“Up to 90 volunteers in UK to take part in pioneering Covid infection trial” (Guardian):
Approval has been given for an initial trial that will involve up to 90 carefully screened, healthy, adult volunteers aged between 18 and 30. They will be exposed to the coronavirus in a safe, controlled environment. It is hoped further trials will follow.
“These are quite unique studies, able to accelerate not only understanding of diseases caused by infection, but also to accelerate the discovery of new treatments and of vaccines,” said Peter Openshaw, a professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London.
Young, healthy, volunteers are being recruited as they are known to be at low risk of complications from the virus. Openshaw said the safety of volunteers was paramount: “None of us want to do this if there is any appreciable risk”
So… there is no “appreciable risk” for someone under 30 to experience a 100-percent chance of becoming infected with coronavirus.
What about opening a public school with healthy children and slender healthy teachers under age 30 (recruit some new teachers as needed)? I hope that we can all agree that this would be way too risky!
Related:
As you know, I agree completely! Doesn’t everyone?
Quarantined infected cruise ships weren’t enough of an infection test?
Everything depends on whether it’s politically expedient. Until Good Governance Gavin Newsom in California was facing the real threat of a recall election, getting kids back to school wasn’t a big priority. Now that the water’s getting hotter, he’s worried about losing parents.
Here’s what the #Science says in the complicated Kabuki theater of California:
https://news.yahoo.com/recall-threat-grows-california-gov-130019079.html
“Facing the very real possibility of a recall election in the fall, getting children back to class — and stemming growing frustration among parents — has emerged as a top priority for Newsom.
“Parents want to know when their kids can go back to school safely,” said Robin Swanson, a Democratic political consultant, who added that safeguards such as vaccines for teachers and personal protective equipment are important to many parents. “If you lose parents, you lose California.”
There is an appreciable risk (say 1%?) that even a young ‘healthy’ individual has an underlying health condition that puts them at risk of a moderate/severe case of COVID-19. Maybe the screening reduces the chances still further? The volunteers are still chancing their lives.
E.g. Long covid: Damage to multiple organs presents in young, low risk patients
https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m4470
Michael, thanks for the example of how Coronafaith is superior to logic. For those “young” patients (average age 44) the researchers “could not establish a causal link between organ impairment and infection” but they didn’t let it stop them from calling it “long covid”.
I tell everyone that I am sure I have “long Covid”. My energy level is low and everything hurts compared to 10 years ago. Thus, I must have had Covid 10 years ago and it has been gradually destroying my body.
@philg, I noticed then when switched to purer type of alcohol like Reyka from Jimmy Dean “long Covid” symptoms ease somehow.