The COVID-2019 Thread

[misskit]

China reports 25,353 new COVID cases for Nov 17 vs 23,276 a day earlier

SHANGHAI, Nov 18 (Reuters) - China reported 25,353 new COVID-19 infections on Nov. 17, of which 2,362 were symptomatic and 22,991 were asymptomatic, the National Health Commission said on Friday.


That compared with 23,276 new cases a day earlier – 2,388 symptomatic and 20,888 asymptomatic infections, which China counts separately.


Excluding imported infections, China reported 25,129 new local cases, of which 2,276 were symptomatic and 22,853 were asymptomatic, up from 23,132 a day earlier.

There were no new deaths, same as a day earlier, keeping fatalities at 5,226.


As of Thursday, mainland China had confirmed 281,793 cases with symptoms.


China's capital Beijing reported 100 symptomatic and 366 asymptomatic cases, compared with 172 symptomatic and 262 asymptomatic cases the previous day, local government data showed.

Guangzhou, a city in the south of nearly 19 million people, reported 255 new locally transmitted symptomatic and 8,989 asymptomatic cases, compared with 275 symptomatic and 8,486 asymptomatic cases a day before, local authorities said.


Major manufacturing hub Zhengzhou reported 107 new symptomatic locally transmitted COVID infections and 1,556 asymptomatic cases, compared with 136 symptomatic and 1,480 asymptomatic cases a day before, according to local government data.

Chongqing reported 193 new symptomatic locally transmitted COVID infections and 4,473 asymptomatic cases, compared with 172 symptomatic and 3,900 asymptomatic cases the previous day, local government authorities said.

China reports 25,353 new COVID cases for Nov 17 vs 23,276 a day earlier | Reuters

[misskit]

Hong Kong leader tests positive for Covid on return from APEC

(AFP) – Hong Kong leader John Lee tested positive for Covid-19 on his return from an Asia-Pacific summit, the city’s government said Monday, days after he met Chinese President Xi Jinping and other heads of state.


Lee visited Thailand’s capital Bangkok last week to attend a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, with his office saying he tested negative on rapid antigen tests for all four days he was there.


“The Chief Executive is undergoing quarantine in accordance with the guidelines provided by the Centre for Health Protection,” a government statement said.


The APEC summit was Lee’s first overseas trip since the pandemic began nearly three years ago, as well as his first since taking office as Hong Kong’s chief executive in July.


Lee met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Vietnamese President Nguyen Phuc and several other senior officials at the forum.


At the informal leaders summit on Friday, Lee sat between Xi and Widodo, with all three unmasked.


The trip aimed in part to revive Hong Kong’s status as a regional financial hub, after the city was effectively cut off from the rest of the world through the pandemic due to strict quarantine requirements for incoming travellers.


The government has relaxed restrictions in recent months, scrapping mandatory hotel quarantine and reducing the number of compulsory tests for arrivals.


Masking remains mandatory in public places, with residents required to check-in on a government-run app at dining and entertainment venues.


Lee’s office said he would continue to work from home during his mandatory isolation period, and that members of his staff who travelled with him had tested negative.

Hong Kong leader tests positive for Covid on return from APEC | 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

[harrybarracuda]

I wonder if he went to a certain club.....?

[harrybarracuda]

While the rest of the world is recovering from Covid, the chinkies are still building quarantine centres

BEIJING (AP) — Residents of some parts of China’s capital were emptying supermarket shelves and overwhelming delivery apps Friday as the city government ordered faster construction of COVID-19 quarantine centers and field hospitals.
Uncertainty and scattered, unconfirmed reports of lockdowns in at least some Beijing districts have fueled demand for food and other supplies, something not seen in the city for months.

Unusually large numbers of shoppers in the city’s northern suburbs left shelves bare in markets, but customers were relatively few in the center of the city of 21 million, where supplies remained abundant.

Daily cases of COVID-19 across the country are hitting records, with 32,695 reported Friday. Of those, 1,860 were in Beijing, the majority of them asymptomatic.

Improvised quarantine centers and field hospitals hastily thrown up in gymnasiums, exhibition centers and other large, open indoor spaces have become notorious for overcrowding, poor sanitation, scarce food supplies and lights that stay on 24 hours.

Most residents of the city have already been advised not to leave their compounds, some of which are being fenced in. At entrances, workers clad head to toe in white hazmat suits stop unauthorized people and make sure residents show a recent negative COVID-19 test result on their cellphone health apps to gain entry.

Beijing adds new quarantine centers as COVID-19 cases rise across China | PBS NewsHour

[Buckaroo Banzai]

1,860 out of 22 million, I would say those are pretty good odds not to get it. If I did my math right that's a .0085%chance of getting it

[panama hat]

China reports 25,353 new COVID cases for Nov 17 vs 23,276 a day earlier

NZ had that many in one week . . . luckily most everyone here has been triple or quadruple (if you're Pasifika or Maori) vaccinated . . . with a real vaccine . . . China should give that a go, but it'd drain their financial reserves importing it as they seem to suck particularly badly in copying this . . . more complicated than a plastic car, I guess

[harrybarracuda]

It's good that the chinky riot police are Covid safe though.

[harrybarracuda]

Ouch, I would think even the chinkies will struggle to whine about that one:

Beijing will be unable to control the spread of Covid-19 unless it imports foreign-made vaccines that are more effective than Chinese-made jabs, Joe Biden’s coronavirus tsar has warned.Ashish Jha, who runs the US coronavirus response, said in an interview at a conference organised by the FT and the Commonwealth Fund that all the empirical evidence suggests Chinese-made Covid vaccines are “not as good” as mRNA shots made by Moderna, BioNTech and Pfizer.Other Covid vaccines based on different technologies developed in the UK and elsewhere, such as the University of Oxford-AstraZeneca jab, are also superior to vaccines made in China, he added.“I really do worry about the Chinese ability to manage the virus and keep the population immunity high with the vaccines they have. They really do need, I think, higher-quality vaccines,” Jha said in an interview.

Subscribe to read | Financial Times

[hallelujah]

It's good that the chinky riot police are Covid safe though.

This is brilliant to see. The fuckers that gave us this thing making an absolute mess of things - cos they are basically a 3rd world country in essence - and the people finally rising up against the CCP fuckwits.

[Buckaroo Banzai]

How about booster shots in Thailand?
I had three shots, and last spring I had covid while in Greece , so I guess that is considered the equivalent of fourth shot.
Do I still need a fourth shot ?
and is it worth it to have it in Thailand.
Is the fourth shot in Thailand adjusted for new strains, or would it be an older variant and thus useless against new strains?

[hallelujah]

How about booster shots in Thailand?
I had three shots, and last spring I had covid while in Greece , so I guess that is considered the equivalent of fourth shot.
Do I still need a fourth shot ?
and is it worth it to have it in Thailand.
Is the fourth shot in Thailand adjusted for new strains, or would it be an older variant and thus useless against new strains?

The short answer is no. It is a cold.

[harrybarracuda]

The short answer is no. It is a cold.

The short answer involves questions:

1. Is he in a high risk group?
2. Are updated boosters available in Thailand?

I think the answer to the latter is no unless you pay for them.

As of now I haven't bothered with a fourth shot.

[Buckaroo Banzai]

The short answer involves questions:

1. Is he in a high risk group?
2. Are updated boosters available in Thailand?

I think the answer to the latter is no unless you pay for them.

As of now I haven't bothered with a fourth shot.

-Not sure if I am a high risk, I am 65 and have high blood treasure, treated with medication.
-don't mind paying for it.
-Hearing of the problems in China, the increased tourism here, and relaxed precautions by most, I wonder how long it would be before we start noticing increases here.
-I guess I would need to start calling hospitals and asking if they have the latest booster, I was kind of hoping someone here had some relevant information concerning that.

[hallelujah]

-Not sure if I am a high risk, I am 65 and have high blood treasure, treated with medication.
-don't mind paying for it.
-Hearing of the problems in China, the increased tourism here, and relaxed precautions by most, I wonder how long it would be before we start noticing increases here.
-I guess I would need to start calling hospitals and asking if they have the latest booster, I was kind of hoping someone here had some relevant information concerning that.

Let me give you some figures from the UK government to help you make this decision:

There were an average of 31 deaths per 100,000 people in October.

It was the leading cause of deaths in care home patients.

The highest number of Covid-related deaths were in those 85 years and older. Key word: related. "This has been consistent throughout the coronavirus pandemic and reflects the highest overall hospital admission rates in the oldest age groups."

The doctor certifying a death can list all causes in the chain of events that led to the death, and pre-existing conditions that may have contributed to the death. Deaths with COVID-19 mentioned anywhere on the death certificate are defined as deaths involving COVID-19.

As I've highlighted repeatedly on this thread.

From previous ons.gov stats I have posted, the 80 plus age group still have a 90% chance of survival.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) latest insights - Office for National Statistics

Make your own mind up.

[Ghost61]

Fyi I was offered a choice of Booster at Bangkok Hospital. 2022AUG17 Pfizer was free but Moderna reqd payment.

[harrybarracuda]

-Not sure if I am a high risk, I am 65 and have high blood treasure, treated with medication.

You're not.

[misskit]

China's Xi unwilling to accept vaccines despite threat from protests-U.S. intel

WASHINGTON, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Chinese leader Xi Jinping is unwilling to accept Western vaccines despite the challenges China is facing with COVID-19, and while recent protests there are not a threat to Communist Party rule, they could affect his personal standing, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said on Saturday.


Although China's daily COVID cases are near all-time highs, some cities are taking steps to loosen testing and quarantine rules after Xi's zero-COVID policy triggered a sharp economic slowdown and public unrest.

Haines, speaking at the annual Reagan National Defense Forum in California, said that despite the social and economic impact of the virus, Xi "is unwilling to take a better vaccine from the West, and is instead relying on a vaccine in China that's just not nearly as effective against Omicron."

"Seeing protests and the response to it is countering the narrative that he likes to put forward, which is that China is so much more effective at government," Haines said.

"It's, again, not something we see as being a threat to stability at this moment, or regime change or anything like that," she said, while adding: "How it develops will be important to Xi's standing."


China's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent on Sunday.


China has not approved any foreign COVID vaccines, opting for those produced domestically, which some studies have suggested are not as effective as some foreign ones. That means easing virus prevention measures could come with big risks, according to experts.

China had not asked the United States for vaccines, the White House said earlier in the week.


One U.S. official told Reuters there was "no expectation at present" that China would approve western vaccines.


"It seems fairly far-fetched that China would greenlight Western vaccines at this point. It's a matter of national pride, and they'd have to swallow quite a bit of it if they went this route," the official said.

China'''s Xi unwilling to accept vaccines despite threat from protests-U.S. intel | Reuters

[harrybarracuda]

That's called cutting off other peoples' noses to spite their faces.

I bet Mr. Shithole and his mates have all had Moderna.

[Shutree]

-I guess I would need to start calling hospitals and asking if they have the latest booster, I was kind of hoping someone here had some relevant information concerning that.

I was offered a booster shot at a government clinic recently. The thing is, I'd already had four jabs including Pfizer and AZ before finally catching Covid in May. Maybe the jabs helped moderate the symptoms, maybe they didn't, how would I know? Compared to an annual flu jab that has kept me free from flu for decades the Covid jabs seem a bit vague.
Anyway, I tried to find out if the booster on offer was an updated vaccine but I couldn't get a clear answer. Maybe there were translation issues. I decided not to bother with more jabs until I am clear that an updated version is on offer.

[Norton]

I decided not to bother with more jabs until I am clear that an updated version is on offer.

Yep best be sure. Sometime next year the Bivalent COVID-19 Vaccine Booster will be available in Thailand. Supposed to be effective against the original strain, and the Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.

[happynz]

The thing is, I'd already had four jabs including Pfizer and AZ before finally catching Covid in May. Maybe the jabs helped moderate the symptoms, maybe they didn't, how would I know?

I've had three Pfizer and a Moderna and I got covid late October. Three and a half days of chills and fever, runny bum, but no coughing. My wife and daughter also came down with covid at the same time and they too had chills and fever, but also a hacking cough, but no runny bum. Their symptoms hung on for a couple days longer than mine. They had had only one booster shot - Pfizer.

Covid cases are on the uptick again and I hear that some are getting covid for the second or third time. I'm considering another jab.

[hallelujah]

I was offered a booster shot at a government clinic recently. The thing is, I'd already had four jabs including Pfizer and AZ before finally catching Covid in May. Maybe the jabs helped moderate the symptoms, maybe they didn't, how would I know? Compared to an annual flu jab that has kept me free from flu for decades the Covid jabs seem a bit vague.
Anyway, I tried to find out if the booster on offer was an updated vaccine but I couldn't get a clear answer. Maybe there were translation issues. I decided not to bother with more jabs until I am clear that an updated version is on offer.

So you've had FOUR jabs and still caught Covid, yet people are still queuing up for more?

The mind boggles.

[harrybarracuda]

So you've had FOUR jabs and still caught Covid, yet people are still queuing up for more?

The mind boggles.

The "jeenious" strikes again.

[harrybarracuda]

I agree. The Wuhan 'Flu is most apt.

SHANGHAI, Dec 7 (Reuters) - China should change its official name for COVID-19 to reflect the virus' mutation, and patients with light symptoms should be allowed to quarantine at home, a leading authority on traditional Chinese medicine was quoted as saying on Wednesday.
Gu Xiaohong told the state-run Beijing Daily newspaper that the coronavirus' Chinese name, which identifies it as a pneumonia-causing disease, should be changed to call it simply an infectious virus.

China's approach to COVID - which has emphasised widespread testing and the quarantining of positive cases in specialised facilities - should change from "passive detection" to "active prevention", with recuperation at home for light cases.
Gu said the China Association of Chinese Medicine's infectious disease arm, which she heads, had reached a consensus to change how they describe the virus.

https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-medical-expert-says-covid-has-mutated-should-be-renamed-state-media-2022-12-07/

[harrybarracuda]

Not the sharpest tool in the box...

A Tennessee rapper was sentenced to more than six years in jail after he bragged about scamming California’s Employment Development Department out of $700,000 in COVID relief funds in a music video.
Fontrell Antonio Baines, the 33-year-old rapper known as 'Nuke Bizzle', received his sentence on Wednesday, and also pleaded guilty to a separate case on gun and drug counts.
Baines was arrested in October 2020 after he released a song, 'EDD', boasting about getting rich by stealing jobless benefits in California during the pandemic.
Prosecutors said the rapper stole people's identities to collect the money between July and September 2020.
The rapper, who lived in California at the time, filed 92 fraudulent unemployment claims and was ordered to pay the money back, according to the US Attorney's Office.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...VID-fraud.html