Today we encourage you to follow the Governor's recommendations of staying vigilant and staying safe, and especially his recent messages about wearing a face covering.

"Wear it for one of our thousands of front line health care workers. Wear it for the person at the grocery store. Wear it for someone you know that (has an underlying health condition) that you care about. Wear it as a sign of respect." -- @GovSisolak

During this pandemic, we remain committed to sharing news and information from local and national media about COVID-19 and immunization-related topics. Additionally, we join the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in reminding everyone to stay up to date on recommended immunizations to prevent dangerous diseases.

Each week we’ll continue to review clips from across the U.S., from various news outlets and platforms, and bring you ten timely and relevant links.

“Malicious Misinformation Alert: These Are NOT the CDC Guidelines for Opening Schools” Blog: I Speak of Dreams. (May 21, 2020)

Seen this wandering through your social media channels? Here's what pediatrician Jane Macintyre has to say: If you see this graphic, there are at least three things you need to know: The CDC usually uses their logo, not clip art. The CDC knows how to spell ‘guidelines’. The CDC would say “only pre-packed boxes”, NOT “pre-packages boxes”.

“Masks Help Stop the Spread of Coronavirus – The Science Is Simple” The Conversation (May 16, 2020)

Universal mask-wearing could be one of the most important tools in tackling the spread of COVID-19. There are numerous studies that suggest if 80% of people wear a mask in public, then COVID-19 transmission could be halted. Until a vaccine or a cure for COVID-19 is discovered, cloth face masks might be the most important tool we currently have to fight the pandemic.

“Get Ready for a Vaccine Information War” New York Times (May 20, 2020)

Social media is already filling up with misinformation about a Covid-19 vaccine, months or years before one even exists. To recover from this pandemic, we need to mobilize a pro-vaccine movement that is as devoted, as internet-savvy and as compelling as the anti-vaccine movement is for its adherents. We need to do it quickly, with all the creativity and urgency of the scientists who are developing the vaccine itself. Millions of lives and trillions of dollars in economic activity may depend not just on producing a vaccine, but on persuading people to accept it.

“Some Parents Are Already Opposed To A COVID Vaccine. Experts Who Study Anti-Vax Beliefs Aren't Surprised”  Romper (May 14, 2020)

As groups congregate across the nation to protest stay-at-home orders, they have been joined by an unlikely coalition — the anti-vaccination movement. From California to New York, anti-vaccination parents are vocally opposing both the stay-at-home-orders and the idea of a COVID-19 vaccine.

“The Race to Develop a COVID-19 Vaccine, Explained” Rolling Stone (May 19, 2020) 

Rolling Stone spoke with experts to get a better understanding of the complicated, delicate process of developing a vaccine that will be injected into the arms of hundreds of millions if not billions of healthy people, and what the quarantined masses can expect from the effort in the coming months.

“Inside Italy’s COVID War” PBS Frontline (May 19, 2020)

Much of the suffering wrought by COVID-19 has played out where we cannot see: in closed hospital units. With unprecedented access, award-winning filmmaker Sasha Joelle Achilli goes inside a hospital during the coronavirus crisis in northern Italy, capturing an unforgettable look at the harrowing, heroic fight doctors and nurses are waging against the disease.

“Talking With UMC Doctors On The Front Line Of COVID-19” KNPR (May 18, 2020)

As of May 17, Nevada had just shy of 7,000 cases of coronavirus that led to 350 deaths. Clark County specifically had nearly 5,400 cases with 300 deaths. But what’s the deeper story behind those numbers? With the COVID-19 pandemic in its third month, doctors in hotspots around the world are studying trends and rethinking how they treat certain symptoms.

“When Public Participation Is Public Theatre” Stanford Law Review (May 2020) – Public health agencies and external government advisory committees are charged with making important public policy decisions, and, in the process, providing opportunities for public input to those deliberations. Public participation in agency decision making can and does serve the important goals of public input, transparency, and legitimacy…Recently, however, these goals have been undermined by the strategies and tactics adopted by anti-vaccine groups, who misuse public participation opportunities at meetings of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP).

“Vaccinations Fall to Alarming Rates, C.D.C. Study Shows” New York Times (May 18, 2020)
In Michigan, fewer than half of infants 5 months or younger are up to date on their vaccinations, which may allow for outbreaks in diseases like measles.

“Even amid pandemic, routine vaccinations still needed for children” Las Vegas Review-Journal (May 15, 2020) 

It would have been easy for Amanda Hippert to find a reason to skip the trip to her pediatrician’s office for daughter Olivia’s latest round of vaccinations. The biggest one: The coronavirus pandemic and Hippert’s understandable reluctance to expose her 2-year-old to whatever viruses might be lurking out there. But Hippert decided to take Olivia in anyway.

Prepare, Don’t Panic. To inform Nevadans statewide, the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Governor's Office have created this website to better share information and resources as it pertains to the current status of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and its impact within the state of Nevada. https://nvhealthresponse.nv.gov/ 

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*Links included do not imply endorsement.