#COVID-19 variants

[intersectionalpraxis]

Researchers discovered this new variant via wastewater. They reported that it already makes up 1/4 of US Covid cases.

Symptoms include: fever or chills, fatigue, "brain fog," difficulty breathing, muscle aches, new loss of taste or smell.

All of this information I stated above can be found here:

I will definitely be updating about this new variant as more information is made available to the public.

[fixing-bad-posts]

be on the lookout for symptoms of covid the respiratory virus

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source on hospitalizations: - government of canada - cbc news

[faggotfungus]

I've been seeing tags like these for a while now, "x gave me couvid" or "I think I have couvid," and I've never understood how they're supposed to be funny. Congratulations, you've allowed yourself to be fooled into making a joke out of a virus that continues to disable and kill people daily 👏😀

[gumjrop]

The Weather

In the US, 41 out of 54 states and territories are at high or very high COVID wastewater levels as of 1/18/2024. Ten states and territories have no data available. It’s important to note that levels of “moderate,” “low,” or “minimal” do not necessarily indicate a low risk of COVID exposure in our daily lives. Viral spread is still ongoing even if at lower levels, and precautions are warranted to protect ourselves and others.

Looking at the CDC’s national and regional wastewater data over time, we continue to see “Very High” levels nationally. It’s important to note that the last two weeks are provisional data, indicated by a gray shaded area on the graph, meaning that those values can change as additional wastewater sites report data. 

Although wastewater data does not provide the same level of detail as previous PCR-based testing data, wastewater monitoring is an important ongoing resource to inform us about the current COVID situation. While the provisional data tentatively shows a downward trend this week, time will tell whether this is a true decrease in the final data. A downward trend does not mean continued decreases are guaranteed or that protections should be relaxed. Multilayered protections help drive COVID spread lower, and relaxing protections can lead to a resurgence of viral spread.

Visit the CDC’s State and Territory Trends page to see available wastewater testing near you, including the number of wastewater sites reporting. Write your elected officials to let them know you want to keep and expand wastewater testing in your area and nationally.

Wins

In November 2023, the CDC’s Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) passed a series of draft proposals that will further weaken already insufficient protocols employed within healthcare settings. HICPAC refuses to reckon with the airborne nature of infectious diseases such as SARS-CoV-2, and does not propose crucial measures such as universal masking with well-fitted respirators, isolation periods, and ventilation. The People’s CDC has penned a letter to the ACLU alerting them of HICPAC’s irresponsible decisions, and the ramifications associated with them. We hope that by working together with the ACLU, we can implement public advocacy and legal actions in order to tackle this critical issue.

You can read the full letter here.

Johns Hopkins reinstated healthcare masking on 1/12/2024, in response to high respiratory virus levels. As with many other healthcare systems and public health departments that have restored healthcare masking when facing public pressure, we hope that universal masking can become a standard of care rather than a short term response to a surge. See “Take Action” below for more information.

Variants

JN.1, now the most prominent variant in the United States, is estimated to account for 85.7% of circulating variants by 1/20/2024. HV.1 is expected to drop to 5.3%, and all other variants are estimated to make up less than 2% each. Although ongoing viral spread allows opportunities for new variants to emerge, the latest 2023-2024 COVID vaccine boosters, COVID tests, and COVID treatments are still expected to be effective for JN.1.

Current updated booster uptake is low (as of January 19, 2024, the CDC reports that only 21.5% of adults and 11% of children have received it). It is not too late to get the updated booster, and to protect yourself against the latest variant! 

Hospitalizations

In the most recent week (ending January 13, 2024), we see a slight downward trend in new hospital admissions, currently at 32,861. We see a similar slight downtick in currently hospitalized patients with COVID , at 27,879. This most recent week shows a slight decrease in hospitalizations, although it is too soon to say whether hospitalizations for the current surge have passed their peak. Hospitals continue to be overwhelmed. The data also lacks information on hospital-acquired infections. We urge you to continue taking stringent precautions, such as donning a well-fitting respirator (e.g., N95, KN95) in all indoor spaces–and especially in healthcare settings.

Long COVID

Amid ongoing advocacy by Long COVID groups, the US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) held a committee hearing on “Addressing Long COVID: Advancing Research and Improving Patient Care.” The hearing included testimony from three Long COVID patients and four Long COVID physicians and researchers, bringing much-needed attention to the urgent need for funding for Long COVID research and treatments, and to the need for improved access to care for Long COVID patients. We recognize the community care modeled by some of the panelists and attendees who wore masks for the hearing, and we wish the senators on the committee would mask up as well. 

Take Action

Write your elected officials to let them know that Long COVID impacts all of us, and that we need ongoing support for Long COVID research and clinical care. Ask Senators to support bill S.2560, the Long COVID Support Act. Ask Representatives to support bills HR.1114 (Long COVID RECOVERY NOW Act) and HR.3258 (TREAT Long COVID Act).

Although some healthcare settings have reinstated masking in response to high COVID levels along with high respiratory virus activity, ongoing pressure is needed to restore, keep, and expand masking broadly. Use our letter template and toolkit to call or write your elected officials in support of healthcare masking.

Want to do more to support healthcare masking? Consider starting, sharing, or joining a local campaign. Check out work in Illinois, Maryland, and Wisconsin, just to name a few. Also, sign and share our letter to the ACLU asking them to join us in supporting safe and equitable access to healthcare. Sign on is open until 2/1/2024. 

[disabled-pixie]

Covid isn't over! We're now going into an endemic! It will continue to evolve and make new variants, each more deadly than the last. I know people will say, "It will only kill the already disabled and elderly." Thanks for condemning my life and thousands of others to death because you wanted to go back to "normal life" and didn't do the bare minimum of getting vaccinated!

[covid-safer-hotties]

‘Playing COVID roulette’: Some infected by FLiRT variants report their most unpleasant symptoms yet - Published July 8, 2024

As the summer travel season picks up, COVID cases and hospitalizations are rising in Los Angeles County — and some of those recently reinfected are finding their latest bout to be the worst yet.

There are no signs at this point that the latest coronavirus variants are producing more severe illness, either nationally or in California.

But some doctors say this latest COVID rise challenges a long-held myth: Although new COVID infections are often mild compared with a first brush with the disease, they still can cause severe illness. Even if someone doesn’t need to visit the emergency room or be hospitalized, people sometimes describe agonizing symptoms.

“The dogma is that every time you get COVID, it’s milder. But I think we need to keep our minds open to the possibility that some people have worse symptoms,” said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, a UC San Francisco infectious diseases expert.

Each time you get COVID, he said, is “kind of like playing COVID roulette.”

This underscores the need for caution during summer travel and activities, even though the overall risk remains relatively mild.

Read the full article and join in the conversation at our covid board:

[nancykhemchandani]

Understanding JN.1 COVID-19 Variant: Impact, Vaccines, and Concern

Explore the impact of JN.1 COVID-19 variant, vaccine efficacy, and expert insights. Stay informed and safe amid evolving situations.

[ricisidro]

Covid infections are growing in nearly all states -- with the sharpest increases in the West, according to CDC data. The FLiRT and LB.1 variants are most common.

#SARSCov2

#COVID19 #Omicron #FLIRTvariant

#LB1

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2024/07/03/covid-rising-kp2-flirt-lb1/

[spooniestrong]

Wastewater levels continue to increase in all four regions of the United States, and the national average continues to increase as well. Although some public health departments are warning their communities, not every government agency across the country is similarly sharing this important information. It is important that we hold them accountable, especially when the risk of an infection is increasing. 

The current variant landscape remains a mix of nearly equally dominant strains since the last variant update we gave on July 22, 2023 (CDC now updates every 2 weeks). EG.5 nicknamed “Eris,” a descendant of XBB, is growing in proportion and has become the dominant strain at 17.3% and XBB.1.16 is now the second most dominant strain, representing 15.6% of infections. Due to local health departments being no longer obligated to share data as a result of the end of the public health emergency, the CDC has limited its regional-level reporting of variant proportions through its Nowcast estimates, currently available for only three out of ten regions.

[Source: The People's CDC]

[spacedocmom]

Doctor Beverly Crusher @SpaceDocMom I hope you have a nice Halloween but also remember that fun treats and safety masks are for any time! emojis: lollipop, candy, Jack-o-lantern, masked x 5, black heart, blue heart 1:43 PM · Oct 31, 2023

[arctic-hands]

Out of curiosity, are there any variants going around where there are no respiratory symptoms but there is heavy fatigue? neither theta and I have any resp symptoms or fevers or anything, but we've been so dead tired that nothing's getting done. We're both chronically ill and disabled, but it's weird for both of us to be this tired and flaring at the same time

[humandisastersquad]

PSA: if you’re vaccinated you can still catch and spread covid. Wear a mask, or even better yet, an N95 or equivalent respirator

[mrsmarlasinger]

Reblog for results and tell me more in the tags!! If you haven't had COVID, don't vote—just reblog it with a reference tag so you can see the results when it closes.

This is NOT a remotely scientific poll, so please don't take it too seriously or get too technical with it. I'm just curious whether smelling smoke/fire that isn't really there is a common symptom for COVID survivors. Since I had omicron in June 2022, it has happened to me several times.

(Also, please forgive me for making the poll USA-centric—I chose the timeline I was most familiar with as a US American myself. If you're not American, absolutely feel free to vote.)