4,970.

30 shy of 5,000.

An all-time high, along with the 7-day rolling average of 3,310.

Good thing our gov is spending his time promoting tourism.

An all-time high, along with the 7-day rolling average of 3,310.

Good thing our gov is spending his time promoting tourism.

Come to Oklahoma! Our small businesses and restaurants need more Covid.

We were remembering the beginning of this thing today. In mid-March when they started posting numbers we decided that when the total cases hit 1000 we were taking it seriously and staying home. Wow what a different world we live in now.

Oklahoma ranked 9th riskiest state; and this was before the last couple of record-setting days:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/suzannerowankelleher/2020/12/18/covid-19-alert-the-10-riskiest-states-to-visit-over-christmas-ranked/?sh=29cc736b3470


Oklahoma is currently racking up an average of 80.5 new daily Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people. The number of new daily cases is 222% higher than the “tipping point” threshold.

Oklahoma ranked 9th riskiest state; and this was before the last couple of record-setting days:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/suzannerowankelleher/2020/12/18/covid-19-alert-the-10-riskiest-states-to-visit-over-christmas-ranked/?sh=29cc736b3470

Sh*tt should be happy, top 10!

This is tragic. It's truly sad she had the misfortune of being employed by Moore Public Schools, where teachers are being treated like sacrificial lambs, and where the city refuses to mandate masks, and where the citizens are Covidiots.

I have a good friend who dreaded going back to work in Moore as a teacher. Unfortunately, she got COVID from one of her students (who could have seen this happening) and had at least two comorbidities. Fortunately, she survived it but it shows what an idiocracy Moore is.

Moore and Broken Arrow have a lot in common. Both are havens for middle class citizens with lower levels of educational attainment.

Moore and Broken Arrow have a lot in common. Both are havens for middle class citizens with lower levels of educational attainment.

Seriously? Compared to what/whom? You may be right but can you show us some proof?

I watched the OU game (outside, distanced, and masked) with friends and two of them already had been vaccinated. What an incredible accomplishment.

An all-time high, along with the 7-day rolling average of 3,310.

Good thing our gov is spending his time promoting tourism.

Hey, were getting tourism adds on TV in CO from Texas, Wyoming and South Dakota right now. OK isn't the only place with a tourism budget.

Impact of mask mandates: COVID-19 case rate growth lower in cities that acted earliest https://tulsaworld.com/news/local/impact-of-mask-mandates-covid-19-case-rate-growth-lower-in-cities-that-acted-earliest/article_b53278fc-407f-11eb-844d-9377a8565135.html#tracking-source=home-top-story

Impact of mask mandates: COVID-19 case rate growth lower in cities that acted earliest https://tulsaworld.com/news/local/impact-of-mask-mandates-covid-19-case-rate-growth-lower-in-cities-that-acted-earliest/article_b53278fc-407f-11eb-844d-9377a8565135.html#tracking-source=home-top-story

iT's aMazInG whEn YoU dO StUfF to sToP sTuFf tHaT it sTopS sTuFf.

2,596 new cases today; 7-day rolling average 3,381, an all-time high.

6 additional deaths; 7-day rolling average 20.9.


Updated hospitalization and ICU numbers not out until tonight.

Just got notification that I'm positive for antibodies again. I'll be a regular at OBI donating plasma for awhile.

2,186 new cases today (reminder that Mon & Tue are always the lowest days); 7-day rolling average 3,376.

22 additional deaths; 7-day rolling average 22.0.

1,759 (+55) hospitalized, which is a new record even though they are no longer counting presumed cases.

Same for ICU at 481 (+26).

Really would like for vaccines to become available for everybody ASAP. Saw they were giving them to nursing home residents & staff now. Not really sure what the procedure is for how they announce to people on when they will be able to get them.

Really would like for vaccines to become available for everybody ASAP. Saw they were giving them to nursing home residents & staff now. Not really sure what the procedure is for how they announce to people on when they will be able to get them.


https://covid19vaccineallocation.org/

Really would like for vaccines to become available for everybody ASAP. Saw they were giving them to nursing home residents & staff now. Not really sure what the procedure is for how they announce to people on when they will be able to get them.

This is Oklahoma's plan. https://oklahoma.gov/content/dam/ok/en/covid19/documents/vaccine/COVID-19%20Vaccine%20Priority%20Population%20Framework%2 0for%20Oklahoma%20-%2012-10-20.pdf

Most likely (unless you are a teacher (or staff), over 65, government or an essential worker you are looking at late spring early summer.

This is Oklahoma's plan. https://oklahoma.gov/content/dam/ok/en/covid19/documents/vaccine/COVID-19%20Vaccine%20Priority%20Population%20Framework%2 0for%20Oklahoma%20-%2012-10-20.pdf

Most likely (unless you are a teacher (or staff), over 65, government or an essential worker you are looking at late spring early summer.
I'm maintaining hope things will move and/or get better faster than that. 1) The vaccine phase we're in was "guaranteed" by many to not happen until late spring 2021 at the earliest. And 2) The more people that get vaccinated, even if it's not me, should lessen the possibility of me getting the virus (again).

Zeynep Tufekci partnered with an epidemiologist to pen this article that states should look into single, not double, doses initially to vaccinate more people more quickly (read the article before explaining why you don't think it'll work): Can We Do Twice as Many Vaccinations as We Thought? (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/18/opinion/coronavirus-vaccine-doses.html)

Just got notification that I'm positive for antibodies again. I'll be a regular at OBI donating plasma for awhile.

This is interesting. So it seems you did have a second bout. Did you test positive or just quarantine?

This is Oklahoma's plan. https://oklahoma.gov/content/dam/ok/en/covid19/documents/vaccine/COVID-19%20Vaccine%20Priority%20Population%20Framework%2 0for%20Oklahoma%20-%2012-10-20.pdf

Most likely (unless you are a teacher (or staff), over 65, government or an essential worker you are looking at late spring early summer.

No. They have already announced that phase 2, which is supposed to start in January, will also include people under the age of 65 who have comorbidities. The Moderna vaccine changes things a bit, because it doesn't require the ultra-cold storage the Pfizer one does, so I could see the timeline moving up a month or two from your estimate.

Another bonus of the Moderna vaccine is that it only requires one shot. Oklahoma is due for its first shipments of that vaccine next week.

No. They have already announced that phase 2, which is supposed to start in January, will also include people under the age of 65 who have comorbidities. The Moderna vaccine changes things a bit, because it doesn't require the ultra-cold storage the Pfizer one does, so I could see the timeline moving up a month or two from your estimate.

Another bonus of the Moderna vaccine is that it only requires one shot. Oklahoma is due for its first shipments of that vaccine next week.
According to the CDC website, Moderna requires a second dose 28 days after the first.

Edit - catch posted it.

Interesting conversations going on over at the Covid19 science subreddit. There are 2 things dominating right now. 1. There is growing concern that the pfizer vaccine is using a specific type of lipid nanobodies that are causing the allergic reactions. There hasn’t been many reactions yet, but, by percentages, you’re 16x’s more likely to have a reaction to this vaccine than the flu vaccine. Also, they worried that you may see more allergic reactions on the second dose than the first. It will be interesting to see how that works out. Kinda glad I’m not getting these first shots at the moment. Let’s give them time to work out the kinks.

The other subject dominating is the new variant sweeping through Europe and South Africa right now. Apparently, this new variant has a mutation on the spike protein in the exact spot these vaccines are designed to target. The thought right now is that the vaccine should still help, but it is not known for sure how much efficacy is reduced, if at all. This new variant is also moving through the population much faster than previous versions of this virus.

According to the CDC website, Moderna requires a second dose 28 days after the first.

It definitely requires a second dose. Soonerguru must be confusing it with the J&J vaccine, which is still in clinical trials.

Interesting conversations going on over at the Covid19 science subreddit. There are 2 things dominating right now. 1. There is growing concern that the pfizer vaccine is using a specific type of lipid nanobodies that are causing the allergic reactions. There hasn’t been many reactions yet, but, by percentages, you’re 16x’s more likely to have a reaction to this vaccine than the flu vaccine. Also, they worried that you may see more allergic reactions on the second dose than the first. It will be interesting to see how that works out. Kinda glad I’m not getting these first shots at the moment. Let’s give them time to work out the kinks.

The other subject dominating is the new variant sweeping through Europe and South Africa right now. Apparently, this new variant has a mutation on the spike protein in the exact spot these vaccines are designed to target. The thought right now is that the vaccine should still help, but it is not known for sure how much efficacy is reduced, if at all. This new variant is also moving through the population much faster than previous versions of this virus. Man, what has China released onto this world?...

1. Important to point out that the allergic reactions are extremely low and they’re not even sure the vaccine is causing them.

2. From what I’ve seen, epidemiologists have no concerns with the vaccines working on different COVID strains. There’s already been several strains. It’s pretty typical for viruses like this.




It definitely requires a second dose. Soonerguru must be confusing it with the J&J vaccine, which is still in clinical trials.

What to do you mean by “require”? See the article I posted above.

This is interesting. So it seems you did have a second bout. Did you test positive or just quarantine?

Just quarantined. I knew what it felt like before and was 99% sure what it was.

i moved several off topic posts to the politics version of this thread. please keep politics out of this thread... thanks!

1. Important to point out that the allergic reactions are extremely low and they’re not even sure the vaccine is causing them.

2. From what I’ve seen, epidemiologists have no concerns with the vaccines working on different COVID strains. There’s already been several strains. It’s pretty typical for viruses like this.





What to do you mean by “require”? See the article I posted above.

By “require,” I mean that the available evidence shows the second dose is required to achieve the long term immunity the clinical trials were designed to study and the vaccine was intended to provide. The article you posted correctly acknowledges that the first-dose-first strategy may only be effective for short term immunity (e.g., 6-7 months). It’s an interesting strategy proposal.

3,656 new cases today; 7-day rolling average 3,435 an all-time high.

43 additional deaths reported, a single-day record. 7-day rolling average 22.1.

Hospitalizations are 1,728 (-31).

ICU is 449 (-32).

3,656 new cases today; 7-day rolling average 3,435 an all-time high.

43 additional deaths reported, a single-day record. 7-day rolling average 22.1.

Hospitalizations are 1,728 (-31).

ICU is 449 (-32).

43 deaths in a day & still an overwhelming opinion of this all being faked and manipulated by the media.

Our state has no hope.

43 deaths in a day & still an overwhelming opinion of this all being faked and manipulated by the media.

Our state has no hope.True. I just breezed through the comments on the OKC GOV FB page about Holt's statements today. Breeze is all I could stand because there are just so many selfish, uncaring people out there.

Sobering thread from Mayor Holt:

https://twitter.com/davidfholt/status/1341841895111217158

The kicker:


And so my major takeaway today is this. I speak to you two days before Christmas, amidst record highs in cases, hospitalizations and deaths. ... And I say to you, with everything I have, from the bottom of my heart, as your mayor, as someone who loves this city deeply, as someone who loves you, because you are my brother and you are my sister. Please, do not bring death or illness upon yourself and those you love. ... Take precautions this week. Don’t be in extended, close, indoor contact with people outside your household without distance and without a mask. Listen, really listen, to these stories you have heard. They are real. They have occurred across our community.

Sobering thread from Mayor Holt:

https://twitter.com/davidfholt/status/1341841895111217158

The kicker:That speech is what I was referring to a couple posts ago that prompted pages of "he's fear mongering, he's a communist, etc." comments on FB that literally made me want to puke. My faith in my fellow man is fading quickly. I believe he's absolutely sincere. And correct.

That speech is what I was referring to a couple posts ago that prompted pages of "he's fear mongering, he's a communist, etc." comments on FB that literally made me want to puke. My faith in my fellow man is fading quickly. I believe he's absolutely sincere. And correct.

Exactly how I feel. I’ve learned a lot about some of my coworkers, friends, and family the last 10 months. And when I say some I don’t mean all, but more than I ever expected. It comes down to simply not caring about anyone, including themselves. I just don’t get it.

It's *all* political and due to blindly following leaders who are telling them with the aid of aligned media: 1) it's all fake or at least wildly exaggerated; 2) masks and restrictions don't work; and 3) this is about personal freedom and constitutional rights.

It's just that simple and this tone was set from the outset.

This country has faced all types of crises and have rallied together to move forward. Look at the universal response to 9/11 and how no one uttered a peep when there were all types of new travel restrictions and safety measures. Many, many other examples. This is all down to leadership and nothing else.

I have no doubt that history will look back at the people involved in this and judge them very, very harshly along with those who openly supported them.

That speech is what I was referring to a couple posts ago that prompted pages of "he's fear mongering, he's a communist, etc." comments on FB that literally made me want to puke. My faith in my fellow man is fading quickly. I believe he's absolutely sincere. And correct.

Yeah he has been consistent and clear on messaging from the get-go. I absolutely hear you about the decline in faith in others, I've seen myself grow more cynical over the last few months.

Though in a glimmer of good news, more and more Oklahomans are expressing a desire to take the vaccine

https://twitter.com/KOCODillon/status/1341848920897548288

If you think about it, the vaccine decision is completely opposite that of wearing a mask...

With the vaccine, it's all about protecting yourself. If you don't take it, you are almost inviting infection.

Masks are the other extreme: it's all about protecting others.

Since so many people are saying they won't take the inoculation, it goes to show how people blindly follow silly ideas even when it works against them in a legitimately dangerous way.

HHS report out has Oklahoma with a 21.6% positivity rate in testing over the last week. That is the highest in the nation.

It definitely requires a second dose. Soonerguru must be confusing it with the J&J vaccine, which is still in clinical trials.

Sorry about the slip. My physician didn't correct me when I said the same thing to him this week. I guess the biggest advantage with Moderna's is it doesn't require the ridiculously low subzero temperatures for storage.

3,277 new cases today; 7-day rolling average a record 3,478.

45 more deaths, another record as is the 7-day rolling average of 26.3.

Hospitalizations are 1,836 (+108); you guessed it, another record.

ICU is 462 (+13); down slightly from the record of 481 2 days ago.


PLEASE be careful over the holiday!! It won't be much longer until we can all get vaccinated and you don't want to get sick or get your loved ones sick when we are so close to getting this under control.

pete, does the state publish vaccination distribution numbers? Would be interesting to have that data as well as it ramps up.

Any reason why the OK Health Dept. has not updated their vaccines administered numbers since 12/18? News9 said Oklahoma might be in Phase 2 (which would include teachers and over 65) next week. I would love to know how many vaccine doses have been given.

Yeah those numbers are all the more meaningful now that we’re in a race against time with the more communicable British strain

More details on the mutated strain (that's probably already here in the USA, and might or might not be more communicable - no agreement on that part yet):

The U.K. Coronavirus Mutation Is Worrying but Not Terrifying (https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-u-k-coronavirus-mutation-is-worrying-but-not-terrifying/)

More details on the mutated strain (that's probably already here in the USA, and might or might not be more communicable - no agreement on that part yet):

The U.K. Coronavirus Mutation Is Worrying but Not Terrifying (https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-u-k-coronavirus-mutation-is-worrying-but-not-terrifying/)

There is no evidence (yet) that this is here so be careful with statements like that.

I’m hoping that we’re just seeing a “founder effect” with this new variant. Either that, or perhaps a super spreader event. Regardless, it’s pretty wild to see 23 (?) mutations all at the same time.

Also, remember that there is a huge difference between 70% more transmissible and 70x’s more transmissible. Keep in mind too that the current variant spreading in the US came around earlier this year. It was thought to be significantly more transmissible but turned out not all that different than the original variant.

Regardless, it’s pretty wild to see 23 (?) mutations all at the same time.

It's really not that wild. With every infection it has a chance to mutate. We're almost to 80 million infections world wide. It would be weird to not see significant mutations at this point. We've actually been lucky, as far as that goes.

It's really not that wild. With every infection it has a chance to mutate. We're almost to 80 million infections world wide. It would be weird to not see significant mutations at this point. We've actually been lucky, as far as that goes.

I think you misunderstood. 23 mutations over the year or a couple of years is no big deal. This variant had that many mutations all at once (at least, that is what they’re thinking). That means this virus was in a person for a long enough time to mutate that much and then spread from there....if the mutations popped up overnight. Given long-haul covid patients along with immunosuppressed people out there, this seems reasonable albeit scary.

It seems reasonable to me. Add it to the list of reasons why just letting things rip is very dumb, especially now that we're within shouting distance of mass vaccinations.

I think you misunderstood. 23 mutations over the year or a couple of years is no big deal. This variant had that many mutations all at once (at least, that is what they’re thinking). That means this virus was in a person for a long enough time to mutate that much and then spread from there....if the mutations popped up overnight. Given long-haul covid patients along with immunosuppressed people out there, this seems reasonable albeit scary.

I actually analyze and determine the genome of the virus for a living. That's a bit off the mark. The virus responsible for COVID-19 accumulates about ~23.6 mutations a year (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41421-020-00226-1). So walking through this, if you imagine a virus at the beginning of the year and if you trace one of its descendants at the end of the year, a virus in December will have about 24 mutations in difference with the one at the beginning.

Or another way of looking at it, let's imagine you have a document. You ask an office to take that document and make 10 copies on a document scanner, each distributed to another office with the same instructions. Sometimes, a mistake happens like maybe a fingerprint smudge or someone spilled a bit of coffee on a corner. Subsequent copies will keep that mistake, but your copied document are still the same document as the original one (in essence). More mistakes will accumulate over time and at the end of the year, that document might have about 24 smudges when compared to the original document. But remember, you asked each office to make 10 copies. One document at the end of the year can have different smudges than another document from another office at the end of the year. Maybe the document that got the corner coffee stain got sent to offices in Florida while the palm print copies went to North Dakota, and the health scientists noticed that in April. Then in November, someone looking at a copied document with a cigarette burn, a pen scribble, and a corner coffee stain can make an educated guess that this particular document is from the Florida lineage.

Most mutations in the virus do nothing to it, kind of like an ink smudge in the corner of the document (still legible). Other mutations are fatal to the virus, imagine if someone accidentally poured coffee all over the entire page and its unusable (these don't get passed on). Finally, some mutations might improve the virus' ability to spread faster, sort of like removing extra blank pages in the document so you speed up the document copying.

The virus doesn't have to stay in a person long to mutate that much, it can simply jump to the next person and keep whatever mutations it has accumulated before infecting more downstream. Every new person it infects, it gives it a chance to make more copies that maybe a few copies will accumulate a new mutation. Mutations can occur randomly and spontaneously, but it will not be all in an instant.

^ I just can't read all the technical and medical papers and not get lost. This is a good, straight forward explanation of mutations.
So it's not like the England mutation is the only one. I already thought I remembered a Houston area? mutation a few months ago that was "much more contagious" and was "overtaking the original virus" and nothing ever became of it.
This thing is going to play out like it plays out. We just need to ride it until enough people are vaccinated for the spread to slow down.

Merry Christmas everyone!!!
We have more to look forward to than I thought we might at this point in time and I am truly thankful!

3,955 new cases today but that also includes Christmas. 7-day rolling average now 2,949.

29 additional deaths (including Christmas Day); 7-day rolling average now 24.0.


Hospitalization will not be updated until Monday night.

I think the 3,955 are only for Christmas, and tomorrow will include Saturday and Sunday totals together. Unless I misread something.

^

Thanks for the info.

2,631 new cases today; 7-day rolling average 2,614.

13 additional deaths; 7-day rolling average 22.6.


Now, we brace for the post-Christmas spike.

And prepare for the New Years eve spike.

And patiently wait for our turn to take the vaccine.

3,448 new cases today, which is a big number for a Monday. 7-day rolling average 2,736.

13 additional deaths; 7-day rolling average 23.6.


We'll get updated hospitalization numbers tonight after 5 days of not reporting due to the holiday and weekend.

After starting off with low infection rates, Oklahoma is now 16th in cases per capita and continuing to move upward.