A Facebook friend posted that she just got her second booster. Wow! Besides waiting a bit, I'm looking into mixing mRNA vaccines. It seems that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines affect the immune system in slightly different ways, and mixing the two might increase one's range of immunity. Another Facebook friend mentioned that he'd gotten a Moderna first booster after two Pfizer doses for the same reason. Maybe I'll go for Moderna for my second booster. I'm still going back and forth on the when part. I got my first booster early on and ended up nervous that I'd gotten it too soon for it to be maximally effective once Omicron hit.
In a similar vein, The New York Times today had an article on seven steps to prepare for the BA.2 wave that might be looming. The first recommendation was to pay attention to local indicators. I therefore checked how my county is doing and learned that the risk level has risen to medium from low. We currently have 394.22 cases per 100,000 people; 83 new hospital admissions per 100,000 people; and 2.4 percent of staffed beds occupied by covid patients. The second recommendation was to have high-quality masks on hand. With mask mandates falling, it's going to be up to individuals to have their own supply, which I do. Further advice was to start masking when the case numbers start to rise not after. Third, have home tests on hand. Fourth, get a booster when eligible to get one. I've already got the fifth one covered--get and use a pulse oximeter. If the reading gets down to 92, you might be in trouble. Have a plan for where to get anti-viral drug treatment if you need it, and have backup plans for social events and travel.
Congress appears on track to passing a coronavirus response package but only after cutting five billion dollars in aid for the global vaccination effort. Voting may not be for a couple of weeks, so perhaps they'll find a way to keep the global good in play. As the Speaker of the House noted, "This is shameful--we have to get the money. Everyone knows that none of us are safe until all of us are safe."
The land border between Malaysia and Singapore has reopened after being closed in March 2020. In 2019, it was one of the world's busiest border crossings with over 300,000 travelers going through daily. Full vaccination is required for all people ages 13 and older. Limited travel re-started in August 2021, requiring testing and quarantine. Travel re-opened further in November 2021, with full vaccination and testing but no quarantine. A reservation was also required to go through the crossing.
According to a CDC report, states are far short of public health workforces needed. Public health workers across the country may be less equipped to respond to a pandemic now than they were at the beginning of 2020. According to the report, "The Covid-19 response has strained the U.S. public health system. Workforce and capacity needs remain unmet." This may be a good time for students to think about changing their major. The CDC looked at epidemiology positions only in state health departments and not other state agencies. The shortest staffing is in the areas of genomics, mental health, oral health, and occupational health.
In May 2020, over one-third of US workers were working at least partially remotely. This was down to 22.7 percent in February 2021, and 10 percent last month. Some companies are allowing workers to continue working remotely if they want to.
Some 55 percent of teenagers responding to a CDC survey said that they had suffered emotional abuse from an adult during the pandemic, while 11.3 percent said they had suffered physical abuse. Emotional abuse was defined as swearing, insulting, or belittling. Physical abuse included hitting, beating, kicking, or physically hurting. In 2013, 13.9 percent of teenagers ages 14 through 17 reported emotional abuse, and 5.5 percent reported physical abuse.
No April Fool's jokes, but here's a bit of humor since it's Friday. The anti-vaccination protesters in New Zealand seeded cannabis outside Parliament. Parliament's speaker reports, "We are weeding out the weed."
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