Monday, December 21, 2020

CoViD-19: Stay Home Monday | Winter Solstice & The Great Conjunction | KPBS Discloses SD Outbreak Locations | Relief Bill Passes Both Houses

Hotel Del Coronado Christmas Tree (Taken 12.28.2019)

Monday was the winter solstice and the date of the great conjunction with Jupiter and Saturn so close that they appear as the "Christmas Star." It was really pretty to watch the planets appear closer and closer over the past couple weeks, even if I couldn't capture it adequately with my camera. We had another day of not doing much...sitting in the yard, watching our daily visit from a hummingbird, stopping my cat from pouncing on our yard bunny. 

We watched the long briefing from Newsom, the always depressing PBS Newshour, and now I'm filling my brain with the junkfood that is Bravo. Darren has stepped up his cooking these days and his terriyaki chicken thighs are *chef's kiss*. It's hard to believe that Christmas is just a few days away, and while I'm usually a little bummed that we don't get a white Christmas, or even a gray and cold one, I'm not complaining this year, since we plan on staying in my parents' backyard the entirety of our visit. On the plus side, my sister and the girls' tests all came back negative, but her father-in-law decided to just show up unannounced so that could really skewer all the plans. I don't mean to be rude, but dude drove from Arizona unannounced. Not only should my sister's family be quarantining, but how incredibly rude anytime, let alone a pandemic. I don't really know how she's handling it, but I wouldn't let the guy in my house or near my kids and if he's planning on joining in on Christmas, we'll be staying home after all. Seriously. WTF? People are unbelievable. Which leads me to my super-rant. After the jump. 

For a long time I didn't really agree with VOSD, KPBS, and the U-T that San Diego County should be disclosing locations of outbreaks like Los Angeles does ( LA County Non-Residential Outbreak Information,) because I agreed that businesses would stop voluntarily reporting. But with the insanely high case rate, the consistently low investigation rate, and the number of businesses willfully choosing to violate the orders, I think it's time for Dr. Wooten to release that information to the public. (I wrote this last night, before KPBS published their COVID-19 outbreak information.) It would also really help their case against the idiot strip clubs, restaurants, gyms, breweries, and everyone else fighting the orders. I think it's awesome that Sprouts is voluntarily reporting cases. UFCW is reporting that locally, there have been 246 cases among grocery workers in December alone, compared to 24 in September, 30 in October, and 82 in November.

I keep reading that shaming or calling people out doesn't change 'hearts and minds' but I'm so fucking tired of it all and really, really fucking pissed. And I know everyone has their own situations and justifications and reasons for doing what they do, but right now I'm just not having it. I talked to my dad today and his doctor told him his kidneys are failing in addition to all of his other health problems. The thought of him potentially needing hospitalization, if a bed would even be available, and none of us being able to visit is heartbreaking. The last time he was hospitalized was for weeks and then a skilled nursing facility for a couple months after that. Knowing him and how much he hated both the hospital and the SNF, he won't go to either when he needs to and would rather just die at home when his time comes.

But here we are will all these selfish fucking people who need to eat at a restaurant or gather with friends for some craft fucking beer or who can't figure out how to wear a goddamn mask properly. I have no patience for people who act like this isn't very literally happening all over the world, that this shit is the most serious it's ever been, and that stay-home orders and mask-mandates are happening everywhere and not just here, and not because Newsom wants to ruin lives or it's all some liberal plot to turn the country socialist (though it that were to be the case, I don't think I'd mind.) It's promising that congress finally got their shit together, but it's not enough. Far too many businesses have shuttered, far too many people have been sick or died, because the illegitimate McConnell couldn't get his fucking act together. /rant (I will try to be calmer, kinder, and more compassionate tomorrow.)  

  • California Governor Newsom & Secretary Ghaly Media Briefing:
    • Governor is back in 10-day quarantine. Someone on his staff whom he was in proximity with on Friday tested positive over the weekend. Governor tested negative on Sunday. He went to Sleep Train Arena (Sacramento) on Saturday which is an alternative care site for COVID and non-COVID patients. 
      Gov. Newsom To Quarantine; Staffer Tests Positive For Virus - KPBS (12.21.2020)
    • Based on data and trends, stay-at-home will likely be extended past original date of 12/30 for Southern California.
    • State has 13,714 vents in inventory, 6,309 available in hospitals
    • Governor very complimentary of Operation Warp Speed and administration (sucking up?)
    • New COVID Strain(s):
      • CA Whole Genome Sequencing Initiative monitors virus and mutations
      • No evidence of this strain in CA or USA
      • Current reports in South Africa (different mutation), UK strain in neighboring EU countries
      • Underscores importance of continued surveillance
      • Genetic code of viruses change often. Some are not important, some are. 
      • COVID virus is "a little more sticky" than the virus we've been seeing
      • So far, no evidence of getting people sicker, but spreads faster
      • Concerned about the unknowns
    • CA Notify App - 7.35 million have signed up
    • Vaccines:
      • FDA approved Moderna Vax on Friday
      • Western State Scientific Safety Review Workgroup has confirmed safety
      • 21 of 31 sites have received Moderna vax via distribution by McKesson 
      • 110,000/672,000 vaccines have arrived, 672k expected this week
      • No ultra-cold storage needed, allowing it to be distributed to rural areas
      • Public process for vaccinations. Nobody gets to jump the line. Next Drafting Guidelines Workgroup meeting is public on 12/23 from 2-4pm.
      • 560,625 Pfizer doses for CA
        • 327,600 received and distributed
        • 233,025 second allocation has been received (40% below what was anticipated. DOD admitted errors in distribution)
        • 70,258 first doses already administered in first week
    • Federal COVID-19 Relief - $900 Billion
      • $300/week for 11 weeks unemployment
      • $600 direct stimulus checks to help "lower income" Californians
      • Extension of CARES act funding through December 2021
      • Bill also includes
        • Small business relief
        • Paycheck Protection Program
        • Rental assistance/State hopes to extend eviction moratorium
        • Testing, Tracing, Vaccines 
        • Money for Schools/Education
        • Money for childcare
        • Broadband for low-income families
        • Transportation funds
        • Increase in SNAP benefits 
    • Hospitals & Staffing:
      • Continue to set records
      • Staffing is challenging because of national surge
      • 607 staff have been deployed from the State/Federal government
      • 4 alternative care sites are open
    • California COVID-19 Stats:
      • 37,892 New Cases/1,892,348 Total Cases (2% increase 43,901 7-day avg, 
      • 83 New Deaths/22,676 Total Deaths (0.4% increase, 233 7-day avg, 2,741 14-day change)
      • 12% 14-day test positivity rate (3.4% increase from 14 days ago)
      • 17,190 COVID-19 Hospitalizations (+63% 14-day, +3.9%/+609 patients from prior day)
      • 3,756 COVID-19 ICU hospitalized in CA (+51% 14-day, +46 /1.2% from prior day)
      • 1,429 ICU beds available (+76 from prior day)
    • Media Questions:
      • Counties and health networks are expected to follow state's vaccine distribution plans. Well-known and well-resourced people must not jump the line. Prioritization is clear and equitable. State is tracking where vaccines go and who gets them. Enforcement will be swift and severe. 
      • State has requested an additional field hospital with staffing from Federal government
      • Some models suggest we'll have 90k hospitalizations. State has moved into regional surge plan. Individual hospitals are now getting into their own surge plans. If they go beyond their surge capacity, Crisis Standards of Care Guidelines will be implemented. Could be beyond surge in some hospitals.  and/or regions by end of the month or early January. Will always invoke mutual aid across counties, regions, and state. Ghaly: "(We) make sure those plans are in place, but work hard to make sure no one has to put them into place anywhere in California." 
      • It is estimated that 12% of today's cases will be hospitalized. 12% of those will be ICU patients. 
      • We have agency, we are not victims of fate. We can determine our fate and future. The rest is still unwritten. (hahaha)
      • State cannot provide guidance exemptions, not even for long-held traditions like the Rose Bowl. Disappointing that the State has to say no, and the economic impact lost, state doesn't want to say no, they have to say no. State cannot imperil people's lives. (Also, fuck Texas)
      • Rolling out how to make determinations for extensions of ICU capacity projections for four weeks after first day of order could be lifted. (Around January 25th for Southern California.) Will look at 7-day testing, hospitalizations, the R-effective (transmission rate.) State will make that call when they do the calculations when the time is right. 
      • Governor has no vacations, no weekends. Is quarantined from his family in a small, separate room. 
      • Relief package isn't the end, just the beginning. 
      • Governor will be doing briefs every day this week except maybe Christmas. 
  • COVID-19:
  • Politics/News/Other Reading:
  • Global COVID-19 Stats (JHU 10:22pm 12/21):
    • 77,364,959 Known Cases
    • 1,702,600 Known Deaths
  • US COVID-19 Stats (COVID Tracking Project):
    • 178,191 New Cases/17,828,084 Known Cases (9%+ Change over 7 Days)
    • 1,485 New Deaths/310,968 Known Deaths
    • 115,351 Current COVID-19 Hospitalizations
    • 21,899 Currently COVID-19 in ICU
    • 7,776 Currently on ventilator
  • San Diego County Stats
    • State Data:
      • Southern California ICU Bed Availability: 0.0% (2.5% Statewide)
      • 3,493 New Cases/126,465 Total Cases (+2.8% from prior day)
      • 0 Deaths/1,280 Total Deaths
      • 52.7 cases/100k population (Based on week ending 12/8, Assessed on 12/15. Unadjusted Case Rate)
      • 10.9% Test Positivity (Assessed on 12/15)
      • 13.5% Health Equity Positivity (Assessed on 12/15)
      • 1,294 COVID-19 hospitalized patients (+30 patients, +2.4% from prior day)
      • 341 ICU hospitalized patients (+17 patients, +5.2% from prior day)
      • 214 ICU beds available (+5 from prior day)
    • County Data:
      • San Diego County COVID Update & County Receives Its First Shipment of Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine - County News Center
      • 3,252 New Cases/129,717 Total Cases 
      • 3 New Daily Deaths/1,283 Total Deaths
      • 11% Daily Test Positivity/11.2% (7-day avg after 7-day lag)/9.5% Test Positivity (14-day average)
      • 29.5 cases/100k population (Assessed on 12/15. Unadjusted case rate per 100,000 excluding prisons.) 
      • Case Investigation is 47% (under 70% goal)
      • Increasing Day Over Day COVID-19 Hospitalizations 8% (1,259 patients, 189% increase over 30 days)
      • ICU COVID-19 Capacity 22%  (325 patients, 152% increase over 30 days)
      • 1 New/40 Community Outbreaks (7-day)
        • Business 16
        • Retail 1
        • Grocery 1
        • Faith-based Setting 3
        • Daycare/preschool 6
        • Healthcare 2
        • Construction 1
        • Emergency Services 2
        • tk-12 school 2
        • Warehouse/Distribution 4
        • Hotel/Resort/Spa 1
        • Private Residences 1
  • Universities:
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Posted by Rosemary Bystrak at Monday, December 21, 2020
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