Apparently today is the official 4 year anniversary of Covid, so as you are recalling the pain and trauma of “official” lockdowns today, please remember that disabled ppl are still in isolation, with no end date. You may feel it’s over, but your burden actually just shifted to us, on top of our own.

the implication in saying that aaron bushnell was mentally ill is that you can’t have a mental disability and political convictions at the same time. which is a wild thing to say.

JIMINY GLICK: Now you, you, you, you—your cars, they tend to run over pedestrians. Or else BURST into flames. ha HA isn't that wonderful!
ELON MUSK: *the least convincing laugh of all time*
GLICK: *tucking his legs under himself* You bought a website where no one likes you. Why?

The CDC wants to stop telling people to isolate for five days when they are sick with COVID. This is a reckless, anti-public health policy that contravenes science, increases disease spread, and puts everyone at greater risk.

I feel like if non-sick people just started reading the stuff that gets posted in the #LongCovid forums, they'd be scared into taking precautions. Every day LC ppl post about not wanting to stay alive, abandoned by family, losing jobs/homes, etc. Non-sick ppl don't grasp their own reinfection risk

Many don't want to wear masks again as masks remind them of the trauma of 2020, and wearing them feels like going back. In reality, mask wearing is a sign of progress. They show we've learned from 2020 there's a simple step we can all take to protect our health. Not wearing masks is going backwards.

As figure below shows, XBB.1.5 booster strongly (~20-fold) increases neutralization of XBB.1.5 & XBB-descended viruses
 
Boost mostly specific to newer variants, as increases smaller for older variants like D614G or BA.5.
 
Also, XBB.1.5 vaccine and XBB infection give similar boost.

FINALLY! Just in time for the winter COVID surge, the CDC now has a useful wastewater dashboard.

It indicates that nationally COVID wastewater levels are HIGH and rising further.

You can access the dashboard here: cdc.gov/nwss/rv/COVI...

I think for a lot of people #LongCovid risk is an abstract idea they sequester in the 'I don't have emotional energy to think about that' part of their brain. For me it's taking my kid to a million doctors appointments resulting in almost zero solutions + missed school + searching for supports.

Long COVID is real.

Long COVID is not rare.

Vaccines offer limited protection against long COVID.

Paxlovid reduces your risk of long COVID.

Repeat infections make long COVID more likely.

There is no standard treatment for long COVID.

The best prevention against long COVID is not getting COVID.

Long COVID identified through immune profiling (Putrino, Iwasaki) buff.ly/3PShYEJ

Clinical surveys were 94% accurate to diagnose LC.

People with Long COVID had
⬇️ cortisol (HPA axis defect?)
⬆️ activated B and cytokine-secreting T cells
⬆️ anti-Spike IgG Ab
⬆️ EBV reactive Abs

🩺

🚨🚨 In a new HCCI study on ESI enrollees with acute COVID between 2020 and 2021, we found that 1 in 4 developed evidence of Long COVID which was accompanied by 5x higher medical spending compared to those who did not develop Long COVID 👇🏻👇🏻

TLDR; Wearing a mask won't alone eradicate COVID but the more you do it, the more spaces you help make accessible to everyone, especially higher risk people. We can't accept excluding people from society indefinitely. Even if you only do it sometimes, wearing a mask is worth it.

Some have given up on masking as they think there's no point if masks can't singlehandedly eradicate a virus (a right wing talking point). What they're missing is that higher risk people can't even get healthcare due to a lack of masking. Masks make essential spaces accessible.