The exchange of CASH MONEY is one way of spreading the virus.

I asked him to put his clothes in the laundry and go wash up. We talked about him being really careful about not touching his eyes/mouth/nose while at work.

up to 9 days.
I have been thinking about this for a while now.
There isn't a whole lot we can do at the moment, when I do have to go out even wiping down the shopping cart, using my knuckles on the debit card machine, my mind still finds 10 other ways I could catch it. Life has to go on.

But I know trump could give us all some pointers...maybe do a commercial?

might make more that way!

That and his ego.

mNuchin has set up a bunch of Treasury ATMs where you can deposit your real money for trump$$$s.

off the cruise ship. Mnuchin...what a waste of good air.

Cash or card?
And with card you touch some device?

We're around a lot of exchanges in our society every day. Just going to buy a loaf of bread means you're exchanging cooties with SOMEBODY!

Than cash?

The pin pad where you put in your debit card pin has also been touched by a whole host of people. Or the gas pump. The things we touch every day that other people have already touched is a pretty extensive list.

I used it several times today after stopping at two banks, a gas station, a car wash, and two stores.

Plastic and glass are the two surfaces I know have been tested for the virus living up to 9 days.

are a possibility in some cases, but hardly universal. That said, keypads and styluses can be cleaned regularly by the store, unlike cash money.

You also have to think about the folks stocking the things you're buying...where have those items been? We are all very tied together in this world. To think otherwise is, or could be, fatal?

Look, EVERYTHING has some kind of germs on it. And if you're not paying with cash you're paying with debit or credit card and touching a terminal or touch pad that countless others have also touched.

I've been hearing for years about how dangerous real currency is because of the supposed germs it carries. I've never seen anything that actually tests or supports that.

Personally, I pay for most things with cash, because for me it's a better way to manage my money. Those of you who prefer credit or debit cards, you're simply choosing a different way to manage your money.

And remind me just how many cruise ships have had passengers with the corona virus? Seven? Eleven? Twenty-four? I keep forgetting.

Good point! I hope they will test it, and let us know.

harbored viruses, that would have become glaringly obvious by now.

I know that when students take a micro-biology class, and they're sent out to swab things, they are horrified at how many germs and the like are out there, on every surface. Meanwhile, most of us aren't picking up disease from random public places like toilets or door handles. Or dollar bills and quarters.

THAT'S the real question that's not being answered.

Couldn't find anything about COVID-19 but this is about flu and seems quite relevant.

If you hand a cashier a loyalty card, every other one she touched, as well as cash, now has germs passed onto you. I carry portable wipes and Lysol On The Go spray. I do not touch door handles - I use a wipe if it is not an automatic door. I wipe carts. I wipe items, before putting them in my cart. I use self checkout. I wipe the screen and the touch pad before I use them. I bag my own items. Even if you use a self pay app at McDonald's, you still have the food changing a lot of hands, before getting to the restaurant. Then you have a bunch of folks unloading the items, moving it to the cooking area, handling and preparing boxes, and handing condiments, cups, food packaging, as well as the cashier who has handled everyone's cash and cards all day and hands you the bag. I do not eat out right now. I am compromised with my immune system. I am doing my best to stay safe. Workers entered my house two days ago, and I greeted them with a bottle of hand sanitizer. They were not allowed to come into my house until they used it.

Do these things seem extreme? Well thought out? At least I am trying not to spread germs and attempting to protect myself. I will go to an early afternoon movie with my son next week. I have to for a mystery shopping job. I will go early, to avoid people as much as possible. I will have exact change. After I am given my ticket, I will use hand sanitizer. When I reach my seat, I will spray it with the Lysol to go. I would not do this almost under any other administration. I do not trust this thing is not larger than they are letting on. Look at how it is in other countries. Look at how they handled the folks returning from the cruise. They are incompetent. We all have to take safety measures to protect ourselves when Trump is at the helm.

I hope you stay safe as a result. I'm going to start doing some of those things you mentioned now that we're talking about all of this.

Thank you. I am trying. I feel like we are all on our own with this one. You can but Clorox Wipes in packs of 70. They are easier to carry than a bottle. The Lysol To Go is usually in the travel section. I picked up mine at Target.

Also, if you decide to stock up at all, just in case, do you like milk? We all know it has a pretty short expiration date. You can Google ultra pasteurized milk and find it at local grocery stores. I bought a 12 pack of Horizon organic milk boxes a few days ago. They are smaller, so if I open one and do not finish it in a few days, it is no biggie, if it goes bad. They do not need to be refrigerated. The expiration date on them is June. I now have milk for pastas, cereal, etc. Even if I am hold away for three weeks, I am good!

If you have some tips, please do share them. We can all help each other with our ideas.

Very smart ideas!

you Just need to leave space at the top.

I recently read that people who clean constantly actually harbor more germs because they spread them around with all that cleaning. Perhaps what you are doing is a bit different, but you really are overreacting.

It would not be needed if we did not have an incompetent asshole in charge if our government.

People in this country, at least so far are not dying in outrageous numbers from this virus. Face masks won't protect you. Worrying about germs on currency or on restroom doorknobs is dumb. That's not how you get diseases.

Yes, we have an incompetent asshole in charge, but that does not change fundamental aspects of biology.

I heard it could survive on surfaces, so you should wash your hands regularly. Please link me to where it does not survive on surfaces, like money or door knobs. Thanks, in advance.

And any Public Bathroom no matter where. BTW,keep your hands out of your hair,another spore collector.

Touch your hair, scratch an itchy nose. Boom!

and hair brush.

Makes me nutso.

Yeah, that's pretty nasty.

You are correct.

They believe that the COVID-19 virus can remain on surfaces for as long as a week.

I didn't know that, but it makes a lot of sense. I'm glad the Chinese are doing that. Maybe that's one of the reasons their infection rates are going down. They seem to be taking a lot of drastic precautions.

The science researchers discovered how long it lingers on the surface of things, so they are trying to identify all possible transmission vehicles and currency was determined there to be one of the top means. We tend here in US to use more plastic than cash in general, but in China, especially at many of the markets and day to day life, cash is primary.

Link: https://www.thedailybeast.com/china-to-destroy-paper-currency-from-hardest-hit-coronavirus-regions

❤

Has anyone actually conducted any tests to see if the currency actual harbors the virus and passes it on to the next person?

about paper (generally) or currency (specificall). The tests have generally been for glass, metal, and plastic surfaces.

We have all heard the 14 day life cycle of the virus upon infecting its host. I've not heard anything at all about its survival time outside the host. If someone has information, as opposed to opinion , please post.

https://qz.com/1810508/covid-19-can-likely-live-up-to-96-hours-on-your-phone/
4 days for glass
3 days for stainless steel
3 days for plastic surfaces
A day and a half for plastered walls and countertops
Dunno about coins or dollar bills

I went looking for that info and couldn't find it!

how long the virus lives on different surfaces. If I can find it again, I'll link it for you.

Stuff like this is a big reason why.

but my husband works in retail, and I'm really worried about him, since he has to handle money all the time. I gave him some latex-free gloves to wear, but it's not going to be much help even if he does use them.

...and use a hand sanitizer every time you touch something someone else has touched.

And don’t get me started on touchscreens.

(Target self-checkout, I’m lookin’ at you.)

The lines are usually much faster than waiting on the clerks lines.

make a point of using a knuckle on the touchscreen instead of my fingertip, and if a knuckle won't register properly, using my pinky or ring finger since I am less likely to touch my face with those. It looks funny, but I don't care. I try to remember to use my ring finger on keypads as well for the same reason but it's tough to change habits on that one.

China Quarantines Cash to Sanitize Old Bank Notes From Virus
Bloomberg News
February 15, 2020

Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-02-15/china-quarantines-cash-to-sanitize-old-bank-notes-from-virus

(includes a good video: A Cell Biologist Explains How a Virus Mutates and Spreads)

(snip)


KY...........

I just knew intuitively that it had to be true, but I'm glad the scientists and Chinese government figured it out long before I did.

That's the kind of information that Americans need to have available to make informed choices.

What is the USPS or UPS or FedEx really delivering?
Community contact.

I wear latex gloves AND use hand sanitizer when I work the register. Half the currency I take is wet or damp...damp with what? Urine, sweat and God knows what else, change that is literally stuck together. Before I started using gloves when I went home my fingertips would be stained yellow from the cash.

That's some pretty nasty stuff. I'm going to read your post to my husband, in hopes that he'll use those gloves I gave him before he went off to work today.

they don't call it filthy lucre for nothing!

Well said, Blues Heron!

" Research presented this weekend reinforced previous findings that 90 percent of paper money circulating in U.S. cities contains traces of cocaine. "

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/08/14/cocaine.traces.money/

I used to work in retail ... money dirty long time ..... I ended up with eczema rash on finger either from money or cart

I hope everyone washes hands after handling .

Thats their end game; knowing our every move

Don't think that's the case.

I wonder if that will happen as time goes on.

The polymer currency used in Australia, Canada and other countries can be washed.

I will soon be abandoning cash transactions. I plan on using a pen cap to touch keypads. I can then bleach it routinely.

easy transmission