Stamford Officials Update Coronavirus Vaccines, Wearing Masks

STAMFORD, CT — During a virtual coronavirus update Tuesday evening, Mayor David Martin and other city health officials discussed vaccinations, wearing masks and other important information related to the virus.

Martin said the city is averaging 46 new cases each day, over the past seven days, as of Tuesday. Additionally, five more residents died during the past week as a result of the virus.

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According to Martin, 8.2 percent of total Stamford residents, and 57.6 percent of residents over the age of 75, have received their first dose of the coronavirus vaccination as of Feb. 11.

Martin also noted that he was now eligible to receive the vaccine.

"I have chosen to wait until...the municipal employees that work for me, as well as the teaching staff, has had that opportunity," Martin said. "In the meantime, I'm being extremely careful."

He also urged residents who are eligible to sign up to receive their vaccination as soon as possible.

Asha Shah, an infectious disease physician for Stamford Health, also took part in this week's presentation to speak about variant mutations of the virus that could potentially increase coronavirus rates over the next few months.

Shah noted health officials are following three new strains of the virus very closely. This includes the B.1.351, or so-called "South African" variant, which was detected this week in a Connecticut patient who is currently hospitalized out-of-state.

"What these variants mean is that there's definitely potential for a change in infectivity, a change in lethality and a change in immune recognition," Shah said, "which means that they may ultimately affect how effective some of our therapeutics are and how well our vaccines perform."

According to Shah, the variants are "much more transmissible" than the traditional coronavirus strain the state has been dealing with for the past year. She also noted reinfection has been documented, so residents could potentially have the first strand of the virus and then get reinfected with one of the variant strains.

"There is definitely concern about what's to come in the next several weeks as these strains start to circulate more widely in the community," Shah said, "and it's obviously more of a reason to vaccinate as quickly as we can as many individuals as possible, because if we stop COVID-19 from spreading, it won't have the ability to mutate and change and these variants may not spread as efficiently."

Martin echoed Shah's statements.

“My takeaway from some of what Dr. Shah has said is that we need to stay vigilant," Martin said. "In fact, if this virus is more easily transmitted, then we need to work even harder with masking and the other strategies that we use to keep this virus away from us."

Henry Yoon, the vice chair of family medicine for Stamford Health, also took part in the presentation to discuss mask wearing.

"Masking has probably been one of the most significant, impactful mitigation strategies that we've had up to this point in time," Yoon said, "in addition to everything else that we're doing: keeping our distance, washing our hands and wiping down surfaces."

Yoon urged residents to make sure their masks cover their nose, mouth and chin to get full coverage, and noted wearing one under the nose or above the mouth "is not going to work."

Yoon provided some tips to help residents get a better fit on their mask, including using a mask with a nose wire to close up gaps, as well as layering and double masking.

He urged residents to make sure their masks are not leaking air around the edges by knotting and tucking in the sides of the mask if necessary.

"I just need everyone to remember that using all of these mitigation strategies as best you can," Yoon said, "the more you use them, the lower the risk across the board."

He also urged residents not to combine two disposable masks or combine a KN95 mask with any other mask.

"Vaccines are rolling out," Martin said, "but COVID-19 is still here...you've got to protect yourself and your family [by] wearing a mask. It's good for you, it's good for your family, it's good for your neighbors and community. Wear it over both the nose and the mouth, and if you want to tie it in the corners and get a little tighter fit, [that] sounds good to me."

A video of this week's coronavirus update, with further information regarding vaccinations, variants and proper mask wearing, can be viewed in full on the city's Facebook page.

More information regarding vaccinations and other information related to the virus can be found on the city's website.