Is ANYONE's job security?

[creditcardfree]

I think it will take a long time to get back to the previous norm in many ways. We need an accurate and readily accessible test and, ultimately, we need an effective vaccine.

I agree with you on accurate testing, I still know people who had all the signs, tested for everything else comes back negative, but they don't even have tests available?! This was last week!

Please know that scientists have been trying to make a coronavirus vaccine since the 90s, because of SARS and MERS. They have been unsuccessful. Dr. Peter Hotez and Dr. Paul Offit have both been on the record very recently explaining the risks that seem to come up making a vaccine for these. In mice when given the vaccine, and then re-exposed to virus, they are having very negative outcomes from a health perspective. In other words far riskier to get the vaccine and then be re exposed, then to have just been exposed and had the illness. I'm sure you can look into more if you want confirmation. Of course, there are lots of reports that this will work, but again we haven't gotten that far in the past. The fact that it is an mRNA virus, makes it much harder and a successful vaccine for an mRNA virus has never been put into commercial use yet. A whole new experiment, for which they are doing more animal testing alongside human testing. That is unprecedented. Most vaccines do successful animal testing first before human testing. Most vaccines take 5 to 10 years to develop.

My view is that we will have to get to natural community immunity because waiting in lockdown for a vaccine will harm the economy and the health of people who are not working more than the virus. Thank goodness there are therapeutics. The ones used by the functional medical doctors I follow are having amazing success, keeping 100% of their patients out of the hospitals.

As to the original topic, I already know of a friend who is an engineer in management whose company has done one round of layoffs. To avoid the second round he is being asked to relocate to field work for at least six months two hours from where he lives. He will probably make more money, working six days a week and he's thankful for work, but this shutdown is stressing nearly every industry.

And I agree with Kork, the military is always (young healthy people). My husband is working stateside to help direct logistics for the field hospitals that have been deployed. Seven days a week, 14 hours a day. Unfortunately, his health is declining due to not eating well, lack of exercise, and less time off. Thankful for the continued pay, but his health decline is concerning. May you all be well!

[disneysteve]

Thank goodness there are therapeutics.

I agree that a vaccine won't be coming anytime soon, and possibly never. As for treatments, there are numerous clinical studies underway but those take time as well. Even if they are evaluating an existing drug, there's still no way to speed up a clinical trial. One trial I know of was already discontinued early due to safety issues (with the drug POTUS loves to tout as a great option).

I'm sure there are people out there filled with anecdotes about how some magical treatment that the medical community won't acknowledge or accept is a miracle agent. I get those spam emails every day. But actual clinically proven treatments do not exist and may not for some time.

[~bs]

Stock market popped hard today on gilead's limited trial. they treated over 100 of the sickest patients on ventilators and all but 2 recovered.

[disneysteve]

Stock market popped hard today on gilead's limited trial. they treated over 100 of the sickest patients on ventilators and all but 2 recovered.

That's good to hear. There are a ton of trials going on. My hospitals are involved in several of them.

[~bs]

That's good to hear. There are a ton of trials going on. My hospitals are involved in several of them.

Vaccine is obviously better, but if they can figure out one good treatment that is easy to deliver (like tamiflu) and widely available, it will be a big deal. Even an effective treatment will do a lot towards normalizing things. People wouldn't care much if they're asymptomatic. For everyone else, they can get quickly tested then prescribed the medication.

You have severely ill people going from ventilators and oxygen to being discharged in under a week. crazy.

"“The severely hit patients are at such high-risk of fatality. So if it’s true that many of the 113 patients were in this category and were discharged, it’s another positive signal that the drug has efficacy,” he said, adding that it will be important to see more data from randomized controlled studies."

https://www.statnews.com/2020/04/16/...-to-treatment/

[disneysteve]

You have severely ill people going from ventilators and oxygen to being discharged in under a week. crazy.

A lot of people have already been recovering with current treatments even after needing ventilation for a week or more. But if new treatments can increase that success rate, that's fantastic.

Most people get mild to moderate symptoms anyway. It's those serious cases that are the concern.