I just finished reading the transcript of an interview with Dr. Fauci as he prepares to retire from government service at the age (when he actually retires) of 82. It was quite interesting and worth reading. It would be nice to have a beer with him and talk more about getting the public to understand and appreciate science.
COVID vaccines and treatments will be going commercial eventually. Just as we now have to buy our own COVID tests, we'll be paying for the vaccines to get before those tests as well as the treatments to request after those tests come up positive. Pfizer and Moderna have said that their vaccines will likely be between $82.00 and $130.00 per dose. This may leave people with no health insurance high and dry when it comes to being vaccinated.
The CDC released the results of their studies on the effectiveness of the bivalent boosters against infection. Compared to being unvaccinated, the bivalent booster was 42 percent effective against infection for people between the ages of 18 and 49, 28 percent effective for people between the ages of 50 and 64, and 22 percent effective for people over the age of 65. The more the time between the doses, the more protection offered. That's one reason they say to wait so many months between the last booster and the latest one. Data on the effectiveness of the bivalent booster against severe disease will be coming.
The BQ.1 variants of Omicron now account for about 70 percent of the cases in the US. BQ.1.1 in particular accounts for 37 percent. The rise in hospital admissions is similar to what has been seen in France, who as before has been several weeks ahead of the US in COVID progression.
Not much new info in today's post; I pretty much did no news reading today. I've been concerned for some time about how much caffeine it's been taking me to get through a day and how tired I am even after a decent night's sleep (defined as not having to get up to use the bathroom). After a noteworthy episode of what might be called brain fog--forgetting I had turned on the water in the kitchen sink and not noticing until the hot water heater had been emptied--I finally admitted to myself that I might have a mild ( I hope) case of long COVID. I now have an appointment to see my doctor on the 20th. While I by no means have the severe symptoms a friend of mine has had, there is clearly something going on. If coming posts are not as long or detailed, it's probably because I'm taking care of other things such as me.
I will definitely have something to offer on Sunday, Day 1,000 though. I've been thinking a lot about that.
1 comment:
"...forgetting I had turned on the water in the kitchen sink and not noticing until the hot water heater had been emptied..."
Well that's scary!
Bird 'Pie
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