Here we go again...back to mask wearing and WFH

hollydolly

hollydolly

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London England
The Prime minister has announced tonight that we're to go back to Working from home, and to wearing masks everywhere inside again...
At a Downing Street press conference, the PM declared that people should once again work from home where possible, as well as extending use of masks and introducing Covid passports for nightclubs...etc..


Boris Johnson announced this evening that the Government is implementing its Covid Plan B.
It means:
WFH
The return of work from home guidance. People will be told to work from home in England from Monday if they are able to.
Face masks
Face masks will be made compulsory in most public indoor venues including in cinemas and theatres from this Friday. They will not be required in pubs, restaurants and gyms.
Vaccine passports
The NHS Covid pass will be compulsory to gain access to nightclubs and other large venues where large crowds gather.
This will apply to all unseated indoor venues with more than 500 people, unseated outdoor venues with more than 4,000 people and any venue with more than 10,000 people.
Two vaccine doses will be treated as fully-vaccinated but this will be kept under review because of the booster programme.
A negative lateral flow test will also be sufficient.
This requirement will be rolled out in one week's time to give businesses time to prepare.
Contact testing
Contacts of Omicron cases will be told to take daily coronavirus tests instead of having to self-isolate. They will have to quarantine if they test positive.
The premier said it was necessary to move to Plan B to 'buy time' for the NHS and to learn more about the new strain.

'It has become increasingly clear that Omicron is growing much faster than the previous Delta variant and is spreading rapidly all around the world,' he said.

While 568 cases had been confirmed in the UK 'the true number is certain to be much higher' - potentially as many as 10,000.

'Most worryingly, there is evidence that the doubling time of Omicron could currently be between two and three days.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10289335/Boris-pushes-button-Plan-B-wfh-masks.html
 

Thankfully there are no more lockdowns here and both Victoria and N.S.W. have agreed to keep the borders open.
We still have masks, which I am fine with.
We do have to show the double vaccination passport to gain entry into retail stores, pubs/ clubs restaurants and coffee shops.
And stores still have a maximum number of shoppers policy in place.
I dare say this is the new normal.
 
This was predicted long ago to the extent it may be a very long time before this mutant disappears. Ironically, I was with a nurse on Nov 29th, and she was complaining about having to wear a mask and reminded me, nurses, and all medical staff will be the last to remove them.
 

Tish said:
Thankfully there are no more lockdowns here and both Victoria and N.S.W. have agreed to keep the borders open.
We still have masks, which I am fine with.
We do have to show the double vaccination passport to gain entry into retail stores, pubs/ clubs restaurants and coffee shops.
And stores still have a maximum number of shoppers policy in place.
I dare say this is the new normal.
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yes I was accepting the mask wearing indoors as the new normal too.. altho' all of us who are double or tripled vaxed have had to not wear any masks indoors for a few months now..( altho' I still do )..but everyone was just getting back to work in offices and admin jobs of all types after wfh for along time, .. the country has been running on go slow now for almost 2years, with admin all WFH...and now they're getting sent back to WFH again... and again, the NHS won't have the beds or appointments available for those who are suffering from Chronic illnesses... there's already a backlog of several years waiting lists for people with potentially fatal conditions.. :(
 
We are seeing mask mandates in the surrounding counties.

The county executive for my county implemented a national ambulance contract to help with shortages of trained EMTs and equipment.

Scheduling of routine surgical procedures is on hold at all area hospitals.

The national guard is being asked to help with immunizations, hospitals, and nursing homes in some areas of the state.

This is due to an uptick in Delta hospitalizations. Omicron has been detected in the surrounding area but so far it seems to be relatively mild in folks that have been vaccinated/boosted.

I doubt that we will see any attempts to restrict business because we simply can't afford it. The various levels of government have already lost so much tax revenue and spent so much on economic stimulus, unemployment, testing, vaccinations, etc... that there is nothing left.

As far as continuing to wear a mask and take preventive measures, it's a very minor thing that has little or no impact on my life.
 
Aunt Bea said:
We are seeing mask mandates in the surrounding counties.

The county executive for my county implemented a national ambulance contract to help with shortages of trained EMTs and equipment.

Scheduling of routine surgical procedures is on hold at all area hospitals.

The national guard is being asked to help with immunizations, hospitals, and nursing homes in some areas of the state.

This is due to an uptick in Delta hospitalizations. Omicron has been detected in the surrounding area but so far it seems to be relatively mild in folks that have been vaccinated/boosted.

I doubt that we will see any attempts to restrict business because we simply can't afford it. The various levels of government have already lost so much tax revenue and spent so much on economic stimulus, unemployment, testing, vaccinations, etc... that there is nothing left.

As far as continuing to wear a mask and take preventive measures, it's a very minor thing that has little or no impact on my life.
Click to expand...

"so far it seems to be relatively mild in folks that have been vaccinated/boosted."

So far, there have been no reported deaths linked to the omicron variant vaccinated or unvaccinated. So it seems to be thus far mild for both. Let's hope so.
 
Aunt Bea said:
We are seeing mask mandates in the surrounding counties.

The county executive for my county implemented a national ambulance contract to help with shortages of trained EMTs and equipment.

Scheduling of routine surgical procedures is on hold at all area hospitals.

The national guard is being asked to help with immunizations, hospitals, and nursing homes in some areas of the state.

This is due to an uptick in Delta hospitalizations. Omicron has been detected in the surrounding area but so far it seems to be relatively mild in folks that have been vaccinated/boosted.

I doubt that we will see any attempts to restrict business because we simply can't afford it. The various levels of government have already lost so much tax revenue and spent so much on economic stimulus, unemployment, testing, vaccinations, etc... that there is nothing left.g

As far as continuing to wear a mask and take preventive measures, it's a very minor thing that has little or no impact on my life.
Click to expand...
Mask wearing is Not a "very minor thing". Reintroducing mask wearing is just to distract people until the U.K. hits the country with forced vaccine passports for everything. The technology is ready. This is what the pandemic is all about. People need to awaken in a hurry.

It all started with a lockdown. And a mask. People said it was no big deal but it is a very big deal now isn't it.
 
chic said:
Mask wearing is Not a "very minor thing". Reintroducing mask wearing is just to distract people until the U.K. hits the country with forced vaccine passports for everything. The technology is ready. This is what the pandemic is all about. People need to awaken in a hurry.

It all started with a lockdown. And a mask. People said it was no big deal but it is a very big deal now isn't it.
Click to expand...
No, it isn't a very big deal if wearing a mask helps to keep me out of the hospital.

I may not be doing much, but I'm doing what I can to keep myself safe.

It's sad that you have so little to offer in the way of constructive information to help others deal with the pandemic.
 
Its not the Mask wearing that is a problem.. I have never stopped wearing a mask even tho' we've been allowed to be mask free for months now.. I'll happily wear a mask if it prevents me from getting sick from others.. what concerns me is getting people to WFH again... it actually has brought this country to it's knees... and just as we're starting to get people back into the office, back we go again ...and further to that we still haven't been able to see our primary Doctors... I haven't had a face to face appointment with my doctor in well over a year despite having health issues.. and so many people have had their serious illnesses not spotted in time due to having to commit to only Zoom appointments , and this again just as demand was being made for Doctors to start seeing patients in their offices.. ( surgeries we call them) this happens..

We can only hope that this period of semi lockdown...and it may yet become a full lockdown despite BJ's assurances to the contrary... is short lived
 
Aunt Bea said:
No, it isn't a very big deal if wearing a mask helps to keep me out of the hospital.

I may not be doing much, but I'm doing what I can to keep myself safe.

It's sad that you have so little to offer in the way of constructive information to help others deal with the pandemic.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I am not crazy about the mask thing either, but as you say it is a very small thing if it helps avoid serious illness and death. Same thing for boosters -- I'll cheerfully get them the rest of my life if that's what it takes.
 
It's a shame that this pandemic has become so "politicized". All of the "credible" evidence shows that masks, distancing and getting vaccinated all help control the spread of this virus.....yet, there seems to be no shortage of people who seem to think that this is all some sort of "conspiracy". It seems that the only way to change their minds is if they, or someone they are close to, becomes ill, or dies.
 
The Welsh FM is pushing for a full UK lockdown.
Since he can do what he likes in Wales I am fearful of tomorrows announcements here.
The measures being taken in England we already had.
I fear that Wales will be out on a limb again with everything closed,concerts cancelled,no crowds at pro sport and no amateur sport at all.
And no amount of mask wearing or showing of Covid Passes will get rid of Covid.
We were sold vaccination as the way back to normality.
We were lied to.
I really do hope common sense prevails....I cannot endure another lockdown.
 
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Furryanimal said:
The Welsh FM is pushing for a full UK lockdown.
Since he can do what he likes in Wales I am fearful of tomorrows announcements here.
The measures being taken in England we already had.
I fear that Wales will be out on a limb again with everything closed,concerts cancelled,no crowds at pro sport and no amateur sport at all.
And no amount of mask wearing or showing of Covid Passes will get rid of Covid.
We were sold vaccination as the way back to normality.
We were lied to.
I really do hope common sense prevails....I cannot endure another lockdown.
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I don't think many people could endure another Lockdown in the UK...especially another Christmas of families not being together..
 
The world has gone mad. People watch too much TV and they believe anything the big business corporations tell them. Me, I stopped reading or listening to news about Covid about 6 months ago. I am not even reading what you all wrote here. I am posting just because I saw the title and had to put in my 2 cents worth. As a note here, I had a "little ole' lady" visit me yesterday afternoon. She told me that everyone is afraid of getting Covid. I told her I'm not because where in our province 1 person/day dies from Covid, over 8 people/day die of cancer. Of course, she could not reply. The newspapers and the TV and the internet have brain washed the general population into some sort of stupor of fear.
 
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hollydolly said:
I don't think many people could endure another Lockdown in the UK...especially another Christmas of families not being together..
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Update..and relief..

Wales will remain at alert level zero - meaning all businesses can remain open and there are no restrictions on meeting people.

The latest three week review by Welsh Government has taken place and despite worries over the impact of the Omicron variant on Covid rates, no major changes are being introduced.

However, the government has now asked people to wear face coverings in pubs and restaurants when they aren’t eating or drinking. The new rules will come into force from Saturday.

I can put up with that....for the uninitiated this is the same as Plan B in England.....I wonder where we can go when we have restrictions at level zero!
Anyway my exemption lanyard will get an airing at my concerts!
 
My building has a "singles club" which for years has organized parties, trips, lunches in restaurants, and so on. I'm not an active member, but have attended a few of their functions.

When they put up an invitation to a luncheon (tomorrow) at a popular restaurant, I signed up. They organized car pools and many people signed up to go.

But... then I saw that it was going to be held in the "private party room" of the restaurant. I've been to that room before (long before Covid), and it was crowded, had three long tables with people crowded around them, much too small a room for the number of people they were serving, and even then I wondered how many fire protection laws they were violating.

As soon as I learned they were holding the luncheon in that room, I cancelled my reservation. To my surprise, last night I learned that at least 4 other people had cancelled for the same reason. And we are all triple-vaccinated, and wear masks. (Obviously no one can wear a mask while eating at a restaurant). But we follow all the health precautions, and still feel that we have to use some common sense.

Missing out on one luncheon is not exactly one of life's tragedies, but it's an example of a small sacrifice we can choose to make, for the sake of our health and the health of those we come in contact with. Next week, we are celebrating my granddaughter's birthday at a different restaurant, there will be 6 of us, and the restaurant has spaced-out tables and is well ventilated. I would have hated to pass along that damned covid virus to anyone there, even though I know I am well-protected against it.

This is the new normal.
 
The devil in me is asking if we are just delaying the inevitable and eventually the virus will have its way with us, either in slow motion with mask mandates, social distancing, etc., or more quickly by living normally and getting it over with. The strong and cautious will survive and the weak and careless will be culled leading to a stronger and smarter society. It’s survival of the fittest to pass on those genes and it’s been going on for millions of years. (The devil made me write this.)
 
Don M. said:
It's a shame that this pandemic has become so "politicized". All of the "credible" evidence shows that masks, distancing and getting vaccinated all help control the spread of this virus.....yet, there seems to be no shortage of people who seem to think that this is all some sort of "conspiracy". It seems that the only way to change their minds is if they, or someone they are close to, becomes ill, or dies.
Click to expand...
Yes, well said. It's not the pandemic that's wrecking the nation so much as it is the crazy paranoid conspiracy addicts. And yes, these types can't comprehend the reality for others(selective empathy) until they or a loved one is devastated.
 

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