Time to "let it rip"?

[Warhertisuff]

Firstly, let me say that I've been in broadly in favour of restrictions put in place since March 2020, but surely, once we get to 19 July, and we have widespread vaccination coverage (not to mention non-vaccine immunity), we should just go back to normal, completely, and treat Covid like the flu, as effectively that's what we've tamed to be akin to.

No more masks, no more isolation, no more testing and tracing....

Yes, they'll be a spike in cases, and many will get ill, but as long as hospitals aren't overwhelmed and people aren't dying in droves, so be it.

I appreciate that there are those who remain vulnerable even after being double-jabbed, but I'd have thought it would be far better for them to shield themselves for a short period as it rips through and burns out like past epidemics, rather than keeping it simmering and retaining a moderate level of risk over a much longer period as we neither do enough to suppress it completely, nor allow things to open up fully enough for it to rip through in a few weeks.

Then as and when variants do arrive (which they probably will) we'll have an even more comprehensive base level of population immunity.

it rips through and burns out like past epidemics

How many past epidemics have ripped through and burned out?

No more masks, no more isolation, no more testing and tracing....

Ditching all suppression measures at once and pretending a pandemic isn't happening is not a good idea

why are you anti T&T? @Warhertisuff having no idea about numbers/variants is just burying your head in the sand and means mitigation measures can't be put in place if things are looking like they're going south

I definitely agree that if we are in the middle of the third ‘wave’ we need to let it peak and fall naturally now. Hospitals are quieter in summer. Last year we cleverly pushed the second wave to Autumn/winter and had a higher death toll (I think) because of it.

It doesn't work like that unfortunately.

Daft idea. Read some science.

There are still many people who haven’t had one or both vaccinations, why not just wait a couple months until that’s happened…

@justwanttodanceagain

it rips through and burns out like past epidemics

How many past epidemics have ripped through and burned out?

If you look at pandemics in the past, you'll tend to see a sharp rise followed by a sharp fall once it's burnt through. The 3 Spanish flu waves and the London 1666 Great Plague are examples. They came, struck havoc, and went again within a couple of months

Clearly that led to deadly consequences in the past, but our vaccination programme should prevent that.

@Morghulis

There are still many people who haven’t had one or both vaccinations, why not just wait a couple months until that’s happened…

Because those waiting are for their second doses on 19 July will largely be low risk...

@Delatron

I definitely agree that if we are in the middle of the third ‘wave’ we need to let it peak and fall naturally now. Hospitals are quieter in summer. Last year we cleverly pushed the second wave to Autumn/winter and had a higher death toll (I think) because of it.

We weren’t vaccinating people last summer. The more people are double jabbed, the less deadly any new wave is going to be. That’s the point in delaying releasing the restrictions.

Basically, if restrictions do end on 19 July, any measures left in place are unlikely to really do anything more than dampen any surge somewhat, and prolong it by a month or two.... so why bother continuing to be obsessed with it.

We weren’t vaccinating people last summer. The more people are double jabbed, the less deadly any new wave is going to be. That’s the point in delaying releasing the restrictions.

Yes, so we extended it by a month in recognition of that... But by 19 July, I don't see any reason for it to continue. And if restrictions are lifted, I don't see why we need to retain things a few like masks just to make some nervous people feel a bit more at ease.

@Warhertisuff

Basically, if restrictions do end on 19 July, any measures left in place are unlikely to really do anything more than dampen any surge somewhat, and prolong it by a month or two.... so why bother continuing to be obsessed with it.

but why do you think T&T should be scrapped? We need to have some idea of what is actually happening regarding transmission, hotspots and the mutation rate/emergence of new variants

Because those waiting are for their second doses on 19 July will largely be low risk...

Eh? 2 million people so far known to have Long Covid (in the UK). Many have struggled to get taken seriously by their doctors, and therefore it's very likely the true number is higher.

I posted a telegraph article yesterday about a young woman who had her symptoms dismissed as anxiety. Eventually she had a specialist scan and it turned out she has life threatening clots in her lungs. These clots were missed by the standard scan.

Even if we were ok doing that here in the UK, there are millions and millions of vulnerable people around the world still waiting for access to vaccines and it is just not morally and ethically right for us to spread covid to those parts of the world. New variants don't just "come in" from elsewhere, they can and have been developing here in the UK too, and will do even more so if the virus is let spread like wildfire in a partially vaccinated population here.

As for hospitals being overwhelmed, they already are due to non-covid issues and a huge backlog. We don't need to have hundreds of covid patients on wards for other treatments to be affected. And NHS staff is exhausted already after the year they've had.

Wow what a great way to ruin all the progress we’ve made so far and essentially cut off a few million of the CEV and elderly whilst we play with fire.

Have you seen the news about Israel yet? Masks are back because infections have started to climb fairly quickly again. You’re making a mistake in thinking we can let it rip it’s not possible.

I've had both jabs
Second jab was one week and 2 days ago

I tested positive yesterday, so did my DS7

We took out 3 different schools (bubbles in different schools) between me, her and my boyfriend.

It's going around, it's out there. Depends on how you view the disease itself.

I do have symptoms but not that bad. Should I have ignored and passed it on as some ant- covid people I know would have (ie refuse to test myself and track and trace??)

appreciate that there are those who remain vulnerable even after being double-jabbed, but I'd have thought it would be far better for them to shield themselves for a short

How do potentially millions of people, many of working age, including key worker roles, do that? We don't yet know who (out of the millions of vulnerable) are less protected, which conditions.

Meanwhile, the vulnerable are not all vaccinated. 53,000 children spent much of the last year shielding. Those under 16 are still in limbo, still waiting for a vaccine.

"If you look at pandemics in the past, you'll tend to see a sharp rise followed by a sharp fall once it's burnt through. The 3 Spanish flu waves and the London 1666 Great Plague are examples. They came, struck havoc, and went again within a couple of months"

Yes, after they killed vast amounts of people. London lost about 15% of the population to the plague. This is the stupidest thing I've ever heard.

@KilljoysDutch

"If you look at pandemics in the past, you'll tend to see a sharp rise followed by a sharp fall once it's burnt through. The 3 Spanish flu waves and the London 1666 Great Plague are examples. They came, struck havoc, and went again within a couple of months"

Yes, after they killed vast amounts of people. London lost about 15% of the population to the plague. This is the stupidest thing I've ever heard.

But we'd be letting things rip AFTER those who were vulnerable had been vaccinated! I never argued for such a thing pre-vaccination!

I agree with you OP. All we're doing is prolonging the agony.

I know the 'Long Covid and CEV children' crowd will try and convince you that it's wrong, but I happen to 100% agree with you.

Oh the let Other People's bodies pile up (and Other People's health fucked) crowd are out today. And of course they know better than scientists and doctors.

The Black Death killed nearly 1/3rd of Europe. Think of the three people closest to you and decide whether you would be ok to lose one of them. If not, don't you think people at the time would have been desperate to have access the science and technology than we have now to mitigate deaths?

I understand wanting to ease, but no masks or testing is just batshit. It will still be there, we'll just have so much less information, and thus an inability to take the necessary precautions should a more fatal variant arise.

During the pandemic of 1918/19, over 50 million people died worldwide and a quarter of the British population were affected. The death toll was 228,000 in Britain.

But yes lets allow Covid to burn itself out just like Spanish flu.

@KilljoysDutch

During the pandemic of 1918/19, over 50 million people died worldwide and a quarter of the British population were affected. The death toll was 228,000 in Britain.

But yes lets allow Covid to burn itself out just like Spanish flu.

Ah yes. But it's Other People.

I’ve been double vaccinated and I’m not vulnerable.

Apart from unfortunately CEV children who vulnerable are left to vaccinate?

So those becoming ill at the moment are in a low risk of complications group. Plus 89% of the population have antibodies so how much ‘ripping through’ could it do?

Obviously this post has affected the ‘but long Covid’ crowd. There will always be long Covid, there will always be Covid.