Maybe/Certainly this is a horrible take, but...

jpswensen · Post by **jpswensen** » February 9th, 2021, 11:13 am

for the collective mental health of the country and not having to miss two NCAA tournaments in a row, why are student athletes not considered "essential" and all of them get vaccinated? We are currently vaccinating around 1-2M people per day in the US.

In 2017-18, there were about 500k student athletes in the US (see https://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/me ... -time-high). This means that if they took 1% of their vaccinating capacity, then they could have vaccinated everyone related to collegiate athletics. If they were looking at just men's and women's college basketball, it could have been done in a week.

I realize that people who want it are not getting it, including my mother who has an appointment later this month, so thus the admission in the title that this is almost certainly a horrible take. This is also probably just a knee jerk reaction to 3 games in a row canceled after having had an 8 day break in games.

But it stinks.

Post by **aggies22** » February 9th, 2021, 11:29 am

I imagine you'll see most student athletes vaccinated over the summer.

OCDAggie · Post by **OCDAggie** » February 9th, 2021, 11:49 am

By the time we get around to vaccinating student-athletes over the summer, this virus will have mutated several more times and our current vaccines may be less than 40% effective. I know a local company, Cytiva, part of GE Healthcare/Thermo Fisher, works with Moderna on providing components that go into the current Moderna COVID vaccine. Moderna is already working on a revised vaccine to combat the South Africa strain. Now that we have a good portion of the older folks vaccinated, we should switch gears and be vaccinating the teens to 40-year-olds to get a better shot at combatting this FU&KER Virus.

Aggie84025 · Post by **Aggie84025** » February 9th, 2021, 12:18 pm

My take is people should decide for themselves what they want to do. Open everything up and let people assume risk as they see fit. I am done dealing with these restrictions. My fear is what is next? In a couple of months is the government going to be freaking out about these new COVID variants and want to keep restrictions or let people live their lives the way they see fit.

In terms of vaccinating the college basketball players, I would completely support it. There is not a better sporting event in the country than March Madness.

NVAggie · Post by **NVAggie** » February 9th, 2021, 12:40 pm

I don't believe we should make decisions solely based off what we want for sports. It is foolish to place the tournament over the lives of other people.

hipsterdoofus21 · Post by **hipsterdoofus21** » February 9th, 2021, 12:46 pm

I'd be willing to offer an Aggie athlete my vaccine.

SaintAggie · Post by **SaintAggie** » February 9th, 2021, 1:17 pm

Well, I was warned in the title. But still, dont much care for the idea that sports is "essential" in this case.

QuackAttackAggie · Post by **QuackAttackAggie** » February 9th, 2021, 1:18 pm

hipsterdoofus21 wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 12:46 pm
I'd be willing to offer an Aggie athlete my vaccine.

I also am willing to give up your vaccine.

Real Life Aggie · Post by **Real Life Aggie** » February 9th, 2021, 1:21 pm

NVAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 12:40 pm
I don't believe we should make decisions solely based off what we want for sports. It is foolish to place the tournament over the lives of other people.

Another item to consider: whether or not athletes want the vaccine.

Look, I despise the anti-vax movement. I'm very pro-science, and very pro-vaccine. However, each of these athletes has the right to choose if they want to get it. Athletes not getting the vaccine would, however, be a risk for the team, the school, the conference, and any OOC opponents that they play. This logically leads to a requirement that, if you want to play NCAA sports, you need to be vaccinated. This would force people to choose between their personal choice (which, to reiterate, I think is a dumb one) and their team, potentially hurting their education and ability to further their athletics, even if scholarships aren't on the line.

Mr. Sneelock · Post by **Mr. Sneelock** » February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm

We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."

ViAggie · Post by **ViAggie** » February 9th, 2021, 1:23 pm

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm
We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."

"and yet, the liquor store gits to stay open!!!" (I hear that all the time)

hipsterdoofus21 · Post by **hipsterdoofus21** » February 9th, 2021, 1:25 pm

Real Life Aggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:21 pm

NVAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 12:40 pm
I don't believe we should make decisions solely based off what we want for sports. It is foolish to place the tournament over the lives of other people.
Another item to consider: whether or not athletes want the vaccine.

Look, I despise the anti-vax movement. I'm very pro-science, and very pro-vaccine. However, each of these athletes has the right to choose if they want to get it. Athletes not getting the vaccine would, however, be a risk for the team, the school, the conference, and any OOC opponents that they play. This logically leads to a requirement that, if you want to play NCAA sports, you need to be vaccinated. This would force people to choose between their personal choice (which, to reiterate, I think is a dumb one) and their team, potentially hurting their education and ability to further their athletics, even if scholarships aren't on the line.

I agree with your point, but requiring vaccines isn't totally a new concept. I had to show a completed vaccination record for grad school. I was missing the Hepatitis booster shots and was told I needed to get them done before coming to class.

Mr. Sneelock · Post by **Mr. Sneelock** » February 9th, 2021, 1:30 pm

ViAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:23 pm

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm
We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."
"and yet, the liquor store gits to stay open!!!" (I hear that all the time)

Let's not kid ourselves. The liquor store gets to stay open because it is a revenue generator for the state. At least in Utah.

Ahbye · Post by **Ahbye** » February 9th, 2021, 2:47 pm

ViAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:23 pm

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm
We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."
"and yet, the liquor store gits to stay open!!!" (I hear that all the time)

Interestingly enough, I've heard tell that in discussions on what was essential (at CDC or BRHD for that matter), they decided to treat liquor stores like pharmacies. They figure if they close the liquor store, all of the people who need liquor to survive will end up in the ER with DT's. It's sad, but they have a point in that it's best to save the already-overrun ER space for Covid patients and let the alcoholics self-medicate like they always have. Pretty crazy times.

stang · Post by **stang** » February 9th, 2021, 2:52 pm

Call me crazy, but I'd rather my 82-year-old grandmother who has been patiently waiting for her chance to get the vaccine have the opportunity to get it before some perfectly healthy 20-year-old college athletes just so I can be entertained for a few days in March.

stwinward · Post by **stwinward** » February 9th, 2021, 3:47 pm

stang wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 2:52 pm
Call me crazy, but I'd rather my 82-year-old grandmother who has been patiently waiting for her chance to get the vaccine have the opportunity to get it before some perfectly healthy 20-year-old college athletes just so I can be entertained for a few days in March.

Crazy

Aggie in Boise · Post by **Aggie in Boise** » February 9th, 2021, 4:04 pm

ViAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:23 pm

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm
We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."
"and yet, the liquor store gits to stay open!!!" (I hear that all the time)

"and the strip clubs too."

SLB · Post by **SLB** » February 9th, 2021, 4:08 pm

Aggie in Boise wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 4:04 pm

ViAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:23 pm

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm
We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."
"and yet, the liquor store gits to stay open!!!" (I hear that all the time)

"and the strip clubs too"

In the time of lockdowns and having bars closed, the alcohol sales did not go down. This says something really bad about the well-being of people since that means a big increase of people drinking by themselves.

hipsterdoofus21 · Post by **hipsterdoofus21** » February 9th, 2021, 4:26 pm

SLB wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 4:08 pm

Aggie in Boise wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 4:04 pm

ViAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:23 pm

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm
We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."
"and yet, the liquor store gits to stay open!!!" (I hear that all the time)

"and the strip clubs too"
In the time of lockdowns and having bars closed, the alcohol sales did not go down. This says something really bad about the well-being of people since that means a big increase of people drinking by themselves.

Oh they're definitely self medicating. I'm sure people are sick of hearing this from me but the effects of Covid prevention on my patients has far outweighed the dangers of the virus itself. Alcoholism, drug use, depression/anxiety, suicide, worsening diabetes and blood pressure, obesity, strokes and heart attacks all rose significantly among those in my patient panel the past 11 months.

SLB · Post by **SLB** » February 9th, 2021, 4:35 pm

hipsterdoofus21 wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 4:26 pm

SLB wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 4:08 pm

Aggie in Boise wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 4:04 pm

ViAggie wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:23 pm

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 1:22 pm
We all love sports, but in no way, shape, or form is collegiate athletics "essential."
"and yet, the liquor store gits to stay open!!!" (I hear that all the time)

"and the strip clubs too"
In the time of lockdowns and having bars closed, the alcohol sales did not go down. This says something really bad about the well-being of people since that means a big increase of people drinking by themselves.
Oh they're definitely self medicating. I'm sure people are sick of hearing this from me but the effects of Covid prevention on my patients has far outweighed the dangers of the virus itself. Alcoholism, drug use, depression/anxiety, suicide, worsening diabetes and blood pressure, obesity, strokes and heart attacks all rose significantly among those in my patient panel the past 11 months.

I know about this, and it is really bad. I walked to the store a few times, and there were people who basically ran to the other sidewalk because I was not wearing my mask outside. I seen videos of people throwing stuff and getting into fights over masks. We do have mental health crisis in this lockdown world.

jpswensen · Post by **jpswensen** » February 9th, 2021, 4:53 pm

stang wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 2:52 pm
Call me crazy, but I'd rather my 82-year-old grandmother who has been patiently waiting for her chance to get the vaccine have the opportunity to get it before some perfectly healthy 20-year-old college athletes just so I can be entertained for a few days in March.

Quite frankly, this mentality should have applied across the board. Your 82-year old grandmother (and my 76 year old mother) should have probably been vaccinated before a less than 45-50 otherwise completely healthy doctor or nurse (assuming there wasn't a staff outbreak or shortage at a given facility). Given the fact that approximately 80% of all deaths have been in people 65 and older, the most effective means of statistically reducing deaths is to get those 65 and older vaccinated ASAP. The media keeps talking about the isolated cases of a younger healthy person dying from it, but in the CDC data, even the younger patients who died from it on average had 2.9 other comorbidities listed as contributing factors. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covi ... orbidities

That is why I said it was a horrible take. I agree with you that I am a selfish moron.

Aggie formerly in Hawaii · Post by **Aggie formerly in Hawaii** » February 9th, 2021, 5:21 pm

I love sports. They are a huge part of my life. I watch every Aggie game I can. I watch college football all day Saturday (to the chagrin of my family sometimes haha). I watch almost every Jazz game and will be watching them beat Boston tonight. Most of my vacations are either planned around sports or I add sporting events to the trip.

With that said, let's be real. Athletes should not be near the front of the line. My grandmother in her 90's barely got the first vaccine. It would be crazy to have people in the prime of their lives get it before people that really need it.

GUS · Post by **GUS** » February 9th, 2021, 9:03 pm

Sadly, Utah has already used a lot of vaccine treating completely healthy 30 to 50 year old school teachers. Those 65 or older or with pre -existing conditions should have been in line first.

USU78 · Post by **USU78** » February 9th, 2021, 9:20 pm

GUS wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 9:03 pm
Sadly, Utah has already used a lot of vaccine treating completely healthy 30 to 50 year old school teachers. Those 65 or older or with pre -existing conditions should have been in line first.

65+ year old lawyers don't have the biggest union in the state.

Ahbye · Post by **Ahbye** » February 9th, 2021, 11:52 pm

The reason 50-year old Drs. got the vaccine first is so they're not out 2+ weeks with Covid while the hospital is being overrun with patients.

hipsterdoofus21 · Post by **hipsterdoofus21** » February 10th, 2021, 7:38 am

Ahbye wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 11:52 pm
The reason 50-year old Drs. got the vaccine first is so they're not out 2+ weeks with Covid while the hospital is being overrun with patients.

Even though they aren't being overrun, but it's certainly lost revenue for the ho$pital if the Doc is out 2 weeks.

GUS · Post by **GUS** » February 10th, 2021, 7:58 am

USU78 wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 9:20 pm

GUS wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 9:03 pm
Sadly, Utah has already used a lot of vaccine treating completely healthy 30 to 50 year old school teachers. Those 65 or older or with pre -existing conditions should have been in line first.
65+ year old lawyers don't have the biggest union in the state.

You nailed it.

USU78 · Post by **USU78** » February 10th, 2021, 8:15 am

hipsterdoofus21 wrote: ↑
February 10th, 2021, 7:38 am

Ahbye wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 11:52 pm
The reason 50-year old Drs. got the vaccine first is so they're not out 2+ weeks with Covid while the hospital is being overrun with patients.
Even though they aren't being overrun, but it's certainly lost revenue for the ho$pital if the Doc is out 2 weeks.

Ahbye · Post by **Ahbye** » February 10th, 2021, 1:41 pm

hipsterdoofus21 wrote: ↑
February 10th, 2021, 7:38 am

Ahbye wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 11:52 pm
The reason 50-year old Drs. got the vaccine first is so they're not out 2+ weeks with Covid while the hospital is being overrun with patients.
Even though they aren't being overrun, but it's certainly lost revenue for the ho$pital if the Doc is out 2 weeks.

Yeah, well maybe yours wasn't. One of our officers is head of security at LRH and they were overrun about a month ago. They actually flew a pretty minor stab wound that needed overnight observation to the hospital in TREMONTON of all places because there were no ICU beds here. Our EMS service has been swamped and all the nurses and doctors I know said the same thing, so there must be something there. My anecdotal/observational evidence is every bit as compelling as yours, unfortunately.

hipsterdoofus21 · Post by **hipsterdoofus21** » February 10th, 2021, 2:42 pm

Ahbye wrote: ↑
February 10th, 2021, 1:41 pm

hipsterdoofus21 wrote: ↑
February 10th, 2021, 7:38 am

Ahbye wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 11:52 pm
The reason 50-year old Drs. got the vaccine first is so they're not out 2+ weeks with Covid while the hospital is being overrun with patients.
Even though they aren't being overrun, but it's certainly lost revenue for the ho$pital if the Doc is out 2 weeks.
Yeah, well maybe yours wasn't. One of our officers is head of security at LRH and they were overrun about a month ago. They actually flew a pretty minor stab wound that needed overnight observation to the hospital in TREMONTON of all places because there were no ICU beds here. Our EMS service has been swamped and all the nurses and doctors I know said the same thing, so there must be something there. My anecdotal/observational evidence is every bit as compelling as yours, unfortunately.

Maybe it is busier there. What I've seen most often though with ICUs is they try to run at 75-80% capacity on a daily basis if possible to pay the expenses that come with running the ICU (salaries, equipment, and meds) and offset losses from patients who can't pay or only have Medicaid. That means a handful of Covid patients suffering from complications could fill out the rest of your ICU beds pretty quick. They're also seeing more patients in the ICU who aren't suffering from Covid but who have worsened heart disease and strokes because they've been at home eating their feelings for the past 11 months and not exercising.

Dwigt · Post by **Dwigt** » February 10th, 2021, 2:46 pm

I was going to respond to this in a different way but there is nothing I can say that will make people take this seriously that don’t already.

LoveMyAggies · Post by **LoveMyAggies** » February 23rd, 2021, 9:05 am

hipsterdoofus21 wrote: ↑
February 10th, 2021, 2:42 pm

Ahbye wrote: ↑
February 10th, 2021, 1:41 pm

hipsterdoofus21 wrote: ↑
February 10th, 2021, 7:38 am

Ahbye wrote: ↑
February 9th, 2021, 11:52 pm
The reason 50-year old Drs. got the vaccine first is so they're not out 2+ weeks with Covid while the hospital is being overrun with patients.
Even though they aren't being overrun, but it's certainly lost revenue for the ho$pital if the Doc is out 2 weeks.
Yeah, well maybe yours wasn't. One of our officers is head of security at LRH and they were overrun about a month ago. They actually flew a pretty minor stab wound that needed overnight observation to the hospital in TREMONTON of all places because there were no ICU beds here. Our EMS service has been swamped and all the nurses and doctors I know said the same thing, so there must be something there. My anecdotal/observational evidence is every bit as compelling as yours, unfortunately.
Maybe it is busier there. What I've seen most often though with ICUs is they try to run at 75-80% capacity on a daily basis if possible to pay the expenses that come with running the ICU (salaries, equipment, and meds) and offset losses from patients who can't pay or only have Medicaid. That means a handful of Covid patients suffering from complications could fill out the rest of your ICU beds pretty quick. They're also seeing more patients in the ICU who aren't suffering from Covid but who have worsened heart disease and strokes because they've been at home eating their feelings for the past 11 months and not exercising.

They should just call this Indirect covid-19 depression secondary sequelae.

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