Current Events > I'll probably regret asking these COVID-19 questions.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Disclaimer: I live under a rock near the Gulf of Mexico.

1. Why do they call it "COVID-19?"
2. What can/should the American government do to keep the current situation from getting worse?
3. Will the situation worsen if/when people stop the practice of social distancing?
4. If a person falls ill with COVID-19, are they fated to be infectious forever?
5. What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
6. Can COVID-19 be treated in any way?
7. What exactly is accomplished by flinging agendas at other users on various online forums?

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Anyone?

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covid-19 = corona virus disease 19 (as in 2019, when it was discovered).

social distance, work on a vaccine.

yes.

no, you fight off infection and gain immunity to it.

dry cough, fever, tightness of breath.

the hydrochloroquine is most likely bullshit. treatment is supportive care, though i suppose immunoglobulin transfusion from someone who had the virus could work.

stress relief.

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Really quick answers, someone else can probably do better:

1) It's the official name for it
2) Not be like Trump
3) If they stop socially distancing, it's more likely to spread => bad
4) We're not entirely sure, but most likely not
5) Cough, etc (like a bad flu basically)
6) We're again not entirely sure, we're trying things and sometimes they work, sometimes they don't
7) Depends on the person; satisfaction? - some sense of feeling good about yourself maybe? who knows

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TheDogfather posted...

Disclaimer: I live under a rock near the Gulf of Mexico.

1. Why do they call it "COVID-19?"
2. What can/should the American government do to keep the current situation from getting worse?
3. Will the situation worsen if/when people stop the practice of social distancing?
4. If a person falls ill with COVID-19, are they fated to be infectious forever?
5. What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
6. Can COVID-19 be treated in any way?
7. What exactly is accomplished by flinging agendas at other users on various online forums?

1. Corona Virus Disease 19
2. Practice social distancing. Listen to CDC.
3. It will have an uptick in cases until vaccine is found.
4. If you survive you have a chance to become immune.
5.Same as flu except no headache, runny nose. Fatigue, dry cough and fever are main symptoms.
6. They are working on it. Treated the same as flu for now.

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TheDogfather posted...

Why do they call it "COVID-19?"

When it emerged, the virus was known as a novel strain of the coronavirus family.
Scientists gave the strain an interim name of 2019-nCoV, accounting for the year of discovery, its status as a novel virus, and its family name (CoV).
The new designation, while different, represents the same information.

What can/should the American government do to keep the current situation from getting worse?

complete lockdown, complete shutdown of all nonessential businesses, rent + mortgage cancellation, provide either enough money for people to live or provide the essentials themselves
nationalized medicare for all would also be a tremendous help

Will the situation worsen if/when people stop the practice of social distancing?

if they do it now, then yes. this whole thing will probably be over in like 6 months, at which time... probably not

If a person falls ill with COVID-19, are they fated to be infectious forever?

presumably not

What are the symptoms of COVID-19?

coughing, difficulty breathing. from what I understand, the actual disease is pretty similar to pneumonia.

Can COVID-19 be treated in any way?

yes. I don't know much about them, but China was using a drug developed by Cuba to treat the ill.

I believe there are treatments similar to those used for HIV and Ebola -- this makes sense, since those are also viruses.

What exactly is accomplished by flinging agendas at other users on various online forums?

you're gonna have to elaborate on that one

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1. COVID-19 is the name of the disease, which stands for coronavirus infectious disase 2019 (year it was discovered). The specific virus is called SARS-CoV-2, it belongs to the coronavirus classification which includes SARS and MERS
2. The short is that the government needs to do everything in its power to avoid straining the healthcare system to the point of collapse.
3. In short, yes. Look up the "hammer and the dance" strategy for disease mitigation
4. We do not know. Our adaptive immune system functions by forming antibodies to diseases (particularly to bacteria and viruses). There were early studies in a Chinese monkey species I came across that did at least show an immediate immunity to the disease. However, reinfection is still plausible and viruses tend to mutate (hence seasonal flu every year)
5. You should check out the CDC's website on COVID19. From what I remember off the top of my head, half are completely asymptomatic but capable of shedding the disease. The remainder mild cases have nonspecific flu-like symptoms. More concerning symptoms to watch for that can be specific to the disease are fever, headache, nonproductive or "dry" cough, shortness of breath. Unfortunately, there is a lot of overlap in symptoms between COVID19 and run of the mill respiratory viruses.
6. That's a very hard question to answer since the disease is so new and there are multiple clinical trials running all over the world. We will probably have a more definitive answer in the next 2-3 months. Currently, we are using hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin to shorten disease length but there is still limited data on this. There is consideration that remdesivir, an antiviral used for Ebola, may be efficacious. Newer studies are now looking at tocilizumab, an medication used for severe arthrities since it targets inflammatory markers known to cause "storming" which results in respiratory collapse. Other antivirals commonly used to suppress HIV are being studied as well with mixed results. This is a rapidly evolving area of study so it will require frequent checks.
7. Great question. People are stupid and everyone has an opinion.

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averagejoel posted...

nationalized medicare for all would also be a tremendous help

you're gonna have to elaborate on that one

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Well... That's settled.

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TheDogfather posted...

Disclaimer: I live under a rock near the Gulf of Mexico.

1. Why do they call it "COVID-19?"
2. What can/should the American government do to keep the current situation from getting worse?
3. Will the situation worsen if/when people stop the practice of social distancing?
4. If a person falls ill with COVID-19, are they fated to be infectious forever?
5. What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
6. Can COVID-19 be treated in any way?
7. What exactly is accomplished by flinging agendas at other users on various online forums?

1. I belive it's a abbreviated shorthand for "Novel Coronavirus." The 19 is because it first became known in 2019. I think there is a little more to it but the reason it was named is a trivial question so meh.

2. Put more resources into producing, procuring and distributing medical supplies like N95 masks, and Ventilators for hospitals. More strongly encourage, and enforce social distancing and pass further measures to assure Americans they will be able to safely emerge from this crisis without bringing financial ruin upon themselves.

More safety measures and protective equipment for Firefighters and Police.

Extreme punishments for deliberate and/or malicious spread of corona such as those people deliberately coughing on others. Prison, fines, even execution or life in prison in the worst/most harmful instances such as deliberate Terrorism/Attempted murder.

Harsh enforcement of social distancing for those who ignorantly or sociopathiclly ignore it.

Mandatory vaccination when a efficacious and safe Vaccine is Released(Mandatory Flu if not up to date already as well if reasonably possible)

3. Absolutely. We could have hundreds of thousands or even millions more deaths in America alone if we went about life normally.

4. No. The vast majority of people should be unable to pass the virus on after the disease runs its course. Data is naturally not conclusive yet however but we have little reason so far to believe it is likely for someone to harbor the virus for life.

5. Very Common: Dry cough, fever and difficulty breathing.

Other symptoms may include. Fatigue, Body Aches, Loss of Appetitie, Impaired taste/smell, Sore Throat, Pneumonia, Runny Nose(Very uncommon) Diarhea(Rare) Vomiting(Very rare)

Please note that Data is somewhat mixed on some of these and may be influenced by limited sample size/data , differing demographics, environmental/societal differences(such as air quality and % who smoke), and healthcare quality.

6. There is no known proven efficacious treatment though there are some trials and early experiments that MAY be somewhat effective. It's basically just symptom management and supportive care for critical cases for now.

7. Amusement. Propping up the poltical side of their choice. Radical religious or political ideologies about the rapture or acclerantionism. Idoicy.

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TheDogfather posted...

you're gonna have to elaborate on that one

people get charged exorbitant amounts for medical care, making it relatively inaccessible to people who cannot pay for it. removing the possibility of going into debt would make people less scared of getting treatment. it would result in fewer deaths and overall less damage

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averagejoel posted...

people get charged exorbitant amounts for medical care, making it relatively inaccessible to people who cannot pay for it. removing the possibility of going into debt would make people less scared of getting treatment. it would result in fewer deaths and overall less damage

Thanks.

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averagejoel posted...

people get charged exorbitant amounts for medical care, making it relatively inaccessible to people who cannot pay for it. removing the possibility of going into debt would make people less scared of getting treatment. it would result in fewer deaths and overall less damage

Didn't CMS state that all charges related to COVID treatment are covered due to the pandemic status of the disease?

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MrPeppers posted...

Didn't CMS state that all charges related to COVID treatment are covered due to the pandemic status of the disease?

I don't actually know about that -- I've seen people saying that the costs should be covered but haven't actually been keeping up with news like that

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