Board passes on masks, reviews facts
Supervisors meeting: Public Health and Oroville Hospital confront virus misinformation
OROVILLE » Butte County Public Health and Oroville Hospital’s appearance at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisor’s meeting to inform the public of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic was mainly devoted to dispelling the spread of misinformation.
The use or misuse of ivermectin to treat COVID-19, false claims county hospitals are seeking additional profit through the pandemic and untrue rumors unvaccinated people are being denied care were all touched upon.
“Anyone believing, at least as it relates to our hospital, that the hospital is making a profit on COVID is misinformed,” said Oroville Hospital President and CEO Robert Wentz. “We will probably be as happy as anyone to see the end of this pandemic.”
In regards to refusing to serve patients because of politics Wentz said, “It’s also incorrect. We treat all patients that come to us whether vaccinated or not. Our staff is professional. We treat them without regard to any kind of political or philosophical belief.”
Butte County Public Health Director Danette York said the information shared is not to create fear — it’s strictly data-driven facts. York cited information comes from Federal Health and Human Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and the California Department of Public Health.
“There’s other federal and state agencies as well that we get information from as well as local information from Butte County. This is not to say that all of those sources including federal and state agencies are perfect — they’re not all knowing,” York said. “This is a novel virus, the pandemic we’re responding to. We learn as we go.”
Tuesday in Butte County, 125 people were hospitalized for COVID-19. So far 238 people have been confirmed to have died as a result of infection. Additionally, there are 60 probable deaths which York said means the deceased had been only tested by antigen, not by polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, test.
“We strive to be transparent in the information we share. During these updates, I only provide the information that we are made aware of,” York said.
The Butte County Health Director added cases remain higher for unvaccinated compared to vaccinated. York said the average daily case rate among unvaccinated is 62.8 per 100,000 population. For vaccinated, its 7.9 cases a day. In total, 18,880 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed since the start of the pandemic in the county.
“You can definitely tell a difference in the average case,” York said of the number disparity.
As vaccination rates in Butte County remain relatively low (only 52.85 percent eligible are fully-vaccinated), York urged the public to get vaccinated and mentioned the recent arrival
of booster shots, explaining the eligibility of residents.
“The timing of the booster is six months following completion of the initial series,” York said. “CDC and CDPH have separated the list into those who should receive a booster and those who may receive a booster. Those who should include 65 and older or reside in long term care facilities or are ages 50 to 64 with underlying medical conditions. Those who may include ages 18 to 64 with underlying medical conditions or who are at increased risk of infection because of working or living in a high risk setting.”
Oroville Hospital Medical Director of Pharmacy Therapeutics and Infection Control Dr. Roy Shannon spoke to the practices being used by the hospital and the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine.
“As physicians we try to follow guidelines in the science in prescribing medications that we know are both safe and effective,” Shannon said. “There’s no real benefit from ivermectin. There are some people who believe there’s benefit to it. There are some physicians who do. If the patient asks
for ivermectin, they usually get it.”
Shannon added questions over the amount of testing at Oroville Hospital are unwarranted.
“We do test a lot. The reason is to be sure whether the patients and our staff either have or do not have COVID-19, and we do that in order to protect our patients and staff,” Shannon said. “Making more money from testing is just not our purpose.”
Before ending, Shannon reiterated the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine.
“I would just emphasize that the vaccines are not experimental. It’s not gene therapy. It’s not poison. It is fully approved, and it is quite effective,” Shannon said. “If more people in our area would get the vaccine the hospitals would not be so impacted by COVID-19 regarding various reports.”
COVID-19 vaccines are still widely available throughout the county. A list of clinics providing the vaccine can be found on Butte County’s website.
For a list of vaccination clinics, visit http://www. buttecounty.net/publichealth/COVID19/vaccine or call the Butte County COVID-19 hotline at 552-3050.