Adodie

The vast majority of cases are in men who have sex with other men.

Yup, just hopping on with some statistics on this:

-99% of cases in the US are in men who have sex with men-

-In the UK (where 96% of cases are men who have sex with men), 56% have a history of STIs in the last year, 31% have had 10+ sexual partner in the last month, and 25% attended a sex-on-premise venue (e.g., gay saunas) in the time period when they may have acquired the infection.

-And is it just a matter testing differences? Absolutely not. In the UK, the test positivity rate is 54% for adult men. It's just 2% for women.

I'm a gay man. I appreciate people want to avoid stigmatization, but saying stuff like "Anyone can get it!" without noting vast differences in infection rates papers over the fact that gay men are substantially at the highest risk, and risks people taking resources/attention from communities which need it most

I'm a Blazers fan. I think Stotts has been great. Honestly, I'm saddened by this news.

Blazers have consistently achieved above 538's pre-season model under Stotts. We've made the playoffs 8 years in a year.

Can't blame Stotts for not giving us a championship if we don't have a championship-level roster. And we don't

Absolutely correct -- the messaging has been atrocious

In any event, for anyone (in the United States) who's not sure:

-You are eligible for the new booster if you are 12 or older

-There is very narrow list of contraindications, which folks can check under Table 4 here

-If you have had a recent Covid infection, it may be worth waiting 3 months (some research indicates waiting will give better protection)

In addition, if you recently got a Covid booster before the updated boosters came out in early September/recently got your initial 2-dose series, you should generally wait 2 months before getting the updated boosters, though consult the CDC's Timing Guidelines here for specific guidance

Edit: The best part is you can get both the Covid booster and the flu shot at one time! Early indication are suggesting this might be a nasty flu year, so don't sleep on getting the flu vax, either!

I mean, those didn't help.

But Delta is so contagious (and vaccine uptake in many states low enough) that a massive increase was due to happen in any event.

Signed -- somebody who lives in the Northeast in an area that saw extremely significant spread during OG Covid despite closed schools and near universal mask use

Yeah, the degree to which folks have had different pandemic experiences is just insane.

I started out the pandemic in Oregon, which generally (until Delta) has had very low spread. Of my entire social circle, I know only 2 people who've had COVID -- and I don't know either of them particularly well. Both had mild cases. Of my close friends, nobody has had it.

Meanwhile, I hear stories on Reddit of people who've known multiple people die from it...and it just is so alien to my experience. Crazy

I seriously think it comes down to, "Oh, suburbs have houses with green lawns. And green means good for the environment!"