Consultant helping tech cos grow via strategy & partnerships. Tweet on emerging tech & viral growth. Pro tech & science. Clean indoor air. Make schools safe.
She said, "Yes please! I'm not sick. Just trying to avoid it! Those work better?" I explained that N95s seal better against the face & filter better. Her eyes lit up, she took it & said, "Wow! I didn't know! Thank you so much." Please do better for workers
@CA_DIR
@CAPublicHealth
At the Starbucks drive through today, the barista was wearing a floppy blue. I had an extra packaged 3M Aura with me, so after she handed me our order, I said "I don't know if you're sick or wear your mask all the time like us, but would you like a more protective mask?" /1
Glad the
@AmerAcadPeds
stepped up & asked
@POTUS
to declare emergency "Infants 6 months & younger are getting hospitalized w/ RSV at more than 7x rate observed b4 the Covid-19 pandemic in 2018, according to data from
@CDCgov
." Cc
@PTF_org
@CDCDirector
/1
Will you be issuing updated safety guidance for home gardeners handling compost, given H5N1,
@CDCgov
@USDAFoodSafety
@WHO
? Just happened to glance at the ingredients list on the
@MiracleGro
organic potting soil delivered from
@Costco
today & 😬 🤢.
WHO: Risk of bird flu spreading to humans is ‘enormous concern’
WHO chief scientist voices fears about H5N1 variant that has ‘extraordinarily high’ mortality rate in humans.
Guardian
.
@60Minutes
buried the lead on clean indoor air by putting talk of N95s w/
@linseymarr
into "Overtime": . Healthy buildings reduce CO2 & can curb spread of viruses at distance but N95s are needed to avoid inhaling viruses at conversational range. ⏬1
I called
@CDCgov
to ask for scientific justification for alleged plans to reduce isolation guidance. Agent I spoke to hadn't heard anything about today's reporting & expressed empathy & concern, noting that she has an at risk toddler. WTH is going on over there,
@CDCDirector
?
The last time we saw
@CDCDirector
(here or news indexed on Google) was 12 days ago (Dec 27). This as 'rona 🦠wastewater numbers 📈, indicating we are in the 2nd highest surge yet. This isn't the quality of public health leadership Americans deserve,
@POTUS
@CDCgov
.
#WhereIsMandy
?
A CA public school telling parents that they can't donate air cleaners to their kids' classrooms because it creates an "equity issue" seems like a tacit admission that
#IAQ
is inadequate. Why shouldn't we be allowed to improve IAQ,
@CADeptEd
@TonyThurmond
@CAgovernor
@CA_DIR
? /1
"Highest levels of COVID infections seen in Bay Area wastewater surveys since they began" Stay safe out there, friends. Speaking of which,
#WhereIsMandy
@CDCDirector
?
I expect Biobot to update U.S.
#wastewater
levels tomorrow. If so, I'll post a couple interim updates on (a)
#schools
and (b) some very light
#international
comparisons.
These will be included in the Monday reports for several weeks. Of late, I've mostly emphasized the
Last week, I sent a letter to
@CAPublicHealth
expressing concerns & asking❓s about CA's reduction in isolation to 24 hrs for asymptomatic cases (see 🧵below). Yesterday, I got an unexpected (but welcomed) call from a senior official at CDPH
🧵⏩
Why is the German Health Minister
@Karl_Lauterbach
being more transparent & forthcoming than
@CDCDirector
@CDCgov
? In December 2023, he's wisely urging 😷, 💉, testing, avoiding indoor xmas parties & working from home when able. /1
COVID isn't a cold. It causes brain damage, immune dysregulation, circulatory problems,
#LongCovid
& more in an alarming # of people, including kids. It also caused Lewy Bodies (dementia) in a study of young Macaques. We won't know if it'll do this in human kids for a while. /2
I finally reached
@CAPublicHealth
by phone: 916-558-1700. "Lorna" at CDPH asked those who are concerned by the reduced isolation policy for SARS2 (< than
@who
&
@cdc
) to email: cdph.internetadmin
@cdph
.ca.gov. She'll forward to emails to
@CAPublicHealth
ID team & ensure replies.
Press: Ask
@CDCDirector
to clarify her long term hypothesis on cumulative risk of C-19, esp as it relates to kids. What % of the public does
@CDCgov
expect to end up w/ Long Covid & 🧠 damage (2 pt IQ drop‼️) w/ each re-infection?
@zalaly
@EricTopol
I suspect I buried the lead on this. 🤷
Today (Oct 25) is the "low tide" for the remainder of the year.
U.S. C0VID transmission is likely to increase every day going forward through the rest of 2023. Transmission will be 50% higher within just 4 weeks.
Noting that the rate of hospitalization w/ RSV for babies <6mo is 7x higher than before,
@POTUS
@CDCDirector
must prioritize finding out: 1) Did RSV become more severe, or 2) Do prior COVID infections harm kids' immune systems, making RSV, flu & other illness worse?
@PTF_org
/2
I just followed up w/
@CAPublicHealth
by 📞. They got a lot of complaints on this, which were fwded to the ID dept. I was assured they'll reply promptly. If you haven't yet, write & call them &
@OSHA_DOL
@CAgovernor
to share why + asymptomatic people shouldn't be at school/ work.
I finally reached
@CAPublicHealth
by phone: 916-558-1700. "Lorna" at CDPH asked those who are concerned by the reduced isolation policy for SARS2 (< than
@who
&
@cdc
) to email: cdph.internetadmin
@cdph
.ca.gov. She'll forward to emails to
@CAPublicHealth
ID team & ensure replies.
On Jan 16, I phoned
@CAPublicHealth
& asked to speak with someone about the "COVID-19 Disease Control & Prevention Memo" & "COVID-19 Isolation Guidance" of Jan 9. The rep asked me to email my questions & concerns & promised to escalate them to the ID team, which I did. /1
If, like me, you believe this new 24 hr isolation policy (< than
@cdc
&
@who
), apparently modeled after the UK & parts of Canada & Europe is both reckless & an abdication of responsibility, call & write CDPH
@CAgovernor
@CA_DIR
& your reps on repeat. Push back now or pay later.
Why are our public health officials letting
#SARSCoV2
rip with no mitigation? Kids can't practice personal responsibility... That's up to their beleaguered parents & schools who are just going to do what
@CADeptEd
@CDCgov
@HHSGov
@Cal_HHS
tells them to. /3
"You can't use 19th century symptomatic tracking of 🦠 when we have 21st c. tech... We were late to really talking about asymptomatic spread & we were very late in understanding the aerosol nature of this virus which still lives with us today." -
@realDrBirx
w/
@ChrisCuomo
/1
The ongoing winter surge will cause millions of
#LongCovid
cases in the U.S.
Dr. Birx warns of "the aerosol nature of the virus," that "it will never be flu," & "to be cavalier about getting repetitive Covid infections is really a huge mistake."
h/t
@inducekarmaaa
We need to do better as a society to keep each other safe and healthy, and public health officials need to be held accountable & they need to push mucosal vaccines forward. Our short and long term economy and the long term health of our kids and families depends on it. /End
@MamaWeasleyy
Let me put this in terms everyone can understand: When you buy a new mobile phone, a better model is always JUST around the corner. If you need a new phone, you buy one now and upgrade later. You don't sit & wait 2 months to make a phone call.
@FDA
@DrCaliff_FDA
@ImmunizeUnder5s
I wish I could tell you the call was reassuring. It wasn't. While I appreciated the call, I was left with the impression that pushing "urgency of normal" is more important than preventing the spread of COVID & other pathogens & protecting long term health 🧵⏩
Last yr, I called a manufacturer of school CO2 monitors to ask how hard it'd be for schools/
@CADeptEd
to show classroom CO2 levels on a public website. There are robust APIs, so it'd be easy. Why don't we have a public CO2 dashboard for all schools that got CalSHAPE $?🧵⏬
Want to survive the next 20+ years in good health? Surround yourself with with people who continue to champion what is scientifically & socially responsible, as opposed to what is socially convenient.
Surely behavior like this does the opposite of what
@CDCDirector
promised when she said she was going to focus on rebuilding trust in
@CDCgov
. The
#LongCovid
scientists are not happy, and the rest of us shouldn't be either. We need a functional
@CDCgov
not a disingenuous one.
I was left with the impression that CDPH lacks the appetite to adequately educate the public about the mechanisms of covid, risks of repeat infection & how to properly ventilate & clean the air. It appears they believe people are okay with a "new normal" of spreading disease.🧵⏩
@PeteUK7
@UKHSA
Meanwhile in the US,
@60Minutes
is finally talking about the importance of cleaning indoor air & after 3+ years & multiple letters, a legislative aide from my CA Senator's office reached to discuss legislating clean indoor air. Tide could be turning (albeit slowly)?🤞
New research from
@zalaly
highlights a quandary for all of us, especially parents of kids in schools that refuse to sufficiently mitigate infection improve indoor air quality. Is being "in person" really worth the long term risk in places that don't deliver excellent IAQ? /1
The big revelation here is that the risk persists for 3 years in several organ systems (e.g. GI and nervous system) even 3 years after a mild infection.
Healthcare professionals are taught that acute infections as short-term events with health effects that manifest around the
Hey
@CAPublicHealth
- just noticed your new "COVID-19 Disease Control & Prevention Memo and COVID-19 Isolation Guidance" are now both offline. Change your mind?
@LieslMcconchie
@ashishkjha
Same. Would you also please point us to data that says the "Incidence of Long Covid is way down"? Because 2-3 pt IQ drop with each (re)infection doesn't sound good for public health:
@CDCDirector
How can we read it when it's behind a pay wall. Your job is paid for by the public. Articles you write about public health & promote in your role as a public official should be free to the public. Also, in team sports, every member wears effective personal protective equipment.
@thehill
@TheHillOpinion
What's missing from this article is how dangerous Mpox is for little kids, the vaccine for Mpox hasn't been formally tested or approved for use in kids and how impractical it will be for any working family to quarantine themselves for the requisite 4+ weeks. People will need $.
This is nauseating to anyone paying attention & still following the science.
@POTUS
@WHCOS
@CDCDirector
@SecBecerra
@WhiteHouse
are failing Americans w/ anti-science policies & the obfuscation of the expected scale & severity of disabling long-term sequelae. We deserve better.
When it was announced that
@CDCgov
was likely changing the Covid guidance, I wrote to the
@WhiteHouse
because
#CovidIsntOver
and i wanted them to hear my voice.
I just received this obnoxious and antifactual response. Let me break down some of the issues: 🧵
COVID has a ⏫ impact than flu & RSV, but some downplay concerns re: long term sequelae (📈risks of 🧠🫀& vascular damage + immune problems, fertility problems, Parkinson-like sympt, Lewy bodies, etc.) b/c we now know other illnesses also have long term sequelae (ex EBV)🧵 ⏩
How many groups have to show that SARS-Cov-2 infects the brain, replicates inside neurons, and disrupts synapses? How long will scientists and patients continue to be ignored?
#neuroCovid
@CAPublicHealth
I then got a
@CAPublicHealth
survey asking how my experience was w/ CDPH Policy & Guidance Team.🙄You sent me a form email in reply to a thoughtful, well cited 6 page letter & sent me to a web form that didn't allow cut/paste. I think you know that's not a good experience. /4
Once again, science shows that DIY air cleaners are both inexpensive & effective tools in schools. All you need to do is make sure you have enough units for the size of the room, plug them in, keep them on, and ideally open some windows. 🪄🧙
New research paper : DIY air cleaners can be used as an inexpensive, yet effective, air pollution control technology in schools. A study was carried out in 53 classrooms, 5 schools, 2 🇺🇸 states over a six-month period.
For those that were comforted by
@ashishkjha
&
@Bob_Wachter
's words in
@TIME
, don't be. They're 53 & 67 & not playing the long game. They won't be there to repair the lives ruined by
#LongCovid
#PACS
. Protect yourself & your kids. Demand clean air legislation & next gen vax.
@CADeptEd
@TonyThurmond
@CAgovernor
@CA_DIR
I've been told I can't donate air filters to a special ed class because doing so creates an "equity issue" for other kids. Yet COVID-19 is more common in kids w/ intellectual disabilities, who are are 9x > likely to be hospitalized:
@CAPublicHealth
/2
PS: I did ask the official if they would be willing to reply to my letter in writing. They are not, but someone on their team *might* be willing. I'll follow up next week.
I was disappointed by what I perceived as a 'nothing-to-worry-about' tone that tied new guidance to lagging indicators like ⚰️, 🏥 &
#longcovid
rates, all of which I was assured are trending down. & yet JN.1 is a unique variant & was at its peak when new guidance was released🧵⏩
Like many parents of babies too young to mask, I've been looking at ways to improve air quality on the go. I recently tried three small, battery operated HEPA filters, all available on Amazon. This is a quick thread on what I found.
(1)
@jmcrookston
For now it's, "Come back to the office! Enjoy your colleagues & the free amenities you've been missing for the last 2 years." The infection stories I've heard from friends at tech companies (ones that absolutely need cognitively healthy employees over the long run) are 🤯.
@lisawhelan
@CAPublicHealth
What a total and complete international embarassment!
Especially, when the Governor and CDPH were TOLD early in the epidemic how to PREVENT this outcome!
Just last week in an interview with
@ChrisCuomo
,
@realDrBirx
said pointed out the mistake of ignoring asymptomatic spread, and yet this is exactly what
@CAPublicHealth
's new policy of requiring just 24 hours of asymptomatic isolation does. /2
"You can't use 19th century symptomatic tracking of 🦠 when we have 21st c. tech... We were late to really talking about asymptomatic spread & we were very late in understanding the aerosol nature of this virus which still lives with us today." -
@realDrBirx
w/
@ChrisCuomo
/1
@AmerAcadPeds
We need a stronger statement ie: Covid is airborne & highly contagious. Without high filtration masks & vaccines for <5s, public transport & school aren't safe for kids. AAP demands
#ProtectionOverPolitics
.
@DrCaliff_FDA
@FDA
must expedite review of
@moderna_tx
. June is too late!
It’s out! Our new state-of-the-science review of MASKS/RESPIRATORS in reducing transmission of respiratory infections. 13 authors (for our disciplines, see posts 3-4). 38000 words. 413 references. One conclusion: these devices work. For detail, read on. 1/
I followed-up on Jan 17 to make sure
@CAPublicHealth
got my email & forwarded it as promised. They did & I was promised a timely reply. 4 days later, I've not heard back, so I guessed Dr. Tomas Aragon's (head of CDPH) address & emailed him this am. /2
Dr. Jha you are welcome to join us for lunch in the school cafeteria as well. I measured CO2 on Monday, peaked at over 2,000 ppm. Kids coughing everywhere. School refuses HEPA filtration and doesn’t allow teachers to open windows. I recommend bringing a packed lunch though.
Amidst 2nd largest Covid surge, >2 MILLION cases/day, ~1:23 INFECTIOUS*, why is
@CDCDirector
silent? Is she incapacitated? After
@SecDef
MIA debacle, the public deserves to know why the leader overseeing disease control & prevention is MIA.
@SecBecerra
? *per
@michael_hoerger
/1
3) ...MRI scans at baseline and 6-month follow-up. Key findings:
- 75.5% of participants showed cognitive impairments, primarily in attention/executive function and verbal memory.
- Mental health issues like apathy (64%), anxiety (57%), and severe fatigue (35%) were prevalent.
@CAPublicHealth
@zalaly
@CA_EDD
"Long Covid has wide & deep ramifications on the labor market & the economy – some estimates suggest that the toll of Long Covid on the U.S. economy is $3.7 trillion – on par with the 2008 recession."
@zalaly
full testimony: 🧵⏩
I often think back to the moment I witnessed a California Dept of Public Health employee boogie out of a school classroom once they saw CO2 levels had risen over 1200ppm.
Do kids have that right? Nope!
They are being forced indoors with infectious Covid+ kids for 7 hrs a day.
@DrEricDing
@CDCgov
@CDCDirector
Holy mother of Mandy! I called
@CDCgov
to ask why they're no longer tracking & reporting excess deaths & the rep didn't know what an "excess death" was. She kept saying "access death". I had to spell "excess" several times. My query was escalated.🤞 CDC gives a thoughtful reply.
@ChrisCuomo
@realDrBirx
@CAPublicHealth
Don't pretend this policy is safe because 'masks' are advised. There is NO STANDARD of respiratory care or respirator fit testing protocol for kids in the US & no IAQ requirement for CA schools. The way to prevent spread is 2 way fit tested N95 + IAQ. /3
@CNN
Yes!
@NIOSH
doesn't have an N95 or P100 standard for kids because it's all about "occupational health and safety". Nevermind the BSL 3 pathogen running wild at schools, the intense wildfire smoke & kids now doing dangerous jobs needing respiratory protection many states. 🤔
@CADeptEd
@TonyThurmond
@CAgovernor
@CA_DIR
@CAPublicHealth
Regardless of disability, the research shows that the risk of Long Covid/ PASC is considerable & grows dramatically with each re-infection, so we should be doing everything we can to clean the air in congregate settings where illness spreads like school /3
@CAPublicHealth
I immediately got a form reply that neither answered nor addressed any of my ?s/concerns. Instead it pointed me to the FAQ & suggested if I didn't see my questions answered there, I should fill out this form: , which I did. /3
Brave of
@people
to cover
@zalaly
's C19 brain research, given how much of its audience likely reads "for fun" & in higher risk settings (planes/airports, crowded resorts & waiting rooms). I wonder how many will 🤢🤯😬 & question
@CDCgov
@CDCDirector
@POTUS
's decision making...
Thanks to
@people
magazine for covering my piece on the Covid-19 and brain health
COVID-19 poses a serious risk to brain health, even in mild cases, and the effects are now being revealed at the population level
Link here:
@michael_hoerger
Come on, Mike! Give us a hint! 🤣 Is it:
A) a non-pharmaceutical mitigation product
B) peer reviewed research that will convince elected officials to resume caring
C) a pharmaceutical product
D) A surveillance win
E) Something else that I swear is amazing but I'm not talking
With this week's report in
@NEJM
showing "cognitive deficit — commensurate w/ a 3-point loss in IQ" + "loss in IQ of nearly 2 points" even in ppl w/ "mild Covid-19 w/ resolved symptoms", it seems unwise for
@CDCgov
@CAPublicHealth
policy to "meet people where they are" ⏬🧵
"
#COVID
is still a global health threat, and it's causing far too much burden when we can prevent it.
Five, ten, years from now, what are we going to see in terms of cardiac impairment, of pulmonary impairment of neurologic impairment? We don't know."
-
@mvankerkhove
of
@who
@CDCgov
@NASEM_Health
We haven't seen a photo edited this badly since
@KensingtonRoyal
's Mother's day debacle.
@CDCDirector
@NIOSH
- Could you have a quick word? That's an edited KN95, not an N95, & it's upside down. This doesn't inspire public trust or confidence in your ability to control disease.
Study highlights detrimental impact of Covid on students' intellectual ability & performance, underscores importance of preventing infection among young populations to safeguard their educational outcomes.
RQ: impact of Covid on undergrad academic
@CAPublicHealth
Wait, what? As
@zalaly
& others testified in yesterday's
#LongCovid
Senate hearing, everyone who catches SARS2 is at substantial risk for serious illness... It's called
#LongCovid
, & there is no cure or treatment. The best policy is to prevent Covid. 🧵⏩
"The burden of disease and disability from Long COVID is on par with the burden of cancer and heart disease.
The best way to prevent Long COVID is to prevent COVID in the first place. There is no Long COVID without COVID."
Brilliant testimony by
@zalaly
!
#HELPLongCovid
Good to see
@moderna_tx
acknowledge data that once again demonstrates we need a multi-pronged approach to mitigation to prevent
#PASC
. Vaccines help but don't stop
#LongCovid
. This is consistent with what Moderna's CEO has been saying since 2020🧵⏩
Your risk of
#LongCOVID
rises with each additional infection.
A recent study has shown that by their third COVID infection, patients have a 40% chance of developing Long COVID symptoms.
Learn more about the threat of Long COVID:
Great explanation from
@ukhadds
on the importance of keeping CO2 low. 800ppm CO2 & higher perpetuates infection 2 different ways: 1- It means ventilation isn't ideal & 2: virus takes longer to deactivate. This is important for schools. Those in the know, keep CO2 low.
I've upoladed a video explainer for our latest paper exploring how CO2 increases how long SARS-CoV-2 remains infectious in the air. Give it a watch (it's about 5 minutes)! And if you like it, share it!
If you have any questions, I'd be glad to answer them!