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COVID-19 Update Copyrig hted March 1, 2021 City of Dubuque Presentation(s) # 1. City Council Meeting ITEM TITLE: COVID-19 Update SUM MARY: Mary Rose Corrigan, Public Health Specialist for the City of Dubuque, will provide an update on the COVI D-19 pandemic and response activities. SUGGESTED DISPOSITION: https://cityofdubuque-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mcorriga_cityofdubuque_org/Documents/Coronavirus/COVID presentations/Covid PP city council/2021.3.1 City Council update.docx TO: Mike Van Milligen, City Manager FROM: Mary Rose Corrigan, Public Health Specialist SUBJECT: COVID-19 City Council Work Session update DATE: March 1, 2021 BACKGROUND INFORMATION The Dubuque County Public Health Incident Management (IMT) team consisting of City of Dubuque Health Services Department (Mary Rose Corrigan) Dubuque County Health Department, (Patrice Lambert) VNA (Stacey Killian) and the Dubuque County Emergency Management Agency (Tom Berger), along with both hospitals continue in full activation. The IMT also consists of county Health Department Assistant Director, Samantha Kloft and City of Dubuque Health Services Department Environmental Sanitarians Tim Link and Sydney Moquin. We are coordinating our response efforts in conjunction with the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), and with guidance from CDC via weekly webinars and direct contact with our regional epidemiologist. Randy Gehl serves as the Public Information (PIO) officer for the IMT. CURRENT INFORMATION Current case counts and other related COVID -19 data can be found at www.coronavirus.iowa.gov. The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) announces the launch of Vaccinate.Iowa.gov, a new website that provides information about vaccine priority populations and eligibility, resources available for Iowans age 65 and older, and answers to frequently asked questions about vaccine. The site also hosts a locator tool where users can enter their zip code to find vaccine providers near them. Once a provider is selected, appointment scheduling will be done through the provider’s website or scheduling platform. Information on the site will be updated regularly and site content can be translated into multiple languages. Long Term Care facility status: Dubuque County currently has only one long term care facility (LTC) outbreak, and the facility days without cases is trending to move it out of outbreak status. All LTC facilities have completed vaccination of residents and staff. Health Services Department City Hall Annex 1300 Main Street Dubuque, IA 52001 Office (563) 589-4181 Fax (563) 589-4299 TTY (563) 589-4193 health@cityofdubuque.org www.cityofdubuque.org https://cityofdubuque-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mcorriga_cityofdubuque_org/Documents/Coronavirus/COVID presentations/Covid PP city council/2021.3.1 City Council update.docx Schools The Public Health Incident Management team continues to provide guidance and planning assistance with the county colleges and universities and the K-12 districts. The IMT continues to meet bi-weekly with preK-12 schools and higher education institutions. PreK-12 school teachers and staff are priority group 1b, tier 1. Teachers and staff vaccinations were completed the week of Feb 15th. The VNA continues to work closely with the preK-12 schools on notification of positive cases and starting the contact tracing process as soon as possible. Dubuque County K-12 schools have had 95 positive cases since February 1, 2021. The Dubuque County higher education institution representatives also meet bi-weekly with the IMT. VNA provides similar contact tracing and assistance with the higher education students as they do with preK-12. All school and higher education nurses, and health staff have received vaccinations as part of priority group 1a. Dubuque VNA Continues to operate the public call center for Dubuque County 7 days/week. To date VNA has fielded 37,272 contacts calls/contact from the community, an increase of 1832 since the February 15, 2021 report. VNA staff have administered 1430 vaccines at the POD in the last two weeks. VNA is staffing the Dubuque County Sleeves Up phone line and tracking those individuals who call in needing vaccine appointments. To date, 1032 individuals are on the waiting list. In addition, VNA continues to provide thermometers, food assistance and other human needs referrals. VNA staff continues to reach out to all cases 28 days after testing positive to promote plasma donation for the convalescent plasma treatments being used by hospitals reaching a total of 2004 people on this issue. VNA staff are contacting 2 facilities daily to assist with COVID-19 management. Emergency Management Agency (EMA) Director Tom Berger reports they travel to the regional node in Cedar Rapids to pick up requested PPE. Increased supplies were delivered last week to local healthcare and other institutions needing PPE. The EMA continues to provide logistical and operational support for the POD in conjunction with City Health Services staff. Hospital Capacity Planning The IMT continue to monitor hospital are communicating hospital capacity and capability and communicate with MercyOne and UnityPoint Finley Hospitals. This includes closely monitoring new cases, outbreaks and other data points to assure that hospitals continue to plan for surges while maintaining services for other non-COVID-19 patients. As we continue to meet with hospital management and human resources staff, and plan for an alternate care facility site, the hospitals’ census has remained manageable. The Incident Management Team will continue planning and meeting on the issue, but the hospitals are not experiencing the level of urgency they were in November. The https://cityofdubuque-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mcorriga_cityofdubuque_org/Documents/Coronavirus/COVID presentations/Covid PP city council/2021.3.1 City Council update.docx Dubuque County Board of Health (BOH) executed a no cost agreement/contract for an alternate care facility through March. Public Health Mitigation measure enforcement in restaurants and bars- Governor Reynolds removed all restaurant and bar restrictions and required public health measures effective February 7, 2021 in the most recent state emergency proclamation. Therefore, enforcement has been discontinued. Public Information The IMT, in conjunction with the City Public Information (PIO) Office, continues to provide daily COVID-19 updates along with social media posts and fielding and responding to a variety of news media requests. Signage for the COVID-19 Vaccination POD was developed by City PIO staff. The Public Information Office continues to disseminate vaccine information and updates, including advertising the newly established Sleeves Up phone line in Dubuque county newspapers and on six local radio stations targeting residents age 65 and over. Public Information Officer, Randy Gehl, continues to coordinate and address all media inquiries and various aspects of COVID 19 information for the public. Daily updates have evolved to focus on the most relevant county data for this stage of the pandemic and now include 24-hour changes in vaccination counts for Dubuque County residents. PIO staff will continue to provide messaging that explains the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines and addresses FAQs and misinformation and they will ramp up vaccination promotion as supplies increase and more residents become eligible. COVID- 19 Vaccination The IMT is receiving ever changing and evolving information and vaccination planning tools from the IDPH. Ten local providers have received vaccine allocations and administered vaccine and this is expanding as vaccine supplies increase, The Dubuque Fire Department is now an approved vaccine provider, making a total of 29 vaccine providers with 52 sites (not including long term care facilities that are approved vaccine providers.) The IMT determines the allocations to the approved vaccine providers as we receive weekly vaccine allocations. The IMT further prioritizes within the priority groups on who the vaccine will be administered based on numerous factors. Dubuque County will be receiving a limited allocation of Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) vaccine which was approved over this past weekend. The vaccine is targeted for manufacturing worksites as defined in Phase 1b Tier 2. A community point of distribution (POD) for vaccine providers to administer vaccines is up and running since Feb 10, 2021 at the Kennedy Mall former women’s Younkers store. County residents age 65 and continue to be contacted by their healthcare provider when vaccines are available and vaccination appointments can be scheduled. Healthcare providers are contacting their patients through a variety of channels including telephone, text, email, and letter. Detailed information on how to schedule appointments will be provided by each healthcare provider. Providers have dedicated space at the POD for vaccine administration. Priority groups tied to worksites https://cityofdubuque-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mcorriga_cityofdubuque_org/Documents/Coronavirus/COVID presentations/Covid PP city council/2021.3.1 City Council update.docx and within other subgroups will also receive vaccinations at the POD, or at a provider, depending on the criteria. Individuals without a primary health care provider who are 65 years and older can leave their contact information on the Dubuque County Sleeves Up phone line at 563 587 4950. They will be contacted as vaccines supplies are available. HyVee and MercyOne Pharmacy are receiving vaccine from the Federal Retail Pharmacy Partnership. More Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) are being allocated vaccines directly through the Biden Administration Health Center Program, which was created to assist vaccinating some of the most vulnerable populations which are most often served by health centers. Community Health Care Inc in Davenport is the first Iowa FQHC to receive vaccine through this program. We look forward to Crescent Community Health Center receiving some of these allocations. Planning for Phase 1b tiers 2 through 5 is underway. The IMT is partnering with the Greater Dubuque Development Corporation who is leading an effort in conjunction with the Dubuque Area Chamber of Commerce and the Dyersville Area Chamber of Commerce to gather information from county employers in order to determine if their employees will be eligible for vaccine in Phase 1b tier 2. The information collected will also be used for Phase 1c, which includes other essential workers not identified in phase 1b. Tier 2 is defined as: Frontline essential workers in the food, agricultural, distribution, and manufacturing sectors who work in or live in congregate settings that do not allow for social distancing. To be eligible for group 2, there is a two-part eligibility consideration. First, the person must work in one of the sectors identified. Second, the individual must work OR live in a congregate setting that does not allow for social distancing. Examples: • Migrant farm workers who live in congregate settings where social distancing is difficult or impossible to maintain. • Manufacturing workers whose workstations are within six feet of another worker and there are no alternative solutions for worker safety. • Workers in industries that can social distance should not be vaccinated in Phase 1B; however, providers should use their best judgment in determining eligibility for vaccination. • Restaurant, grocery, and other essential workers are not included in 1B unless they meet another phase requirement Looking ahead • Continue Planning and scheduling for Phase 1b tier 2 vaccinations • Plan for additional community vaccine distribution and administration sites and methods in case they are needed • City Public Information Office staff, in conjunction with the IMT and the joint Information Center (JIC), will be providing messaging and community education for vaccine education and administration along with a multi-media plan for dissemination • Insist on public health mitigation strategies continuing https://cityofdubuque-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mcorriga_cityofdubuque_org/Documents/Coronavirus/COVID presentations/Covid PP city council/2021.3.1 City Council update.docx • Implementing and distributing ever changing guidance from CDC, IDPH and DOE. • Monitor and provide community education on SARS CoV2 variants. DUBUQUE CITY COUNCIL COVID-19 UPDATE City Council update-March 1, 2021 Mary Rose Corrigan, Public Health Specialist INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM (IMT) Mary Rose Corrigan City of Dubuque Stacey Killian VNA Patrice Lambert Dubuque County Health Department Tom Berger Dubuque County EMA Randy Gehl City of Dubuque Public Information Officer EPI CURVE 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 EpiCurve of New COVID-19 Cases in Dubuque County: 3/15/20 to 3/1/21 Hospitalization Count by Age Group Jul 27, 2020 -Feb 28, 2021 126 Hospitalized HOSPITALIZATIONS BY AGE GROUP SINCE JULY 27, 2020 DEATHS BY AGE GROUP Mar 24, 2020 -Feb 28, 2021 by Week TOTAL DEATHS 172 22 65 and Older 64 and Younger ●Mutations ●The greater the spread/replication of the virus, the more mutations ●Variants may spread more easily (B117) ●Mutations can lead to dominant variants ●Vaccine efficacy may decrease Iowa has 10 cases of B117 reported VARIANTS-WHAT MAKES THEM? VACCINE BENEFITS •Keep you from getting COVID-19 •Safer way to help build protection •Tool for stopping the pandemic •Prevent serious illness and death from COVID-19 COVID-19 Vaccine CANNOT Make You Sick VACCINATION PRIORITIES Vaccines Decrease •Deaths •Hospitalizations •Illness severity •Infections & •Transmission •Phase 1b ESSENTIAL IMPORTANT! PHASE 1B –TIER 2 •Frontline essential workers in the food, agricultural, distribution, and manufacturing sectors who work in or live in congregate settings that do not allow for social distancing. 1.Must work in one of the sectors identified 2.Must work OR live in a congregate setting that does not allow for social distancing •Individuals with disabilities living in home settings and their direct care staff Sleeves Up! Phone Line: 563-587-4950 for Residents 65 and Over Without Primary Healthcare Provider VACCINE SIGN UP WHERE WILL I GET MY VACCINE? •Kennedy Mall -Community Point of Distribution (POD) •Clinics/medical providers offices •Hospitals •Pharmacies •Public Health Clinics •Work Sites VACCINATION PROGRESS 4,055 5,737 7,665 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000 7,000 8,000 9,000 10,000 Dubuque County Residents Fully Vaccinated WHEN WILL I GET MY VACCINE? Phase 1b Groups Est Population All Residents Age 65+throughout Tiers 1-5 17,819 Tier 1 Subgroups First Responders 300 PK-12 Staff 2,385 Early/Childhood & Childcare 350+ Total 20,854 Iowa Infectious Disease Advisory Council/ IDPH ●Individuals 64 years of age and younger with medical conditions that are or may be an increased risk of severe illness from COVID- 19. CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices ACIP •Essential workers •Transportation/Logistics •Food service •Housing Construction & Finance •IT •Communications •Energy •Law •Media LOOKING AHEAD PHASE 1C QUESTIONS? March 1, 2021 Dubuque County Public Health Incident Management Team (IMT)