Have you figured it out yet?

[Tommy T.]

1 hour ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

So there is zero reasoning for quaranting people who have officially recovered.

Au contrare, Dave...unfortunately... There may, indeed be a reason?

I just read this today:

https://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/world/recovered-coronavirus-patients-test-positive-again-in-blow-to-immunity-hopes/ar-BB12tSJg?li=BBr8Mkn

South Korea reported on Friday that 91 recovered coronavirus patients have tested positive for the disease again, raising questions over health experts' understanding of the pandemic.

The prospect of people being re-infected with the virus is of international concern, as many countries are hoping that infected populations will develop sufficient immunity to prevent a resurgence of the pandemic.

The reports have also prompted fears the virus may remain active in patients for much longer than was previously thought.

Korean health officials reported Friday that 91 patients thought to have been cleared of the virus had tested positive again, up from 51 people on Monday.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) announced it had sent a team to the city of Daegu, the worst hit area, to investigate why patients there were testing positive again.

Some of the patients testing positive again showed no symptoms, while others were suffering from fevers and respiratory issues, according to the Financial Times. 

South Korean health officials said it remains unclear what is behind the trend, with the preliminary findings from the investigation in Daegu not expected to be released until next week.

However the KCDC's director, Jeong Eun-kyeong, raised the possibility that the virus may have been “reactivated” in people, rather than the patients being re-infected.

False test results could also be at fault, other experts said, or remnants of the virus could still be in patients’ systems without being infectious or posing a risk of danger to the host or others.

“There are different interpretations and many variables,” said Jung Ki-suck, professor of pulmonary medicine at Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital.

“The government needs to come up with responses for each of these variables”.

South Korea had previously been hailed as a success story after its swift implementation of a mass-scale testing regime halted the spread of the virus and led to a far lower fatality rate than the global average.

The country had one of the worst outbreaks outside China in the early stages of the coronavirus spread, but t

he country has brought the situation under control over the past two months by a combination of measures including transparent reporting, mass-testing, social distancing and extensive contact tracing.

On Friday the country reported 27 new cases, its lowest figure since daily cases peaked at more than 900 in late February, according to the KCDC. The death toll rose by seven to 211, it said.

Nearly 7,000 South Koreans have been reported as recovered from Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The city of Daegu, which accounts for more than half of all South Korea's total infections, reported zero new cases for the first time since late February.

However the new reports of recovered patients testing positive once more has sparked fears of a fresh outbreak.

“We say that a patient has fully recovered when he or she tests negative twice within 24 hours. But the fact that some of them tested positive again in a short period means that the virus remains longer than we thought,” Son Young-rae, a spokesman for the health and welfare ministry, told the Financial Times.

“The number will only increase, 91 is just the beginning now,” said Kim Woo-joo, professor of infectious diseases at Korea University Guro Hospital.

Mr Kim also said patients had likely “relapsed” rather than been re-infected.

[Old55]

Tommy, I heard on the local radio news those test kits were likely faulty and or the recovered individuals were still able to pass the virus  for some reason. I guess there is still a lot of unknowns and it's frightening. 

[Tommy T.]

8 minutes ago, Old55 said:

I guess there is still a lot of unknowns and it's frightening. 

That's exactly my point...thanks!

[hk blues]

5 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

Here is one thing I have not figured out.  For the people who have had Covid 19 and recovered.  Why can't they get their asses back to work?  Most countries are working on the assumption that "herd immunity" is the answer.  They are hoping and believing that once you have had it then you will most likely not get it again AND you will not be contagious.

So there is zero reasoning for quaranting people who have officially recovered.

Sth. Korea have identified 91 patients who have been reinfected so it may throw a spanner in works of the theory that once infected we become immune.  

We simply don't know enough to be making any major assumptions that may lead to 2nd or 3rd waves in places we thought were OK. 

Edit - didn't see Tom's post before posting

 

Edited April 13, 2020 by hk blues

[Arizona Kid]

On 4/12/2020 at 6:09 AM, scott h said:

It must be because of all the different dialects in this county.  Or Just selective hearing

Here in my  city and barangay, you can not buy a beer but you can still get a pedicab or a tricycle 

Here everything is pretty much banned..no trikes, no beer. And if you don't have a Barangay pass you will be turned back at the checkpoint. It makes everything boring but I love it that people are finally starting to get it. We don't know how the hell this thing will end. Until we do, just go with the flow.

[Arizona Kid]

7 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

That's exactly my point...thanks!

Mother nature TT. Remember that I mentioned it months ago. She's really mad right now!

[Tommy T.]

1 hour ago, Arizona Kid said:

She's really mad right now!

I respectfully disagree with that assessment, AK....

I think she's getting even. Payback time. Notice that this is much  deadlier to the older generations - the ones who, at least so far, are the culprits? Think about it...

[fillipino_wannabe]

12 hours ago, Huggybearman said:

I haven’t heard they have been issuing passes in the UK. Only stipulating essential journeys like shopping, work etc. Which part is that?

In the Philippines boss sorry not UK.

[hk blues]

19 hours ago, Arizona Kid said:

Here everything is pretty much banned..no trikes, no beer. And if you don't have a Barangay pass you will be turned back at the checkpoint. It makes everything boring but I love it that people are finally starting to get it. We don't know how the hell this thing will end. Until we do, just go with the flow.

My concern here is that there is never a middle ground - it either has to be all or nothing so the possibility of having a loosening of the lockdown rules may not exist.  In addition,  I have began to see some concerning things i.e. the nearest 7/11 now closed, the supermarket no longer accepting bill payments, the Globe Engineeer saying it's becoming difficult to get into some subdivisions for repair, more bank branches remaining closed etc. I worry that things are beginning to come apart at the seams, albeit slowly.  

[Jollygoodfellow]

8 minutes ago, hk blues said:

My concern here is that there is never a middle ground - it either has to be all or nothing so the possibility of having a loosening of the lockdown rules may not exist.  In addition,  I have began to see some concerning things i.e. the nearest 7/11 now closed, the supermarket no longer accepting bill payments, the Globe Engineeer saying it's becoming difficult to get into some subdivisions for repair, more bank branches remaining closed etc. I worry that things are beginning to come apart at the seams, albeit slowly.  

But most bills can be paid through a Philippines bank account so no need to go anywhere. Online banking and ATMs are working fine in my area. Here are a few other ways to paybills.

https://www.moneymax.ph/personal-finance/articles/pay-bills-online .