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Daily Archives: March 14th, 2020

What You Should Actually Be Stocking Up On To Be Prepared For A Coronavirus Outbreak


I don’t see TOILET PAPER-so the hoarders are wrong, stupid or uninformed? MA.

Stefani Sassos, MS, RDN, CSO, CDN

Harper’s BazaarMarch 12, 2020, 4:24 PM CDT

From Harper’s BAZAAR

As the coronavirus continues to spread throughout the world and more people are being advised to self-isolate or to quarantine, the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention has advised people to create a household plan in case there’s an outbreak in their community. Keep in mind that while the virus is a serious health concern, especially for older adults or people who have chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, lung disease, and diabetes, it’s important not to panic (as of March 12, there have been 127,863 confirmed cases of COVID-19 around the globe, with 68,310 recoveries).

What you should do, however, is make some preparations. That means having basic essentials on hand such as food, medicine, and cleaning supplies. But being prepared does not mean stockpiling or hoarding. While the CDC states that people should have sufficient quantities of household items and groceries in the event that they need to stay home “for a period of time,” the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is recommending two weeks’ worth of supplies.

It’s also important to remember that while you may want to keep a supply of bottled water in your house, water supply should not be affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, Dr. Keith Roach, an internist at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, told Men’s Health.

You also probably do not need to stock up on face masks, as health professionals and people who are already sick should be the only ones wearing them, says Dr. Jonathan Fielding, M.D., a professor of health policy and management at the University of California Los Angeles‘ Schools of Public Health and Medicine. Face masks are not thought to provide any additional benefits for healthy people in the general population, according to the Mayo Clinic. Health workers need access to face masks and other medical supplies, and a shortage could pose an even greater health risk to communities

We know this is a lot of information, and that can feel overwhelming, so we’ve complied a list of what to do and buy if you think you may be stuck at home due to the coronavirus.

First, you’ll want to scan your pantry.

Take a quick look at what you already have on hand to make sure you don’t overbuy. You don’t need to go crazy with purchasing canned goods if you already have the recommended two-weeks’ worth. The same goes for cleaning supplies.

Then add frozen fruits and canned vegetables, as well as non-perishables, to your grocery list.

If you have fresh produce in your home, use that up first to minimize any waste. Then, look for canned, boxed, and shelf-stable items to have on hand. When it comes to canned goods, it’s always preferable to look for low-sodium versions, and cans that say they don’t have BPA lining, if you can find them. Frozen foods are excellent to have on hand, as well.

Below are items to use as a starting point for your shopping, but keep in mind you should be buying foods you would normally eat. And of course, pick up food and drinks you just plain enjoy, such as coffee, tea, chocolate, and chips. Also, if you have a baby or toddler in the house, you’re going to want to add the essentials they need to your list as well.

Fruit

  • Applesauce and other fruit purees
  • Canned fruit in water
  • Frozen fruit
  • Dried fruit

Vegetables

  • Canned vegetables (i.e., green beans, carrots, peas, diced tomatoes, pumpkin puree), low-sodium if possible
  • Canned vegetable-based soups and chilis, low-sodium if possible
  • Frozen vegetables (i.e, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus)
  • Jarred tomato sauce

Protein

  • Tuna or salmon, canned or in a pouch
  • Chicken or turkey, canned or in a pouch
  • Frozen fish, such as shrimp or individually portioned pieces of salmon
  • Shelf-stable silken tofu
  • Lentils, canned or vacuum-sealed
  • Eggs and egg beaters
  • Nut/seed butter
  • Nuts and seeds
  • Trail mix
  • Dry or canned beans

Grains

  • Whole wheat pasta or chickpea pasta
  • Brown rice
  • Ancient grains (i.e., quinoa, farro)
  • Oats
  • Instant oatmeal packets/cups
  • Whole wheat or seed crackers
  • Whole wheat or sprouted bread (can keep in freezer and toast when ready to eat)

Dairy

  • Shelf-stable boxes of milk (shelf-stable varieties are available for regular and non-dairy milks)
  • Powdered milk

Healthy Fats

  • Olive oil
  • Avocado oil
  • Flax seeds
  • Chia seeds

Beverages

  • Water (if you’re unable to or prefer not to drink tap)
  • Low-sugar electrolyte drinks
  • Pre-made protein-shakes or meal-replacement shakes (in case you get sick and lose your appetite)
  • Canned or boxed low-sodium broth

Take note of what toiletries and cleaning supplies you need.

Basic toiletries include toothpaste, floss, face wash, moisturizer, shampoo, conditioner, razors, shaving cream, and hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Extra laundry detergent and hand soap are also important to have at home. As for household disinfectants, the CDC recommends diluted household bleach solutions, alcohol solutions with at least 70% alcohol, and most common EPA-registered household disinfectants.

It also says: “Diluted household bleach solutions can be used if appropriate for the surface. Follow manufacturer’s instructions for application and proper ventilation. Check to ensure the product is not past its expiration date. Never mix household bleach with ammonia or any other cleanser. Unexpired household bleach will be effective against coronaviruses when properly diluted.”

Prepare a bleach solution by mixing:

  • 5 tablespoons (1/3 of a cup) bleach per gallon of water or 4 teaspoons bleach per quart of water

Be sure to check your medicine cabinet.

For those on prescription medications, consider calling ahead for an extra month or two of medicine just in case. The American Red Cross recommends having at least a 30-day supply of any prescription medications for those in your home. (CVS is now delivering prescribed medications to customers for free.) They also advise at least a one month’s supply of over-the-counter medicines such as pain relievers, stomach remedies, cough and cold medicines, and throat lozenges. A daily multivitamin is also a good idea to stock up on so you’re able to get those essential vitamins and minerals if your food choices are limited.

And don’t forget about your pets.

Pick up extra animal supplies, including medications and food. Wee-wee absorbent pads can come in handy as well if you can’t get out to walk your dog. Remember: Having a pet is like having another human being inside the house — they require just as much care and supplies as any of us do, if not more.

Other helpful resources regarding coronavirus

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Despite Trump’s claims, Google isn’t building the coronavirus screening site — and it’s not ready


Forked tongue speaks again about subject he knows nothing about based on his lack of comprehension and refusal to be corrected on. MA

Frederic Lardinois@fredericl / 6:06 pm CDT • March 13, 2020

In a press conference at the White House, President Trump today announced that 1,700 Google engineers were working on a coronavirus screening site. That site was supposedly the first step in a new screening process that would lead people from figuring out if their symptoms warranted more testing to the location of new “drive through” testing stations. But Trump was wrong. This screening site isn’t being developed by Google . Instead, it’s being built by Verily, Alphabet’s life science division — and it’s not ready to launch yet either.

While both share the same parent company in Alphabet,  these are two very different companies. In addition, as Verily  noted in a statement it provided almost three hours after Trump made the announcement, this site isn’t quite ready yet.

“Verily is developing a tool to help triage individuals for COVID-19 testing. We are in the early stages of development, and planning to roll testing out in the Bay Area, with the hope of expanding more broadly over time,” the company said in its statement. “We appreciate the support of government officials and industry partners and thank the Google engineers who have volunteered to be part of this effort.”

Verily specifically mentions that the site is in its “early stages.” Debbie Birx, the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator, as well as Trump, made no mention of the fact that this site wasn’t ready yet or that it would only roll out in the Bay Area at first.

Instead, anybody watching the press conference surely came away with the impression that the site was essentially ready, especially given its pivotal role in the overall screening process.

“I want to thank Google. Google is helping to develop a website,” Trump said. “It’s gonna be very quickly done — unlike websites of the past — to determine whether a test is warranted and to facilitate testing at a nearby convenient location. We have many, many locations behind us, by the way. We cover this country and large parts of the world, by the way. We’re not gonna be talking about the world right now, but we cover very, very strongly our country. Stores in virtually every location. Google has 1,700 engineers working on this right now. They have made tremendous progress.”

Similarly, when Birx presented the new screening approach, she specifically noted that the process will start with the screening website. Given some of Trump’s earlier comments in the press conference, a number of pundits believed that the site would be ready by Sunday night.

Here is Verily’s statement about its plans for its site, according to a spokesperson: “What I can share at this time is that our aspiration is for the triage tool to be used much more broadly. Initially, we’re linking it with several sites in the Bay Area to test and iterate, and collaborating closely with organizations like Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp who are also working on additional approaches to making testing more accessible and expedient in other areas.”

In a different statement to The Verge, Verily said the tool was originally meant for healthcare workers and that the presidential announcement changed its course to becoming a public site. Whatever the original intent of the project, it seems quite clear that Verily was taken somewhat aback by the announcement.

Now, it’s not uncommon for anybody outside of the tech world to use Alphabet and Google interchangeably. Still, Verily is not Google and the Bay Area is not the whole country. Those are important facts

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TOTUS’ Personal Politics


The Administrations boot lickers are putting us all at risk with their unfaltering faith in an inept megalomaniac. MA

For the Love of God, Why Is the Trump Administration Blocking Medicaid Access to Fight Coronavirus?

Luke Darby

GQMarch 13, 2020, 11:46 AM CDT

Early Friday morning, Donald Trump took to Twitter to let the world know exactly who was responsible for the U.S.’s disastrous response to the on-going coronavirus outbreak—the Centers for Disease Control and former president Barack Obama. He claimed that the CDC knew it “would always be inadequate and slow for a large scale pandemic” and that Obama “made changes that only complicated things further.” This is after, in 2018, his administration dismantled the global health security team left in place by the Obama administration to confront pandemics like this, and cut 80 percent of the CDC’s efforts to prevent global outbreaks.

But Trump claims that under his leadership, the CDC is now in shipshape: “Their response to H1N1 Swine Flu was a full scale disaster, with thousands dying, and nothing meaningful done to fix the testing problem, until now. The changes have been made and testing will soon happen on a very large scale basis. All Red Tape has been cut, ready to go!”

Like many of Trump’s statements about how his administration is handling the COVID-19 outbreak, this isn’t accurate. The Department of Health and Human Services, for example, has been imposing extremely strict guidelines for who can and can’t access the limited coronavirus tests available, essentially guaranteeing that people only get tested once they’ve already developed symptoms and causing delays that likely resulted in hundreds more people getting infected.

It’s particularly ironic that Trump brings up the H1N1 outbreak of 2009 though, which the Obama administration declared a national emergency. Commonly called swine flu, it was a kind of influenza that resulted in 12,000 deaths in the U.S. alone. As states struggled to deal with the spread of the disease, the federal government loosened restrictions so that state governments could use Medicaid funds to help with testing. Right now, the Trump administration is stonewalling that same process for the coronavirus, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Medicaid is the federal and state program that helps poor people get health care, and it’s a massive safety net with tough restrictions for how it can be used. The Trump administration hasn’t taken any steps to help states access the funds for the coronavirus outbreak, despite the fact that it’s been made available in the past for other disasters, like after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina, and the H1N1 outbreak. Per the Times:

One reason federal health officials have not acted appears to be President Trump’s reluctance to declare a national emergency. That’s a key step that would clear the way for states to get Medicaid waivers to more nimbly tackle coronavirus, but it would conflict with Trump’s repeated efforts to downplay the seriousness of the epidemic. Another element may be ideological: The administration official who oversees Medicaid, Seema Verma, head of the government’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, has been a champion of efforts by conservative states to trim the number of people enrolled in Medicaid.

Seema Verma was appointed to head the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) after a stint working as a consultant for vice president Mike Pence back when he was governor of Indiana. In Pence’s Indiana, she helped push a plan that expanded access to Medicaid for childless adults, but only under a waiver that allowed the state to start charging premiums. Verma has spent years helping conservatives find ways to undermine public health programs like Medicaid, as Mother Jones exhaustively detailed last year. Her work at CMS so far has consisted largely of finding ways to let states avoid using Medicaid money, like inventing state-imposed spending caps, which constrict the flow of funds without the administration explicitly cutting the budget for Medicaid. Under her leadership, CMS has approved multiple requests by Republican-led states to start imposing work requirements for Medicaid, and in Arkansas alone that’s expected to strip health care from 30,700 to 48,300 people.

Speaking to Fox News on Thursday night, Verma repeatedly refused to answer whether or not America would be facing a shortage of ventilators and intensive care units as the current outbreak escalates. Health professionals coordinating the outbreak response in Italy recently published a letter saying that hospitals there were overwhelmed due to “a very high number of ICU admissions, almost entirely due to severe hypoxic respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation.” Each time Verma was explicitly asked about equipment shortages, she responded instead by praising Trump.  

According to the Times, state leaders are likely unwilling to criticize Trump’s coronavirus response out of fear that he’ll lash out at them personally or even deny their state funds in the future. In February, Washington state governor Jay Inslee, a Democrat, tweeted, “I just received a call from @VP Mike Pence, thanking Washington state for our efforts to combat the coronavirus. I told him our work would be more successful if the Trump administration stuck to the science and told the truth.” Speaking to reporters later at the CDC in Atlanta, Trump said, “I told [Mike Pence] not to be complimentary of that governor because that governor is a snake. So Mike may be happy with him but I’m not, OK?”

 

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