US Confirms Nation's First Case of Omicron Covid Variant In California (cnbc.com) 116
An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNBC: U.S. health officials have confirmed the country's first case of the new, heavily mutated coronavirus variant called omicron in California, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday. White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said the individual, who was fully vaccinated, had just returned from traveling in South Africa to the San Francisco area on Nov. 22 and tested positive on Nov. 29.
"The individual is self quarantining and all close contacts have been contacted and all close contacts, thus far, have tested negative," he announced at a White House press briefing providing more details of the case. "We feel good that this patient not only had mild symptoms, but actually the symptoms appear to be improving." The CDC said genomic sequencing was initially conducted at the University of California, San Francisco and confirmed by the CDC as the omicron variant. On Twitter, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said: "CA's large-scale testing and early detection systems have found the Omicron COVID-19 variant in California. We should assume that it's in other states as well. There's no reason to panic--but we should remain vigilant. That means get vaccinated. Get boosted. Wear a mask indoors."
Further reading: WHO Says Omicron Has Been Found in 23 Countries Across the World
"The individual is self quarantining and all close contacts have been contacted and all close contacts, thus far, have tested negative," he announced at a White House press briefing providing more details of the case. "We feel good that this patient not only had mild symptoms, but actually the symptoms appear to be improving." The CDC said genomic sequencing was initially conducted at the University of California, San Francisco and confirmed by the CDC as the omicron variant. On Twitter, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said: "CA's large-scale testing and early detection systems have found the Omicron COVID-19 variant in California. We should assume that it's in other states as well. There's no reason to panic--but we should remain vigilant. That means get vaccinated. Get boosted. Wear a mask indoors."
Further reading: WHO Says Omicron Has Been Found in 23 Countries Across the World
ok (Score:3, Interesting)
Can we remove the travel ban from African countries now?
Re: (Score:2)
No, because how would we meet our quarterly quota of systemic racism if we always adjust our respond based on the new data?
Sure would be nice if the we could accurately understand that the United States is like every other civilized nation on the fucking planet, meaning it's full of humans who act pretty much just like every other human living elsewhere.
There's a name for that "systemic" racehorse you keep beating; Mass Ignorance. Stop believing everything you're sold.
Re: (Score:2)
Sure would be nice if the we could accurately understand that the United States is like every other civilized nation on the fucking planet, meaning it's full of humans who act pretty much just like every other human living elsewhere.
... except with guns.
When over 65% of all gun deaths are by suicide, it becomes clear what the actual impact of guns are in America.
Most of the time it's sadly not "violence" beyond the one holding the weapon, regardless what the media wants the world to ignorantly believe.
Re: (Score:2)
You mean the country where this dude, who has the omicron variant, flew in from?
Re: (Score:2, Flamebait)
No, because how would we meet our quarterly quota of systemic racism if we always adjust our respond based on the new data?
Don't be silly. It is only racism when Republicans do it. (I suspect this may cause some backlash from people who still refuse to believe it...)
Re: (Score:2)
"No, because how would we meet our quarterly quota of systemic racism if we always adjust our respond based on the new data?" Biden is a racist, confirmed...
And judging by recent Republican House/Senate members' behavior, they should be happy with this. But, in reality, many Republicans / Conservatives will chastise Biden regardless of what he does -- they'd complain if he didn't impose a travel ban, saying he wasn't "protecting America"; they'll complain now that he has, saying he's racist (ironic coming from the Rs).
TO BE FAIR... Many Democrats behaved the same with Trump and it's a common, if unproductive, practice across both sides of the aisle. It woul
Re: (Score:2)
It would be nice if both parties would stop being so petty, selfish and small-minded.
You'd be better off wishing for an ocean-front view from Arizona. I wish that weren't the case, but it is what it is. Sun is hot, water is wet, politicians* are bastards.
*Not all of them, it's the 99% that give the other 1% a bad name.
Re:ok (Score:5, Funny)
You'd be better off wishing for an ocean-front view from Arizona.
The way climate change and sea levels are going ... :-)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
See you down in Arizona Bay [youtube.com].
Re: (Score:1)
But, in reality, many Republicans / Conservatives will chastise Biden regardless of what he does
Oh, it's even better than you think. Republicans are whining Biden hasn't stopped covid and if the con artist was in office, there would already be a vaccine for the omicron variant [imgur.com].
The same vaccines they're telling people not to get while actively defying vaccine mandates.
Re: (Score:1, Flamebait)
Why wouldn't Republicans whine about Biden not stopping COVID? Democrats did that throughout 2020 to Trump. It was Democrats who established that the president has all control over viruses and is solely responsible for "killing people." Republicans are just playing the Democrats' game.
By the way, the con artist IS in the White House. His Fraudulency, Faux Biden, never won the election and is also selling you out to other countries for his own personal gain. Trump did neither of those things.
Re:ok (Score:5, Insightful)
Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020
- passed the House 415-2
- passed the Senate 96-1
- signed into law March 2020
Families First Coronavirus Response Act, 2020
- passed the House 363-40
- passed the Senate 90-8
- signed into law March 2020
CARES Act, 2020
- passed the House 419-6
- passed the Senate 90-8
- signed into law March 2020
Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, 2020
- first passed the House 240-179 in January 2019
- passed the Senate via voice vote
- House agreed Senate amendment 388-5
- signed into law April 2020
Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020
- passed the House 417-1
- passed the Senate by voice vote
- signed into law May 2020
Paycheck Protection Program Extension
- passed the House unanimously
- passed the Senate unanimously
- signed into law July 2020
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021
- passed the House 327-85 and 359-53
- passed the Senate 92-6
- signed into law December 2020
American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
- passed the House 219-212
- passed the Senate 50-49
- signed into law March 2021
Can you tell at what point in the above bills the Republicans lost control of the Presidency, Senate and House, and thus the spirit of bipartisanship ended in efforts to combat Covid-19 in America?
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Do you mean to say that Republicans will, like Democrats did to Trump, criticize Biden's travel bans as "xenophobic" and "racist"? I don't see Republicans doing that, but even if they did, so what? Saul Alinsky Democrats have already established bitching incessantly about everything in the dumbest and most childish ways possible as the status quo of American politics. Why shouldn't Republicans join in?
Also, there's nothing at all "ironic" about Republicans saying Biden is racist. First of all, he is. Second
Re: (Score:1, Flamebait)
Secondly, the primary (if not sole) source of racism in America is and always has been the Democrat party.
Sure buddy keep telling yourself that. They're statues venerating war hereoes from a war which has passed from living memory not statues venerating slave owners fighting to keep slavery and against the country they live in.
and treated them like buffoons who can't find the DMV
Aah I see you're trying to justify voter suppression.
It's amazing how many self-professed republicans openly despise democracy. It
Re: (Score:2)
As someone in an interracial marriage, I find the Democrats' behavior disgusting.
What's that supposed to prove? Many Republican men are married to women, but they still vote for the party doing its best to outlaw abortion.
Re: ok (Score:3)
Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids.
It's been obvious since the start of his campaign that he's a racist, dementia-ridden asshole.
Re:Ok (Score:5, Interesting)
We need to find something better than travel bans to combat situations like this. Limiting travel can be very useful in slowing the progression of new variants, but small targeted travel bans like this could arguably do more harm than good. Omicron most likely did not originate in the countries which first found it, they simply were the countries with the best variant identification systems in place. We certainly don't want to discourage such practices.
Putting severe restrictions on all travel, such as no un-vaccinated passengers allowed (and even them being required to test), would be better than localized travel bans. I'm not sure what the best forms on restrictions would be, but I hope they find something better than these bans.
Re:Ok (Score:5, Informative)
That's OK. The asylum-seekers are given Ivermectin at the border (yes, really): https://www.reuters.com/articl... [reuters.com]
And, literally, the title of the article you referenced is:
"Fact Check-The U.S. prescribes ivermectin to refugees for parasitic worms, not COVID-19"
Re: (Score:2)
And the reason why there isn't an explosion of Covid cases in asylum-seekers IS?
Re:Ok (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
And the reason why there isn't an explosion of Covid cases in asylum-seekers IS?
Lack of testing. Isolated detention. Where they are tested and found positive they are quarantined rather than hosting public events. Oh and they aren't dumbfuck "muh freedoms" morons and actually bother wearing masks.
Re: (Score:2)
And the reason why there isn't an explosion of Covid cases in asylum-seekers IS?
Do you know what happens when you're applying for asylum at the US border?
Answer: you're put into detention center for about two months before you can even get a preliminary hearing that _might_ allow you to be released. And you also get tested and isolated immediately if you're positive.
Or did you think that you just say: "I wanna asylum!!!", - and the government immediately provides you $100000, a house in California and give you a first-class air ticket there?
Re: (Score:2)
Or did you think that you just say: "I wanna asylum!!!", - and the government immediately provides you $100000, a house in California and give you a first-class air ticket there?
The Democrats are working hard to get it to this point. Only the payouts will be $400,000.
Re:Ok (Score:5, Informative)
Its California. Virtually 100 percent certainly it arrived via the southern boarder.
Read the article. This was an American returning from South Africa who arrived in the San Francisco airport. Airports are by far the most likely place variants will spread from other countries into the US, unless it originates in Canada or Latin America.
The travel bans did not work because the current leadership has decided appealing to its it base is more important than sound public safety policy. We should absolutely have quarantine requirement for ALL arrivals even citizens
While I certainly agree that restricted travel for all travelers is a good idea (as I mentioned it in my post), refusal to do this has nothing to do with catering to either party's base. No political party, and no significant block of independents, would be in favor of such severe travel restrictions. It would be universally disliked, even if it would be better policy. Neither the last administration or this one have shown any signs of wanted to take things that far.
Re: (Score:2)
"Virtually 100 percent certainly it arrived via the southern boarder."
And you know this how? Fox?
Re:Ok (Score:4, Interesting)
Re: (Score:3)
And spelling. "Boarder" is a legitimate word, but it does NOT refer to the edge of a region/state/country. It refers to the person renting grandma's spare bedroom...
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
And spelling. "Boarder" is a legitimate word, but it does NOT refer to the edge of a region/state/country. It refers to the person renting grandma's spare bedroom...
I'd have used lodger for that. Boarders are the pirates trying to invade Grandma's spare ship on the high seas.
Re: (Score:2)
I'd have used lodger for that. Boarders are the pirates trying to invade Grandma's spare ship on the high seas.
when I look it up in the dictionary I get both things, and the lodger-type definition is before the other kind. I don't think anybody is really using that word for anything in typical conversation any more, but someone renting lodging seems to still be considered the dominant meaning.
Re: (Score:2)
And spelling. "Boarder" is a legitimate word, but it does NOT refer to the edge of a region/state/country. It refers to the person renting grandma's spare bedroom...
Which makes the statement not too far from the truth; it's just missing an 's'. An amazing number of COVID cases were likely indirectly caused by anti-vaxx, anti-mask SoCal residents and/or southerners who lived with other people.
Ba-dump-tish. Thanks. I'll be here all night.
Re: (Score:2)
"Virtually 100 percent certainly it arrived via the southern boarder."
And you know this how? Fox?
Because Jose Jimenez, the southern boarder, was the guy with a case of Covid.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
But I guess quarantines are too inconvenient,
If people think what is taking place is a "quarantine", they should learn some history [imgur.com].*
* Yes, I realize who we are talking about.
Re: (Score:2)
All of a sudden the liberals want to build strong borders and walls to keep people out. Amazing what a little fear will do to people. Are you going to tell the millions of people that sneak into America every year to stay home?
Other than a small minority who ask for complete bans, most people suggesting bans are really talking about severe travel restrictions. The goal isn't to keep everyone out. Just to slow the spread.
Travel bans are very ineffective at completely preventing the spread of a virus. Mostly because it would have already spread before authorities are even first made aware. This California traveler arrived in the US two days before South Africa announced their discovery of the variant. We have recently found cases i
Re: (Score:2)
Putting severe restrictions on all travel, such as no un-vaccinated passengers allowed (and even them being required to test)...
The first person identified with it is vaccinated, and you want to ban the unvaccinated from travel?
Re: (Score:2)
The US and China are about the only nations that could do that and get through it, but most nations are far too interdependent on travel and trade. It's just not feasible for most nations.
Re: (Score:2)
Both the US and China have very porous southern borders.
Trump's Wall was ineffective at keeping migrants out, and there are no alternative policies that will work any better.
Tribal regions for the Hmong, Lao, and Kachin straddle the border with Yunnan and Guangxi. Many families have people on both sides, and daily crossings are common.
During the Spanish Flu in 1918-19, only one location was able to keep out the disease: American Samoa. It was an island with a full naval blockade enforced by American wars
Re: (Score:3)
No. The purpose of the ban isn't to stop it from getting here, but to delay it becoming endemic so that we have more data on it when it does hit. We should also implement testing of travelers on arrival as well as departure. If we delay it a few weeks, that's a win.
What percentage of test are sequenced? (Score:3)
Does anyone know what percentage of tests in the US are sequenced? It can't be a lot.
Re:What percentage of test are sequenced? (Score:5, Interesting)
My understanding is that we got lucky with Omicron, and it shows up differently in a standard PCR test. The report I saw said a PCR test shows three indicators, and with Omicron, only two show up, making it very obvious and easy to distinguish. Now this may have been for a particular PCR test; I don't know if this is true in general, or which PCR tests it applies to.
But your question is important for tracking variants in general, and I don't have the answer.
Re: (Score:1)
PCR tests are the gold standard because they basic
Re:What percentage of test are sequenced? (Score:5, Informative)
PCR tests are the gold standard because they basically return the entire genetic sequence of the viral material.
No, they do not. They return a "true/false" answer to the question: "does the material has a sequence that matches the supplied template (called "primer")". In this case we're lucky because one of the mutations happened to be in the location that was chosen for one of the primer sequences.
Re:What percentage of test are sequenced? (Score:5, Informative)
One of the things about this variant is that there is a tell in laboratory tests, so you don't even have to do the full genetic sequencing," says Dr. David Kessler, chief science officer for the federal COVID-19 response. There's a kind of signature - called S gene target failure - that some tests can pick up. In those cases "there is an ability to do an early, quick analysis," Kessler adds, and then prioritize those tests for genetic sequencing. " https://www.npr.org/sections/h... [npr.org]
Re:What percentage of test are sequenced? (Score:4, Informative)
Virus Behavior (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Virus Behavior (Score:4, Insightful)
Does that matter as much when your host numbers in the billions and intentionally creates virus-friendly environments?
Re: Virus Behavior (Score:2)
The more people you have to deal with, the less control of anything that you have.
It's best that you keep your dealings to as few people as possible, and not be dependent on anyone as much as possible.
This also helps to increase your odds of self preservation.
Re: (Score:3)
That's only if being dangerous causes behavior that reduces spread. I'm under the impression that most of the spread with COVID is before one becomes terribly sick, so it doesn't matter how sick you get from a transmission standpoint.
The good thing here is that Omicron doesn't descend from Delta, so it doesn't have all of those changes which made Delta worse. Of course, someone will get both, and they'll end up producing a new strain that's the worst of everything; this pandemic does not inspire optimism.
Re:Virus Behavior (Score:4, Insightful)
Eventually the most successful variants are more contagious and less dangerous. In the short run, there's nothing that requires the virus to mutate such that it's both less dangerous and more contagious. A very fatal and extremely contagious variant is just about as likely to arise as a 0% fatal and extremely contagious strain.
We can't count on only less deadly mutations happening. Especially because the way those win the evolutionary race is the more deadly killing a lot of people.
Re:Virus Behavior (Score:5, Interesting)
Re: (Score:2)
All that is required for it to be highly contagious is to not give outward signs of infection for an extended period.
That's quite a big "all", given that under those circumstances it must be doing well enough that significant numbers of virions are present on the required surfaces of the host humans in order to spread. IOW all it has to do is utterly defeat our immune system.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
" and less dangerous. "
I have my doubts on that; it could just be those most susceptible to death are removed from the host population, and those traits become rarer.
Re: (Score:2)
It's not in the interest of the virus to be fatal.
This isn't intelligent design.
The virus has no interests to concern itself about. It doesn't care if it goes extinct, or is extremely successful.
The biggest mystery to me about Covid (Score:4, Interesting)
The biggest mystery to me about Covid transmission is that the waves have a reliable 4-month peak-to-peak wavelength. This is true from the county level, the state level, the national level, all the way out to the global scale.
I haven't seen any good explanation for why the global covid infection rate is showing itself to be so reliably circular.
https://twitter.com/1DalM/stat... [twitter.com]
Re: (Score:2)
4 is not easily divisible by 12. 12 is easily divisible by 4.
But so is 2. And 3. And 6. I don't know what difference that makes.
Re: (Score:1)
Doesn't a 12 pay 30 to 1?
Re: (Score:2)
That's what I've been sayin'.
Re: The biggest mystery to me about Covid (Score:2)
"evenly" vs "easily". You basically just proved you are a Russian troll or the like. Congrats.
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Locally I can understand that, but I don't think the holidays argument works out well for the entire globe. Every nation and culture has it's own set of holidays. Just would expect daily infections to just look more like noise globally, not a nearly perfect sin wave.
Re: (Score:2)
Actually in the UK school holidays seem to drive the case rate down. Schools go back and infection rates go up.
Everyone in my family who has had it, caught it from a child bringing it home from school. Ignore the idiots in charge who say there is no evidence of schools driving the infection rates.
Re: (Score:1)
This is true from the county level, the state level, the national level, all the way out to the global scale.
Some places have had four peaks, my county has had three. The gaps were 6 months and 7 months. Humans love to see trends that don't really exist.
Re: The biggest mystery to me about Covid (Score:2)
Exactly. Humans love to see trends that don't exist... And yet pushing these trends is the foundation of modern propaganda... confuse and divide. I am rather sure most informed readers can know which country pushes this and maybe even why... Ends up Dune isn't much different from life...
Re:The biggest mystery to me about Covid (Score:5, Interesting)
20 two weeks later hospitalizations surge
30 oh shit it didn't go away
40 mandatory changes to human behavior (i.e. universal indoor mask mandates)
50 infection rate drops
60 oh hey it went away, everybody party like it's 1999
70 mask mandates cancelled
80 complacency returns
90 goto 10
It is not difficult to see how this cycle takes roughly 4 months. This exact scenario that was predicted waaay back at the start by the Lancet as the "rolling lockdowns" model: rises and falls in social regulations that are somewhere between 90 and 0 degrees phase advanced vs the waves of infection.
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah, that seems like a good explanation, until you zoom out to the global level. You don't have waves everywhere at once, but when you add up all of the cases you get very predictable waves where I personally would expect it to look like noise.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: The biggest mystery to me about Covid (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I'm ready for the i-variant and for Covid to leave the real plane.
Re: (Score:2)
You might very well be right that there is an under count.
But why does that make any difference with regard to the cyclical nature of the covid transmission waves?
Be careful with this horrifying variant (Score:2)
One of the symptoms is being turned into low poly david bowie
Uh oh (Score:3)
So much for the first round hysterical doom-shrieking that it has an R0 of 50.
Earliest available data - what very little there is - leans toward "about as bad as delta." Certainly within the margin of error on that, given how wide said margin is at this point.
The title first case should read... (Score:1)
So, has anyone died of this yet? (Score:1)
I've seen nothing but "mild symptoms" in every news story. So why are so many so afraid of it? Are you also afraid of life? Because a completely risk-free life is not only impossible, it would negate the purpose of it.
David Bowie - New angels of promise (Omikron: TNS) (Score:1)
Seeing as how things are hitting new levels of surreal, why not some David Bowie to give it flavor?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:3)
Virus: "But I'm not done caring about your ace-2 receptors!"
Objective reality is that which exists whether you want it to or not. It is also that which invariably comes back to bitchslap right wing authoritarians after they try to move on to the "simply blanket deny that the problem exists" stage.
Re: Until you get rid of the Democrats... (Score:5, Insightful)
Hmm. Looking up a bit of history. Exactly who was president when COVID appeared? And how factual and effective were his statements and responses? And exactly what party was he a member of?
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Why do you have so many fake troll accounts? You know you can use the same one right? Slashdot doesn't ban you despite how dumb fucking stupid you are.