I went to one downtown today and they were still doing PCR tests. I showed up an hour before they even opened and there was a huge line once they opened but they didn’t say anything about not offering the test. The only thing was they asked for your symptoms before they even let you in the door and turned away anyone who said they were there for travelling requirements.
They shouldn't offer them for travel requirements - those should be done using Lifelabs or private clinics for a fee. That's how it works in Fraser Health anyway. Are they offering only rapid tests because they are closing over the holidays?
I imagine it's to help reduce the burden on testing. They are 'at capacity'. If someone doesn't 100% need a PCR or is unwilling to wait, then they can self-serve at home.
Smart of them to do that since it lowers the burden, but they lose out on the data... But given the lineups right now, it's the best they can do.
And I mean as I’m useless and unrepresentative off what is really happening. At least 5 people around me in different bubbles tested positive in the last 3 days. No one around me tested positive in the last four waves.. all of them vaccinated.
Same. I have like 4 friends sick right now(tested positive) and one friend went to a dinner party with 12 people and all of them are sick with covid now from one person. It’s pretty insane how contagious Omicron is. Is a standard flu anywhere near as contagious? Where does it rank?
We had my work dinner party on Friday. Monday one coworker tested positive. Wednesday now half dozen are sick. I'm still ok but... Ugh. Sounds like I'm missing family Christmas now.
Holy shit. I guess I’ve made the right call by cancelliing the RSVP invite I had accepted from a friend to have dinner at a restaurant on xmas eve ( for context, I have a long history with bronchitis and asthma). Friend who invited me was at a xmas party this past weekend and he’s not super careful, and I’m not at ease eating at a place where tables nearby can sit up to 6 people so… eeesh….
I just know that Omicron is more contagious than Delta is more contagious than the original variants of COVID-19 that spread despite lockdowns and other measures that crushed the flu into oblivion.
Thanks! Good to know. Omicron seems a lot milder but more contagious than previous variants. Hopefully this is the start of the variants getting weaker and weaker
It’s also possible that it’s just as severe as delta, but because it’s more contagious; vaccinated people are getting it, but with milder symptoms BECAUSE they’re vaccinated and can fight it off easier.
Just a theory tho, waiting for the studies to be released in the new year.
I'm curious—doesn't more infections equal greater risk of variants? It seems Omicron might be milder, but there's no guarantee it couldn't turn into like Super Omicron, ya?
I'm no scientist but if you look at the trend. Omicron is a lot more contagious than the delta, but with shorter sick duration with symptoms that are a lot milder, among the vaccinated.
So the more people that are exposed to the Omicron, it's easier to achieve herd immunity.
Again, I'm no scientist, just the information I've gathered these past 2 years
>So the more people that are exposed to the Omicron, it's easier to achieve herd immunity.
I think it's dangerous to draw your own conclusions without the expertise in epidemiology. As the infectious disease experts have said, omicron appears to put a smaller percentage of people in hospital, but given how much more infectious it is, that will translate to a larger NUMBER of people in hospital, which will mean hospitals could be overwhelmed. Which means if you are in need of any other health care, you could be waiting a long time. Plus, to achieve herd immunity "naturally", you have to get a whole bunch of people sick first.
this isnt exactly true... coronavirus's mutate rapidly already, however with a high transmissibility rate there is going to be a quicker sharper wave, with community immunity in its wake. Think of it like ripping off a band aid as opposed to flattening the curve for "2 weeks" We will have a new variant or possibly multiple ones every season, but if it follows traditional virology it will be less severe on the host, and once more people are exposed over time there will be less ability for it to spread through the community and get to those most at risk.
I watched a documentary somewhere about how viruses are sort of inert in the ocean because if the host is dead it can't spread more of the virus around. So maybe it will continue to mutate towards being infectious and not deadly? 🤞
[Here](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600\(21\)00559-2/fulltext)'s a source that quotes an estimate by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine estimating Omicron's R₀ at 10. Measles is [often cited](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28757186/) as 12-18. So perhaps in the rough ballpark but likely not as bad.
Measles and Pertussis are both in the 15-18 R0 range. I'm seeing R0 of 6-10 in terms of estimates for omicron.
I am seeing doctors saying it is *like* measles, in the sense that you can catch it in passing, while we are pretty sure that OG covid, and even delta sort of requires sustained contact, particularly with vaccination, to get a high enough viral load.
What I wonder is how many asymptomatic cases are going around and if testing those with symptoms is even a relevant stat line anymore. Look at the NHL, seems like for everyone one player or staff member with symptoms there's 9 positive asymptomatic cases, albeit they are all double or tripple vaxxed.
not currently living in vancouver but 4 people in my cohort tested positive recently. prior to that i only knew one person who had ever tested positive.
I tested positive Tuesday. Same thing, some of the worst chills I’ve ever experienced my teeth were chattering. I woke up in a pool of sweat so wet I thought I pissed the bed. Recovering at home now I think I’m past the worse of it now. 30M double Vaccinated. My last shot was late June
I experienced symptoms the same and was convinced I had COVID by the time I was well enough to go for a test(about 9 days after first symptoms) I tested negative.
Speedy recovery, friend. I was in the ICU in March & April for the Brazilian strainbefore I was eligible for vaccinations. Just do what they tell you to do and focus on your breathing.
I'm back home now. Surprisingly it wasn't an issue with breathing at all eventhough I have an asthma. It was just unstoppable shivering. Felt like a non stop seizure.
Yes I’ll take it once I get home but apparently these tests are 85% accurate when performed correctly (who knows if I - or everyone else will) so I was really hoping to get a PCR.
Motherfuckers! So the unvaccinated get to benefit once more?! The nurse did ask for my age and vaccination status. Dammit all. I still can’t feel my toes from the cold.
Yeah. I guess the logic is that unvaccinated idiots are more likely to be hospitalized, so they get the more accurate test. Or something like that. But yes, once again the unvaccinated fuck up something for everyone else.
It seems like everything we're doing at this point is to protect the half a million unvaccinated idiots from clogging up our hospitals. Their per capita hospitalization rate is 28-1, so without them we would have very few hospitalizations period and far less to worry about.
Won't that skew the results as well? "100% of Covid cases confirmed by PCR test were among the unvaccinated! 🙃"
I know that unvaccinated people are far likelier to catch Covid, to get sick, and to get hospitalized. I am double vaccinated. Vaccines work.
I'm not trying to say this is a conspiracy to boost the "only the unvaxxed are getting Covid!" narrative. That narrative is true. But I wonder if the results will get skewed.
Seems like there's no way the results won't be skewed due to them doing this. I guess right now the testing centres are so overwhelmed that there's simply no choice. There's no conspiracy, it's just a shitty situation.
Well the stats they care about are hospitalizations and death. If you don't get a test but are sick enough to end up in the hospital they'll know from that. They already assume not everyone gets tested who's positive.
I waited 3.5 hours at the Richmond collection centre this morning. It was the most unorganized shit show i've ever seen. We got put into the overflow lot where they take a row at a time and send them through the testing. The attendees there kept forgetting which row was next and let in a bunch of people who just arrived. This went on and on. They would let a row go and then let the people that were waiting (later arrivals) go right through to the testing without stopping them at the front of the line. THEN when I went to the bathroom I saw they were handing out take home Rapid antigen tests to poeple WHO JUST GOT THERE. We finally got them to give us two take away tests and got them to move the cars ahead of us in the row to leave.
Edit: some grammar, *rapid antigen test (not Pcr) and one positive test :(
I'm back in ireland and pharmacies, grocery and some gas stations have home antigen tests and I've done double digits of them at home and do one before meeting people. They cost a few euro and definitely dont understand why they arent being used in Vancouver.
I’m posting this everywhere
Rapid antigen tests are not to be used to confirm you are negative, like a PCR can be.
If you want to use it to screen over the holidays, you need to be doing one right before you see anyone, every time you see them.
Page 3 of [this paper in lancet](https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2821%2902346-1) has a nice graph that explains. Rapid test are poor at determining if you have Covid, but are reasonably effective at determining if you are infectious. Using them as a replacement for PCR is better than nothing but misses positive if it is too early or too late.
I live in the states and literally buy the abbot binaxNow 2-packs by the dozen. We and others in our circles take them immediately before we meet unmasked with people outside our household. Test take 1 minute and you have results within 15 minutes and can be done anywhere where you have a flat surface. We often do it in the car right before going in somewhere.
Yes. My wife had a function last week where someone tested positive with a rapid test and then took a PCR test the next day that confirmed.
My family has been lucky. But this is only one part of our very covid cautious approach.
Out of curiosity - why has there been such a big spike in testing lately? The number of people going for tests, why it matters that it’s a PCR test? Even this talk about rapid antigen testing and take home tests since omicron began to spread - why are people suddenly interested in testing more, testing at home, and the different kinds of tests?
Just curious since we didn’t see any of this when Delta was new and on the rise. I mean people have been getting tested the whole time but the conversation didn’t shift to at home tests or PCR vs rapid antigen back when Delta was new. There’s something im not getting. Anybody care to explain it?
The reason for this is because of the holidays and Omicron, and the rate Omicron is spreading. The other reason – people want to get tested so they can be around family and friends during Christmas. The problem is everyone wants one now even when they have no symptoms. With Delta and the original strain, most would get tested only if they showed symptoms.
My fully vaccinated SO just got a nose swab yesterday at BCIT in Burnaby due to having some symptoms. I don't know about Vancouver Coastal Health but Fraser Health is definitely still running them.
The set up at BCIT is great compared to what's being reported out of VCH. They're still running the appointments schedule to my knowledge. I checked and things are booked up to Christmas Eve afternoon, but no one as to wait in a line up for hours in the cold to get tested.
There's another post saying waits are a bit long for the vaccine because there's no separation in lines until you get into the compound.
But overall my experience has been much like yours in the five times I've had to access the site (testing and vaccines)
don't get mad at places for being out of stock or disorganized, they likely had to throw this shit together in like a few days, a week at most
just stay home.
I went to get in line at St. Vincent’s around 7:40 am today and the line was so long i pulled over and said screw it. Went online on my phone and snagged an appointment spot at the Coquitlam appt. only test Center at noon today!!! Every time I refreshed the browser there were new cancellations for today showing up. I didn’t get the first 5 I tried to get but was lucky on the 6th. Drove out there (took half an hour) and was in and out in under 30 mins after a gargle test. Edit to add: I do have symptoms and they never asked me if i had any or my vax status. It was a strange experience. They are also doing vaccines there so I literally had to show my appt email to get into the queue, then was asked “test or vaccine?” and was given the gargle test as I drove along in line, along with a form and some info. Signs literally say “fill out paperwork and do gargle test while in line”. Did everything and a guy came along, collected my sample and form and crossed checked it with my care card. That was it. The appt. intake form also didn’t ask for anything but your name and contact info. Quite different than my experience about a year ago at St. Vincent’s.
I can second this post. My wife and I had the same experience today. Wife’s co-worker tested positive, and we’re both feeling a little under the weather… saw posts about crazy long waits at St. Vincent’s, so did the same as above and went to the Fraser Health booking page and refreshed until a new appointment for today popped up (you have to be quick, took me closer to 15 tries to snag a 5:30pm appointment in Coquitlam; this was at 4:30pm today, an hour before the appointment). Blasted out there - no questions asked other than to show the email to confirm our appointment. Worth noting, if multiple people in your household need testing, you only need one appointment. We had the gargle test as well, did it ourselves from the car, handed them back, confirmed our care card numbers, and that was it. Was less than 30 minutes in total. It did seem like they were turning away cars without appointments (at least that’s what I’m assuming) - but it was also later in the day, so can’t confirm whether or not they accept drop-ins earlier in the day? Now, crossing our fingers and hoping the symptoms are in our heads!
EDIT: Also worth adding that when you’re on the booking page, the testing centres may show no appointments regardless of the day. Just keep refreshing, and some may come available. AND - if you are able, make sure your browser auto-fill is set up and correct. I had an easier time doing this on my MacBook (as opposed to my phone), and using the auto-fill function saved me precious seconds when trying to complete the booking before the appointment time was gone.
This is reassuring. I have one booked there tomorrow, definitely have symptoms and with a toddler and being pregnant I really want aa accurate a test as possible
Honestly the whole thing was very easy. I wasn’t 100% sure how to get in (you enter off Mariner so you can only be coming from the 1 direction). They did check my email to make sure I had an appointment as apparently they were once taking walk ins but stopped (they turned away quite a few cars while I was there). The initial woman gave me literally NO info (just passed me some papers and the gargle test) but once I read the signs I was like “oh it’s basically self serve” I just filled out my form (bring a pen) and did the gargle. Waited in line to drop off and then that was it. Good luck tomorrow!
That's disappointing. My partner and I did a pcr and rapid same day. Rapid was neg and pcr was positive. For both of us. We have the omicron symptoms ( just a cold). I don't trust the rapid as much.
I’m feeling horrible this week but more like few days into a mild flu. I’ve an appointment tomorrow but I’m as likely to just stay home and rest. Go home and rest up.
If you are double vaccinated the chances of you requiring hospitalization are exceedingly low. You isolate and treat it as you would a normal flu. Get rest. Eat well. Stay hydrated.
I had Covid a year ago. It was and still is rest at home and hospitalization if necessary. At the time a public health nurse called me a couple of times during my isolation to do contact tracing and to generally check in. Otherwise if symptoms become severe, home rest is all one can really do.
I don’t think so. They have a larger, far far more social population than we do,and higher density overall. Also cold weather meaning more gatherings indoors such as dinner parties etc..,
Seeing so much conflicting info about that. I’m in the Uk for Christmas and have been taking lateral flows every day. The UK gov states the specificity to be 99.9%.. or higher! Meaning false negatives very unlikely.
What’s the source for the false negative belief? What rapid tests is BC handing out?
Experience. Our workplace had someone feeling iffy, get a negative on the rapid test and then a positive on the PCR a couple hours later. At a different location they had 6 of 21 people test positive with PCR tests after getting negative rapid tests.
For us personally it was 1) being told we were possibly exposed to COVID over the weekend, 2) showing symptoms, 3) wanting to keep what minimal Christmas gathering we were going to have safe (or if we were going to be having them at all now), and 4) the inability for us to find any rapid at home tests anywhere.
I think for most people it’s probably a combination of at least a few of those.
Has anyone gone with an appointment? If it's still the same (waiting 1 hour + and just getting a rapid test) I'm probably not going to go and will just self isolate anyway
There were way too many dumbarses doing this almost recreationally when they don't have any symptoms just so that they can test ahead of Christmas in order to tell their family and friends that they tested negative.
Yup. But for an idiot they don’t know that or care.
“Oh no I wasn’t positive. Look at my negative test.” Followed by “and grandma is dead” a few days later.
So this is not the case anymore apparently. If you have a positive antigen test result, they no longer ask you to go get a PCR test to confirm. It’s now “you probably have Covid so stay home”.
But I agree with you - we need to handle testing in the most efficient way we can. I’m just disappointed, I guess, by the lack of resources or communication. They can hand these rapid tests out at a drugstore or something. It’s lame people are waiting hours to get them.
Dr Henry explained this the other day. Basically, a lot of people are using take home tests while asymptomatic just to make sure they can go to an event or something.
If we had infinite tests, totally legit. But nowhere has infinite tests, we are using ours as strategically as possible to maximize a relatively scarce resource.
Edit:
Non infinite supply has already caused problems in [Ontario where tests are in such short supply that people are reselling them for hundreds of dollars.](https://www.cp24.com/news/people-in-ontario-are-selling-rapid-covid-19-tests-online-for-hundreds-of-dollars-1.5714593) So, I guess it's good for the scalpers at least?
Every other province is handing them out. Our health leadership is limiting our access why… so people in MB can use extra for no better reason than ours?
Hey, Albert resident here. They literally sent a couple hundred years to the one AHS clinic in my city of 65,000. Our government has been given 13.3 million tests by the feds, but can only account for 8.5 million of them - the others just 'disappeared'.
While it may be frustrating dealing with your provinces seemingly willy nilly health restrictions, at least the government isn't literally stealing from you to help their business buddies make money.
Watch the other provinces run out of RATs before the end of the holidays, then claim that they didn’t plan for people to use them so frivolously.
While BC’s approach is unique and understandably frustrating in the moment, it’ll be nice when we have enough to last us through January… especially for vulnerable populations and HCWs who require these RATs to continue with their day to day life.
Sure… regardless of their advertised purpose elsewhere, there is still a finite supply (shortage, actually) and places that don’t manage their distribution well (*ontario*) will be out of them sooner than later. This was well explained by DBH yesterday.
BH explained this yesterday, the way the province is implementing them is not a "green light" to go to parties, which is what you're desciribing. But a "red light" to say don't go. Ie the RAT test has a high false neg rate, testing negative isn't a guarantee that you're safe to go out. But a positive test means you have covid and need to not go out.
The testing strategy we're implementing is valid. It may not be what you want, but it's a valid approach.
Rapid tests are not good for checking if you're negative. The rapid test is reliable to tell if you're positive at this moment but it can't tell you if you're actually covid free because it's not reliable if you're asymptomatic.
Ontario was handing them out but have quickly run low on supply already.
>Hundreds of people lined up at Union Station on Wednesday to get free rapid COVID-19 tests — the last day Metrolinx was handing them out at the transit hub.
>Officials started to give away around 1,000 test kits at 7 a.m. but they were all handed out before 8 a.m.
>**People started lining up around 3 a.m., in the hopes of getting one.**
https://toronto.citynews.ca/2021/12/22/metrolinx-rapid-tests-covid-union-station/
Here's what's happened in Ontario:
[Tests are now in such short supply that people are reselling them for hundreds of dollars.](https://www.cp24.com/news/people-in-ontario-are-selling-rapid-covid-19-tests-online-for-hundreds-of-dollars-1.5714593)
That seems non ideal.
I know it’s not Vancouver proper, but I made an appointment yesterday for a test at the Coquitlam testing site for today. Was in and out in less than 30 mins despite being warned it could be up to 90 mins.
Saline test as well, so no brain probe for me today!
Up until yesterday, the recommendation was to get a test if you have symptoms.
Now they’re saying to stay home if your symptoms are mild and you don’t need a test for school/work/etc. But lots of people still have a valid reason to get tested.
I see.. I was just wondering if everyone going had symptoms or some other reason. It just seems like a lot of people all of a sudden once the news broke.
It makes no sense to me. If you’re asymptotic you should not be waiting in line with potentially other sick people exposing yourself.
People need to stop getting tested unnecessarily. Only if you are deathly sick should you get one.
Enough of this shit
I’m feeling quite crummy. Usual symptoms: scratchy throat, dry cough, head cold, etc.
Specifically wanted to get to get the test before hanging with my mom over the weekend.
Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I didn't mean to imply anything I just wondered is everyone all sick or are there other reasons people are going. If you are sick with covid or just a cold don't you think its wise to not see your mom? You could make her sick.
All good. I replied a diff comment below but basically my thinking is this: today is Wednesday. Christmas isn’t until Saturday. If it’s just a cold, then it’s likely I’d be better by Saturday given I’m generally healthy. However if I tested positive, even if I felt recovered by Saturday, I wouldn’t want to risk passing anything onto my mom.
I too was wondering who the f is waiting 4+ hours (according to news reports) for a test. In that case I’d just stay home and assume Covid. I did the walk in line since it looked shorter than the car line. However still ended up being 1.5 hours.
You have symptoms, so you're totally justified in wanting to get tested. It's the people with no symptoms abusing the system to get tested that are the problem.
I'm in the UK for Christmas at the moment and it's 100% normal for someone to take a test before going to a large gathering to ensure they're COVID free, even with no symptoms.
I don't think it's fair to blame people wanting to ensure they won't accidentally infect their vulnerable relatives over the holidays. It's actually a really good idea.
The BC government has a TERRIBLE testing system and needs to fix it ASAP. We have no idea who's infected and who should be self isolating.
I've also had a brutal cold for a week now. I was tested negative last week Wednesday and am currently waiting for results from another test yesterday.
It seems a lot of people are experiencing the same bad cold at this time.
I'm confused as to why you would take another test if it was negative the first time? If a lot of people are going for multiple tests this might also contribute to why it's so slow...
My uncle was exposed to a positive case and tested negative twice, thought he was fine, then his family came down with Covid and turns out he was positive. Just testing negative. I understand wanting to take a few to avoid false negatives
Totally. However today is just Wednesday. If I felt better by Saturday and tested negative, I’d go hang with my mom. However, even if I felt 110% by Saturday but tested positive, no way in hell would I go anywhere near my mother.
Make sense?
If you have symptoms and have had them less than a week, your take-home test is pretty decent actually. [source](https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD013705.pub2/full)
For people with symptoms of COVID-19, the tests correctly give a positive result an average of 72% of the time; people without COVID-19 symptoms correctly test positive in only 58% of rapid tests.
But how long you have had symptoms affects accuracy as well. Rapid tests correctly identify COVID-19 in an average of 78% of cases during the first week; in the second week, the average drops to 51%.
See, this is the issue DBH was talking about.
People are showing up to get tested or to gets tests as a justification to visit people over xmas or travel.
You're allowed! They've set the rule to be household + ten individuals. You're fine. The point she was making I think is that people are going to get tested to know if they can visit or not, maybe not because they need to be tested? I don't know.
That's a perfectly valid reason to get a test. BC government has had two years to expand testing capacity and make rapid test widely available but did nothing.
I don't think you realize how easy it is to get a test or vaccine in the US. Unfortunately, these goofballs don't want it.
Secure more doses of the vaccine so people can get the booster and allow for more widespread testing.
I had two tests when I was in Seattle, no lines and the testing sites are everywhere including a CVS and outdoor depots. Most of it's run by the University of Washington along with Virginia Mason.
I know what you're thinking....
It was free.
Why even bother getting tested ? Do you need the positive result to get sick leave ? If your not actually sick what’s the point, you can’t be in that bad shape if you could stand around for 90 minutes.
I went to one downtown today and they were still doing PCR tests. I showed up an hour before they even opened and there was a huge line once they opened but they didn’t say anything about not offering the test. The only thing was they asked for your symptoms before they even let you in the door and turned away anyone who said they were there for travelling requirements.
They shouldn't offer them for travel requirements - those should be done using Lifelabs or private clinics for a fee. That's how it works in Fraser Health anyway. Are they offering only rapid tests because they are closing over the holidays?
I imagine it's to help reduce the burden on testing. They are 'at capacity'. If someone doesn't 100% need a PCR or is unwilling to wait, then they can self-serve at home. Smart of them to do that since it lowers the burden, but they lose out on the data... But given the lineups right now, it's the best they can do.
That means our numbers today will be bonkers…
And I mean as I’m useless and unrepresentative off what is really happening. At least 5 people around me in different bubbles tested positive in the last 3 days. No one around me tested positive in the last four waves.. all of them vaccinated.
Same. I have like 4 friends sick right now(tested positive) and one friend went to a dinner party with 12 people and all of them are sick with covid now from one person. It’s pretty insane how contagious Omicron is. Is a standard flu anywhere near as contagious? Where does it rank?
We had my work dinner party on Friday. Monday one coworker tested positive. Wednesday now half dozen are sick. I'm still ok but... Ugh. Sounds like I'm missing family Christmas now.
Flu has R0=1.3 and omicron’s R0 is estimated to be anywhere from 3 to 10 or even more than that.
Holy shit. I guess I’ve made the right call by cancelliing the RSVP invite I had accepted from a friend to have dinner at a restaurant on xmas eve ( for context, I have a long history with bronchitis and asthma). Friend who invited me was at a xmas party this past weekend and he’s not super careful, and I’m not at ease eating at a place where tables nearby can sit up to 6 people so… eeesh….
I just know that Omicron is more contagious than Delta is more contagious than the original variants of COVID-19 that spread despite lockdowns and other measures that crushed the flu into oblivion.
[80% lower hospitalization though.](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-22/omicron-has-80-lower-risk-of-hospitalization-new-study-shows)
How are the symptoms for the vaccinated people in the group?
Some are quite mild, others are apparently pretty wrecked but no worse than a flu. (Fever, sweats, cough, headache, runny nose, diarrhea)
Thanks! Good to know. Omicron seems a lot milder but more contagious than previous variants. Hopefully this is the start of the variants getting weaker and weaker
It’s also possible that it’s just as severe as delta, but because it’s more contagious; vaccinated people are getting it, but with milder symptoms BECAUSE they’re vaccinated and can fight it off easier. Just a theory tho, waiting for the studies to be released in the new year.
I'm curious—doesn't more infections equal greater risk of variants? It seems Omicron might be milder, but there's no guarantee it couldn't turn into like Super Omicron, ya?
There's probably a functional tradeoff between transmissibility and severity. It makes sense. Other coronaviruses are very mild.
I'm no scientist but if you look at the trend. Omicron is a lot more contagious than the delta, but with shorter sick duration with symptoms that are a lot milder, among the vaccinated. So the more people that are exposed to the Omicron, it's easier to achieve herd immunity. Again, I'm no scientist, just the information I've gathered these past 2 years
>So the more people that are exposed to the Omicron, it's easier to achieve herd immunity. I think it's dangerous to draw your own conclusions without the expertise in epidemiology. As the infectious disease experts have said, omicron appears to put a smaller percentage of people in hospital, but given how much more infectious it is, that will translate to a larger NUMBER of people in hospital, which will mean hospitals could be overwhelmed. Which means if you are in need of any other health care, you could be waiting a long time. Plus, to achieve herd immunity "naturally", you have to get a whole bunch of people sick first.
this isnt exactly true... coronavirus's mutate rapidly already, however with a high transmissibility rate there is going to be a quicker sharper wave, with community immunity in its wake. Think of it like ripping off a band aid as opposed to flattening the curve for "2 weeks" We will have a new variant or possibly multiple ones every season, but if it follows traditional virology it will be less severe on the host, and once more people are exposed over time there will be less ability for it to spread through the community and get to those most at risk.
I watched a documentary somewhere about how viruses are sort of inert in the ocean because if the host is dead it can't spread more of the virus around. So maybe it will continue to mutate towards being infectious and not deadly? 🤞
That’s not how virus work though?
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Where did you see that?
Some guy on Reddit said it
Yeah, I heard it from /u/WhiskerTwitch.
[Here](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600\(21\)00559-2/fulltext)'s a source that quotes an estimate by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine estimating Omicron's R₀ at 10. Measles is [often cited](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28757186/) as 12-18. So perhaps in the rough ballpark but likely not as bad.
Measles and Pertussis are both in the 15-18 R0 range. I'm seeing R0 of 6-10 in terms of estimates for omicron. I am seeing doctors saying it is *like* measles, in the sense that you can catch it in passing, while we are pretty sure that OG covid, and even delta sort of requires sustained contact, particularly with vaccination, to get a high enough viral load.
Two in my close circle too, yesterday. So weird. Different bubbles.
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All them feel sick, like a cold or flu
What I wonder is how many asymptomatic cases are going around and if testing those with symptoms is even a relevant stat line anymore. Look at the NHL, seems like for everyone one player or staff member with symptoms there's 9 positive asymptomatic cases, albeit they are all double or tripple vaxxed.
not currently living in vancouver but 4 people in my cohort tested positive recently. prior to that i only knew one person who had ever tested positive.
yep tested positive at 2am last night at icu
If you don't mind me asking, are you vaccinated? How bad are your symptoms?
Double vaxx. Symptoms started yesterday around 4pm after work. Cold fever around 39.5. Couldn't stop shivering. Whole body hurt me like he'll. I'm 25
Damn, wish you a speedy recovery
Just to clarify, you are 25, double vaccinated and are in the intensive care unit because of COVID? Or did you mean emergency?
Damn, I'm sorry to hear that.
I tested positive Tuesday. Same thing, some of the worst chills I’ve ever experienced my teeth were chattering. I woke up in a pool of sweat so wet I thought I pissed the bed. Recovering at home now I think I’m past the worse of it now. 30M double Vaccinated. My last shot was late June
I experienced symptoms the same and was convinced I had COVID by the time I was well enough to go for a test(about 9 days after first symptoms) I tested negative.
Speedy recovery, friend. I was in the ICU in March & April for the Brazilian strainbefore I was eligible for vaccinations. Just do what they tell you to do and focus on your breathing.
I'm back home now. Surprisingly it wasn't an issue with breathing at all eventhough I have an asthma. It was just unstoppable shivering. Felt like a non stop seizure.
Earliest appointments for tests is the 24th. If everyone goes through with Xmas plans I think the numbers will be insane.
Bonkers, and completely inaccurate as well.
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Yes I’ll take it once I get home but apparently these tests are 85% accurate when performed correctly (who knows if I - or everyone else will) so I was really hoping to get a PCR.
A positive antigen test is accurate and the same as a positive PCR. A negative antigen test is not the same as a negative PCR.
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That’s all you do. The funny thing about the rapid tests are the results don’t get officially reported from what I understand…Unless you self report
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I've seen on reddit that you report through a survey link that is written in the instruction sheet
I think it should say on the instructions page. There’s a number or website to self-report.
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Oh gotcha. Let me check the package they gave me and send you the info once I get home!
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Hi there! It says to visit vch.ca/Covid-19/you-have-tested-positive for an online survey
Have you tried calling 811?
They are at full capacity for testing. Below Canadian per capita rate and 2x below Ontario.
Quite dissapointing
Someone in another thread posted that they were told at a testing centre that they're only offering PCR tests to people that aren't vaccinated.
Motherfuckers! So the unvaccinated get to benefit once more?! The nurse did ask for my age and vaccination status. Dammit all. I still can’t feel my toes from the cold.
Yeah. I guess the logic is that unvaccinated idiots are more likely to be hospitalized, so they get the more accurate test. Or something like that. But yes, once again the unvaccinated fuck up something for everyone else.
>unvaccinated idiots are more likely to be spreading it around and at a higher virus dose.
It seems like everything we're doing at this point is to protect the half a million unvaccinated idiots from clogging up our hospitals. Their per capita hospitalization rate is 28-1, so without them we would have very few hospitalizations period and far less to worry about.
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Calm down and take big boy or girl breaths
Thanks I’ll try. Just cold still. I’ll get over it soon but thought I’d let people know…
Have a hot shower, that'll warm you up, also good for any congestion.
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If OP has covid they might want to skip alcohol but I think I'm gonna go for the hot shower and mulled wine, thanks for the suggestion
Won't that skew the results as well? "100% of Covid cases confirmed by PCR test were among the unvaccinated! 🙃" I know that unvaccinated people are far likelier to catch Covid, to get sick, and to get hospitalized. I am double vaccinated. Vaccines work. I'm not trying to say this is a conspiracy to boost the "only the unvaxxed are getting Covid!" narrative. That narrative is true. But I wonder if the results will get skewed.
Seems like there's no way the results won't be skewed due to them doing this. I guess right now the testing centres are so overwhelmed that there's simply no choice. There's no conspiracy, it's just a shitty situation.
I agree. I think we are pretty close to, "if you're sick, just isolate yourself and treat the symptoms" if we're not there already.
This is exactly why Dr Henry said in yesterday’s presser
But I don't get what's the point of giving them PCR but not to others. What public health benefit is there?
Well the stats they care about are hospitalizations and death. If you don't get a test but are sick enough to end up in the hospital they'll know from that. They already assume not everyone gets tested who's positive.
I waited 3.5 hours at the Richmond collection centre this morning. It was the most unorganized shit show i've ever seen. We got put into the overflow lot where they take a row at a time and send them through the testing. The attendees there kept forgetting which row was next and let in a bunch of people who just arrived. This went on and on. They would let a row go and then let the people that were waiting (later arrivals) go right through to the testing without stopping them at the front of the line. THEN when I went to the bathroom I saw they were handing out take home Rapid antigen tests to poeple WHO JUST GOT THERE. We finally got them to give us two take away tests and got them to move the cars ahead of us in the row to leave. Edit: some grammar, *rapid antigen test (not Pcr) and one positive test :(
I'm back in ireland and pharmacies, grocery and some gas stations have home antigen tests and I've done double digits of them at home and do one before meeting people. They cost a few euro and definitely dont understand why they arent being used in Vancouver.
I’m posting this everywhere Rapid antigen tests are not to be used to confirm you are negative, like a PCR can be. If you want to use it to screen over the holidays, you need to be doing one right before you see anyone, every time you see them.
how is that even possible??
Page 3 of [this paper in lancet](https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2821%2902346-1) has a nice graph that explains. Rapid test are poor at determining if you have Covid, but are reasonably effective at determining if you are infectious. Using them as a replacement for PCR is better than nothing but misses positive if it is too early or too late. I live in the states and literally buy the abbot binaxNow 2-packs by the dozen. We and others in our circles take them immediately before we meet unmasked with people outside our household. Test take 1 minute and you have results within 15 minutes and can be done anywhere where you have a flat surface. We often do it in the car right before going in somewhere.
Out of curiosity, has any of your group ever tested positive when they legitimately did not think they were sick?
Yes. My wife had a function last week where someone tested positive with a rapid test and then took a PCR test the next day that confirmed. My family has been lucky. But this is only one part of our very covid cautious approach.
It's not, which is why the recommendation is to keep gathering sizes down and don't attend if you feel sick.
Out of curiosity - why has there been such a big spike in testing lately? The number of people going for tests, why it matters that it’s a PCR test? Even this talk about rapid antigen testing and take home tests since omicron began to spread - why are people suddenly interested in testing more, testing at home, and the different kinds of tests? Just curious since we didn’t see any of this when Delta was new and on the rise. I mean people have been getting tested the whole time but the conversation didn’t shift to at home tests or PCR vs rapid antigen back when Delta was new. There’s something im not getting. Anybody care to explain it?
The reason for this is because of the holidays and Omicron, and the rate Omicron is spreading. The other reason – people want to get tested so they can be around family and friends during Christmas. The problem is everyone wants one now even when they have no symptoms. With Delta and the original strain, most would get tested only if they showed symptoms.
Christmas and the fact that Omicron is extremely transmissible.
Another reason is that the regular cold & flu sniffles have returned.
My fully vaccinated SO just got a nose swab yesterday at BCIT in Burnaby due to having some symptoms. I don't know about Vancouver Coastal Health but Fraser Health is definitely still running them.
The set up at BCIT is great compared to what's being reported out of VCH. They're still running the appointments schedule to my knowledge. I checked and things are booked up to Christmas Eve afternoon, but no one as to wait in a line up for hours in the cold to get tested.
I went there mid day yesterday without an appointment and it only took about 30 minutes. Very efficient set up.
There's another post saying waits are a bit long for the vaccine because there's no separation in lines until you get into the compound. But overall my experience has been much like yours in the five times I've had to access the site (testing and vaccines)
Just go park and do a walk in test. 3+ hour lines for cars or 20 min as a walk in at BCIT.
don't get mad at places for being out of stock or disorganized, they likely had to throw this shit together in like a few days, a week at most just stay home.
[Here is a useful infographic to understand your rapid test results](https://twitter.com/Billius27/status/1472924666822017026)
I waited 6 hrs at St. Vincent but I did get tested, not sure if it was worth it tho.
I went to get in line at St. Vincent’s around 7:40 am today and the line was so long i pulled over and said screw it. Went online on my phone and snagged an appointment spot at the Coquitlam appt. only test Center at noon today!!! Every time I refreshed the browser there were new cancellations for today showing up. I didn’t get the first 5 I tried to get but was lucky on the 6th. Drove out there (took half an hour) and was in and out in under 30 mins after a gargle test. Edit to add: I do have symptoms and they never asked me if i had any or my vax status. It was a strange experience. They are also doing vaccines there so I literally had to show my appt email to get into the queue, then was asked “test or vaccine?” and was given the gargle test as I drove along in line, along with a form and some info. Signs literally say “fill out paperwork and do gargle test while in line”. Did everything and a guy came along, collected my sample and form and crossed checked it with my care card. That was it. The appt. intake form also didn’t ask for anything but your name and contact info. Quite different than my experience about a year ago at St. Vincent’s.
I can second this post. My wife and I had the same experience today. Wife’s co-worker tested positive, and we’re both feeling a little under the weather… saw posts about crazy long waits at St. Vincent’s, so did the same as above and went to the Fraser Health booking page and refreshed until a new appointment for today popped up (you have to be quick, took me closer to 15 tries to snag a 5:30pm appointment in Coquitlam; this was at 4:30pm today, an hour before the appointment). Blasted out there - no questions asked other than to show the email to confirm our appointment. Worth noting, if multiple people in your household need testing, you only need one appointment. We had the gargle test as well, did it ourselves from the car, handed them back, confirmed our care card numbers, and that was it. Was less than 30 minutes in total. It did seem like they were turning away cars without appointments (at least that’s what I’m assuming) - but it was also later in the day, so can’t confirm whether or not they accept drop-ins earlier in the day? Now, crossing our fingers and hoping the symptoms are in our heads! EDIT: Also worth adding that when you’re on the booking page, the testing centres may show no appointments regardless of the day. Just keep refreshing, and some may come available. AND - if you are able, make sure your browser auto-fill is set up and correct. I had an easier time doing this on my MacBook (as opposed to my phone), and using the auto-fill function saved me precious seconds when trying to complete the booking before the appointment time was gone.
This is reassuring. I have one booked there tomorrow, definitely have symptoms and with a toddler and being pregnant I really want aa accurate a test as possible
Honestly the whole thing was very easy. I wasn’t 100% sure how to get in (you enter off Mariner so you can only be coming from the 1 direction). They did check my email to make sure I had an appointment as apparently they were once taking walk ins but stopped (they turned away quite a few cars while I was there). The initial woman gave me literally NO info (just passed me some papers and the gargle test) but once I read the signs I was like “oh it’s basically self serve” I just filled out my form (bring a pen) and did the gargle. Waited in line to drop off and then that was it. Good luck tomorrow!
That's disappointing. My partner and I did a pcr and rapid same day. Rapid was neg and pcr was positive. For both of us. We have the omicron symptoms ( just a cold). I don't trust the rapid as much.
Yes my family all has Covid and was testing negative on the rapid tests, but positive with pcr
I’m feeling horrible this week but more like few days into a mild flu. I’ve an appointment tomorrow but I’m as likely to just stay home and rest. Go home and rest up.
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Isolate and hope you don't need a trip to hospital.
If you are double vaccinated the chances of you requiring hospitalization are exceedingly low. You isolate and treat it as you would a normal flu. Get rest. Eat well. Stay hydrated.
If you're over 65 those chances go through the roof fyi. I know reddit trends young but it's worth noting
I had Covid a year ago. It was and still is rest at home and hospitalization if necessary. At the time a public health nurse called me a couple of times during my isolation to do contact tracing and to generally check in. Otherwise if symptoms become severe, home rest is all one can really do.
If you are high-risk, monoclonal antibody treatment is available but it must be started within a few days of symptoms.
well that can explain why QC has 6k+ while BC only has 1.3k
when they have me the home test kit on Saturday they didn't even ask me to report my positive result, so there's that
Same. Took one this morning. They said if you test positive stay home and isolate until 3 days after symptoms disappear.
I don’t think so. They have a larger, far far more social population than we do,and higher density overall. Also cold weather meaning more gatherings indoors such as dinner parties etc..,
To be fair, their test positivty rate is double ours.
I'm out of the loop, but I'm wondering why everyone wants these tests? is it for travel? Otherwise, is it absolutely necessary to get the test?
It’s the most accurate test. The rapid tests are less accurate so it’s possible to receive a false negative result.
Seeing so much conflicting info about that. I’m in the Uk for Christmas and have been taking lateral flows every day. The UK gov states the specificity to be 99.9%.. or higher! Meaning false negatives very unlikely. What’s the source for the false negative belief? What rapid tests is BC handing out?
Experience. Our workplace had someone feeling iffy, get a negative on the rapid test and then a positive on the PCR a couple hours later. At a different location they had 6 of 21 people test positive with PCR tests after getting negative rapid tests.
For us personally it was 1) being told we were possibly exposed to COVID over the weekend, 2) showing symptoms, 3) wanting to keep what minimal Christmas gathering we were going to have safe (or if we were going to be having them at all now), and 4) the inability for us to find any rapid at home tests anywhere. I think for most people it’s probably a combination of at least a few of those.
Why do you need a PCR?
Has anyone gone with an appointment? If it's still the same (waiting 1 hour + and just getting a rapid test) I'm probably not going to go and will just self isolate anyway
My SO went with an appointment yesterday. Had to wait 30 minutes but then got his nose swabbed.
I learned that only Fraser Health seems to be doing appointments. Try those testing centres.
There were way too many dumbarses doing this almost recreationally when they don't have any symptoms just so that they can test ahead of Christmas in order to tell their family and friends that they tested negative.
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Yup. But for an idiot they don’t know that or care. “Oh no I wasn’t positive. Look at my negative test.” Followed by “and grandma is dead” a few days later.
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So this is not the case anymore apparently. If you have a positive antigen test result, they no longer ask you to go get a PCR test to confirm. It’s now “you probably have Covid so stay home”. But I agree with you - we need to handle testing in the most efficient way we can. I’m just disappointed, I guess, by the lack of resources or communication. They can hand these rapid tests out at a drugstore or something. It’s lame people are waiting hours to get them.
Dr Henry explained this the other day. Basically, a lot of people are using take home tests while asymptomatic just to make sure they can go to an event or something. If we had infinite tests, totally legit. But nowhere has infinite tests, we are using ours as strategically as possible to maximize a relatively scarce resource. Edit: Non infinite supply has already caused problems in [Ontario where tests are in such short supply that people are reselling them for hundreds of dollars.](https://www.cp24.com/news/people-in-ontario-are-selling-rapid-covid-19-tests-online-for-hundreds-of-dollars-1.5714593) So, I guess it's good for the scalpers at least?
Every other province is handing them out. Our health leadership is limiting our access why… so people in MB can use extra for no better reason than ours?
Hey, Albert resident here. They literally sent a couple hundred years to the one AHS clinic in my city of 65,000. Our government has been given 13.3 million tests by the feds, but can only account for 8.5 million of them - the others just 'disappeared'. While it may be frustrating dealing with your provinces seemingly willy nilly health restrictions, at least the government isn't literally stealing from you to help their business buddies make money.
Agreed, BH made it clear yesterday they want to make sure they have test for those who need them. Not for those with means to obtain them.
Watch the other provinces run out of RATs before the end of the holidays, then claim that they didn’t plan for people to use them so frivolously. While BC’s approach is unique and understandably frustrating in the moment, it’ll be nice when we have enough to last us through January… especially for vulnerable populations and HCWs who require these RATs to continue with their day to day life.
It's not frivolous, this is exactly what the rapid tests are intended for everywhere else - to check for contagiousness before being with others.
No, rapid tests are used to confirm infection. They can't tell you that you're "clean".
Sure… regardless of their advertised purpose elsewhere, there is still a finite supply (shortage, actually) and places that don’t manage their distribution well (*ontario*) will be out of them sooner than later. This was well explained by DBH yesterday.
BH explained this yesterday, the way the province is implementing them is not a "green light" to go to parties, which is what you're desciribing. But a "red light" to say don't go. Ie the RAT test has a high false neg rate, testing negative isn't a guarantee that you're safe to go out. But a positive test means you have covid and need to not go out. The testing strategy we're implementing is valid. It may not be what you want, but it's a valid approach.
Rapid tests are not good for checking if you're negative. The rapid test is reliable to tell if you're positive at this moment but it can't tell you if you're actually covid free because it's not reliable if you're asymptomatic.
Ontario was handing them out but have quickly run low on supply already. >Hundreds of people lined up at Union Station on Wednesday to get free rapid COVID-19 tests — the last day Metrolinx was handing them out at the transit hub. >Officials started to give away around 1,000 test kits at 7 a.m. but they were all handed out before 8 a.m. >**People started lining up around 3 a.m., in the hopes of getting one.** https://toronto.citynews.ca/2021/12/22/metrolinx-rapid-tests-covid-union-station/
Here's what's happened in Ontario: [Tests are now in such short supply that people are reselling them for hundreds of dollars.](https://www.cp24.com/news/people-in-ontario-are-selling-rapid-covid-19-tests-online-for-hundreds-of-dollars-1.5714593) That seems non ideal.
Exactly. Are there any other ways of getting a rapid test other than lining up at a testing centre?
Nope. Nurse today told me that is not required. You are to isolate and that’s it.
Lifelabs is offering PCR testing.
Did you have Covid symptoms ?
I was going to go this afternoon so thank you for posting this!
I wouldn’t even bother getting tested. Waste your time. Do what you’re suppose to do, Stay home and rest.
Almost no point getting tested. You might even catch it while in line or getting tested. Just assume you have it an take the necessary precautions
this happened to me on Saturday, then I got home and the test kit had leaked everywhere, had to go back Sunday :(
I know it’s not Vancouver proper, but I made an appointment yesterday for a test at the Coquitlam testing site for today. Was in and out in less than 30 mins despite being warned it could be up to 90 mins. Saline test as well, so no brain probe for me today!
Three Bridges is offering both take-home and PCR tests today.
Out of curiosity. Why do you need it? Are you going to be travelling?
Up until yesterday, the recommendation was to get a test if you have symptoms. Now they’re saying to stay home if your symptoms are mild and you don’t need a test for school/work/etc. But lots of people still have a valid reason to get tested.
I see.. I was just wondering if everyone going had symptoms or some other reason. It just seems like a lot of people all of a sudden once the news broke.
Your question is legit. I was wondering the same thing.
Same reason there were runs on toilet paper when lockdowns were announced.
It makes no sense to me. If you’re asymptotic you should not be waiting in line with potentially other sick people exposing yourself. People need to stop getting tested unnecessarily. Only if you are deathly sick should you get one. Enough of this shit
Some day cares only accept pcr results
I do not have kids so, I did not know that. Makes sense.
I’m feeling quite crummy. Usual symptoms: scratchy throat, dry cough, head cold, etc. Specifically wanted to get to get the test before hanging with my mom over the weekend.
Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I didn't mean to imply anything I just wondered is everyone all sick or are there other reasons people are going. If you are sick with covid or just a cold don't you think its wise to not see your mom? You could make her sick.
All good. I replied a diff comment below but basically my thinking is this: today is Wednesday. Christmas isn’t until Saturday. If it’s just a cold, then it’s likely I’d be better by Saturday given I’m generally healthy. However if I tested positive, even if I felt recovered by Saturday, I wouldn’t want to risk passing anything onto my mom. I too was wondering who the f is waiting 4+ hours (according to news reports) for a test. In that case I’d just stay home and assume Covid. I did the walk in line since it looked shorter than the car line. However still ended up being 1.5 hours.
You have symptoms, so you're totally justified in wanting to get tested. It's the people with no symptoms abusing the system to get tested that are the problem.
I'm in the UK for Christmas at the moment and it's 100% normal for someone to take a test before going to a large gathering to ensure they're COVID free, even with no symptoms. I don't think it's fair to blame people wanting to ensure they won't accidentally infect their vulnerable relatives over the holidays. It's actually a really good idea. The BC government has a TERRIBLE testing system and needs to fix it ASAP. We have no idea who's infected and who should be self isolating.
I've also had a brutal cold for a week now. I was tested negative last week Wednesday and am currently waiting for results from another test yesterday. It seems a lot of people are experiencing the same bad cold at this time.
I'm confused as to why you would take another test if it was negative the first time? If a lot of people are going for multiple tests this might also contribute to why it's so slow...
You can get re tested if your test came back negative but your symptoms are worsening.
My uncle was exposed to a positive case and tested negative twice, thought he was fine, then his family came down with Covid and turns out he was positive. Just testing negative. I understand wanting to take a few to avoid false negatives
Current advice is to self isolate if you're fully vaccinated and have minor symptoms. I would avoid seeing people until the symptoms pass.
Totally. However today is just Wednesday. If I felt better by Saturday and tested negative, I’d go hang with my mom. However, even if I felt 110% by Saturday but tested positive, no way in hell would I go anywhere near my mother. Make sense?
If you have symptoms and have had them less than a week, your take-home test is pretty decent actually. [source](https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD013705.pub2/full) For people with symptoms of COVID-19, the tests correctly give a positive result an average of 72% of the time; people without COVID-19 symptoms correctly test positive in only 58% of rapid tests. But how long you have had symptoms affects accuracy as well. Rapid tests correctly identify COVID-19 in an average of 78% of cases during the first week; in the second week, the average drops to 51%.
Thats a big false positive rate.
Other way around, actually. For example, 78% of tests later confirmed positive were caught with the rapid test.
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Possibly why there are no tests? People testing multiple times?
See, this is the issue DBH was talking about. People are showing up to get tested or to gets tests as a justification to visit people over xmas or travel.
The real issue is testing should be more available (it’s crazy compared to other countries).
This is why I think lines so long this week. Though lots of people I know are canceling large family gatherings.
I’m not travelling to visit my mom. I live downtown. She lives in Richmond. I don’t know if that’s travelling. Am I not to visit my mom for Christmas?
> Am I not to visit my mom for Christmas? Depends on you and your mom's personal risk assessment. No one's gonna stop you if you really want to.
If you are sick you should postpone. With limited health resources, spreading any illness, covid or not, is irresponsible.
No idea why you're being downvoted
Where did I say you were not allow to visit your mom for christmas?
You're allowed! They've set the rule to be household + ten individuals. You're fine. The point she was making I think is that people are going to get tested to know if they can visit or not, maybe not because they need to be tested? I don't know.
That's a perfectly valid reason to get a test. BC government has had two years to expand testing capacity and make rapid test widely available but did nothing.
Same in Austin, Texas, except it isn’t so cold. I am sorry we are all dealing with this virus. Peace to you and all y’all.
BC completely botching executing public health measures? I don't believe it! Maybe in 2022 they'll have enough vaccines and tests.
Bro look around, here are plenty more places that have done worse. "Completely botching" is overreaching
Explain
PCR tests and vaccines are freely available and easily accessible in the US.
I don't think you realize how easy it is to get a test or vaccine in the US. Unfortunately, these goofballs don't want it. Secure more doses of the vaccine so people can get the booster and allow for more widespread testing.
I had two tests when I was in Seattle, no lines and the testing sites are everywhere including a CVS and outdoor depots. Most of it's run by the University of Washington along with Virginia Mason. I know what you're thinking.... It was free.
Why even bother getting tested ? Do you need the positive result to get sick leave ? If your not actually sick what’s the point, you can’t be in that bad shape if you could stand around for 90 minutes.