►
Description
County of Santa Clara Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody and County of Santa Clara Testing and Vaccine Officer Dr. Marty Fenstersheib provide information about an increase in variant cases of COVID-19 and what this could mean going forward.
Visit the County's website to learn more about COVID-19: https://www.sccgov.org/coronavirus
Recorded April 1, 2021.
The City of Cupertino would like to express its thanks to the County of Santa Clara for the use of their video materials during the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more information regarding the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak in Cupertino, please visit https://www.cupertino.org/coronavirus
B
We
will
begin
the
press
conference
in
english
and
american
sign
language.
We
will
then
transition
into
question
and
answer
section
we
will,
after
that
we
will
move
into
statements
from
the
podium
in
spanish,
chinese,
tagalog
and
vietnamese
without
any
further
ado.
I
welcome
to
the
podium
dr
sarah
cody.
C
Good
morning,
everyone
thank
you
for
being
here,
I'm
sarah
cody,
the
health
officer
and
public
health
director
here
in
santa
clara
county
we're
here
today.
We
want
to
make
an
announcement
and
share
with
the
public
regarding
what
we're
finding
in
terms
of
the
variance
of
concern
the
sars
kovi
to
variance
of
concern.
C
So
all
three
are
actually
all
four
of
the
variants
of
concern
as
they've
been
fi
defined
by
the
centers
for
disease
control
and
prevention
are
here
in
santa
clara
county
we've
had
the
variant
b117
from
the
united
kingdom
circulating
here
force
for
some
time
and
then
the
numbers
reported
to
us
are
beginning
to
pick
up.
This
variant
is
more.
It
spreads
more
easily
it's
more
transmissible
as
compared
to
to
the
the
regular
sarsko
v2
virus.
C
C
C
C
Okay,
I
also
urge
everyone,
please
don't
travel
unless
you
really
have
to
we're
not
quite
there.
Yet
we've
got
to
give
it
just
a
little
bit
more
time.
Some
people
have
to
travel,
go
ahead,
but
wear
your
mask
and
make
sure
that
when
you
come
back
to
the
county
that
you
quarantine
that
you
stay
away
from
others.
D
Thank
you,
dr
cody,
good
morning,
everyone.
So
we
did
get
our
notification
of
what
we
will
be
getting
for
next
week.
What
will
be
arriving
next
week
for
our
vaccines
and
it's
the
total
number,
which
is
not
including
kaiser
or
palo
alto
medical
foundation
is
71,
900
doses.
How
does
this
compare
with
last
week?
D
Last
week
we
got
just
over
58
000
doses,
so
we
did
get
an
increase
this
week,
which
is
good
most
of
it
most
of
the
increase
that
the
state
got
which
again
was
passed
on
to
us
was
for
the
johnson
and
johnson
vaccine.
So
that's
that's
good,
because
that's
the
one
shot
and
done
situation
you
get
one
shot
and
you're
and
you're
finished,
so
we're
happy
to
see
that
we
got
more
vaccine.
D
However,
it's
still
not
enough
we're
doing
about
one-third
of
our
capacity
in
this
county,
so
we
continue
to
need
more
vaccine,
but
we're
happy
to
see
at
least
a
little
bit
of
an
increase
when
we
look
at
our
dashboard
to
see
how
we're
doing
in
this
community
about
a
third
a
little
more
than
a
third
of
residents
that
are
eligible,
those
are
16
and
older
have
been
vaccinated
with
at
least
one
dose.
So
that's
good.
D
D
So
please
everyone
be
patient
and,
as
dr
cody
said,
please
protect
yourself
because
we
do
not
want
the
variance
to
cause
a
problem
with
people
that
have
not
yet
been
vaccinated
or
even
develop
additional
variants,
because
the
more
the
vaccine,
the
more
that
the
the
virus
is
allowed
to
replicate
the
more
chance
there
is
for
additional
mutations
and
additional
variants
so
again
be
patient,
continue
to
check
the
website.
Our
website,
scc,
freevax.org
and
you'll
find
an
appointment.
D
F
C
So
this
is
a
race
between
the
variants
and
the
vaccine,
because
the
more
opportunity
that
the
virus
has
to
circulate
the
more
opportunity
it
has
to
take
on
mutations
and
to
change.
So
we've
already
seen
a
few
variants
of
concern
emerge
and
we.
What
we
want
to
do
is
get
our
population
here
and
really
globally,
to
get
vaccinated
as
quickly
as
possible
to
reduce
that.
C
The
trends
that
we're
seeing
here
in
santa
clara
county
are
somewhat
similar
to
the
trends
in
our
bay
area
region,
and
that
is,
after
really
good
progress
and
and
consistent
declines
in
positivity
rates
and
case
rates.
C
D
Right
so
the
question
is:
why
are
we
opening
up
even
more
when
we
can't
meet
the
needs?
It's
a
good
question
and
we're
taking
the
lead.
Excuse
me
in
a
direction
from
the
state,
so
that
was
not
our
decision.
That
was
the
state's
decision.
D
Excuse
me,
I
didn't.
I
wanted
to
make
a
just
add
one
more
thing,
because
I
mentioned
71
900
doses
of
those
about
49
000
are
first
doses,
so
all
second
doses
were
covered
and
we
have
less
that
we
needed
to
do
for
the
next
week,
so
there
will
be
at
least
49
000
doses
of
vaccine.
That
will
be
opened
up
for
appointments
for
next
week,
which
is
more
than
we've
had
in
the
past,
and
I
wanted
to
make
that
very.
G
C
So
the
question
is:
why
is
it
important
to
wear
a
mask
even
if
you've
been
vaccinated?
The
reason
why
it's
important
to
keep
wearing
a
mask
is
because
not
everyone
has
been
vaccinated.
The
proportion
of
people
who've
been
vaccinated
is
not
near
the
level
of
herd
immunity.
So
that's
number
one
number
two,
while
being
vaccinated,
provides
excellent,
excellent
protection
against
severe
illness
and
death
for
those
who
are
vaccinated.
C
It's
not
a
hundred
percent.
No
vaccine
is
so
wearing
a
mask,
provides
gets
you,
you
know
really
close
to
perfect
protection
and
it
still
protects
others,
while
most
people
who
are
vaccinated
the
evidence
is
that
you're
very
unlikely
to
spread
the
virus.
It's
not
zero,
and,
given
that
these
variants
are
spreading,
we
really
want
to
do
everything
we
can
to
keep
them
from
spreading,
and
if
everyone
continues
to
wear
their
mask,
that
will
really
help
these
variants
from
getting
a
foothold.
E
C
The
question
is:
is
the
vaccine
less
effective
for
these
variants
of
concern?
The
answer
is:
this
is
still
under
study.
There
are
two
types
of
data
that
that
we
are
collectively
looking
at.
One
is
laboratory
data
and
there's
some
evidence
from
laboratory
data
that
some
of
the
vaccines
may
not
perform
as
well
with
these
variants,
but,
more
importantly,
there's
the
what
happens
in
real
real
life
when
there's
people
who
are
vaccinated
in
a
community
where
the
variant
is
circulating,
those
data
are
obviously
fairly
incomplete
but
still
coming
in.
H
C
The
first
question
is:
have
vaccinations,
had
an
impact
on
case
rates,
and
the
second
is
question
is
what
about
booster
shots,
so
we've
seen
significant
declines
in
case
rates
and
positivity
rates
across
the
state,
the
region
and
our
county.
This
has
to
do
with,
I
think,
both
increase
in
natural
immunity.
A
lot
of
people
got
infected
and
we
have
increasing
vaccination
rates.
So
I
think
it's
both
there
is
conversation
around
booster
shots.
Our
best
guess
is
that
czar's
cov2
may
require
you
know
annual
booster
shots,
something
akin
to
getting
your
annual
flu
shot.
G
G
C
C
D
D
So
as
we
get
the
vaccine,
we
are
getting
it
out
at
least
the
data.
Looking
at
our
county
system,
we
are
utilizing
our
our
capacity
99
of
what
the
what
the
vaccine
is
allocated
to
our
community.
So
it's
not
an
issue
here.
It's
an
issue
of
what
we
receive
and
we
have
a
big
population
here
and
we're
also
focusing
on
our
equity
and
our
underserved
population,
so
we're
using
everything
that
we
get
and
as
we
get
more
we'll
increase
it
even
more.
D
I
think
it
has
it's
a
supply
issue
and
so
we're
a
county
of
nearly
two
million
people,
the
largest
in
northern
california,
and
so
the
allocations
are
not
going
as
far
in
our
county
as
others.
But
again
as
as
more
is
received,
we
will
quickly
increase
that
from
from
that
35
on
up
and
getting
everyone.
F
C
The
question
is
around
testing.
We
are
seeing
our
a
little
bit
of
a
slump
in
testing.
The
rates
of
testing
are
drifting
down,
they're
drifting
down
faster
statewide
than
they
are
in
the
county,
but
this
still
is
an
area
of
concern.
So
the
question
is:
when
should
you
be
tested?
Let's
not
forget
that
testing
is
a
really
important
strategy
to
prevent
transmission
of
coven.
C
C
Second,
if
you
are
exposed
to
someone
who
has
covid,
you
need
to
quarantine
immediately
and
then
get
tested
around
day.
Seven
is
what
we
recommend
and
if
you
have
any
symptoms
of
covind
you
should
get
tested.
So
we
still
have
widespread
testing
available.
There's
plenty
of
access.
There
should
be
no
barrier
to
getting
tested,
and
if
anyone
has
questions
you
can
look
on
our
website
sccfreetest.org
and
find
out
where
you
can
get.
C
Unfortunately,
if
we
can't
get
more
vaccine
supply
and
if
we
can't
get
continued
adherence
to
behavior
change
like
masks,
we
do
anticipate
that
we'll
have
another
surge.
I
would
hope
that
it
would
be
a
swell,
not
a
surge.
I
think
vaccines
are
going
to
help,
but
we
need
more
supply,
so
we
can
get
it
out
faster
and
we
need
people
to
just
hold
on
for
a
little
bit
longer.
Keep
wearing
your
mask
delay
your
travel.
C
D
So
do
I
think
the
county
will
reach
its
goal
of
at
least
85
by
august.
I
do
I
do
I'm
optimistic
that
the
production
numbers
are
going
up
and
again
vaccine
will
be
flowing
probably
to
a
lot
of
our
local
pharmacies,
also
directly
from
the
feds
and
to
our
federally
qualified
health
centers.
Also,
so
vaccine
should
be
coming
in
from
a
number
of
places,
and
I
think,
by
the
time
we
reach
the
mid-summer,
we'll
be
we'll
be
where
we
need
to.
F
D
H
D
F
C
The
question
is
around
travel
and
why
people
need
to
hold
off,
so
there
still
is
a
travel
advisory
that
the
state
has
discouraging
non-essential
travel,
discouraging
travel
for
pleasure,
for
example,
discouraging
travel
for
spring
break,
for
example.
The
reason
why
we
discourage
travel
is
that
travel
exposes
people
who
live
in
one
area
go
to.
Another
area
may
pick
up
a
new
variant
or
a
new
strain
and
bring
it
back
and
then
mix
and
things
take
off.
C
I
would
say
that
our
county,
historically,
just
because
of
the
demographic
mix
people
have
family
from
around
the
world.
People
have
work
that
takes
them
many
different
places.
We
tend
to
see
unusual
infectious
diseases
emerge
in
our
county,
so
it
is
really
especially
important
that
we
pay
attention
and
not
travel
right
now.