Will we be ready for the next public health emergency?
It’s almost inevitable that it will happen again at some point.
It could be next month, it might be next year, or it may be a decade or more away. At some point, a virus will come along that spreads rapidly from person to person, threatening the health of many and the very survival of the most vulnerable among us.
Five years after COVID-19 turned everyone’s lives upside down, the question is, will we be ready?
We know that’s a loaded question, because one person’s definition of “ready” is likely different from the next. And without a thorough study of what went well and what went wrong in Wyoming during the most recent pandemic, how will we know what to do during the next one?
A lot will depend on the type of virus we’re dealing with, of course. If it’s airborne and as quick to attack the respiratory system as SARS-CoV-2, do we know the best way to prevent widespread infections?
Some national studies have offered data that supports keeping schools and businesses open, while others say the shutdowns — at least in the initial days and weeks of the pandemic — likely helped prevent many COVID-related deaths in the United States. Some say face coverings and social distancing do very little to prevent people from either getting or transmitting airborne viruses. Yet the current advisory from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), posted last July, says, “Wearing a mask and putting distance between yourself and others can help lower the risk of COVID-19 transmission.”
The next question is whether many of us will choose to follow any recommendations from the health-care community. Pandemic fatigue is a very real concern, and credibility is a factor that led some people to not comply last time (especially after recommendations changed from “don’t wear a mask” to “mask up”). And what if medical experts can’t agree on the best course of action?
These questions arise partly because of the fifth anniversary of COVID-19’s arrival and in part because an older Platte County woman recently became the third person in the United States to be hospitalized after contracting “bird flu.” In a Valentine’s Day news release, the Wyoming Department of Health emphasized that she “was likely exposed to the virus through direct contact with an infected poultry flock at her home.”
The release noted that the H5N1 avian influenza virus has been infecting wild birds in Wyoming for some time. It’s also been circulating nationally since 2022. So far, though, it has been found mostly in chickens and cattle, and transferred to humans through contact with these animals. There has been no evidence of a strain that can be passed from person to person.
In fact, Dr. Alexia Harrist, Wyoming’s state health officer and state epidemiologist, said in the release, “While this is a significant development as bird flu activity is monitored in Wyoming and across the country, it is not something we believe requires a high level of concern among most Wyoming residents.” The CDC agrees, stating on its website that the current public health risk is “Low.”
That’s good news, but it doesn’t mean we should ignore updates related to H5N1, the latest mutation of COVID or any other health threat.
It also means that we need local, state and federal health experts to remain vigilant in terms of surveillance and monitoring, as well as open with sharing information among the public and researchers, who may be called upon to quickly develop a vaccine at some point in the future.
As they address future contagious health threats, Wyoming decision makers need to continue to follow the advice of public health and medical professionals. At the same time, they need to do their best to prevent collateral damage, such as economic, social, educational and mental health impacts.
Regardless of how you feel about the way officials handled the COVID-19 pandemic, the fact remains that in the U.S. alone, more than 1.2 million people died as a result of the virus, according to the CDC. Worldwide, that number topped 7 million, with “excess mortality,” which includes the death toll indirectly related to COVID-19, estimated at nearly 15 million between Jan. 1, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2021.
If our public health officials plan ahead, broaden their perspective, and remain open and honest about what they know — and, equally important, what they don’t — the resulting increased credibility and trust should result in better outcomes for everyone.