Author Archives: jbakerjrblog

Lots of questions and a few answers on COVID-19 vaccines.

Over the weekend I tried to anticipate some of the questions people will have about the COVID-19 vaccines. I know the FDA cannot comment given their external review committee meets on Thursday to evaluate the Pfizer vaccine. But I had hoped there would be more info from government and local officials about prioritization and localContinue reading “Lots of questions and a few answers on COVID-19 vaccines.”

Sweden reverses course.

Sweden has long been viewed as the contrarian in COVID-19 management. The country took the tack of not employing social restrictions while attempting to protect vulnerable people who would be likely to get seriously ill or die. This allowed them to keep their economy open and avoid any mandatory restrictions. They were attempting to achieveContinue reading “Sweden reverses course.”

Answers to questions about the COVID-19 vaccines.

I continue to get questions about the COVID-19 vaccines and how individuals should approach their own vaccination. Today, I will comment on several questions that have general impact on individuals seeking COVID-19 vaccines. This does not substitute for your doctor’s specific advice. So, if you have any complexity to this situation I would suggest youContinue reading “Answers to questions about the COVID-19 vaccines.”

What is behind the CDC’s new universal indoor mask policy? Too little too late.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today called for “universal mask use” indoors for the first time. This was presented as being in response to the record numbers of coronavirus hospitalizations and deaths the U.S. is currently experiencing. However, since it has been clear for a long time that transmission of COVID-19 is mostContinue reading “What is behind the CDC’s new universal indoor mask policy? Too little too late.”

The specifics of the current US COVID-19 situation.

Where are we at with COVID-19 right now, and why is there such a variety of messages being communicated?  We are in an unfamiliar situation with COVID-19 in the United States. There have been many headlines about reaching new heights in daily hospitalizations and deaths from this third peak of infections. These are all true.Continue reading “The specifics of the current US COVID-19 situation.”

Follow up on the Danish mask study and vaccine prioritization.

There were several comments about the Danish study that did not show efficacy for masks in preventing COVID-19. Some readers provided references to other studies that were not placebo controlled, but did show the value from wearing masks. Several readers provided a link from a New York Times critique of the the Danish study, thatContinue reading “Follow up on the Danish mask study and vaccine prioritization.”

Health care workers and long-term care residents will likely get the first COVID-19 vaccine doses.

The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) took the first official stance on prioritizing who will get the first doses of any COVID-19 vaccine. For almost four hours the committee discussed in detail who within the priority groups would get access early on when doses are limited. For example, the committee wanted to ensure thatContinue reading “Health care workers and long-term care residents will likely get the first COVID-19 vaccine doses.”

Does wearing a mask really help prevent COVID-19?

One of the most frequent questions I get asked is whether wearing masks really helps prevent the transmission of COVID-19. I answer that the data is not entirely conclusive, but clearly this is a respiratory infection, and it stands to reason that lowering aerosol levels should decrease infection rates.  There have been small scale studiesContinue reading “Does wearing a mask really help prevent COVID-19?”

The New York times verifies that AstraZeneca’s half dose COVID-19 vaccine was a mistake. The real question is what they need to do next.

 By now it’s pretty obvious that I’ve been disappointed with how AstraZeneca has conducted their COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials and reported the results. I was particularly concerned about their releasing partial data through press releases and making the efficacy of their vaccine sound better by referring to a subgroup of patients that I believed was caused byContinue reading “The New York times verifies that AstraZeneca’s half dose COVID-19 vaccine was a mistake. The real question is what they need to do next.”