The Elderly & CoVid 19

Hat Tip to FluWiki, Facebook:

Coronavirus: Study suggests elderly and sick are most at risk
https://www.zbcnews.co.zw/coronavirus-study-suggests-elderly-and-sick-are-most-at-risk/

HEALTH officials in China have published the first details of more than 70,000 cases of Covid-19, in the biggest study since the outbreak began.

Data from the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDC) found that more than 80% of the cases have been mild with the sick and elderly most at risk.

The research also points to the high risk for medical staff.

The findings put the overall death rate of the Covid-19 virus at 2.3%.   ---CONTINUED---

Hat Tip to John West's Daily Big Threat Blog:

Official: White House didn't want to tell seniors not to fly
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/official-white-house-didnt-want-to-tell-seniors-not-to-fly/ar-BB10T78B?li=BBnb4R7&ocid=iehp

NEW YORK — The White House overruled health officials who wanted to recommend that elderly and physically fragile Americans be advised not to fly on commercial airlines because of the new coronavirus, a federal official told The Associated Press.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention submitted the plan this week as a way of trying to control the virus, but White House officials ordered the air travel recommendation be removed, said the official who had direct knowledge of the plan. Trump administration officials have since suggested certain people should consider not traveling, but they have stopped short of the stronger guidance sought by the CDC. ---CONTINUED---

That actually makes sense, although their logic may be different than mine. The government has a stake in limiting how many people get the virus, but they don't have any stake in what level of risk I choose to take with my own health or life.

The potential for spreading the virus is essentially the same, as far as we know, regardless of the age of the person.

Being advised not to fly isn't the same as being forbidden to fly. I just take it as a stronger message than you shouldn't but it's up to you....

And I think we're at the point that we're trying to slow the spread since it's unstoppable at this point. But if the spread is slowed down then maybe the hospitals can keep up and reduce the death rate. If hospitals get a surge of severe patients then the death rate will spike amongst the elderly and folks with underlying health conditions (immune compromised, COPD, diabetes, etc.)

Are You At Higher Risk For Serious COVID-19 Illness? Here Is What To Do
https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2020/03/09/are-you-at-higher-risk-for-covid-19-here-is-what-to-do/#57487563e858

If you are 65 years of age or older or have a chronic medical condition, you may want to think twice about air travel given the COVID-19 coronavirus (SARS-CoV2) situation. Think twice may include trying to recall if you actually have your own private jet.

If you don’t have your own airplane, then consider the recommendations that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website now has for those at higher risk for bad COVID-19 outcomes. ---CONTINUED---

dmwalsh568 wrote:Being advised not to fly isn't the same as being forbidden to fly. I just take it as a stronger message than you shouldn't but it's up to you....

And I think we're at the point that we're trying to slow the spread since it's unstoppable at this point. But if the spread is slowed down then maybe the hospitals can keep up and reduce the death rate. If hospitals get a surge of severe patients then the death rate will spike amongst the elderly and folks with underlying health conditions (immune compromised, COPD, diabetes, etc.)

Yep. I got to agree with that.

This is a great idea. Might be something you or some of your kids who are home might want to start up, in your area, while home. Good church/religious organization project too! :

Med student develops grocery delivery service for seniors affected by coronavirus
https://www.wgal.com/article/med-student-develops-grocery-delivery-service-for-seniors-affected-by-coronavirus/31609424

Jayde Powell, a pre-med student in Las Vegas, decided to take action and ensure seniors don't go without the essentials.

"The problem now is when you go to the store, those items aren't even on the shelves for people to buy," Powell told KVVU. "It's been something I'm focused on, been brainstorming pretty intensely the past couple days."

Powell has developed a program called Shopping Angels, which delivers groceries to the elderly without extra costs or fees. ---CONTINUED---

Some local grocery stores are opening early only to folks age 60 and up so they can shop after the nightly cleaning and before the masses show up. Could be quite useful for folks without a support network.

dmwalsh568 wrote:Some local grocery stores are opening early only to folks age 60 and up so they can shop after the nightly cleaning and before the masses show up. Could be quite useful for folks without a support network.

You know ... I *just* realized ... I'm in that group now! I guess I've been in denial the past coupla years.

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick suggests he, other seniors willing to die to get economy going again
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/texas-lt-gov-dan-patrick-suggests-he-other-seniors-willing-n1167341

Dan Patrick, Texas’ Republican lieutenant governor, on Monday night suggested that he and other grandparents would be willing to risk their health and even lives in order for the United States to “get back to work” amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“Those of us who are 70 plus, we’ll take care of ourselves. But don’t sacrifice the country,” Patrick said on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” ---CONTINUED---

Coronavirus Update: 90-Year-Old Grandmother Pulls Through COVID-19 After Near-Death Experience
https://www.ibtimes.com/coronavirus-update-90-year-old-grandmother-pulls-through-covid-19-after-near-death-2945530

Geneva Wood, a 90-year-old resident of Washington State, had become one of the most remarkable stories in the battle against the COVID-19 virus. She proved that there’s life after the virus — even at 90, an advanced age where most would have succumbed to complications.

Wood was transferred to Harborview Medical Center from The Life Care Center in Kirkland, where she was living. She had shown signs of coronavirus—fever, cough, and shortness of breath. The senior had also been recovering from a stroke, which caused her to lose the ability to walk temporarily. According to Fox News, she also couldn’t talk and use her right arm properly. ---CONTINUED---

(LEAD) Dementia patients at most risk of succumbing to COVID-19: data
https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20200324008051320?section=science/medicine

SEOUL, March 23 (Yonhap) -- Nearly three in ten patients who have died of the new coronavirus in South Korea suffered from dementia, as the degenerative brain illnesses is more common among elderly people, local health authorities said Tuesday.

The country's COVID-19 death toll has risen to 124 as of Tuesday, up 13 from a day earlier, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said. Of the total fatalities, 34, or 27.4 percent, had dementia.

"We are making utmost efforts to detect virus patients at an early stage to provide treatment. However, the mortality rate is higher among those older than 65 years old and suffering underlying diseases," KCDC Deputy Director Kwon Jun-wook told reporters. ---CONTINUED---

Why isolating older Americans would be a huge mistake in fighting the coronavirus
https://fortune.com/2020/03/24/coronavirus-curve-herd-immunity-deaths/

As the global economy turns for the worse amid the coronavirus outbreak, you can just imagine the entertainer George Burns saying, “Everyone who says they could fix the economy seems to be too busy driving cabs and cutting hair.” The catastrophic public health and economic consequences of the current pandemic have made everyone a policy expert.

In the New York Times last Friday, health expert David Katz weighed in on what many management, critical care, virology, epidemiology, and medical experts believe is a dangerously misguided recommendation. His argument is to triage infection testing for more vulnerable and older people, isolating them from their younger families and sending healthy, younger people back to work, school, parties, rallies, and concerts. ---CONTINUED---

I don't know if this is the right place to put this, but here it goes. A youtube video about taking care of the elderly, from the provident prepper:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGWiLan4aIw

I'm a bit late reporting this, but MA governor has ordered all markets to have their first hour open each day designated for seniors only. AFAIK nobody is checking ID, but I think folks are abiding by the restrictions.

Older states grapple with fear, isolation and medical care
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/older-states-grapple-with-fear-isolation-and-medical-care/ar-BB12w6Se?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=iehp

PORTLAND, Maine — This isn’t the way Betsy Steen and her husband wanted to spend their golden years: Hunkered down at home, living with fear and isolation.

Steen, 76, and her husband David, 75, both take immuno-suppressant medications, placing them at high risk if they contract the coronavirus. They try to keep positive, but it’s hard to escape the flood of bad news. ---CONTINUED---