After a year defined by upheaval and disruption, this week brought tantalizing samples of what was once considered normal.
On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the U.S. should be vigilant about traveling wear. And updated its travel guidelines until people traveling abroad are fully vaccinated against Civil-19. Home travelers will not need self-quarantine upon arrival, or will receive a negative test before or after their departure.
A few hours later, California rearranged its reopening blueprint to outline the final reum collection of indoor events and exhibits.
California’s two largest Los Angeles and Orange counties were recently cleared to ease some of the epidemic-related limitations that have long shaken their economies.
Carrie Zhang, 20, and Ryan Wang, 21, will await a flight to Los Angeles International Airport on April 2.
(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
Together, this week’s developments point to a future that seems long-term and uncertain – one in which the path to the destruction of the coronavirus is dramatically reduced and, finally, completely eliminated.
But these optimistic signs come at an indefinite time, when there is reason for hope for both, as the growing number of coronavirus cases across the country leads to an increasing number of Americans being vaccinated with COVID-19, and the danger grows.
“The disease does not occur on Easter weekend. “The disease doesn’t take a spring break,” Governor Gavin Newsme said during a news conference in San Diego on Friday. “This disease is as deadly as it is fatal.”
The CDC’s latest travel guide was also a double-edged sword – certainly welcome news for those who have been kept away from their loved ones because of the epidemic, but with extreme caution.
The director of the agency, Dr. “While we believe that fully vaccinated individuals can travel at low risk, the CDC has not recommended travel at this time due to the growing number of cases,” said Rochelle Valensky. During a briefing Friday.
She herself admitted the obvious contradiction.
Nia Jenkins, 25, got out of there, and Imani, 23, spoke outside Washington, Los Angeles International Airport, waiting for a flight.
(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
“On the one hand, we are telling you that we are concerned about increasing cases, wearing masks and avoiding travel. However, on the other hand, we are saying that if you are vaccinated, the information developed indicates that traveling is less risky, ”he said.
Such potentially contradictory messages by health officials tend to be frustrating and whiplash-inspiring at times.
However, LA County Health Officer Dr. According to Mantu Davis, this will be expected when working with the new virus.
“This happens naturally from within the epidemic,” he said Friday. “When you start seeing how the virus works, when you start taking new counter-measures when you have a new vaccine or treatment, then we start learning more. But unless we have that information, we have to work very carefully, because everyone is at risk. “
For example, there is growing evidence that available vaccines can be very effective in preventing coronavirus transmission – which could help inform further public health measures.
Albert Gutierrez, 24, and Irwin Monica Elatore, 24, check the contents on their cellphones at Los Angeles International Airport.
(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
Andrew Numer, an associate professor of public health at UC Irwin, said people who have been vaccinated have a lower risk of spreading the virus, but there is no guarantee that they will not be able to infect or spread it.
According to the new CDC guidelines, fully vaccinated people traveling internationally do not need to be tested for COVID-19 before leaving the United States, unless they need to have a destination, and do not require self-quarantine once they arrive in the country. , Federal health officials said. However, the U.S. All incoming air travelers must have a result of a negative coronavirus test three days prior to their travel date.
The CDC has also recommended that international tourists be tested three to five days after the trip.
Domestic travelers who are fully vaccinated – i.e. a second dose of Pfizer-Bioentech or Modernna vaccine or two weeks after their only Johnson & Johnson shot – do not need to self-quarantine upon arrival at their destination and “CDC Accordingly, testing needs to be done before or after the trip unless their destination is required.
It could be implemented in California, where the state says, “important travelers from other states or countries are disappointed, regardless of the status of the COVID-19 vaccination.”
California lifted its advice Thursday asking leisure travelers to stay within 120 miles of home. But health officials still recommend that all passengers be tested one to three days before they begin their journey; And those notable travelers are tested three to five days after arriving in California, as well as self-quarantined for a full seven days after the trip, even if their test is negative.
The state travel adviser also said that important passengers who do not take the test should be self-quarantined for 10 days after the trip.
In a statement, the California Department of Public Health said it was “constantly reviewing science, data and evidence, as well as evaluating CDC recommendations to update guidelines” and promised to notify the public of any changes to the state advisory. They happen.
U.C. San Francisco epidemiologist and infectious disease specialist Dr. The CDC Tour Guide is one of the most significant improvements seen so far, said George R. Ford.
But lifting some restrictions does not mean that the fear has completely evaporated.
“You should start treating everyone like coming to a spring break on South Beach,” Ruthford said.
Health officials have long warned against unnecessary or recreational travel, saying such trips could spread the new coronavirus.
This is particularly worrisome in California, which has seen a steady improvement in its coronavirus matrix even as it began to struggle with worrisome growth in other states.
CDC figures show that the seven-day case rate per 100,000 people in California, 43.9, is the third lowest of all states and is below the national rate of 134.4.
By comparison, Michigan had the highest recent rates, with 411.1 cases per 100,000 people; And New Jersey, 366.4.
During the same period, the comparable rates in New York City were 353.6; 256.7 in the rest of New York State; 222.7 in Pennsylvania; 168.4 in Florida; And 76.5 in Texas.
While that context has not always been at the forefront of CDC messaging, Neumer believes the latest guidelines on retail bans do not appear premature. At least not for California.
“If you look at the world through California’s colored glasses, things are still good,” he said, referring to the state’s low transmission rate.
But he added: “There is no guarantee.”
More and more people are being vaccinated, however, and things are changing rapidly as to what additional activities may be resumed soon.
From April 15, California will allow indoor live events to resume with limitations, meaning imminent return of items such as ceremonies and theater performances that have long been off limits.
Under the new state guidelines unveiled on Friday, such activities will be subject to capacity limits and other security changes. However, if all guests at a particular event have either been tested for Weed-19 or can show evidence that they have been fully vaccinated, attendance caps will be raised.
California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. “By adhering to public health guidelines, such as wearing a mask and being vaccinated when qualified, we will be able to resume additional activities,” said Dr. Mark Galli, California’s secretary of health and human services.
To date, 32% of people in California have received at least one vaccine dose, the CDC data show, and about 19 million doses have been given statewide.
However, only 16.8% of Californians have been fully vaccinated at this time.
As the process of testing a vaccine passport or vaccination grows, a foolproof plan to determine who meets the vaccine requirements will be crucial, Rutherford said.
According to Kirsten Bibins-Domingo, chair of the epidemiology and biostatistics department at UC San Francisco School of Medicine, more people are being vaccinated, and pressure is being put on policymakers to open up more in California and elsewhere.
But while supply and distribution have steadily increased, he noted that pockets of inequality continue across the state.
However, there is optimism at the federal level that the country will get enough COVID-19 vaccine supply to include all willing adults in the spring willing.
How many more Americans will be infected, need to be hospitalized, or be vaccinated extensively before dying from the disease months ago is an open question – and one official said everyone should be vigilant.
“The reality is that the act of traveling and the action of mixing people lead to these spikes,” Bibins-Domingo said. “I’m not suggesting it’s a wrong decision – I’m suggesting you read that decision and say, ‘We’re out of the woods,’ would be a dangerous mistake.”
