Much like with extreme flooding or a wildfire, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic depends on a lot of moving parts, according to Gov. Steve Sisolak. “Due to factors out of our control, the situation may evolve and the response must evolve as well,” he said.
Sisolak, during a news conference Thursday afternoon, didn’t announce any new mandates, although vaccine requirements may be coming to Nevada public colleges and universities, as well as to industries that care for vulnerable populations, such as health care facilities.
“I don’t want to mandate, I’m tired of giving people mandates. I want the cooperation going back,” Sisolak said. “We’re all together on this.”
The Nevada System of Higher Education has already recommended a vaccine mandate for students for in-person learning.
“I want to assure those returning to campuses in the coming weeks that this will have no impact on your ability to return to classes this semester,” Sisolak said. “If this is the direction taken, health officials will work with NSHE to make sure any timeline is fair and reasonable.”
Sisolak said he instructed his medical advisory team to come up with recommendations for vaccine requirements for those in the medical field, and other professionals who work with vulnerable people, such as the homeless community.
“I’m not afraid to take bold action,” he said. “And I look forward to reviewing the guidance and working with officials and partners to implement as necessary.”
More information was forthcoming, he said.
Additionally, Sisolak is asking his medical advisers to probe how large gatherings can be made safer, noting that at the CONCACAF Gold Cup final on Sunday at Allegiant Stadium the sold-out crowd of more than 60,000 walked into the facility with masks on, most of which came off shortly after.
When those recommendations are ready, the state will work with local officials, event organizers and the large venue operators to come up with a plan as to how to best implement them.
Thus far, the state is following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations that the vaccinated and those who are not inoculated mask up in indoor public settings at jurisdictions with substantial or high transmission of the virus, which is most of Nevada, including Clark County.
Adhering to mask mandates will help to tamper the virus, buying time for the unvaccinated to get the jab, and COVID-19 to stop mutating, he said.
The delta variant, a more transmissible mutation, is “spreading like wildfire” in Nevada, said Sisolak, noting that it accounts for more than 90% of new cases. COVID-19 has infected more than 362,000 people in Nevada since the start of the pandemic last March, killing at least 5,979, according to state data.
Mass vaccination is the only way out of the pandemic, Sisolak maintained, reiterating the message over and over.
They’re “safe, free and effective,” he said, addressing hesitancy some may have due to reports of the virus breaking through the vaccine, cases which account for .004% of hospitalizations, and .008% of deaths in the U.S.
Admittedly, he said that some hesitancy may not be driven by skepticism about the vaccine, but with officials telling people what they should do. “No one wants to mandate,” he said. “No one likes the government telling them what they have to do.”
He encouraged the inoculated to talk to their medical providers and loved ones or friends who’ve taken the jab. He encouraged the vaccinated to speak to their skeptical friends.
Sisolak said Nevada “hit our largest percent increase of first (vaccine) doses since early June." The week ending Aug. 1 saw first COVID-19 vaccine doses given to 3.5% of the unvaccinated.
His final remarks were dedicated to asking for civility from the population, citing anecdotal stories of frontline workers being badgered by impatient Nevadans.
“It’s not fair to them to suffer the abuse that they’re taking because we have a few disgruntled customers who are losing their patience,” Sisolak said.