On Friday, October 23, 2020 at 8:34:32 AM UTC-5, son_of_flubber wrote:
Here is a way to do something about the impact of Covid-19 on Soaring.

COVID-19 Prevention Network (CoVPN) Volunteer Screening Registry is the way to connect volunteers to practical studies related Covid-19.

For example, volunteers, especially older volunteers are sorely needed for Phase III studies of vaccines. Signing up for the registry just lets researchers know that you're open to being asked to participate in a study.

If you're just curious, check out this video narrated by Harrison Ford. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfc2..._source=Eloqua

Or go directly to
https://coronaviruspreventionnetwork.org/ for the facts.

The bottleneck of recruiting participants is delaying the rollout of a vaccine, and you can do something about it.
This is DrDan Johnson, SoaringRx writer, retired general internist, and Sr. AME...
Think carefully about this before participating:
1: Both for and against participating in a vaccine *trial* is that the death risk and severe-illness risk from COVID-19 disease are very high for us elderly. In particular, no elderly person can safely participate in a vaccine trial that inoculates the recipient with the virus (I know of none in the US; have read about 1 in the UK) or that expects recipients to engage in high-risk activities (choirs, weddings, funerals, bars, cocktail parties, etc.; neglecting mask use indoors in public spaces).
(see, for examples, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019...th-by-age.html or
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/a...mptoms/615382/ or
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7397751/
2: The FAA has not issued regulatory guidance related to this vaccine or vaccine trials. It is not reasonable to interpret the FAA practice of not permitting pilot use of any newly approved medication for 1 year after marketing has begun, as applying to a vaccine: the FAA has not taken this stance with any prior vaccine (e.g., the influenza vaccine is changed nearly every year!), and the prohibition on new meds has been applied to regular use, not one-time administration; this is related chiefly to the possibility of adverse cognitive effects.
FAA guidance is at https://www.faa.gov/coronavirus/regulatory_updates/ and
https://www.faa.gov/licenses_certifi...certification/
3: AMEs are independent designees, and in my experience sometimes interpret FAA guidance and regulations in idiosyncratic ways rather than checking with a Regional Flight Surgeon before making a determination. In any case, AMEs *do not* DENY pilots, they DO NOT ISSUE -- the difference is very important, and non-issuance is much easier to appeal, with a letter arguing that non-issuance seems to have been inappropriate, and including supporting medical evidence to the Regional Flight Surgeon.
4: It is very important, and very useful for every one of us to continue to wear N-95 or 3-layer cloth masks whenever with other people who we don't know to be uninfected (basically, not sick with respiratory symptoms for 2 weeks and no contact with any such person or being unmasked in a crowded public space during that time).
Studies have shown a dramatic reduction in both the risk of getting infected, and the severity of illness if infected, in people who wash hands and wear masks -- about a 75-80% reduction of both infectivity and severity.
Studies have also shown that wearing any cloth in front of our nose and mouth reduce giving and getting the infection. From memory, a single layer of cotton (bandana, etc) reduces infection by 40-50%; a 3-layer cotton mask by about 90%, an N-95 mask by about 97%
succinct, jargon-filled medical article: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10..7326/M20-2567
verbose lay article: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02801-8
5: Your decision to volunteer or participate should be based, not only on personal altruism or self-protection, but on a careful understanding of what the study vaccine is, exactly, and what are the known and potential risks of receiving it or the placebo.
6: Regardless, now is the time for all of us to get the annual influenza vaccine because getting both viruses together is ... um... unthinkable.