Covid19mathblog.com

Vaccine news:

Looks like Pfizer is the choice as other makers are making Pfizer – Competing pharma companies volunteer to make Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine | Fortune

“Sanofi’s work on a COVID-19 vaccine hit a speed bump last fall that delayed the drugmaker from having a product on the market in early 2021, so it has pivoted to help out in another way.

The company has agreed to help make the vaccine developed by rival Pfizer. Starting in June, it will use a Frankfurt production line to perform a crucial step in making 125 million doses. This comes less than a month after Novartis agreed to use its manufacturing facilities to help make Pfizer’s vaccine.”

Looks like plenty of vaccines for the US – Pfizer, Moderna, J&J pledge 240 million total Covid-19 vaccine doses by the end of March – CNN

“Pfizer and Moderna — the two companies with Covid-19 vaccines authorized for emergency use in the United States — have pledged to make a combined total of 220 million doses available for shipment by the end of March. Meanwhile, Johnson & Johnson, which could secure emergency use authorization for its Covid-19 vaccine from the US Food and Drug Administration later this week, has pledged to make 20 million doses available in the same time frame.”

Israel on a diplomatic voyage with pledge to give out 100K vaccine – but does require something in return – Netanyahu said set to give nearly 100,000 vaccine doses to 15+ countries | The Times of Israel

“Israel is set to give tens of thousands of coronavirus vaccine doses to at least 15 countries in exchange for diplomatic backing, according to several reports.”

Looks like vaccines can reduce transmission – it would seem somewhat obvious if one cant get infected or largely infected the volume of virus to transmit would reduce – Covid-19 vaccines: the growing evidence they can reduce transmission – Vox

“Two recent studies show some pretty favorable results — one from the UK that found that two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine cut down by 86 percent someone’s chances of developing an infection that they could pass along, the other a study in Israel that found an 89.4 percent reduction (though it should be noted that the Israeli study has yet to be fully released). These findings are consistent with what we know about vaccines and transmission in general.”

Amazing stat -NOT A SINGLE CASE OF FLU in ENGLAND detected! – so all we had to do all this time is quarantine and put mask not socialize dose our selves up with sanitizer – I wonder how about car deaths they must be down to? Deaths can be reduced significantly – should that be the prime objective only – hard to die with zero if you just stay in your home? – Not a single case of flu detected by Public Health England this year as Covid restrictions suppress virus | The Independent

“Not a single case of influenza has been detected by public health officials in England for the past seven weeks, with infection rates at historic lows amid the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions.

The social restrictions brought in to curb transmission of coronavirus, combined with increased uptake of the flu vaccine, have both been credited with driving down infections.

Thousands of swab samples are processed and analysed by scientists at Public Health England (PHE) every week to survey the prevalence of different respiratory diseases in the population.

But of the 685,243 samples that have been reviewed at PHE’s laboratories since the first week of January, not a single one has tested positive for influenza.”

For the interesting incentive category:

Keep your kid on virtual learning and get paid IF you are a federal or postal employee – legislation to bail themselves out – so nice of them – Paid To Stay Home— Coronavirus Aid Bill Pays Federal Employees With Kids Out Of School Up To $21K (forbes.com)

“The U.S. House version of the “American Rescue Plan Act of 2021” – a $1.9 trillion emergency aid package to help America recover from the coronavirus pandemic has an extra perk for federal workers: Enhanced paid time off if your child is enrolled in a school that isn’t back to full-time, in-classroom instruction.

Critics call it a personal bailout for bureaucrats. It is funded through a new $570 million family leave account exclusively for federal workers.”

If you have high BMI you can get in the front of the line in several states for the vaccine shot. It does make sense to reduce the death count from covid – but at the same time its not the greatest incentive to be healthy either – Check to see if your BMI is in the ‘obese’ range, because you may be able to get an early COVID-19 vaccine (msn.com)

“In 15 states, obesity is currently one of those qualifying conditions.

That’s because having a body mass index (BMI) above 30, the cut-off line for obesity, is considered to be a risk factor for severe coronavirus complications, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Unlike other chronic conditions such as diabetes or cancer, obesity comes with a social stigma which can prompt poorer care, even from healthcare providers, according to Dr. W. Scott Butsch, director of obesity medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. The stigma can also cause people to delay medical treatment.

In some cases, people with obesity might not even realize they can get an early vaccine. They may be aware their weight is a health risk, but don’t know their exact BMI.”

Hitting some bumps in the road in vaccinations in the US – slowed down

Above 3K deaths for US – now almost 15% per capita has gotten or has had the vaccine assuming no double dip.

CA leads death by a long shot – TX leads confirmation

TX confirmation dispersed through the state. CA deaths is mainly LA

LA county leads both categories again

Large spike in deaths in LA pushes near term fatality rate north of 5% – this is suspicious since most data would point to around 2%