Coronavirus thread

[mc ukrneal]

Ah, yes, of course, I do completely agree about wedding invitation --- but the Romanian custom is that the wedding invitation be delivered in person, not by mail, by either the groom or the bride. Now, of course, Romania is about 250,000 km2 (which US state, I do wonder?) and usually a wedding invites people within 100 kms at most --- and I'm being generous.

Michigan fits the bill: https://www.thoughtco.com/list-of-us-states-by-area-1435813

EDIT: Nevermind...

[Florestan]

But that also violates their privacy (actually is a federal offense....unless one is asked to do so).

I don't really get it. Suppose I receive in my physical postal mailbox a letter from the government recommending/mandating me to do this & this and not to do that & that. I take a photo of that with my phone and send it via Whatsup to anyone I see fit. What federal offense am I guilty of? 

[Karl Henning]

I don't really get it. Suppose I receive in my physical postal mailbox a letter from the government recommending/mandating me to do this & this and not to do that & that. I take a photo of that with my phone and send it via Whatsup to anyone I see fit. What federal offense am I guilty of? 

Opening mail not addressed to you.

[Florestan]

Mom is not as at ease with "soft copy" management as some of us; also, I could not do that with medication which I needed to forward to her

Blimey, Karl! In Romania you just ask your GP of specialist doctor for a receipt of your usual medication, they send it to you via Whatsup, you go to any pharmacy of your choice, show the receipt on your phone and the pharmacist delivers your medication alright.

Is this not the usual US procedure? 

[mc ukrneal]

Blimey, Karl! In Romania you just ask your GP of specialist doctor for a receipt of your usual medication, they send it to you via Whatsup, you go to any pharmacy of your choice, show the receipt on your phone and the pharmacist delivers your medication alright.

Is this not the usual US procedure? 

I think you were being too kind with your Paleozoic comment earlier. If only it were that easy...

[Florestan]

Opening mail not addressed to you.

I open mail addressed to me nominally. I photo it and forward to my wife. Have I committed a federal offense? 

[Florestan]

I think you were being too kind with your Paleozoic comment earlier. If only it were that easy...

What??? 

[Todd]

I open mail addressed to me nominally. I photo it and forward to my wife. Have I committed a federal offense? 

I don't believe US courts have expanded extraterritoriality to the opening of mail in other countries.  Yet.

[Florestan]

Your internet provider will still have your history even after you've cleared it from your pc. I meant future biographers may have access to that.

Oh drat! Please, Simon, don't tell that to my wife! 

[Karl Henning]

Blimey, Karl! In Romania you just ask your GP of specialist doctor for a receipt of your usual medication, they send it to you via Whatsup, you go to any pharmacy of your choice, show the receipt on your phone and the pharmacist delivers your medication alright.

Is this not the usual US procedure? 

Well, I prefer not to explain here;  but it was an example of why I recently stopped over at the post office.

[Florestan]

I don't believe US courts have expanded extraterritoriality to the opening of mail in other countries.  Yet.

Correction. I'm a US citizen living in NY. I open mail addressed to me nominally. I photo it and forward to my wife. Have I committed a federal offense?   

[mc ukrneal]

What??? 

Where I live - the doctor gives you a piece or paper and you take that to the pharmacy. If the doctor prescribes the wrong medicine (I mean here a branded name instead of a generic), you might have to pay a lot more OR go through the effort of back and forth with your doctor and your pharmacy and likely insurance company, if you have insurance. Refills can be done automatically, until the number of refills is used up and then the pharmacy has to CALL the doctor's office, which can be tricky at times. You can then get your 3/5/other number of refills as allowed. If you want a supply of medicine for greater than 30 days (say, something you take everyday for whatever reason), you might not be able to if the insurance company doesn't allow it OR you will have to go via mail with THEIR provider of the medicine. If you go away for three months, you have to go through a highly irritating process to get the medicine while you are away. Anyway, a lot of fun!

[Karl Henning]

"5 percent of Spain exposed to coronavirus but immunity unclear, antibody study finds
A nationwide antibody study found that 5 percent of Spain's population had been exposed to the novel coronavirus, Spanish officials announced Monday.

The research, which was published in the Lancet medical journal Monday, also suggested that immunity to the virus may be short-lived in some cases, as 14 percent of those who tested positive for antibodies in preliminary testing later tested negative.

Given the uncertainty about immunity, as well as the suggestion that the vast majority of people had not had the virus, even in hotspot areas, the researchers urged caution going forward. "These results emphasize the need for maintaining public health measures to avoid a new epidemic wave," they wrote.

Loss of immunity was most common among asymptomatic carriers, the researchers said, who in turn made up at least a third of all cases.

Spain initially saw one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the world. It has more than a quarter-of-a-million cases, with at least 28,385 deaths. Though the number of new cases has dropped from the highs of earlier this year, the provinces of Galicia and Catalonia reimposed restrictions this week due to new outbreaks."

[Todd]

Correction. I'm a US citizen living in NY. I open mail addressed to me nominally. I photo it and forward to my wife. Have I committed a federal offense?   

No, of course not.

[Florestan]

Where I live - the doctor gives you a piece or paper and you take that to the pharmacy. If the doctor prescribes the wrong medicine (I mean here a branded name instead of a generic), you might have to pay a lot more OR go through the effort of back and forth with your doctor and your pharmacy and likely insurance company, if you have insurance. Refills can be done automatically, until the number of refills is used up and then the pharmacy has to CALL the doctor's office, which can be tricky at times. You can then get your 3/5/other number of refills as allowed. If you want a supply of medicine for greater than 30 days (say, something you take everyday for whatever reason), you might not be able to if the insurance company doesn't allow it OR you will have to go via mail with THEIR provider of the medicine. If you go away for three months, you have to go through a highly irritating process to get the medicine while you are away. Anyway, a lot of fun!

Oh gosh! OMG! I have long since suspected that at least when it comes to healthcare the USA is just like the Emperor's New Clothes but this just confirms my worst fears.

I'll give you the example of my father. He needs medication for depression. The psychiatrist --- but only one such ---  writes a receipt with the generic name on it --- a special kind of receipt for which we pay nothing at all in any pharmacy I go --- the government pays it all. I go to any pharmacy of my choice and if they have the medication --- they even ask me "what would you have, X or Y?" and then I tell them "Y" --- they give me the prescribed quantity. Usually any such receipt is valid for 30-day medication only, but I told my father's psychiatrist that I can't be physically present every month tio take the receipt, and she agreed --- multiple times, and it's not even an offense --- to prescribe the double quantity of medication just so that I come back for a receipt on September 1st rather than on August 1st.

My father's medicatuon is Duloxetine, for which we pay nothing at all --- it's all governmentally, single-payer, universal heathcare provided.

[Florestan]

No, of course not.

I am relieved. I really am.

[Todd]

Oh gosh! OMG! I have long since suspected that at least when it comes to healthcare the USA is just like the Emperor's New Clothes but this just confirms my worst fears.

There are multiple healthcare delivery systems in the US.  I use an HMO, and all records and prescriptions are managed online through a secure portal.  All meds other than federally controlled narcotics and special use medications can be delivered via USPS.  Refills of routine meds are done online with about forty-five seconds of effort.

This of course differs substantially from insurance coverage.  Single payer (ie, Medicare For All) has a greater likelihood of coming to fruition than standardized healthcare delivery in all fifty states.  No one wants that.

[Florestan]

There are multiple healthcare delivery systems in the US.  I use an HMO, and all records and prescriptions are managed online through a secure portal.  All meds other than federally controlled narcotics and special use medications can be delivered via USPS.  Refills of routine meds are done online with about forty-five seconds of effort.

This of course differs substantially from insurance coverage.  Single payer (ie, Medicare For All) has a greater likelihood of coming to fruition than standardized healthcare delivery in all fifty states.  No one wants that.

All right, If you, and I mean you Todd,  ever --- and I wish you'd never ever --- need Duloxetine, could you have it without paying a single dime for it?

[Todd]

All right, If you, and I mean you Todd,  ever --- and I wish you'd never ever --- need Duloxetine, could you have it without paying a single dime for it?

No, I would have to pay a copay, but my copay is so ridiculously low that it doesn't mean anything.  I am lucky in that regard. 

Ultimately, even in a single payer system, I would pay through increased taxation.  It's all about tradeoffs.

[Florestan]

No, I would have to pay a copay, but my copay is so ridiculously low that it doesn't mean anything.  I am lucky in that regard. 

Fine. Very fine. Lucky you! Are there people less fortunate than you which will have to pay for it significantly more than you?

Ultimately, even in a single payer system, I would pay through increased taxation.  It's all about tradeoffs.

I do agree.

Now, I am curious. My father can't walk anymore, he needs a wheelchair for going back and forth to and from radiotherapy. I can''t do it alone, I need a third party to help me. Does the US insurance cover all these third-party costs?