Yes, I saw that report about the Broadway actor. Just terrible. This virus is truly vicious and we don't fully understand why it reacts a certain way in some individuals and another way in others. I've read about the clotting issues taking place in some critically ill patients. This is why so many of them are not only requiring long term mechanical ventilation, but also dialysis due to acute kidney failure.And you have to look beyond "death rates" as your measure. People who are surviving COVID-19 are exhibiting signs of permanent lung and heart damage. A young Broadway actor is currently getting part of his leg amputated as a byproduct of treatment.
There's also a great video piece in the NYT from yesterday where there are a series of physicians treating COVID-19 patients in NYC talking about whether or not we're even treating this virus correctly. They can't wrap their heads around this thing, because we've never seen anything like it. My sister-in-law has told me the exact same things. Patients who are breathing 40 times a minute, with low oxygenation levels, but can still speak in full sentences. Makes...no sense. Some docs are arguing that putting these patients in induced comas on vents is possibly doing irreversible damage to their lungs even if they are lucky enough to survive.
And this is why it's upsetting to me to see protests about "opening everything up again". These medical heroes are just getting their first brief sigh of relief. The hospitals aren't overflowing right now. They're catching their collective breath. And if we just open it all up....like before, in 3 weeks we'll have another huge surge of patients, overwhelmed hospitals and a spike in deaths. I mean, how long can we as nation expect our healthcare workers to continue to work under these conditions?
The longer we put off mass testing for positive cases and antibody testing, the longer this will go on for all of us. Only when we get our arms around how many are truly infected and immune, can life begin to resume to a level of normalcy. And not until there is a vaccine can life go on like it was before.
Someone had a good point in this thread regarding the Abbott Lab rapid test and travel. Yes, maybe we'll get to the point where we'll have millions os tests so that people can get on flights with confidence, or even on a DCL cruise that only goes to Castaway Cay. But right now, even if a ship was to head out, what country is going to allow a ship full of untested Americans onto their shores? In Italy they're talking about "Immunity Licenses"....for people with proven immunity, free movement around the country will be permitted. When is any country in Europe, who is still going through hell, just 2-3 weeks ahead of us, going to allow Americans to fly into their country without quarantining for 14 days? Not soon, I can assure you.