By Jondi Gumz
On March 18, the federal Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention reported an error in its Covid-19 mortality data, removing 72,277 deaths, including 416 children.
The correction cut the CDC’s estimate of deaths in children by 24% to 1,341 as of March 18.
The agency noted the change in a footnote, not explaining how the error occurred or answering a question on how long coding error was in effect, the Guardian reported.
A source familiar with the issue told The Guardian the problem came out of two questions, one asking if a person died “from illness/complications of illness,” and then asking for the date of death. If the answer was no or unknown, but the date of death was provided, the system assumed that if the “no” or “unknown” answer was in error, and switched the answer to “yes.”
Hospitalizations from the easily spread but less deadly Omicron variant peaked in January and have plummeted nationwide, in California and locally. See the federal Center for Disease Control map showing most counties green for low transmission except for high transmission in northern Montana.
Two years after the coronavirus pandemic began, the state Department of Public Health reports hospitalizations down from 20,000 at the peak of the Omicron surge in January to 1,270, and test positivity, 23% in January, now 1.6%.
In Santa Cruz County, only five people are hospitalized for Covid, including two in intensive care.
Employee Mandate
On March 29, Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) said she would hold Assembly Bill 1993, which would have required employees and independent contractors, public and private, to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to keep their job.
She cited opposition from public safety unions (highway patrol, firefighters and correctional offices) and improved pandemic conditions.
In January, Protection of the Educational Rights of Kids, based in Newbury Park, filed a lawsuit with Officer Jonathan Wiese, Fire Capt. Justus Norgood, and Police Capt. Manuel Del Toro, filed a lawsuit against the City of San Diego, seeking relief from the vaccine mandate for first responders and city employees, calling it unconstitutional.
The group is tracking 10 Covid-19 bills proposed by California lawmakers. Besides AB 1993, they include:
- SB 871: To end a personal belief exemption in the state’s student vaccine mandate.
- SB 866: To allow children 12 and older to get COVID vaccines without parental consent.
- SB 920: To authorize a medical board to inspect a doctor’s office and records without patient consent.
- SB 1464: To require law enforcement officers to enforce public health orders.
- SB 1479: To mandate Covid testing plans at schools.
- SB 1390: To prohibit a social media platform from amplifying harmful content such as misinformation or disinformation.
- SB 1184: To authorize a health care provider or plan to disclose your child’s medical information to a school-linked services coordinator without parent consent.
- AB 1793: To allow school officials to easily via access to a state immunization database.
- AB 2098: To classify a physician or surgeon disseminating or promoting misinformation or disinformation related to COVID-19 as unprofessional conduct and grounds for disciplinary action. This is supported by Sen. Richard Pan, a physician, and opposed by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons.
To track these bills, see https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
On March 30, Dr. Pamela Popper posted updates on lawsuits challenging the state of Ohio’s emergency declaration, which was lifted last June, and a similar case in Hawaii which is pending and against the state of Washington for three children injured by the mask mandate, and a case against the federal Health and Human Services agency, challenging use of the PCR test.
The group is defending doctors in Washington State, Ohio, and Maine attacked by state medical boards for prescribing early treatment drugs for Covid and speaking out about Covid vaccines. Updates are at https://makeamericansfreeagain.com/
Signs of Normalcy
Kayak.com reports the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Mexico and Slovankia are open to visitors — with no Covid-19 restrictions.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams lifted the vaccine mandate for performers and professional athletes, allowing Kyrie Irving, a top player for the Brooklyn Nets, on the court even though he opted out of Covid vaccination.
Santa Cruz County closed the vaccination site at Felton Community Hall March 9 after giving 2,000 vaccinations and referred residents to the newly opened Santa Cruz Community Health office in Ben Lomond. On March 27, the county closed the vaccine clinic at the old Watsonville City Hall, where 20,000 vaccinations were given.
A new Omicron variant called BA.2 “appears to be about 50% more transmissible than the original omicron strain BA.1, according to UC Davis Health. “Preliminary data suggests omicron BA.1 causes the same severity of disease and symptoms, but it’s affecting younger people more.”
Two Years
Santa Cruz County, which updates its dashboard on Monday and Thursday, has 419 active cases, down from 10,000 at the peak, and three more deaths, bringing the total to 259.
Underlying conditions were a factor in 19 of the 20 most recent local deaths during the peak of the highly contagious and thought-to-be-mild Omicron variant.
The latest deaths were people 65 and older, two with underlying conditions. The county website lists vaccination status in death as “yes” or “no.”
The most COVID fatalities in the county occurred in January 2021, when vaccines were not available and 22 people died in one week.
County supervisors have chosen five board members for the Pajaro Valley Health Care District Project, the local consortium awarded the bid by a bankruptcy judge to buy Watsonville Community Hospital, which has 620 employees and shares the treatment of Covid-19 patients with Dominican Hospital.
They five are Marcus Pimental, John Friel, Jasmine Najera, Tony Nunez and Dr. Katie Gabriel-Cox. Pimental and Najera must run for re-election in November.
The Pajaro Valley Health Care District Project aims to raise $16.5 million to buy Watsonville Community Hospital and fund the first-year operations under the new ownership. Watsonville based Driscoll’s is matching all donations up to $1.75 million until May 1.
If $1.75 million is raised from the community, it results in $3.5 million. To donate, see www.pvhdp.org
Scotts Valley Schools
Scotts Valley schools, which is on spring break April 4-8, report only 2 active student cases and zero staff cases in April.
Vine Hill Elementary has one student case. So does Scotts Valley Middle School.
“We have the lowest positivity rate yet since the beginning of 2022,” Superintendent Tanya Kraus reported to parents on March 30.
Rather than ask staff to distribute Covid test kits the day before students return, the superintendent is asking families to tests at home. Kraus hopes case rates will remain low, allowing end-of-the-year student activities to take place.
Test positivity for the Santa Cruz County Office of Education, which reports testing for public schools, is .91 percent, lower than the state.
The state’s guidance to schools and childcare facilities: After March 11, masks are not required but are strongly recommended.
“All community members have a right to make different choices with regard to recommended masking, and it is imperative that we respect personal choice and treat each other with respect and kindness,” posted Dr. Faris Sabbah, Santa Cruz County Superintendent of Schools.
Santa Cruz County Office of Education, with Inspire Diagnostic, has provided 398,900 tests.
Cases in schools peaked at 4,407 on Jan. 27, dropping to 97 on March 30. The 14-day positivity rate, 12.25% on January, is down to .91%.
Pfizer & Moderna
Parents anxious to have shots for their younger children under 5 are still waiting for Pfizer and BioNTech to gather data on whether a third dose is effective.
Pfizer initially applied for emergency use authorization for young children for two doses.
Pfizer stock peaked at $61 in December, fell in March to $46 and has been trading at $52 to $55.
On March 23, vaccine-maker Moderna reported positive results — no severe cases, hospitalizations, or deaths — in two clinical trials for children under 6 — and said it would ask the Food and Drug Administration to authorize its Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use authorization for those children.
In the trial, Covid cases decreased 43.7% for kids 6 to 23 months, and 37.5% for kids 2 to 6. At the outset, the FDA called for vaccines to cut infection by at least 50%.
Moderna stock peaked in November at $368, then fell to $128 in March and rose to stabilize at $179.
Mary Holland, president and general counsel of Children’s Health Defense, contends there is no COVID emergency for children under 5 years old.
Children have a 99.995% recovery rate, and a body of medical literature indicates that “almost zero” healthy children under 5 have died from COVID, according to Holland, citing studies in Germany, England and Wales.
Myocarditis Risk
In a 2022 report in the Journal of American Medical Association online, Dr. Matthew Oster of the CDC reported the government’s VAERS database received 1,991 reports of myocarditis after one dose of mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine and 1,626 met the CDC’s definition for probable or confirmed myocarditis.
Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart, which can lead to clots, a stroke or heart attack.
Oster’s conclusion: “The risk of myocarditis after receiving mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines was increased across multiple age and sex strata and was highest after the second vaccination dose in adolescent males and young men. This risk should be considered.”
The CDC looked at its data in February: Of 164 million total doses of Moderna Covid-19 vaccine given to those 18 years and older, there were 359 reports of myocarditis to VAERS in the seven days post-vaccination meeting CDC definition.
Most patients were hospitalized, and 69% recovered.
Public health officials say the scientific consensus is that Covid vaccines are safe, but some are skeptical about relying on science from drug-makers, which saw profits rise in 2021. They point to the U.S. government database, https://vaers.hhs.gov/, where health care providers are to report adverse events after a vaccine.
The reporting site was created after Congress passed a law in 1986 protecting vaccine manufacturers from civil personal injury lawsuits and wrongful death lawsuits resulting from vaccine injuries.
After Covid arrived, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar invoked the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act, a 2005 law that allows the HHS secretary to provide legal protection to companies making or distributing critical medical supplies such as vaccines unless there’s “willful misconduct” by the company, according to a report by CNBC.
This lowers the cost of immunizations, and the protection lasts until 2024.
Fourth Shot?
On March 13, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said fully vaccinated people will need a fourth shot this year.
“The protection that you are getting from the third, it is good enough, actually quite good for hospitalizations and deaths,” he said. “It’s not that good against infections.”
Fully vaccinated means having two shots (Pfizer or Moderna) or one Johnson & Johnson shot. All were developed for the initial Covid-19 coronavirus.
For Omicron, the dominant variant, a booster shot is needed. Booster shots are 90 percent effective against preventing Omicron hospitalizations, according to the federal Centers of Disease Control.
California reports 83.9% of residents age 5 and up have had at least one shot.
On the CDC Covid tracker, Santa Cruz County reports 90.4% of residents age 5 and up have at least one shot and 82.1% fully vaccinated.
On April 1, California Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly, and Dr. Tomás Aragon, director of the California Department of Public Health and state public health officer, announced that people 50 and older are eligible for a second mRNA booster shot from Moderna or Pfizer. Kids 12 and older are eligible for the Pfizer booster and those 18 years and older with moderate and severe immune-suppression are eligible for a Moderna booster.
This is the recommendation of the 18-member Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup on which Tomas sits.
Omicron Less Deadly
Omicron is deadly than Delta, which raged in 2021. Santa Cruz County reports 259 Covid deaths, up from 225 as of Dec. 15, before Omicron was confirmed on Dec. 16 and 17.
One statistic is similar: 79% to 81% of those who died had pre-existing conditions.
Why do people fear Omnicron?
They may have a pre-existing condition (diabetes, obesity, asthma, high blood pressure). Half of Americans do, so they are at higher risk for severe Covid illness.
So are people 85 and older.
Some people who got Covid experience “long Covid,” with fatigue and brain fog months afterward. A 2022 study in the journal Cell by researchers following more than 200 patients found many acute Covid patients had low cortisol, which could be addressed.
Testing
The Santa Cruz County Office of Education offers drive-though testing for students, staff and families at these locations:
Cabrillo College, Aptos, Parking Lot K, Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds, 2601 E. Lake Ave., Watsonville, Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Santa Cruz County Office of Education, 399 Encinal St., Santa Cruz, Monday to Friday, 2 to 5 p.m.
Directions for rapid response antigen tests are at drive.google.com/file/d/1U8AdsSyH14sDvrjD6T25krhvOFRFsuXs/view
For test options: https://tinyurl.com/get-tested-santa-cruz.
Based on federal recommendations, the state shortened the isolation time for those testing positive from 10 days to five days.
Schedule booster shots at https://myturn.ca.gov/ or by asking your local doctor and pharmacies. For local vaccine providers, visit www.santacruzhealth.org/coronavirusvaccine.
For help scheduling an appointment, call the Community Bridges Helpline at 831-219-8607 or 831-440-3556 (English, Spanish, Mixteco and Triqui).
For local information on COVID-19, go to www.santacruzhealth.org/coronavirus or call (831) 454-4242 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
•••
Total COVID cases: 419
•••
COVID Deaths: 259
As of March 31
Age
85 and older: 110 • 75-84: 61 • 65-74: 46 • 60-64: 15 • 55-59: 4 • 45-54: 10 • 35-44: 8 • 25-34: 5
Underlying Conditions
Yes: 209 • No: 50
Race
White 147 • Latinx 89 • Asian 16 • Black 3 • Amer Indian 1 • Hawaiian 1 • Another 2
Gender
Men: 133 • Women: 126
Location
At facility for aged: 115 • Not at a facility: 144