'This is our most dangerous time': COVID-19 deaths are at unprecedented levels in US
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Updated: 1:55 PM EST Jan 9, 2021
By Christina Maxouris and Jason Hanna, CNN
'This is our most dangerous time': COVID-19 deaths are at unprecedented levels in US
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Updated: 1:55 PM EST Jan 9, 2021
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THE VACCINE DISTRIBUTION PLAN ONCE PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN TAKES OFFICE. HE’S PLANNING TO RELEASE CALL OF THE AVAILABLE VACCINE AT ONCE, INSTEAD OF HOLDING BACK A BIG CHUNK TO ENSURE IT’S THERE FOR THAT SECOND DOSE. HERE TO TALK ABOUT IT WITH US IS DR. SHIRA DORON, HOSPITAL EPIDEMIOLOGIST AT TUFTS MEDICAL CENTER. THANKS FOR BEING HERE. >> GOOD TO BE HERE. EMILY: WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON ROLLING IT OUT ALL AT ONCE, IS ONE APPROACH BETTER THAN ANOTHER? DR. DPR -- DR. DORON: IF IT MEANT COULD GET VACCINATED SOONER AND MANUFACTURERS COULD KEEP UPS OF THE SECOND DOSE IS ADMINISTERED ON TIME, THEN MORE LIVES COULD BE SAVED. BUT IF THERE IS VACCINES SITTING IN THE FREEZER NOW, AND THE ISSUE IS LOGISTICAL, WHICH IS GETTING IT INTO ARMS AND THAT IS WHAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, THAT DOES NOT SOLVE THE STRATEGY EMILY: SOUNDS LIKE A SOLUTION TO ANOTHER PROBLEM. THE WHITE HOUSE TASK FORCE IS NOW SAYING THE U.S. MAY HAVE ITS OWN FAST-SPREADING VARIANT OF THE VIRUS. WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THIS? DR. DORON: DR. W WE HAVE BEEN SAYING WE WOULDN’T BE SURPRISED IF IT WAS PARTIALLY CAUSING THE SPIKE IN CASES IN THE U.S. COULD BE THE U.K. VARIANT. BUT TODAY, WE LEARNED RELATIVELY FEW CASES OF THE U.K. VARIANTS HAVE BEEN FOUND, 52 IN FIVE STATES. IT WOULDN’T BE SURPRISING IF WE HAVE OUR OWN RAPIDLY SPREADING VARIANT. BUT I DON’T KNOW A LOT ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT YET. EMILY: THE FDA SENT AN ALERT SAYING THESE NEW VARIANTS COULD ACTUALLY LEAD TO FALSE NEGATIVE TEST RESULTS. KNOWING THAT THIS IS VERY NEW DO , WE KNOW WHY THAT WOULD HAPPEN? DR. DORON: PCR TESTS LOOK FOR SECTIONS OF RNA, THE GENETIC CODE, FROM THE PCR TESTS DONE IN JANUARY. MOST TESTS SIMULTANEOUSLY LOOK FOR TWO OR THREE DIFFERENT SECTIONS OF RNA, SOME ONLY LOOK FOR ONE SECTION, AND IF THERE IS A MUTATION IN THAT SECTION CAUSING THE VIRUS TO BE A VARIANT, AND THAT IS THE SECTION THE TEST IS LOOKING FOR, THEN THAT PCR TESTS WOULD BE NEGATIVE. EMILY: FASCINATING. DR. DORO