MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – It was only a couple of weeks ago that the lines at Tropical Park were absolutely massive, even trailing out into the street.
It was a similar story at other COVID-19 testing sites across South Florida.
Now, those lines are minimal, but experts say just because things look better, it doesn’t mean we’re out of the pandemic yet.
As we move into February, we’re seeing lower numbers of COVID cases in Miami-Dade and Broward, and lower positivity rates week-to-week in both counties as well, but microbiologist and infectious diseases expert Dr. Aarti Raja believes that might be a bit misleading.
“A lot more people are getting tested at home, now are they reporting it?” asked Dr. Aarti Raja with Nova Southeastern University. “If people aren’t reporting it, yeah, it’s going to look like the numbers are very low when perhaps they’re not very low.”
But Raja says the good news is that the numbers to focus on are deaths, which are staying low, and hospitalizations, which also seem to be decreasing.
“I would like to think that yes things will get better from here just because, for one, we are better prepared,” said Raja. “Just as an average citizen we seem to have a better handle on things than we did two years ago.”
Meanwhile, good news may be on the way for kids who, right now, aren’t eligible for a COVID vaccine.
Pfizer is being urged to apply for emergency authorization for a two-dose regimen for children from six months to five years old.
Dr. Marcos Mestre, Chief Medical Officer at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, says Pfizer’s initial testing data showed the two-dose regimen worked well for kids six months to two years old, but they’re now seeing whether kids up to five years old will get better protection from a third dose.
“What we expect to see from the Pfizer data is that it’s effective and that it’s safe,” said Mestre.
Either way, Mestre said when the approval is given, all parents should get their kids the shots.
“The two doses may not fully protect 100 percent against infection but definitely protect to some degree in terms of any complications like hospitalizations or death in this vulnerable population,” he said.
As for the Pfizer authorization that application is expected to be submitted as soon as Tuesday.
The idea is to get the two doses into kids arms as soon as possible, and by the time they finish their research on the third dose, those kids will be ready to get it.