Government Response to Coronavirus: With Pence in Charge, We're Doomed

[HerNameIsBuffy]

6 minutes ago, laPapessaGiovanna said:

It seems that can last 5 to 9 days only if the surface is smeared with body fluids or faeces.

Thanks, I'm going to go out in a few minutes and have a conversation with them.

 

[fraurosena]

"...because it had to do with China."

White House told federal health agency to classify coronavirus deliberations

Quote

The White House has ordered federal health officials to treat top-level coronavirus meetings as classified, an unusual step that has restricted information and hampered the U.S. government’s response to the contagion, according to four Trump administration officials. 

The officials said that dozens of classified discussions about such topics as the scope of infections, quarantines and travel restrictions have been held since mid-January in a high-security meeting room at the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), a key player in the fight against the coronavirus. 

Staffers without security clearances, including government experts, were excluded from the interagency meetings, which included video conference calls, the sources said. 

“We had some very critical people who did not have security clearances who could not go,” one official said. “These should not be classified meetings. It was unnecessary.” 

The sources said the National Security Council (NSC), which advises the president on security issues, ordered the classification.”This came directly from the White House,” one official said. 

The White House insistence on secrecy at the nation’s premier public health organization, which has not been previously disclosed, has put a lid on certain information - and potentially delayed the response to the crisis. COVID19, the disease caused by the virus, has killed about 30 people in the United States and infected more than 1,000 people. 

HHS oversees a broad range of health agencies, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which among other things is responsible for tracking cases and providing guidance nationally on the outbreaks. 

The administration officials, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said they could not describe the interactions in the meeting room because they were classified. 

An NSC spokesman did not respond to questions about the meetings at HHS. But he defended the administration’s transparency across federal agencies and noted that meetings of the administration’s task force on the coronavirus all are unclassified. It was not immediately clear which meetings he was referring to. 

“From day one of the response to the coronavirus, NSC has insisted on the principle of radical transparency,” said the spokesman, John Ullyot. He added that the administration “has cut red tape and set the global standard in protecting the American people under President Trump’s leadership.” 

A spokeswoman for the HHS, Katherine McKeogh, issued a statement that did not address questions about classified meetings. Using language that echoed the NSC’s, the department said it that it agreed task-force meetings should be unclassified. 

Critics have hammered the Trump administration for what they see as a delayed response to coronavirus outbreaks and a lack of transparency, including sidelining experts and providing misleading or incomplete information to the public. State and local officials also have complained of being kept in the dark about essential federal response information. 

U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence, the administration’s point person on coronavirus, vowed on March 3 to offer “real-time information in a steady pace and be fully transparent.” The vice president, appointed by President Donald Trump in late February, is holding regular news briefings and also has pledged to rely on expert guidance. 

The meetings at HHS were held in a secure area called a “Sensitive Compartmentalized Information Facility,” or SCIF, according to the administration officials. 

SCIFs are usually reserved for intelligence and military operations. Ordinary cell phones and computers can’t be brought into the chambers. HHS has SCIFs because theoretically it would play a major role in biowarfare or chemical attacks. 

A high-level former official who helped address public health outbreaks in the George W. Bush administration said “it’s not normal to classify discussions about a response to a public health crisis.” 

Attendees at the meetings included HHS Secretary Alex Azar and his chief of staff Brian Harrison, the officials said. Azar and Harrison resisted the classification of the meetings, the sources said. 

HHS did not make Azar or Harrison available for comment. 

One of the administration officials told Reuters that when complex issues about a quarantine came up, a high-ranking HHS lawyer with expertise on the issue was not admitted because he did not have the proper security clearance. His input was delayed and offered at an unclassified meeting, the official said. 

A fifth source familiar with the meetings said HHS staffers often weren’t informed about coronavirus developments because they didn’t have adequate clearance. He said he was told that the matters were classified “because it had to do with China.” 

The coronavirus epidemic originated in China and the administration’s main focus to prevent spread early on was to restrict travel by non-U.S. citizens coming from China and to authorize the quarantine of people entering the United States who may have been exposed to the virus. 

One of the administration officials suggested the security clearances for meetings at HHS were imposed not to protect national security but to keep the information within a tight circle, to prevent leaks. 

“It seemed to be a tool for the White House - for the NSC - to keep participation in these meetings low,” the official said. 

 

[Xan]

18 minutes ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

CDC is saying low risk of transmission from goods...other articles suspecting 9 days or so potential.

From a German study:

At temperatures of around 4°C or 39.2oF, certain versions of the coronavirus could remain viable for up to 28 days. At temperatures of 30–40°C (86–104°F), coronaviruses tended to persist for a shorter time.

At room temperature, a coronavirus responsible for the common cold (HCoV-229E) persisted significantly longer in 50% humidity than 30% humidity. Overall, the authors conclude:

“Human coronaviruses can remain infectious on inanimate surfaces at room temperature for up to 9 days. At a temperature of 30°C [86°F] or more, the duration of persistence is shorter. Veterinary coronaviruses have been shown to persist even longer for 28 d[ays].”

[Xan]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House has ordered federal health officials to treat top-level coronavirus meetings as classified, an unusual step that has restricted information and hampered the U.S. government’s response to the contagion, according to four Trump administration officials.

Trump and his enablers continue to be ginormous douchebags who are more worried about popularity than they are about the health of American citizens.

[clueliss]

CNN adds allergies to the graphic

 

[fraurosena]

He's fully prepared guys! We can all go home now.

Although, wasn't this all just a hoax by the Democrats? I'm confused.

[clueliss]

Since Buffy was asking about something similar to this:

https://apnews.com/fe0239e95b8ad1037639ed833b990e48?fbclid=IwAR1a_evdb34o-Sy2rRv_dGuXTKtizEOzuT2m1UPfMBUmzCxsUhDuFxd0Q7U

Quote

https://apnews.com/fe0239e95b8ad1037639ed833b990e48

 

Tests show new virus lives on some surfaces for up to 3 days

By MARILYNN MARCHIONE17 minutes ago

An employee disinfects the glass cover of a butcher counter to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus in a food store in Budapest, Hungary, Wednesday, March 11, 2020. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. (Tamas Kovacs/MTI via AP)

The new coronavirus can live in the air for several hours and on some surfaces for as long as two to three days, tests by U.S. government and other scientists have found.

Their work, published Wednesday, doesn’t prove that anyone has been infected through breathing it from the air or by touching contaminated surfaces, researchers stress.

“We’re not by any way saying there is aerosolized transmission of the virus,” but this work shows that the virus stays viable for long periods in those conditions, so it’s theoretically possible, said study leader Neeltje van Doremalen at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Since emerging in China late last year, the new virus has infected more than 120,000 people worldwide and caused more than 4,300 deaths -- far more than the 2003 SARS outbreak caused by a genetically similar virus.

For this study, researchers used a nebulizer device to put samples of the new virus into the air, imitating what might happen if an infected person coughed or made the virus airborne some other way.

They found that viable virus could be detected up to three hours later in the air, up to four hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to two to three days on plastic and stainless steel.

Similar results were obtained from tests they did on the virus that caused the 2003 SARS outbreak, so differences in durability of the viruses do not account for how much more widely the new one has spread, researchers say.

The tests were done at the National Institutes of Health’s Rocky Mountain Lab in Hamilton, Montana, by scientists from the NIH, Princeton University and the University of California, Los Angeles, with funding from the U.S. government and the National Science Foundation.

The findings have not been reviewed by other scientists yet and were posted on a site where researchers can quickly share their work before publication.

“It’s a solid piece of work that answers questions people have been asking,” and shows the value and importance of the hygiene advice that public health officials have been stressing, said Julie Fischer, a microbiology professor at Georgetown University.

“What we need to be doing is washing our hands, being aware that people who are infected may be contaminating surfaces,” and keeping hands away from the face, she said.

As for the best way to kill the virus, “it’s something we’re researching right now,” but cleaning surfaces with solutions containing diluted bleach is likely to get rid of it, van Doremalen said.

___

Marilynn Marchione can be followed on Twitter: @MMarchioneAP

___

 

[clueliss]

Quote

Can I get coronavirus from products made in China?

Your coronavirus questions, answered

No.

"The new coronavirus cannot be transmitted through goods manufactured in China or any country reporting Covid-19 cases," the World Health Organization says.

"Even though the new coronavirus can stay on surfaces for a few hours or up to several days (depending on the type of surface), it is very unlikely that the virus will persist on a surface after being moved, travelled, and exposed to different conditions and temperatures," WHO said.

"If you think a surface may be contaminated, use a disinfectant to clean it. After touching it, clean your hands with an alcohol-based hand rub or wash them with soap and water."

WHO also answers this question via CNN.  It must be a common question.

[HerNameIsBuffy]

1 minute ago, clueliss said:

WHO also answers this question via CNN.  It must be a common question.

Yep - this is the information we've provided.  But, understandably, we're getting requests for guarantees and absolutes and we can't give them any more than the CDC.  

 

 

[clueliss]

I'd be more afraid it was on something coming from somewhere in the US at this point.

[laPapessaGiovanna]

This is interesting, the US still has time to avoid the catastrophe if this administration decides to do something 

ETA The data about the US are downthread.

Edited March 11, 2020 by laPapessaGiovanna

[clueliss]

Sadly - the moron in charge is more worried about the stock market than the citizens of this country

[Cartmann99]

23 hours ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

I find the sunlight thing fascinating, also those who sneeze after eating dark chocolate.  The human body is weird.

I'm also photosensitive, and if I cough too many times in a row, that brings on a sneezing attack. ?

TXSEF has decided to make the state science fair a virtual one for students and their families:

Quote

TXSEF is GOING ONLINE for 2020.

Rather than requiring 1,200 participants (and their families) to travel to Texas A&M, TXSEF participants will receive an email by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17 with a web link and additional instructions on how to:

1. Upload a pdf of their final, state-approved abstract and additional forms (form 1C and form 7)
2. Upload a high-resolution photo of their presentation board
3. Complete a questionnaire

(All uploads must be made and questionnaires completed by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, March 23. No late submissions will be accepted.)

https://txsef.tamu.edu/covid-19/

Judges and other officials are still expected to show up in person for the fair though. Mr. Cartmann99 would stay home if I asked him to, but I don't want to make that decision for him. He's asthmatic, and his asthma has significantly worsened over the last decade, so I am worried about him going. ?

 

[clueliss]

And the NCAA might be coming to its senses

Quote

NCAA recommends that March Madness be played without spectators

From CNN's David Close

The National College Athletic Association (NCAA) has announced that the organization is recommending that upcoming sporting events should be held without spectators.

“We recommend against sporting events open to the public. We do believe sport events can take place with only essential personnel and limited family attendance,” the NCAA said.

The NCAA Division 1 Men’s and Women’s basketball tournaments will be played as planned. The first games to tip for March Madness will be on March 17.

Here's the NCAA's full statement:

The NCAA COVID-19 Advisory Panel recognizes the fluidity of COVID-19 and its impact on hosting events in a public space. COVID-19 is spreading rapidly in the United States, and behavioral risk mitigation strategies are the best option for slowing the spread of this disease. This is especially important because mildly symptomatic individuals can transmit COVID-19. Given these considerations, coupled with a more unfavorable outcome of COVID-19 in older adults – especially those with underlying chronic medical conditions – we recommend against sporting events open to the public. We do believe sport events can take place with only essential personnel and limited family attendance, and this protects our players, employees, and fans.

 

[JMarie]

Just flipping through the channels, and I landed on Fox News. Ugh. Senator James Lankford (previous career: Baptist minister) was discussing Coronavirus spending. "Previous Coronaviruses actually died off in the summer heat, much like the flu does. We could have a long summer where we don't have any effects of the virus, and to be able to pump in, let's say, 100 billion dollars of deficit spending into the economy right now won't have that great of an impact on the economy now but will have a great impact long term." 

So I guess he's a no for additional funding.

[Ticklish]

Is it known yet if you gain immunity once you've had this? Or is it the kind of thing you can catch over and over? 

[Kailash]

From everything I’ve read, it seems possible to get ahead of the virus by closing schools, work places, etc, BEFORE anyone is confirmed to have it. Once one person has it, it spreads incredibly quickly. Honestly I wish there were measures in place to force a minimum of 2 weeks quarantine for any area that has not had a confirmed case yet.

[fraurosena]

19 minutes ago, Ticklish said:

Is it known yet if you gain immunity once you've had this? Or is it the kind of thing you can catch over and over? 

As this is a new virus I think it might be too early to tell yet. But then, I'm not a virologist, so what do I know? 

Ok, I do admit I know more than this blithering idiot:

‘Wanna shake hands?’ GOP senator mocks reporter who asked him what precautions he’s taking for coronavirus

Quote

In a recent exchange in the Capitol, a reporter approached Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) and asked him what precautions he’s taking to prevent the spread of coronavirus, also known as Covid-19. According to Inhofe’s answer, he didn’t seem to be taking things too seriously.

“Wanna shake hands?” Inhofe quipped.

The exchange comes in the wake of public health officials warning Americans who are 65 and older to avoid crowds, limit physical contact, and forgo unnecessary travel. But according to a report from the New York Times, there’s a large contingent of older Americans who are ignoring that advice, and they happen to be members of Congress.

“Mr. Inhofe, chairman of the Armed Services committee, is one of five octogenarians in the Senate,” writes the Times’ Nicholas Fandos and Margot Sanger-Katz. “In an institution where seniority reigns, it is an understatement to say that older Americans are overrepresented in Congress. Nearly half of the senators are 65 or older. Nearly 150 members of the comparatively younger House of Representatives are above that age.”

Speaking to the Times, Dr. Jack Rowe, a professor of health policy and aging at Columbia University, said he’s baffled as to why members of Congress would ignore the warning.

“There are 535 of these people between the two chambers — you can’t tell me there aren’t any of them that don’t have chronic disease who would be at special risk,” he said. “These people should be excused. They should be sitting at home looking at their computers, listening to the debate and voting, and that would send the right message.”

 

[fraurosena]

Aaaannnnd... we're back to Fake News! Because that's what you say when you're competently in charge and know precisely what to do to calm the people and battle this pandemic. 

 

[Cartmann99]

I read an article on my local newspaper's Facebook page about how the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is being shutdown prematurely to help stop the spread of the Coronavirus.  No drama, just a short article about people in positions of authority trying to protect the public and distribute accurate information.

So, I scroll down to look at the comments, and the very first one was about everyone needs to be aware that the cities and states controlled by Democrats are overreacting to this virus because they want people to panic and because they want to hurt Trump and the economy.

I think that's the universe's way of saying that I've had enough social media today.

[47of74]

Joe said what we're all thinking

I second that motion but just with a bit more colorful language.

Donnie Two Scoops needs to shut the FUCK up for once in his useless life and let the goddamn experts do their fucking jobs already.

[GreyhoundFan]

The Mango Moron is scheduled to address the nation at 9PM Eastern. I can't bear to listen to his crap.

[Dandruff]

2 hours ago, Kailash said:

From everything I’ve read, it seems possible to get ahead of the virus by closing schools, work places, etc, BEFORE anyone is confirmed to have it. Once one person has it, it spreads incredibly quickly. Honestly I wish there were measures in place to force a minimum of 2 weeks quarantine for any area that has not had a confirmed case yet.

The virus is now in my area and I'm expecting an explosion of cases pretty soon.  Nearby colleges appear to be moving toward online classes but the local school systems are still open.  I suspect they're mostly waiting to see what everyone does, which would explain the delay while encouraging disaster.

The song "Nobody Told Me", by John Lennon, is now on replay in my head.

[SassyPants]

Jared Kushner to advise and work with Trump on Covid-19 pandemic. Is Kushner an epidemiologist? MD? Infectious disease specialist? Microbiologist? An expert on anything that could remotely help combat this organism?

How about we have enough culture kits to test those who are sick and possibly infected, and work from there.

[GreyhoundFan]

"As events across the country are canceled, Trump rolls the dice and heads to Vegas"

Spoiler

Big cities are moving to shut down large public gatherings to protect against the coronavirus, but President Trump is scheduled to depart Washington on Thursday for a three-day visit to Las Vegas, where he will deliver remarks to an estimated crowd of 1,500 at the Republican Jewish Coalition national meeting.

Conference organizers and the city’s elected officials said the event is a go even though about one-quarter of those who signed up for the conference have dropped out. High-profile speakers, including former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, remain on the agenda. And Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo are speaking at a preconference dinner with prominent Jewish Republicans on Thursday evening.

Only one speaker, who was coming from Israel, has dropped out, because of travel restrictions imposed in that country, said RJC Director Matt Brooks. There have been five confirmed cases of the virus in Clark County, where Las Vegas is located, according to the Southern Nevada Health District.

“I’m excited our president is traveling around and living his best presidential life the way he is supposed to — he’s meeting folks and not letting fear take over,” said Michele Fiore, a Las Vegas City Council member and mayor pro tem who plans to attend the conference. “We really believe it’s safe enough. . . . We are encouraging all our conventions and meetings to go on no matter how many thousands of people.”

For Trump, the decision to participate squares with his efforts to project confidence and maintain a business-as-usual routine in hopes of reassuring the public, even as other administration officials have warned that the virus will continue to spread and recommended that the public adopt social distancing practices. Washington and San Francisco have called on organizations to limit events to fewer than 1,000 people. Seattle, where the most confirmed cases in the United States have been found, has shut down public schools for two weeks.

But Trump’s 2020 campaign on Tuesday announced it will hold a “Catholics for Trump” kickoff event in Milwaukee on March 19, at a facility that can hold more than 3,000. The move came on the same day that Democratic presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) canceled campaign rallies over coronavirus concerns.

Asked whether he thought it was safe to hold such an event, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said: “It’s hard to answer that question right now until we literally have test kits deployed, the lab technicians trained and we get a better sense of exactly what’s happening. It may not be. It may be okay. We do need more information.”

Johnson said he plans to attend the Milwaukee campaign event if it happens. A spokeswoman for Mayor Tom Barrett (D) did not respond to a request for comment.

Public health experts have called on more-extreme measures to slow the virus, but for Trump the decision is laced with concerns over not wanting to instill greater fear in the public. On top of that, with financial markets plummeting more than 20 percent from their all-time highs, the president is under pressure from executives in the tourism and travel industry who worry that widespread cancellations will wreak further damage to the economy.

“Some of the international conferences have been canceled, but we’re still going forward with the number of conventions,” said Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nev.), whose district includes Las Vegas. She pointed to the NFL Draft, which is scheduled for late April. “We’re trying to be smart but not be panicked.”

The risks of large-scale events came into sharp relief last week, when an attendee at the Conservative Political Action Conference late last month at Maryland’s National Harbor was later diagnosed with coronavirus. Trump spoke at the event, and several Republican lawmakers who were there put themselves into self-quarantine, although none have been found to test positive.

Trump had interacted with two of those lawmakers, shaking hands with Rep. Douglas A. Collins (R-Ga.) in Atlanta last week and riding with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) on Air Force One on Monday. Trump has said he has not been tested for the virus, because doctors have said it is not necessary.

In a coronavirus meeting at the White House with banking executives Wednesday, Trump noted that China and South Korea had made headway in slowing the number of new cases and projected a hopeful note that the United States will be “getting back involved in that part of the world.” But he also noted that several European nations, including Italy and France, have seen a rapid increase and are “in tough shape.”

The RJC is a small but politically powerful organization representing conservative Jewish Republicans, a constituency Trump has courted. He also addressed the group last year.

Neither the White House nor the casino and hotel industry in Las Vegas has put any pressure on the RJC to go ahead with the conference, Brooks said.

Thursday on Twitter, Brooks denied an assertion from conservative writer and pundit William Kristol that RJC backer Sheldon Adelson, a hotel magnate and GOP donor, wants the event to go on.

“Falsehoods and fabrications,” Brooks wrote.

Kristol had called the decision to hold the event “totally irresponsible” and suggested the RJC was “scared to cross” Adelson.

“I assume Trump’s proposed bailout will include money for Sheldon’s hotels,” Kristol wrote.

Brooks said on Twitter that he has “not had a single conversation with Sheldon or ANYONE from the Venetian about whether we should cancel. This has never been a factor in our decision.”

The meeting will be held at the Venetian hotel, in one of the largest auditoriums on the Las Vegas Strip. The RJC organizers said they plan to pass out individual supplies of hand sanitizer and ask each participant to refrain from handshakes, hugs and kisses. The organization is also urging attendees to use good judgment and not attend if the event or the associated travel would put them at risk, Brooks said.

Brooks tweeted a photo Wednesday of hand sanitizer bottled with an “RJC” logo on the label.

“Just wash your hands more — 20 seconds, lots of soap. On a personal level, up your vitamin C, immune boosters,” said Fiore, the Las Vegas council member, who is a Republican. She suggested those who show symptoms of illness would take precautions at the conference, but experts have said those infected might not show symptoms for days and can be highly contagious. They also have suggested people stay at least six feet apart because the virus can be contracted via airborne particles.

“We’ve had many scares in the past — many illnesses and viruses,” Fiore said. “We cannot let fear take over. We need to live our lives.”

Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) said she expects the White House to continue to assess the risks as Trump seeks to maintain his public schedule.

“He comes in front of a lot of people,” she said. “I think it’s important that he stay safe and healthy.”