Dr. Jha: If You're Vaccinated, You Should Not Be 'Excessively Worried' - All In - MSNBC
What is a breakthrough infection like for vaccinated folks? Should vaccinated people mask up? Should we be worried about our unvaccinated children? Dr. Ashish Jha answers the most burning Covid questions.
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Though he may be trying to quell the current panic - which would be more prevalent among MSNBC viewers, that are likely to be vaccinated, than those who watch Fox - who really do need a wake up warning.
Thanks for the additional information. I went into 2 stores today and still wore a mask. Until this month, masks were required to enter any business - grocery, pharmacy, bank, gas station, garage, etc. - and it was strictly enforced. But just as we're hearing cases are rising, my New York county currently has the highest number of positive tests in the state. Not to mention that this month is also the start of tourist season (Lake George). Last summer everything was closed, anyone out-of-state was required to quarantine, but this year everything is open with a vengeance - and the out-of-state license plates are back. And it's not just the usual Vermont and New Jersey, in the past couple of weeks I've seen Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia and Utah! 
I guess outside of us on DU, there doesn't seem to be as much "panic" as what I recall when there were all those cases of "white powder" in envelopes being mailed (both the anthrax and ricin threats), nor as much panic as was generated with the couple cases of potential Ebola infection (including that poor woman in NJ who Chris Christie held in quarantine in a tent at Liberty airport who never tested positive for it) -
https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/health/2017/07/28/quarantine-ebola-patients-bill-of-rights/520480001/
Our case rates have literally started shooting up the past couple weeks and although we have so far moved from a 1% positivity rate to a 3% one, we went from around 24/25 cases a day (also the 7-day/14-day average), to what is now over 100 cases a day reported from over the weekend (which traditionally is a "lower" count due to not all labs being open and reporting right away), which has taken us up to a 74 cases per day 7-day average.
It's nowhere near the 1000+ a day that we had during past peaks, but this is the sort of thing that has to be nipped in the bud before it gets to that point - especially with school starting soon.
And cases are up everywhere, I have kept track of my county and it's holding at 64% vaccinated - and there is no excuse. The vaccine is readily available at pharmacies (Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid), pharmacies in groceries, Walmart and the large state run site in the old Sears store at the local mall which has neon signs with arrows on the main road advertising the site - and many of those take walk-ins. Back in March, the closest place I could get an appointment to get vaccinated was at the CVS in Saratoga, so I went!
And though 64% is not impressive, counties to the south and west have much lower rates. And since the local paper reports Covid news on the front page, there's no excuse for not being informed. There are currently 36 active cases in the county and 2 deaths in the past week. 
And we do have our share of anti vaxxers here. There's an older gentleman (mid 80s) who I'm friendly with that I see at local meetings. When I got vaccinated myself, I was excited and grateful, so I told people. And this guy, who seems pretty smart on other things, said that he isn't getting vaccinated since his daughter is a nurse and she's not getting vaccinated and he gets his medical advice from her! 
as well as the police/fire/EMS personnel because many of them are refusing. Those people were literally right at the front of the line for vaccine eligibility back in December/January yet... 
I think with the mandate announcements by NY, CA, and federally with the Dept. of Veteran Affairs, we might be right on the precipice of mandating here in the city for those who are city workers in positions to get the most exposure - including those who work for the Health Department (and may work at the city clinics).
I know it was a struggle for me to get the shots because I kept getting bumped further down the priority, despite underlying conditions, due to not being within the proper age group (only off by 6 years) and then being retired, so not in one of the occupations that were prioritized. I thankfully found a little pharmacy not far from where I grew up and signed up for their waiting list, and literally a few days later, I was contacted to make an appointment. Meanwhile I had signed up with the city months before and they only got back to me literally the week I was already getting my 2nd shot from that pharmacy.
I have 2 friends who work in the local hospital, one with psych patients in the ER (she has to wear such strict PPE that it leaves marks on her face!) and the other works in the office and they were the first I knew to get the vaccine, though they had to drive downstate to a major hospital (Ellis in Schenectady) to get the Pfizer - this was in January. And they got a $100 bonus for getting it! My one friend she saw a lot of people she knew from the local hospital getting it there at the same time.
And I have a friend who teaches who had to drive clear across the state to Potsdam to get the vaccine - we're pretty close to the Vermont border here in the East. The only other New York vaccine site when we kept looking (and looking!) was New York City! But then my housemate found that CVS was suddenly offering the Moderna, but I happened to be in the dentist's chair at the time and was unreachable (like I was going anywhere else at the time!) so I couldn't get an appointment at the local pharmacy, they filled up so fast, so the closest was in Saratoga (where I grew up) so I really didn't mind, I was relieved!
I do know that a few people also drove up to Plattsburg at around the same time - and that's about as far north as you can go!
Anyway, so what I don't understand is why a health care worker at the hospital would turn down any and every chance to get the vaccine - when she's working in a hospital where they have active Covid cases! Not to mention not recommend getting it to her 80+ year old father! He also told me that if they required getting the vaccine at the hospital here, she'd sooner quit her job than get it! I really do not understand. People I know were driving all over the state just to get it and this nurse who is in a venue with active cases is still refusing. BTW, I happen to know that my 2 friends are registered Democrats, that may be the difference. *sigh* 
which ended up becoming a "talking point" among some medical staff and particularly some of the lower level ones like nursing assistants in nursing homes or longterm care/rehab facilities as well as home healthcare aides, was that the vaccine was still "experimental" because it was only being given out under an EUA, and wasn't "fully approved".
I think at some point when they all get that final approval (the main difference between the EUA and a final approval being that the companies can now "market" their vaccine under some brand name and sell directly to medical providers), many of the same people still won't get it.
It kind of hints at that famous saying about how a doctor can be the worst patient.
