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>>> ALL RIGHT, AFTER NEARLY
THREE MONTHS OF STAYING AT HOME
AND MORE THAN 1.8 MILLION CASES
OF CORONAVIRUS IN THE UNITED
STATES, STATES ARE BEGINNING TO
EASE THEIR RESTRICTIONS IN TIME
FOR SUMMER
>> BUT AS BEACHES AND
RESTAURANTS REOPEN, WHAT’S SAFE
AND WHAT’S NOT
OUR INSTAGRAM PAGE HAS BEEN
FLOODED WITH YOUR QUESTIONS, SO
WE CALLED UP NBC’S MEDICAL
CONTRIBUTOR, DR. NATALIE AZAR,
TO GIVE US SOME ANSWERS.
HI, DR. NATALIE!
>> HEY, DR. NATALIE.
>> HEY, GUYS, HOW ARE YOU?
>> HOW ARE YOU
SO, WE SHOULD START WITH THE
OBVIOUS, WHAT’S BEEN GOING ON
HERE
A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE MADE THE
DECISION TO LEAVE THEIR HOMES.
THEY WANT TO MARCH
WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL BE THE
END RESULT WHEN IT COMES TO
THAT
WHAT WE’RE SEEING ON OUR SCREENS
RIGHT NOW.
AND WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL
HAPPEN TO THE CORONAVIRUS?
>> WELL, LOOK, GUYS, YOU KNOW, I
MEAN, TAKING ASIDE OR LEAVING
ASIDE EVERYTHING, ALL OF THE
EMOTIONS AND POLITICS ATTACHED
AND EVERYTHING, IF WE JUST GO
BACK TO THE BASICS, WHAT WE’VE
KNOWN ABOUT THIS VIRUS IS THAT
IT REALLY DOES LIKE TO CIRCULATE
AND WILL BE TRANSMITTED IN BIG,
CROWDED AREAS.
I ALWAYS START WITH, YOU KNOW,
IF YOU’RE AN INDIVIDUAL THINKING
ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT YOU’RE
GOING TO GO OUT INTO A CROWD,
FOR EXAMPLE, YOU ALWAYS THINK
ABOUT YOUR OWN RISK FACTORS.
YOU ALSO THINK ABOUT YOUR OWN
RISK TOLERANCE
HOW MUCH ARE YOU WILLING TO PUT
YOURSELF OUT THERE
WILL THERE BE SOME DILUTION OF
THE VIRUS BECAUSE YOU’RE
OUTDOORS AND IN THE AIR?
AND THE ANSWER’S, OF COURSE,
YES.
BUT THIS IS WHERE THE MASKS COME
IN AND THE HAND SANITIZING
BECOMES MORE IMPORTANT AS IT
BECOMES MORE AND MORE DIFFICULT
TO MAINTAIN THAT SIX-FOOT SOCIAL
DISTANCING FROM OTHER
INDIVIDUALS.
WE’VE ALREADY SEEN A LITTLE BIT
OF AN UPTICK IN A COUPLE OF
STATES SINCE LAST WEEK, LAST
MEMORIAL DAY, AND I THINK WE’RE
GOING TO BE WATCHING WITH A
VERY, VERY KEEN EYE IN THE NEXT
WEEK OR TWO TO SEE IF WE SEE
MORE GENERALIZED INCREASE IN
CASES FOLLOWING ALL OF THESE
DEMONSTRATIONS AND LARGE
GATHERINGS, UNFORTUNATELY.
>> OKAY, DR. NATALIE, WE HAVE
QUESTIONS FOR YOU FROM SOME OF
OUR VIEWERS.
OUR FIRST ONE COMES FROM ANITA
FROM SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO
AND SHE ASKS, DO HIGH
TEMPERATURES KILL THE
CORONAVIRUS?
AND HAS THE VIRUS WEAKENED
COMPARED TO TWO MONTHS AGO
>> RIGHT
SO, I THINK THE FIRST QUESTION
I’M GOING TO ANSWER THIS WAY AND
SAY THAT IF WE’RE WORRIED ABOUT
FOOD SUPPLY AND THE MEAT SUPPLY
IN PARTICULAR, IF YOU COOK YOUR
FOODS, THE RECOMMENDED
TEMPERATURES, THAT SHOULD VERY
EFFECTIVELY KILL OR NEUTRALIZE
OR INACTIVATE THE VIRUS.
SO NO CONCERN THERE.
IF WE’RE WORRIED ABOUT HEAT IN
TERMS OF WARMER TEMPERATURE, OF
COURSE THERE’S ALWAYS THE HOPE
THAT THERE WILL BE SOME, YOU
KNOW, MITIGATION OR DAMPENING OF
VIRAL TRANSMISSION IN WARMER
TEMPERATURES, BUT WE CERTAINLY
CAN’T GUARANTEE THAT
TO THE SECOND QUESTION ABOUT
WHETHER OR NOT THE VIRUS HAS
BECOME WEAKER.
SO, THIS COMES OUT OF SOME
RESEARCHERS IN ITALY THAT CLAIM
THAT THE VIRUS THAT THEY’RE
SEEING NOW IS WEAKER THAN THE
ONE FROM A COUPLE OF MONTHS
EARLIER.
A LOT OF EXPERTS HAVE WEIGHED IN
ON THIS AND THEY PRETTY MUCH SAY
THAT RIGHT NOW THERE IS NO
SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST
THAT SOME OF THE MILD MUTATIONS
THAT ARE BEING SEEN ARE LINKED
IN ANY WAY TO A STRONGER OR
WEAKER VIRUS IN TERMS OF ITS
VIRULENCE OR TRANSMISSIBILITY.
SO AT LEAST AT THIS POINT WE’RE
NOT THINKING THAT THAT’STHE
CASE, BUT OF COURSE, THIS IS
SOMETHING THAT EXPERTS ARE
WATCHING VERY, VERY CLOSELY.
>> OKAY.
>> IF IT BECOMES WEAKER, THAT
WOULD BE A GOOD THING.
WE CERTAINLY DON’T WANT IT TO
BECOME MORE VIRULENT.
>> REAL QUICK.
IS IT SAFE TO EAT IN AN OUTDOOR
RESTAURANT, SUE ASKS
>> I THINK THE SIMPLE ANSWER IS
IT’S SAFER TO BE OUTDOORS THAN
INDOORS, FOR REASONS THAT I
STATED
I THINK THAT IN THE TIMES THAT
YOU’RE NOT EATING, YOU CERTAINLY
WANT TO BE WEARING YOUR MASK IF
YOU’RE GOING TO THE RESTROOM,
FOR EXAMPLE.
YOU WOULD ALSO WANT TO SEE THAT
THE RESTAURANT IS COMPLYING WITH
GUIDANCE IN TERMS OF
MASK-WEARING, PERHAPS USING
PLASTIC UTENSILS AND THINGS LIKE
THAT, SO IT BECOMES JUST
INCREDIBLY, YOU KNOW, CONSISTENT
WITH WHAT WE’VE BEEN TALKING
ABOUT, ABOUT HAND HYGIENE AND
THINGS LIKE THAT AND MAINTAINING
THAT DISTANCE IF YOU ARE EATING
OUTDOORS.
>> OKAY, GREAT
LET’S GET TO FRAN’S QUESTION
SHE’S FROM STATEN ISLAND, NEW
YORK
AND SHE SAYS, WHAT DOES IT MEAN
IF ANTIBODY TEST COMES BACK
POSITIVE
DOES IT MEAN I HAVE THE VIRUS
AND I’M IMMUNE
>> I KNOW.
SO, THIS ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY
IS THE HOLY GRAIL OF THIS
PANDEMIC RIGHT NOW
IF YOU TEST POSITIVE, WHAT DOES
THAT MEAN?
THE SHORT ANSWER IS THAT A
POSITIVE ANTIBODY TEST DOES
INDICATE THAT YOU PROBABLY HAD
EXPOSURE TO CORONAVIRUS IN THE
PAST
WHAT WE DON’T KNOW RIGHT NOW AND
WHAT WE PROBABLY WON’T KNOW IS
HOW STRONG THAT ANTIBODY IS,
WHAT KIND OF IMMUNITY IT
CONFERS, AND HOW LONG THAT
LASTS.
A LOT OF NEWS STORIES ABOUT ALL
OF THE DIFFERENT TESTS THAT ARE
OUT THERE.
IS THE TEST JUST SHOWING
POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE
IS IT GIVING YOU A TIGHTER
THERE’S LOTS OF VARIABILITY.
HOW RELIABLE IS THE TEST
IS IT A FALSE POSITIVE
THE SHORT ANSWER IS A POSITIVE
TEST INDICATES EXPOSURE.
IF IT’S A RELIABLE TEST, GREAT
BUT AGAIN, WE DON’T KNOW HOW
STRONG OR FOR HOW LONG THAT
IMMUNITY WILL BE.
>> DR. NATALIE, WE’LL LET YOU