Dem
49
GOP
51
I am going to write this in first person, which is not our normal style, but is entirely correct for this brief piece.
First of all, I recognize that I am very late to the COVID party. Many readers will already know most or all of the information here. That said, there are still some folks who have escaped COVID thus far. Just about everyone I know who had avoided COVID thus far has been hit by the latest variant. So, even if you've dodged the bullet thus far, you should brace yourself for the possibility that the party's about to end.
Obviously, if you have insurance, you should make sure to have some at-home tests on hand. That said, the at-home test that I took produced inconclusive results, so it was necessary to go to a doctor for confirmation. Assuming you do get it, you'll need Paxlovid, which apparently does help reduce the duration of the disease. Also, buy some gum or hard candies, because Paxlovid creates a godawful taste in your mouth that lasts 3 hours and cannot be washed away.
If you don't have insurance, the federal government will be distributing free at-home tests again soon; you can get information here (the program is scheduled to start at the end of this month). If you end up needing Paxlovid, the manufacturer has a program called PAXCESS where, if you qualify, you can get the drug for free. Also, many states and municipalities (mostly... OK, pretty much exclusively, ones where Democrats are in control) have some sort of assistance with testing and treatment. You can use Google to check if this will work for you.
What about vaccines? Well, it does not appear that there is a central program providing free vaccinations anymore. If you have to pay out of pocket, it's about $100. Many localities (again, pretty much the blue ones) do still have free vaccinations available. Again, lean on Google here.
For my part, I have been vaccinated against COVID six ways to Sunday. I've had at least four shots, and I think it may be five or six. The fact that I got the disease anyhow may be interpreted as a failure, but that is not how I see it. On Monday, I was terribly ill. In particular, I had a 104-degree fever, and spent about 12 hours hallucinating (the tiny contribution I made to yesterday's blog was written maybe 20 minutes after the fever broke). And then, on Tuesday, I was... pretty close to fine. Think: mild cold. Some congestion, a loss of stamina, my back hurts.
You could attribute this to the Paxlovid, except that I got dramatically better before taking the first dose. It's also possible the new variant is really bad on Day One, and mild thereafter, but that's not usually how viruses work. That leaves us with the simplest explanation, that the oft-made assertion that even if the vaccines fail to protect you against the disease, they significantly reduce its virulence is true. That's certainly the explanation I am going with.
Anyhow, please be prepared and please take all precautions. And finally, to the many readers who wrote in with well-wishes, I am very grateful. They helped a lot, in particular, during the morning hours when I was still feeling really cruddy. (Z)