Dean's COVID-19 Commentary

Jul 31, 2023

Will the epidemic curve for COVID-19 turn upward? There are some indications that the epidemic curve is no longer trending down, but it is not clearly heading upward either. In Colorado, the hospitalization count last week was at 63, comparable to the count of 59 the prior week. As we move into August and the opening of schools, there is further cause for concern.

Jul 10, 2023

Central to Public Health (big P and big H) is communicating “good information” and countering “bad information,” whether unintentionally or intentionally provided. The ruling on the Request for Preliminary Injunction and judges’ granting of elements of the plaintiffs’ request represents a disturbing potential threat to public health and yet another judicial decision isolated from its implications for the nation’s health.

Jun 5, 2023

June is Pride Month, which began on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus with the 1st Annual CU Anschutz Pride Parade and Celebration. The first Pride Parade was held June 28, 1970, marking the first anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising.

May 23, 2023

As this was my last Colorado School of Public Health Convocation as Dean, I gave the Convocation address. My take-home message: there will always be much to do in public health, now and in the future; stay prepared to contribute and be ready for the unexpected.

May 8, 2023

Last week, I was in Madrid for the 9th European Conference on Tobacco or Health. My topic was an orphaned aspect of the tobacco problem—disposal of cigarettes and the myriad electronic devices delivering nicotine that are now in the marketplace, broadly classifiable as electronic vaping products.

Apr 24, 2023

Until Wednesday, April 19, I was unaware of the special significance of April 20, particularly in Colorado. My education on the topic was prompted by the school's release of a massive scoping review on high-potency marijuana and THC concentrates on April 19.

Apr 10, 2023

While the pandemic slowly fades in Colorado, the story of its origins remains heated. In my last commentary, I wrote about the analysis of briefly available genetic sequence data from samples taken in the Wuhan Seafood Market.

Mar 27, 2023

Two weeks ago, I questioned whether we would ever nail down the origins of SARS-CoV-2, motivated by the “low confidence” conclusion of the Department of Energy favoring the lab leak hypothesis. Only a week later, a new analysis of data from the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan suggested that the mode of emergence may have been from animals in the market.

Mar 13, 2023

An anniversary edition, three years after COVID-19 abruptly transformed the way that we live. On Friday, March 13, 2020, we sent out a communication that announced that education would transition to remote and non-critical employees would also work remotely. I wrote the first of over 140 commentaries on the pandemic that week.

Mar 1, 2023

The saga of East Palestine continues as yet another public health problem is politicized and “lawyerized.” My distant read of the minds of people in East Palestine is that they are worried about health risks that they face now and in the future.

Feb 23, 2023

For more than two weeks, the train derailment and toxic spill in East Palestine, Ohio, have been in the news. Per the New York Times, more than 1,000 trains derail each year, many carrying toxic and flammable substances.

Feb 14, 2023

The COVID-19 pause continues in Colorado. Vaccination data indicate a gap for those under age 11 and only 27% of Coloradans have had a bivalent booster.

Feb 2, 2023

Another good week for Colorado. All indicators for the COVID-19 pandemic continue to move downward as are those for influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Jan 23, 2023

For now, the Colorado COVID-19 report remains encouraging. Let’s enjoy the lull while staying wary and vaccinated.

Jan 9, 2023

COVID calm continues in Colorado. This good news comes a week after the end of the holidays, suggesting that we may not experience a holiday-driven surge.

Jan 4, 2023

Happy New Year. I hope for a quiescent pandemic making its way to calm endemicity. There is much else to hope for to benefit public health.

Dec 19, 2022

In Colorado, the “tripledemic” continues. Hospital capacity is strained. COVID-19 hospitalizations seem to be slowly ebbing downwards with the count dropping from 440 to 399 to 395 over the last three weeks. Test positivity has turned the corner as well.

Dec 12, 2022

We are nearing the three-year mark for the pandemic and facing an uncertain future that will depend on the mutational whims of SARS-CoV-2. With a lengthy pandemic ordeal perhaps coming to an endemic end, now is the right time for a full assessment of lessons learned.

Nov 28, 2022

I wrote this commentary over the Thanksgiving break, always a time to catch up on reading and pondering. This year, climate change captured my attention as the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ended.

Nov 21, 2022

Sadly, we once again find ourselves mourning the victims of another horrific shooting; this one carried out in Colorado Springs over the weekend and targeting the LGBTQ+ community. And a just-published paper in the NEJM provides real-world evidence on the effectiveness of school mask mandates.