The Common Council met 04/07/2021. Health Officer Kurt Eggebrecht gave a Covid-19 update. He actually appeared in the meeting room instead of via Zoom and removed his mask to speak.
He said it was really good to be back in the room and mentioned the freedom of having been vaccinated. He said that some of the people there who have been vaccinated recognize the importance in getting back in the room together again.
As of 04/07/2021 the city of Appleton had 8,439 total cases since the pandemic began. There were 152 active cases that were still being monitored. Deaths remained at 63.
Health Officer Eggebrecht stated that a year ago at this time the city’s weekly average was less than 2 cases. We are currently at 93 cases, up from 81 a week ago. That results in the city’s 2 week burden being 232. Going from 81 to 93 cases means that Appleton’s trajectory is growing. [It should be noted that weekly cases were 103 a month ago, and a month before that they were 91.]
He moved on to updating about testing rates. He stated that the testing is still really important but the National Guard site is seeing a decline in people seeking testing. In January they averaged 139 tests per testing day. In February that dropped to 99 cases. In March it was down to 54. Now in April, the National Guard site is averaging 20 tests a day.
Health Officer Eggebrecht then moved on to a vaccination clinic update.
On 04/07/2021, the Expo Center vaccination clinic surpassed 19,900 doses administered. They expected to do another 1,000 the next day and probably 1,200 on Saturday. He wanted the community to know that that work is resulting in some really important outcomes.
Statewide, 34% of Wisconsin’s population that is eligible for the vaccine has received at least one dose. In Outagamie and Winnebago that number is 32% and in Calumet it’s 31%. He was pleased that “in Appleton we’re at 40% now of our population that has received at least one dose of vaccine”. More importantly, in the group of people that are age 65 and older (those most vulnerable to hospitalization and death from Covid), Appleton’s vaccination rate has surpassed the 75% mark and is actually closer to 80%.
As a result of those vaccination numbers, cases in that age group have dropped dramatically. For the first time, from February 1 through April 5, the age group in Appleton with the highest rate of cases was 25 – 35 year olds. In the last two weeks, that group was 15-19 year olds followed by 10-14 year olds.
He stated that, within the community we are seeing the new variants. Appleton has cases now of both the South African and the UK variants. As a result, he stated that it is really important for people to continue the mitigation strategies,including social distancing and masking, until cases come down. He applauds everything people are doing.
They then opened things up for questions.
Alderperson Alex Schultz (District 9) had a question on the availability of vaccines for 16-18 year olds. His daughter had been scheduled to get her shot at the Expo Center earlier that day but was not able to because the Pfizer shot was not available–only the Johnson and Johnson shot. He was curious to know why notification didn’t go out to the individuals who had signed up but were under 18. Apparently a number of individuals, including his daughter, arrived to get vaccinated and were turned away.
Health Officer Eggebrecht said that they don’t get to pick and choose the vaccine that is made available. They do request the number of doses (and they usually don’t get the amount of vaccine they want either). It makes it very difficult to have an exact date and time that a vaccine will be available. On 04/07 they only had the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, but the day before they had all three and on 04/08 they were going to have all three also.
In the registration process, they have tried to make it clear that there’s only one vaccine that’s licensed for 16-18 year olds (the Pfizer vaccine). That’s why anyone in that age group who showed up earlier that day had their name taken and were rescheduled for the next day’s clinic.
Alderperson Michael Smith (District 10) said that hopefully they’ll be cooking out by the 4th of July. [I’m not sure what his neighborhood is like, but, in my neighborhood, the people one street over from me were lighting off professional grade rockets above their house last year, so I’m pretty sure the 4th of July cookouts never ended]. He mentioned that the CDC is now saying that 3 foot vs 6 foot of separation is okay. He wondered if the city was promoting that or if they were staying with the 6 foot distance.
Health Officer Eggebrecht said that new guidance was for schools in particular. That is really looking at a variety of variables and is only to be used if all the mitigation strategies are in place, meaning everyone is wearing a mask properly. He said they have worked with the school districts and continue to meet every Wednesday morning with all the area superintendents. The Health Department has passed that information on to the schools. He thought it’s most helpful in school settings where, environmentally, the building is old and it makes it very difficult to separate people 6 feet; it gives a little latitude to their work and it has been welcomed at the schools that have had to do that.
Alderperson Smith mentioned that he had a colleague who got his first shot a few weeks ago and was scheduled to get his second one but tested positive before that happened. He warned that people can catch it, so it’s important for people to do what they can–wash their hands, watch the distance, wear the mask, all those good things, to try not to catch it.
Health Officer Eggebrecht said that he raised a good point. For all the vaccines, people still have to wait two weeks after the final dose to get the full benefit. It is possible to contract it between doses, and even after the second dose you need to wait a full 14 days to be fully covered.
Alderperson Joe Martin (District 4) said he got his shot at the Expo CEnter and could not believe how professional it was throughout the entire process. He wanted to applaud all the volunteers and the Health Department.
View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=851822&GUID=EDFB6A15-8566-46DC-911D-4643CD7A5D33&Options=info|&Search=
Be the first to reply