CORONAVIRUS INFO PROVIDED BY DR. JIM HARRIS – 10/6/2022

FROM YOUR EPIDEMIOLOGIST:

”…Here we go again. The start of a new wave. Eyes are on Western Europe, as hospitalizations are uniformly increasing….Interestingly, no new subvariant is driving this wave, as the majority of cases are still the “old” BA.5 subvariant….[BUT]…subvariants are brewing. They only make up a small percentage of cases for now, but they are gaining ground; historically, we feel their impact when they make up ~30-50% of cases. These subvariants will eventually add fuel to the fire…If we combine five of the top new subvariant leaders in the U.S. (referred to as “Pentagon”), it’s clear that case acceleration is brewing below the surface. Given the current growth, we will likely see an impact on national metrics in mid-November….”

(J. Harris:I suggest that you read the whole article referenced above. You might even want to subscribe to her efforts and send her some money. I did, but it looks like I’ll need to send her some more. We are likely to have another bad winter. The most important thing we old folks can do is to stay completely vaccinated, be careful, avoid sick people if possible, and avoid unvaccinated people. Remember, about half the folks with Covid do not know that they have it or just caught it and don’t have symptoms yet. AND, get your FLU SHOT.)

FROM THE LA TIMES:

Coronavirus Today: How COVID lies spread on Facebook

(J. Harris: Wonderful summaries of several papers—READABLE version)

FROM SCIENCE ADVANCES. Almost unreadable version:

”Losing the battle over best-science guidance early in a crisis: COVID-19 and beyond”

(J. Harris: I have a few readers who have advanced mathematical and statistical skills who can probably understand this article. I simply will have to agree with the conclusions.)

FROM BECKERS:

CDC revises ‘up to date’ term on COVID-19 vaccination

”…The CDC revised its “up to date” COVID-19 vaccination term Sept. 30 to include the primary series and the recently authorized omicron-targeting booster.”

FROM THE WASHINGTON POST:

Can you get the omicron booster if you have never received the original coronavirus vaccine?

AND LAST BUT NOT LEACHED: