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TOMPKINS COUNTY, NY – Amid a wave of new COVID-19 cases in the county, Tompkins County officials released a broad coronavirus update Thursday afternoon via YouTube.
The full guest list: Dr William Klepack, Tompkins County Medical Director, Dr Andreia deLima and Dr Martin Stallone of Cayuga Medical Center, Tompkins County Legislator Shawna Black, Deputy County Administrator Amie Hendrix and Acting County Administrator Lisa Holmes, as well as a few dropouts from the others. The director of public health, Dr Frank Kruppa, was clearly absent, although it was only because he is on vacation.
The first part largely focused on the status of the Delta variant locally, and while it’s not clear exactly how much of the total workload the variant currently represents, Klepack seemed fairly convinced that this is of the predominant stock in the county, just like the rest of the country. The health department has said that once Cornell University finishes sequencing COVID-19 tests, they will know the true prevalence of Delta here.
“This delta variant spreads much more easily between people. It’s almost twice as spreadable as the old British variant, ”said Klepack. The majority of infections, at this point, are caused by domestic travel and the gathering of people in groups, Klepack said.
Earlier today, the health department released unprecedented data regarding the rate of vaccinated and unvaccinated people who have tested positive for the coronavirus since the start of the year. One crucial statistic was confirmed by Klepack during the forum: No one who has been vaccinated for COVID-19 has required hospitalization for COVID-19 subsequently in Tompkins County.
“Vaccines prevent serious illness,” he said. Beyond that, he also touched on the fact that vaccinated people test positive, especially here where vaccinated people account for more than half of the last few weeks of positive cases: “It’s important that the numbers are small. When your numbers are small, sometimes you can bring up unusual things that don’t really become meaningful. “
Klepack clarified that while it is clearly possible to contract the coronavirus after vaccination, the chances are very low.
“It is very unusual, if you are vaccinated, to be infected,” Klepack said. “That means if you have 1,000 people vaccinated, maybe one will be infected, maybe four. These are very good odds.
Black then began to dabble in audience questions that were submitted in real time and those that had been submitted in advance. Prompted by a question, Klepack said he had seen no data that would support that a specific vaccine allows more breakthrough infections compared to others.
DeLima said a CDC study showed that of infections among those vaccinated, 46% had received Pfizer, 38% had received Moderna and 16% had received Johnson and Johnson, although she noted that these percentages are skewed because the majority of people have received Pfizer or Moderna.
DeLima said the safest thing to do, especially in the face of what appears to be, is to wear masks again, regardless of vaccination status. Klepack then addressed the question of whether or not a new vaccine-resistant variant might develop, which he admitted “can keep me awake at night.” The best way to combat this, however, is to simply increase the number of vaccinations – if a resistant variant occurs, then Klepack said current vaccines could be modified with different mRNA information to help defeat them. new strains of COVID.
“We don’t want to go there, we don’t want this dangerous variant to happen,” Klepack said.
de Lima agreed.
“It comes down to the message to vaccinate everyone. This is how a virus mutates. They need people in order to be able to multiply, and the more they multiply, the more likely it is that a mutation will occur, ”she said.
Otherwise, a few questions focused on the legality of the mask mandates for certain companies.
“Companies can determine how they want to operate their business, and they can request that employees and members of the public wear masks at their facilities,” said Hendrix. She continued that some companies, which have been in contact with the county administration, have already restarted mask warrants. “It has happened, and I think we’ll continue to see it in a lot of other places.”
Following this, Holmes did not respond to a question about the county instituting a vaccination requirement in New York City for certain places like restaurants, gyms, etc. “This should be debated at the local level in terms of the county legislature. I see no evidence of this in the short term, but we are a county that follows data and best practices, and we will act as needed for the safety of the community.
Around Cornell University globally, it was announced at the forum that there will be four COVID-19 vaccination clinics during the move-in period, in partnership with Wegmans, for students who were unable to receive the vaccine so far, many of which, Cornell’s Sharon McMullen noted, have come from overseas. About 90 percent of students have already been vaccinated, McMullen said, with a deadline in mid-August for students to report their status to the school, which instituted a vaccination requirement for the fall semester.
Regarding CMC employees, Stallone said there would likely be some sort of combined vaccine / testing regimen requirement for employees who are exempt from the vaccine requirements, although the board of directors of the The hospital is meeting on Thursday to finalize these plans.
Regarding school districts, Hendrix said without state guidance, which the state has officially refused to give, she believes county schools will adhere to CDC guidelines, which some schools have already announced.
“There will be more tips to come, but we ask for your patience as all of these schools are working together,” said Hendrix.
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