COVID-19 Megathread 5: The Trumps catch COVID-19

[Calthrina950]

Alright, I have heard the talking point about deaths decreasing so many times on here, and it’s a reasonable observation, even if I disagree with the overall goals of the people touting this statistic (Virus-truthers)
I did decide to take a look into it now that Worldometers has finally uploaded state level charts for every US State (it’s about time)
I compared the changes on the 7-day average of deaths for every US State that had more than 10 average deaths on June 20th, from June 20th to July 2nd.

What I found is that, yes, overall, deaths are decreasing, but the warnings I gave about a death rise may not be off very soon.

While overall deaths did fall, the new outbreak regions are starting to see an uptick on deaths. If this pattern continues (which is very possible) we will see a rise in deaths soon on the national level. Probably not as bad as April because Cuomo f***** up with retirement homes, but still an increase in deaths. Given how states such as AZ have reached hospital capacity, deaths may go up rapidly to those levels anyways due to lack of treatment.

Here is the full data:

States with a -10% in death averages:
-Minnesota
-Missouri
-Louisiana
-Illinois
-Indiana
-Ohio
-Georgia
-North Carolina
-Maryland
-Pennsylvania
-New Jersey
-New York
-Massachusetts

States with little change:
-California

States with a +10% increase:
-Arizona
-Texas
-Michigan
-Florida

Did you find anything about Colorado? I've read that coronavirus cases have had a slight uptick here over the past few weeks, but I have seen nothing about deaths.

[Calthrina950]

Alright, I have heard the talking point about deaths decreasing so many times on here, and it’s a reasonable observation, even if I disagree with the overall goals of the people touting this statistic (Virus-truthers)
I did decide to take a look into it now that Worldometers has finally uploaded state level charts for every US State (it’s about time)
I compared the changes on the 7-day average of deaths for every US State that had more than 10 average deaths on June 20th, from June 20th to July 2nd.

What I found is that, yes, overall, deaths are decreasing, but the warnings I gave about a death rise may not be off very soon.

While overall deaths did fall, the new outbreak regions are starting to see an uptick on deaths. If this pattern continues (which is very possible) we will see a rise in deaths soon on the national level. Probably not as bad as April because Cuomo f***** up with retirement homes, but still an increase in deaths. Given how states such as AZ have reached hospital capacity, deaths may go up rapidly to those levels anyways due to lack of treatment.

Here is the full data:

States with a -10% in death averages:
-Minnesota
-Missouri
-Louisiana
-Illinois
-Indiana
-Ohio
-Georgia
-North Carolina
-Maryland
-Pennsylvania
-New Jersey
-New York
-Massachusetts

States with little change:
-California

States with a +10% increase:
-Arizona
-Texas
-Michigan
-Florida

Did you find anything about Colorado? I've read that coronavirus cases have had a slight uptick here over the past few weeks, but I have seen nothing about deaths.

Yes, deaths have decreased in general like most of the country, but the June 20th death average was below 10 so I didn’t include it in the data.

And while Colorado cases have increased, it’s nothing like the increases in states such as Arizona or Florida.

Colorado seems to be doing strangely well, I’m guessing a healthy population, relative geographic isolation, and pure luck all contribute.

Colorado was also among the earliest states to have a coronavirus case. But you're correct, that our healthy population is playing a role. People around here exercise and eat healthier than they do elsewhere. Our population also tends to skew younger, and that certainly has had an effect as well.

[Calthrina950]

European Workers Draw Paychecks. American Workers Scrounge for Food.

In the pandemic, the United States has relied on expanded unemployment benefits, while European governments have subsidized wages, avoiding a surge in joblessness.

The pandemic has ravaged Europeans and Americans alike, but the economic pain has played out in starkly different fashion.

The United States has relied on a significant expansion of unemployment insurance, cushioning the blow for tens of millions of people who have lost their jobs, with the assumption that they will be swiftly rehired once normality returns.

European countries — among them Denmark, Ireland, Britain, France, the Netherlands, Spain and Austria — have prevented joblessness by effectively nationalizing payrolls, heavily subsidizing wages and enabling paychecks to continue uninterrupted.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/03/business/economy/europe-us-jobless-coronavirus.html

Thanks, interesting article.  

I’d be interested to hear more about the political factors that led so many diverse governments to Europe to jointly adopt this approach.  Because the difference between subsidizing payrolls and direct unemployment benefits wouldn’t seem to fit cleanly into a left/right divide, and many of the governments in Europe right now are very conservative in any case.  And despite it’s apparent effectiveness, I haven’t really heard many officials on either side in the US advocating for this approach.  Is it just the basic difference between having a functional vs. utterly dysfunctional national government?

I think it is because we have an even more conservative government than those that exist in Europe. European countries have, for decades, long had more efficient and more comprehensive social safety nets than the United States, and have thus been far more prepared to deal with the economic fallout from this pandemic than we have.

[Calthrina950]

Masking confusion at my job today. Interestingly enough, my store has posted signs on the doors which state that "Per local ordinance, a mask or facial covering is required in this facility." However, to my knowledge (and I checked my local news websites), neither Governor Polis, nor the County Board of Commissioners, nor the Colorado Springs City Council have made masks mandatory for the general public, at least not yet. The grocery store across the street from my workplace has had a sign in the front, asking customers to wear a facial covering or mask, for about two months now. However, neither that store-where an employee caught coronavirus at the end of March-nor mines are actually enforcing it.

As in previous weeks, half of the customers today were wearing masks, and half were not. And like before, many of the employees were maskless when they were not on the clock. Frustratingly enough, this included one of my store's own supervisors! As I've said before, they simply do not care, nor do they bother, to wear a mask, and it is absolutely embarrassing. I'm still waiting to see if a mandatory mask mandate will be issued in Colorado Springs or El Paso County.

[Calthrina950]

I am adamant that shutting the economy is not the answer. But we have a reached a point in which travel to and from Texas, Florida and Arizona should be banned for 30 to 45 days as well as stay at home orders for all three states.

Masks should be mandatory nationwide when going out in public.

I've started to move towards this viewpoint as well, after initially expressing my opposition to such mandates from government (though I would still prefer that businesses mandate them). I came back from work not too long ago, and as I've noted on here before, the number of people not wearing masks absolutely frustrates me. 40-50% of customers are not wearing them, and many of my fellow employees do not bother to wear their masks when they are not on the clock. I saw at least six of them going around, through the store, maskless, when they were on their breaks or whatever.

And what makes it doubly ironic is that my store posted signs last week saying that masks are required "per local ordinance" (even though no such order has been issued in El Paso County). If it weren't for Governor Polis' order back in late April, the vast majority of the employees at that store would be gladly going about maskless. They simply do not care. Many of them are my generation (in their teens and twenties), and they think that they are invincible to this virus. It's absolutely frustrating that there are so many ignorant people in this country.

[Calthrina950]

I've started to move towards this viewpoint as well, after initially expressing my opposition to such mandates from government (though I would still prefer that businesses mandate them). I came back from work not too long, and as I've noted on here before, the number of people not wearing masks absolutely frustrates me. 40-50% of customers are not wearing them, and many of my fellow employees do not bother to wear their masks when they are not on the clock. I saw at least six of them going around, through the store, maskless, when they were on their breaks or whatever.

And what makes it doubly ironic is that my store posted signs last week saying that masks are required "per local ordinance" (even though no such order has been issued in El Paso County). If it weren't for Governor Polis' order back in late April, the vast majority of the employees at that store would be gladly going about maskless. They simply do not care. Many of them are my generation (in their teens and twenties), and they think that they are invincible to this virus. It's absolutely frustrating that there are so many ignorant people in this country.

One would think that object permanence would be readily understood. It’s something we’re taught as toddlers. The fact that mommy covers her face in her hands doesn’t mean she went away when playing peekaboo.

These people are less competent than your average first grader.

100% agree with you. I can't stand many of my co-workers anyhow, though I've generally concealed my dislike from them (or at least have kept my distance from them). I was furious to see them going about as if things are normal. Among those who have been maskless have been my department's supervisor and one of the head cashiers. In fact, the latter took off her mask whenever she went on break or lunch, and only put it back on when on the clock.

But as I've said before, many people seem to have an innate distrust of the "experts", or they simply don't like being told what to do. It shouldn't be much to ask someone to wear a piece of cloth over their face.

[Calthrina950]

I almost missed this, but West Virginia is now joining the growing list of states mandating masks indoors: https://www.wboy.com/news/health/coronavirus/wv-gov-justice-schedules-covid-19-briefing-for-1230-may-address-mandatory-masks/. Justice is now the third Republican Governor in the past week to have issued a statewide mask order, following Lee in Tennessee (who allowed local jurisdictions to issue such orders) and Abbott in Texas. Moreover, Governor Wolf in Pennsylvania is now saying that masks will "probably" remain mandatory until there is a coronavirus vaccine-which won't come until the end of the year at the earliest.

[Calthrina950]

Last Wednesday (July 1) there were 676 reported deaths. So far today, we are sitting at 692 deaths, with much of California, almost all of Texas, and the entirety of 8 other states still not having yet reported. This means that the 7-day moving average of deaths will be increasing again. If this up-trend in deaths holds over the coming days/weeks, then we will have started our 2nd death wave with EXACTLY the same # of days lagging behind our 2nd case wave as Iran, literally down to the day. It is remarkable that deaths appear to be up-trending with exactly the expected time lag.

We are also at 45,574 cases so far today, compared to 52,358 last Wednesday, so it is quite clear that cases will also continue to trend up. We have a shot at breaking 60k cases for the first time if California and Texas both manage to post big numbers today. If we don't quite manage it today, we probably will tomorrow.

Do you think there is any difference with how California and Texas have handled the coronavirus pandemic? Has one state been more competent than the other? Or have they both bungled their approaches? Which Governors do you think have done the best in addressing this crisis? I'm asking this because the vast majority of states (36, at last count), are experiencing a rise in cases. This includes Colorado, where coronavirus hospitalizations and cases have increased over the past two weeks.

[Calthrina950]

Last Wednesday (July 1) there were 676 reported deaths. So far today, we are sitting at 692 deaths, with much of California, almost all of Texas, and the entirety of 8 other states still not having yet reported. This means that the 7-day moving average of deaths will be increasing again. If this up-trend in deaths holds over the coming days/weeks, then we will have started our 2nd death wave with EXACTLY the same # of days lagging behind our 2nd case wave as Iran, literally down to the day. It is remarkable that deaths appear to be up-trending with exactly the expected time lag.

We are also at 45,574 cases so far today, compared to 52,358 last Wednesday, so it is quite clear that cases will also continue to trend up. We have a shot at breaking 60k cases for the first time if California and Texas both manage to post big numbers today. If we don't quite manage it today, we probably will tomorrow.

Do you think there is any difference with how California and Texas have handled the coronavirus pandemic? Has one state been more competent than the other? Or have they both bungled their approaches? Which Governors do you think have done the best in addressing this crisis? I'm asking this because the vast majority of states (36, at last count), are experiencing a rise in cases. This includes Colorado, where coronavirus hospitalizations and cases have increased over the past two weeks.

Basically no governor has done a good job addressing the crisis.  Some have let it spread faster than other, and some were just in better position to hold it off longer.   But no one has done what really needed to be done to truly limit the death toll and efficiently get our society back to normal.  This would have been a hard lockdown accompanied by a program of voluntary deliberate infection and quarantine in order to safely establish immunity without infecting vulnerable people.

But what would a hard lockdown have looked like? A full resort to what China did with Wuhan, or what Italy did in Lombardy? And how could we be sure that a program of "voluntary infection" wouldn't have spiraled out of control? Given how our approaches to this virus have evolved constantly over preceding months, I don't think it would have been a bad idea to go down this path, but would the public have accepted it? This has been a very taxing situation across the board.

[Calthrina950]

Do you think there is any difference with how California and Texas have handled the coronavirus pandemic? Has one state been more competent than the other? Or have they both bungled their approaches? Which Governors do you think have done the best in addressing this crisis? I'm asking this because the vast majority of states (36, at last count), are experiencing a rise in cases. This includes Colorado, where coronavirus hospitalizations and cases have increased over the past two weeks.

Snip.

This is a very thorough explanation, and I agree with much of what you said here. It can be impossible to predict the trajectory that this virus (like other diseases) can take, and you are correct when you say that the virus does not respect, nor does its recognize, such human-created institutions as governments and state borders.

[Calthrina950]

It looks like Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan, and Colorado all had their most new confirmed infections in over a month today. 

It really feels to me like the virus is unstoppable until we reach a certain immunity threshold, which perhaps only NYC right now has achieved.

Correction, it's only unstoppable for countries with failing administrations, like the United States and Brazil. Most of the rest of the world has gotten it under control (EU) or has completely eradicated it (Taiwan, NZ).

P.S. Nearly 62,000 new cases in one day. Fauci might be proven right yet again. 100k new cases a day is not that far off at this point.

What will happen once we reach that point? I can't even imagine how things are going to play out if we have that many cases per day. And deaths are going back up as well. We'll probably be back at the 1000-1500 deaths per day figure soon.

[Calthrina950]

It looks like Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan, and Colorado all had their most new confirmed infections in over a month today. 

It really feels to me like the virus is unstoppable until we reach a certain immunity threshold, which perhaps only NYC right now has achieved.

Correction, it's only unstoppable for countries with failing administrations, like the United States and Brazil. Most of the rest of the world has gotten it under control (EU) or has completely eradicated it (Taiwan, NZ).

P.S. Nearly 62,000 new cases in one day. Fauci might be proven right yet again. 100k new cases a day is not that far off at this point.

What will happen once we reach that point? I can't even imagine how things are going to play out if we have that many cases per day. And deaths are going back up as well. We'll probably be back at the 1000-1500 deaths per day figure soon.

What will happen? What we've been trying to prevent from the get-go, a systematic collapse of our healthcare system and an increase of the COVID-19 mortality rate, alongside added casualties from other conditions that are left unattended due to an overloaded system.

Some states are already reaching their breaking points.

At this point, I'm starting to wonder if coronavirus will end up killing more Americans than the Civil War did. It would be absolutely terrifying to me if 600,000 or more Americans were to die from this.

[Calthrina950]

32 deaths today in Virginia, which is the highest total in six weeks.

I’ve always thought that the surges in places like Texas, Florida, and California were pretty much inevitable given the lack of infections there earlier on.

But in the past few days, it has become clear that even most states that already saw big surges and death totals have been unable to shake the virus regardless of what they did to combat it.  This is totally disheartening.

What this means is that the virus isn't going away, and will probably become endemic at this point. That means that it will recur every year, and we will all have to get our "coronavirus" shots, just like we get our "flu" shots, on an annual basis.

[Calthrina950]

It looks like Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan, and Colorado all had their most new confirmed infections in over a month today. 

It really feels to me like the virus is unstoppable until we reach a certain immunity threshold, which perhaps only NYC right now has achieved.

Correction, it's only unstoppable for countries with failing administrations, like the United States and Brazil. Most of the rest of the world has gotten it under control (EU) or has completely eradicated it (Taiwan, NZ).

P.S. Nearly 62,000 new cases in one day. Fauci might be proven right yet again. 100k new cases a day is not that far off at this point.

What will happen once we reach that point? I can't even imagine how things are going to play out if we have that many cases per day. And deaths are going back up as well. We'll probably be back at the 1000-1500 deaths per day figure soon.

What will happen? What we've been trying to prevent from the get-go, a systematic collapse of our healthcare system and an increase of the COVID-19 mortality rate, alongside added casualties from other conditions that are left unattended due to an overloaded system.

Some states are already reaching their breaking points.

At this point, I'm starting to wonder if coronavirus will end up killing more Americans than the Civil War did. It would be absolutely terrifying to me if 600,000 or more Americans were to die from this.

2.8 million Americans died in 2019.

Even if COVID kills 600k, many of them would have died anyway due to their age or underlying conditions.  More than 80% of U.S. COVID deaths are in those over age 65.

I'm aware of these statistics-that senior citizens have died (and are much more likely to die) at much higher rates than younger age groups, and of the number of Americans who usually die every year. But this doesn't change the thrust of what I was touching upon here. If we had a much more competent response, from early on, we could have lowered the curve even further. If it weren't for the foolish policy of sending coronavirus patients into nursing homes, if it weren't for Trump's denouncement of coronavirus as a "hoax", and if it weren't for his turning masks and social distancing into political issues, we would be much farther down the road than we are.

[Calthrina950]

We've exceeded 70,000 new cases today alone, and it's still one hour until the day's reports end.

Hasn't it just been a few days since we passed 60,000? At this rate, we may hit 100,000 by the end of next week.

[Calthrina950]

The updated numbers for COVID-19 in the U.S. are in for 7/10 per: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

I'm keeping track of these updates daily and updating at the end of the day, whenever all states finish reporting for that day.

Δ Change: Day-by-day Growth or Decline or COVID-19 Spread/Deaths.

• IE: Are we flattening the curve enough?

Σ Increase: A day's contribution to overall percentage growth of COVID-19 cases/deaths.

• IE: What's the overall change in the total?

<Last Numbers for 3/26-3/28 in this Post>
<Last Numbers for 3/29-4/4 in this Post>
<Last Numbers for 4/5-4/11 in this Post>
<Last Numbers for 4/12-4/18 in this Post>
<Last Numbers for 4/19-4/25 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 4/26-5/2 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 5/3-5/9 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 5/10-5/16 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 5/17-5/23 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 5/24-5/30 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 5/31-6/6 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 6/7-6/13 in this post>
<Last Numbers for 6/14-6/20 in this post>

6/21: <Sunday>

• Cases: 2,356,657 (+26,079 | Δ Change: ↓21.89% | Σ Increase: ↑1.12%)
• Deaths: 122,247 (+267 | Δ Change: ↓53.40% | Σ Increase: ↑0.22%)

6/22:

• Cases: 2,388,153 (+31,496 | Δ Change: ↑20.77% | Σ Increase: ↑1.34%)
• Deaths: 122,610 (+363 | Δ Change: ↑35.96% | Σ Increase: ↑0.30%)

6/23:

• Cases: 2,424,168 (+36,015 | Δ Change: ↑14.35% | Σ Increase: ↑1.51%)
• Deaths: 123,473 (+863 | Δ Change: ↑137.74% | Σ Increase: ↑0.70%)
• Death toll inflated by older counts recently dumped by DE

6/24:

• Cases: 2,462,554 (+38,386 | Δ Change: ↑6.18% | Σ Increase: ↑1.58%)
• Deaths: 124,281 (+808 | Δ Change: ↓6.37% | Σ Increase: ↑0.65%)

6/25:

• Cases: 2,504,588 (+42,034 | Δ Change: ↑9.50% | Σ Increase: ↑1.71%)
• Deaths: 126,780 (+2,499 | Δ Change: ↑209.28% | Σ Increase: ↑2.01%)
• Death toll inflated by older counts recently dumped by NJ

6/26:

• Cases: 2,552,940 (+48,352 | Δ Change: ↑15.03% | Σ Increase: ↑1.93%)
• Deaths: 127,640 (+860 | Δ Change: ↓65.59% | Σ Increase: ↑0.68%)
• Death Δ Change affected by older counts recently dumped by NJ on 6/25

6/27:

• Cases: 2,596,537 (+43,597 | Δ Change: ↓9.83% | Σ Increase: ↑1.71%)
• Deaths: 128,152 (+512 | Δ Change: ↓40.47% | Σ Increase: ↑0.40%)

6/28: <Sunday>

• Cases: 2,637,077 (+40,540 | Δ Change: ↓7.01% | Σ Increase: ↑1.56%)
• Deaths: 128,437 (+285 | Δ Change: ↓44.34% | Σ Increase: ↑0.22%)

6/29:

• Cases: 2,681,802 (+44,725 | Δ Change: ↑10.32% | Σ Increase: ↑1.70%)
• Deaths: 128,779 (+342 | Δ Change: ↑20.00% | Σ Increase: ↑0.27%)

6/30:

• Cases: 2,727,853 (+46,051 | Δ Change: ↑2.96% | Σ Increase: ↑1.72%)
• Deaths: 130,122 (+1,343 | Δ Change: ↑292.69% | Σ Increase: ↑1.04%)

7/1:

• Cases: 2,779,953 (+52,100 | Δ Change: ↑13.14% | Σ Increase: ↑1.91%)
• Deaths: 130,798 (+676 | Δ Change: ↓49.66% | Σ Increase: ↑0.52%)

7/2:

• Cases: 2,837,189 (+57,236 | Δ Change: ↑9.86% | Σ Increase: ↑2.06%)
• Deaths: 131,485 (+687 | Δ Change: ↑1.62% | Σ Increase: ↑0.53%)

7/3:

• Cases: 2,890,588 (+53,399 | Δ Change: ↓6.70% | Σ Increase: ↑1.88%)
• Deaths: 132,101 (+616 | Δ Change: ↓10.33% | Σ Increase: ↑0.47%)

7/4:

• Cases: 2,935,770 (+45,182 | Δ Change: ↓15.39% | Σ Increase: ↑1.56%)
• Deaths: 132,318 (+212 | Δ Change: ↓65.58% | Σ Increase: ↑0.16%)

7/5: <Sunday>

• Cases: 2,982,928 (+47,158 | Δ Change: ↑4.37% | Σ Increase: ↑1.61%)
• Deaths: 132,569 (+251 | Δ Change: ↑18.40% | Σ Increase: ↑0.19%)

7/6:

• Cases: 3,040,833 (+57,905 | Δ Change: ↑22.79% | Σ Increase: ↑1.94%)
• Deaths: 132,979 (+410 | Δ Change: ↑63.35% | Σ Increase: ↑0.31%)

7/7:

• Cases: 3,097,084 (+56,251 | Δ Change: ↓2.86% | Σ Increase: ↑1.85%)
• Deaths: 133,972 (+993 | Δ Change: ↑142.20% | Σ Increase: ↑0.75%)

7/8:

• Cases: 3,158,734 (+61,650 | Δ Change: ↑9.60% | Σ Increase: ↑1.99%)
• Deaths: 134,854 (+882 | Δ Change: ↓11.18% | Σ Increase: ↑0.66%)

7/9 (Yesterday):

• Cases: 3,219,999 (+61,265 | Δ Change: ↓0.62% | Σ Increase: ↑1.94%)
• Deaths: 135,822 (+968 | Δ Change: ↑9.75% | Σ Increase: ↑0.72%)

7/10 (Today):

• Cases: 3,291,786 (+71,787 | Δ Change: ↑17.17% | Σ Increase: ↑2.23%)
• Deaths: 136,671 (+849 | Δ Change: ↓12.29% | Σ Increase: ↑0.63%)

A mixture of good and bad news today. Deaths fell by over a hundred, but new cases went up by slightly over 10,000. And the good news is fleeting, as I don't expect for the death rate to remain the same as it is now, given the exponential growth in cases we've seen over the past few weeks.

[Calthrina950]

In my home city of Colorado Springs, the City Council will be considering an emergency ordinance to make masks mandatory in public: https://krdo.com/news/2020/07/10/city-council-to-evaluate-emergency-ordinance-requiring-masks-in-colorado-springs/. Over the past week, the rise in cases has accelerated in Colorado, and El Paso County's percentage rise is greater then that of the state. Mayor Suthers also said yesterday that a mask mandate "isn't out of the question."

If the ordinance is approved, it will remain in effect until August 14, though Council has the discretion to extend it further. They considered making them mandatory back in May, but held back at that time. But now, with cases spreading, and with mandatory mask orders becoming the norm across the country, I expect that it will pass. Colorado Springs will finally be joining Denver, Boulder, and Ft. Collins, which made masks mandatory over two months ago.

[Calthrina950]

https://twitter.com/rolandparis/status/1282073726117466112

The only way out of this is with decent leadership, and now even then it'll take a long time.  We're not getting out of this anytime soon.

This virus might drain and drag down the US to a point of no return.

Trump's response to this pandemic has been absolutely horrendous. If he had heeded the warnings about this virus from early on, utilized the pandemic plans that had been developed by the Obama Administration, worn a mask, and refrained from calling this a "hoax" or downplaying its effects, we would be in a much better position. But of course, this is Trump, so what should we have expected? Every other President in recent memory, even Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush, would be handling this better than he has.

[Calthrina950]

https://twitter.com/NumbersMuncher/status/1282672141394116610

I'm not surprised by these numbers. We've known for months that Republicans are far less likely to wear masks in public than Democrats or Independents. And I don't think that is going to change much, even with Trump belatedly, and finally, yielding to the clamors of those who have been urging him to wear a mask (though I'm not sure how long that will last). This poll does show an increase in the number of Americans wearing masks, compared to a month or two ago. This is a combination of two factors: 1) More jurisdictions have made it mandatory to wear masks in public and 2) More people are taking coronavirus seriously as cases continue to surge.

[Calthrina950]

Further news in Colorado Springs. The Colorado Springs City Council has delayed its vote on an emergency mask mandate: https://krdo.com/news/2020/07/13/colorado-springs-city-council-discusses-mask-ordinance-as-protesters-gather-outside/. As I should have expected, people here are protesting such an order, and there are some members of the City Council who are concerned about whether or not it could be enforced, or whether the penalties within the ordinance are too harsh. Governor Polis, when asked last week why he was not issuing a statewide mask mandate, expressed concerns about enforcement, although he's waged a vigorous social media campaign urging people to wear them (i.e. "Wear a damn mask", etc.) Mayor Suthers in the Springs expressed similar concerns.

Anecdotally, I worked yesterday, and the same stubborn 50-50 divide is persisting at my job. Coronavirus, moreover, is hitting even closer to home for me, as we were informed by our manager that an employee tested positive for coronavirus last week. This is the first case at our store. Our manager reiterated the importance of wearing masks, practicing social distancing, and adhering to sanitary practices (i.e. washing your hands, cleaning off counters/items, etc.) However, you cannot cure stupid, as some of the people who attended that meeting went right back to their ignorant behaviors after leaving it. I've mentioned how many of my co-workers have not been wearing their masks when not on the clock, and some haven't even when on the clock; those are the behaviors I'm referring to. If things don't change, we'll have another case.

Fortunately, I did not work in close proximity to that employee, nor was I there on the last day that they worked prior to being tested. This of course, is no guarantee, given that they may have infected other co-workers and/or customers. So all I can do is wait and see what happens. This is now the second scare I've had with potential coronavirus infection, following the case at my local grocery store back in late March.

[Calthrina950]

Walmart will require all customers to wear masks beginning Monday, July 20.

Mask requirements are expanding further. Given that Costco made masks mandatory all the way back in May, it surprises me that it took until now for Walmart to do the same. Apparently, they are doing so to provide "consistency" across their stores, since so many jurisdictions have made them mandatory. I expect for the remaining national and regional store chains (i.e. Kroger, Target, Dollar Tree, etc.) to follow suit.

[Calthrina950]

Daily Florida numbers are out:

Via reddit --

10,181 new cases today's report. 10,087 residents and 94 non-residents. 20.0% positive from 50,803 tests. 112 death. 453 Hospitalizations highest hospitalization yet. Median age 41.

In El Paso County, coronavirus hospitalizations and cases are continuing to increase at a rapid clip. I read that 7% of coronavirus tests here are now coming back positive. Our health officials have stated that we are at jeopardy of having to reimpose restrictions if the positivity rate is above 5%. Moreover, they are urging officials to make masks mandatory, but the County Board of Commissioners is still reluctant to do so. If we do not reverse our current case growth trajectory, we will be back in a state of lockdown.

[Calthrina950]

7.) What is the effective reduction in Rt solely from universal wearing of masks in public places?

Very limited, because a mask is going to have very little effect in a place like a grocery store (where social distancing is generally being observed, and personal contacts are rare).  People really just don't swap saliva or cough onto one another at grocery stores, even prior to the pandemic.

I'm not sure how it will be for you when masks are made mandatory in Mississippi. Now that your neighbor of Alabama has done so (and Alabama had been a state which was initially opposed to mandatory masks), I wouldn't be surprised if Governor Reeves follows. 

[Calthrina950]

As I predicted earlier today, Kroger's (which owns King Soopers) will be joining Walmart in requiring all customers to wear masks: https://krdo.com/news/2020/07/15/all-king-soopers-to-require-masks-starting-july-22/. This will take effect on July 22, or next Wednesday, so two days after Walmart. Also, as of today, Starbucks and Best Buy's have required their customers to wear masks as well. At this point, given my experiences at my job, I've been won over to the mandatory mask train, and I think that all Americans should now be required to wear masks when in public. The recent surge in cases is concerning, and it's clear that many people aren't going to take a basic precaution to protect themselves and others unless compelled to do so.

[Calthrina950]

Some humor in these troubled times...

https://twitter.com/LocalReformer/status/1283608114084765697

Is this the 1980s? Or the 1990s? Those are my answers to the question.