* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.
          [00:00:15]
          GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME TO COVID-19 TALK WITH LOCAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES. 
          JOINING US THIS MORNING IS DR. 
          JANINA WHITE, WHO'S, UH, SITTING IN FOR DR. 
          ERICA BROWN FROM HARRIS COUNTY. 
          ALSO, WE HAVE DR. DAVID PER REPRESENTING THE CITY OF HOUSTON. 
          SPECIAL THANKS TO PAST PRESIDENT ROTARY CLUB OF HOUSTON, KATHY FINNER FOR PROVIDING THESE QUESTIONS. 
          OUR PRODUCER TODAY, UH, DAVID CASTILLO. 
          I'M STEPHEN WILLIAMS, DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT. 
          CURRENTLY, WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF FULLY VACCINATED? THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION, , I'LL TAKE THAT ONE. 
          SO FULLY VACCINATED IS WHEN YOU'VE HAD YOUR PRIMARY SE SERIES OF A COVID VACCINE. 
          EVEN IF YOU'VE NOT BEEN BOOSTED, YOU'VE HAD THE PRIMARY SERIES, BUT WE'D STILL ENCOURAGE, IF YOU'VE NOT BEEN BOOSTED, PLEASE GET YOUR PRIMARY SERIES AND THEN GET BOOSTED FOR, UH, ADDITIONAL PROTECTION. 
          WHAT IS THE STATUS OF, UH, OF WASTEWATER? YEAH, SO THERE'S SOME GOOD NEWS THERE. 
          OUR LOCAL WASTEWATER COVID NUMBERS ARE, ARE WAY DOWN. 
          UH, WE'RE NOT QUITE AT THE LOWEST THAT WE'VE EVER BEEN, UH, BUT WE ARE ABSOLUTELY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. 
          WE'RE IN THE 30, 40% RANGE. 
          THAT'S A PERCENT CO COMPARED TO THE PEAK OF THE FIRST WAVE IN JULY OF 2020. 
          UH, ALSO OUR LOCAL HOSPITALIZATIONS FOR HARRIS COUNTY IS AN EXAMPLE. 
          MOST OF THE FOLKS THAT ARE ADMITTED, UH, THAT HAVE A DIAGNOSIS OF COVID ARE REALLY ADMITTED FOR SOMETHING ELSE. 
          AND IT'S INCIDENTAL THAT THEY HAVE COVID. 
          THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO ARE ADMITTED BECAUSE OF COVID PROBLEMS, BUT MOST OF THEM ARE, ARE COINFECTED WITH, UH, COVID AND THEIR PRIMARY PROBLEM. 
          AND THOSE NUMBERS ARE ACTUALLY LOWER THAN THEY'VE BEEN SINCE BEFORE THAT FIRST WAVE. 
          OUR, OUR VERY LOWEST NUMBERS WERE OBVIOUSLY BEFORE THE FIRST WAVE, BUT WE'RE IN THAT SAME NEIGHBORHOOD AS WELL. 
          SO, UH, RIGHT NOW WE ARE ABSOLUTELY, UH, LOOKING GOOD FOR COVID. 
          UM, BUT WE ARE WATCHING WHAT CAREFULLY WHAT'S GOING ON IN EUROPE AND IN THE NORTHEAST. 
          'CAUSE THINGS ARE TAKING A TURN, UH, IN THOSE LOCATIONS. 
          SO WE GOTTA KEEP OUR GUARD UP. 
          YET, OF COURSE, THE NUMBERS ARE DOWN IN, IN HARRIS COUNTY, BUT IS THAT TRUE FOR ALL AGE GROUPS? THEY'RE ASKING FOR COVID? UM, YES. 
          YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          SO RIGHT NOW OUR COUNTY INDICATOR AND CITY INDICATOR WE'RE IN LEVEL GREEN. 
          SO WE ARE IN LOW, BUT WE'RE STILL KEEPING A CLOSE EYE. 
          LIKE DR. 
          PER SAID, WE'RE WATCHING WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OTHER PARTS OF THE COUNTRY, UM, PARTICULARLY THE NORTHEAST. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, WE CERTAINLY DON'T WANNA LET OUR GUARDS DOWN WITH REGARDS TO BEING PREPARED FOR OUR STRATEGIES, FOR OUR TOOLKITS, FOR COVID. 
          ALL THOSE THINGS THAT WE KNEW FROM BEFORE ARE STILL, UM, APPLICABLE AND CERTAINLY VACCINATION REALLY IS WHAT WE'RE REALLY PUSHING, UM, INDIVIDUALS. 
          IF YOU'VE NOT BEEN VACCINATED, IF YOU'VE NOT BEEN BOOSTED, THIS IS THE TIME EVEN FOR THOSE LITTLE ONES WHO ARE NOW CANDIDATES TO GET BOOSTER VACCINES. 
          OKAY. 
          DAVID, YOU GOTTA TAKE OUT YOUR CRYSTAL BALL. 
          CDC WASTEWATER WITH BA 4.6 GOING UP IN THE BOSTON AREA. 
          AND HOSPITALIZATIONS HAVE INCREASED IN THE NORTHEAST SINCE WE HAVE FOLLOWED THAT AREA BY A COUPLE OF WEEKS. 
          WHAT ARE YOUR PREDICTIONS? , YOU, YOU MAKE ME LAUGH BECAUSE ONE OF MY NEW, UH, MOTTOES IS IF YOU WANNA MAKE A MISTAKE, MAKE A PREDICTION. 
          SO, UH, LEMME GO AHEAD AND MAKE A PREDICTION. 
          RIGHT. 
          UH, I THINK THAT WE'RE GONNA SEE ANOTHER WAVE. 
          MY MY FEAR IS THAT IT'S GONNA BE, UH, PROBABLY DURING NOVEMBER, UH, SO CURRENTLY LOGAN. 
          SO YEAH, BA 4.6 IS NOT MAKING UP A HUGE PERCENTAGE OF WHAT, UH, IS BEING SEEN ELSEWHERE, BUT IT'S PRESENT. 
          WE HAVEN'T, UH, I'VE, I'VE NOT GOTTEN ANY REPORTS THAT WE'VE SEEN IT. 
          NOW WHAT WE DO HAVE IS WE DO HAVE A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT FORMS OF OMICRON, INCLUDING BA FOUR, UM, AND WE ACTUALLY STILL HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF DELTA FLOATING AROUND. 
          UH, THE THING THAT HAS ME MOST CONCERNED IS THAT IF WE GET ANOTHER WAVE COMING UP HERE IN NOVEMBER, THAT THAT MAY OVERLAP. 
          'CAUSE OUR INFLUENZA NUMBERS ARE GOING UP AND, UH, RSV IS ACTUALLY VERY ACTIVE ALREADY. 
          AND SO IF WE GET, YOU KNOW, THE TRIPLE WHAMMY ALL AT ONCE, IT'S GONNA PUT A HUGE STRAIN ON THE HOSPITALS. 
          DDC IS NO LONGER DOING, DOING DAILY TRACKING. 
          IS THAT WISE IN AREAS WHERE CASES ARE UP? DOES IT EVEN MATTER? YEAH, SO THIS IS A REALLY GOOD AND REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTION. 
          SO THE, THE PURPOSE OF OF CONTACT TRACING AND CASE INVESTIGATION EARLY ON IN AN OUTBREAK IS FOR CONTAINMENT. 
          AND I WANNA REMIND FOLKS THAT HERE IN HOUSTON, WHEN WE VERY HAD OUR VERY FIRST CASES OF COVID FROM THE, UH, PEOPLE THAT WERE ON THAT EGYPTIAN RIVER CREWS IN WEST, UH, HOUSTON, AND IN FORT BEND AREA, WE WERE ABLE TO CONTAIN AND BASICALLY STOP THE SPREAD OF IT THROUGH, UH, CONTACT TRACING 
          [00:05:01]
AND, AND CASE INVESTIGATION. 
          BUT THEN AT SOME POINT, IT, IT JUST GETS OVERWHELMINGLY HUGE. 
          AND YOU, YOU CAN'T CONTAIN THE VIRUS WHERE SOMEBODY WHO SPREADS AS EASILY AS COVID DID. 
          UH, SO AT THIS POINT, IT'S FOR ACADEMIC TO LEARN ABOUT THE VIRUS. 
          AND SO WE'VE LEARNED AN AWFUL LOT ABOUT NOW AS WE GET NEW VARIANTS, WE NEED TO INVESTIGATE THOSE. 
          UH, BUT THE, THE TASK IS OVERWHELMING WHEN WE GET THE NUMBERS THAT WE GET NOW. 
          SO IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S HARD TO SAY IF IT'S, UM, YOU KNOW, IF, IF IT'S WORTH IT WHEN THE NUMBERS GET TO BE SO BIG THAT YOU CAN'T MAKE SENSE OF THE DATA. 
          OCTOBER 13TH, THE US EXTENDS COVID-19 PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY DECLARATION FOR ANOTHER 90 DAYS. 
          DOES THIS PROVIDE THOSE IN PUBLIC HEALTH? ANY ADDITIONAL RESOURCES? NO, IT DOESN'T . 
          I, I, I THINK WHAT IT DOES IS JUST CONTINUES TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE FACT IT WE'RE STILL IN A PANDEMIC. 
          THERE'S STILL A LOT THAT WE, WE DON'T KNOW. 
          I MEAN, WE'RE HEARING THE DISCUSSIONS FROM, UH, HEALTH AUTHORITIES. 
          UH, WE'D LOVE TO HAVE THAT CRYSTAL BALL TO DETERMINE WHAT HAPPENS. 
          BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, THE DECLARATION IS IN PLACE, UH, UH, ACKNOWLEDGING THAT WE REALLY DON'T KNOW WHERE, WHERE WE'RE GOING FROM HERE. 
          ARE WE HAVING AN OUR SV CRISIS IN HOSPITALS? SO WE'RE CERTAINLY HEARING THAT OUR HOSPITAL PARTNERS IN OTHER PARTS OF THE COUNTRY ARE SEEING SORT OF THIS RSVA SURGE, I THINK IN THE ATLANTA REGION AND OUT EAST, EVEN IN THE ATLANTA REGION, THEY'RE LOOKING AT SOME ALTERNATE MODELS FOR HOSPITAL. 
          SO THAT ER ATTACHMENT, UM, FOR GIVING CARE TO KIDS HERE IN OUR AREA, WE ARE MONITORING RSV VERY CLOSELY. 
          WE HAVE HEARD THAT OUR PEDIATRIC HOSPITALS HAVE HAD AN INCREASED, UH, NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WITH THE RSV. 
          UM, WE'RE, WE'RE SORT OF, UH, UH, IN KNOW A STATE IN OUR REGION WHERE WE HAVE A LOT OF PEDIATRIC EXPERTISE IN THIS, UH, AREA, BUT WE ALSO KNOW THIS RSV INFLUENZA AND COVID. 
          SO WE ARE REALLY WANTING, YOU KNOW, FAMILIES TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY FLU VACCINATION IS IMPORTANT. 
          GET THEM VACCINATED FOR FLU. 
          WE HAVE COVID VACCINES FOR CHILDREN FIVE AND UP, BUT YOU KNOW, RSV IS OFTEN SEEN IN THE MOST VULNERABLE LITTLE BABIES, SIX MONTHS, SEVEN MONTHS, 1-YEAR-OLD. 
          AND THEN EVEN, UM, UH, INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE, UM, ELDERLY WHO HAVE IMMUNE COMPROMISING CONDITIONS. 
          SO THIS IS ONE TO WATCH AND WE'RE PREPARED AND, AND I KNOW OUR HOSPITAL SYSTEMS ARE REALLY DOING THE BEST THEY CAN. 
          THE OTHER THING I WANNA MENTION THOUGH, IS, UM, KUDOS TO ALL OF OUR HOSPITAL WORKERS. 
          AND WE KNOW OUR HOSPITAL WORKERS ARE, YOU KNOW, FATIGUED AND, AND, AND WE'VE SEEN WORKFORCE SHORTAGES. 
          BUT WHAT I KNOW TO BE TRUE IS THAT NO MATTER WHAT, WHEN THEY SEE, UM, ISSUES LIKE THIS CRITICAL NEED, THEY'RE ALWAYS GONNA STEP UP TO THE PLATE MEDICATION MED PAGE TODAY.COM REPORTED ON IVER MYCIN, NOTING THAT THERE WAS NO BENEFIT FROM MILD TO MODERATE CASES. 
          AND THE FINDINGS DO NOT SUPPORT ITS USE. 
          IS THERE ANY EFFECTIVE MEDICATIONS? SO YEAH, THERE, THERE ARE SOME EFFECTIVE MEDICATIONS AND IN FACT, THE FDA IS WORKING HARD TO GET MORE AUTHORIZED AND AVAILABLE. 
          UH, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU SAY THAT'S A PRETTY BROAD QUESTION, UM, SO THERE ARE SOME, YOU KNOW, PILL FORMS, THERE ARE IV FORMS OF MEDICATIONS THAT CAN BE, UH, TAKEN, BUT THERE, THERE ARE OTHERS. 
          UM, YEAH, BUT IVERMECTIN, UH, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF DEBATE ABOUT THAT, BUT IT, IT, UH, NEVER REALLY LOOKED LIKE IT WAS ACTUALLY MAKING A DIFFERENCE AXLE. 
          IT IS NOT BEING CON CONS CONSISTENTLY GIVEN. 
          IT IS, IT'S STILL CONSIDERED EFFECTIVE. 
          SO IT'S STILL ONE OF THE TOOLS IN OUR TOOLKIT. 
          AND SO THAT PERSON ASKING THAT QUESTION, YOU'RE EXACTLY RIGHT. 
          I THINK WE HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO MAKE SURE COMMUNITIES UNDERSTAND THAT THAT'S A RESOURCE THAT'S AVAILABLE. 
          WE DO KNOW THERE'S SOME EQUITY ISSUES AND SO THIS QUESTION SPEAKS TO THAT AND WE NEED TO DO A BETTER JOB OF MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE KNOW THAT THOSE TOOLKIT, THOSE TOOLS IN THE TOOLKIT ARE AVAILABLE. 
          SO PAXLOVID IS STILL USED FOR MILD TO MODERATE EXPOSURE OF HAVING COVID SYMPTOMS. AND IF YOU HAVE THOSE RISK FACTORS, YOUR PROVIDER SHOULD BE MAKING YOU AWARE THAT THAT'S, UH, A MEDICATION TO DISCUSS WITH YOU TO SEE IF YOU ARE A CANDIDATE TO BE ON IT. 
          AND THEN YOU MAKE A SHARED DECISION ABOUT BEING, UH, BEING ABLE TO USE IT. 
          CAN YOU DISCUSS ANY PREVENTATIVE MEDICATION WHEN YOU'RE EXPOSED TO COVID? UH, EXPAND THAT TO PREVENTIVE ME. 
          SO MEASURES? YEAH, IF YOU'RE EXPOSED TO COVID RIGHT NOW THERE'S WHAT WE CALL LIKE THE PREP. 
          THERE'S NO PRE, UM, PREVENT, PRE PREVENT PREVENTATIVE MEDICATION. 
          THERE ARE MEDICATIONS THOUGH. 
          EVERY SHIELD IS ONE THAT MOST PEOPLE HEAR ABOUT. 
          IF YOU DON'T HAVE ILLNESS BUT YOU'RE AT RISK, THEN EV SHIELD SHOULD BE A MEDICATION THAT AGAIN, YOUR PROVIDER SHOULD BE SPEAKING TO YOU ABOUT, UM, BEING ABLE TO USE. 
          AND CERTAINLY 
          [00:10:01]
IT, THE EQUITY AGAIN IS THAT THE STATE HAS IT AVAILABLE. 
          IT SHOULD NOT BE A BARRIER IF YOU ARE, UM, DEPENDING ON YOUR INSURANCE STATUS, IT'S AVAILABLE ACROSS THE BOARD FOR PEOPLE IN OUR REGION ACROSS THE STATE. 
          AND IF YOU HAVE MILD TO MODERATE SYMPTOMS, THEN WE HAVE MEDICATIONS, UM, WHICH WE JUST TALKED ABOUT, THE PAXLOVID, THE LA GABRIELLE, AND SOME OTHER ADDITIONAL MEDICATIONS AS AGAIN, OPTIONS THAT YOUR PHYSICIAN SHOULD PROVIDER SHOULD SIT WITH YOU AND TALK ABOUT TO SEE IF THAT'S THE RIGHT DECISION FOR YOU. 
          SINCE WE AREN'T SURE EXACTLY HOW LONG IMMUNITY LASTS, WHAT IS THE MINIMUM TIME TO WAIT FOR A BIVALENT BOOSTER AFTER HAVING AN INFECTION? I'LL BE TRAVELING OVER THE HOLIDAYS AND WOULD LIKE TO HAVE AS MUCH PROTECTION AS POSSIBLE. 
          YEAH, SO THIS IS A GREAT QUESTION. 
          AND WHAT WE BELIEVE IS THAT AFTER SOMEBODY'S BEEN INFECTED, THEY GENERALLY, FROM THAT INFECTION, THEY PRODUCE ANTIBODIES AND THEY'RE GENERALLY PROTECTED IN THE THREE TO FOUR MONTH RANGE. 
          SO IF YOU WERE TO GET VACCINATED, GET A BOOSTER, FOR EXAMPLE, WITHIN THAT PERIOD, IT REALLY WOULDN'T ADD ANY BENEFITS. 
          SO IN ORDER TO TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE YOUR PROTECTION AS LONG AS POSSIBLE, THE RECOMMENDATION IS THAT YOU WOULDN'T GET VACCINATED SOONER THAN THREE MONTHS. 
          NOW THAT HAVING BEEN SAID, SHOULD YOU BE IN A SPECIAL SITUATION WHERE PERHAPS YOU'RE CARING FOR SOMEBODY WITH, UH, A CHRONIC ILLNESS OR, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS YOUR EMPLOYMENT WHERE YOU WORK IN A NURSING HOME OR SOMETHING, YOU MAY WANNA TALK TO YOUR PROVIDER AND CONSIDER GETTING IT A LITTLE BIT EARLIER. 
          BUT THE GENERALLY IT'S ABOUT IT, WAIT AT LEAST THREE MONTHS 'CAUSE THERE'S NO EXTRA ADDED BENEFIT DOING IT LESS THAN THREE MONTHS. 
          'CAUSE THE INFECTION GAVE YOU PROTECTION. 
          ACCORDING TO A RECENT STUDY PUBLISHED IN JAMA NETWORK, OPEN JOURNAL, ROBUST PFIZER MODERNA VACCINE SIDE EFFECTS SHOW THE VACCINE IS WORKING. 
          WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THOSE WHO HAD NO REACTION? AGAIN, I'M NOT READ THAT STUDY, BUT JUST ANECDOTALLY TALKING TO PEOPLE WHO I KNOW WHO'VE BEEN VACCINATED AND BOOSTED, THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO JUST SAID THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE A, A REACTION WHERE THEY THOUGHT PREVIOUSLY THEY, THEY HAD SORT OF, THAT ARM WAS SORE, THEY FELT MAYBE A LITTLE BIT UNDER THE WEATHER FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS. 
          SO NOT HAVING THOSE SYMPTOMS DOESN'T MEAN YOUR VACCINE WAS NOT EFFECTIVE OR YOU DIDN'T GET THE MEDICATION. 
          JUST THIS, ITS VARIABILITY IN HOW WE RESPOND TO BEING VACCINATED. 
          CDC APPROVED NOVAVAX MONOVALENT BOOSTERS FOR 18 AND OLDER. 
          WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS? WOULD IT LAST LONGER THAN THE MNRA BOOSTERS? I'VE RECEIVED MY LAST PFIZER IN SEPTEMBER. 
          HOW SOON CAN I GET A NOVAVAX BOOSTER? PLEASE REITERATE WHO SHOULD TAKE MONOCLONAL VERSUS BIVALENT VACCINES? UNWRAP THAT. 
          . 
          YEAH, SO THAT, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. 
          SO THE, THE NOVAVAX IS A, UH, A FINE VACCINE. 
          IT'S, IT'S GOT HIGH PROTECTION RATES. 
          UH, THE, THE THING IS, IT'S PRODUCED BY THE TRADITIONAL METHODS. 
          SO A LOT OF PEOPLE HAD ANXIETY ABOUT GETTING VACCINATED WITH AN MRNA 'CAUSE IT WAS A NEW TECHNOLOGY AND THEY HAD HEARD ALL KINDS OF A MALARKEY REALLY ABOUT WHY IT WOULDN'T WAS DANGEROUS OR SOMETHING. 
          IT'S ALL WRONG. 
          BUT ANYWAYS, IF YOU ARE SOMEBODY WHO HAD THAT CONCERN, YOU CAN GET THE, THE, THE NOVAVAX AND THEY'VE NOW APPROVED IT FOR, UH, BOOSTER AS WELL. 
          UH, IT, IT, WE, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE IT'S UP NEW, WE HAVE TO WAIT TO SEE HOW LONG IT'S GONNA LAST. 
          THERE'S NO REASON TO THINK IT'LL LAST ANY LESS LONG THAN AN MRNA. 
          PERHAPS IT'LL LAST LONGER. 
          UH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE, UH, BECAUSE IT'S ONLY, YOU KNOW, IN THE LAST COUPLE MONTHS BEEN OUT. 
          AND SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, GET A REAL WORLD, UM, ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION. 
          UM, BUT YEAH, SO IF YOU ARE UNWILLING OR PERHAPS YOU HAD A BAD REACTION AND AN ALLERGIC REACTION TO THE MRNA, YOU'RE ALLERGIC TO ONE OF THE PRESERVATIVES OR SOMETHING IN IT AND YOU CAN'T GET ANOTHER MRNA, UH, THEN YOU WOULD WANNA THINK ABOUT GETTING IT THE NOVAVAX VACCINE. 
          BIG NEWS THIS PAST WEEK ABOUT HOW MUCH PFIZER WILL CHARGE FOR COVID VACCINES AFTER THE GOVERNMENT STOPS PAYING FOR THOSE WITH INSURANCE. 
          ISN'T THIS CONSISTENT WITH OTHER RECOMMENDED VACCINES THAT USUALLY HAVE ZERO COPAY? SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, WITH OTHER TRADITIONAL VACCINES, THE INSURANCE CARRIER WILL PICK UP AND HAS A, A, A MARKET VALUE FOR YOU BEING VACCINATED, CERTAINLY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH. 
          ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE STAND PREPARED, AND I THINK DR. STEVEN WILLIAMS MENTIONED THIS EARLIER, IS, YOU KNOW, WHAT ROLE DOES THIS DECLARATION PLAY? WHAT OPPORTUNITIES DOES PUBLIC HEALTH HAVE IN THIS SPACE? AND SO CERTAINLY INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE UNDERINSURED OR UNINSURED, THIS IS WHERE PUBLIC HEALTH IS LOOKING TO SEE HOW TO ENSURE THAT EQUITY FOR INDIVIDUALS TO ENSURE YOU HAVE ACCESS TO VACCINES. 
          'CAUSE WHAT WE DON'T WANT IS TO SEE A, AGAIN, A DISPARITY IN INEQUITY THAT VACCINES WE KNOW MAKE A DIFFERENCE ARE NOT AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE WHO WANTS TO GET VACCINATED. 
          I'M SO EXCITED TO GET THE VETTED AND I'M SURPRISED THAT ONLY A VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE IN THE US HAVE RECEIVED IT. 
          FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN GETTING 
          [00:15:01]
THE BOOSTERS, WHY A RELUCTANCE NOW, ESPECIALLY WITH THOSE OVER 65 WHO HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED MORE VULNERABLE. 
          BOY, IF THIS ISN'T THE $60 MILLION QUESTION, RIGHT? UM, IF WE HAD A GOOD ANSWER TO THAT, THEN WE WOULDN'T NEED THIS QUESTION. 
          UH, YOU KNOW, IT'S, WELL, ONE OF THE THINGS I CAN TELL YOU IS THAT OUR HOSPITAL PARTNERS THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH AND BEEN WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH FOR THE YEAR, COUPLE YEARS NOW, SEVERAL YEARS, ALMOST THREE YEARS NOW, THEY'RE TELLING US THAT, YOU KNOW, OF THE PATIENTS WHO ARE ADMITTED, AND I MENTIONED EARLIER THAT THE NUMBER OF PATIENTS ADMITTED HOSPITAL WITH COVID TODAY ARE, ARE VERY LOW. 
          AND IT'S, AND THEY'RE CO-INFECTIONS, BUT AMONG THEM THEY'RE ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY UNVACCINATED INDIVIDUALS. 
          UH, SO THE VACCINE AND, AND FOR THE FEW THAT WERE VACCINATED, THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO'VE GOT COMPLICATED MEDICAL PROBLEMS, UH, A LOT OF COMORBIDITIES. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, AND AS WE AGE AND AS THE QUESTIONER POINTS OUT, AS WE AGE, OUR IMMUNE SYSTEMS START TO FALTER. 
          AND ONE OF THE THINGS THEY'LL DO IS THEY WON'T RESPOND TO VACCINE QUITE AS WELL. 
          AND SO EVEN THOUGH THEY GOT VACCINATED, THEY MAY NOT HAVE GOTTEN THE LEVEL OF PROTECTION, HENCE THEY WIND UP IN THE HOSPITAL. 
          SO IF I HAD A REALLY GOOD ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION, UM, WE WOULDN'T NEED THE QUESTION, BUT, UM, IT MAKES THE, THE, THE DATA IS QUITE CLEAR. 
          UH, THE PEOPLE ARE GETTING HOSPITALIZED EVEN TODAY ARE ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY UNVACCINATED INDIVIDUALS. 
          SO WE SHOULD CONTINUE TO PUSH FOR FOLKS TO GET VACCINATED, INCLUDING GETTING BOOSTED. 
          YES. 
          WHAT IS THE BIVALENT OMICRON EFFECTIVENESS AGAINST THE NEW VARIANTS? ALL THE VARIANTS APPEAR TO BE MUTATING. 
          ARE THEY EVADING THE BIVALENT VACCINATIONS? SO DATA RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, IS GONNA BE FORTHCOMING BECAUSE WE JUST NOW ROLLED OUT THE BIVALENT. 
          BUT WHAT WE KNEW IS WHEN THEY MADE THE BIVALENT, THEY WERE VERY MINDFUL OF LOOKING AT WHAT VARIANTS WERE COMING DOWN, SORT OF THE TRACK. 
          AND THAT BA FOUR, BA FIVE WAS IN THAT CONSIDERATION, WHICH IS WHAT'S IN THE BIVALENT. 
          SO THAT'S THE GOOD NEWS. 
          UH, THE CHALLENGE IS IF PEOPLE DON'T TAKE THE BIVALENT, YOU'RE GIVING THE, IM, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE GIVING THE VIRUS THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO WHAT YOU JUST MENTIONED, WHICH IS TO CONTINUE TO MUTATE AND MAKE NEW VARIANTS. 
          AND SO AGAIN, WE'RE WATCHING WHAT NEW VARIANTS ARE ON THE HORIZON, SOME ARE ESCAPING, BUT YOU KNOW, IT'S STILL TOO EARLY TO TELL WHAT THIS BIVALENT MEANS FOR THOSE VARIANTS. 
          SO REALLY WHAT WE WANT EVERYONE TO UNDERSTAND IS WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT BIVALENT VACCINES AT THIS POINT IS THAT THEY'RE EFFECTIVE, THEY'RE SAFE, THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS THE TIME TO TAKE THEM SO THAT WE DON'T START TO SEE THIS NEW VARIANCE OF THE BA, THE BQ, THE UM, XBB AND THERE'S LIKE 200, RIGHT? AND NOT ALL OF THEM WILL BE, UM, VIABLE IN, IN, IN ESSENCE, BUT NOT GETTING VACCINATED WAS ALSO CREATING THIS OPPORTUNITY FOR THESE VARIANTS TO SORT OF TAKE A ONE TRACK ON THEIR OWN. 
          SO BY ARE SAFE, THEY'RE EFFECTIVE AND THEY WERE THOUGHT IN MIND OF THE CURRENT VARIANTS THAT WE'RE SEEING RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS THE BA FOUR AND BA FIVE. 
          JUST BUILDING ON A FOLLOW UP QUESTION, HAVE THERE BEEN INDEPENDENT VALIDITY STUDIES ON THE BIVALENT VACCINE? OR ARE WE TRUSTING THE MANUFACTURER JUST LIKE WE DO FOR ANNUAL FLU SHOTS? UM, SO THIS IS A GREAT QUESTION BECAUSE I THINK PEOPLE, A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, THE ANNUAL FLU SHOT IS, UH, IS PUT OUT WITHOUT THE, THE SCRUTINY THAT WE ALL CAME TO BE AWARE OF WITH THE, UH, INITIATION OF THE NEW MRNA VACCINES BECAUSE THEY DON'T NEED IT, RIGHT? WE, WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE SAFE AND, AND THEN WE HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE HOW EFFECTIVE THEY ARE. 
          WE CAN'T DO THE COMPLETE VALIDITY STUDIES BECAUSE IF WE DID, THEN THE WHOLE FLU SEASON WOULD BE OVER. 
          SO THE IDEA OR THE, THE, THE PRACTICE OF OF PUTTING THE SHOTS OUT WITH THE VACCINES OUT WITHOUT DOING THE TOTAL VALIDITY STUDIES IS NOT UNCOMMON AT ALL. 
          UH, AND WE ARE AT THAT POINT NOW WITH THE MRNA VACCINES, UH, THAT WE CAN DO THAT. 
          AND ONE THING I WANT TO POINT OUT IS THAT IN EUROPE THEY WENT WITH A BIVALENT THAT WAS BA FOUR AT THE SAME TIME THE MANUFACTURERS PRESENTED THAT DATA TO THE FDA AND THE F FDA SENT 'EM BACK, SAID, NOW WE WANT ONE WITH THE BA FIVE. 
          AND I'M GLAD THAT THEY DID BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE'RE FACING NOW. 
          AND SO THEY, THEY DO GET, NOW THAT THEY STILL HAVE SAFETY STUDIES THAT ARE DONE, BUT THEY DON'T HAVE THE ENTIRE SCOPE OF VALIDITY STUDIES, UH, WE'LL HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE, UH, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S A SURPRISE THERE AND THERE MIGHT BE BECAUSE OF, YOU KNOW, THE NEW VARIANTS THAT COME ALONG. 
          BUT, UM, YEAH, BUT WHAT, WHAT'S BEING DONE IS NOT UNCOMMON, IT'S NOT UNSAFE. 
          AND BECAUSE OF TIME CONSTRAINTS, THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE TO DO. 
          DO WE KNOW WHETHER RECEIVING SO MANY VACCINES IN A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME CREATES RESISTANCE, LIKE TOO MANY ANTIBIOTICS? SO I DON'T THINK WE LOOK AT IT LIKE THAT CONCEPT OF HAVING A RESISTANCE TO ANTIBIOTICS. 
          WHAT WE, I THINK WANNA ENSURE IS THAT THE VACCINES ARE BEING DEVELOPED WITH THE CONSIDERATION OF WHAT'S BEST WITH REGARDS TO THAT VA, TO THE VIRUS, AND THEN TO THAT VARIANT CONSIDERATION. 
          AND SO, YOU KNOW, TO DR. 
          PERCY'S 
          [00:20:01]
POINT, RIGHT, THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE LOOKING AT SAFETY DATA, LOOKING AT WHAT'S COMING AS FAR AS VARIANT DATA. 
          SO WHAT, JUST WHAT HE SAID, HAD WE NOT REALLY TAKEN THE SCIENTISTS, UM, INFORMATION MOST APPLICABLE, APPLICABLE TO OUR REGION, WE WOULD'VE JUST HAD A, UH, A, A VACCINE THAT WOULD'VE COVERED BA FOUR. 
          SO NOW WE HAVE INDIVIDUALS SAYING, NO, YOU NEED FOUR AND FIVE IN THAT. 
          AND THEY'RE ALSO LOOKING AT WHAT DURATION, WHAT DURABILITY. 
          SO THINKING OF IT FROM A RESISTANCE OF ANTIBIOTICS IS NOT REALLY EQUIVALENT TO THINKING ABOUT IT WITH REGARDS TO VIRUSES AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO GET THROUGH THIS, UM, THIS PANDEMIC IN ESSENCE WITH REGARDS TO ENSURING THAT WE CAN SORT OF SLOW DOWN THE MUTATIONS THAT VIRUSES DO WHEN THEY'RE LEFT SORT OF UNHINGED AND NON-COVERED AND PEOPLE ARE NOT VACCINATED, VACCINATED VACCINE RECORDS IN TEXAS COULD POTENTIALLY BE DESTROYED FIVE YEARS AFTER THE STATEWIDE PUBLIC HEALTH DISASTER ENDS. 
          IS ANYTHING BEING DONE TO PERMIT US TO OPT IN FOR RETENTION OR IS OUR VACCINE CARD THE ONLY PROOF? YEAH, SO THIS IS A GOOD QUESTION 'CAUSE I WASN'T AWARE OF THAT. 
          UM, A LOT OF THE, SO IN TEXAS WE'RE, YOU KNOW, THE, UH, COVID VACCINES VACCINATIONS ARE, UH, BEING RECORDED IN M TRK TWO, UM, AND M TRK IS A PERMANENT THING. 
          PERHAPS M TRAC TWO IS ONLY THE, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS WHAT THE QUESTIONERS WAS SAYING IS TRUE. 
          UH, REMEMBER WITH YOUR PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN, AT LEAST WITH MINE, THEY WILL TRACK ALL MY MEDICATIONS AND MY VACCINATIONS AS WELL. 
          THAT WOULD BE ANOTHER OPTION. 
          UH, AND YOU SHOULD REALLY HAVE YOUR OWN COPY OF ALL OF YOUR VACCINES, IDEALLY BACK TO CHILDHOOD IF YOU HAVE IT. 
          AND, UH, KEEP 'EM ALONG WITH THOSE AS WELL. 
          AND YEAH, AS AN ADULT YOU CAN OPT INTO TRAC ITSELF, UH, THAT'S RIGHT. 
          MM-HMM . 
          YOU CAN'T OPT IN TO MM TREK, SO THAT IF YOU WANT THAT, THEN THERE IS A FORM THAT YOU CAN SIGN. 
          OH, I, LET ME ADD TOO. 
          I MEAN, AND YOU SHOULD CONSIDER OPTING IN. 
          I MEAN CERTAINLY IN OUR REGION WE HAVE SIGNIFICANT EMERGENCY, UM, EVENTS THAT HAPPEN. 
          AND THEN WHEN YOU'RE LEAVING AND YOU HAVE THOSE IMPORTANT PAPERS THAT YOU MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN, IT'S SO NICE TO HAVE THAT SORT OF REPOSITORY SET FOR YOU. 
          SO IF YOU HAD TO SEE A PROVIDER AND DECIDE IF YOU NEED A TETANUS BOOSTER OR YOU NEEDED ANOTHER VACCINE THAT'S IN THE SYSTEM AND IT KEEPS YOU FROM MAYBE HAVING TO GET A VACCINE THAT YOU MAYBE DIDN'T NEED AT THAT MOMENT. 
          UM, SO THERE'S SOME GREAT REASONS WHY HAVING THAT REPOSITORY IS SO HELPFUL. 
          YEAH, IT'S QUITE CONVENIENT. 
          I GOT MY FLU SHOT THIS PAST WEEKEND WITH MY OWN STAFF WHO WAS QUESTIONING ME AND I JUST TOLD THEM THAT IF THEY WERE DOING THEIR JOB, THEY WOULD PULL ME UP IN AMTRAK. 
          AND GUESS WHAT THEY DID? THEY PULLED ME UP IN MTRA AND THEY SAW EVERYTHING THAT I HAD . 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          VARIANCE BQ ONE IS RESISTANCE TO MONOCLONAL ANTIBODIES AND EVE BRUCHE. 
          AND WHAT IS THIS? BEAL LOMAN MAD . 
          IS IT MORE EVASIVE VARIANT, TRUE. 
          AND TELL ME HOW TO SAY THOSE WORDS CORRECTLY. 
          . 
          SO IS IT BE BAB? THERE YOU GO. 
          YOU SAID THE, YEAH, YOU SAID THE OTHER ONE. 
          FINE . 
          AND THERE, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT THE BA ONE, BAQ BQ ONE IS SLOWLY UPT TICKING. 
          IT'S ABOUT 17% RIGHT, RIGHT NOW. 
          BUT THIS IS REALLY ONE OF THE BETTER TOOLS WE HAVE STILL IN THE TOOLKIT FOR WHAT WE ARE SEEING SORT OF IN A LARGER SCALE. 
          SO MORE TO COME ON HOW EFFECTIVE EV SHIELD WILL BE OVER TIME, BUT IT'S CERTAINLY ONE OF THE TOOLS WE WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW THEY SHOULD HAVE ACCESS TO. 
          VACCINE RATES HAVE DECREASED WHILE CASES HAVE APPEARED EARLY. 
          ANY NEWS, I'M NOT SO SURE THAT'S CLEAR. 
          THIS ONE WAS I THINK, UH, FLU RELATED. 
          AND SO THERE'S A LOT OF DENSE INFORMATION ABOUT FLU. 
          UM, SO WE ARE SEEING INCREASES IN FLU, UM, FLU HOSPITALIZATIONS, FLU TESTING. 
          SO I THINK A COUPLE WEEKS AGO WE WERE AT 1%, NOW WE'RE ALREADY AT 4% AND THAT'S PRETTY SIGNIFICANT. 
          AND WE'RE JUST BEGINNING OF THE FLU SEASON. 
          SO OCTOBER IS JUST THE BEGINNING. 
          UM, I KNOW HERE AT THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT, IF YOU GO TO OUR WEBPAGE, WE HAVE, UM, AT THIS TIME OF YEAR WE'LL PUT OUR FLU SURVEILLANCE INFORMATION. 
          SO THAT'S GONNA BE UPDATED, I BELIEVE IT'S EVERY OTHER WEEK, SO THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR AREA WITH REGARDS TO FLU. 
          AND THEN ALL OF OUR LOCATIONS NOW ARE OFFERING FLU VACCINATIONS. 
          SO IF THAT'S SOMETHING YOU'RE INTERESTED IN, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, WOULD DRIVE YOU TO OUR WEBSITE TO SEE FLU SURVEILLANCE INFORMATION AND THE ACCESS TO GET FLU VACCINATED NEUROSCIENCE NEWS REPORTS, THOSE ARE PREEXISTING CONDITIONS. 
          ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, CHRONIC STRESS AND DISTRESS CAUSED BY LONELINESS ARE AT A 50% INCREASED RISK OF DEVELOPING LONG COVID FOLLOWING COVID INFECTION. 
          IS THAT TRUE? AND WHY? YEAH. 
          SO THAT'S, IT'S EASILY EXPLAINABLE. 
          UH, WHEN YOU HAVE THOSE CONDITIONS. 
          [00:25:01]
UH, IT CREATES A LOT OF EMOTIONAL STRESS AND YOUR BODY PRODUCES A HORMONE CALLED CORTISOL. 
          AND CORTISOL UNFORTUNATELY NEGATIVELY IMPACTS YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM MAKING YOU MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY GETTING PRIMARY INFECTION, BUT ALSO, UM, LONG-TERM PROBLEMS. SO THAT IS, UH, THAT IS EASILY EXPLAINABLE. 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          NATIVE MEDICINE COMMENTED ON A STUDY TO UNDERSTAND GENETIC FACTORS THAT INFLUENCED THE LEVEL OF ANTIBODY RESPONSES TO COVID. 
          ARE GENETICS COMMON IN DIFFERENCES WITH CO VIRUSES IN GENERAL? SO AGAIN, IF THEY, IT IS HARD TO KNOW IF THAT QUESTION IS GENETICS AS A ETHNICITY RACE. 
          SO WHAT WE JUST, AGAIN, I THINK I'VE SAID A COUPLE TIMES IN THIS, IN THIS, THESE QUESTIONS IS THAT WHOLE EQUITY AND UNDERSTANDING AND THE RESEARCH AND HAVING GROUPS REPRESENTED. 
          SO FROM A GENETICS CONSIDERATION, IT'S IMPORTANT TO CONSIDER. 
          I THINK WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE DON'T KNOW. 
          AND SO WHEN WE START LOOKING AT SOME OF THE DATA POINTS WITH REGARDS TO WHO WE SEE MOST IMPACTED BY A LOT OF THESE VIRAL ILLNESSES AND IN INFECTIONS, YOU KNOW, IT'S IMPORTANT TO ALSO UNDERSTAND OTHER DEMOGRAPHICS AND OTHER, UH, DATA POINTS, WHICH WOULD INCLUDE THAT GENETIC COMPONENT. 
          SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, THERE'S JUST STILL MORE INFORMATION THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO GATHER ABOUT THINKING ABOUT IT THAT WAY. 
          WHAT IS A GENOMIC SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM? SO A GENOMICS SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM IS WHEN, AND YOU WE'VE HEARD ABOUT THIS IS WHEN, UH, SAMPLES THAT ARE IN THE COMMUNITY OF PEOPLE WHO ARE INFECTED WITH ANY PARTICULAR DISEASE YOU TALK ABOUT, AND THEY, THEY SEQUENCE THE RNA OR THE DNA OF THAT PATHOGEN. 
          SO WHETHER IT BE FLU OR COVID, AND THIS IS HOW WE DETECT THAT WHEN THERE ARE NEW VARIANTS AROUND, UM, IT'S NOT UNCOMMON WE'VE BEEN DOING FOR A LONG TIME, BUT THIS IS HOW WE, WE CATCH UP. 
          WE, WE BECOME AWARE OF CHANGES, UH, MUTATIONS, IF YOU WILL, OF, UH, WHATEVER THE PATHOGEN IS. 
          AND SO I THINK THE PUBLIC HAS COME TO REALIZE HOW QUICKLY SOME THINGS LIKE COVID, WHICH IS AN MRNA, UH, CAN, CAN MUTATE PRETTY QUICKLY. 
          UM, I'M SORRY, THAT'S NOT MRA, IT IS AN RNA VIRUS. 
          UM, DNA VIRUSES, UH, TEND NOT TO MUTATE QUITE AS QUICKLY 'CAUSE IT'S DOUBLE STRANDED. 
          YOU NEED BOTH MUTATIONS, BUT RNAS CAN MUTATE PRETTY QUICKLY AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SEEING. 
          BOSTON UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS TESTING OF LAB MADE VERSIONS OF COVID VIRUS DRAWS GOVERNMENT SCRUTINY, FACT FICTION. 
          SO IT DEPENDS ON HOW YOU WANTED TO, TO ANSWER IT. 
          SO THE, IN BOSTON UNIVERSITY, THEY TOOK AND THEY CREATED A NEW FORM OF THE COVID VIRUS, UM, ON PURPOSE. 
          AND, UH, IT WAS, IT WENT THROUGH ALL THE USUAL UNIVERSITY PROCESSES. 
          IT HAD AN INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD, UH, IT HAD ETHICS REVIEW, IT HAD ALL THOSE THINGS, BUT ONE OF THE FEDERAL FUNDERS OF IT, UH, THEY, THEY FORGOT TO TELL 'EM THEY'RE SPENDING SOME OF THEIR MONEY ON THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT AND THAT YOU CAN'T DO. 
          SO THEY'RE GOING BACK AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE UNDER SOME SCRUTINY FOR THAT, BUT IT WAS 'CAUSE THEY DIDN'T NOTIFY ONE OF THE FUNDERS. 
          IT WASN'T 'CAUSE THEY GOT AROUND ANY OF THE ETHICS OR USUAL, UH, LABORATORY, UM, UH, PROCESSES BEFORE YOU DO AN EXPERIMENT. 
          THAT SOUNDS GOOD. 
          THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR COVID-19 TALK WITH LOCAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES. 
          JOINING US THIS MORNING WAS, UH, DR. 
          JANINA WHITE, UH, REPRESENTING, UH, DR. ERIC BROWN, UH, FROM HARRIS COUNTY, DR. DAVID PER REPRESENTING THE CITY OF HOUSTON. 
          SPECIAL THANKS TO PAST PRESIDENT OF ROTARY CLUB OF HOUSTON, KATHY FINNER, AND TO OUR PRODUCER DAVID CASTILLO. 
          I'M STEVEN WILLIAMS, DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT.
* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.