Live data from Hacker News

Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

github.com

21–30 of 44 posts

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#21

What I don’t understand is why the US still doesn’t have widespread testing. If the government lifted restrictions on testing and let people other than CDC and health authorities test for it, most research hospitals and universities (and many other private labs) would be able to test for this disease very easily. The reagents are commercially available, and most other countries are rolling out (or have already rolled…

So, I really was not understanding what the delay was, either, but if you watch the CDC press conference with Trump from Friday, they make a distinction between ‘clinical’ lab testing and ‘public health’ lab testing.

So, it seems the ‘public health’ labs are mired in some byzantine system of rules, where the local department defers to the state, and the state defers to the federal agencies.

The ‘clinical’ labs are mostly for-profit and follow a different procurement process for obtaining the tests, and I believe they are different tests, as well.

It is a mess.

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#22

What I don’t understand is why the US still doesn’t have widespread testing. If the government lifted restrictions on testing and let people other than CDC and health authorities test for it, most research hospitals and universities (and many other private labs) would be able to test for this disease very easily. The reagents are commercially available, and most other countries are rolling out (or have already rolled…

People are not getting to the bottom of this. Virus goes from one host to the other via the means of aerosol/droplet particulates. There is some evidence that it can stay "active" while on a surface such as a door knob. Everything else is external. So, whether you test or not, the fundamentals of aforementined mechanism most likely won't change. Cleaning public areas with disinfectant, educating the public of detaile…

This is a paper about how coronaviruses can survive in water and wastewater systems.

https://west.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/data/Gundy2008_...

Has anyone looked at the water supply as a method of transmission?

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

do you really think that Italy and China wanted to put a stop to their economic activity with quarantines for no reason?

Sometimes politicians look good for having "done something" because there is no counterfactual to compare against to create accountability.

but there is Wuhan before January 23rd and after, so what is it exactly that you have in mind?

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#24

What I don’t understand is why the US still doesn’t have widespread testing. If the government lifted restrictions on testing and let people other than CDC and health authorities test for it, most research hospitals and universities (and many other private labs) would be able to test for this disease very easily. The reagents are commercially available, and most other countries are rolling out (or have already rolled…

I believe they said the additional testing will be ready Monday, some places were ready Friday. LabCorp and Quest are two of those that are ready.

The labs at the universities and private companies had to verify the results of the tests they created.

It's important to note that no other country has widespread testing either. They simply take spit swabs and test a sample of them from a location. It's a much less precise method, but appropriate in the places where there is a widespread outbreak.

The CDC is working with these countries, it's not one country having it together or not. Stop politicizing this.

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#25

What I don’t understand is why the US still doesn’t have widespread testing. If the government lifted restrictions on testing and let people other than CDC and health authorities test for it, most research hospitals and universities (and many other private labs) would be able to test for this disease very easily. The reagents are commercially available, and most other countries are rolling out (or have already rolled…

Here's[1] a twitter thread from the former FDA commissioner from a month ago talking about some of the legal reasons that screening hasn't been so straightforward in the US as it has been in other countries, despite a screening being something a good sized hospital is capable of developing.

Then there was a problem with one of the reagents in the official CDC test.[2]

[1]https://twitter.com/ScottGottliebMD/status/12240422206653071...

[2]https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/02/united-states-badly-...

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#27

What I don’t understand is why the US still doesn’t have widespread testing. If the government lifted restrictions on testing and let people other than CDC and health authorities test for it, most research hospitals and universities (and many other private labs) would be able to test for this disease very easily. The reagents are commercially available, and most other countries are rolling out (or have already rolled…

As of this past weekend, both LabCorp and Quest can test for it, according to emails I’ve received from local hospitals. They will not collect samples in their own facilities, but will collect them from physicians offices etc for processing.

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People are not getting to the bottom of this. Virus goes from one host to the other via the means of aerosol/droplet particulates. There is some evidence that it can stay "active" while on a surface such as a door knob. Everything else is external. So, whether you test or not, the fundamentals of aforementined mechanism most likely won't change. Cleaning public areas with disinfectant, educating the public of detaile…

This is a paper about how coronaviruses can survive in water and wastewater systems. https://west.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/data/Gundy2008_... Has anyone looked at the water supply as a method of transmission?

There was a case of the virus being transmitted that way but it shouldn't be a concern if the plumbing is up to code with things like s-curves in the pipes. There are a lot of viruses and bacteria like norovirus and cholera that are much better at traveling that way than a coronavirus and modern toilet and sewer systems should be designed with that in mind.

Re: Data Submitted by the Italian Civil Defense on COVID19 in Italy, Updated Daily

#30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a paper about how coronaviruses can survive in water and wastewater systems. https://west.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/data/Gundy2008_... Has anyone looked at the water supply as a method of transmission?

There was a case of the virus being transmitted that way but it shouldn't be a concern if the plumbing is up to code with things like s-curves in the pipes. There are a lot of viruses and bacteria like norovirus and cholera that are much better at traveling that way than a coronavirus and modern toilet and sewer systems should be designed with that in mind.

I am not talking vent pipes...

Larger scale, a decent size rain can upset a wastewater treatment plant, and that is also assuming nobody is dumping waste directly into the river, intentional or otherwise.

Additionally, there have been multiple articles of detection via feces.

The water treatment plant may be redistributing the virus from an upstream contamination.

Post reply on HN