The Northwell Health nurse who received the first dose of the coronavirus vaccination in the United States was honored by President Joe Biden on Friday.
Sandra Lindsay, an intensive care nurse at Northwell Healths Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, received the Pfizer vaccine on the morning of Dec. 14. Lindsay, a Port Washington resident, was awarded the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Outstanding Americans by Choice recognition at the White House on Friday.
During the height of the pandemic, Sandra poured her heart and soul, working with patients and keeping her fellow nurses safe, Biden said. When the time came she became the first person in America to get fully vaccinated outside the trials. She can now hug her grandson. Shes out there making sure her patients and folks in the community get vaccinated.
Biden said Lindsays vaccination card, identification badge, and hospital scrubs will be on display at the Smithsonian Institutions National Museum of American History in a COVID-19 exhibit.
Lindsays journey to becoming the first person in the nation to receive the coronavirus vaccine began nearly three decades ago outside of the United States. When she was 18 years old, Lindsay immigrated from Jamaica to the United States. Lindsay took classes to achieve her first nursing degree from the Borough of Manhattan Community College while working at a grocery store and babysitting to pay bills. Lindsay ended up earning her nursing degree in 1994, and became a U.S. citizen three years later.
I came to this country for the opportunities not only for myself but to be able to help others, Lindsay said. As a nurse, I do everything to care for the sickest patients and lead by example. More than 24 years after becoming a naturalized citizen, I could never have imagined where I am today, at the White House receiving high honors from the President. Its truly a privilege to be a part of this great nation and I will continue to lead and help those in need.
Lindsays role at Northwell went beyond being the first person to be inoculated in the United States. During the pandemic, Lindsay led a team of nurses in some of the most negatively impacted coronavirus wards at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center. Since March of last year, Northwell has treated more than 200,000 patients for COVID-19, officials said.
Northwell Health President and CEO Michael Dowling touted Lindsay for her continuous work throughout the pandemic, aside from receiving the first inoculation. Dowling, a fellow immigrant, reflected on how the ripple effects from Lindsays tireless work and historic vaccination will live on throughout history.
Sandra came to this country to make a difference and on that December day she courageously decided to get that shot and help lead this country out of the pandemic, Dowling said.As an immigrant myself, Sandra is the epitome of the power immigrants hold in writing this great nations history and on behalf of the entire Northwell Health family, we are proud to support her.
It was also announced on Tuesday that Lindsay will be the grand marshal in New York Citys Hometown Heroes Parade on Wednesday morning. The parade, which will be one of the largest ticker-tape parades in New York City history, will honor all of the essential workers who aided the city in recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.
It is truly an honor and privilege to serve as the grand marshal in the Hometown Heroes ticker-tape parade and represent all health care and essential workers whose heroic efforts saved lives during the COVID-19 pandemic, Lindsay said.
ATHENS, July 7 (Reuters) - Greek bar and nightclub owners fear new restrictions allowing seated customers only will hit business during the vital summer season but said on Wednesday they accept the rules are needed to contain a surge in COVID-19 infections.
Authorities reimposed curbs on restaurants, nightclubs and bars this week, with effect from July 8. No standing customers will be allowed.
"It is a step back, it will surely influence tourism, but it is deemed necessary so we do not lose the rest of the summer. We will be patient," said Ilias Babatsikos, 27, a beach bar manager at Athens' coastal suburb of Alimos.
Health experts are concerned about a recent spike in infections and the more contagious Delta variant. On Tuesday health authorities reported 1,797 new confirmed infections, more than twice the level seen on Monday.
Babatsikos said it would be difficult to discipline people but hoped customers would respect the measures.
Authorities said on Tuesday many of the new cases involved young people and were linked to entertainment venues.
Premises found to be violating the new rules will face hefty fines and repeat offenders could lose their operating licences.
"I believe it was the wrong decision because at bars made for people to stand it is very difficult to have to tell someone they must sit down," said Marios Markou, 37, who manages a bar in central Athens. "This is going to cause a lot of damage."
About 38% of Greece's eligible population is fully vaccinated and the government has offered incentives to entice more people to get the jab, including cash and free mobile data for youth, to bring that rate up to 70% by the autumn.
"It's a very unfortunate development but we understand why it's happening," said businessman Kosmas Theodoridis, 48, a customer at a bar in Athens. "The essential thing is for everyone to get vaccinated."
Reporting by Stamos Prousalis and Deborah Kyvrikosaios, Writing by George Georgiopoulos, Editing by Catherine Evans
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
At least 12 fake vaccination drives were held in or near the financial hub Mumbai, in the country's western Maharashtra state, said Vishal Thakur, a senior official of the Mumbai police department.
"They were using saline water and injecting it," Thakur said. "Every fake vaccination camp that they held, they were doing this."
An estimated 2,500 people were given fake shots, he said. The organizers charged their victims fees for the shots, earning up to $28,000 in total.
"We have arrested doctors," he added. "They were using a hospital which was producing the fake certificates, vials, syringes."
So far, 14 people have been arrested on suspicion of cheating, attempts at culpable homicide, criminal conspiracy, and other charges. More arrests may come as police continue investigating other people involved in the scam, Thakur said.
In June, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a centralized vaccine drive, in which a significant proportion of doses would be provided by the central government to states for free. Soon after, the country administered a record 8 million shots in a day -- a "gladdening" sign of the program's acceleration, said Modi. So far, more than 62 million people -- about 4.5% of the country's population -- have been fully vaccinated, according to data by Johns Hopkins University.
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) The CDC approved the COVID vaccine for kids over age 12 almost two months ago, but still, a lot fewer kids are being vaccinated than adults.
KDKA recently surveyed parents across the region to find out what played into their decision to get their kids vaccinated or not and to see what may happen when even younger kids can get the vaccine.
Its been a tough year for most kids: doing school at home, distancing from friends, activities canceled. Getting the COVID vaccine could change all of that, but many families worry its not safe.
In a KDKA News survey of almost 400 people across the region, we found 44% of parents say theyre definitely getting their kids ages 12 to 17 vaccinated. Ten percent decided not to vaccinate their kids, even though they were vaccinated themselves. And 42% of parents said neither they nor their kids are getting the vaccine.
Amy Miller and her 12 and 16-year-old sons from Apollo, Armstrong County all got the COVID Vaccine.
My older son was born fairly premature, and so we have always trusted the science and our doctors to do whats best for us and our children, and the fact that they recommended the vaccination, that was enough for us, Miller said.
Millers parents also live with them in Armstrong County. Her reasons to vaccinate her kids mirror the top three reasons people in our survey chose to vaccinate their kids: to prevent their child from getting the virus, to avoid spreading coronavirus to adults and because they trust health officials recommendations.
Millers kids say they were OK getting the shot because they wanted to get back to a more normal life. Sixteen-year-old Tyler said, Ive been able to hang out with friends a lot more and not wearing a mask and stuff its just been a relief.
We also found there are many reasons parents are choosing not to vaccinate their kids.
Sixty-two percent say they dont trust the government telling them what to do with their familys health, 57% worry about side effects and 56% cite that kids usually have only mild symptoms to illnesses. Almost half say the vaccine was developed too quickly, about a third say theyre not worried about COVID, and 8% say its for religious reasons.
Eugene Cawley and his wife and four kids from Allison Park are not getting the COVID vaccine. He fears the potential side effects from the vaccine are greater than his kids chance of becoming seriously ill from COVID.
With the vaccine, with the latest news with the inflammation in the heart and stuff like that, I feel that its probably more dangerous than catching the corona right now, Cawley said.
As for even younger kids, the vaccine is expected to be approved in the fall for those under 12, but our survey found only a third will immediately get it for those kids.
Another 14% said they would but will wait, and more than half will not get their younger kids vaccinated.
Many families in the survey say they respect the decisions of families who made a different choice about the vaccine for themselves or their kids, and they wish the decision was not politicized.
Many vaccines are required for kids in public schools, but almost 60 percent of the families in our survey felt that schools should not mandate the COVID vaccine.
The highly infectious Delta has become Californias most identified variant of the coronavirus, a troubling development that underscores its danger to unvaccinated populations.
New data released by the California Department of Public Health say 35.6% of coronavirus variants analyzed in June have been identified as Delta, which was first identified in India. Thats a dramatic increase from May, when Delta accounted for just 5.6% of analyzed coronavirus cases in California and was the states fourth most identified variant.
Delta is now more widespread than the previous dominant strain, Alpha, which was first identified in the United Kingdom and accounted for 34.3% of analyzed coronavirus cases in June. Alpha was the states most dominant strain in April and May, outpacing the California variant, now known as Epsilon, which currently occurs in less than 2% of analyzed cases.
The rapid rise of Delta is prompting some public health officials to issue new warnings, urging more caution at a time when vaccinated people are putting away masks and getting back to normal life. Although those who have been fully vaccinated are believed to have high levels of protection, there is growing concern about the virus spreading among people who have not been inoculated.
Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations have been ticking up in Los Angeles County, where some 4 million people, including 1.3 million who are not yet eligible, have not had a single dose of vaccine.
Delta might be twice as contagious as the initial variants of the coronavirus that spread rapidly around the globe last year.
The rapid increase in the Delta variant suggests that this strain is more easily transmitted between people than other strains circulating in California, the state Department of Public Health said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times.
Nevertheless, there is evidence that vaccines available in the U.S. are effective against the Delta variant, state officials added.
Delta is also spreading rapidly nationwide. The director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, said recent data show that 25% of analyzed coronavirus cases nationwide are of the Delta variant. In some areas of the country, nearly half of analyzed cases are Delta.
By contrast, from May 9 to May 22, Delta made up less than 3% of analyzed coronavirus samples nationwide.
There are reports of rapidly increasing Delta cases confirmed in Los Angeles County too. The county started seeing upticks in early April. In May, the county had fewer than 20 identified Delta cases a week, but by June, there were 60 to 80.
For the week that ended June 19, Delta made up nearly 50% of all cases analyzed in L.A. County; four weeks earlier, it accounted for less than 5%.
Delta has been identified in 245 coronavirus cases so far in L.A. County, with early clusters identified in Palmdale and Lancaster. Fourteen cases of Delta occurred among residents of a single household.
The increase in the proportion of identified Delta cases comes as COVID-19 hospitalizations have started to rise again in L.A. County and across the state.
The number of Californians hospitalized for COVID-19 fell to 915 on June 12 the lowest it has been since the state began tracking cases. By Saturday, there were 1,097 COVID-19 patients in hospitals statewide, a 20% increase.
COVID-19 hospitalizations in L.A. County hit a record low of 212 on June 12. But on Saturday, there were 284 hospitalized patients a 34% increase, though far below the peak of 8,098 during the worst days of the pandemic.
State officials say they dont expect Californias hospitals to once again be overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients there are simply too many vaccinated people around to imagine such a scenario.
But officials noted that it remains crucial that more Californians get vaccinated.
We know our hospitalizations are creeping up and most of the patients are unvaccinated. We also know the science is clear getting vaccinated protects you AND those around you. Get vaccinated, Gov. Gavin Newsom tweeted.
His comments echoed those by Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. governments top infectious-diseases expert. He pointed to recent studies showing that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was 88% effective against symptomatic disease from the Delta variant and 96% effective against hospitalization after two doses were administered. The AstraZeneca vaccine, which is not approved for use in the U.S. but uses similar technology to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, was found to be 92% effective against hospitalization.
The best way to protect yourself against the virus and its variants is to be fully vaccinated. It works, Fauci said.
Some officials, however, have said the science isnt settled on whether some vaccinated people could be at higher risk of contracting the Delta variant and passing it to other people, while not getting severely sick themselves.
That was the reasoning behind the L.A. County Department of Public Healths latest recommendation that even fully vaccinated people return to wearing masks in indoor public settings until more definitive information emerges about Delta.
L.A. County officials expressed worry over a recent doubling of new coronavirus cases of all variants. From June 25 to July 1, the county reported about 2,600 new cases; the previous weeks sum was about 1,100.
Whenever you see a doubling of cases over a very short time, we all need to pay attention to that, and we all need to think about what else we could be doing that may help us get back to reducing the spread, said L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.
She too noted that fully vaccinated people are highly protected against serious illness and death from COVID-19, including from the Delta variant. But, she added, the big unknown is: Can you become infected have mild illness and go ahead and spread that infection to others?
Until more information comes out about that, Ferrer requested that L.A. County residents mask up in indoor settings where vaccination statuses may be unknown. If mask wearing indoors provides that extra layer of protection, I think its worth it, while we get more questions answered about the variant, and we get more people vaccinated.
Others who have suggested that even vaccinated people wear masks include Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, the government of Israel, the World Health Organization and health officials in the St. Louis area.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has continued to say that fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks because of the high levels of protection offered by the vaccines authorized in the U.S.
If you are vaccinated, you have a high degree of protection, so you need not wear a mask either indoor or outdoor, Fauci said.
He added that local authorities are free to make their own recommendations or requirements based on regional conditions.
California officials and local health agencies throughout the state have continued to align with the CDC guidance on masking recommendations.
Coronavirus latest: Covid infections will rise in England after reopening, says minister Financial Times
For months, the prime minister has repeated the mantra that further easing of Covid-19 restrictions would be about data and not dates. Yet, as coronavirus cases in the UK continue to surge, and scientists warn that fully reopening society risks building variant factories in our own back yard, the government appears poised to put one date 19 July ahead of everything else. Once again, politics has trumped science.
Since Sajid Javids appointment as health secretary on 26 June, the UK has confirmed a further 188,538 coronavirus cases, with approximately 25,000 extra people testing positive each day. On Sunday, Javid said that the best way to protect the nations health was by lifting the main Covid-19 restrictions, even though this would result in a further significant increase in cases. We are going to have to learn to accept the existence of Covid and find ways to cope with it just as we already do with flu, he said.
Another mantra beloved both of politicians and scientists is that well need to learn to live with the virus, though they often disagree on the timing of when this recalibration should take place. Until now, the government has also avoided specifying the meaning of this slippery phrase. Now that it is poised to set a date, we are about to learn what the health secretarys vision of living with the virus actually means.
For Javid, a thriving economy is at odds with continuing Covid-19 restrictions. Theres no doubt that measures such as shutting down businesses and events, or instructing individuals and entire school bubbles to self-isolate if they come into contact with an infected person, are economically damaging and may be harmful to peoples mental, or even physical health. Other measures, however, such as the wearing of masks, are a mere inconvenience for most people, but they do reduce transmission particularly indoors, when coronavirus cases are high. Doing away with them has nothing to do with the economy or peoples mental health; it is motivated by ideology.
No scientist is arguing that Covid restrictions should remain in place forever. The frustrating thing is that we know double-vaccines work: they protect the vast majority of people, even from variants, even from Delta, so there is an endpoint to this, said Stephen Griffin, professor of virology at the University of Leeds.
The real worry is that that theyre basically saying its not going to be so bad, and weve got most people vaccinated so lets just carry on. If you want to actually stop new outbreaks, and the tremendous damage done by this variant, you need to build your vaccine coverage up, to include, in my view, children aged 12 years and above, because thats where many of the infections are at the moment, but also because theres lots of socialising going on and it is about to increase.
Yes, we may eventually have to live with outbreaks and with some infections, but were nowhere near a herd immunity threshold, and its not a magic barrier that you go through it is literally the more the merrier. You need to build that wall of double-vaccinated people, and if you do that you might not need boosters, because if everyone has that level of immunity then there will be no cases.
Another frustration, among the governments own advisers, is that ministers have repeatedly ignored their calls to make public spaces safer by improving ventilation.
It is no good telling people to open windows if windows dont open, as is the case in many public and private buildings hence the need for ventilation grants for existing properties and ventilation standards for new builds, wrote Prof Stephen Reicher and Prof Susan Michie - two members of the Sage subcommittee advising on behavioural science in a recent blog for the British Medical Journal. Neither is it any good telling people to avoid stuffy spaces if they dont know which ones are well-aired, they wrote, or telling the owners of public and private buildings to improve ventilation without regular inspections and enforcement.
To most scientists, living with the virus means doing everything you can to reduce the risks, before taking the brakes off. It doesnt mean taking the brakes off and just seeing what happens.
A once in a lifetime pandemic. Portland protests that stretched from late May 2020 to November, and beyond. The unprecedented Oregon wildfire season. A run of extreme heat we hope will never be repeated (but fear will be).
The Oregonian/OregonLives newsroom has spent the past 16 months covering all of that and more. It has been a sometimes exhilarating and often exhausting experience. To those journalists who ventured out last week in 100-plus degree weather to cover the news, the hardy band of photographers and reporters who turned out night after night for protests, the ones who headed toward the fire lines, I salute you.
On Friday, Feb. 28, 2020, reporter Fedor Zarkhin published the news of Oregons first reported coronavirus case. Shortly thereafter, The Oregonian/OregonLives newsroom reorganized around virus coverage to ensure as many angles as possible were covered. As we were soon to find out, the COVID-19 outbreak would touch nearly every aspect of our lives.
Now, as vaccinations abound and coronavirus cases drop, I wanted to let readers know about some changes in our pandemic coverage. One of the mainstays has been a daily post listing new cases, deaths and hospitalizations.
As of this coming week, we will post the numbers weekly instead of daily. Thats in recognition that the case numbers have dropped significantly in the past few months, as vaccines rolled out, and it allows us to free our journalists to do deeper reporting.
The editor who organized and led much of our COVID-19 coverage, Brad Schmidt, says, This past week marked a clear turning point in the pandemic across several fronts.
First, he said, Oregon saw average new cases drop below 200 a day, the lowest point since September.
Second, Schmidt says, Gov. Kate Brown has lifted nearly all coronavirus restrictions. And third, the Oregon Health Authority announced it would discontinue holiday and weekend reporting of several key data points. The state instead will release that information on the next business day.
Going forward, our weekly update will include new cases, deaths, and other key statistics. That weekly story will publish online Mondays or, in the event of holidays, the following business day.
For readers who want to stay up on the latest numbers, The Oregonian/OregonLive will continue to update data online every day the Oregon Health Authority releases new stats.
That means you can continue visiting https://projects.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/ to see up-to-date figures on cases, deaths, hospitalizations, vaccinations and more. Data analysts Mark Friesen and Dave Cansler have worked behind the scenes to add features to that page, including a section devoted to county-level data.
Our coronavirus newsletter, which has been delivered five days a week, will move to twice weekly.
What wont change: Our commitment to delivering thorough, accurate news about COVID-19 and its many effects.
Zarkhin and reporter Aimee Green will continue to look for in-depth stories related to the pandemic. Schmidt says that will include examining virus variants, efforts to improve vaccination rates among Black, Indigenous and people of color populations, and progress on vaccinations for children younger than 12.
Education reporter Eder Campuzano will track plans to reopen schools safely and issues that arise there for parents, students and teachers.
Business reporter Mike Rogoway will keep an eye on Oregons Employment Department. The department generated lots of news over the months as it struggled with antiquated computer systems, COVID-10 outbreaks in call centers and unprecedented demand due to layoffs.
In fact, The Oregonian/OregonLive is currently pressing the state to release how much taxpayer money was lost to unemployment fraud in Oregon during the pandemic.
The amount could be significant. The Associated Press reported earlier this year that California alone estimated it sent out $11 billion in fraudulent payments. Washington state was also hard hit, estimating $650 million in losses in 2020, though it has worked to recover $370 million.
Oregon has released limited information on its losses, arguing that releasing more would make the system vulnerable to additional fraud.
The Oregonian/OregonLive also remains committed to other pandemic-related business news. Jamie Goldberg has spent months reporting on workplace issues, payroll help for businesses large and small and landlord-tenant relief. She will continue on these subjects, while also assuming some editing duties.
Goldberg and Rogoway also are following the recovery of downtown Portland. Read our work on that project at oregonlive.com/downtown.
Thanks to our subscribers for supporting all of this important public service journalism.
The Mutts comic is going on sabbatical starting July 5, 2021.
Comics fans: Mutts will be replaced temporarily by Curtis on the comics pages. The creator of Mutts, Patrick McDonnell, is taking a six-month sabbatical to work on another project. That gives us the opportunity to give readers a glimpse at a fresh strip. Let me know what you think of Curtis, which starts Monday. The creator of the strip, Ray Billingsley, bases the comic on his own childhood. Its described as humorous, thought-provoking (with) bursts of pure zany fantasy.
LAS VEGAS >> Fifteen months after the pandemic transformed Las Vegas from flamboyant spectacle to ghost town, Sin City is back.
Tourists are streaming in again, gambling revenue has hit an all-time high, the Las Vegas Strip has its first new casino in a decade, and big concerts are starting at a gleaming new stadium. Plexiglass panels installed to separate gamblers at the poker and blackjack tables have largely been removed, the world-famous buffets are reopening, and nightclub dance floors are packed.
Vice President Kamala Harris was set to visit Saturday for what the White House is calling the Americas Back Together tour celebrating progress against the virus.
But that progress is threatened: Nevada this week saw the highest rate of new COVID-19 cases in the country, hospitalizations are on the rise again, and the highly contagious delta variant has become the most prevalent form of the virus in the state, adding urgency to the campaign to get more people vaccinated.
Still, in a place where the economy runs on crowds and uninhibited behavior, a return to pandemic-related restrictions and mask requirements seems to be off the table.
Inside the casinos, guests are not required to wear masks if they are fully vaccinated, but employees do not appear to be asking anyone for proof.
It seems like everything is opening back up, getting back to normal, Teresa Lee, a 47-year-old tourist from Nashville, Tennessee, said Thursday as she stood on the Strip, looking out over the fountains in front of the Bellagio casino.
Lee said she is vaccinated and felt safe in Las Vegas because she read about the casinos efforts to get their workers and their families vaccinated.
Tyler Williams, a 22-year-old from Eugene, Oregon, said it didnt feel as if there was a pandemic anymore because people are everywhere. He said he had seen hardly anyone with a mask apart from a few foreign tourists and felt no need to wear one himself, because he is vaccinated.
Las Vegas fully reopened and lifted restrictions on most businesses June 1, though many casino-resorts had already returned to 100% capacity before that with approval from state regulators. Visitor numbers, while not at their pre-pandemic highs, have grown by double digits four months in a row.
Shows and fireworks are scheduled for the July 4 weekend, and the new 65,000-seat Allegiant Stadium where the NFLs relocated Raiders will kick off their season this fall was set to host its first major concert Saturday, by electronic dance music star Illenium. It will be followed by a full-capacity show from Garth Brooks next weekend.
Over the past two weeks, Nevadas diagnosis rate of 190 new cases per 100,000 people was higher than that of Missouri, Arkansas and Wyoming all states with lower vaccination levels and the state public health lab found the delta variant in almost half the COVID-19 cases it analyzed.
Also, the number of patients hospitalized with the virus has grown 33% over the past week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, though the levels are far below what they were in December, when hospitals were near capacity.
State biostatistician Kyra Morgan said Friday that the spike in cases might be attributable to the full reopening of the state and city in June and that the return of crowds and big events on the Strip could cause the increase to continue.
If we know anything about COVID, we know that when people are gathering in close proximity to one another in large volumes, that is the recipe for COVID transmission to increase, Morgan said.
State and local officials said that almost all the new cases and hospitalizations involve unvaccinated people and that the best way to attack the problem is by getting more shots in arms. Nevada has fully vaccinated 45% of those 12 and older, well below the nationwide level of 55%, according to the CDC.
We are a state of skeptics when it comes to vaccines, Morgan said. We have a lot of anti-vaxxers, frankly, in the state of Nevada.
State and local officials, who in May went so far as to hold a vaccine clinic at a strip club, said they are trying to find more ways to persuade people, including the launch of a cash raffle.
Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak, who took the unprecedented step of shuttering casinos for 11 weeks last year when the pandemic started, said Thursday he will ask for help from the COVID-19 response teams that the Biden administration is dispatching to boost testing and vaccinations in communities with outbreaks.
Sisolaks office did not respond to questions about whether he is considering reimposing mask mandates or other restrictions, but Las Vegas-area officials say they are following the CDCs guidelines, which say it is safe for fully vaccinated people to go mask-free.
At this this point, there is no discussion about increasing restrictions to the business and social life here in Clark County, said Dr. Fermin Leguen, chief health officer in the Las Vegas area. Getting better numbers in immunization is the solution for this problem at this point.
