Covid19mathblog.com
FDA grants Moderna vaccine emergency authorization – https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/fda-grants-emergency-authorization-moderna-s-covid-19-vaccine-n1251553?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma
“The Food and Drug Administration authorized Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use Friday, adding a second vaccine to the country’s arsenal to fight the pandemic.
The United States is the first country to greenlight use of Moderna’s vaccine, which was developed in part with the National Institutes of Health.”
“Nearly 6 million doses of the Moderna vaccine have been earmarked for distribution and are expected to be shipped to 3,285 locations across the country, according to officials with Operation Warp Speed, which partially funded the Moderna work.
In a statement issued Friday, Moderna said that about 20 million doses of its vaccine will be delivered to the U.S. government by the end of this year. "The Company expects to have between 100 million and 125 million doses available globally in the first quarter of 2021, with 85-100 million of those available in the U.S.," the statement read.”
The coffee part in the article is interesting – but the takeaway are the stats this article notes – https://dailycoffeenews.com/2020/12/14/coffee-is-being-widely-used-as-a-covid-19-diagnostic-tool/
“The CDC now lists the loss of smell, known as anosmia, as one of the most common symptoms of COVID-19, with most recent studies indicating that about 50% to as much as 80% of people testing positive for the virus have suffered from anosmia.”
“most people suffering from COVID-19-induced anosmia do ultimately have their senses of taste and smell fully restored, according to preliminary research. Early on, scientists were worried that the disease may have been affecting the neurons that make olfactory connections, which would threaten long-term olfactory capabilities, although it appears more likely now that the disease only affects a layer of cells in the nose that can recover within about 14 days.”
““One of the things that can be done pretty easily, pretty objectively by someone at home would be to take some ground coffee and see how far away you can hold it and still smell it,” Tufts University School of Medicine Professor James Schwob recently told the University’s news service. “Or do the same with rubbing alcohol or your shampoo. If your nose is not congested and you have trouble recognizing those or other scents that are familiar to you, you might want to call your doctor about getting tested.””
UK looks to be getting worse and the new form is documented to be more contagious – https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/new-coronavirus-strain-50-percent-23191583
“The Covid strain is currently ripping through the southeast at ‘frighteningly transmissible’ speeds.
In a bid to stop the spread, Boris Johnson could hit parts of England with strict travel restrictions just days before Christmas, reports claim.
The Prime Minister is said to be considering a travel ban that could take effect as early as Saturday.
The measure could be rushed through after he was given worrying new evidence of the virulence of the new mutant strain of Covid-19, The Telegraph reported tonight.”
“latest figures from Sage showed the reproduction number, or R value, of coronavirus transmission across the UK is estimated to have risen to between 1.1 and 1.2 – which means the spread of the disease is accelerating.
With fears that the relaxing of the restrictions over Christmas could lead to a further upward spike, Mr Johnson on Friday refused to rule out the possibility of a third national lockdown for England in the new year.”
On a world basis per capita infection for the last 30 days per capita – shows Asia is spared but Europe and US looks pretty bad. Sweden numbers are high. Georgia the highest then Lithuania.
US death below 3K
Texas leads death CA leads confirmation – The data is becoming clear the testing data is not filtering for unique people. Many states now over 100% per capita for testing.
LA still leads both death and confirmation on county basis. Dallas is leading Texas county in death.
Not too disperse – as it was a few weeks before
Maricopa AZ is creeping back up and will become a big problem like LA. NY has fared quite well given the low temps.
