MAYBE
MAYBE YOU
MAYBE YOU WON'T HAVE TO DO THAT ANYMORE THIS SPRING OR MAYBE YOU WILL.
I DON'T KNOW.
WE'LL SEE.
ALL RIGHT.
IF GETTING YOUR COVID VACCINE
WAS ALSO ON YOUR LIST TODAY, BE
SURE TO CHECK THAT YOUR
APPOINTMENT IS NOT CANCELED.
LAST FRIDAY VACCINE
APPOINTMENTS AT BALL ARENA GOT
RESCHEDULED BECAUSE OF ALL
THE SNOW THAT CAUSED ONE OF THE
TENTS IN THE PARKING LOT TO
COLLAPSE.
ALSO SOME CLINICS CLOSED LAST
MONTH DURING THE MARCH BLIZZARD
PROBABLY WILL BE OK TODAY SINCE
THE SUN'S OUT.
BUT CHECK OUT HERE JUST TO MAKE
SURE.
MEANWHILE, COLORADO CONTINUES
ITS PROGRESS IN COVID
VACCINATIONS NOW MORE THAN
TWENTY FIVE PERCENT OF THE
STATE'S ELIGIBLE POPULATION IS
FULLY VACCINATED.
THAT'S JUST SHY OF ONE POINT
FIVE MILLION PEOPLE.
ANOTHER EIGHT HUNDRED SEVENTY
SEVEN THOUSAND COLORADANS.
THAT'S ABOUT 15 PERCENT ARE
WAITING NOW FOR THEIR SECOND
DOSE.
THE NUMBERS ARE GOOD.
THE NUMBERS THAT AREN'T SO GOOD
HOSPITALIZATIONS.
FIVE HUNDRED AND TEN COVID
PATIENTS NOW BEING TREATED IN
HOSPITALS ACROSS THE STATE.
TWO WEEKS AGO THOUGH, THAT
NUMBER WAS THREE HUNDRED AND
FIFTY ONE.
SO IT IS COMING DOWN.
SO AS WE SEE PROGRESS IN SOME
AREAS, MAYBE NOT SO MUCH IN
OTHERS OUR HEALTH EXPERT DR.
PLEYEL COLEY JOINS US THIS
MORNING TO OFFER SOME POSITIVE
REFLECTIONS AND TALK ABOUT WHAT
WE CAN DO IN OUR FIGHT AGAINST
COVID-19.
GOOD MORNING, DR. COLEY.
SO FIRST HI GARY.
GOOD MORNING.
GOOD MORNING.
WHAT IS ONE VERY POSITIVE
DEVELOPMENT THAT IS HAPPENING
RIGHT NOW THAT THAT WE SHOULD
FEEL GOOD ABOUT?
GARY, THOSE VACCINE NUMBERS
THAT YOU JUST WENT OVER THIS IS
INCREDIBLY POSITIVE.
SO NATIONALLY WE'RE SEEING THAT
ONE OUT OF EVERY TWO AMERICANS
HAS RECEIVED AT LEAST ONE DOSE
OF THE VACCINE AND ONE OUT
OF EVERY THREE AMERICANS HAS
BEEN FULLY VACCINATED AND
COLORADO IS NOT FAR BEHIND WITH
40 PERCENT OF US PARTIALLY
VACCINATED AND TWENTY FIVE
PERCENT OF US FULLY VACCINATED.
SO EVEN THOUGH WE TALK ABOUT
THAT HERD IMMUNITY THRESHOLD
OF 70 TO 80 FIVE PERCENT REALLY
THERE'S NOTHING MAGICAL ABOUT
THAT IN EVERY STEP WE'RE TAKING
CLOSER TOWARDS GETTING
US CLOSER TOWARDS ENDING
THE PANDEMIC.
SO I'M REALLY HAPPY WITH WHERE
WE ARE.
WE ARE WITH VACCINATIONS RIGHT
NOW.
YEAH, IT HASN'T BEEN LONG AND
PEOPLE HAVE BEEN SHOWING UP.
ALL RIGHT.
WHAT ARE YOUR CONCERNS RIGHT
NOW AS FAR AS COLORADO'S
CONCERNED?
MY CONCERNS ARE ALL THOSE OTHER
NUMBERS THAT YOU WENT OVER
THE FACT THAT ALL THE NUMBERS,
ALL THE METRICS ARE GOING IN
THE WRONG DIRECTION EVEN THOUGH
WE HAVE MADE SO MUCH PROGRESS
WITH THE VACCINATION.
SO CASES ARE UP,
HOSPITALIZATIONS ARE UP.
OUR POSITIVITY IS AT SEVEN
POINT ONE PERCENT AS
OF YESTERDAY.
TESTING IS DOWN.
WE'RE TESTING A LOT LESS AND WE
WERE TESTING A FEW MONTHS AGO
AND OF COURSE AS WE'VE TALKED
ABOUT A LOT OF COUNTIES ARE NOW
OPENING UP LOOSENING
RESTRICTIONS.
PEOPLE ARE STARTING TO GET BACK
TOGETHER.
SO I REALLY WORRY THAT IN
THE SETTING OF VACCINATIONS
WITH ALL THESE THINGS GOING IN
THE WRONG DIRECTION, WE'RE
REALLY CREATING THE PERFECT
STORM FOR US TO CREATE MORE
OF THOSE BREAKTHROUGH MUTANTS
AND FOR US TO REALLY HAVE A
HUGE SETBACK WITH THE VIRUS
AGAIN.
SO SINCE THE STATE TURNED OVER
TO THE COUNTIES,
THE RESTRICTIONS SOME SOME HAVE
LOOSENED THE DIAL.
SOME HAVE EVEN GOTTEN RID OF IT
AND JUST OPENED EVERYTHING BACK
UP.
AND I KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE
NOT SURE WHAT THEY SHOULD DO.
SHOULD WE GO TO A RESTAURANT
THAT'S FULLY OPEN OR NOT?
WHAT WOULD BE YOUR ADVICE TO
COLORADANS?
THIS IS A GREAT QUESTION.
SO THE FIRST PIECE WE NEED TO
KNOW IS THAT TWO THINGS HAVE TO
HAPPEN FOR US TO FEEL
COMFORTABLE GOING OUT AGAIN.
THE FIRST IS MOST OF US HAVE TO
GET VACCINATED.
WE'RE GETTING CLOSER TO THAT.
BUT THE SECOND IS THAT
THE CASES IN THE COMMUNITY HAVE
TO GO DOWN.
SO IF YOU ARE DECIDING WHETHER
OR NOT TO GO OUT TO A
RESTAURANT, THE BIGGEST THING
THAT I LOOK AT WHEN I
IS
IS WHAT
IS WHAT ARE THE CASES DOING IN MY COMMUNITY RIGHT NOW AND ARE
THERE IS THERE A POSSIBILITY
THAT THERE COULD BE MUTANT'S
OVER HERE?
SO I WOULD SAY TO PEOPLE THAT
ARE FULLY VACCINATED REMEMBER
THE VACCINE IS ONLY 90 PERCENT
EFFECTIVE SO THERE'S STILL A 10
PERCENT CHANCE THAT YOU COULD
GET A BREAK THROUGH CASE.
I WOULD ALSO SAY THAT YOUR
BEHAVIOR ISN'T FULLY VACCINATED
PERSON AFFECTS THE TIMELINE
OF THE PANDEMIC AND WHEN IT'S
GOING TO END BECAUSE IF YOU'RE
RUNNING AROUND DOING THINGS
WITHOUT THINKING ABOUT
THE IMPLICATIONS, YOU COULD BE
CAUSING SPREAD OF THE INFECTION
THAT COULD CREATE MORE MUTANTS
AND THAT COULD DELAY
THE TIMELINE FOR THE REST
OF US.
SO KEEP YOUR GUARD UP.
THAT'S MY BIGGEST PIECE
OF ADVICE.
CONTINUE TO ACT AS IF WE WERE
THREE MONTHS AGO WEARING THOSE
MASKS, KEEPING THE DISTANCE AND
REALLY, REALLY BEING EXTREMELY
CAREFUL UNTIL BOTH OF THOSE
THINGS HAPPENED.
WE ALL GET VACCINATED AND
THE CASES GO DOWN IN