Vaccine

[Alex50]

Well hopes of a vaccine any time soon are fading, so what do we do now? Schools can’t stay closed, do we test every child and teacher at the beginning of the school year. Should we think about antibody passports?

www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/22/why-we-might-not-get-a-coronavirus-vaccine

We need a proper track and trace system putting into place. Lockdown isn't sustainable.

The only way is managed herd immunity in that case, or the end of our civilisation! Those of us that are not vunerable are going to have to get on with our lives. That includes our children. This is a non serious disease for an overwhelming majority of the population.

I wouldn't say they are fading. This has been said from the outset. There was never a guarantee.

@BillywilliamV I agree, we need to start to think how we are going to get children back to school, social distancing isn’t going to work, my daughter’s school is over subscribed by over 500 children than it should have.

Herd immunity has always been the plan, all the lockdown does is allow time to set up the necessary systems to handle those that are very unwell. We are all going to have to get on with things eventually.
A worryingly high percentage of the population seem to think that the virus will somehow go away, if we all sit at home long enough.
Government planning (all sensible worldwide governments anyway) has always been around controlling exposure. They're not going to admit this because it would be political suicide!
A vaccine is the dream but it is a long shot, theres a better chance that there is a drug already somewhere that will alleviate the most severe symptoms.

But antibody passports won’t work if antibodys don’t actually last very long. Also, I am not sure if the vast majority do get a mild disease. Not if you add together all categories of people considered vulnerable. And the. Also how many households have a vulnerable person in them meaning that the healthy in that household have to shield to protect them. I think our best chance of returning to normal without a vaccine is either an effective treatment or test and trace

I don’t think herd immunity is the plan. It would be a good plan for something like chicken pox which gives life long immunity but they are now saying that Coronavirus may only give about 6 months of immunity. That is typical for most coronavirus

This does look promising:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-52754280

Didnt say mild, said non serious, its a nasty disease if you get symptoms at all. Track and trace is all very well but we cant all sit at home and wait for a cure OR a vaccine.. We either have to brave it out and get on with life.. or our civilisation is effectively finished!

If herd immunity isnt the plan then there isnt a plan..

We need a testing and contact tracing system. Like Korea has.

We're all in race against time to find a vaccine / cure before the money runs out, in which case I wish they'd let people out to earn some money and pay a few taxes.

The plan is test and trace I think. As per Germany, South Korea and Singapore. Keep numbers low and maybe make mask compulsory then we can go out safe in knowledge the chances of catching it are low. Over the next few years better treatments will be found

Herd immunity is the only plan if we don’t have a vaccine, nature takes it’s cause, like it has for millions of years, track and trace is all very well but not every country can afford to do it. The only way it could work if you test every person as soon as they come into a country.

But that is something we could do - test people when they arrive. We already have a test that allows 20 minute turnaround. I don’t understand why people are so keen to let nature take its course before we have tried to contain it in a safe way. It is possible

So why aren’t the government doing that now? Why not test everyone as they come into the country? All teachers and children going to school need to be tested once a week as well until we get a handle on it or it’s herd immunity.

How effective is that test Blueberry Is it expensive? I will need to travel to England from Fr. by boat to relieve dsis caring for dm quite soon. I had mild symptoms 2 months ago I THINK.

I have no idea if the test is effective. I am not an expert. I don’t think it is rolled out on mass yet. I am just saying these things can do done as science develops.

Yes it will be very handy for those who might have to be in quarantine. We could all carry some sort of proof that we are not infectious or whatever.

I don’t like the idea of it but it’s the only way. A weekly certificate to say you don’t have it or you are immune, it could be on your phone or you could print it off.

The 20 minute test is still at trial stage. Being trialled across Hampshire hospitals at the moment. It was developed by Basingstoke hospital, seems to have taken a couple of months to get from development to trials which started this week. No idea how portable it is.

And the 20 minute test is antigen not antibody. Unless theres a different one I've not heard of. My understanding was that the only accurate anti body tests needed to be analysed in a lab, all the at home models were very inaccurate.

Well hopes of a vaccine any time soon are fading

I don't agree with this. The idea that we might have a vaccine by autumn has always been considered optimistic but the Oxford team have said they still believe that could happen, although not on a mass scale. Astrazenaca are already gearing up to manufacture millions of doses. Obviously there's no guarantee and nobody has ever said there would be. But to say 'hopes are fading' is quite inaccurate I think.

I think it’s more likely that they will repurpose an existing drug for treatment.

I didn’t read that article as hopes fading. It was just an account of the difficulties they face. But I can’t see any reason why there can’t be an annual vaccine to cover mutations.