Regarding your statement "1. Twenty-three state Attorneys General have filed a lawsuit to stop the $11 billion rollback in HHS funding. That buys local health departments at least 14 more days of spending authority." I worked at a local health dept in NJ until March 28th, when I was let go because my position was grant funded. Even though NJ is part of the lawsuit, and the federal judge blocked the order, ALL FUNDING HAS CEASED. Our Dept of Health put a stop work order on all grant-related spending on March 28th, and that has not changed. It's important for people to understand that even with a judge's order, the cuts are STILL in effect and there is NO money flowing and NO spending authority.
It doesn't help with firings, you're right. A lot of the damage is already done. And I'm so sorry you're caught up in it. It's madness and public health workers don't deserve it one bit. But, I do know a lot of other health departments (doesn't sound like NJ) can continue invoicing and trying to spend it down as quickly as possible. The 14 days will help them.
So RFKs supporters - Vance ( Ohio) Cassidy (LA) Marshall ( KS) Mullin (OK) and of course Cruz and Cornyn (TX) are now seeing the fruits of their foolishness. I don’t have a Senator but if any readers live in red states please call the office to urge hearing and demand that he be countered with evidence - not allowed to pander
Dr. Jetelina, you mentioned that flu and covid are trending downward, but the wastewater site I follow (https://data.wastewaterscan.org/) indicates that covid is ticking UP in the Northeast. Are these data inaccurate? Or is it possible the rest of the country will eventually follow the Northeast region and have an earlier-than-usual summer resurgence?
This is a great question. Wastewaterscan is fantastic but doesn't have as big of coverage as the CDC network. For example, in Maine Wastewater Scan has 3 sites while CDC has over 15. The fewer the sites, the more erratic the trends.
I agree with you raising this concern, Missy. Where I live in NJ, the local wastewater shows "high" for Covid, Flu, and Norovirus. And as you pointed out, Covid is increasing in the northeast, not decreasing. I love Dr. Jetelina, and YLE, but I am disappointed at being, what feels like gaslit, into being told that it doesn't exist. It's hit my household in just the last two weeks, and so I know it's not fake news.
I'm not sure it's gaslighting, though. I think it's more that there are discrepancies in data, depending on where you look. That's why I'm curious about where/how Dr. Jetelina saw the information and her interpretation. She knows things we don't, even about inconsistencies in wastewater reporting and similar issues, so that's why I am wondering if perhaps the apparent Northeast trend upward is even accurate.
Those are good points, and perhaps gaslighting is too strong a word. Sorry! It just feels so frustrating - the media already ignores all of this, and I appreciated that these updates did not. But I agree that perhaps the data is misleading. Another thing is that perhaps the data is right, but the illnesses are just very mild. Anyhow, I truly appreciate Dr. Jetelina, and that folks like us have a place to go to discuss this.
Hi Michael- I will continue to cover respiratory diseases if they pop up throughout the year. Right now, everything is low and there are other public health matters that are important.
When I was a “special master” ( a type of judge) on the U.S Court of Federal Claims, I published a lengthy judicial opinion concluding that David Geier and his father Mark were shameless fraudsters who would sell bogus medical opinions and studies to anyone who would pay them. If you would like help in finding that opinion on Westlaw, please contact me.
Yes, I would. I'm in Canada, but we have anti vax folk up here too. Those folks are often admirers of RFK. I'd likeadditional "ammunition" for my already low opinion of RFK and his minions...
I've read in a few places, now including this newsletter, that the US might lose its measles elimination status. I'm wondering what the consequences of that might be. For example, will other countries impose travel restrictions on US residents?
Travel restrictions yes, but mostly it's a mile marker. It tells us and other countries that measles is again endemic in the U.S. and spreading just like flu or Covid does. This would be most detrimental to new moms (as their babies can't get fully protected until 12 months.) It may mean changing vaccine policy to add a MMR vaccine at 6 months. We will have to see how it plays out.
I have illnesses where most vaccines are not recommend (GBS survivor and MG). How do I and people like me navigate these new times when we are losing our herd protection? Thanks.
And... Thank you for what you do. In many ways you have been an extra lifeline for me in these past few years, so thanks! :)
Thank you, and your whole team, for providing a steady voice in the chaos. You are doing incredibly valuable work. And your writing is a model of how to successfully communicate complicated scientific ideas and data.
Haha no kidding. I didn't know if this newsletter could successfully pivot in a post-Covid emergency world. Unfortunately it's having no problem these days.
For those of us who work with pregnant women and on the labor/delivery floor, should we be looking at MMR boosters for these staff especially? I'm concerned about waning immunity (plenty of prenatal patients have no rubella immunity despite history of full MMR vaccination; is rubella immunity similar to measles immunity duration?) and its potential risk on pregnant women and their children.
Edit to add I just read your 10 FAQs on MMR--still curious if we should be doing more for those in healthcare :)
This is scary. I have a PhD in physics, yet I've put off my last Covid vax., bc I have very severe heart failure. I'm 88 and JFK, Jr. has succeeded in this must be wrong. Could I have been poisoned by the Gd contrast medium from two NMRIs? Probably sarcoid first diagnosed in ~ 1986. What think you?
"Dental caries (tooth decay) remains the most prevalent chronic disease among children."
We raised our five children on a low-sugar/high-saturated fat diet. The water they drank was not floridated. They do not have periodontal disease. I was not so fortunate. Our family consumed margarine and used seed oils for cooking and baking. I rather wish my parents has read Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston Price, DDS prior to having me.
When my parents were in their early 50s I persuaded them to switch to butter and stop consuming seed oils. Dad was 93 when he passed away. Mom, 101, reads a couple books a week. Neither parent was ever diagnosed with cancer or heart disease.
Note that the Mediterranean diet furnishes some protection from periodontal disease. Why? "The Mediterranean diet is low in arachidonic acid and rich in healthy fats such as monounsaturated fats found in extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), nuts and omega-3 fatty acids from fish, which has been shown to lower the risk of inflammation, heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity, and other degenerative diseases." https://advancedmolecularlabs.com/blogs/news/new-red-meat-study-controversy
Regarding your statement "1. Twenty-three state Attorneys General have filed a lawsuit to stop the $11 billion rollback in HHS funding. That buys local health departments at least 14 more days of spending authority." I worked at a local health dept in NJ until March 28th, when I was let go because my position was grant funded. Even though NJ is part of the lawsuit, and the federal judge blocked the order, ALL FUNDING HAS CEASED. Our Dept of Health put a stop work order on all grant-related spending on March 28th, and that has not changed. It's important for people to understand that even with a judge's order, the cuts are STILL in effect and there is NO money flowing and NO spending authority.
It doesn't help with firings, you're right. A lot of the damage is already done. And I'm so sorry you're caught up in it. It's madness and public health workers don't deserve it one bit. But, I do know a lot of other health departments (doesn't sound like NJ) can continue invoicing and trying to spend it down as quickly as possible. The 14 days will help them.
Thank you - interesting to hear other states are handling it differently. What happens after the "14 days"?
So RFKs supporters - Vance ( Ohio) Cassidy (LA) Marshall ( KS) Mullin (OK) and of course Cruz and Cornyn (TX) are now seeing the fruits of their foolishness. I don’t have a Senator but if any readers live in red states please call the office to urge hearing and demand that he be countered with evidence - not allowed to pander
Great advice.
' RFK Jr. said some programs were cut “by mistake,” '
Does anybody have fingers and toes enough to tally up the lethal mistakes this administration has made in its first few months? Is there no justice?
Dr. Jetelina, you mentioned that flu and covid are trending downward, but the wastewater site I follow (https://data.wastewaterscan.org/) indicates that covid is ticking UP in the Northeast. Are these data inaccurate? Or is it possible the rest of the country will eventually follow the Northeast region and have an earlier-than-usual summer resurgence?
Hi Missy-
This is a great question. Wastewaterscan is fantastic but doesn't have as big of coverage as the CDC network. For example, in Maine Wastewater Scan has 3 sites while CDC has over 15. The fewer the sites, the more erratic the trends.
I agree with you raising this concern, Missy. Where I live in NJ, the local wastewater shows "high" for Covid, Flu, and Norovirus. And as you pointed out, Covid is increasing in the northeast, not decreasing. I love Dr. Jetelina, and YLE, but I am disappointed at being, what feels like gaslit, into being told that it doesn't exist. It's hit my household in just the last two weeks, and so I know it's not fake news.
I'm sorry your household has been ill!
I'm not sure it's gaslighting, though. I think it's more that there are discrepancies in data, depending on where you look. That's why I'm curious about where/how Dr. Jetelina saw the information and her interpretation. She knows things we don't, even about inconsistencies in wastewater reporting and similar issues, so that's why I am wondering if perhaps the apparent Northeast trend upward is even accurate.
Those are good points, and perhaps gaslighting is too strong a word. Sorry! It just feels so frustrating - the media already ignores all of this, and I appreciated that these updates did not. But I agree that perhaps the data is misleading. Another thing is that perhaps the data is right, but the illnesses are just very mild. Anyhow, I truly appreciate Dr. Jetelina, and that folks like us have a place to go to discuss this.
She said trending downward, not 100% gone. Big difference as you know.
Right... but she also said she's not going to cover respiratory illnesses anymore. That's what I was referencing.
Hi Michael- I will continue to cover respiratory diseases if they pop up throughout the year. Right now, everything is low and there are other public health matters that are important.
When I was a “special master” ( a type of judge) on the U.S Court of Federal Claims, I published a lengthy judicial opinion concluding that David Geier and his father Mark were shameless fraudsters who would sell bogus medical opinions and studies to anyone who would pay them. If you would like help in finding that opinion on Westlaw, please contact me.
Yes, I would. I'm in Canada, but we have anti vax folk up here too. Those folks are often admirers of RFK. I'd likeadditional "ammunition" for my already low opinion of RFK and his minions...
Any update on why the approval for Novavax was delayed? I’m concerned that the gutting at the FDA will delay this and it takes months to prepare it.
I've read in a few places, now including this newsletter, that the US might lose its measles elimination status. I'm wondering what the consequences of that might be. For example, will other countries impose travel restrictions on US residents?
Travel restrictions yes, but mostly it's a mile marker. It tells us and other countries that measles is again endemic in the U.S. and spreading just like flu or Covid does. This would be most detrimental to new moms (as their babies can't get fully protected until 12 months.) It may mean changing vaccine policy to add a MMR vaccine at 6 months. We will have to see how it plays out.
Might "travel restrictions" mean that US passport holders would lose access to certain countries, for example Canada or members of the EU?
IIRC, some resistance is transferred by breast feeding and in the womb. So mothers should be well vaccinated, no?
bc
We need to keep making noise. Write congress persons, support our local and state health departments.
I have illnesses where most vaccines are not recommend (GBS survivor and MG). How do I and people like me navigate these new times when we are losing our herd protection? Thanks.
And... Thank you for what you do. In many ways you have been an extra lifeline for me in these past few years, so thanks! :)
Thank you, and your whole team, for providing a steady voice in the chaos. You are doing incredibly valuable work. And your writing is a model of how to successfully communicate complicated scientific ideas and data.
...and to think, you were wondering where to focus after Covid pandemic...
Who knew?
Haha no kidding. I didn't know if this newsletter could successfully pivot in a post-Covid emergency world. Unfortunately it's having no problem these days.
For those of us who work with pregnant women and on the labor/delivery floor, should we be looking at MMR boosters for these staff especially? I'm concerned about waning immunity (plenty of prenatal patients have no rubella immunity despite history of full MMR vaccination; is rubella immunity similar to measles immunity duration?) and its potential risk on pregnant women and their children.
Edit to add I just read your 10 FAQs on MMR--still curious if we should be doing more for those in healthcare :)
We need to hear the good news and at the same time, to be aware of the challenges that we face. Thank you Katelyn.
In support of keeping hope alive and remaining resilient, I want to offer access to a post that focuses on learning to manage our responses to stress.
https://longcovidjourney2wellness.substack.com/p/finding-anchors-in-the-face-of-stress
Thank you, as always, Katelyn, for your invaluable newsletter.
I hate to say it, but it's impossible for me not to think of Livy's aphorism from 2,000 years ago:
"Eventus stultorum magister est."
Colloquially translated, fools must be taught by experience.
And we're seeing plenty of fools in these anti-vax, anti-science days.
This is scary. I have a PhD in physics, yet I've put off my last Covid vax., bc I have very severe heart failure. I'm 88 and JFK, Jr. has succeeded in this must be wrong. Could I have been poisoned by the Gd contrast medium from two NMRIs? Probably sarcoid first diagnosed in ~ 1986. What think you?
i believe there is a difference in the data associating dementia with Shingrix vs Zostavax, the two vaccines
"Dental caries (tooth decay) remains the most prevalent chronic disease among children."
We raised our five children on a low-sugar/high-saturated fat diet. The water they drank was not floridated. They do not have periodontal disease. I was not so fortunate. Our family consumed margarine and used seed oils for cooking and baking. I rather wish my parents has read Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston Price, DDS prior to having me.
When my parents were in their early 50s I persuaded them to switch to butter and stop consuming seed oils. Dad was 93 when he passed away. Mom, 101, reads a couple books a week. Neither parent was ever diagnosed with cancer or heart disease.
Note that the Mediterranean diet furnishes some protection from periodontal disease. Why? "The Mediterranean diet is low in arachidonic acid and rich in healthy fats such as monounsaturated fats found in extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), nuts and omega-3 fatty acids from fish, which has been shown to lower the risk of inflammation, heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity, and other degenerative diseases." https://advancedmolecularlabs.com/blogs/news/new-red-meat-study-controversy
German researchers have sorted some of the particulars. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8901712/