Coronavirus and Walt Disney World general discussion

[correcaminos]

What if you joined the trial and were given the placebo? Are you told at the end that you were not vaccinated with the real article? And what about those who were variably dosed (doses other than the current dosing schedule and amount)?

A local friend of mine who I found out in November was in the same trial was just unblinded right after I was. They were able to vaccinate him a couple days later. 2nd shot scheduled in a week or so. Mine is not a variable dose to answer that but I imagine those are still being tracked as they were originally dosed. My understanding was it wasn't intentional to do variable. That's why it is not approved here yet. J&J is still ongoing so they likely will decide 1 or 2 doses later.

 

[Heppenheimer]

Not gonna lie i'm slightly jealous of those people haha. Must be nice being fully vaccinated not having to worry about COVID anymore.

As others have noted, until my family is fully vaccinated, nothing much changes for me, except I can go skiing with a little more confidence. My wife is in the lowest adult priority group, and my son is 2, so its going to be quite some time before we can really resume all of activities we formerly enjoyed.

At least we have the outdoors.

 

[Disney Experience]

To comment further, I am happy I am vaccinated. Yes, I worry way less about me. I have my two friends (a married couple) who I went to the wake via zoom on Thursday and another in my friend group who is sick with covid and I'm helping with. My MIL just got both, my FIL and dad one shot only. My spouse and teen who knows, not to mention siblings. There is still a lot I worry for until we can vaccinate most. Nothing to be sad over, but I never did the trial just for me anyway. We have a way to go.


Let's be real too, not all who signed up were chosen. Not all could have taken the time off either as some of those visits were many hours. I know a few who did sign up who were never picked. There is some luck to having been able to and chosen. Though in my case probably less than some lol

It will be nicer when more are vaccinated

My wife was not picked for Pfizer, but then got randomized into Moderna. At certain points the trials also became more selective to assure diversity.

As you know I volunteered primarily to be a small part in getting a covid vaccine developed to help end the pandemic. I also told people about it back then because most people were ignorant that vaccines were even being developed, and I wanted to give them hope and see a light at the end of the tunnel. I also wanted to let them know of the opportunity ( and small risk) of volunteering. If I had not told people back then about the opportunity, I would feel sad now that my silence deprived them of an opportunity that might have benefited both them and society. But I also respected people not wanting to take the risk. Most wanted to wait, some said they would never get vaccinated, a few took me up on the offer to get them the number of the research site ( or when out of state I described how to find a local participant organization).

I was more surprised how those highly educated but not in the medical field were less interested in volunteering and felt it was a foolish risk. I found the average frontline worker whether a hotel worker or car rental agent much more interested in the vaccine and volunteering back then.

 

[Kevin_W]

As you know I volunteered primarily to be a small part in getting a covid vaccine developed to help end the pandemic. I also told people about it back then because most people were ignorant that vaccines were even being developed, and I wanted to give them hope and see a light at the end of the tunnel. I also wanted to let them know of the opportunity ( and small risk) of volunteering. If I had not told people back then about the opportunity, I would feel sad now that my silence deprived them of an opportunity that might have benefited both them and society.

My boss is in one of the trials - I wish he'd told me about it. I would have been interested in signing up, but honestly the thought did not cross my mind.

 

[correcaminos]

My wife was not pocked for Pfizer, but then got randomized into Moderna. At certain points the trials slso became more selective to assure diverdity.

As you know I volunteered primarily to be a small part in getting a covid vaccine developed to help end the pandemic. I also told people about it back then because most people were ignorant that vaccines were even being developed, and I wanted to give them hope and see a light at the end of the tunnel. I also wanted to let them know of the opportunity ( and small risk) of volunteering. If I had not told people back then about the opportunity, I would feel sad now that my silence deprived them of an opportunity that might have benefited both them and society. But I also respected people not wanting to take the risk. Most wanted to wait, some said they would never get vaccinated, a few took me up on the offer to get them the number of the research site ( or when out of state I described how to find a local participant organization).

I was more surprised how those highly educated but not in the medical field were less interested in volunteering and felt it was a foolish risk. I found the average frontline worker whether a hotel worker or car rental agent much more interested in the vaccine and volunteering back then.

Yep, the diversity issue is why some friends likely were glossed over. Also likely why both trials I signed up with in June eventually called. Oxford-AstraZeneca just took almost 6 months to get to me where Pfizer/BioNTech took a few weeks.

I had a lot of friends try to join to no avail. Though now might be easier with some trials, but the benefits that some would see might not be worth it for them. In the trial waiting area I do know some just wanted an early shot at the vaccine though back then we had no clue how long it would take. Others did it to try to help. Some in between. I actually was just coming out of the time when our state was shut down when I talked about it. A few thought I was bonkers. Some were truly afraid of being a guinea pig and I get that. I won't lie that it wasn't a bit scary or anxiety inducing to go. Not that they were anti science, it's a legit fear. Most really could not afford the 3-4 hour long appointments that were only during work hours.

Only a few thought I was bonkers though. Some visibility backing up when hearing about it. Like I was contagious. Moat thanked me though. And quite a few were never called. It was an interesting mix here.

 

[DisneyDebRob]

Good news here.. sorry if it was posted, didn’t see it. This is what they all need to do!


Check out this article from USA TODAY:

Pfizer expects to cut COVID-19 vaccine production time by close to 50% as production ramps up, efficiencies increase

Pfizer expects to cut COVID-19 vaccine production time by close to 50% as production ramps up, efficiencies increase

As the nation revs up its coronavirus vaccination programs, the increase could help relieve bottlenecks caused by vaccine shortages.

www.usatoday.com

 

[GoofGoof]

Good news here.. sorry if it was posted, didn’t see it. This is what they all need to do!


Check out this article from USA TODAY:

Pfizer expects to cut COVID-19 vaccine production time by close to 50% as production ramps up, efficiencies increase

Pfizer expects to cut COVID-19 vaccine production time by close to 50% as production ramps up, efficiencies increase

As the nation revs up its coronavirus vaccination programs, the increase could help relieve bottlenecks caused by vaccine shortages.

www.usatoday.com

Good update. The ramp up is continuing and sounds like at least for Pfizer going as good or better than expected. This is a good reason why the clickbait headlines of “at the current pace we won’t be done until 2022” are so misleading. While that is mathematically true, there was never an intention to continue “at the current pace”. The manufacturers have always had a ramp up built into their production estimates. It’s great news to hear the ramp up is actually working out.

 

[Disney Experience]

A straightforward explanation why more COVID-19 vaccines can't be produced with help from 'dozens' of companies

Manufacturing the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines is hard; these are the bottlenecks.

www.marketwatch.com

The one thing I would disagree with the above article about is whether we had a vaccine back last spring. We did, the dosage , safety, and efficacy were unknowns back then. The ability to manufacture quantity was not there either. If covid was much more deadly than it is while highly contagious the risk of using and manufacturing an unproven vaccine might have been worth it.

But covid is not that beast and the speed in which the safety and efficacy was determined should be celebrated and for this virus short circuiting the process would not have been worth the risk.

Manufacturing was started at risk and that is good. The fact that mrna is now shown as an effective vaccine platform will make future fights against diseases better.

 

[Polkadotdress]

Some of us have been fully vaccinated since September, and yes it is nice. I trried to convince people back then to join the trials. Most said they rather wait, some were interested.

I signed up, but was disqualified because I’m immunosuppressed. And ironically, that same immunosuppression also disqualified me from currently being eligible to get vaccine, as FL is only deeming the +65 crowd “high risk.”

So frustrating. And scary.

 

[Disney Experience]

I signed up, but was disqualified because I’m immunosuppressed. And ironically, that same immunosuppression also disqualified me from currently being eligible to get vaccine, as FL is only deeming the +65 crowd “high risk.”

So frustrating. And scary.

Florida is vaccinating some high risk people as determined by hospitals. A small number of doses were allocated for that.

My wife was rejected for the Pfizer study due to common thyroid issues. That was not an issue for Moderna. Each study did not want to risk confounding the results, so I can understand having exclusions.

It does not make it easier for those excluded.

Often they will expand or create new studies that are more inclusive. I think some studies included HIV and other conditions at a later point after the initial enrollment

 

[Polkadotdress]

Florida is vaccinating some high risk people as determined by hospitals. A small number of doses were allocated for that.

My wife was rejected for the Pfizer study due to common thyroid issues. That was not an issue for Moderna. Each study did not want to risk confounding the results, so I can understand having exclusions.

It does not make it easier for those excluded.

Often they will expand or create new studies that are more inclusive. I think some studies included HIV and other conditions at a later point after the initial enrollment

Yes, there was some vaccine allotment for “high risk”, but it was essentially only for those who had undergone organ transplant. So, no hope for me.

 

[Disney Experience]

Yes, there was some vaccine allotment for “high risk”, but it was essentially only for those who had undergone organ transplant. So, no hope for me.

My sympathies. I did not know the exact details of the constraints on those dose other than it was of limited quantity and that they wanted hospitals to determine if a person qualify vs a pharmacist.

 

[DisneyCane]

Yes, there was some vaccine allotment for “high risk”, but it was essentially only for those who had undergone organ transplant. So, no hope for me.

Governor Desantis' order says that people deemed to be very high risk by hospitals are eligible. It doesn't say anything about only transplant recipients. You should go talk to a Dr. at another hospital if your condition puts you at very high risk.

Getting an appointment is another issue but you should qualify.

 

[DisneyCane]

As others have noted, until my family is fully vaccinated, nothing much changes for me, except I can go skiing with a little more confidence. My wife is in the lowest adult priority group, and my son is 2, so its going to be quite some time before we can really resume all of activities we formerly enjoyed.

At least we have the outdoors.

Why wouldn't you be confident to go skiing even without a vaccine? If you avoid riding in a gondola with someone from another household, I can't think of anything with a lower risk of catching COVID than skiing short of isolating at home.

 

[GoofGoof]

Yes, there was some vaccine allotment for “high risk”, but it was essentially only for those who had undergone organ transplant. So, no hope for me.

Here in PA they have opened up to 65+ and 16-64 with high risk, but that really hasn’t helped many people. That group is so large that there’s no appointments available anywhere and the only people getting shots know someone with a connection to get them in. My county has a mass vaccination site but starting this past week it’s only open for 2nd doses so no new people getting the vaccine. They are sending a small number of doses to private pharmacies but that seems to be ripe with corruption as no appointments can be made but somehow people are still getting vaccinated. Right now out of 800K residents in my county there are about 140K on a waiting list but no doses allocated to those people right now so the list just sits. It’s all pretty frustrating for people but it has to get better soon as more doses become available.

So while it doesn’t help you in FL feel any better about your situation, even in places where you might qualify for the vaccine now it’s not much different since not many people are getting in anyway. I guess a slim shot is better than none, but still really frustrating.

 

[GoofGoof]

Just a small update on vaccine availability. Officials again reiterating that supply should pick up dramatically into March and April. Quote from former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb:

"We've had some days where there are 2 million vaccines that have been delivered," he said. "I think we'll see that more consistently. That will be the run rate. By the end of March, we'll have delivered 250 million vaccines onto the market, if the J&J vaccine gets authorized. In April, we'll probably deliver another 100 million vaccines onto the market."

So backing into the math if Pfizer and Moderna are expected to deliver 220M doses by March 31 then he is assuming 30M doses of JnJ by the end of March or enough doses to fully vaccinate 140M people. If the 100M doses in April are evenly distributed from all 3 manufacturers thats another 66M people fully vaccinated or a running total of 206M. That puts us fully on pace for having enough doses delivered for every American 12 and up who wants one by the end of May with some finishing their second shot in June.

Fauci looking ahead to more vaccines in March, April

The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases says the current supply shortage will be overcome.

www.yahoo.com

 

[Chi84]

My county has a mass vaccination site but starting this past week it’s only open for 2nd doses so no new people getting the vaccine. They are sending a small number of doses to private pharmacies but that seems to be ripe with corruption as no appointments can be made but somehow people are still getting vaccinated.

Describes Illinois exactly.

 

[DCBaker]

Numbers are out - there were 97 new reported deaths, along with 6 Non-Florida Resident deaths.

 

[DCBaker]

Current Florida vaccine report -

 

[Heppenheimer]

Why wouldn't you be confident to go skiing even without a vaccine? If you avoid riding in a gondola with someone from another household, I can't think of anything with a lower risk of catching COVID than skiing short of isolating at home.

By coincidence, the ski season took off much more slowly this year because we had some warm rain storms in December that made it difficult for the resorts to accumulate a good base. So, the small risk of being around others and the poor conditions early on kept me away. Pre-pandemic last year, it was also busier than normal at the resorts, and I didn't know exactly what to expect this year with crowds (answer, no crowds at all, as it turns out).

But since the day after Christmas, temperatures have remained below freezing, and it snows every few days. The conditions are much better AND I'm fully vaccinated.