Name: Health officials urge CA politicians to stop making 'false promises' with COVID-19 vaccine distribution
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Health officials urge CA politicians to stop making 'false promises' with COVID-19 vaccine distribution

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AdvertisementHealth officials urge CA politicians to stop making 'false promises' with COVID-19 vaccine distributionHide TranscriptShow Transcript&gt;&gt; TIME AND TIME AGAIN, WE HEAR FROM CALIFORNIANS. ONE OF THEIR BIGGEST CONCERNS, COVID-19 VACCINE DISTRIBUTION. FROM THE HEALTH CARE PERSPECTIVE THIS SPEED IS TO BE EXPECTED. ,&gt;&gt; WE IN LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH ARE REALISTIC. WE KNOW WHAT IT TAKES TO PUT ON MASS VACCINATION CAMPAIGNS. &gt;&gt; SOLANO COUNTY HEALTH OFFICER DR. BELA MATYAS SAYS PART OF THE PROBLEM SOME OF CALIFORNIA’S , POLITICIANS ARE CREATING UNREALISTIC TIMELINES. &gt;&gt; THE EXPECTATION IS IN MANY WAYS NAÏVE. &gt;&gt; HE IS NOT SURE IF CONCERNS ADDRESSED BY HEALTH OFFICIALS ARE BEING HEARD. &gt;&gt; PEOPLE PUSHING THIS EFFORT FOR AT THE POLITICAL LEVEL HAVE A NARRATIVE THAT THEY WANT TO GET VACCINE OUT QUICKLY AND AND THE WAR ON THIS VIRUS. IT IS A NARRATIVE THAT RESONATES WITH MOST PEOPLE. WE ARE TRYING TO KEEP IT AS REAL AS WE CAN FOR PEOPLE. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THIS IS A GOOD PROBLEM TO HAVE. THE FACT THAT PEOPLE ARE FRUSTRATED AT THE PACE OF DISTRIBUTION MEANS THAT PEOPLE WANT TO BE VACCINATED. &gt;&gt; DR. MATYAS SAYS EVERYONE NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND, THERE’S ONLY SO MUCH VACCINE FROM PFIZER AND MODERNA TO GO AROUND. &gt;&gt; YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER THE ARE SUPPLYING THE ENTIRE WORLD WITH VACCINE. OBVIOUSLY, WE WANT MORE AND ASKED FOR MORE BUT IT IS NOT SOMETHING WE CAN JUST GO AND DO, IF IT IS NOT THERE, IT IS NOT THERE. &gt;&gt; SO LAST WEEK, WHEN GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM ANNOUNCED PEOPLE 65 AND OLDER COULD GET VACCINATED, DR. MATYAS SAYS IT SENT HEALTHCARE AGENCIES SCRAMBLING. HE SAYS NEWSOM PROMISED CALIFORNIANS SOMETHING SOME HEALTH DEPARTMENTS AREN’T ABLE TO DELIVER. &gt;&gt; THE GOVERNOR AND STATE HEALTH OFFICER BOTH MADE A PROMISE THEY CANNOT KEEP. THERE IS NOT ENOUGH VACCINE FOR US TO DO 65 AND OVER NOW. &gt;&gt; THE HEALTH OFFICER SAYS CALIFORNIA NEEDS CONSISTENCY. HE ADDS THE STATE SHOULD STICK TO THE SET OF TIERS IT ORIGINALLY CAME UP WITH WHICH IDENTIFIED WHO’S MOST IMPORTANT TO GET VACCINATED FIRST, THEN WORK DOWN THE CHAIN. &gt;&gt; POLITICALLY, PEOPLE ARE PUTTING PRESSURE ON DECISION-MAKERS AND INFLUENCING THAT. OVER THE PAST MONTH, THERE HAS BEEN CONSTANT JUMPING OF TIERS, WHERE SOMETIMES IT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE. &gt;&gt; AS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC WEARS ON, THE SOLANO COUNTY HEALTH OFFICER SAYS RELIEF IS ROLLING OUT, BUT HE ASKS PEOPLE TO STILL DO THEIR PART. &gt;&gt; I UNDERSTAND, WE ARE MORE THAN ONE YEAR INTO SOCIAL DISTANCING, AND THE IMPACT OF THIS DISEASE ON OUR LIVES. AND IT IS REALLY, REALLY DIFFICULT TO KEEP DOING THAT. BUT THERE IS LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL. AND IF WE CAN’T CONTINUE TO BE DILIGENT AND CAREFUL FOR A FEW MORE MONTHS AS A COMMUNITY, WE WILL HAVE EMERGED ON THE OTHER END OF THAT, WITH A HIGHLY VACCINATED POPULATION. &gt;&gt; BRITTANY JOHNSON, KCRA 3 NEWS. LISA: AND WE JUST HEARD FROM CALIFORNIA’S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH A FEW MINUTES AGO. IN A STATEMENT IT SAID QUOTE COUNTIES ARE GIVEN THE FREEDOM TO GIVE COUNTY PRIORITIES. VACCINE SUPPLY IS LIMITED IN EVERY COUNTY IN EVERY STATE IN EVERY COUNTRY. WE LOOK FORWARD TO COLLABORATING WITH SOLANO COUNTY TO EQUITABLY AND EFFICIENTLY DISTRIBUTE VACCINES. WITH MANY OF THE STATE HOSPITALS FULL, THE STATE PRIORITIZEDAdvertisementHealth officials urge CA politicians to stop making 'false promises' with COVID-19 vaccine distributionOne of the biggest concerns KCRA 3 keeps hearing from Californians is in relation to the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine.From the health care perspective, the current speed that vaccination doses are being administered is to be expected. "We in local public health are realistic," said Dr. Bela Matyas, Health Officer for Solano County. "We know what it takes to put on mass vaccination campaigns and how to deal with this."Dr. Matyas says part of the problem is that some California politicians are creating unrealistic timelines."The expectation is, in many ways, very naive," said Dr. Matyas.In an interview with KCRA 3's Brittany Johnson, the health officer said he isn't sure if concerns addressed by healthcare officials are being heard."People who are pushing this effort forward at the political level have a narrative. The narrative is that they want to get vaccine out quickly. They want to be able to end this, this war on this virus, and it's a narrative that resonates with most people," Dr. Matyas said."And so that narrative is already out there and you can't pull it back because it's already out there. Pointing out that that it's unrealistic has mostly resulted in people saying, 'well, you're just making excuses.' Well, no, we're giving explanations. The truth is what the truth is. Have we tried to temper those expectations? Of course, we have, because, you know, we're trying to keep it as real as we can for people. But at the same time, this is a good problem to have. The fact that people are frustrated at the pace of distribution means people want to be vaccinated," he said.Dr. Matyas says everyone needs to understand that there's only so much vaccine from Pfizer and Moderna to go around."You have to remember that they're supplying the entire world with vaccine," Dr. Matya explained. "Obviously we want more, we asked for more," he added. "But it's not something that we can just go and do. It's you know, it's not there, it's not there."Last week, when Gov. Gavin Newsom announced people 65 and older could get vaccinated, Dr. Matyas says it sent health care agencies scrambling. He told KCRA 3 that Newsom promised Californians something some health departments aren't able to deliver. "The governor and the state health officer both made a promise that they can't keep. There isn't enough vaccine for us to be doing 65 and over right now," he said.According to Matyas, California needs consistency and said the state should stick to the set of tiers it originally came up with, which identified who's most important to get vaccinated first and then work down the chain."Politically, people are putting a lot of pressure on decision-makers, and they're influencing that. Over the past month, there's been constant jumping of tiers by groups of people where sometimes it doesn't even make sense why they would jump a tier," he said.As the COVID-19 pandemic wears on, the Solano County Health Officer says relief is rolling out, but he asks people to still do their part."I understand we're more than a year into social distancing and the impact of this disease on our lives. It's really, really difficult to keep doing that but there is light at the end of the tunnel. If we can continue to be diligent and careful for a few more months as a community, we will have emerged on the other end of that with a highly vaccinated population."In a statement to KCRA 3, the California Department of Public Health said in response:“Counties are given the freedom to make decisions that reflect that counties’ priorities. Vaccine supply is limited in every county, in every state, in every country. We look forward to collaborating with Solano County to equitably and efficiently distribute vaccines. With many of the state's hospitals full, the state prioritized individuals 65 and older to help reduce the strain on the healthcare system."One of the biggest concerns KCRA 3 keeps hearing from Californians is in relation to the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine.From the health care perspective, the current speed that vaccination doses are being administered is to be expected.Advertisement"We in local public health are realistic," said Dr. Bela Matyas, Health Officer for Solano County. "We know what it takes to put on mass vaccination campaigns and how to deal with this."Dr. Matyas says part of the problem is that some California politicians are creating unrealistic timelines."The expectation is, in many ways, very naive," said Dr. Matyas.In an interview with KCRA 3's Brittany Johnson, the health officer said he isn't sure if concerns addressed by healthcare officials are being heard."People who are pushing this effort forward at the political level have a narrative. The narrative is that they want to get vaccine out quickly. They want to be able to end this, this war on this virus, and it's a narrative that resonates with most people," Dr. Matyas said."And so that narrative is already out there and you can't pull it back because it's already out there. Pointing out that that it's unrealistic has mostly resulted in people saying, 'well, you're just making excuses.' Well, no, we're giving explanations. The truth is what the truth is. Have we tried to temper those expectations? Of course, we have, because, you know, we're trying to keep it as real as we can for people. But at the same time, this is a good problem to have. The fact that people are frustrated at the pace of distribution means people want to be vaccinated," he said.Dr. Matyas says everyone needs to understand that there's only so much vaccine from Pfizer and Moderna to go around."You have to remember that they're supplying the entire world with vaccine," Dr. Matya explained. "Obviously we want more, we asked for more," he added. "But it's not something that we can just go and do. It's you know, it's not there, it's not there."Last week, when Gov. Gavin Newsom announced people 65 and older could get vaccinated, Dr. Matyas says it sent health care agencies scrambling. He told KCRA 3 that Newsom promised Californians something some health departments aren't able to deliver. "The governor and the state health officer both made a promise that they can't keep. There isn't enough vaccine for us to be doing 65 and over right now," he said.According to Matyas, California needs consistency and said the state should stick to the set of tiers it originally came up with, which identified who's most important to get vaccinated first and then work down the chain."Politically, people are putting a lot of pressure on decision-makers, and they're influencing that. Over the past month, there's been constant jumping of tiers by groups of people where sometimes it doesn't even make sense why they would jump a tier," he said.As the COVID-19 pandemic wears on, the Solano County Health Officer says relief is rolling out, but he asks people to still do their part."I understand we're more than a year into social distancing and the impact of this disease on our lives. It's really, really difficult to keep doing that but there is light at the end of the tunnel. If we can continue to be diligent and careful for a few more months as a community, we will have emerged on the other end of that with a highly vaccinated population."In a statement to KCRA 3, the California Department of Public Health said in response:“Counties are given the freedom to make decisions that reflect that counties’ priorities. Vaccine supply is limited in every county, in every state, in every country. We look forward to collaborating with Solano County to equitably and efficiently distribute vaccines. With many of the state's hospitals full, the state prioritized individuals 65 and older to help reduce the strain on the healthcare system."Loading more articles...

AdvertisementHealth officials urge CA politicians to stop making 'false promises' with COVID-19 vaccine distributionHide TranscriptShow Transcript&gt;&gt; TIME AND TIME AGAIN, WE HEAR FROM CALIFORNIANS. ONE OF THEIR BIGGEST CONCERNS, COVID-19 VACCINE DISTRIBUTION. FROM THE HEALTH CARE PERSPECTIVE THIS SPEED IS TO BE EXPECTED. ,&gt;&gt; WE IN LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH ARE REALISTIC. WE KNOW WHAT IT TAKES TO PUT ON MASS VACCINATION CAMPAIGNS. &gt;&gt; SOLANO COUNTY HEALTH OFFICER DR. BELA MATYAS SAYS PART OF THE PROBLEM SOME OF CALIFORNIA’S , POLITICIANS ARE CREATING UNREALISTIC TIMELINES. &gt;&gt;...

Health officials urge CA politicians to stop making 'false promises' with COVID-19 vaccine distribution

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