Living with Covid

Covid Mitigations

So covid is here, perhaps to stay. What do we have to do to control and survive it?

If these steps are undertaken, I believe we could drastically reduce the spread and impact of covid, to the point where we might be able to relax most precautions.

Personal actions

1. Mask. When spread is high, mask. Mask when indoors and even outdoors in close situations.

   Do we really need to say this after all this time? Yes, unfortunately, we do. Masks both reduce the spread of covid and protect the wearer. We can improve on our current masking practices by deploying N95 masks, the most comfortable high quality masks, rather than simple cloth masks.

   Medical personnel in situations like emergency rooms where they cannot avoid potential exposure should add eye protection, and wear well-fitted P100 masks.

2. Avoid high-risk situations. When people don’t mask and are not vaccinated, the risk is worse.

   1. Bars and restaurants. People cannot mask there and, currently, there is no way of knowing if all patrons are vaccinated.
   2. Crowds, when unmasked and unvaccinated.
   3. Active groups, when unmasked and unvaccinated. Singing, dancing, exercising.
   4. Pharmacies and medical clinics, unless they require masking. If you can’t avoid unmasked care situations, try to use walkups and email as much as possible.

3. Vaccinate. I mean, duh. Vaccines reduce spread and reduce the severity of infections. Vaccinate.

4. Prepare.

   1. Stock up on rapid antigen tests when available.
   2. Add a pulse oximeter to your medicine cabinet.
   3. Get a primary care physician, if you don’t already have one.

5. If you are infected.

   1. Get Antivirals. Antivirals reduce the severity of covid and they only work if you get them in the first five days of infection. In the United States, some pharmacies directly prescribe antivirals, see https://covid-19-test-to-treat-locator-dhhs.hub.arcgis.com/ for locations. If not, contact your doctor for a prescription.
   2. Quarantine. If infected, stay home until you test negative.
   3. Mask, and everyone around you should mask, too.
   4. Monitor. Use that pulse oximeter. If your SpO2 falls below 90, do not wait, go to the emergency room (mask!) Your life is at risk.

   Some of these, unfortunately, are counsels of perfection and require things like paid sick leave. That leads to…

Social actions

Some things cannot be done individually. These are recommendations for governments, businesses, labor unions, and community groups.

1. Educate.

   1. Risk. The intuitive grasp of relative risk is poor, so explain that getting covid is much, much more dangerous than vaccination
   2. Physiology. Explain what (we currently know) covid does to people. Explain that getting sick is a poor way to acquire immunity, and not available to all people.
   3. Covid is airborne. Explain the implications. Discuss indoor air quality.
   4. Masking controls the spread of most respiratory viruses.
   5. Hand washing and disinfecting surfaces control flu, colds, and RSV.
   6. When infected quarantine, test, and monitor SpO2.

   Distressingly, this has not been done and misinformation is rife. This needs to be set right as soon as possible.

2. Make care easily available.

   1. Make tests easily available. Continue to make rapid antigen tests available. Also, make PCR tests for covid and flu routinely available at low or no cost.
   2. Make vaccination widely available, without question.
   3. Fund health care.

3. Mandate masking on public transit.

4. Mandate sick leave. Make it easy to quarantine.

5. Encourage workplaces to require masking and vaccination

6. Encourage unions to support masking and vaccination

7. Fund continued vaccine research.

8. Plan for future pandemics.

Conclusions

We really ought to get going!