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which it has attributed to relatively low death and infection rates. The other core strategy, stop-start lockdowns, was shelved for good in December.


The country had taken steps in recent months to relax border controls, like allowing in skilled migrants and quarantine-free travel arrangements – “travel bubbles” – with select countries like New Zealand.


But the reopening, which takes effect on Feb. 21, represents the first time since March 2020 that people can travel to Australia from anywhere in the world as long as they are vaccinated.


“If you’re double-vaccinated, we look forward to welcoming you back to Australia,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said at a media briefing in Canberra.


The tourism industry, which has relied on the domestic market that has itself been heavily impacted by movement restrictions, welcomed the decision which comes three months before Morrison is due to face an election.


“Over the two years since the borders have been closed the industry has been on its knees,” said Australian Tourism Export Council Managing Director Peter Shelley by phone.


“Now we can turn our collective efforts towards rebuilding an industry that is in disrepair,” he added.


Tourism and Transport Forum CEO Margy Osmond said the industry was “thrilled” by the reopening, but would need coordination to ensure Australia was competitive as a destination.


“It’s not as simple as just turning on the tap and we see numbers of international tourists back where they were pre-COVID,” she told reporters.


International and domestic tourism losses since the start of the pandemic totalled A$101.7 billion ($72 billion), according to government body Tourism Research Australia. International travel spending in Australia plunged from A$44.6 billion in the 2018-19 financial year to A$1.3 billion in 2020-21, TRA said.


Shares of tourism-related stocks soared as investors cheered the prospect of a return to profit growth. Shares of the country’s main airline Qantas Airways Ltd jumped 5% while shares of travel agent Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd surged 8%.


Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said in a statement the company was looking at flight schedules to determine ways to restart flights from more international locations soon.


As elsewhere in the world, Australian COVID cases have soared in recent weeks due to the Omicron variant which medical experts say may be more transmissable but less virulent than previous strains.


But with more than nine in 10 Australians aged over 16 fully vaccinated, new cases and hospitalisations appear to have slowed, the authorities say.


The country reported just over 23,000 new infections on Monday, its lowest for 2022 and far from a peak of 150,000 around a month ago.


Morrison meanwhile said the government would send up to 1,700 Australian Defence Force personnel to fill staffing shortages in the aged care sector, following complaints of understaffing and fatigue due to increased pressures brought by the pandemic.


Around 2.4 million cases have been recorded in Australia since the first Omicron case was detected in Australia in November. Until then, Australia had counted only around 200,000 cases. Total deaths stand at 4,248 since the pandemic began.

After two years of closed borders, Australia welcomes the world back | Thai PBS World : The latest Thai news in English, News Headlines, World News and News Broadcasts in both Thai and English. We bring Thailand to the world

[malmomike77]

The number is high but in my minder there is no doubt the stupidity, bad mouthing and bunging over AZ killed. The Vaccine, the most widely used globally has undoubtedly saved countless 10's or 100's of thousands as it was licensed and made available at minimal cost compared to mRNA.

Politicians who criticised AstraZeneca vaccine 'probably killed hundreds of thousands', says Oxford scientist

French president Emmanuel Macron previously claimed the Covid jab did not "work as expected" in older age groups


Scientists and politicians who expressed critical views of the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine “probably killed hundreds of thousands of people”, an Oxford professor has said.


Professor Sir John Bell said critical comments from leaders, including French president Emmanuel Macron, had “damaged the reputation of the jab” around the world, resulting in less people accessing the life-saving vaccine.


Speaking to the BBC Two programme AstraZeneca: A Vaccine for the World?, which will be broadcast on Tuesday at 9pm, Prof Bell said: “I think bad behaviour from scientists and politicians has probably killed hundreds of thousands of people – and that they cannot be proud of.”


Macron had previously claimed that the vaccine “doesn’t work as expected” and appeared to be “quasi-ineffective” in the over-65s.


Speaking just hours before the European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved the AstraZeneca jab for use in the bloc, Macron also criticised the UK’s decision to administer vaccine doses 12 weeks apart, falsely claiming it could “accelerate the mutations” of the virus.


Other EU countries, including Germany, Spain and Italy, also temporarily suspended use of the AstraZeneca jab last year when it was linked to a tiny risk of blood clots.


The US has still not approved the vaccine, with Dr Antony Fauci of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease previously saying that the country "may not need to use" the jab despite it being a "good vaccine", because of the widespread use of the Pfizer and Moderna jabs.


Despite its reputation being marred by criticism, the AstraZeneca jab has been heralded for its rollout in less wealthy countries as part of the Covax programme.


Scientists have suggested that the UK’s widespread use of the AstraZeneca vaccine – and its early rollout to elderly and vulnerable people – could be responsible for the relatively low death toll from the omicron variant compared to countries in Europe.


Dr Clive Dix, former chairman of the Vaccine Task Force, told The Telegraph that he believed the AstraZeneca jabs offered more robust, long-term protection against severe disease and death than RNA-based alternatives made by Pfizer and Moderna.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/02/07/politicians-criticised-astrazeneca-covid-jab-probably-killed/

[Joe 90]

That's the EU for you

[OhOh]

Their mortality figures are probably higher than they admit

Yes, they may have been, or likewise they may have not been.

[harrybarracuda]

Bump up fines for airlines that don't check validity of PCR tests.

[harrybarracuda]

The Centre for Medical Genomics at Ramathibodi Hospital expects the number of Covid-19 infections to start dropping towards the end of this month.

Dr Wasun Chantratita, head of the centre, said the current surge in Covid-19 cases in Thailand, especially Bangkok, is expected to involve the Omicron BA.2 subvariant which is more transmissible than the BA.1 subvariant.

Citing the spread of the Omicron variant in other countries, he said the number of Covid-19 cases in the kingdom is likely to start to decline around the end of this month.

Dr Wasun said the centre examined a total of 192 samples collected in Bangkok and surrounding provinces in January and this month and found that 88% were the BA.1 subvariant, 5% were BA.1.1 and 1% were BA.2.

Gisaid, the global data science initiative, reported that 60% of cases were the BA.1.1 subvariant, 19% were BA.1 and 2% were BA.2.

Dr Wasun said the number of BA.2 subvariant cases is believed to have increased due to its high transmissibility, but the subvariant is not more virulent than the original Omicron variant.

While Thailand has seen an increase in infections, the death rate was low as a result of high vaccination rates and proactive screening which is taking place in communities, he added.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand...-drop-in-weeks

[Shutree]

Bump up fines for airlines that don't check validity of PCR tests.

Are Thai domestic carriers asking for pre-flight PCR tests?

Asking for a friend. (Really, she has to go to Bangkok and return in a few days time and seems not to have asked the carriers despite my asking her to do so.)

[aging one]

^ you have to be able to show double vax or the PCR test. I just checked as I am flying out for 5 nights to Krabi with the wife the 28th of this month.

[Shutree]

^ you have to be able to show double vax or the PCR test. I just checked as I am flying out for 5 nights to Krabi with the wife the 28th of this month.

Thanks. She is double-vaxxed and boosted and has a piece of paper. I'll make sure she has it in her hand.

[harrybarracuda]

For Domestic flights the requirement is Fully Vaccinated or a monitored ATK result.

They were checking everyone on my flight on the 9th; one Thai was throwing a wobbly because they wouldn't let him on.

But that same day other flights weren't even asking.

It's hit and miss, but just keep the vaccination certificate handy just in case (for Thais I think the MorProm app does the trick).

For international departures, it's generally based on the destination requirements but apparently some airlines still want a PCR, so best to check with the airline.

[harrybarracuda]

Hanoi (Reuters) — Vietnam's tourism ministry on Tuesday proposed a full reopening of the country to foreign visitors and a lifting of nearly all travel restrictions from March 15, three months earlier than planned.

The proposal, which will be submitted to the Prime Minister for approval, follows similar reopening steps taken by other Southeast Asian countries like Thailand and the Philippines, where the Omicron Covid-19 variant has caused a recent spike in new infections, but fewer hospitalizations and deaths than previous variants.

The proposal includes maintaining a one-day quarantine requirement for visitors plus requiring negative Covid-19 tests before departure and on arrival.

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/vietnam-reopening-international-tourists/index.html

[dirk diggler]

Last time I went to BKK it was double vax certs OR ATK with certificate from a clinic. Bot the much more expensive RT-PCR for domestic travel.

[harrybarracuda]

Last time I went to BKK it was double vax certs OR ATK with certificate from a clinic. Bot the much more expensive RT-PCR for domestic travel.

It's been that way for a long while but they don't seem to enforce it very often.

This was my third Thai Smile flight in a couple of months.

The first one they asked me if I was vaccinated and took my "yes" as sufficient proof.

The second one they didn't even ask.

Last week it was proof or no fly.

But as I said, people flew from Phuket to Bangkok the same day I flew to CM and no-one asked them at all.

[dirk diggler]

My point was no need to pay up to 5k for a PCR when you can get an ATK for 500b or less. (Performed at a clinic with cert)

As AO suggested.