The J&J pause debate: https://news.yahoo.com/was-the-us-right-to-pause-the-johnson-johnson-vaccine-230051779.html . I continue to agree with Nate Silver. Indeed, the details of his reaction (such as, pause only for women 16 to 49) reported here are the same as my suggestions yesterday. You could notify doctors about treatment without the pause, or within a narrower pause. The number of cases does not justify the risks associated with the pause, which include the disruption of hundreds of thousands of appointments. WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/j-j-covid-19-vaccine-pause-poses-another-test-for-balancing-pandemic-risks-11618412070 . Still more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/johnson-johnson-vaccine-pause-sparks-scrambles-across-country-11618413583 .
Update: The J&J pause is extended: https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/cdc-vaccine-advisers-seek-more-data-on-rare-blood-clots-before-deciding-whether-to-resume-johnson-and-johnson-shots/ar-BB1fEvPN?li=BBnb7Kz . There is some merit in the argument that because we have a strong supply of the other two vaccines, more time can be taken with this decision. However, the underlying reason seems to be fear of raising vaccine skepticism. The science just does not support this pause, and certainly not for men, or women over 50, where there are zero cases of blood clotting.
WSJ: The J&J pause and vaccine hesitancy: https://www.wsj.com/articles/j-j-covid-19-vaccine-blood-clot-cases-could-stir-vaccine-hesitancy-11618425733 .
Mix-and-match vaccine study extended: https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2021-04-14/uk-expands-coronavirus-mix-and-match-vaccine-study . I guess AstraZeneca has to find something to do with all its vaccine.
Gottlieb predicts US vaccinations will stall out at around 150 million: https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/04/14/987265125/ex-fda-chief-sees-struggle-to-vaccinate-more-than-half-u-s-population . Perhaps he is speaking only of adults. I would expect a substantial percentage of children to be vaccinated when a vaccine is approved for them.
WSJ: More colleges move to require vaccination for fall in-person classes: https://www.wsj.com/articles/more-colleges-to-require-student-covid-vaccinations-11618408641 .
CDC study favors blocking middle seats on planes: https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2021/04/14/covid-travel-cdc-study-says-empty-middle-seats-social-distancing-planes-reduce-exposure/7224517002/ .
Texas cases remain relatively stable over last month, despite lifting restrictions: https://www.texastribune.org/2021/04/14/texas-coronavirus-mask-order-abbott/ . Remember that many businesses require masks, and many people wear them voluntarily.
WSJ: The ongoing struggle over health price transparency: https://www.wsj.com/articles/coding-to-hide-health-prices-from-web-searches-is-barred-by-regulators-11618405825 .
Brazil’s P.1 variant mutating: https://www.jpost.com/health-science/coronavirus-brazil-variant-mutating-becoming-more-dangerous-study-665139 . Sad news, but not a surprise – it’s a natural effect of the population’s high virus load. More: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/covid-coronavirus-p1-variant-brazil-strain-transmission-immunity . If it’s twice as transmissible, the herd immunity level is 90% or more. In essence, herd immunity cannot be achieved.
WSJ: EU orders more Pfizer vaccine in response to J&J pause: https://www.wsj.com/articles/european-union-orders-extra-biontech-pfizer-vaccines-amid-j-j-suspension-11618404084 .
Total bull from the UK: https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/new-data-show-nearly-quarter-uk-covid-deaths-not-caused-virus . Excuse me, but there was essentially no flu season this year. WTF are they talking about? This article cites an article by Dr. John Lee on COVID mortality, which is from March 28, 2020: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/The-evidence-on-Covid-19-is-not-as-clear-as-we-think . Not much was known about COVID mortality then, but the article was embarrassingly off in many key respects. It is not relevant to current discussion. Without more detail on the UK’s statistical revision, the size of the change seems highly questionable.
WSJ: Italy’s unvaccinated seniors dying of COVID: https://www.wsj.com/articles/italys-covid-19-vaccinations-bypassed-the-elderly-and-more-are-dying-11618398015 . However, the best vaccine waiting room we’ve seen in the pandemic. Apparently vaccinations were being given in a closed museum.
Denmark breaks up with AstraZeneca: https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-denmark-vaccine/denmark-confirms-astrazeneca-covid-19-shot-no-longer-part-of-vaccine-roll-out-plan-idINS8N2JV05E . So, when you get a shot in Denmark, do they give you a Danish? (You know, like getting a donut after a blood donation.) This is not something we served at home. When we took the kids on their first trip to Hawaii, we went down to the morning buffet line at the hotel. The oldest (then 4) spies the display of Danish and says, “Dad, I sure like this Hawaiian food!”
Tax filers receive stimulus checks: https://thehill.com/policy/finance/548350-treasury-sends-out-2-million-more-direct-payments-from-coronavirus-relief-bill .
US projects long-lasting global economic instability from pandemic: https://www.vox.com/2021/4/14/22383514/covid-vaccines-india-africa-china . Tell me again, Why is the US stock market is at record highs? Oh right, the government and the Fed are flooding the country with funds. The stimulus is good national policy, but the disconnect between rich and poor nations is not.
Concern over optics delayed Guard support for Capitol police: https://apnews.com/article/capitol-siege-donald-trump-police-riots-michael-pence-3309c46a9e0bc21c2b6f3287a2e3b831 . Quite frankly, this is a ridiculous decision at every level. The security brass resigned for a very good reason. The ultimate “optics” were that US democracy is far weaker than anyone had previously thought.
Details of HR1, the federal voting rights proposed legislation: https://www.wsj.com/articles/whats-in-the-democrats-voting-rights-bill-11618058556 .
Dems look to pack Supreme Court: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/democrats-introduce-bill-expand-supreme-court-9-13-justices-n1264132. I was always opposed to this prior to 2016. However, the disgrace of adding Kavanaugh and Barrett to the Supreme Court, together with the way they were added, has changed my mind. The Court has been made into a partisan institution. The only way to reverse that in my lifetime is to expand the Court.
Bipartisan support for hate crimes bill: https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2021-04-14/senate-votes-to-consider-covid-19-hate-crimes-act . Possibly the Republicans can find something to vote for … possibly …
The vote was 92 to 6 to allow debate on the bill to go forward. Who, you might ask, could be such a racist jackass as to not even allow debate on this bill? Yes, of course they’re all Republicans. I bet you have at least two names already and are suspicious about two more. The other two are new to the Senate. Here are the states they represent: Texas, Missouri, Kentucky, Arkansas, Alabama and Kansas. And here is the full list of the Despicable Six: https://www.thedailybeast.com/sens-cruz-hawley-cotton-paul-tuberville-marshall-vote-against-covid-19-hate-crimes-act . (The article wrongly states MS when the senator involved is from MO.)
“The Bachelor” star opens the closet door: https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/bachelor-colton-underwood-gay-gma-1234950849/ . The ridiculousness of “reality” TV is confirmed once again. And here’s the follow-up story: https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/colton-underwood-netflix-reality-show-gay-the-bachelor-1234950986/ . So this comes out 4 hours after the original story. Note that the storyline that “he’s gay” has more dramatic tension than “he’s bisexual”. Who cares? Will our society ever again split news from entertainment?
The software upgrade was quite efficient relative to previous predictions. Happy to be back, thanks for reading!