COVID-19 Megathread 6: Return of the Omicron

[Sir Mohamed]

59% of school parents support mask mandates in school. The partisan divide is astonishing.

https://twitter.com/axios/status/1435201196860522498

[Sir Mohamed]

How likely will this end up before SCOTUS? And what are the chances the mandate gets struck down? Not sure there's a real legal argument as the constitution specifies authority of the prez over the executive branch, though the GOP and anti-waxers will go nuts.

[Sir Mohamed]

Sad, but correct.

https://twitter.com/cbschicago/status/1443183810754060289

[Sir Mohamed]

Greg Abbott issues executive order banning vaccine mandates for private businesses

https://www.texastribune.org/2021/10/11/texas-greg-abbott-covid-19-vaccine-mandate/

Not sure that he actually has the ability to do this, but nonetheless, what a POS.

Is that even lawful? Biden's EO concerns federal authorities and laws, over which Mr. Abbott has ZERO authority whatsoever.

We can have a debate over Covid restrictions and vaccines, policizing a deadly pandemic was one of the worst things the GOP has done.

[Sir Mohamed]

Ugh.

https://twitter.com/axios/status/1453731561140981765

[Sir Mohamed]

It's possible, if not likely, the vaccines are somewhat less effective against the new variant, though there's not enough data. That said, it was always clear the vaccines need to be adjusted at some point; Pfitzer said they can do so in a matter of 6 weeks if necessary.

For sure it's concerning, though not the time for panic. WHO held an emergency meeting today to assess the situation.

[Sir Mohamed]

https://twitter.com/PaulBrandITV/status/1465240129216331779?t=iJf6i_ycDzNagYlsbj...

This means that the omicron variant has already spread across the planet, and may have been spreading for weeks prior to being detected in South Africa. It's only a matter of time now before the first American case is reported.

It was in Europe long time before it was detected in SA

The new Covid-19 variant, Omicron, was present in the Netherlands earlier than previously thought, officials say.

It was identified in two test samples taken in the country between 19 and 23 November, which is before the variant was first reported by South Africa.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-59473131

Most likely it's already spread on every continent with multiple cases in several countries. Only question is how effective the vaccines are in the end.

If cases continue to go up, it would for sure confirm Omicron being more infectious than Delta, which will be replaced as dominant variant. Such as Delta replaced Alpha, formerly known as "UK Variant" and "India Variant", respectively.

[Sir Mohamed]

So apparently the US will require a PCR Test within 24 hours of departure even for vaccinated international travels .. and then require another test within 3 to 5 days after arrival.. even for vaccinated US Citizens and after that... still require a 7 day quarantine period even for vaccinated US Citizens.

That is insanity.

I just don't think severe travel restrictions or travel bans actually help.

Vaccinated can still transmit the virus, albeit in a much shorter time window than unvaccinated as virus load decreases such faster.

Travel restrictions can't stop the Omicron variant for sure, but gives us some additional time to prepare and gather more data.

[Sir Mohamed]

Not verified through enough data yet, but there's a possibility for immune escape among recovered patients without booster shots.

https://twitter.com/febdonline/status/1466425979409215504

[Sir Mohamed]

Sadly, we're not done with this stuff.

https://twitter.com/axios/status/1471503110052872200

[Sir Mohamed]

What exactly are "mild" symptoms?  Is it basically just anything short of being in the hospital?

Not sure there's an exact definition. I'd say cough without struggling to breathe, headache, dullness, loss of taste and appetite.

[Sir Mohamed]

The Delta variant has been displaced, for better (or worse):

https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1473077569511645184

Travel bans clearly do not work in preventing viruses or virus variants from entering the country, so we need to think of better methods.  Let this be the last time we ever try this tactic.

Huh. I'd love for an epidemiologist to help me understand this: if the whole country is now saturated with omicron, why isn't everywhere in the country surging like NYC is right now? Rates are decreasing here in Buffalo. Is the idea that basically everywhere in the country will look like NYC in a week or two now that omicron is everywhere?

Since Omicron grows so rapidly, the areas in which it is growning explode with cases, so they take up a very large portion of cases overall.   The areas like Buffalo that have waning Delta waves are just taking up a smaller and smaller portion of the pie each day as the Omicron areas grow so quickly.

Another question is how many probes are actually sequenced? Not every positive tests gets examined for the variant.

I'd also assume mobility is higher in NYC than elsewhere in the state. So cases begin to soar sooner there.

[Sir Mohamed]

british study show that omicron is no more mild of delta if you see too age, just omicron get more infection in younger and these, like all the other variants, get mild or low level symptom more easy

Different studies seem to contradict themselves here. I think we have to wait a few more weeks to collect enough valid data that gives us a clearer picture.

https://twitter.com/thehill/status/1473675235455119368

[Sir Mohamed]

Will we get to 1 million cases per day before January 1, or just shortly after?

Does it even matter at this point?

[Sir Mohamed]

So we have broken the all time record of over 1 million new cases in a single day? A few months ago, I would have freaked out about this. But at least this is getting us herd immunity sooner than later, kind of a "natural vaccination" for anti-vaxxers. As sad as it is. I just hope hospitals don't get overwhelmed, especially to protect non-Covid patients as cancer and other diseases don't pause because of a pandemic.

[Sir Mohamed]

Restaurants should adapt to the new normal, de-emphasize their dining rooms and emphasize their takeout and delivery options. It would probably help if there were some regulation on Doordash/Seamless/Ubereats as they are probably acting like a cartel right now with their fees.

For most restaurants, “adapting to the new normal” will involve just shutting down. Most restaurants have narrow profit margins in the first place. You can’t just ““de-emphasize the dining room”” when doing so would mean the restaurant is no longer profitable.

Yup, I would instead prefer smart solutions like offering free tests for indoor space, especially for unvaccinated if you don't want to restrict their access already. Other than that, ventilation concepts or just opening windows more frequently can help.

[Sir Mohamed]

https://twitter.com/axios/status/1485942904699109380?cxt=HHwWiIDS8d3MkJ8pAAAA

[Sir Mohamed]

https://twitter.com/ABC/status/1524690280666046464

[Sir Mohamed]

Well, people just stopped caring about Covid.

[Sir Mohamed]

https://twitter.com/axios/status/1597599744016146435

[Sir Mohamed]

If someone wants/needs to wear a mask, so what? Get a grip.

Yup, if someone wants to, let them do it. Masks can also protect from other infectious diseases. Wearing one should be voluntarily though.