In today’s media availability, Dr. Teresa Frankovich — Humboldt County’s health officer — talks about that big statewide order handed down yesterday (and the county’s delay in implementing it). She also talks about the prospect of in-person schools opening in the fall, the evolving understanding of how the virus operates (and how to best protect one’s self), the president’s stripping of data from the Centers for Disease Control and more.

Video above. Questions and summaries of Dr. Frankovich’s answers below.

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Can you tell us a little bit about the state order that came out Monday?

It was a surprise and a disappointment for many, Dr. Frankovich says. Humboldt County is doing fairly well right now. But the state has to consider the sheer number of cases that are being verified statewide right now, the rapid increase in cases, hospitalizations and ICU usage. And also the high percentage of people who are testing positive.

This is an “intermediate” measure, Dr. Frankovich says, designed to keep us from having to have to go back to full shelter-in-place mode. Counties are being asked to participate in this effort.

The state is trying to take the riskiest activities — which are typically indoors — off the table for the time being in hopes of slowing the spread.

What kind of preparedness can people who suffer from debilitating illness do to prevent a more serious onset of the virus such as respiratory, heart or asthma problems?

“Obviously, we want [those] people to stay out of circulation as much as possible,” Dr. Frankovich says. “Really, shelter in place as much as possible, and reduce your risk of exposure.”

Also: Don’t neglect your regular treatment for those underlying conditions, so that your body is in the best shape it can be should you contract the virus.

What suggestions do you have for people to boost their immune systems to be healthier, and be prepared in the likelihood of infection?

Same things that we talk about all the time, says Dr. Frankovich – healthy diet, exercise, getting plenty of rest. Also: stress reduction. Do things that help you reduce stress.

The New York Times released an article yesterday that read: “Trump administration strips CDC of control of coronavirus data.” What does this mean and is it a dangerous move?

Dr. Frankovich says she has “grave concerns” about this. The medical community – and others – have long viewed the CDC as being the agency that vets and makes available the best possible information. If the data that the CDC generally produces disappears during this crisis, it will impair our ability to respond not only to this pandemic, but future ones as well.

Dr. Frankovich, some people appear to believe that the rate of transmission of a virus is fixed. But differing strategies affect the rate of transmission. Could you please explain how PPE availability, especially for frontline healthcare workers, affects the rate of transmission of a virus of this nature — which doctors and epidemiologists now know is being transmitted by aerosolized particles from basic human functions like exhaling, coughing, sneezes and singing — and how the rate of transmission is able to fluctuate in a community.

We’re learning more about the transmissibility of the virus all the time, Dr. Frankovich says. Coughing, sneezing, singing – and even just loud talking – can be riskier than other activities. Also, some individuals seem to transmit the virus more effectively. Also, it could be that some strains of the virus transmit more easily.

PPE? The facial coverings we use are intended to trap particles – especially the large particles – that we all expel from our mouths when coughing, sneezing, talking, or even breathing. If we all wear masks, then we reduce the amount of virus that is out there, floating around in the air.

You’ve talked about cases within the cannabis community, and also how people who do not permanently reside here are not included in our total case count. With both of these things in mind, how many positive cases have actually been reported in Southern Humboldt? The county dashboard has shown four cases for at least the last two weeks, which quite frankly seems on the lower end compared to other areas.

The case counts as presented on the county’s map are accurate, Dr. Frankovich says – but people should remember that they show where a person resides, rather than where a person contracts the virus. People should not use the map as a measure of how safe or risky their particular community is.

Where do you stand on schools re-opening this fall?

“I’m a pediatrician and a public health person, and I would love to see kids in school,” says Dr. Frankovich. She says that they’ve been working with schools to see how this might work in the fall – organizing things in a way that we can have kids back in school.

But the conditions with this pandemic change rapidly. Schools have been developing contingency plans for all sorts of different situations, and they’re trying to ready themselves to adapt to conditions as they change.

“While I’m hopeful we’ll be able to have schools operate with full site instruction, it’s not clear yet that that’s the case – or that if we open in that way we’ll be able to continue through the fall.

You have said contract tracing is impacted by delays in testing and increased social contacts lately. If contract tracing is strained now, how will it not become a more dire situation if schools reopen for in-person instruction?

“Our contact tracing capability is really good,” Dr. Frankovich says. “The things that we can control? We’re in really good shape.” But as has been discussed, the testing part of it is a big challenge right now.

As we stand, Frankovich believes the county could manage it – maybe depending on what new testing capacity the county can construct over the next month or two.

What PPE is being provided to the 31 school districts across the county and the county board of education?

Dr. Frankovich says they need to talk to the schools to determine what they need. The county has received a bunch of kid-sized facial coverings, which is good. She anticipates that some teachers may want to use face shields as well as facial coverings.

It’s summertime, which also means the new school year is just around the corner. What sort of guidance is Public Health giving local school districts and administrations when it comes to reopening schools in the fall? Do you think it’s feasible for kids to return at that time and if so, what are your major concerns? Or is distance learning a more likely possibility?

See above. But distance learning is not at all ideal, and they’re certainly working toward a hybrid or full site model.

Governor Newsom’s announcement to close a handful of business sectors this week appears to be somewhat of a step back into the stay at home order. Do you anticipate a “seesaw” pattern of reopening some business sectors and closing them again as we progress through the summer and into the fall?

We’ve talked about this all along, Dr. Frankovich says – the potential need for a pause or a rollback after opening. But even though we’re subject to state rollbacks, if we can continue to manage the rate of spread well we can at least avoid the need for local rollbacks.

What gives Humboldt County the authority to delay implementation of a state order that went into effect Monday?

The state order is in effect. “I think there was a recognition that it was extremely short notice for businesses,” Dr. Frankovich says. “Certainly I understand that a restaurant who cannot open to outdoor service is suddenly sitting with a refrigerator full of food. And that’s a problem.”

She says that the Sheriff was recognizing that there was a need for people to have a day or two to ratchet down.

For us, given our COVID numbers, it was not an emergency. This gave us latitude to accommodate the needs of local business owners.

Some business owners forced to close indoor operations feel they have been blindsided by the order to close and see it as unexpected. Does the county have any way of warning these businesses about the closure orders ahead of time, so they come as less of a surprise?

The county got very little notice about it, says Dr. Frankovich. The situation is so fluid that it’s hard to do that. Dr. Frankovich says that she is certain that the state was very reluctant to issue this order, but felt that it was necessary.

Regarding decisions to close businesses, roll back re-openings, and implement local policy changes on this level, can you please clarify who makes the final call on this? Between yourself and Sheriff Honsal, which of you is higher ranking in terms of policy decision-making in the context of this pandemic? Or is this decided in another way?

It’s not a single person driving the operation, says Dr. Frankovich. They have a policy committee that meets to discuss things. But as the Health Officer, she has the authority to issue a health order, and that order is law.

She says that she counts on the cooperation of the Sheriff and other law enforcement officials to ensure that state and local orders are implemented. The intent has been to frame this as educational. But it’s important to have enforcement available for people who do not behave responsibly.

Most people have been responsible, Dr. Frankovich says. “And honestly, I think our numbers reflect that,” she adds. “It’s not only the hard work of contact tracers and people doing the testing in our lab and all of that – it’s the actions of the majority of our community that’s keeping us in relatively good position. And I appreciate that.”