Covid Teacher

https://www.democracynow.org/2020/5/26/as_new_zealand_eliminates_covid_advisor

This interview about how New Zealand eliminated COVID is really helpful for understanding the difference between the unsuccessful mitigation approach used in the US and Europe and the elimination approach used in places like China and New Zealand.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/26/health/antibody-tests-cdc-coronavirus-wrong/index.html

[In most of the country, including areas that have been heavily impacted, the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibody is expected to be low, ranging from less than 5% to 25%, so that testing at this point might result in relatively more false positive results and fewer false-negative results,” the CDC said. The higher the sensitivity, the fewer false negatives a test will give. The higher the specificity, the fewer false positives. Across populations, tests give more accurate results if the disease being tested for is common in the population. If an infection has only affected a small percentage of people being tested, even a very small margin of error in a test will be magnified.]

http://nypost.com/2020/05/27/chris-cuomo-not-100-percent-recovered-from-coronavirus/

Cuomo still has symptoms months later like many of us

“People who’ve been through this have strange tales to tell and not a lot of great answers from doctors to weird stuff in their blood work,” Cuomo said. “I’m one of them. I still have weird stuff going on with my lungs. I’m not back to where I was before I had the virus but I can work. I can hang out. I can engage with my family.”

Do you have very swollen lymph nodes from covid? Here are some things that can help:

1) Use a dry brush to do lymph node massages:

https://www.amazon.com/Dry-Brushing-Body-Brush-Exfoliating/dp/B073T2T5B1

You can also do light massages with essential oils. Here’s a video of the massage points:

https://youtu.be/4Ip5IcwSHS4

2) Nature’s Sunshine Lymphatic Drainage herb helps disperse lymphatic fluid, improve nutrient absorption and, thus enhance immune function:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000WQFIJA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_UCXZEbA6ZZQ26

3) Alternating between warm and cold compresses and warm and cold showers.

4) Eating foods that promote lymphatic flow:

• Leafy green vegetables
• Low sugar fruits
• Ground flaxseed
• Chia seeds
• Avocados
• Garlic
• Brazil nuts
• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Cranberries

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/15/us/hospitals-revenue-coronavirus.html

This might be one reason that shady business is happening with hospitals not submitting the correct “covid billing codes” to insurance. Hospitals have lost millions due to postponing elective surgeries.

Are insurance companies pressuring hospitals or providing kickbacks to hospital administrators or doctors for submitting codes like “shortness of breath” instead of “covid” codes?

Due to new laws, many insurance companies, like BCBS, will provide 100%
free medical care, testing, etc.

This is also why we need universal healthcare!

“Hospitals Knew How to Make Money. Then Coronavirus Happened. Surgeries are canceled. Business models are shifting. Some of the hardest-hit hospitals may close, leaving patients with fewer options for care.

The clinic, a Minnesota-based hospital system accustomed to treating American presidents and foreign dignitaries, saw revenue plummet as it postponed lucrative surgeries to make way for coronavirus victims. The hospital network produced $1 billion in net operating revenue last year, but now expects to lose $900 million in 2020 even after furloughing workers, cutting doctors’ pay and halting new construction projects.

The disruption to hospital operations may ultimately leave Americans with less access to medical care, according to financial analysts, health economists and policy experts. Struggling hospitals may close or shut down unprofitable departments. Some may decide to merge with nearby competitors or sell to larger hospital chains. “There is a huge threat to our capability to provide basic services,” Dr. Blumenthal said.

Hospitals are losing an estimated $50 billion a month now, according to the American Hospital Association. And 134,000 hospital employees were among the estimated 1.4 million health care workers who lost their jobs last month, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows. Across the country, hospitals reported seeing between 40 and 70 percent fewer patients from late March through early May, many of them scheduled for profitable services like orthopedic surgery and radiological scans.”

-Night sweats (and I usually don’t sweat at night)
-Some random mild chills
-Diarrhea
-Random metallic smell and taste a few times, especially while walking or doing exercises

I went to the ER 3x, at the richest hospital in IL. My first ER visit, they refused to test me for covid. They said, “We know you have covid because you have all the symptoms and your boyfriend tested positive. We are short supplies. We also don’t want to waste a test on a young person with all the symptoms. And around 30-50% of tests are false negatives.”

My general doctor, from the same hospital, also told me that they even have ICU patients who tested negative 3x previously and tested positive the 4th and 5th time. That’s how inaccurate the covid testing is.

I was also told that I was listed in the CDC covid numbers as presumed positive. I receive calls every morning from the nurses who are doing part of the hospital’s covid monitoring team.

Now, I just received my ER bills. I’m being charged because I’m listed as short of breath, not as having covid.

This means that tons people are getting giant ER bills because hospitals aren’t coding ppl as having covid due to refusing to test (or lack of supplies) or false negatives. Because if the hospitals submit the codes to insurance as having covid, everything is 100% paid, so $0 for copay, treatment, Er visit, tests, etc.

‪I wonder if deals or kickbacks are being made behind closed doors, with insurance companies encouraging hospitals to code fewer people as having covid? ‬

‪Also, notice how doctors are upset by all the secrecy around how common false negatives are. Notice, that mainstream media isn’t talking about how 30-50% of covid tests are false negatives. ‬
‪Here’s an article about it.

Someone needs to investigate this. ‬

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/25/doctors-condemn-secrecy-over-false-negative-covid-19-tests‬

Patients with covid, check how the hospitals submitted your bills. If they didn’t use the code, that says you have covid, you will be charged incorrectly. With many insurance companies, if you have covid, you will be charged $0, not even a copay for everything, copay, treatments, tests, ER visits doctors.

For my first ER visit, they submitted it as the “covid code” Z03818. For my last 2 ER visits, they submitted it as “shortness of breathe,” code R0602. Since they submitted it wrong, I was charged for the 2 ER visits.

I’m calling Northwestern billing to resubmit the code. I don’t suspect any problem though because I’m on their “covid monitoring” list and receive daily calls from nurses on the “covid monitoring team.”

My insurance representative also said that if they refuse to submit the correct code, ask for your complete medical records and submit a claim.

You can read more about how everything should be free for covid patients on Blue Cross Blue Shield:

https://www.bcbsil.com/COVID-19?WT.mc_id=ILEMAEMA1260120%E2%80%AC&fbclid=IwAR2QroNprFn9PV8aAWk4AmMDS51a37U5HB1Kp_yK3mpwCd_025iNZ5VjBzs

The first couple weeks of covid, I cried all the time. It was so painful and exhausting having covid, having to work for every breath. I also felt so much shame and embarrassment asking for constant help, when I’m usually so independent.

I felt frustration (sometimes I still do) that my friends or others wouldn’t believe me, how bad it was. I think many didn’t until they heard about my worsening pneumonia and enlarged aorta, in my heart, caused by covid.

Today, my friend told me that for some people, it’s not that they don’t care, it’s that they are too fearful or overwhelmed to reach out. Lots of people are barely hanging on emotionally, so they aren’t able to reach out to sick friends, like me.

I hadn’t cried in probably a week and half or 2 weeks until today. I just started sobbing thinking about how lucky I am to be improving so much and how I probably won’t (fingers crossed) have permanent damage to my organs.

I also started sobbing after reading a young special ed teacher’s story with covid. She’s had it over 65 days now, she on oxygen, horrible rashes everywhere, shingles, and her fever is often 104 or more.

She posted her story and it became viral with tens of thousands of views. This resulted in thousands of conservative sociopaths commenting horrible things and making threatening comments on all her posts.

This poor women is practically on her death bed, showing pictures of all her rashes, her blood pressure, temperature, oxygen and people are calling her a liar or “a plant for the Democratic Party.”

How awful are these people. I can’t imagine what this women is going through. I reached out to her to see if there’s anything I can do for her.

I believe I’m on day 44-58 of covid now. I’ve improved so much over the past few days. Weeks ago, I couldn’t walk more than 2 steps, and my heart rate would triple. Now, I’m able to walk downstairs to my backyard.

Often, my heart rate will double, probably because my enlarged ascending aorta in my heart and my lungs are still healing. I’m going to attempt to walk a block tomorrow with a friend (so he can carry me if I get stuck).

My oxygen has been pretty good. I still have to watch it because sometimes it’ll still drop when lying down, walking or talking too much. Usually a few times a night it’ll drop 4-6%.

My worst issue the past 3 days has been the lymph nodes on my neck killing me and my insomnia. Nothing has really been helping my lymph nodes. I’ve tried just about everything.

After being sick for so long, you worry people stop caring that you are sick. It means so much when people do simple things like simple texts asking how you are, sending funny memes, etc.

I’ve really learned who my closest friends and family are during this illness. Unfortunately, I’ve also learned which people only care about me for my political work and “output,” rather than me as a human.

Overall, I am beyond overwhelmed by the outpouring of love by most my friends, family, acquaintances, other activists and strangers. You all are the ones who have helped me heal. ❤️