History has a strange way of repeating itself. Towns, City, Counties, States, and the Federal Government rely on taxes. All over the world, more money is going out than coming in. The new normal in the United States is the rising new cases of the CoronaVirus increases buy the tens of thousand’s each week. Death’s related to Covid-19 is rapidly approaching 10,000 a week.
New models by Federal Emergency Management Agency, forecast about 200,000 new cases each day by the end of the month, up from about 25,000 cases a day currently.
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington is now estimating that there will be nearly 135,000 deaths in the United States through the beginning of August — more than double what it forecast on April 17, when it estimated 60,308 deaths by Aug. 4. (The country has already had more than 71,000 deaths.)
The institute wrote that the revisions reflected “rising mobility in most U.S. states as well as the easing of social distancing measures expected in 31 states by May 11, indicating that growing contacts among people will promote transmission of the coronavirus.”
The Big Threat
There are millions of Americans who may have the virus, but do not show symptoms giving the virus to friends, family members and strangers without knowing that they themselves have it.
These people can be divided into three categories:
Asymptomatic, Presymptomatic and Very mildly symptomatic.
Asymptomatic: people who carry the active virus in their body but never develop any symptoms. “No fever, no gastrointestinal issues, no breathing issues, and no coughing.
Presymptomatic: people who have been infected and are incubating the virus but don’t yet show symptoms.After infection, symptoms might not develop for five to six days or even two weeks, according to the Annals of Internal Medicine. People appear to be most infectious right around the time when symptoms start, usually one to three days.
Very mildly symptomatic: people who feel a little unwell from a COVID-19 infection but continue to come in close contact with others.Spreading COVID-19 while having a cough or very mild fever doesn’t fully count as silent transmission. There’s some signal there at least.” People who continue to frequent communal and public places with a light cough or mild fever may unwittingly spread the disease in the early days of symptom onset the time they’re thought to be most infectious. Even when a person’s own symptoms remain mild, others they infect can become very sick.
People See People Do
As each state reopens, will the public continue the practice of social distancing? Will people continue to wear masks and gloves? The picture above is of a beach in Southern California. The picture was taken less than two weeks ago.
One hundred and two years ago the first wave of the pandemic started in the spring and subsided in the summer. The economy suffered as businesses and factories were forced to close due to sickness amongst workers.
The pandemic peaked in the U.S. during the second wave, in the fall of 1918. The second wave was responsible for most of the U.S. deaths attributed to the pandemic. Again, factories closed, this time much longer.
An Associated Press analysis finds that taking the New York metropolitan area’s progress against the coronavirus out of the equation shows the rest of the U.S. moving in the wrong direction, with the infection rate rising even as states move to lift their lockdowns.
The New York Times reports that Dallas County, Texas has been adding about 100 more cases a day than it was a month ago. Dakota County, Nebraska (Population 20,000) has the third most cases per capita in the country. The county had no known cases as recently as April 11 . Dakota City is home to a major Tyson beef-processing plant, where cases have been reported
Temperature checks: Salons should consider use of a touchless infrared thermometer to check the temperature of employees each day and of each client who enters the salon/shop.
Screening questions: Ask each client entering the shop the following questions: Have you had a cough? Have you had a fever? Have you been around anyone exhibiting these symptoms within the last 14 days? Are you living with anyone who is sick or quarantined?
Limit people in shops/salons: Salons/shops should consider seeing clients by appointment only. Salons/shops should consider telephonic or online scheduling. Limit the number of people in the waiting area of the salon/shop.
Maintain social distancing: Spacing between people in the salon should be at least 6 feet at all times. Salons/shops should consider additional spacing between booths, divider shields, and/or alternate work schedules.
Use of Personal Protective Equipment and best practices: Salon/shop employees will be required to wear masks at all times. Salons may want to consider providing masks to clients.
How many of these small businesses will risk alienating a customer? As you can see most the the guidelines apply to the employee. However, protecting the employee from the customer is just an option.
Within 24 of lifting the Shelter in Place order. Georgia experienced over a 1000 new corona virus cases.
Georgia isn’t alone.
With exception of Jet Blue. Airlines aren’t requiring passengers to wear face masks and they are filling every available seat.
Today, a new covid-19 hot spot has emerged in Gainsville Georgia. Gainsville is an hour northeast of Atlanta. The city is called “The Poultry Capital of the World” due to a large number of poultry processing plants in the city. Most of the the areas poultry plants are packed with Spanish-speaking employees.
What the world knows and have known for more than 100 years, is the Shelter in place works. What the world doesn’t know, is how to keep its citizens safe and keep the economic engines moving at the same time.
State by state ease some of the Shelter in place restrictions. Fewer people take precautions.
Should history repeat itself. By fall the number of infection quadruple, overwhelming hospitals, governmental agencies.
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