What you need to know about the coronavirus on Wednesday, October 7

10/07/2020 Health

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In just eight months, Covid-19 has killed more Americans than the flu during the last five flu seasons combined.

The new coronavirus is also much more contagious than the flu. While research shows that someone with the flu infects an average of about 1.28 people, someone with Covid-19 infects an average of 2 to 3 more people when mitigation efforts, such as stay-at-home orders or masks, they are not in place.

On top of that, the coronavirus can spread for many days without symptoms. The incubation period for the flu is much shorter, which means that people are likely to start feeling sick earlier and avoid contact with other people.

There is also a vaccine available for the flu, and experts say the number of deaths from flu could drop dramatically if more people get the flu vaccine.

Even Facebook has rejected the claim by removing a Trump post about the flu, but it is unlikely to have any effect on the president’s approach. His advice not to let the coronavirus “rule your life” has left loved ones of Covid-19 victims furious.

“It has not only dominated the lives of the people we have lost. It has dominated the families of those people. It has dominated, and still does, the hospital, the health heroes who worked every day to save my husband, doctors and nurses … it’s an insult, “Amanda Kloots, wife of Broadway star Nick Cordero, told CNN. Cordero battled the virus for 95 days and died. Lamb and Kloots have a 1-year-old son together.

YOU ASKED. WE RESPOND

Q. Is it safe to get a flu shot in the fall?

A: Yes. And please do, the doctors say.

This year, it is “more important than ever to get vaccinated against the flu because it is almost certain that we will face the double blow of the flu season coinciding with the increase in Covid-19 cases,” said Dr. Leana Wen, from the ward of emergencies.

And a flu / coronavirus double whammy could be disastrous if it overwhelms the healthcare system. An estimated 410,000 to 740,000 Americans were hospitalized with the flu last season, from October to April, according to the CDC.

Wen said the flu vaccine is 40-60% effective. But even if you do get the flu after getting vaccinated, the flu shot “still reduces the chance of serious effects from the flu.”

And yes, it is possible to have the flu and Covid-19 at the same time.

Submit your questions here. Are you a healthcare worker fighting Covid-19? Send us a message on WhatsApp about the challenges you face: +1 347-322-0415.

WHAT IS IMPORTANT TODAY

The White House coronavirus outbreak is spreading

Stephen Miller, a top Trump policy adviser, has become the latest White House official to test positive. After working from home for several days, Miller showed up for work yesterday and tested positive, a source familiar with the incident told CNN.

Despite the growing outbreak, the White House has rejected offers from the CDC to help investigate the outbreak, according to a federal health official. In addition to the White House outbreak, all but one member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff are in quarantine after having attended meetings in the Pentagon’s safe spaces.

Trump abruptly scraps stimulus talks on coronavirus

President Trump has announced the end of new stimulus talks until after yesterday’s election. The decision is a severe blow to millions of Americans still out of work, as well as to small businesses and major airlines struggling to stay afloat.

Another round of federal funding was deemed vital to prop up the nation’s economy at a time when the recovery is weakening. Just hours before Trump’s announcement, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated his calls for more fiscal stimulus, saying “the risks of overdoing it appear, for now, to be lower” than not providing more aid.

Most Hospitalized Covid-19 Patients Have Neurological Symptoms

A new study published in the Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology said that more than four-fifths of Covid patients – 19 hospitalized at nine Chicago-area hospitals earlier this year have shown neurological symptoms.

The researchers found that overall, 82% of the 509 Covid-19 patients had neurological symptoms at any time during the course of their Covid-19 disease. The most frequent manifestations were muscle pain, headache, encephalopathy, and dizziness.

FDA wants two months of safety data before considering Covid-19 vaccine

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration made it clear Tuesday that it will want to see two months of follow-up data after volunteers receive their second dose of vaccine for clinical trials testing potential coronavirus vaccines.

That would make it difficult, if not impossible, for any vaccine manufacturer to apply for an emergency use authorization before Election Day, as President Trump suggested, or by the end of October, as the Pfizer CEO hinted.

ON OUR RADAR

The figure of Dr. Fauci is dressed in a white coat and a removable mask.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is receiving the action figure treatment.
Vermont is battling a Covid-19 outbreak among migrant workers in an apple orchard.
Anheuser-Busch will ship 6,500 gallons of hand sanitizer to Texas by Election Day.
A man escaped from coronavirus quarantine in South Korea by digging a hole under a temporary wall at a government facility in Seoul the day before his release.
Singapore will pay citizens to have a baby during the pandemic.
Apple’s new face mask emoji now hides a smile.

TODAY’S MAIN COUNCIL

With everything going on this year, mental health has become a major focus for employers and some companies are increasing their offerings to help their workers stay healthy amid so much uncertainty.

Here are some of the ways that companies are trying to help their workers:

Schedule without meetings
Greater access to professional help
Offering apps and subscriptions
Be sincere and empathetic

TODAY’S PODCAST

“Every demonstration, every protest, it doesn’t matter, if you gather in a large group of people, it is almost certain that there has been transmission.” – Erin Bromage, CNN Medical Analyst

Since the Sept. 26 ceremony in the White House rose garden, at least 15 people have tested positive for Covid-19, prompting some to declare it a possible wide-spread event. But what does that mean? CNN’s chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta speaks with Bromage, professor of biology and immunology at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, about what we can learn from this potentially dangerous event. Listen now.

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