>>CORLEY PEEL: PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN HAS TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID-19 FOR A SECOND TIME
THIS MONTH. AND THIS COMES
ROUGHLY 3 DAYS AFTER HE WAS
CLEARED TO EXIT ISOLATION. THE
WHITE HOUSE IS CALLING IT A
REBOUND COVID POSITIVITY. AND
JOINING US NOW TO TALK ABOUT
THE REEMERGENCE OF COVID-19 IS
EPIDEMIOLOGIST DOCTOR JONATHAN
KANTOR, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR
JOINING US THIS MORNING. WELL,
FIRST OFF, CAN YOU JUST
EXPLAIN WHAT REBOUND COVID IS?
SURE. YOU KNOW, REBOUND COVID
IS BASICALLY A PHENOMENA. WE
CAN SEE WHEN PEOPLE EITHER
HAVE COVID OR YOU KNOW, THEY
HAVE BEEN EXPOSED TO COVID MAY
HAVE BEEN ILL.
>> AND THEY FEEL BETTER IF
THEY’RE DOING WELL. THEY FEEL
LIKE, YOU KNOW WHAT, I’M
GETTING AWAY FROM THIS. I WAS
TRUE OF PAXLOVID OR EVEN I
WASN’T TOO WITH PAXLOVID BUT
THEY THINK THEY’RE DOING
BETTER. THEY EVEN TEST CLEAR.
SO THEY’RE TESTING IS
NEGATIVE.
>> BUT THEN A FEW DAYS LATER,
DEPENDING ON YOU KNOW WHO
WE’RE SEEING THIS HAPPEN IN IT
ENDS UP KIND OF CLEARING UP
AND IT ENDS UP COMING BACK. SO
THEY MAY GET SYMPTOMS OR THEY
MAY JUST TEST POSITIVE AGAIN.
SO THE REBOUND IS BASICALLY IT
DIDN’T HAVE COVID FOR A WHILE.
YOU WERE TESTING POSITIVE. YOU
FELT LIKE YOUR FINE. BUT HEY,
WAIT A SECOND. THIS INFECTION
IS BACK. IT’S NOT A NEW
INFECTION. IT’S REALLY JUST
THAT OLD INFECTION. THAT WAS
LATE IN FOR A LITTLE WHILE
COMING CASE. THAT’S IMPORTANT
TO KNOW. SO WHEN IT COMES BACK
AND YOU KNOW, A FEW DAYS YOU
WERE AT WITHOUT SYMPTOMS NIGHT
THAT YOUR SYMPTOMS AGAIN.
>> ARE YOU STILL CONTAGIOUS?
IF IT COMES BACK OFF TO
ISOLATE?
>> YEAH. SO YOU KNOW, THAT’S
THAT’S A CRITICAL QUESTION. AS
YOU KNOW, YOU’VE HAD COVID
YOU’VE BEEN TREATED. YOU’VE
BEEN ON PAXLOVID, FOR
PRESIDENT BIDEN, IF YOU ARE
TESTING POSITIVE WITH AN
ANTIGEN TEST, THE ASSUMPTION
IS THAT YOU ARE INDEED
CONTAGIOUS. SO THAT IS REALLY
IMPORTANT TO KEEP IN MIND. YOU
CAN’T THINK, LISTEN, I TESTED
NEGATIVE. SO I’M NEVER GOING
TO BE INFECTIOUS. AGAIN, IT’S
IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT IF YOU
GET SYMPTOMS AGAIN AFTERWARDS
OR EVEN IF YOU’RE TESTING
POSITIVE WITH AN ANTIGEN TEST,
IN ALL LIKELIHOOD, YOU DO HAVE
THE POTENTIAL TO SPREAD COVID
TO OTHERS. AND HOW COMMON IS,
YOU KNOW, GETTING COVID AGAIN
AFTER JUST A FEW DAYS OF
TESTING NEGATIVE. AND THAT’S
THE MILLION DOLLAR QUESTION.
YOU KNOW, A NUMBER OF STATES
HAVE BEEN DONE. THE INITIAL
STUDY SUGGESTED IT WAS VERY
LOW. IT WAS ONE OR 2%. A MORE
RECENT STUDY THAT’S OUT REALLY
IN A PREPRINT. SO IT HASN’T
BEEN PEER REVIEWED YET, BUT
USE A LARGE NUMBER OF PATIENTS
SUGGESTED 5 OR 6%. WHAT WE’RE
SEEING IN THE NEWS MEDIA NOW,
OF COURSE, THAT JUST MAYBE
EVEN HIGHER REALLY PROMINENT
PEOPLE LIKE PRESIDENT BIDEN,
LIKE DOCTOR FAUCI, HAVE HAD
THIS PHENOMENON OCCUR. SO
MAYBE MUCH MORE COMMON THAN WE
THOUGHT PREVIOUSLY. AND, YOU
KNOW, YOU TALKED ABOUT
PAXLOVID AND BIDEN WAS TREATED
WITH THAT DRUG RIGHT AFTER HE
WAS INITIALLY.
>>CORLEY PEEL: TESTER THAT TO
TELL US LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT
DRUG, WHAT IT DOES. AND, YOU
KNOW, DO YOU ANTICIPATE HE’LL
BE BACK ON PAXIL? THAT AGAIN?
>> SO THAT, AGAIN, IS A REALLY
CRITICAL, CRITICAL POINT THAT
WE SAW WITH DOCTOR FAUCI, FOR
EXAMPLE, THAT EVEN THOUGH CDC
GUIDANCE IS THAT YOU DON’T
START PACKS OF IT AGAIN, IF
YOU HAVE A REBOUND CASE, HE
ACTUALLY DID BECAUSE I THINK
HE FELT THAT SYMPTOMATIC LEE,
HE WASN’T DOING WELL THAT IT
WAS WORTHWHILE. AND THE CASE
OF PRESIDENT BIDEN, WHAT I
UNDERSTAND HIS POSITIONS HAVE
SAID IS A VERY MILD CASE. HE
HAS NOT RESTARTED PAXLOVID
AGAIN. THAT’S CONSISTENT CDC
GUIDANCE. IT’S HARD TO KNOW
WHETHER THEY’RE GOING TO
DECIDE TO OVER AGAIN. AND IT’S
ONE OF THOSE OUTSTANDING
QUESTIONS, WHICH IS IS OUR
COURSE IMPACTS OF IT. IS THAT
FIVE-DAY COURSE OF AN
ANTIVIRAL REALLY THE IDEAL OR
IS IT SOMETHING WE NEED TO
LOOK INTO FURTHER? DO WE NEED
TO TWEAK THAT TIME COURSE OR
SHOULD WE JUST KIND OF WORK
LIKE WHAT WE’RE DOING NOW
WHERE WE SAY IF YOU’RE REALLY
SYMPTOMATIC, IF YOU’RE DOING
POORLY AND OF COURSE, WE
CONSIDER TREATING IT WITH MORE
DRUGS AFTER IT’S STILL
SOMETHING THAT WE’RE FIGURING
OUT TESTING AND, YOU KNOW,
TRIAL AND THEY’RE ABSOLUTELY
ANOTHER ONE OF THE THINGS THE
PANDEMIC, UNFORTUNATELY, IS
THAT EVERYTHING IS EVOLVING
AND THAT THERE’S SO MUCH
CHANGING SCIENCE THAT GOES ON
AS WE KIND OF FIGURE OUT WHAT
WORKS BEST. AND OF COURSE, NOW
WITH YOU KNOW, WITH THE COVID
VARIANTS THAT WE’RE SEEING
WITH OMICRON, IT HAS BEEN
PARTICULARLY CHALLENGING TO
KIND OF DECIDE WHAT THE BEST
WAY TO TREAT IT IS.
>>CORLEY PEEL: AND FOR THOSE
WHO MIGHT HAVE COVID RIGHT NOW
AND THEY’RE CONSIDERING PACKS
OF IT, IF THEY DON’T KNOW
ABOUT THE OPTION. CAN YOU TELL
US A BIT ABOUT THAT DRUG
SPECIFICALLY WHAT IT DOES HIGH
CAN GET IT WHEN DOCTORS CAN
ISSUE, IF YOU HAVE TO BE, YOU
KNOW, A CERTAIN LEVEL OF SICK
IN ORDER TO RECEIVE IT. SURE.
THAT’S A CRITICAL POINT,
ACTUALLY, FOR VIEWERS AT YOU
KNOW, I WOULD SAY THAT.
>> YOU KNOW, THEY GUIDANCE
RIGHT NOW FOR PACKS OF IT IS
THAT IT IS FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE
A LITTLE BIT OLDER OR FOR
PEOPLE WITH RISK FACTORS FOR
BEING VERY IT IS AN ANTIVIRAL
MEDICATION. IT IS A
COMBINATION OF 2 PREVIOUSLY
APPROVED ANTIVIRAL DRUGS. SO
THIS IS NOT A BRAND NEW DRUG
THAT’S BEING APPROVED FOR
COVID. IT’S A PREEXISTING DRUG
THAT IS NOW BEING APPROVED FOR
A NEW INDICATION. AND THAT’S
ALSO IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE TO
KNOW. SO THE MEDICATIONS HAVE
BEEN STUDIED IN THE PAST. IT
IS PRETTY IS APPROVED FOR
THOSE WHO ARE MORE LIKELY TO
GET VERY SICK. BUT AGAIN, IF
YOU ARE ILL TALK TO A DOCTOR
BECAUSE THIS IS FREE, ANY
DOCTOR CAN PRESCRIBE THAT. IN
FACT, A LOT OF PLACES CAN GIVE
IT TO. IF YOU GO TO KIND OF
TESTING CENTER, THEY CAN HAVE
SOMEBODY THERE WHO CAN
PRESCRIBE IT. SO IF THERE’S
ANY QUESTION, I WOULD SAY ARE
ON THE SIDE OF CERTAINLY
TAKING MEDICATION THAT CAN
REDUCE YOUR CHANCE OF
HOSPITALIZATION. AND THAT IS
DEFINITELY HELPFUL
INFORMATION.
>>CORLEY PEEL: BEFORE WE GO,
CAN YOU JUST EXPLAIN WHAT
YOU’VE BEEN NOTICING ABOUT THE
LATEST THE OMICRON VARIANT BA
5 IN HOW THAT’S REALLY BEEN
THE ONE THAT’S KIND OF
AFFECTING MOST PEOPLE IN THE
U.S. RIGHT NOW. YOU KNOW, YOU
KNOW, BE A 5 HAS REALLY TAKEN
OVER. IT’S REALLY TAKING OVER
WORLDWIDE. AS PART OF THAT IS
THAT IS JUST SO SO SO
INFECTIONS. SO IT IS SO
EFFICIENT AT SPREADING FROM
PERSON TO PERSON TO PERSON.
>>CORLEY PEEL: AND THE KEY
THING TO UNDERSTAND THERE IS
THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS EFFICIENT
VIRUS TRANSMITTING ITSELF. IT
DOES NOT MEAN THAT IS WORSE,
HOWEVER, THAN THE ORIGINAL
COVID. IF YOU ASK ME, I’D MUCH
RATHER HAVE BA 5 THAN THE
ORIGINAL COVID FROM A COUPLE
YEARS AGO.
>> BUT AGAIN, THE OTHER THING
TO KEEP IN MIND IS THAT YOU
ARE GOING TO GET 5, EVEN IF
YOU’VE BEEN VACCINATED. IF
YOU’RE GETTING EXPOSED
REPEATEDLY, IF YOU GO BOBBING
FOR APPLES WITH SOMEBODY WHO
HAS COVID, EVEN IF YOU’VE HAD
2 VACCINES, PLUS 2 BOOSTERS,
YOU’RE GOING TO GET BA 5. SO
IT’S IMPORTANT TO KEEP IN MIND
THAT YOU’RE NOT GOING TO
PROTECT IN THIS ERA AGAINST
INFECTION, WHICH THE PROTECTED
AGAINST THOSE HOSPITALIZATION
DEATH, WHICH IS, OF COURSE,
WHAT WE REALLY WORRY ABOUT THE
MOST. ALL RIGHT. WELL, THIS IS
ALL SO IT’S WONDERFUL THING