Coronavirus in Massachusetts (doctorate, real estate, how much)

[porterhouse]

Originally Posted by BostonMike7

That’s actually amazing when you think of it.

Almost unbelievable

[OutdoorLover]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

Yet that didn't stop the second wave from happening (or ending, as it is now)

Not sure what you are saying? Are you saying you don't believe that public health measures work?

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

Yet that didn't stop the second wave from happening (or ending, as it is now)

I think you have to believe the theory that unmasked gatherings mixing different households, indoors, was the main transmission mechanism. And that SARS-CoV-2 is that much more contagious than influenza, so under those same conditions, people will catch SARS-CoV-2 but not influenza. And, finally, that the prevalence of influenza was much lower to begin with, because of restricted travel and higher than normal rate of vaccinations in the fall.

[rach5]

Originally Posted by htfdcolt

I think you have to believe the theory that unmasked gatherings mixing different households, indoors, was the main transmission mechanism. And that SARS-CoV-2 is that much more contagious than influenza, so under those same conditions, people will catch SARS-CoV-2 but not influenza.

Yup. R0 of the typical influenza << R0 old variant of covid <R0 UK/South African variant. That is the problem we are facing over the next couple of months...(plus the risk that another wave will lead to even worse mutations...). Ashish Jha on Today Show said that "[we] are just about to enter a really big storm".

[BostonMike7]

Under 1000 new cases today.


My wife had to get a test today for work (we went out of state) and she said the testing facility shes been going too for the last few months was the most empty it’s ever been. She was the only one there.

[wolfgang239]

Originally Posted by BostonMike7

Under 1000 new cases today.


My wife had to get a test today for work (we went out of state) and she said the testing facility shes been going too for the last few months was the most empty it’s ever been. She was the only one there.

I pulled up project beacon for the first time in a few weeks today. I'd been going there because my job wasn't testing me but they started a few weeks ago. Unlike before, there were appointments available at every single site as early as today. Previously I had to take what I could get and head to Revere or Hyde Park instead of Framingham due to availability.

[yesmaybe]

Originally Posted by OutdoorLover

Not sure what you are saying? Are you saying you don't believe that public health measures work?

I don't think they worked here. If anything the data suggests that some unrelated external factor was really what caused the decline in cases in the two waves. Possibly some amount of herd immunity but that's just a guess. The second wave was presumably just a mutated variant that came from elsewhere.

Can't really even credit the vaccine for the second wave case reduction either.

[yesmaybe]

Originally Posted by wolfgang239

I pulled up project beacon for the first time in a few weeks today. I'd been going there because my job wasn't testing me but they started a few weeks ago. Unlike before, there were appointments available at every single site as early as today. Previously I had to take what I could get and head to Revere or Hyde Park instead of Framingham due to availability.

They really should close up shop on the STS and convert them to vaccination sites.

[OutdoorLover]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

I don't think they worked here. If anything the data suggests that some unrelated external factor was really what caused the decline in cases in the two waves. Possibly some amount of herd immunity but that's just a guess. The second wave was presumably just a mutated variant that came from elsewhere.

Can't really even credit the vaccine for the second wave case reduction either.

Mask wearing has been done by surgeons by more than a century. It works. Many studies have shown that they work specifically on Covid-19 as well.

Public health guidelines/mandates as well as compliance have varied over the course of the pandemic. That's what the rise and fall of the past 3-4 months have been attributed to.

It's too early for the vaccine to have a significant effect on case levels - the fraction vaccinated has been too small to do much about case levels yet.

[bostongymjunkie]

Originally Posted by OutdoorLover

Mask wearing has been done by surgeons by more than a century. It works. Many studies have shown that they work specifically on Covid-19 as well.

Public health guidelines/mandates as well as compliance have varied over the course of the pandemic. That's what the rise and fall of the past 3-4 months have been attributed to.

It's too early for the vaccine to have a significant effect on case levels - the fraction vaccinated has been too small to do much about case levels yet.

I think most of us agree that masks can be effective with realistic expectations, including dense indoor spaces to help reduce potential airborne particles, and maybe outside where people are having face to face conversations with the risk of spitting droplets toward each other. That said, I think way too much of the increase/decrease of spread has been attributed by some to mask usage. Self-reporting studies have shown relatively high overall mask compliance (see CMU), even in areas/instances where cases have spiked. I think rises and falls of spread/case counts are more attributable to gatherings (even where masked), and seasonal fluctuations. I also have serious concerns that mask usage has resulted in more risky behaviors including lack of attention to distancing which could be just as influential on overall fluctuations. And this whole 'wearing a mask at all times outside' thing is ridiculous, with no real basis in science.