BY MID NOVEMBER U.S. SURPASSED
THE TOTAL DEATH RATE FOR PEOPLE
BETWEEN 25 AND 44.
JOINING US NOW IS ONE OF THE
RESEARCHERS WHO CONDUCTED THAT
STUDY, JEREMY FAUST A PHYSICIAN
IN
BOSTON.
GOOD EVENING.
>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME GOOD
EVENING TO YOU.
>> WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE
DRAMATIC DEATH TOLL AMONG YOUNG
PEOPLE, PARTICULARLY IN JULY,
WHAT’S THAT ATTRIBUTABLE TO?
>> WELL, CERTAINLY COVID-19 IS
DRIVING THAT CHANGE, IT’S
REMARKABLE. IF YOU LOOK AT DEATH
TRENDS OVER THE LAST 100 YEARS
IT’S ACTUALLY REMARKABLY
CONSTANT.
WE CAN USE HISTORY AND
STRATEGISTIC -- STATISTICAL
TRENDS TO KNOW WHAT THE RIGHT
NUMBER OF DEATH SHOULD BE,
HUMBLING TO SEE THE RATES ARE
CONSTANT WITH A LITTLE WIGGLE
ROOM UNTIL THIS YEAR, SOMETHING
TRULY HISTORIC HAPPENS AND WE
HAVE TO TAKE NOTE OF THAT.
MOST PEOPLE ASSUMED IT WAS ONLY
HAPPENING AMONG OLDER ADULTS BUT
IN FACT HIGH RATE IN THIS AGE
GROUP 25 TO 44, WHICH IS ALMOST
25 PERCENT ABOVE NORMAL OF THE
BASELINE OF ANY GROUP.
>> ONLY THING I CAN THINK WAS
PARTICULARLY DIFFERENT ABOUT
JULY AND JUNE AS WELL IS WE WERE
HAVING PROTESTS ACROSS THE
COUNTRY AFTER THE DEATH OF
GEORGE FLOYD AT THE HANDS OF
FOUR MINNEAPOLIS POLICE OFFICERS
AND A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE TOOK
TO THE STREETS, OFTEN WEARING
MASKS, SOMETIMES SOCIAL
DISTANCING, QUITE OFTEN IN VERY
LARGE CROWDS, MIGHT THAT HAVE
BEEN A VECTOR FOR THE VIRUS THAT
CAUSED ALL THESE DEATHS?
>> IT’S POSSIBLE BUT I TEND TO
THINK IT’S MORE ABOUT THE VIRUS
ITSELF.
THERE’S BEEN STUDIES THAT LOOKED
AT STUDIES WITH MAJOR PROTESTS
AROUND THE GEORGE FLOYD MURDER
AROUND TURNS OUT IN THOSE AREAS
THERE WAS LOWER DEATHS IN THE
WEEKS AFTER AN IT’S PROBABLY
BECAUSE, YES, PEOPLE WERE
CONGREGATING BUT PEOPLE IN THE
WHOLE COMMUNITY SAW THAT
HAPPENING AND SAID IT’S NOT A
SAFE TIME TO GO OUT, SO WHILE
THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN SPREAD IT
IF AMONG THE GROUP OVERALL THE
DEATH RATES WENT DOWN, WHAT
TENDED TO HAPPEN, PEOPLE LET
THEIR GUARD DOWN, AND THE OLDER
POPULATION AFTER THE SPRING
LEARNED THE HARD WAY AND SAW
DECREASE IN DEATHS IN OLDER
GROUPS AND YOUNG PEOPLE GOT THE
MESSAGE THAT WE HAD BEEN PUTTING
OUT THERE THAT THEY WERE
INVINCIBLE BUT BY JULY THE CDC
AND HHS HAD DATA WHICH WE LOOKED
AT AND SHOWED THIS IS A VERY
DANGEROUS
STRATEGY.
GOOD NEWS IS THE INCOMING CDC
DIRECTOR IS COAUTHOR WITH ME ON
THIS PAPER AND SO WE KNOW THE
LEADERSHIP THAT’S TAKING OVER IS
AWARE OF THESE ISSUES.
>> IN YOUR PAPER YOU SAID WE
WOULD
COMPARE HIV CRISIS TO FIGHTING
COVID-19, HOW’S IT GEESKTING
FORWARD ESPECIALLY WITH THE NEW
VACCINES HOPEFULLY YOUNG PEOPLE
WILL DECIDE TO TAKE EVENTUALLY.
>> THE ANSWER IS REALLY IMPORTANT.
IMPORTANT. WHEN THE HRKS -- HIV AIDS CRISIS
WHEN THE HRKS -- HIV AIDS CRISIS
AND OPIOD CRISIS, IS THERE WERE
HUGE DEATHS AND
TREATMENTS CAME ONLINE,
THERAPIES THAT COULD SAVE LIVES.
ONCE PEOPLE KNOW THEY’RE AT RISK
THEY COULD MODIFY THEIR
BEHAVIOR, THAT’S THE POINT OF
THE STUDY TO SAY YOU ARE AT RISK
FOR KIDS EVEN.
AT THE SAME TIME WE KNOW THOSE
GROUPS ARE A LOW PRIORITY WE
NEED ADULTS TO HOLD OUT AND SAY