I’ve heard it said that it’s mainly evangelical Christians who refuse to get the vaccine

[Lamb]

If masks worked so well and going maskless was a true threat, then the states that fully opened and dropped their mask mandates months ago should have been on the path to total doom. And yet, some of those maskless states were actually doing better than the states that had the most covid restrictions put on their people. So what does the science say?

 

[hedrick]

If masks worked so well and going maskless was a true threat, then the states that fully opened and dropped their mask mandates months ago should have been on the path to total doom. And yet, some of those maskless states were actually doing better than the states that had the most covid restrictions put on their people. So what does the science say?

The problem is that Republican states tend to be in the south. We know that covid decreased during the summer. They also tend to have lower population densities. There have been attempts to do comparisons with proper matching. See the paper I cited above.

See also States with Republican governors had highest Covid incidence and death rates, study finds, and The Changing Geography of COVID-19 in the U.S. but I really question comparisons between sets of states with very different characteristics. (Note that Covid started in Democratic areas, largely I think because of international travel patterns. But over time the pattern reversed.) It's not all state policy differences. There are also differences in individual behavior. Partisan differences in physical distancing are linked to health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

[hedrick]

What worries me about the future is that vaccination rates may not be high enough to prevent a resurgence in the Fall.

 

[Lamb]

The problem is that Republican states tend to be in the south. We know that covid decreased during the summer. They also tend to have lower population densities. There have been attempts to do comparisons with proper matching. See the paper I cited above.

See also States with Republican governors had highest Covid incidence and death rates, study finds, and The Changing Geography of COVID-19 in the U.S. but I really question comparisons between sets of states with very different characteristics. (Note that Covid started in Democratic areas, largely I think because of international travel patterns. But over time the pattern reversed.) It's not all state policy differences. There are also differences in individual behavior. Partisan differences in physical distancing are linked to health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you do the data per million people, the Republican states did better than the Democratic states:

VICTOR JOECKS: Pick a coronavirus metric. Red states did better than blue states.

From coronavirus deaths to unemployment rate to vaccination distribution, states led by Republican governors have outperformed states run by Democrats.

www.reviewjournal.com

United States COVID - Coronavirus Statistics - Worldometer

United States Coronavirus update with statistics and graphs: total and new cases, deaths per day, mortality and recovery rates, current active cases, recoveries, trends and timeline.

www.worldometers.info

 

[Forgiven1]

The problem is that Republican states tend to be in the south. We know that covid decreased during the summer. They also tend to have lower population densities. There have been attempts to do comparisons with proper matching. See the paper I cited above.

See also States with Republican governors had highest Covid incidence and death rates, study finds, and The Changing Geography of COVID-19 in the U.S. but I really question comparisons between sets of states with very different characteristics. (Note that Covid started in Democratic areas, largely I think because of international travel patterns. But over time the pattern reversed.) It's not all state policy differences. There are also differences in individual behavior. Partisan differences in physical distancing are linked to health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

I live in south Texas and we had very hight rates last summer. I also know of states with Republican Governors in the north that did pretty much the same as us. Yet, our mask mandate was dropped a couple of months ago and the predicted surge did not happen.

I think more people are aware of COVID and what to do. Also, just because we didn't have a state mask mandate, businesses were allowed to set up their own protocols and many still required masks. Also, if a person wanted to wear a mask wherever, it was their choice to do so. We have always been allowed to go place and be outside, though during the big surge last year, there were fewer places to go. When we did start to open up, there was a stepping back a bit on the opening during that surge last summer. Now, our numbers are rather low and are pretty stable. Now we have many people vaccinated which also lowers the risk.

 

[hedrick]

I live in south Texas and we had very hight rates last summer. I also know of states with Republican Governors in the north that did pretty much the same as us. Yet, our mask mandate was dropped a couple of months ago and the predicted surge did not happen.

I think it was probably OK for Texas to drop restrictions when it did. Its rate was already low enough, probably because it's a warm state. The concern was primarily variants. It looks like they haven't had as serious an effect as they might have. Texas was lucky.

NJ plans to end the emergency, which will mean restrictions, in June. But we're colder and denser, so we're more at risk.

 

[Andrew]

I live in south Texas and we had very hight rates last summer. I also know of states with Republican Governors in the north that did pretty much the same as us. Yet, our mask mandate was dropped a couple of months ago and the predicted surge did not happen.

I think more people are aware of COVID and what to do. Also, just because we didn't have a state mask mandate, businesses were allowed to set up their own protocols and many still required masks. Also, if a person wanted to wear a mask wherever, it was their choice to do so. We have always been allowed to go place and be outside, though during the big surge last year, there were fewer places to go. When we did start to open up, there was a stepping back a bit on the opening during that surge last summer. Now, our numbers are rather low and are pretty stable. Now we have many people vaccinated which also lowers the risk.

Also the people here have developed a general appropriation of due vigilance when considering the well being of others during the pandemic, not forced against their will nor behaving apathetically with this privilege.
I mean I still have my mask handy when entering into a crowded store, Buc-cees especially, even Walmart when around the elderly who are wearing masks.

 

[hedrick]

If you do the data per million people, the Republican states did better than the Democratic states:

VICTOR JOECKS: Pick a coronavirus metric. Red states did better than blue states.

From coronavirus deaths to unemployment rate to vaccination distribution, states led by Republican governors have outperformed states run by Democrats.

www.reviewjournal.com

United States COVID - Coronavirus Statistics - Worldometer

United States Coronavirus update with statistics and graphs: total and new cases, deaths per day, mortality and recovery rates, current active cases, recoveries, trends and timeline.

www.worldometers.info

If you do the data per million people, the Republican states did better than the Democratic states:

VICTOR JOECKS: Pick a coronavirus metric. Red states did better than blue states.

From coronavirus deaths to unemployment rate to vaccination distribution, states led by Republican governors have outperformed states run by Democrats.

www.reviewjournal.com

United States COVID - Coronavirus Statistics - Worldometer

United States Coronavirus update with statistics and graphs: total and new cases, deaths per day, mortality and recovery rates, current active cases, recoveries, trends and timeline.

www.worldometers.info

There's no question that in the Spring of 2020, the coasts were badly hit. It's pretty clear that was where the virus entered. Take a look at The Changing Geography of COVID-19 in the U.S. for the fall.

 

[tango]

If masks worked so well and going maskless was a true threat, then the states that fully opened and dropped their mask mandates months ago should have been on the path to total doom. And yet, some of those maskless states were actually doing better than the states that had the most covid restrictions put on their people. So what does the science say?

One of the many issues with trying to unravel the data was that a lot of the time we've had some kind of correlation but an inablity to control out other factors. So when the mask mandates were introduced as the weather was warming up it became difficult to tell whether reductions in transmissibility were due to the mask mandate or more people being outside and therefore less vulnerable to the virus, or some combination of the two.

 

[tango]

The problem is that Republican states tend to be in the south. We know that covid decreased during the summer. They also tend to have lower population densities. There have been attempts to do comparisons with proper matching. See the paper I cited above.

See also States with Republican governors had highest Covid incidence and death rates, study finds, and The Changing Geography of COVID-19 in the U.S. but I really question comparisons between sets of states with very different characteristics. (Note that Covid started in Democratic areas, largely I think because of international travel patterns. But over time the pattern reversed.) It's not all state policy differences. There are also differences in individual behavior. Partisan differences in physical distancing are linked to health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But then California is also pretty far south, no?

Given the way urban areas tend to lean left politically while rural areas tend to lean right it's hardly surprising that left-leaning areas (i.e. those with higher population densities) suffer greater infection rates. But when you're looking across entire states, when multiple states have very large cities in them, the population becomes at least somewhat more useful.

 

[mailmandan]

From Newsmax - CDC Looking Into Reports of Heart Inflammation After Vaccination | Newsmax.com

CDC Looking Into Reports of Heart Inflammation After Vaccination

 

[Nic]

Do you think there’s a reason for that?

Maybe because we trust in God’s protection? Maybe because we believe the virus is here to kill the wicked and not the righteous?

I've heard a Roman Catholic used some term defined as 'cooperating with evil' due to the use of fetal stem cells in testing and or production of the vaccines. The RC church permits these vaccinations because there are no other available alternatives as of yet. There are some coming down the road I was also told by this individual yet this wasn't the sole reason for his objecting to the vaccine, he also said it wasn't a true vaccine and the political football use wasn't exactly appealing either.

Nic

 

[hedrick]

From Newsmax - CDC Looking Into Reports of Heart Inflammation After Vaccination | Newsmax.com

CDC Looking Into Reports of Heart Inflammation After Vaccination

The problem is that it's not that uncommon without vaccination, so it's hard to know just how many would happen anyway. It's the third leading cause of death in young adults. It's a side effect of viruses, including Covid. But it's certainly worth investigating carefully.

I was surprised when I started reading about it. I hadn't realized it was so common. Wikipedia says it's unknown how common it is, but there are 22 in 100,000 reported annually, and in routine autopsies, 1 - 9% have it. 22 in 100,000 is about the rate of the reports in this case, which is why it's hard to know how much, if any, comes from the vaccine.