Physicians stress need for vaccinations despite some people’s objections
Vaccines continue to be given at the Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics, which has seen 65 to 70% of its patients vaccinated.
Editor’s note: This is the first in a series about COVID-19 and local physicians’ comments about community concerns.
The COVID-19 roller coaster continues.
And each turn of the ride brings something new.
The pandemic has led to passionate views on all sides, from the medical community, who stress that vaccines are safe, effective and urgently needed to protect the population (including the most vulnerable), to business owners trying to survive a sluggish economy and people resisting vaccine and indoor mask mandates because of what they feel are their civil rights.
It’s been almost a year since the first vaccines were rolled out, starting with healthcare workers and senior citizens. Now it’s readily available for everyone 12 and older, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to give the final approval this week for a Pfizer vaccine for ages 5-11.
And boosters are now recommended for people 65 and older and those with underlying health conditions or those in at-risk occupations.
Recent months have seen reopening of indoor movie theaters and resumption of concerts. But caution is still prevailing. An indoor mask mandate was brought back to Santa Barbara County and other counties throughout California.
Venues such as the Santa Barbara Bowl, The Granada and the Lobero Theatre have stressed that anyone attending concerts must show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours before the show.
And many people continue to participate in meetings of their local city councils, school boards and the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors by sitting on their sofa, opening a laptop and clicking onto a virtual service such as Zoom. And telemedicine has seen a surge.
Dr. Henning Ansorg, Santa Barbara County public health officer, said he would like to see the COVID-19 vaccination rate improve to 80% or 90%. Currently 71% of the county’s eligible 12-and-older population is fully vaccinated, and the number is 60.1% for the total population, according to the county’s latest figures.
Life has changed.
Fortunately, the number of cases is falling nationally. The U.S. is now averaging 73,000 new COVID-19 cases per day, less than half the almost 173,000 cases reported on Sept. 13, according to The Associated Press.
And on Friday, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department reported 39 new cases in the county, down from Thursday’s report of 67 cases.
Dr. Charles Fenzi, CEO and chief medical officer of Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics, said he’s optimistic that more people will become comfortable with COVID-19 vaccines as the one-year anniversary of the vaccines arrives and people see that vaccinated individuals are doing well.
“The cases are going in the right direction,” Dr. Henning Ansorg, the Santa Barbara public health officer, told the News-Press. “We still have a community transmission problem that is considered to be substantial. Susceptible people can easily catch the virus in the community.”
Rather than a big decline in cases, Dr. Ansorg said he expects the number to plateau.
And like other medical professionals, Dr. Ansorg wishes the vaccination rate, which recently crept up from 59% to 60.1% of the total population, was much higher, around 80% or 90%. (The number could get a boost when the vaccine is approved for ages 5-11.)
Of the eligible 12-and-older population, 71% is fully vaccinated, according to the county’s latest numbers.
Dr. Ansorg noted how easy it is to get vaccines. “Every single pharmacy has it. There’s no appointment necessary. You can walk in. When you see your doctor and get your flu shots, you can get your COVID shots.”
And the county lists upcoming vaccination clinics at publichealthsbc.org/vaccine. (See the FYI box for this week’s clinics.)
The Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics continues to provide vaccinations every day at its clinics, Dr. Charles Fenzi, the CEO and chief medical officer, told the News-Press.
He said 65% to 70% of his clinics’ patients are vaccinated. “It’s comparable to the county.
“The folks who are hesitant (to get vaccines) are across socio-economic lines,” Dr. Fenzi said. “I’ve had several people who still feel very strongly that some of the conspiracy theories are correct.”
Dr. Fenzi said he’s uncertain about how to convince those individuals to get the shots.
He said it’s easier to persuade other unvaccinated people.
“The closer we get to the 80% total vaccination rate, the more comfortable people will be,” Dr. Fenzi said. “As we go past the one-year mark (for vaccines) and we see people having the vaccination are not having any problems, that will be helpful for those who are hesitant because of the speed the vaccine was made.”
Dr. Lynn Fitzgibbons, chair of the Cottage Health infectious diseases division, described unvaccinated people as a diverse group with a variety of reasons for not getting the shots.
“It’s not one size-fits-all to capture that group,” she told the News-Press. “I’m optimistic (about more people getting vaccines) with so much experience with the safety data and the full FDA approval of the Pfizer product.
“I personally don’t like the word ‘anti-vaxxers,’ ” Dr. Fitzgibbons said. “I find it polarizing. I know people who are not yet vaccinated who are not this at all.”
Some who aren’t vaccinated are concerned about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccines.
Among them is Justin Shores, the co-founder of Stand Up Santa Barbara, who has spoken against the COVID-19 vaccines during his group’s medical freedom rallies at De la Guerra Plaza. He said he doesn’t feel their safety has been proven.
“I’ll take every other vaccine that’s been tested and proven that it works, and I know the side effects. These vaccines are different,” he told the News-Press in July.
The medical community has stressed that data shows the vaccines are safe.
“Millions of people in the United States have received COVID-19 vaccines under the most intense safety monitoring in U.S. history,” the Centers for Disease Control and Protection noted at cdc.gov.
Doctors say people should get the vaccine to protect themselves and those around them.
“It’s about protecting those who cannot protect themselves,” Dr. Fenzi said, adding that group includes people with immunodeficiency.
“Colin Powell is a very good example of that,” Dr. Fenzi said about the former secretary of state, who died recently after testing positive for COVID-19. Gen. Powell also was being treated for multiple myeloma, a form of bone marrow cancer.
“Here’s a guy who had a very bad chronic disease. He caught COVID, as did his wife. She survived,” Dr. Fenzi said. “Had we (as society) been better protected at this junction, he might not have caught COVID.”
Dr. Fenzi also pointed out the number of deaths due to COVID-19.
The number of the county’s total deaths is 523 after the latest death, which was reported on Thursday. On Friday, the county reported a total of 43,601 cases, of which 340 are still infectious.
Dr. Ansorg said the risks associated with COVID-19 outweigh the vaccine’s side effects, which can be soreness, fatigue, fever or headaches that last a day or two. “When you don’t get the vaccine, you risk catching COVID and risk ending up in intensive care units.”
The medical community has said that even if vaccinated people get COVID, they’re less likely to get severe symptoms or be hospitalized.
In September, the Santa Barbara Public Health Department reported that at least 85% of the 112 people hospitalized in August with COVID-19 in the county were unvaccinated. (The number of hospitalizations has fallen. As of Friday, it was 40.)
Some people who have had COVID may believe they don’t need the vaccine.
Not true, Dr. Ansorg said.
“If you had COVID, you may have some immunity, but it’s not clear how much or how strong,” he said. “The best protection for someone who has had COVID in the past is to get the vaccine.”
Some residents who are fully vaccinated have said they’re opposed to government mandates.
Some have argued, “My body, my choice.”
“This is amazing to see how many patriots there are here today, standing up and fighting for our constitutional rights,” attorney Ronda Kennedy told the crowd in De la Guerra Plaza during Stand Up Santa Barbara’s September rally. “These are our given rights. They’re rights bestowed by the Constitution and fought for us by our founding fathers.”
And when the Santa Barbara Unified School District board considered a vaccine mandate in September, two-thirds of the public commentators opposed the measure.
Resident Irene Morales told the board she opposed the vaccine mandate, even though she is fully vaccinated. “I believe in our fundamental right to choose what we put in our body. Mandating our co-workers and staff to be mandated does not allow us to practice our fundamental right to choose.”
But other commentators were equally passionate about protecting children.
“My kids and most of their classmates are too young to get the vaccine, but their teachers can, which is very important for our elementary students,” Brian Conk told the board. “Even one unvaccinated elementary school teacher is not acceptable. … My kids are required to have over 20 shots to attend school, and it is not extreme or abnormal to require that you have one (vaccine).”
The board approved the mandate, which requires all staff to be vaccinated with exemptions for medical or religious reasons. The mandate doesn’t allow staff the alternative of negative COVID-19 tests. On Monday, the deadline for staff to be fully vaccinated, a handful of employees who declined to be vaccinated will be placed on unpaid leave, Camie Barnwell, the district chief of communications, said in a keyt.com story.
According to a district website, 91.9% of its staff is vaccinated. That equals 1,547 employees.
That site also said vaccinations are in progress for 2.3% or 39 employees. According to the website, 5.3% or 90 employees are requesting exemptions or deferrals. And the district is waiting for a response from 0.4% or seven of its employees.
“Whatever works,” Dr. Ansorg said. “If by imposing a vaccination mandate, you get a 95% (or in the district’s case, 91.9%) vaccination rate in your employees, that’s fantastic.
“Again, we don’t have the luxury to just look at individuals. We have to look at the population as a whole. That’s where the ethical dilemma comes in,” he said.
Vaccinations protect the public at large, including the most vulnerable, Dr. Ansorg stressed.
“Yes, we have certain God-given rights and autonomy over our lives and bodies,” he said. “However, we also do live in a community with a virus that spreads easily in bars and movie theaters and churches. It just jumps from person to person.
“Just imagine that you have grandparents who are very dear to you,” Dr. Ansorg continued. “They have a weak immune system. Wouldn’t you do everything in your power to protect them from getting seriously ill or dying prematurely so you can enjoy their company longer? Of course, they (the unvaccinated people) would.
“If you extend that a little bit further, what about your neighbor?” he said. “Wouldn’t you also want to protect them?”
email: dmason@newspress.com
MORE ON TUESDAY
Physicians talk further about the pandemic in Tuesday’s News-Press.
FYI
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department reported people can get vaccinated this week at the following clinics.
— From 4 to 7 p.m. Monday at Santa Barbara High School, 700 E Anapamu St., Santa Barbara. The vaccines are Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson Janssen.
— From 4 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Boys & Girls Club, 901 N. Railroad Ave., Santa Maria. The vaccines are Pfizer and J&J Janssen.
— From 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at the Carpinteria Children’s Project, 5201 8th St., Carpinteria. The vaccines are Pfizer and J&J Janssen
For future clinics, see the full list at publichealthsbc.org/vaccine.
And you can get vaccines at doctor’s offices and pharmacies.
