A coronavirus-focused linkfest is a weekly feature here at Abnormal Returns. Please stay safe, get a booster and at a vaccination site near you. You can read last week’s edition here.
Quote of the Day
"There’s no real reason why a variant appears. It’s just the result of viral evolution."
(Andrew Joseph)
Omicron
- What we know about the Omicron variant. (statnews.com)
- There is a wide range of potential outcomes with Omicron. Right now we really don't know much. (emilyoster.substack.com)
- Nu seems to be spreading more rapidly in South Africa. (ft.com)
- Countries have been quick to impose travel restrictions on South Africa and neighboring nations. (wsj.com)
- Dutch authorities have isolated passengers from two South African flights. (washingtonpost.com)
- Omicron, may or may not, escape vaccines but we have to plan accordingly. (marginalrevolution.com)
- We shouldn't be surprised new variants are popping up. (bloomberg.com)
Vaccines
- Vaccine makers, including Moderna ($MRNA), are working on omicron-specific vaccine candidates. (on.ft.com)
- AstraZeneca ($AZN) is running out potential customers in the UK. (ft.com)
- Longer term data for the Pfizer ($PFE) vaccine in 12-15 year olds looks good. (statnews.com)
- Why familes with immunocompromised individuals are quick to get children vaccinated. (nytimes.com)
Boosters
- Boosting works. (businessinsider.com)
- Are we going to need Covid booster shots every year? (fastcompany.com)
- What side effects should you expect from a booster? (fastcompany.com)
Mandates
- Why big retailers are opposing vaccine mandates for frontline workers. (nytimes.com)
- 92% of federal workers have received at least one Covid-19 vaccination shot. (wsj.com)
- Ending the pandemic will require a host of tools, including antivirals. (fortune.com)
Antivirals
- Carolyn Y. Johnson, "Antivirals, too, will be powerful but won’t be a get-out-of-jail-free card by themselves." (washingtonpost.com)
- When will the FDA approve Pfizer's ($PFE) Paxlovid? (astralcodexten.substack.com)
- Data on Merck's ($MRK) Covid-19 pill showed it much less effective than Pfizer's ($PFE). (statnews.com)
- Getting antivirals to the right people at the right time is going to be a challenge. (statnews.com)
- Will the new antiviral pills change the course of the pandemic? (newyorker.com)
- Will anti-vaxxers take the new Covid antivirals? (slate.com)
States
- Is Vermont still a model for tackling Covid-19? (theatlantic.com)
- Michigan hospitals are slammed with Covid patients. (washingtonpost.com)
- Can the pandemic end if children aren't vaccinated? (scientificamerican.com)
- Why health official are worried about a post-Thanksgiving surge in cases. (politico.com)
Immunity
- Hybrid immunity, i.e. prior infection and immunization, may be the most potent. (wsj.com)
- The risk of reinfection rises with time and the presence of variants. (npr.org)
- The CDC and the FDA are discouraging people from getting antibody tests. (wsj.com)
Testing
- Why the U.S. is still so short of rapid antigen tests. (bloomberg.com)
- Covid-19 tests have drawbacks, but doesn't mean we shouldn't use them. (theatlantic.com)
- The idea of testing has moved past public health and is now more about self-preservation. (statnews.com)
Masking
- What is the future for masking? (nytimes.com)
- Mask bans for school age children removes a valuable tool. (washingtonpost.com)
Ventilation
Long Covid
- There is no established definition of 'long Covid.' (wired.com)
- Even health care worker claims of long Covid are being dismissed. (theatlantic.com)
Data
- More Americans will die of Covid-19 in 2021 than in 2020. (wsj.com)
- More than 140,000 children in the U.S have lost a parent to Covid-19. (vox.com)
Research
- People with mental illness are at a higher risk of dying from Covid-19. (npr.org)
- If populations aren't homogeneous than our models about Covid transmission may be off. (cspicenter.org)
- Covid-19 increasingly looks seasonal. (theatlantic.com)
Global
- Only 54% of Europe is fully vaccinated. (cnbc.com)
- Covid-19 is now the number one cause of death in Europe. (arstechnica.com)
- Germany is seeing the highest number of Covid-19 cases since the onset of the pandemic. (theguardian.com)
- Is Europe's situation a preview for the US? (washingtonpost.com)
Earlier on Abnormal Returns
- Coronavirus links: hygiene theater. (abnormalreturns.com)
- There's only one way through the pandemic tunnel. (abnormalreturns.com)
- Why we are eventually going to need digital health passes, i.e. vaccine passports. (abnormalreturns.com)
- The 'Swiss cheese model' and the importance of avoiding single points of failure in pandemic and life. (abnormalreturns.com)
- On the challenge of holding two competing thoughts on the pandemic in your head a the same time. (abnormalreturns.com)
Mixed media
- Zeynep Tufecki, "In the absence of trust in their leaders and peers, people will likely continue to deal with the virus the way they have been, by keeping themselves bubbled or ignoring it altogether." (nytimes.com)
- Omicron is a reminder that we are not at the end of the pandemic. (marketwatch.com)
- The two main Covid origin stories require a coincidence. (theatlantic.com)
