New COVID-19 strain may slow vaccine plan
By Megan Suchet, Copy Editor
On Jan. 24, Governor Gavin Newsom lifted the regional stay-at-home order instituted in early December 2020 as infection rates have abated, dropping from 77 per 100,000 new cases each week to 38 per 100,000. This comes after months of a relentless rise in case numbers that severely strained the healthcare system and made Los Angeles the first county in the nation to record one million COVID-19 cases, bearing the brunt of the winter surge and experiencing five times the cases, hospitalizations and deaths than the summer.
Currently, the county is working to ramp up vaccination efforts, with plans to open five large vaccination sites in addition to the mass vaccination site at Dodger stadium, which will vaccinate 12,000 people a day once at full capacity. 75 smaller sites are already in operation.
With a new president in office, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, was able to speed up vaccine manufacturing and distribution. As of Jan. 14, more than 279,000 total doses of vaccines have been administered to LA healthcare workers, staff and residents of skilled nursing and long-term care facilities. Addressing complaints of the slow-paced vaccination process, the Chief Science Officer for the County Department of Public Health, Dr. Paul Simon, said the county does not expect to finish vaccinating healthcare workers before February, after which those age 65 and older will be top priority.
The county has also confirmed a case of the new variant B.1.1.7, which was first reported in the United Kingdom. As of now it is the only known case in LA, but officials believe the strain has already begun spreading throughout the community. Though fortunately not shown to exacerbate symptoms, the new strain is very contagious, transmitting much more easily than the original virus and thus has the potential to spread rapidly through the population.
Federal agencies are prepared for the possibility that the vaccine will not be effective against future COVID-19 variants but Dr. Fauci is confident that drug companies will be able to quickly change the formula. Already, Moderna has announced it is working on a modified version of the vaccine directed specifically against the variant.
On Dec. 30, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom released the state Safe Schools for All plan, the framework to support California schools to continue operating safely in person as well as to expand the number of schools safely resuming in-person instruction. To ensure schools have the resources necessary to successfully implement proper safety precautions and mitigation measures, Newsom put forth $2 billion to support this course of action, including ventilation, testing and PPE, in hopes of phasing to an in-person education by early spring.
Many California educators and Democratic lawmakers, however, are strongly against Newsom’s plan, such that without significant changes, the Safe Schools for All plan will not be ratified by the California legislature. It is seen as too little too late, the efforts spelled out in the plan not enough to help schools reopen any sooner. Money is also a factor for contempt as teachers worry the funds allocated to cover vaccination will take away from the earmarked subsidy a school would receive. As a result of the heavy backlash, the Safe Schools for All plan will not be passed. Though not informed of the specifics of the plan, Samo Principal Antonio Shelton is determined to keep the students safe.
“We should listen to science. If it’s safe, great. If it’s not safe, we should pump the brakes,” Shelton said.
