Coronavirus positives in Bradenton and Hillsborough Counties (University, Christmas: taxis, snow)

[Trying941]

Originally Posted by wondermint2

[b]

“The federal law will override the state law,’’ said Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg. “They have to follow whatever law is in effect and, if they conflict, then they follow the superior law’’ which, under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, is the federal law.

The law is not this simple. https://scholarworks.law.ubalt.edu/c...4&context=ublr

Sen. Jeff Brandes is not a lawyer.

And it is amusing that those most fervently argue for Federal preemption in favor of mandatory vaccinations argue just as fervently against it in support of sanctuary cities and against mandatory deportation of illegal immigrants. (Yes, I am aware Sen. Brandes is a Republican - and I am not speaking of him in speaking of the incongruity of views held by others.)

[wondermint2]

If an employee in Florida doesnt want the vaccine there are plenty of out clauses. The way I understand it is the "religious exemption" won't even require any documentation. Just state that the vaccine is against your religion and you're good to go. Also if somebody gets fired for refusing a vaccine they can collect unemployment benefits.

Florida businesses are a step closer to facing new restrictions on imposing COVID-19 vaccine requirements on their workers

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...ect/ar-AAQK7LG

The bill passed through the Senate Judiciary Committee by a 7-4 vote along party lines, with Republicans in favor and Democrats against.

Before approval, Republicans voted down three amendments from Sen. Tina Polsky, D-Boca Raton, one of which would have allowed employers to request supporting information from a worker who claims a religious exemption. Without proper documentation, the exemption would be so broad as to allow workers to abuse it, she argued.

“If they’re using the religious exemption it has to be tied to a religious belief,” Polsky said. “I don’t think just saying it makes it so.”

Burgess countered that the religious exemption was not too broad and noted the bill expires in June 2023. He argued workers could be subject to intimidation by employers if they were allowed to investigate their religious beliefs.

“Questioning an employee’s religious belief … it is a slippery slope,” Burgess said.

[HAMC81]

Coming soon:

"Lawmakers passed a bill along party lines making it a federal felony to refuse to fully vaccinate your pet with all 473 booster shots"

[Trying941]

Originally Posted by wondermint2

Virus expert: As much as 70 percent of world's population could get coronavirus

Full article here:
https://news.google.com/articles/CBM...S&ceid=US%3Aen

** A Harvard University epidemiologist says that as much as 70 percent of the world's population could get the coronavirus.

Marc Lipsitch told CBS News in an interview airing Monday that "40 to 70 percent" of the global population could become infected with coronavirus and that it's "almost inevitable" that the virus will impact the "entire globe." He added that 1 percent of those who develop symptoms could die.

"That is a projection, so we will find out if it's accurate as things go on," Lipsitch said. "It is the best estimate that I've been able to make based on a combination of the mathematical models that we use to track and predict epidemics."

Lipsitch pointed out that some people who are infected show no or almost no symptoms, but it's unclear how many cases like that exist. **

Actually, he is not a virus expert - he is an epidemiologist. They study the distribution and control of disease whether the origin is viral, environmental, organic or otherwise spread.

When one considers that a true epidemiologist is driven by mathematical models and data, and not politics, the view should be given considerable weight. https://www.cdc.gov/csels/dsepd/ss1978/index.html

You should assume the odds are that if you have not had Covid, you eventually will. Sorry, it is simply math. What you can do is put yourself in the best position to have a positive outcome. Get or keep your weight between 20-25 BMI. Take your vitamins, especially D and E. Have zinc in your diet. Multiple vitamins will cover you for all of these. And, if you do not feel well, get prompt attention from a medical professional.

[Trying941]

Originally Posted by wondermint2

Virus expert: As much as 70 percent of world's population could get coronavirus

Full article here:
https://news.google.com/articles/CBM...S&ceid=US%3Aen

** A Harvard University epidemiologist says that as much as 70 percent of the world's population could get the coronavirus.

Marc Lipsitch told CBS News in an interview airing Monday that "40 to 70 percent" of the global population could become infected with coronavirus and that it's "almost inevitable" that the virus will impact the "entire globe." He added that 1 percent of those who develop symptoms could die.

"That is a projection, so we will find out if it's accurate as things go on," Lipsitch said. "It is the best estimate that I've been able to make based on a combination of the mathematical models that we use to track and predict epidemics."

Lipsitch pointed out that some people who are infected show no or almost no symptoms, but it's unclear how many cases like that exist. **

Actually, he is not a virus expert - he is an epidemiologist. They study the distribution and control of disease whether the origin is viral, environmental, organic or otherwise spread.

When one considers that a true epidemiologist is driven by mathematical models and data, and not politics, the view should be given considerable weight. https://www.cdc.gov/csels/dsepd/ss1978/index.html

You should assume the odds are that if you have not had Covid, you eventually will. Sorry, it is simply math. What you can do is put yourself in the best position to have a positive outcome. Get or keep your weight between 20-25 BMI. Take your vitamins, especially D and E. Have zinc in your diet. Multiple vitamins will cover you for all of these. And, if you do not feel well, get prompt attention from a medical professional.

PS. The reason he says 40-70 percent is because the virus will stop at herd immunity. They always do.

[wondermint2]

Looks like Sarasota Memorial Hospital decided to go with the Federal rules as oposed to the new vaccine rules enacted for the state of Florida. Same thing for employees at Manatee Memorial Hospital and Lakewood Ranch Medical Center.

Sarasota hospital now requiring employees get COVID vaccine. What about Bradenton?

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/sa...ton/ar-AAQUDHU

The Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, which includes Sarasota Memorial Hospital off U.S. 41 and Hillview Street south of downtown Sarasota, is requiring all employees, members of medical staff and volunteers to be fully vaccinated by Jan. 4, 2022, according to a news release.

Employees and medical staff were notified Thursday of the update to the COVID-19 vaccination policy in compliance with the Biden administration's federal vaccine mandate.

Employees and medical staff are required to have either the two-dose (Moderna or Pfizer) vaccine or the single dose (Johnson & Johnson) vaccine, unless they qualify for a medical or religious exemption, according to the news release.

Manatee Memorial Hospital chief executive officer Tom McDougal and Lakewood Ranch Medical Center CEO Andy Guz released a joint statement Friday afternoon regarding vaccine mandates. .

"Manatee Memorial Hospital and Lakewood Ranch Medical Center are committed to the safety of our community and staff and accordingly we will remain in compliance with guidelines and federal mandates related to COVID-19 vaccinations and safety protocols," the statement read.

Vendors and contracted employees who provided services at either SMH hospital or its outpatient facilities will also be required to comply with the federal vaccine mandate by Jan. 4, 2022, the news release said.

Employees approved for an exemption are mandated to receive COVID-19 testing twice a week, wear masks and follow dining restrictions at SMH facilities, the news release said.

The move conflicts with four bills that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law Thursday. One aspect of the legislation DeSantis signed prohibits governments from requiring vaccines for public-sector employees, the Miami Herald reported Thursday.

Facilities that do not enforce the federal rule, "risk losing Medicare and Medicaid funding — a massive income source for large providers," while the DeSantis' bill "leaves those same facilities subject to state fines if they implement the federal rule," the Miami Herald reported.

[wondermint2]

The FDOH released their county level weekly Covid report this evening. Things are still looking good for our area. The test positivity ratios, hospitalizations and cases are all low. However it bares watching because cases have actually stoped declining over the past two weeks. This goes along with my theory that we're currently in the process of rounding into a bottom.

IMO the best case scenerio would be that we enter into a prolonged phase of flat trend (let's call it endemic). Cases won't go away altogether but won't spike dramatically either. I still expect that we'll get a minor bump up in trend by Christmas/New Year's holidays.

Something else to keep in mind is that the official case count from the FDOH doesn't include non-residents. There are many snowbirds here now from up North - and if they contract Covid (while they're here in FL) they are not counted. However hospitalizations include residents & non-residents so we'll be keeping a close eye on that.

http://ww11.doh.state.fl.us/comm/_pa...ata_latest.pdf

For the week of November 12 - 18th:

Sarasota County

Cases = 190 (21.8% increase from the previous week's case total of 156)

Test positivity ratio = 2.5% (increase of 0.3% from the previous week)

Manatee County

Cases = 162 (decline of 6.35% from the previous week's case total of 173)

Test positivity ratio = 2.4% (decrease of 0.1% from the previous week)

[wondermint2]

Looks like the USA as a whole could be headed for a rough winter. (Although I dont think things will be as bad as last winter). Thankfully Florida currently looks tame - probably because the Delta wave was so bad here over the summer - and now more people are headed outdoors in Florida (as the weather cools down). For much of the rest of the country people head indoors as the weather gets colder.

Tweet today from Dr. Topol:

https://twitter.com/EricTopol/status...79917356802052

" The US 5th wave is going exponential
—122,000 new cases today, 7-day avg now >92,000
—Added ~900 hospitalization, pushing ->50,000
—And over 1,900 deaths
https://newsnodes.com/us "

[Trying941]

Originally Posted by wondermint2

Looks like the USA as a whole could be headed for a rough winter. (Although I dont think things will be as bad as last winter). Thankfully Florida currently looks tame - probably because the Delta wave was so bad here over the summer - and now more people are headed outdoors in Florida (as the weather cools down). For much of the rest of the country people head indoors as the weather gets colder.

Tweet today from Dr. Topol:

https://twitter.com/EricTopol/status...79917356802052

" The US 5th wave is going exponential
—122,000 new cases today, 7-day avg now >92,000
—Added ~900 hospitalization, pushing ->50,000
—And over 1,900 deaths
https://newsnodes.com/us "

The virus is like the flu. Every winter it comes back. No surprise here.

When it was winter in Australia, Chile and Argentina (and our summer) it was very bad there. (Our staff was getting very sick.) Now, it is getting warmer in the Southern Hemisphere and it is better. Now, it is getting colder here and getting worse.

Florida is blessed by a subtropical/tropical climate.

[wondermint2]

Only a third of Florida’s seniors have had COVID-10 vaccine booster shots as holidays approach

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/on...ach/ar-AAQZFgG

Only a third of seniors who are fully vaccinated in Florida have received a COVID-19 booster shot — worrying health experts who say that millions are leaving themselves exposed as the holidays approach.

While the COVID transmission rate in Florida is the lowest it has been since June, the stakes are high heading into the holidays: People over 65 make up 75% of the COVID deaths in Florida.

“If you are 65 or older and you are not boosted, you are putting your life at unnecessary risk,” said Howard Forman, a professor who directs the Health Care Management program in the Yale School of Public Health and tracks COVID’s global spread.

Compared to other age groups, Florida’s seniors have a high vaccination rate of 88% for the first two doses. But only 34% of them in Florida who are fully vaccinated have received a booster shot. More than 2.9 million seniors in the state who are fully vaccinated have yet to get a booster dose.

Florida has fallen below 37 other states in its percentage of seniors who are boosted, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID vaccination tracker.

Florida has emerged from a devastating summer surge, but experts say the pandemic isn’t over. In parts of Europe and 30 states in the U.S. new COVID cases are increasing.

“Florida will see another surge, whether it is as large or as challenging as the previous wave is unclear,” said Dr. Michael Osterholm, an epidemiologist and director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.

Multiple studies show regardless of the type of vaccine, COVID immunity levels wane after six months. If cases in Florida pick up as they did last January, the uptick in infections could coincide with lower immunity levels in Florida’s seniors, many of whom got vaccinated in the spring.

Florida’s seniors have been eligible for boosters since September, however, on Friday, the CDC approved them for all adults.