GOVERNOR HOGAN: Good afternoon. Joining me are Secretary of the Maryland Department of Disabilities, Carol Beatty; Deputy Secretary for Public Health Services, Dr. Jinlene Chan from the Maryland Department of Health; the executive director of the Maryland Emergency Management Agency, Chas Eby; and our senior medical adviser on COVID-19, Dr. David Marcozzi from the University of Maryland Medical System.
Today the state of Maryland entered phase 2A of our COVID-19 vaccine plan, which means that all Marylanders aged 60 and older are currently eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. As of today, the state of Maryland has administered more than 2,252,974,000 vaccines. 35% of all Marylanders over the age of 18 have received a vaccine. Maryland is vaccinating residents at a pace 3 times faster than other states and we are averaging more than 43,000 shots per day. We’re in the process of completing 55 missions to date and have rolled out mobile clinics across the state to access hard to reach areas. They’re holding more clinics every single day including today at the First Baptist Church of Glenarden and Highland Park in PG County.
We’re seeing significant increases in vaccination rate in hard to hit zip codes where General Birckhead is actively engaging with community partners to do community clinics. Earlier today I had another meeting with the White House Coronavirus Task Force to discuss vaccine supply. As you know, we have spent months building an infrastructure capable of doing 100,000 shots or more per day and we are fully prepared for an increased supply from the federal government, which has committed to a significant increase in vaccine supply beginning next week and continuing each week for several months.
As a result, our rapidly accelerating vaccination rate along with the supply increase that we’ve been waiting for and that we can now expect one week from today, Tuesday, March 30th, Maryland will move into phase 2B, which includes all Marylanders 16 and older with any medical conditions that increase the risk of severe COVID-19 illness.
Today we are also announcing that phase 2B will be expanded to now also include all Marylanders 16 years and over with disabilities. People with disabilities experience significant barriers to accessing health services, so the Maryland Department of Disabilities, along with the Maryland Department of Health, are working together to try to close that gap and to make sure that no one is left behind.
Effective today, we are also immediately launching preregistration for all of those who are eligible under phase 2B. More than 150,000 Marylanders have already successfully preregistered on our new state website for an appointment at one of our mass vaccination sites. We encourage any Marylander over age 60 and all Marylanders aged 16 and older with any medical conditions that increase your risk or any Marylander 16 and over with a disability, all of them can preregister effective right now by visiting COVIDvax.maryland.gov or by calling the state’s COVID-19 vaccination support center at 1-855-MD-GOVAX.
One week later, on Tuesday, April 13th, we will move into phase 2C, which will include all Marylanders 55 and older as well as all essential workers of any age in critical industries.
The final phase starts Tuesday, April 27th when we will be fully opened in phase 3 and every single Maryland over the age of 16 will be eligible for vaccination.
On Thursday, I will be visiting the state’s newest mass vaccination site in western Maryland at the Hagerstown premium outlets. And I want to thank our health Secretary Dennis Schrader, director Eby and their teams along with the Maryland National Guard and all of our other agencies in state government and partners for their incredible efforts to plan, design, build, and launch all of our mass vaccination sites. As a result of all of their efforts, I’m pleased to announce that we will launch six more mass vax sites in April. The week of April 5th, the Timonium Fairgrounds site in partnership with the Baltimore County will transition into a state mass vaccination site. That same week, we will also open a new state mass vax site at Montgomery College in Germantown. The following week of April 12, we will open up mass vaccination sites in both Frederick and Anne Arundel Counties. We will also open mass vax sites in Howard and Harford Counties in the following weeks, giving us 12 state mass vaccination sites all fully operational in the month of April all throughout the state.
We also continue to have ongoing discussions with other counties and other partners regarding potential additional vaccination site locations. We currently have more than 2500 points of distribution, and that will grow by hundreds more to over 3,000 different places to get a vaccine. We’re going to be adding hundreds of doctors’ offices and pharmacies in addition to expanding the reach of our community clinics because of the work of our equity task force operation.
I want to once again strongly encourage all Marylanders to please get vaccinated when it is your turn to do so. These COVID-19 vaccines are proven to be safe and effective, and they’re administered under medical supervision. Getting vaccinated is absolutely vital to stopping the spread of COVID-19 and returning to a normal life once again.
More than 400,000 Marylanders have been affected by COVID-19. More than 36,000 of them have been hospitalized. And sadly, as of this morning, more than 8,000 Marylanders have died from the coronavirus. But each day truly is now bringing us one step closer to that light at the end of the tunnel.
At this time I’m going to turn it over to a great advocate for the disabled community, Secretary Carol Beatty of the Maryland Department of Disabilities, who will share more on our initiatives to vaccinate Marylander was disabilities.
SECRETARY BEATTY: Thank you, Governor. And thank you for your leadership during the pandemic.
Besides advising the Governor on disability-related issues, the Maryland Department of Disabilities works collaboratively with all state government agencies. Our department provides guidance and subject matter expertise to ensure that state entities deliver services in the most integrated setting possible and develop consistent policies affecting people with disabilities.
Never have our responsibilities been more impactful than during this last year and the roll out of vaccinations is no exception. Thank you, Governor Hogan, for recognizing the increased risk of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities or IDD and placing them in phase 1B. With today’s announcement, you have continued your commitment to ensure that the most vulnerable Marylanders have access to vaccines. This decision impacts and affects Marylanders 16 and older with disabilities who receive supplemental security income or social security disability insurance and an array of long-term services and supports that are provided through the state’s Medicaid waiver and state plan service.
Research shows that nonelderly people with disabilities who receive long-term supports and services in settings other than nursing homes face similar COVID-19 risk factors compared to people in nursing homes. Like those in nursing homes, many people with disabilities rely on the close physical proximity of caregivers for their daily needs, which limits their ability to adopt preventive measures such as social distancing.
Today’s announcement of the inclusion of a broader group of people with disabilities in phase 2B addresses the equity concerns for people with disabilities. Individuals included in today’s announcement represent some of the poorest and hardest to reach in our disability community, and this works with the efforts of the equity task force to ensure that all Marylanders are encouraged and supported to get vaccinated.
Speaking to Marylanders with disabilities, when it’s your turn, please go get the shot. At the mass vaccination sites, the Department of Disabilities is working with the Maryland Department of Health to make sure that reasonable accommodations are available to serve your needs. For those who find it challenging to get to the mass vax sites, the department is also working with the Maryland Department of Health, local Health Departments, and community organizations throughout the state to create pop up clinics to expand opportunities for individuals with disabilities to get a shot. The vaccines are safe and effective, and they are the key to ending the pandemic.
Again, I thank you, Governor Hogan, for ensuring that all Marylanders, including those with disabilities, have critical access to vaccinations.
MARCOZZI: Good afternoon. Governor Hogan, thank you for your continued leadership and steady hand throughout this crisis.
Fellow Marylanders, good afternoon. Like different chapters of a book, at times in this past year, we have felt many emotions, including sadness, frustration, fear, and anger. I have felt those feelings too. Despite these anxieties, we have all stepped up and demonstrated the unity, strength, and courage to persevere. Importantly, more and more I am now feeling a degree of optimism and hope. This is the direct result of two factors: The confidence of Marylanders to continue to protect themselves from this virus and the availability of vaccines. The components of a successful vaccination campaign are, number one, vaccine supply; two, a coordinated robust mechanism to administer the vaccine to those who need it; and three, willingness to receive the vaccine.
To dated, continued data suggest that vaccines currently approved for use in the United States are safe and very effective at protecting us from COVID-19. Many reports suggest that more vaccine will be available over the next few weeks. This is welcome news, and the expansion to phase 2A provides availability for more of us to be vaccinated, including those 60 and older, and now in 2B, importantly, those with disabilities.
As stated by Governor Hogan, our state continues to rapidly expand the mechanisms to vaccinate, including new mass vax sites coming online and now a program for prime priority care. This is exactly what is needed.
Additionally, continued emphasis on the work of the equity task force to break down barriers and expand vaccine access to those who are underserved, vulnerable, and those who are hard to reach is critical work.
Finally, the last piece of a successful vaccination campaign is the interest from an individual to receive the vaccine. From reviewing ever-growing real-world data, there is no question in my mind of the benefit of the current vaccines. They continue to demonstrate that they are safe and effective.
To add a little levity to this serious discussion, if risk of COVID-19, the safety data, or even demonstrated protection of these vaccines hasn’t convinced you to get a vaccine, as I understand it, and I’m not sure what our cardiologists think of this, but there is also now a Krispy Kreme donut as an incentive if you get vaccinated.
We are in a race between the variants and vaccination rates, and I did want to make one comment about variants, particularly B117. Please remember that COVID-19 may cause symptoms including fever, cough, but also importantly nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Unfortunately, it appears that B117, that variant, is spreading even more easily between us and making us sicker, which is concerning. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea are particularly notable complaints if someone is infected with B117 variant, especially children and younger adults, so please keep this in mind if you or your children start to have those concerns. Get tested for COVID-19 and follow up with your doctor.
We aren’t done fighting this virus yet. This is very evident in what we are seeing with our European partners. We need to continue to maintain our physical and mental health, which means mask wearing, getting tested for COVID-19, seeing your doctor for any care that’s needed, and getting vaccinated. The late poet Maya Angelou said, “I’ve heard it said that winter too will pass, that spring is a sign that summer is due at last. See, all we have to do is hang on.”
This past Sunday was the first day of spring, and Marylanders have held on. Spring has always symbolized renewal and hope, providing us all a sense of optimism. With continued public health vigilance and vaccination, Marylanders should be cautious but optimistic this spring as we will realize that new normal we are all working so hard to achieve.
Governor, thank you.
GOVERNOR HOGAN: Thank you, Doctor.
With that, I’ll take some questions.
(Question off mic).
Well, we’re really pleased that we’ve worked together like we did with the Orioles for many months. Reopening plan for them. And we’re excited to get people back to see the Preakness this year. Typically we get more than a hundred thousand people at Preakness, so this time it will be fewer people and more distanced, but it will be great to have people watching the race.
(Question off mic).
They didn’t give us exact numbers but they were pretty confident about a substantial increase. Based on the kind of numbers they’re talking about around the country, our percentage based on our population, we know it will be a substantial increase. But we don’t have exact numbers. We could be at 200,000 or 50,000. We won’t know for a few more days exactly what that allocation.
(Question off mic).
We’ve obviously been in discussions with all of these locations. Chas here has been leading the team at MEMA, working with our state government and county partners to be ready and to study where they should be and what it takes to get them open. But you can’t open them without the vaccines. So the timing of this is very closely aligned. A lot of work took place before this announcement. But before we knew what we were told today by the White House, we couldn’t be positive. We don’t want to open a mass vax site with no vaccines. So it is coming, and we will be as prepared as anybody in the country.
(Question off mic).
So they are federal assets. They don’t belong to us. By federal law, we can’t make them exclusively for Maryland residents. A very small number. But we’re getting Marylanders vaccinated in D.C. and Virginia as well. In certain cases, particularly people who work in Maryland but live in D.C., we have a reciprocal agreement between Maryland, DC, and Virginia. They did 8,000 of our workers in D.C. hospitals. So there’s cooperation. But the majority of our vaccines are going to Marylanders.
(Question off mic).
There is no question. The only reason I hesitate to give you the exact time frame or numbers is because we’re relying on constantly changing information from the federal government. Today was a hopeful call, that next week they’re going to start and the week after that we should hopefully expect to see more and that they envision this continuing with real big numbers of J&J starting to come online and continual increases with Pfizer and Moderna. So we will get them done as fast as they can get them to us, and we’re ready to do far more than we have and they’re promising they’re on the way. It’s like the calvary is finally coming to our rescue, and we’re going to be prepared.
(Question off mic).
No, no. The President’s goal was to open up eligibility by May, and he said finished by 4th of July. We would like to be ahead of that time frame, and I’m hoping we can get the vast majority of them done, as long as we get the supply, with the infrastructure we have in place, which I think we’re far out pacing most other places, we would like to get as many done April and May.
(Question off mic).
So we are very concerned about the variants. I’ve said before this really, I would describe it as a race between the vaccines and the variants which is why we’re pushing so hard, why the federal government is pushing so hard to get these vaccines. We have to get more people vaccinated before these variants take hold. B117 is becoming much more widespread throughout the country. That’s mutating every day. Our biggest concern right now is what they call the New York variant, which is a variant I guess along the lines of the B117 but it’s mutated. Right now we’re seeing big spikes in New York, New Jersey, coming down from the northeast. So we will still advise people if they’re traveling out of state that they should get tested and to be careful and stay vigilant because not everybody is keeping their masks on the way we are here in Maryland.
(Question off mic).
Well, I believe we don’t have an exact number. We want to get as many as possible. Our concern, as I mentioned earlier, a month or so ago, we’re going to switch at some point soon from huge demand and no supply to we’re going to have plenty of vaccines and we’re going to be out searching for people and trying to convince people to take them. Because, you know, some of the data nationally, 60% very much want to have a vaccine. About 20% are kind of what you would call like swing voters, they could be persuaded but they’re not really sure. And 20% absolutely don’t want it. So we want to convince all those persuadables. We’re going to have the whole 60% who want one will have one in short order.
(Question off mic).
We’re following the CDC guidelines. We didn’t make any deviation from that. These are the recommendations by the federal government.
(Question off mic).
So I don’t know anything about the investigation other than what I read in the media or have heard in the media. And it’s very concerning. Obviously there’s a federal investigation going on and we’re getting bits and pieces of it. But it’s obviously something to do with (inaudible).
(Question off mic).
Well, I told you everything I’m able to tell ya. I told you where the Montgomery County one is and Baltimore County one is and that we’ll be making announcements on the other four as we finalize those plans.
(Question off mic).
That’s a great question. First of all, I was on the White House call with Governor from Colorado and all of our thoughts and prayers are with those people who lost their lives and their families. This is a critical issue that I’m hoping we can find some common ground on. It’s obviously something that we’re miles apart on. It seems like Washington is hopelessly divided, dysfunctional, broken, and they can’t find common ground on any issues, but it’s certainly something we need to continue to work together on.
SPEAKER: Last question.
(Question off mic).
GOVERNOR HOGAN: Maybe I’ll let Dr. Chan talk about that one a little bit. We had a call with all of our doctors and I think there are multiple things going on. We had a slight uptick in hospitalizations. Our case numbers are down. We don’t have any spikes anywhere; we’re plateauing. Still well below the previous highs. But it’s concerning, and some of the discussion is these variants, we have 2.2 million people who have been vaccinated, there are fewer people to get infected, but this more virulent strain seems to be impacting younger folks. We’re seeing people hospitalized now that are in their 40-60 range instead of people in their 80s. We’re not having an issue with our nursing homes anymore. It was mentioned earlier about different symptoms that we’re seeing, different strains. We had kids at the Naval Academy much sicker than last time and having these intestinal issues rather than respiratory issues.
So we’re keeping an eye on those. We’re testing the variants at a greater rate than just about anybody in the country and more than most people in the world. We were already ahead of everybody at 5% of the cases we were testing. Now we’re double that 10%. But still a small percentage of all. It takes a long time to do the sequencing. It’s more difficult. It’s not just do a swab and tell ya the results. So we’re staying on top of it every day.
I don’t know, Dr. Chan, if you want to add anything on that.
JINLENE CHAN: Thank you, Governor, and thank you for that question.
I would just echo that we are looking at the changes in the numbers. We’re keeping track of that on a daily basis. And with our partners, we of course increase our capacity at both Hopkins and University of Maryland for sequencing purposes. So we’re really talking about how we can target that capacity to find out some of those answers. So there will be more to come, but we are seeing, as Dr. Marcozzi and Governor Hogan has said, the B117 U.K. variant in the United States and Europe, so that’s why the masking orders are so critical.
SPEAKER: Thank you.
Today the state of Maryland entered phase 2A of our COVID-19 vaccine plan, which means that all Marylanders aged 60 and older are currently eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. As of today, the state of Maryland has administered more than 2,252,974,000 vaccines. 35% of all Marylanders over the age of 18 have received a vaccine. Maryland is vaccinating residents at a pace 3 times faster than other states and we are averaging more than 43,000 shots per day. We’re in the process of completing 55 missions to date and have rolled out mobile clinics across the state to access hard to reach areas. They’re holding more clinics every single day including today at the First Baptist Church of Glenarden and Highland Park in PG County.
We’re seeing significant increases in vaccination rate in hard to hit zip codes where General Birckhead is actively engaging with community partners to do community clinics. Earlier today I had another meeting with the White House Coronavirus Task Force to discuss vaccine supply. As you know, we have spent months building an infrastructure capable of doing 100,000 shots or more per day and we are fully prepared for an increased supply from the federal government, which has committed to a significant increase in vaccine supply beginning next week and continuing each week for several months.
As a result, our rapidly accelerating vaccination rate along with the supply increase that we’ve been waiting for and that we can now expect one week from today, Tuesday, March 30th, Maryland will move into phase 2B, which includes all Marylanders 16 and older with any medical conditions that increase the risk of severe COVID-19 illness.
Today we are also announcing that phase 2B will be expanded to now also include all Marylanders 16 years and over with disabilities. People with disabilities experience significant barriers to accessing health services, so the Maryland Department of Disabilities, along with the Maryland Department of Health, are working together to try to close that gap and to make sure that no one is left behind.
Effective today, we are also immediately launching preregistration for all of those who are eligible under phase 2B. More than 150,000 Marylanders have already successfully preregistered on our new state website for an appointment at one of our mass vaccination sites. We encourage any Marylander over age 60 and all Marylanders aged 16 and older with any medical conditions that increase your risk or any Marylander 16 and over with a disability, all of them can preregister effective right now by visiting COVIDvax.maryland.gov or by calling the state’s COVID-19 vaccination support center at 1-855-MD-GOVAX.
One week later, on Tuesday, April 13th, we will move into phase 2C, which will include all Marylanders 55 and older as well as all essential workers of any age in critical industries.
The final phase starts Tuesday, April 27th when we will be fully opened in phase 3 and every single Maryland over the age of 16 will be eligible for vaccination.
On Thursday, I will be visiting the state’s newest mass vaccination site in western Maryland at the Hagerstown premium outlets. And I want to thank our health Secretary Dennis Schrader, director Eby and their teams along with the Maryland National Guard and all of our other agencies in state government and partners for their incredible efforts to plan, design, build, and launch all of our mass vaccination sites. As a result of all of their efforts, I’m pleased to announce that we will launch six more mass vax sites in April. The week of April 5th, the Timonium Fairgrounds site in partnership with the Baltimore County will transition into a state mass vaccination site. That same week, we will also open a new state mass vax site at Montgomery College in Germantown. The following week of April 12, we will open up mass vaccination sites in both Frederick and Anne Arundel Counties. We will also open mass vax sites in Howard and Harford Counties in the following weeks, giving us 12 state mass vaccination sites all fully operational in the month of April all throughout the state.
We also continue to have ongoing discussions with other counties and other partners regarding potential additional vaccination site locations. We currently have more than 2500 points of distribution, and that will grow by hundreds more to over 3,000 different places to get a vaccine. We’re going to be adding hundreds of doctors’ offices and pharmacies in addition to expanding the reach of our community clinics because of the work of our equity task force operation.
I want to once again strongly encourage all Marylanders to please get vaccinated when it is your turn to do so. These COVID-19 vaccines are proven to be safe and effective, and they’re administered under medical supervision. Getting vaccinated is absolutely vital to stopping the spread of COVID-19 and returning to a normal life once again.
More than 400,000 Marylanders have been affected by COVID-19. More than 36,000 of them have been hospitalized. And sadly, as of this morning, more than 8,000 Marylanders have died from the coronavirus. But each day truly is now bringing us one step closer to that light at the end of the tunnel.
At this time I’m going to turn it over to a great advocate for the disabled community, Secretary Carol Beatty of the Maryland Department of Disabilities, who will share more on our initiatives to vaccinate Marylander was disabilities.
SECRETARY BEATTY: Thank you, Governor. And thank you for your leadership during the pandemic.
Besides advising the Governor on disability-related issues, the Maryland Department of Disabilities works collaboratively with all state government agencies. Our department provides guidance and subject matter expertise to ensure that state entities deliver services in the most integrated setting possible and develop consistent policies affecting people with disabilities.
Never have our responsibilities been more impactful than during this last year and the roll out of vaccinations is no exception. Thank you, Governor Hogan, for recognizing the increased risk of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities or IDD and placing them in phase 1B. With today’s announcement, you have continued your commitment to ensure that the most vulnerable Marylanders have access to vaccines. This decision impacts and affects Marylanders 16 and older with disabilities who receive supplemental security income or social security disability insurance and an array of long-term services and supports that are provided through the state’s Medicaid waiver and state plan service.
Research shows that nonelderly people with disabilities who receive long-term supports and services in settings other than nursing homes face similar COVID-19 risk factors compared to people in nursing homes. Like those in nursing homes, many people with disabilities rely on the close physical proximity of caregivers for their daily needs, which limits their ability to adopt preventive measures such as social distancing.
Today’s announcement of the inclusion of a broader group of people with disabilities in phase 2B addresses the equity concerns for people with disabilities. Individuals included in today’s announcement represent some of the poorest and hardest to reach in our disability community, and this works with the efforts of the equity task force to ensure that all Marylanders are encouraged and supported to get vaccinated.
Speaking to Marylanders with disabilities, when it’s your turn, please go get the shot. At the mass vaccination sites, the Department of Disabilities is working with the Maryland Department of Health to make sure that reasonable accommodations are available to serve your needs. For those who find it challenging to get to the mass vax sites, the department is also working with the Maryland Department of Health, local Health Departments, and community organizations throughout the state to create pop up clinics to expand opportunities for individuals with disabilities to get a shot. The vaccines are safe and effective, and they are the key to ending the pandemic.
Again, I thank you, Governor Hogan, for ensuring that all Marylanders, including those with disabilities, have critical access to vaccinations.
MARCOZZI: Good afternoon. Governor Hogan, thank you for your continued leadership and steady hand throughout this crisis.
Fellow Marylanders, good afternoon. Like different chapters of a book, at times in this past year, we have felt many emotions, including sadness, frustration, fear, and anger. I have felt those feelings too. Despite these anxieties, we have all stepped up and demonstrated the unity, strength, and courage to persevere. Importantly, more and more I am now feeling a degree of optimism and hope. This is the direct result of two factors: The confidence of Marylanders to continue to protect themselves from this virus and the availability of vaccines. The components of a successful vaccination campaign are, number one, vaccine supply; two, a coordinated robust mechanism to administer the vaccine to those who need it; and three, willingness to receive the vaccine.
To dated, continued data suggest that vaccines currently approved for use in the United States are safe and very effective at protecting us from COVID-19. Many reports suggest that more vaccine will be available over the next few weeks. This is welcome news, and the expansion to phase 2A provides availability for more of us to be vaccinated, including those 60 and older, and now in 2B, importantly, those with disabilities.
As stated by Governor Hogan, our state continues to rapidly expand the mechanisms to vaccinate, including new mass vax sites coming online and now a program for prime priority care. This is exactly what is needed.
Additionally, continued emphasis on the work of the equity task force to break down barriers and expand vaccine access to those who are underserved, vulnerable, and those who are hard to reach is critical work.
Finally, the last piece of a successful vaccination campaign is the interest from an individual to receive the vaccine. From reviewing ever-growing real-world data, there is no question in my mind of the benefit of the current vaccines. They continue to demonstrate that they are safe and effective.
To add a little levity to this serious discussion, if risk of COVID-19, the safety data, or even demonstrated protection of these vaccines hasn’t convinced you to get a vaccine, as I understand it, and I’m not sure what our cardiologists think of this, but there is also now a Krispy Kreme donut as an incentive if you get vaccinated.
We are in a race between the variants and vaccination rates, and I did want to make one comment about variants, particularly B117. Please remember that COVID-19 may cause symptoms including fever, cough, but also importantly nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Unfortunately, it appears that B117, that variant, is spreading even more easily between us and making us sicker, which is concerning. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea are particularly notable complaints if someone is infected with B117 variant, especially children and younger adults, so please keep this in mind if you or your children start to have those concerns. Get tested for COVID-19 and follow up with your doctor.
We aren’t done fighting this virus yet. This is very evident in what we are seeing with our European partners. We need to continue to maintain our physical and mental health, which means mask wearing, getting tested for COVID-19, seeing your doctor for any care that’s needed, and getting vaccinated. The late poet Maya Angelou said, “I’ve heard it said that winter too will pass, that spring is a sign that summer is due at last. See, all we have to do is hang on.”
This past Sunday was the first day of spring, and Marylanders have held on. Spring has always symbolized renewal and hope, providing us all a sense of optimism. With continued public health vigilance and vaccination, Marylanders should be cautious but optimistic this spring as we will realize that new normal we are all working so hard to achieve.
Governor, thank you.
GOVERNOR HOGAN: Thank you, Doctor.
With that, I’ll take some questions.
(Question off mic).
Well, we’re really pleased that we’ve worked together like we did with the Orioles for many months. Reopening plan for them. And we’re excited to get people back to see the Preakness this year. Typically we get more than a hundred thousand people at Preakness, so this time it will be fewer people and more distanced, but it will be great to have people watching the race.
(Question off mic).
They didn’t give us exact numbers but they were pretty confident about a substantial increase. Based on the kind of numbers they’re talking about around the country, our percentage based on our population, we know it will be a substantial increase. But we don’t have exact numbers. We could be at 200,000 or 50,000. We won’t know for a few more days exactly what that allocation.
(Question off mic).
We’ve obviously been in discussions with all of these locations. Chas here has been leading the team at MEMA, working with our state government and county partners to be ready and to study where they should be and what it takes to get them open. But you can’t open them without the vaccines. So the timing of this is very closely aligned. A lot of work took place before this announcement. But before we knew what we were told today by the White House, we couldn’t be positive. We don’t want to open a mass vax site with no vaccines. So it is coming, and we will be as prepared as anybody in the country.
(Question off mic).
So they are federal assets. They don’t belong to us. By federal law, we can’t make them exclusively for Maryland residents. A very small number. But we’re getting Marylanders vaccinated in D.C. and Virginia as well. In certain cases, particularly people who work in Maryland but live in D.C., we have a reciprocal agreement between Maryland, DC, and Virginia. They did 8,000 of our workers in D.C. hospitals. So there’s cooperation. But the majority of our vaccines are going to Marylanders.
(Question off mic).
There is no question. The only reason I hesitate to give you the exact time frame or numbers is because we’re relying on constantly changing information from the federal government. Today was a hopeful call, that next week they’re going to start and the week after that we should hopefully expect to see more and that they envision this continuing with real big numbers of J&J starting to come online and continual increases with Pfizer and Moderna. So we will get them done as fast as they can get them to us, and we’re ready to do far more than we have and they’re promising they’re on the way. It’s like the calvary is finally coming to our rescue, and we’re going to be prepared.
(Question off mic).
No, no. The President’s goal was to open up eligibility by May, and he said finished by 4th of July. We would like to be ahead of that time frame, and I’m hoping we can get the vast majority of them done, as long as we get the supply, with the infrastructure we have in place, which I think we’re far out pacing most other places, we would like to get as many done April and May.
(Question off mic).
So we are very concerned about the variants. I’ve said before this really, I would describe it as a race between the vaccines and the variants which is why we’re pushing so hard, why the federal government is pushing so hard to get these vaccines. We have to get more people vaccinated before these variants take hold. B117 is becoming much more widespread throughout the country. That’s mutating every day. Our biggest concern right now is what they call the New York variant, which is a variant I guess along the lines of the B117 but it’s mutated. Right now we’re seeing big spikes in New York, New Jersey, coming down from the northeast. So we will still advise people if they’re traveling out of state that they should get tested and to be careful and stay vigilant because not everybody is keeping their masks on the way we are here in Maryland.
(Question off mic).
Well, I believe we don’t have an exact number. We want to get as many as possible. Our concern, as I mentioned earlier, a month or so ago, we’re going to switch at some point soon from huge demand and no supply to we’re going to have plenty of vaccines and we’re going to be out searching for people and trying to convince people to take them. Because, you know, some of the data nationally, 60% very much want to have a vaccine. About 20% are kind of what you would call like swing voters, they could be persuaded but they’re not really sure. And 20% absolutely don’t want it. So we want to convince all those persuadables. We’re going to have the whole 60% who want one will have one in short order.
(Question off mic).
We’re following the CDC guidelines. We didn’t make any deviation from that. These are the recommendations by the federal government.
(Question off mic).
So I don’t know anything about the investigation other than what I read in the media or have heard in the media. And it’s very concerning. Obviously there’s a federal investigation going on and we’re getting bits and pieces of it. But it’s obviously something to do with (inaudible).
(Question off mic).
Well, I told you everything I’m able to tell ya. I told you where the Montgomery County one is and Baltimore County one is and that we’ll be making announcements on the other four as we finalize those plans.
(Question off mic).
That’s a great question. First of all, I was on the White House call with Governor from Colorado and all of our thoughts and prayers are with those people who lost their lives and their families. This is a critical issue that I’m hoping we can find some common ground on. It’s obviously something that we’re miles apart on. It seems like Washington is hopelessly divided, dysfunctional, broken, and they can’t find common ground on any issues, but it’s certainly something we need to continue to work together on.
SPEAKER: Last question.
(Question off mic).
GOVERNOR HOGAN: Maybe I’ll let Dr. Chan talk about that one a little bit. We had a call with all of our doctors and I think there are multiple things going on. We had a slight uptick in hospitalizations. Our case numbers are down. We don’t have any spikes anywhere; we’re plateauing. Still well below the previous highs. But it’s concerning, and some of the discussion is these variants, we have 2.2 million people who have been vaccinated, there are fewer people to get infected, but this more virulent strain seems to be impacting younger folks. We’re seeing people hospitalized now that are in their 40-60 range instead of people in their 80s. We’re not having an issue with our nursing homes anymore. It was mentioned earlier about different symptoms that we’re seeing, different strains. We had kids at the Naval Academy much sicker than last time and having these intestinal issues rather than respiratory issues.
So we’re keeping an eye on those. We’re testing the variants at a greater rate than just about anybody in the country and more than most people in the world. We were already ahead of everybody at 5% of the cases we were testing. Now we’re double that 10%. But still a small percentage of all. It takes a long time to do the sequencing. It’s more difficult. It’s not just do a swab and tell ya the results. So we’re staying on top of it every day.
I don’t know, Dr. Chan, if you want to add anything on that.
JINLENE CHAN: Thank you, Governor, and thank you for that question.
I would just echo that we are looking at the changes in the numbers. We’re keeping track of that on a daily basis. And with our partners, we of course increase our capacity at both Hopkins and University of Maryland for sequencing purposes. So we’re really talking about how we can target that capacity to find out some of those answers. So there will be more to come, but we are seeing, as Dr. Marcozzi and Governor Hogan has said, the B117 U.K. variant in the United States and Europe, so that’s why the masking orders are so critical.
SPEAKER: Thank you.