Even if Governor Kristi Noem isn’t really reading all the science, she must be seeing this research reported on Fox News this morning warning that asymptomatic kids may spread coronavirus more easily than symptomatic adults:
Children with little to no symptoms may spread the coronavirus more easily than severely ill adults, according to a new study published Thursday.
The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Mass General Hospital for Children recently studied 192 children suspected of having the coronavirus or who had been in contact with an infected person.
Of the 192 participants, 49 tested positive and had significantly higher levels of virus in their airways compared to virus-stricken adults in intensive care units.
…Dr. Alessio Fasano, director of the Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center at MGH and senior author of the study, said that health experts have come to the “erroneous conclusion” that adults are the vast majority of those infected because “we have mainly screened symptomatic subjects.”
“Kids are not immune from this infection, and their symptoms don’t correlate with exposure and infection,” she said. “Our results show that kids are not protected against this virus. We should not discount children as potential spreaders for this virus.”
…”This study provides much-needed facts for policymakers to make the best decisions possible for schools, daycare centers and other institutions that serve children,” Fasano said. “Kids are a possible source of spreading this virus, and this should be taken into account in the planning stages for reopening schools” [Brie Stimson, “Asymptomatic Kids May Be More Contagious Than Severely Ill Adults, Study Finds,” Fox News, 2020.08.20].
This study suggests it is all the more important to teach kids to wear masks in school, not just to prevent them from getting sick themselves, but perhaps more urgently to prevent them from spreading coronavirus to their teachers, parents, grandparents, and other grown-ups they care about and depend on. Requiring masks in school isn’t about taking kids freedom away; it’s about helping them recognize that they are an important part of the community and can do important work in keeping people safe and strong.
Gee, Kristi, you talked in olden times about wanting to teach kids civics: now’s your chance!
This supports my contention that the virus is far more widespread than the number of positive tests would indicate.
In other words, it’s more evidence that the infection fatality rate is well below 1%.
1.1 million more Americans unemployed for the week. The hits keep coming both with the trump virus and economically. Vote Biden like your life depended upon it…because it actually does.
So let’s just go spread the symptoms since everybody has Covid anyway. Make those South Dakota workers go to their 2nd and third Jobs even if they’re coughing feeling weak and fatigued. We’s all goin to die anyways. Gawrsh A little Covid never hurt no one
Neal: No need for your ‘contention’ whatsoever when sophisticated calculations of COVID mortality rates are available (I’ll let you do your own homework).
That said, assume (1) an extremely conservative mortality rate of 0.03%, and (2) an extremely conservative age 65 plus at risk population in the US of 40.3 million people.
That’s 1,209,000 over age 65 who will die of COVID and we’re currently at 173,000 deaths (which obviously dips into those under age 65 ).
40,300,000 – 173,000 = 1,036,000 yet to die in the US of COVID at the very least if things continue as they have. See how mortality rates work?
DaveFN, the numbers in your assumption presume that literally every American will get Covid. That’s laughably unrealistic … similar to most projections about Covid.
Ignorance is bliss, eh Neal? Seems you have much company on your side of spectrum!
Neal: You need to do more homework–and some math.
At a realistic estimate that 65% of the US population — about 213 million people — would have to recover from COVID-19 to halt the epidemic via ‘herd immunity” should a vaccine not materialize, here’s how it pans out:
Deaths/cases = Mortality rate, ergo Deaths = Cases X Mortality rate.
Deaths = 213,000,000 cases X 0.03 mortality rate = 6,390,000 deaths before herd immunity in the US is established.
To think that “literally every American will get COVID” in the absence of a vaccine or preventative pharmaceutical of which we currently have neither, is altogether realistic.
Good News Neal, you sly rascal! You must’ve known this but were being coy.
“The Trump administration appears to be reversing course and giving COVID-19 hospital data collection duties back to the the Centers for Disease Control, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing comments from White House Coronavirus Task Force Coordinator Deborah Birx.
Last month, the administration abruptly informed hospitals that they were to stop submitting COVID-19 data to the CDC, and instead begin logging it with TeleTracking, a private firm based in Pittsburgh, rather than the CDC. The rapid change and lack of clear communication from the administration led to weeks of chaos, as TPM has reported.”
Great, now we can keep track of the body count and all the rest of the ghoulish details to reach those numbers DaveFN spoke of. Let’s put it this way Neal, this ain’t no hoax, this ain’t no disco, this ain’t no foolin’ around.
Someone sure as shooting be spreading the stuff around. Two new milestones for drumpf body count so far today….
United States
Coronavirus Cases:
5,740,359
Deaths:
177,223
Another 1000 plus bodies due to incompetence in the kremlin annex.
This senator from Louisiana has the trump virus. I wonder if old Hop a Long Cassidy thinks the numbers are skewed…at 62.
“Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy announced Thursday that he has tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing some COVID-19 symptoms. He said he is quarantining in Louisiana.”
Hopalong is a doctor as well, kinda like that goofy one in Brookings I’m thinking.
Food for thought (no pun intended)
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2020/4/22/21228158/coronavirus-pandemic-risk-factory-farming-meat
Noem Nothing hears about this she will probably order more cafos be built immediately because she trusts people.
I wonder what damage Covid-19 might be doing to those infected children’s lungs, hearts and other organs? I imagine the worst effects will be felt in adulthood.
Debbo, we don’t know yet. That lack of knowledge should lead us to take the opposite of Neal’s approach and invoke the precautionary principle.
Note how cleverly Neal changes the topic from the main point that he can’t refute: Kristi Noem is wrong in her selective reading of science when says we don’t have to worry about kids catching or spreading coronavirus.
Grdz buddy, Neal. “Laughable”
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O3_ww66EeN8
Big Lebowski
Not to jump tracks, but maybe we should keep an eye on how to prevent the next pandemic: limit factory farming of meat.
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2020/4/22/21228158/coronavirus-pandemic-risk-factory-farming-meat
Great convention! The greatest epidemic in modern times before this current trump virus, was the 1918-1920 Spanish Flu that started with some hogs in Kansas. Anytime animals are confined, there is a risk of the virus and an even greater one for CAFO’s. We have been warned repeatedly and all we do is jack those animals up with antibiotics to the point where they are no longer effective.
Here’s how responsible schools care for and about students:
“Seventeen students at St. Olaf College in Northfield have been suspended for the fall semester after attending an off-campus party where masks were not worn and at least one student present was already infected with COVID-19, the school announced Thursday.
“ ‘This is the kind of reckless behavior that will put an end to our in-person semester, and it must stop,’ St. Olaf President David Anderson said.”
Strib paywall
is.gd/hoBfVg
St. Olaf is one of the colleges in my town but I did not host the party. I claim no responsibility.
50 students are also forced to quarantine for 2 weeks due to the party. Dumb kids always think they’re bulletproof and won’t get caught.
“School officials also announced they administered more than 3,400 COVID-19 tests to students, faculty and staff as they reopened campus. Results from 3,055 tests have come back with a 0.3% positive rate.”
Ibid
Good job, St. Olaf.
My daughter reports that every kid in her orchestra class is wearing a mask. Most teenagers can get the message that they have a role to play in protecting the community. Those handful who don’t can be instructed by sterner means like St. Olaf’s suspensions. St. Olaf makes clear this isn’t the time to shrug with “Kids will be kids” passivity.
Here is what gives way Southeast of Noem Nothing country…
https://the-immoral-minority.com/iowas-plan-to-reopen-schools-for-in-person-teaching-falls-to-pieces/
Good link, Mike. I think some of these GOP “leaders” are finding out that just because they say so doesn’t make it so. When it comes to their lives and those of their children, only the most diehard of trumpelstilskins are sheeple. (Maybe that’s where the word “die hard” originated.)
In reference to my calculations Neal is in error when he writes : “the numbers in your assumption presume that literally every American will get Covid.”
As I made clear, the numbers in my first calculation are based solely on those age 65 plus or more who are at risk to contract COVID, somewhere between 12 and 16% of the US population. As of today there have been 5.6 million cases of COVID out of a total US population of 328.2 million, or 1.7% of the US having been infected.
https://www.kare11.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/minnesota-restaurants-tied-to-covid-19-outbreaks/89-26cf0126-8fb6-4870-8fab-1ea87353cd72
29 restaurants so far. As for Sturgis, covid cases of returning participants are starting to pop up in Nebraska, South Dakota and Minnesota.. North Dakota declined to comment if they had any.
Mike, ND does have 7 Covid-19 cases. I commented on that and Minnesota’s elsewhere, but don’t ask me where. 😃 Minnesota has 15, if I recall, one of whom is hospitalized.
Thanks for the correction, Ms Debbo. In grimmer news, drumpf body count passed two more milestones this day…. 5.8 million cases and 180k deaths.
United States
Coronavirus Cases:
5,838,103
Deaths:
180,131
The New York Times
@nytimes
·
19h
Some states and school districts are withholding data about coronavirus cases in their schools, citing privacy laws. In Virginia, state law prohibits the health department from disclosing cases at specific facilities, including schools.
So…..believe trumpists that CDC has not been nuetered with med data?? Do we believe USPS is no longer in danger of trump sabotage?