[00:00:15]
GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME TO COVID-19 TALK WITH LOCAL HEALTH AUTHORITY.
JOINING US FROM HARRIS COUNTY IS DR.
ERICA BROWN, UH, FROM THE CITY OF HOUSTON, DR. DAVID PER SPECIAL THANKS TO, UH, PAST PRESIDENT OF ROTARY CLUB OF HOUSTON, KATHY FINNER FOR PROVIDING US THE QUESTION.
AND TO AM, UH, MORGAN ASH, OUR PRODUCER.
I'M STEPHEN WILLIAMS, THE DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT.
BEEN AWAY FOR A COUPLE TIMES, BUT GLAD TO BE BACK WITH Y'ALL STILL HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS AROUND COVID.
IT LOOKED LIKE THINGS HAVE DIED DOWN, BUT WE STILL HAVE QUESTIONS.
WHEN WILL MODERNA'S BIVAL VACCINES BE AVAILABLE? HAVE TRIALS DOCUMENTED ITS SUCCESS? SO I, I DON'T MIND TAKING THAT.
UH, FIRST, UM, UH, MODERNA IS, UH, IN THE PROCESS OF, UM, UM, RUNNING CLINICAL TRIALS.
IT LOOKS LIKE THERE MAY BE SOMETHING IN THE EARLY SUMMER, WHICH IS IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF MONTHS, WHICH MEANS THAT IT COULD POTENTIALLY BE AVAILABLE IN THE FALL ONCE IT GOES THROUGH THE APPROPRIATE PROCESS.
UH, THE VALENT VACCINE, UM, WOULD INCLUDE, UH, PROTECTION AGAINST OMICRON AND DELTA.
UM, AND SO, UH, THIS UPDATED BOOSTER COMBINES THE ORIGINAL VACCINE FORMULA WITH MUTATIONS FOUND IN THE, UH, BETA VARIANT OR THE B TWO VARIANT THAT WE'RE FAMILIAR WITH.
UM, SO WE'RE, WE'RE EXCITED TO SEE WHAT THAT POTENTIALLY LOOKS LIKE.
SO IS THAT POTENTIALLY GONNA BE A BOOSTER? IS IT FOR THOSE WHO, UM, HAVE ALREADY RECEIVED PRIMARY SERIES? EVERYTHING IS A BOOSTER AT THIS POINT? UM, SO YES, I WOULD, I WOULD THINK, ALTHOUGH AGAIN, WE, WE DON'T HAVE ANY DEFINITIVE INFORMATION, BUT I WOULD THINK THAT THE RECOMMENDATION WOULD BE THAT FOR THOSE WHO HAD A PRIMARY SERIES, UM, TO GET THIS BOOSTER, UM, I WOULD BE INTERESTED TO SEE FOR THOSE WHO WOULD BE, UH, NASCENT TO, TO WHAT THE RECOMMENDATION IS GONNA BE, WHETHER IT WOULD BE THIS, THIS NEW BIVALENT OR NOT.
BUT AGAIN, IT'S STILL IN CLINICAL TRIAL, SO NOTHING HAS BEEN DECIDED.
AH, SPEAKING OF BOOSTERS, THE RESULTS FROM THE FOURTH DOSE DO NOT SEEM TO OFFER LONG TERM, UH, PROTECTION.
I GUESS THEY'RE SAYING, SO SHOULD WE JUST BOOK A SHOT EVERY SIX WEEKS, OR ARE YOU HEARING ABOUT A LONG LASTING VACCINE? YEAH, YEAH.
AND, AND ACTUALLY THE, UH, THE FDA'S ADVISORY PANEL CAME OUT AND BASICALLY POSED THAT ALMOST THE SAME QUESTION IS, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO HAVE A BETTER STRATEGY THAN JUST BOOSTING EVERY SIX TO EIGHT WEEKS.
AND SO THIS IS WHERE THE ISSUE OF THE NEW VACCINES THAT ARE MORE BROAD SPECTRUM, UH, ARE COMING TO PLAY.
AND SO, LIKE THE BIVALENT THAT, UM, UH, DR. BROWN WAS JUST TALKING ABOUT AS AN EXAMPLE, AND THIS ALWAYS KIND OF GOES TO THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, EVERY YEAR WITH THE FLU SHOT, IT'S A DIFFERENT FORMULATION.
AND SO IT'S ENTIRELY POSSIBLE THAT'S WHERE COVID WILL WIND UP A FEW YEARS FROM NOW, IS THAT WE'LL BE GETTING AN ANNUAL SHOT, OR MAYBE IT'LL BE A SHOT EVERY COUPLE OF YEARS, DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH THE VIRUS MUTATES.
SO AT THIS POINT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE FOUR SHOT IS AVAILABLE.
AND I WOULD SAY THAT FOR THOSE FOLKS THAT ARE OVER 65, AND ESPECIALLY FOR PEOPLE WHO'VE GOT A COMPROMISED IMMUNE SYSTEM, SO AGAIN, WE'RE TALKING THE ORGAN TRANSPLANT CHEMOTHERAPY, PEOPLE WHO'VE GOT KNOWN IMMUNE SYSTEM PROBLEMS, UH, IF YOU'VE GOTTEN YOUR FIRST BOOSTER, YOU, YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THE FOLKS WHO PROBABLY NEED TO SERIOUSLY CONSIDER GETTING THE SECOND BOOSTER.
UM, BUT THE GROUP THAT I'M TRYING TO GET A LOT OF ATTENTION IS WE'VE GOT A LOT OF FOLKS IN OUR COMMUNITY THAT GOT THEIR FIRST SERIES AND NEVER GOT THEIR FIRST BOOSTER.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S REAL CLEAR IS THAT THAT FIRST SERIES IS GREAT AGAINST ALPHA AND DELTA, UM, BUT NOT SO GREAT AGAINST OMICRON.
WELL, OMICRON B2B TWO, THAT'S THE ONE THAT'S IN THE COMMUNITY NOW.
SO IF YOU WANNA BE PROTECTED AGAINST WHAT'S CIRCULATING IN THE COMMUNITY TODAY AND YOU DIDN'T GET YOUR FIRST BOOSTER, I WOULD SUGGEST YOU GO GET YOUR FIRST BOOSTER AND WE'LL WORRY ABOUT WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN NEXT YEAR, UH, OVER THE COMING MONTHS.
ANYTHING NEW REGARDING GETTING KIDS UNDER FIVE VACCINATED BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS IN THE FALL.
UH, THIS MORNING, UH, MODERNA JUST ANNOUNCED THAT IT IS ASKING FOR EMERGENCY USE AUTHORIZATION, UM, FOR THE VACCINE TO BE USED ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE AGE OF SIX MONTHS.
SO DEPENDING ON WHETHER THEY RECEIVE THAT, THAT AUTHORIZATION, IT SHOULD BE READILY AVAILABLE IN THE, IN THE IMMEDIATE FUTURE.
OUR WORLD DATA SHOWS THE US IS VERY LOW ON BOOSTERS RECEIVE LIST AND WELL BELOW GERMANY, UK, AND FRANCE.
ARE YOU SEEING MUCH RESISTANCE TO GETTING BOOSTER NUMBER TWO? WHAT PERCENTAGE OF OUR AREA HAS RECEIVED THE, YEAH, SO, YOU KNOW, UM, I DON'T HAVE THE, THE NUMBER FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
UH, I SHOULD HAVE LOOKED THAT UP, BUT I DON'T, I DON'T HAVE FOR THE GAME BOOSTER NUMBER TWO, BUT IT IS TRUE THAT EVEN GETTING BOOSTER NUMBER ONE,
[00:05:01]
UH, THERE'S STILL A LOT OF ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT THERE.THERE'S A LOT OF FOLKS, I MENTIONED THIS JUST A MOMENT AGO, WE GOT A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO GOT THEIR FIRST SERIES AND NEVER GOT THEIR FIRST BOOSTER.
AND OF THOSE WHO GOT THEIR FIRST BOOSTER, AN EVEN SMALLER NUMBER, OBVIOUSLY YOU'VE GOTTEN THEIR SECOND BOOSTER.
BUT RIGHT NOW, I WOULD REALLY ENCOURAGE THOSE FOLKS WHO HAVEN'T GOT THEIR FIRST BOOSTER TO GO AND GET THAT.
'CAUSE THAT WILL PROTECT YOU AGAINST THE VIRUS THAT'S CIRCULATING IN THE COMMUNITY TODAY, NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE, THE TIME FOLLOWING AND EXPOSURE SEEMS TO CHANGE BY A VARIANT.
I FOUND ONE SOURCE THAT SAID IT'S BETWEEN 5.6 DAYS AFTER CONTACT TO DAY 12 AND ANOTHER SET TWO TO FOUR DAYS.
CAN YOU EXPLAIN HOW LONG WE NEED TO BE CAUTIOUS
SO, SO THERE THE EXPLANATION THAT WE ALWAYS NEED TO BE CAUTIOUS.
UM, THE REASON THAT YOU'RE SEEING, UM, VARYING TIMEFRAMES IS BASED ON THE VARIANT THAT YOU ARE LOOKING AT.
UM, UM, LOOKING, SO FOR INSTANCE, UM, THE DELTA VARIANT, RIGHT? THE PEAK WAS ABOUT FIVE TO SIX DAYS.
THE OMICRON VARIANT IS MORE CONTAGIOUS, BUT SEEMS TO BE LESS SEVERE.
THE PEAK IS IN ONE TO TWO, TWO TO THREE DAYS.
SO AGAIN, THE REASON YOU'RE SEEING DIFFERENCES IS BASED ON THE VARIANT THAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT.
DOES COVID RAISE BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS? YEAH.
AND UM, UH, WE'RE SEEING THAT IT'S SO FOLKS THAT ARE PREVIOUSLY DIABETIC ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH COVID AND PEOPLE WHO WEREN'T DIABETIC.
THERE'S SOME WHO ARE DEVELOPING, UH, SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF OF TYPE TWO DIABETES.
SO YEAH, IT, YOU KNOW, ONE THING ABOUT THIS VIRUS, IT WILL IMPACT ANY ORGAN SYSTEM IT CHOOSES TO.
WE'VE SEEN PROBLEMS WITH PANCREAS AND DIABETES.
WE'VE SEEN LIVER PROBLEMS, WE'VE SEEN INTESTINAL PROBLEMS, WE'VE SEEN LUNG PROBLEMS, WE'VE SEEN HEART PROBLEMS. WE'VE SEEN NERVOUS SYSTEM PROBLEMS. WE'VE SEEN SKIN PROBLEMS, WE'VE SEEN JOINT PROBLEMS. UH, THIS VIRUS, UM, WILL IMPACT ALMOST ANY ORGAN SYSTEM IT WANTS.
AND SO, YEAH, IT CAN RAISE BLOOD SUGAR VALUES AND SOMETIMES IT CAN DO SO DANGEROUSLY.
I'VE BEEN OVER COVID FOR A WHILE AND WAS INITIALLY FINE AFTER A FEW WEEKS I STARTED GETTING SEVERE FATIGUE THAT CONTINUES FOUR MONTHS LATER.
IS THIS UNUSUAL? WHAT SPECIALTY TYPE DOCTORS SHOULD I SEE? SO UNFORTUNATELY, UM, LET, LET ME PREFACE BY SAYING YOU SHOULD ALWAYS SEEK CARE FROM YOUR PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN OR FROM YOUR PHYSICIAN TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON.
UM, HOWEVER, UM, SOMETIMES THESE SYMPTOMS CAN BE, UH, A FACTOR FROM LONG COVID.
UH, THERE ARE CLINICS, UH, AT ALL OF OUR, UH, MAJOR HEALTH SYSTEMS NOW, INCLUDING METHODIST, BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE, UTMB, HARRIS HEALTH, ET CETERA, WHERE, UM, THEY HAVE A LONG COVID CLINIC.
BUT THE FIRST STOP IS, IS YOUR PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S NOTHING ELSE GOING ON.
IS IT TRUE THAT COVID VIRAL INFECTION AND THE GUT FOR MORE THAN SIX MONTHS? YEAH, SO THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION IS, IS YES, IT CAN, IT DOESN'T USUALLY, HOWEVER, MOST PEOPLE, AND YOU KNOW, WE'RE MONITORING THE WASTEWATER VERY CAREFULLY.
AND SO THAT'S ONE EASY WAY FOR US TO, ACROSS THE POPULATION, ACROSS THE COMMUNITY, IS TO, UH, DETECT HOW MUCH IS IN PEOPLE'S GUTS.
UH, SO IT CAN, UH, BUT THAT'S NOT A COMMON THING.
UH, USUALLY IT CLEARS UP WITH YOUR SYMPTOMS, BUT IT CAN REMAIN IN THERE FOR, UM, LONG PERIODS OF TIME.
AND LIKE I SAID A MINUTE AGO, THIS, THIS VIRUS BREAKS ALL THE RULES AND CAN IMPACT ANY ORGAN SYSTEM ANY WAY.
IT APPEARS THAT IT WANTS TO, APPARENTLY MASS MANDATES WERE OVERTURNED BY A FEDERAL JUDGE.
ARE LOCAL JURISDICTIONS ABLE TO MAKE RULINGS BASED ON LOCAL CONDITIONS? YES, THEY ARE.
SO
UM, HOWEVER, AT THIS TIME IT APPEARS FOR US THAT, THAT WE FEEL COMFORTABLE FROM A COUNTY PERSPECTIVE, AND I WON'T SPEAK FOR THE CITY, BUT FROM A COUNTY PERSPECTIVE, UM, THAT, THAT WE'RE NOT NEEDING TO REQUIRE MASKS AT THIS TIME.
WE, WE STILL CAREFULLY MONITOR ALL THE NUMBERS.
UM, AND WHILE WE DO SEE AN INCREASE IN THE INFECTION RATE, UM, WE'RE NOT SEEING AN INCREASE IN, IN HOSPITALIZATIONS AND SEVERE ILLNESS.
UM, SO JUST THIS MORNING, AGAIN, THIS IS PERFECT TIMING FOR THIS CONVERSATION.
THERE WERE SOME EXPERTS, UH, UH, ON, ON THE NEWS AND FINALLY READY TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE ARE MOVING INTO ENDEMIC STATE.
UM, THAT BEING SAID, WE'RE MOVING INTO A PLACE WHERE WE NEED TO, TO FIGURE OUT HOW DO WE LIVE WITH THIS? SIMILAR TO WHEN WE WERE INTRODUCED TO THE FLU, WHEN WE WERE INTRODUCED TO OTHER VIRUSES, HOW DID WE LEARN TO LIVE WITH IT? SO LONG STORY SHORT, YES.
UM, LOCAL GOVERNMENT CAN, UH, MANDATE MASKS AND DOES HAVE JURISDICTION TO DO SO.
WE DON'T FEEL AT THIS TIME THAT IT IS NECESSARY TO DO SO, BUT WE CAREFULLY MONITOR TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE KEEPING THE COMMUNITY SAFE.
[00:10:01]
ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT US DOJ AND CDC APPEALING TO DISTRICT COURT DECISION TO ELIMINATE MANDATED MASK ON PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION CORRIDOR? YEAH, SO I'LL GIVE YOU MY OPINION ON THIS.AND, UH, DR. BROWN, YOU FEEL FREE TO GIVE YOUR OPINION ON IT TOO, BUT I, I, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT THE CDC RETAINS ITS AUTHORITY TO BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT THINGS THAT PROTECT THE PUBLIC AT LARGE.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE, THIS MASK, UH, MANDATE REVERSAL BY THIS FEDERAL GO JUDGE PUTS THAT AT, AT GREAT RISK.
AND, YOU KNOW, ONE THING, AND I'M JUST GONNA GO OFF ON A BIT OF A TANGENT AND FORGIVE ME, BUT YOU KNOW, I'M OLD ENOUGH.
I REMEMBER GOING TO SCHOOL WITH, UH, CLASSMATES OF MINE WHO SUFFERED SOME OF THE HORRIBLE IMPACTS OF POLIO.
AND, YOU KNOW, OMICRON, I MEAN, AND COVID HAS, YOU KNOW, KILLED A LOT OF PEOPLE.
UM, BUT THEY TENDED TO BE OLDER FOLKS AND THEY TENDED TO BE PEOPLE WHO HAD CHRONIC ILLNESS, BUT CERTAINLY NOT ALL OF 'EM.
HOUSTON FIRE DEPARTMENT, WE LOST THREE HEALTHY AT WORK FIREFIGHTERS TO COVID.
THEY ARE DEAD AS A RESULT OF THIS VIRUS.
UM, BUT AS A SOCIETY, WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, THROUGHOUT THIS WHOLE THING, THERE'S BEEN A BIG SEGMENT OF SOCIETY WHO HAS FELT THAT THIS IS NOT THAT BIG OF A DEAL, AND WHAT ARE WE WORRIED ABOUT? UM, THAT WAS NOT THE FEELING WHEN I WAS A CHILD AND CHILDREN WERE SUFFERING FROM POLIO AND WOUND UP WITH JUST TERRIBLE DISABILITIES FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES.
SOCIETY HAD A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT VIEW THEN.
AND SO IT'S, IT'S CONCERNING TO ME THAT A FEDERAL JUDGE IS POTENTIALLY STRIPPING THE CDC C'S ABILITY TO DO THAT BASED ON THIS ILLNESS, WHICH PERHAPS MAYBE BY COMPARISON OF POLIO WAS NOT AS BAD.
BUT WHEN THE NEXT THING COMES BY, WHICH IS AS BAD AS POLIO, AND WE'VE TIED THE HANDS OF THE CDC, WE WILL ALL BE GREATLY REGRETTING THIS DECISION.
SO DAVID, I, I'M GONNA CHIME IN AND, AND AND SUPPORT THAT.
UM, UM, FROM A PUBLIC HEALTH PERSPECTIVE, AGAIN, WE ARE BOTH, UM, PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENTS.
UM, IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THE EXPERTS, THAT BEING THE CDC, WHICH WE HAVE GIVEN AUTHORITY TO BE THE EXPERT, UM, HAVE THE AUTHORITY, UM, TO, TO DICTATE.
AND I, AND I DO USE THE WORD DICTATE PURPOSEFULLY AT TIMES, UM, THE NEEDS AND DICTATE WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING AS A COUNTRY TO KEEP OUR POPULATION SAFE.
UM, I TOO HAVE GREAT CONCERN, UH, WHERE WE, WE, AND I'LL JUST SAY IT FROM MY SOAPBOX, WHERE POLITICS GET IN THE WAY OF THE HEALTH OF THE COMMUNITY.
AND I DO THINK THAT IF WE CONTINUE TO GO DOWN THIS ROAD, UM, IT WILL BE UNFORTUNATE, UH, FOR US IN THE LONG TERM.
IS THERE ANY BENEFIT AT ALL TO WEARING A CLOTH MASK? SO THERE'S ANY, LET'S SAY THIS, ANY MASK HAS SOME BENEFIT, UM, BUT IT'S ALREADY, YOU KNOW, IT'S BEEN SHOWN THAT THE CLOTH MASKS BECAUSE OF, UM, THE ABILITY OF, OF, OF PARTICLES TO MOVE THROUGH, UM, IS NOT THE BEST.
SO, UM, WE, WE'VE WELL ESTABLISHED THAT THE N95 OR THE KN 95 MASKS ARE THE BEST.
UM, BUT AGAIN, ANY MASK, IF THAT'S ALL YOU HAVE, HAS SOME EFFECT, PHILADELPHIA AND OTHER CITIES RETURN TO MASK WEARING.
DO YOU THINK WE WILL DO SO HERE? I I'M NOT PREDICTING THAT, I'M NOT FORESEEING THAT IN.
DR. BROWN MENTIONED EARLIER WITH A SIMILAR QUESTION, UM, WHAT I, YOU KNOW, AND WE'VE JOKED THAT IF YOU WANNA MAKE A MISTAKE IN THIS, UH, LINE OF WORK, MAKE A PREDICTION.
SO LEMME GO AHEAD AND MAKE A PREDICTION.
SO, UH, MY PREDICTION IS THAT WE ARE, WE'RE SEEING THE WASTEWATER NUMBERS COME UP, WE'RE SEEING THE POSITIVITY NUMBERS START TO COME UP.
WE'RE NOT REALLY SEEING HOSPITALIZATION NUMBERS GOING UP, BUT I THINK THAT WE WILL, BECAUSE MOST OF THE PEOPLE THAT ARE BEING HOSPITALIZED TODAY THAT ARE TESTING POSITIVE FOR COVID ARE BEING ADMITTED FOR SOMETHING ELSE.
SO AS MORE VIRUS SPREADS ACROSS THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE GONNA, THE HOSPITAL, WHETHER IT BE FOR THEIR APPENDECTOMY, FOR THEIR RENAL FAILURE, FOR THEIR OTHER NON COVID RELATED ISSUE, WE'RE GONNA SEE MORE PEOPLE TESTING POSITIVE FOR, FOR COVID.
THERE, JUST AS A CONSEQUENCE OF IT BEING IN THE COMMUNITY, THAT'S DIFFERENT FROM MORE PEOPLE BEING ADMITTED TO THE HOSPITAL BECAUSE OF COVID.
SO I, I'M HOPING THAT WE WON'T SEE THAT.
WE MIGHT SEE A LITTLE BIT OF IT, BUT CERTAINLY IT NEEDS IT, IT WILL LIKELY STAY WITHIN THE BOUNDS WHERE THE HOSPITALS CAN HANDLE.
AND SO FOR THAT REASON, I, I DON'T ANTICIPATE WE'RE GONNA SEE ANY MORE OF THE NON-PHARMACEUTICAL INVENTIONS LIKE, YOU KNOW, CANCELING LARGE GATHERINGS, MASK, WEARING, ALL OF THAT STUFF.
I SEE MORGAN IS ANTICIPATING OUR NEXT QUESTION.
SO THERE'S A FEW PIECES TO THIS QUESTION.
UM, AS, AS YOU SEE, UM, THERE,
[00:15:01]
THERE ARE PLANS TO EXPAND, UM, ACCESS TO PAXLOVID.IT IS, UM, AUTHORIZED FOR UNDER EMERGENCY USE FOR THOSE WHO ARE 12 AND OLDER WHO ARE AT HIGH RISK FOR DIS FOR SEVERE DISEASE.
UM, IT'S AVAILABLE ONLY BY PRESCRIPTION.
SO AGAIN, UM, THE PROVIDER IS THE BEST ONE TO DETERMINE WHETHER IT'S RIGHT FOR YOU.
UM, SO AS FAR AS, UM, THE SYMPTOMS AFTER A FIVE DAY COURSE, THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS ABOUT THAT AND THERE ARE STUDIES BEING DONE ABOUT THAT.
SO I REALLY CAN'T, UH, ANSWER MORE THAN YES, THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS AND YES, THEY'RE LOOKING INTO, UM, UH, WHAT ARE THE CAUSE OF THOSE REPORTS THAT HAVE, THAT HAVE COME ABOUT.
UM, THERE HAVE ALSO BEEN REPORTS ABOUT, UM, POSITIVITY, UH, AFTER THEIR INITIAL NEGATIVE CASES.
UM, SO AGAIN, RESEARCH IS ONGOING.
UM, THERE, THERE ARE GOING TO BE PARTS OF THIS VIRUS AND THIS PANDEMIC FOR A LONG TIME TO COME WHERE WE'RE SEEING SOMETHING NEW AND THERE HAS TO BE RESEARCH DONE.
UM, I THINK IT'S GONNA BE QUITE SOME TIME YEARS EVEN BEFORE WE HAVE A COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT HAPPENED, HOW IT HAPPENED, AND WHAT'S THE, THE, THE BEST COURSE GOING FORWARD.
UM, BUT PLEASE DON'T MISTAKE THAT FOR US NOT FEELING VERY CONFIDENT THAT THE BEST COURSE FOR RIGHT NOW TO CO TO MOVE INTO ENDEMIC STATE IS VACCINATION.
OUR KIDS NOW APPROVED FOR WHEN REMIZ AND WHEN SHOULD THEY TAKE IT? SO YES.
UM, UM, INFANTS WHO ARE AT LEAST 28 DAYS AND WEIGHING SEVEN POUNDS, UH, MAY NOW RECEIVE THE TREATMENT.
UM, UH, WHO SHOULD TAKE IT? OBVIOUSLY, YOU, YOU HOSPITAL, YOU HAVE TO BE HOSPITALIZED, UM, HAVE MILD TO MODERATE COVID.
AND SO AGAIN, THIS REALLY IS AT THE DISCRETION OF THE CLINICIAN WHO'S TREATING THE HOSPITALIZED PATIENT, BUT IT IS AUTHORIZED FOR USE DOWN TO 28 DAYS AND SEVEN POUNDS.
THIS IS GONNA TEST MY, UH, SKILLS AND PRONOUNCING DRUGS.
ANY NEW INFORMATION ON SABI
WE AGREE WITH THAT'S HOW TO PRONOUNCE IT JUST EXACTLY THE WAY YOU DID
SO ANY, SO YEAH, SO SABI, IF YOU SAY IT REALLY QUICK, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU KNOW HOW TO SAY IT.
SO, UH, SO THE A PHASE THREE
SO A, UH, A PHASE THREE TRIAL, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, THERE'S PHASE ONE, TWO, AND THREE, AND THEN IT GOES TO MARKET.
SO PHASE THREE TRIAL WAS, WAS DONE, AND, AND IT ACTUALLY GOT, IT GOT STOPPED EARLY BECAUSE THE, UM, THE MEDICINE WAS, UH, APPEAR TO BE REALLY EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING THE, UH, DEATH RATE BY AS MUCH AS 45%.
AND SO THEY'RE GONNA BE MOVING FORWARD WITH A REQUEST FOR THE EMERGENCY USE AUTHORIZATION.
BUT IN THE MEANTIME, A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS HAVE COME UP.
AND ONE WAS THAT IN THIS STUDY, THEY FOUND THAT IN THE GROUP THAT, UM, WAS GETTING THE, UM, UH, THE MEDICATION, UH, THAT THEY, UH, THEY DROPPED THE DEATH RATE TO ABOUT 20% FROM, I THINK IT WAS FROM 45%.
AND NOW THE QUESTIONS ARE COMING DOWN IS, WELL, WHAT, WHAT GROUP WAS IT THAT THESE WERE BEING USED IN THAT HAD SUCH A HIGH DEATH RATE? SO THERE ARE NOW SOME QUESTIONS COMING BACK ABOUT THE ORIGINAL STU STUDY, AND SO THAT MAY BE WHY WE'VE NOT HEARD SO MUCH, BUT THOSE QUESTIONS WILL GET ANSWERED.
UM, SEEMS TO HAVE HIGH PROMISE, AND WE'RE JUST HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE.
BUT, UH, THE EARLY, THE EARLY DATA IS VERY PROMISING, BUT THERE'S A COUPLE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE STUDY.
ONE GROUP OF FRIENDS CANCELED A TRIP TO THE US FOR FEAR THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO QUARANTINE UPON THEIR RETURN HOME.
SOME AIRLINES ARE NOT REQUIRING MASKS, AND SOME COMPANIES WANT PROOF OF A RECENT TEST FROM THEIR EMPLOYEES.
IS THERE ANY EFFORT BEING MADE TO STANDARDIZE AT LEAST TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS? SO I'M GONNA LINK THIS QUESTION BACK TO A PREVIOUS QUESTION ABOUT JURISDICTIONS.
UM, THAT'S REALLY WHAT IT BOILS DOWN TO.
SO, UM, WHILE WE ALL, MYSELF INCLUDED, RIGHT, MAY BE FRUSTRATED WITH, ON THIS LEVEL, WE HAVE TO DO THIS ON THAT LEVEL, IT MAY BE SOMETHING DIFFERENT AND IT, IT CAN BE CONFUSING.
UM, UNFORTUNATELY, UH, IT REALLY COMES DOWN TO, TO JURISDICTIONAL AUTHORITY.
AND SO AT THIS TIME, NO, THERE ISN'T, UM, ANY EFFORT BECAUSE INTERNATIONALLY, FEDERALLY, STATE, LOCAL, ALL HAVE DIFFERENT JURISDICTION, UH, DIFFERENT AUTHORITY, UH, TO, TO MAKE THOSE JUDGEMENTS IF MANY.
STEVEN, I THINK YOU'RE ON MUTE.
IF MANY PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD ARE NOT VACCINATED, CAN WE EVER GET OVER THIS PANDEMIC
AND THE, THE PART OF THE, THE, YOU KNOW, THE PART OF THAT QUESTION IS HOW DO YOU DEFINE WHEN WE'RE OVER THE PANDEMIC? AND PART OF IT'LL BE WHEN THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION SAYS IT'S NO LONGER A PANDEMIC.
UH, BUT YOU KNOW, HERE LOCALLY AND GOING TO THE COMMENT THAT DR. BROWN MADE EARLIER, AND YOU KNOW, FROM
[00:20:01]
WHAT WE'RE SEEING NATIONALLY IS THAT, YOU KNOW, HERE IN THE UNITED STATES, IT BECOMES ENDEMIC WHEN, WELL, THERE'S PROBABLY A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS, BUT I THINK LOCALLY WHEN IT'S NOT IN CAUSING A HUGE BURDEN ON THE HOSPITALS THAT THEY CAN'T HANDLE.SO LIKE THE FLU, THE FLU IS ENDEMIC.
WE WIND UP WITH PEOPLE GETTING HOSPITALIZED EVERY YEAR WITH THE FLU.
WE WIND UP WITH PEOPLE DYING EVERY YEAR FROM THE FLU, BUT IT'S ENDEMIC BECAUSE IT'S, YOU KNOW, THE NUMBERS ARE NOT HUGE AND IT DOESN'T IMPACT THE REST OF THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM.
AND I, I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE APPROACHING.
THE OTHER PART OF THIS QUESTION IS WITH LARGE PARTS OF THE WORLD NOT BEING VACCINATED, THAT MEANS THE DOOR REMAINS VERY MUCH OPEN TO YET ANOTHER MUTANT COMING ON AND SETTING US BACK TO SQUARE ONE AGAIN, IF THAT HAPPENS, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, WE'LL BE FAR FROM BEING OVER THE PANDEMIC.
A RELATED QUESTION, ABOUT 65% IN AFRICA HAVE BEEN AFFECTED.
HAVE THEY REACHED HERD IMMUNITY YET? UM, IT'S HARD TO SAY WHETHER THEY HAVE HERD IMMUNITY.
UM, THE CONCEPT OF HERD IMMUNITY HAS CHANGED RECENTLY WITH THE RISE IN BREAKTHROUGH INFECTIONS.
UM, SOME PEOPLE HAVEN'T EXPERIENCED SEVERE ILLNESS AND OR, AND OR DEATH, UM, UM, FROM REINFECTION.
UM, SO THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT MANY PEOPLE HAVE, WHO HAVE BEEN INFECTED AND RECOVERED, UM, ARE SHOWING SOME LEVEL OF IMMUNITY.
UM, BUT IT'S HARD TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION AND TO REALLY SAY WHETHER, WHETHER THERE IS HERD IMMUNITY YET.
I THINK, UM, UM, DAVID'S ANSWER IN THE LAST QUESTION IS REALLY THE, THE KEY.
WE, WE ARE IN A WAIT AND SEE WHAT IS THE STATUS OF COVID INFECTIONS IN OUR AREA.
UH, SO WE TALKED ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT EARLIER.
THE, THE WASTEWATER NUMBERS ARE GOING UP.
SO WE KNOW FOR A FACT THAT THERE IS VIRAL SPREAD OCCURRING IN OUR COMMUNITY.
THE POSITIVITY RATES ARE GOING UP SLOWLY, AND OF COURSE, THEY LAG BEHIND WASTEWATER.
THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE SEEING.
UH, HOSPITALIZATIONS USUALLY LAG BEHIND THE INCREASE IN POSITIVITY RATES.
SO IT MAY BE A LITTLE BIT TOO EARLY TO SEE THAT THEY ARE REALLY PRETTY FLAT, MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF AN UPTICK IN THE SET RAC, I'M SORRY, IN THE TMC NUMBERS, BUT THE SET RAC NUMBERS ARE REALLY, REALLY VERY FLAT.
UH, WE'VE BEEN ABOUT THE SAME FOR ABOUT THREE WEEKS NOW WITH THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE ADMITTED TO THE HOSPITALS.
AND MOST OF THOSE ARE WITH COVID, NOT FOR COVID.
BUT AGAIN, UH, IT MAY JUST BE A LITTLE BIT EARLY TO SEE A A, AN INCREASE IN THAT.
SO IT'S HERE, IT'S SPREADING, BUT IT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE MAKING, ANECDOTALLY WE'RE HEARING ABOUT A LOT OF PEOPLE GET SICK, TEST POSITIVE, STAY HOME FROM WORK, AND THEN THEY GO BACK A FEW DAYS LATER AND THEY'RE FINE.
SO IS THAT ENDEMIC MAYBE? WELL, IT'S THE SPRING BREAK IMPACT THIS YEAR LESS THAN THE PREVIOUS TWO.
UH, I WOULDN'T THE IMPACT, YES.
UM, UM, CAN WE SAY THAT THE NUMBER OF CASES WAS LESS WITH HOME TESTING? UM, WE, WE SEE THE NUMBERS ARE LOWER, BUT WITH HOME TESTING, UM, AND NOT NECESSARILY KNOWING THE, ALL OF THE POSITIVITY RATES OF HOME TESTING.
UM, WE, WE CAN'T REALLY SAY THAT FOR SURE, BUT THE IMPACT, UM, DEFINITELY WAS YES.
AND WE CONTINUE TO SEE THE NUMBERS DECLINE, UH, OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS.
BA TWO IS 68.1% OF THE TOTAL CASES BA 2.1, 2.1 WAVE IS UP TO 29%.
CAN WE FIGURE ALL NEW CASES ARE THAT VARIANT? UH, I DON'T THINK WE CAN SAY ALL THAT'S A STRONG WORD.
UM, BUT, BUT, BUT MOST WE CAN SAY THAT THAT BA TWO IS THE DOMINANT VARIANT AT THIS POINT.
LOOKS LIKE THERE IS A SLIGHT INCREASE IN HOSPITALIZATIONS.
WHY? SO THIS COMES BACK TO THE, UH, COMMENT I MADE EARLIER, AND WE NEED TO PAY A LITTLE BIT OF CLOSE ATTENTION TO WHAT WE'RE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.
SO AS MORE AND MORE PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY ARE TESTING POSITIVE FOR COVID, THEN YOU KNOW, THE, THE PEOPLE GONNA, THE HOSPITAL ARE JUST A SAMPLE OF THAT.
SO IF PEOPLE ARE GOING IN BECAUSE THEIR APPENDICITIS, THEIR RENAL FAILURE, THEIR THERE OTHER NON COVID ILLNESS, IF THERE'S MORE VIRUS SPREADING IN THE COMMUNITY, THEN MORE PEOPLE GETTING ADMITTED FOR NON COVID THINGS, YOU'RE GONNA TEST POSITIVE AS WELL.
SO THAT'S WHY IT COMES DOWN TO ARE THEY BEING ADMITTED WITH COVID? ARE THEY BEING ADMITTED FOR COVID? AND WHAT THE HO PEOPLE IN THE HOSPITALIZED RIGHT NOW IS THAT NEARLY EVERYONE, NEARLY NOT EVERYONE, BUT NEARLY EVERYONE IS BEING ADMITTED WITH COVID AS OPPOSED TO FOR COVID.
SO AGAIN, I, I EXPECT THAT WE'LL SEE AN INCREASE IN THAT NUMBER FOLLOWING THE INCREASE WE'RE CURRENTLY SEEING IN POSITIVITY, WHICH IS FOLLOWING THE INCREASE WE'VE SE SEEN IN WASTEWATER.
HOW MUCH DO AT HOME TESTING RESULTS IMPACT HOW WE PERCEIVE COVID IN OUR COMMUNITY? SO THIS IS A VERY FOLLOW UP QUESTION, UM, TO THE LAST, THE WAY THAT WE ARE ARE MEASURING, UM, AND WE HAVE USED THIS, THIS MEASUREMENT FOR QUITE SOME TIME, EVEN PRIOR TO, UM, UM, SUCH EASY ACCESS TO HOME TESTING IS THE HOSPITAL RATE.
UM, AS WELL AS, UM, THE POSITIVITY RATE FROM THOSE FORMAL TESTS THAT ARE DONE IN A LAB SOMEWHERE AS WELL AS THE WASTEWATER DATA, UM, UM, FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, BUT AGAIN, WE SHOULD NOTE THAT THE, THE, THE
[00:25:01]
BURNING QUESTION HERE WITH THE HOSPITAL DATA IS THOSE WHO ARE ADMITTED FOR COVID VERSUS THOSE WHO ARE ADMITTED, UM, AND HAPPEN TO HAVE COVID UPON ADMISSION.MAYBE A RELATED QUESTION OVERVIEW OF T-M-C-I-C-U BED CAPACITY AND OCCUPANCY LOOKS HIGH TO ME, BUT WHEN YOU SEE THE SMALL NUMBER OF BEDS OCCUPIED WITH CO COVID PATIENT, IT LOOKS GREAT.
HOW SHOULD WE, UH, INTERPRET THIS? I, I THINK WE'VE, WE'VE ALLUDED TO THIS IN SOME OF THE, THE PREVIOUS ANSWERS.
UM, UM, WE STILL UNFORTUNATELY CONTINUE TO HAVE PEOPLE WHO REQUIRE ICU CARE.
UM, AND SO WHILE, WHILE WE MAY SEE ICU BED OCCUPANCY BEING UP, THOSE THAT ARE SPECIFICALLY IN THE ICU BECAUSE OF COVID NUM, THOSE NUMBERS ARE LOW.
WHO IS LEAST LIKELY AND MOST LIKELY TO GET A BREAKTHROUGH CASE OF COVID? YEAH, IT'S A GOOD QUESTION.
UM, AND PART OF IT GOES TO HOW DO WE DECIDE DEFINE BREAKTHROUGH? UH, ONE OF THE MISTAKES I THINK IN HINDSIGHT THAT WE MADE IS THAT ANYBODY WHO TESTED POSITIVE AFTER GETTING VACCINATED, PEOPLE WERE LABELING THAT AS A BREAKTHROUGH.
WELL, THAT, THAT WE SHOULDN'T HAVE, WE SHOULDN'T HAVE DONE IT THAT WAY BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU GET THE FLU SHOT AND IF YOU CATCH THE FLU, YOU SHOULD HAPPEN TO CATCH THE FLU.
THAT DOESN'T MEAN THE FLU SHOT FAILED.
IF YOU CATCH THE FLU AND YOU DON'T WIND UP IN THE HOSPITAL, THAT'S A VACCINE SUCCESS, NOT A BREAKTHROUGH, NOT A FAILURE.
AND SO THAT'S ONE OF THE, THE PROBLEMS THAT I THINK THAT WE HAVE WITH, WITH BREAKTHROUGH.
BUT THOSE PEOPLE WHO HAVE IMPAIRED IMMUNE SYSTEMS ARE THE ONES WHERE THE VACCINE IS LEAST LIKELY TO HAVE ITS BEST IMPACT.
AND SO I WOULD SAY THOSE, TO ANSWER THIS QUESTION, THE PEOPLE WHO'VE GOT IMPAIRED IMMUNE SYSTEMS, AGAIN, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WHO KNOW THEIR IMMUNE SYSTEM, IMPAIRED ORGAN TRANSPLANT, CHEMOTHERAPY PATIENTS, THE ELDERLY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE THE VACCINE IS MORE LIKELY TO HAVE LESS, UH, PROTECTION AND THEREFORE SHOULD GET THE BOOSTERS.
TWO WASTEWATER QUESTIONS LOOKING AT WASTEWATER.
OOPS, BALL, WHAT'S NEXT? WHAT ELSE DOES WASTEWATER PREDICT? SO I, I'LL TAKE THAT ONE.
SINCE THE WASTEWATER IS, UM, PREDOMINANTLY A CITY THING.
AND SO WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING FOR VARIANTS.
UM, AND, AND HERE'S THE OTHER THING IS WHILE WASTEWATERS NEW TO THE PUBLIC, WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT WASTEWATER FOR OTHER DISEASES FOR, FOR DECADES.
UM, SO THE WHOLE CONCEPT OF LOOKING AT WASTEWATER FOR ILLNESS IS NOT NECESSARILY NEW.
UH, IT IS A BROAD RANGING, THERE ARE SOME COMMUNITIES IN THE UNITED STATES THAT ARE LOOKING TO FIND OUT WHICH NEIGHBORHOODS THEY'VE GOT MORE OPIATE USE, UM, AND HELPING TO DIRECT THEIR, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE, THE HUGE OPIATE PROBLEM WE HAVE IN THE UNITED STATES TODAY.
UH, WE'RE ABLE TO FIND CERTAIN FUNGIS THAT ARE INFECTING THEIR, ARE CERTAIN FUNGIS IN NURSING HOMES THAT ARE CAUSING SERIOUS PROBLEMS. SO WE CAN LOOK FOR THOSE FUNGUS IN THE NURSING HOMES.
THERE'S A BROAD RANGE OF, OF THINGS THAT WE CAN LOOK FOR.
AND SO I THINK WHEN WE SAY LIKE, WHAT'S NEXT, THE, THIS COVID PANDEMIC HAS CREATED THE WASTEWATER TESTING, UH, INDUSTRY AND SCIENCE TO BLOSSOM SO MUCH THAT I ANTICIPATE WE'LL BE USING IT TO FIND A WHOLE LOT OF OTHER, UH, UH, ISSUES THAT ARE CURRENTLY IMPACTING COMMUNITIES AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR COVID-19 TALK WITH LOCAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES, DR.
ERICA BROWN, REPRESENTING HARRIS COUNTY, DR. DAVID PERCH, REPRESENTING THE CI CITY OF HOUSTON.
SPECIAL THANKS TO PAST PRESIDENT KATHY FINNER ROTARY CLUB OF HOUSTON FOR PROVIDING THE QUESTIONS.
I'M STEVEN WILLIAMS, DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT.