Cristin McCarthy Vahey

As we hear more and more about states around the country beginning to open their economy, and the Re-Open CT committee works hard to help guide our efforts, there are many questions about how all of this is going to work. So far, social distancing has been our #1 defense in flattening the curve and saving lives. Of course we still have good hand and face hygiene (don’t underestimate the importance of these!), but we will need other tools to combat the virus as we head back out into the world. Today I’d like to take a few moments to discuss some of the tools that are necessary to help us get back out into the world and share what I have heard from our local experts along with what CT is doing to prepare.

Pharmacological Interventions – Treatments & Vaccines

Researchers around the world are racing to come up with safe, tested and viable treatment options as well as a vaccine that will help prevent the virus in the first place. While there is a tremendous global effort occurring, we cannot rely solely on these steps alone to get back up and running. There is no singular solution. Some scientists are claiming the possibility of an emergency release of a vaccine as early as this fall, while others warn that the fastest timeline for any previous vaccine was 4 years. Whether months or years, we know we want these medications to not only be effective, but also safe, and this takes time. We will be back out in the world well before a vaccine has been developed. So what do we do in the meantime?

TEST, TRACE, ISOLATE

The tools that we will need to add to our tool belt, on top of social distancing, and proper hand and face hygiene, are TESTING, TRACING and ISOLATING. These tried and true public health interventions are a critical part of our path forward. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to hear from two of Yale’s top public health scholars, Dean Sten Vermund and Gregg Gonsalves, Assist. Professor of Epidemiology. Both have provided analysis and updates on important aspects of the outbreak in a recent virtual town hall that you can watch here.

In addition, during yesterday’s daily briefing, Governor Lamont introduced Kristen Soto of the state Department of Public Health. She joined state epidemiologist Dr. Matthew Carter to discuss the ContaCT program being put in place for contact tracing.

TESTING

There are two different types of tests, diagnostic or antigen testing and antibody testing. Diagnostic tests determine if the virus is present and help you know if you are COVID positive. In the beginning, only those in the hospital and front line workers were able to receive these diagnostic tests. As testing capacity has expanded, free rapid testing is available in New Haven via CVS and Hartford Healthcare is expanding their partnership with Quest diagnostics, offering mobile testing services. Testing capacity here in CT, as is true in other states, has been limited by the lack of supplies, including swabs and reagents for the diagnostic test, leading to the belief that the number of positive cases reported is an under-count.

At present we are performing approximately 4,000 tests/week here in CT between both public and private labs. Dr. Carter says 50,000 tests/week and specifically tests with rapid results are what we need to effectively do contact tracing. He believes we will be able to get there by mid-May largely through the Governor’s efforts to work with private labs to increase capacity. Once this capacity has increased, we will begin to test asymptomatic people who have been exposed to those who are COVID positive and include them in contact tracing.

The other type of testing is antibody or serology testing. This test determines evidence of prior infection. As our local experts have said, this test is “not ready for prime time.” The Yale doctors shared that we are still uncertain if antibodies equate with immunity, but believe immunity is likely. We’re still learning more about this. What antibody testing DOES help us better understand is the rate of infection in a community. To learn more about this type of testing, and how it can help, check out this ProPublica article.

TRACING

Yesterday Kristen Soto of the state Department of Public Health (DPH) announced a new contact tracing program for Connecticut, ContaCT. This program will combine the traditional use of individuals who do outreach and interviews with a software program through Microsoft that the department intends to have in hand within the week. The complete program is expected to be up and running by the third week of May. Local health departments will continue to receive information about positive cases and either a DPH official, local health official or volunteers from academic institutions, including Masters of Public Health and Master of Social Work students will be trained to provide tracing and follow-up. Those who test positive will be asked to fill out a questionnaire and tracers will be trained to assure confidentiality. Participation will be voluntary, but the more people who participate, the better chance we have to collectively stop the virus.

Currently there are approximately 300 people who do contact tracing in CT from both DPH and local health departments. The Yale School of Public Health has mounted a significant volunteer effort to assist the City of New Haven and is in conversation to assist other cities as well. They are poised to work in partnership with the state effort. The state expects to recruit another 400-500 volunteers. As noted above, there will need to be a significant increase in the number of tests in order for this effort to be successful.

If you test positive, here is what you can do to help the ContaCT tracing effort, once it is in place in a couple of weeks. Don’t worry, I will remind you about this:

• Answer the call or text message from your local health department.
• Complete the questionnaire
• Self-Isolate
• Keep an eye out for follow up information and requests

Unlike previous tracing efforts, this platform will allow for texting and e-mail follow up in addition to calls. Electronic records generated will be able to communicate with our bordering states in order to allow for regional effectiveness, as this virus knows no borders. You may have heard about coordinated efforts with New York. While CT will have its own program, there will be shared training opportunities for the tracers in addition to the sharing of information. The ContaCT program will begin as soon as the system is in place and not when the number of positive cases has fallen to a certain level. For more information on yesterday’s briefing and the new program, check out the CT Mirror’s article. By the way, the Mirror is a great place to learn about what is happening in the state. Check out the Mirror, CT News Junkie and especially our local CT Post Capitol reporters, Ken Dixon and Dan Haar.

ISOLATE

For those who test positive, it will remain critical that you stay home and isolate for 14 days and until you have met the CDC recommended guidelines. The state is working to create centers for those whom, for whatever reason, are unable to isolate at home. You can call 2-1-1 to be connected to resources or as always reach out to me for help to find a location.

In the meantime, Dr. Carter emphasized that while the trends for hospitalizations are encouraging, the number of cases is still too many. Our region has seen some of the worst acuity in the country and we still have a ways to go, so the current tools of social distancing and wearing a mask are as critical as ever.

MASKS

We should be wearing masks to reduce our OUTFLOW while healthcare providers wear masks to reduce INFLOW. When we wear a mask, it is an act of service and helps to protect those around you

Mask wearing is a prudent, proven and necessary step to help slow the transmission of this virus

Proper mask wearing technique is important to the effectiveness.

Make sure your mask fits properly and covers your nose and down to your chin.

Previous COVID-19 Updates:

April 27
April 23
April 22
April 20
April 17
April 15
April 14
April 13
April 8
April 6
April 5
April 4
April 2
April 1
March 31
March 26
March 23
March 21
March 20
March 17
March 16