* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:04] THANK YOU TO BROWN SHOULD IN SPECIAL CALL. UH, TODAY IS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2ND, 2021. THE TIME IS NINE OH FOUR. UH, IT IS GOOD TO BE WITH YOU AGAIN, JUDGE. AND, UH, YOU'RE HERE VIRTUALLY. WE HAVE A QUORUM PRESENT. WE'RE READY TO PROCEED. THANK YOU. UM, SO NOW I'M GOING TO CALL THE ORDER, THE JOINT MEETING OF THE TRAVIS COUNTY COMMISSIONER'S COURT AND AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL. WE GOT HERE AT 700 LAVACA COMMISSIONER AND COMMISSIONER HOWARD AND MYSELF, AND THEN REMOTELY. WE HAVE COMMISSIONER, UH, SHEA AND COMMISSIONER GOMEZ. UM, NATE, DO WE HAVE ANY CALLERS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT? YOU HAVE NO CALLERS AT THIS TIME, JUDGE. OKAY. UH, SO TO HELP ENSURE THE EFFICIENT USE OF DR. ESCHATON DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARD'S TIME AND MANAGE THE LENGTH OF THE BRIEFING. WE'RE GOING TO LIMIT OURSELVES TO ONE QUESTION IN THE ORDER THAT WE CALL. SO I'LL CALL THE ORDER FOR COMMISSIONER'S COURT, AND THEN WE'LL GO OVER TO THE MAYOR FOR, UH, COUNCIL TO CALL THE ORDER AND TRY TO LIMIT OURSELVES FOR THAT FIRST ROUND TO ONE QUESTION EACH. AND IF TIME PERMITS WE'LL HAVE A SECOND ROUND OF QUESTIONS. AND SO I WILL GO AHEAD AND START, UM, OR ACTUALLY WE'RE GOING TO GO TO THE BRIEFING FIRST BEFORE QUESTIONS. THAT, THAT MAKES SENSE THERE. OKAY. SO FIRST, DR. S SCOTT, ARE YOU ON THE LINE AND AVAILABLE? YES, SIR. LET ME SHARE MY SCREEN AND I'LL GET STARTED. OKAY. GOOD MORNING, [1. Update on Covid-19 related matters.] JUDGE. MAYOR COUNCIL AND COMMISSIONER'S COURT, NOTHING FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO UPDATE THE CITY AND COUNTY ON OUR COVID-19 RESPONSE. I YESTERDAY WE REPORTED 677 NEW CASES IN TRAVIS COUNTY WITH A MOVING AVERAGE OF 577. UH, WE'VE HAD A SLIGHT UPTAKE IN THE PAST COUPLE OF DAYS IN REPORTING CASES. HOWEVER, OUR PEAK WAS NOW 16 DAYS AGO, UH, AND, UH, BASED UPON OUR, OUR POSITIVITY, OUR HOPE IS THAT THOSE NUMBERS WILL DROP AGAIN, UH, AND, UH, AND CONTINUE US IN A, IN A BETTER DIRECTION IN TERMS, IN TERMS OF OUR COVID-19 SITUATION HERE, THAT WE'LL, WE'LL CONTINUE TO FOLLOW THIS, UH, UH, THE NEW CASES AGAIN, UH, THIS WEEK, UH, THIS IS A GRAPH OF OUR NEW ADMISSIONS, UH, IN THE MSA YESTERDAY, I REPORTED 41 ADMISSIONS WITH THE MOVING AVERAGE OF 68, THAT PUTS OUR PEAK 24 DAYS AGO. UH, SO AGAIN, UH, AS YOU CAN SEE, COMPARED TO OUR PEAK IN JUNE AND JULY, IT'S BEEN A SLOWER DECLINE IN TERMS OF THE ADMISSIONS TO THE HOSPITAL, WHICH IS OUR KEY INDICATOR FOR STAGING. UH, BUT I'M HAPPY TO SAY THAT IT IS CONTINUING TO GO DOWN IN THE FACT THAT WE'VE SEEN SEVERAL DAYS, UH, WELL, BELOW THE MOVING AVERAGE INDICATES THAT, UH, THIS IS LIKELY TO CONTINUE TO PUSH DOWN IN THE SHORT, SURE. THIS GRAPH IS SHOWING THREE THINGS. THE BLUE IS THE TOTAL HOSPITAL BEDS BEING UTILIZED FOR COVID-19 PATIENTS, THE ORANGE OR THE ICU BEDS, THE GRAY, OR THE VENTILATORS BEING UTILIZED HOSPITALIZATIONS YESTERDAY 510 WITH A MOVING AVERAGE OF 538, UH, THAT INCLUDED 44 INDIVIDUALS IN THE ALTERNATE CARE SITE AT THE AUSTIN CONVENTION CENTER. THIS PUTS THE PEAK AT HOSPITALIZATIONS, UH, 14 DAYS AGO. UH, SO AGAIN, STILL MOVING IN A VERY GOOD DIRECTION AND, AND DROPPING A BIT MORE QUICKLY. NOW OUR ICU UTILIZATION YESTERDAY 151 WITH A MOVING AVERAGE OF ONE 57, UH, THAT PUTS THE PEAK 17 DAYS AGO FOR ICU OR VENTILATOR USAGE, 103 WITH A MOVING AVERAGE OF 97. UH, AGAIN, THIS HAS BEEN A BIT FLATTER AND WE'VE SEEN A SLIGHT UPTICK, UH, IN, IN THE PAST COUPLE OF DAYS, UH, BUT STILL THE PEAK 18 DAYS AGO. UH, SO AGAIN, ALL THESE METRICS CONTINUE TO MOVE IN A POSITIVE DIRECTION. OKAY. UH, WHEN WE LOOK AT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN TRAVIS COUNTY, UH, AS WELL AS THE OTHER METROPOLITAN, UH, TRAUMA SERVICE AREAS, UH, WE CAN SEE THAT THERE'S DECREASES ACROSS THE BOARD. AGAIN, AS [00:05:01] I REPORTED LAST WEEK, AUSTIN WAS THE LAST TRAUMA SERVICE AREA TO ENTER SURGE TRIGGERING GA 31 AND 32. AND WE WERE THE FIRST ONES TO COME OUT OF IT. UH, YESTERDAY HAVING 12.19% OF HOSPITALIZATIONS, UH, OR 12.19%, UH, OF THE, UH, AVAILABLE HOSPITAL BEDS UTILIZED FOR COVID-19 PATIENTS, YOU CAN SEE, UH, HOUSTON, UH, IS, UH, 17.09%, UH, EL PASO, 17.38% DALLAS, 18.82% IN SAN ANTONIO, 19.6, 6%. UH, SO QUITE QUITE A BIT OF VARIABILITY ACROSS THE METROPOLITAN, UH, JURISDICTIONS, BUT ALL MOVING IN THAT POSITIVE DIRECTION. AGAIN, THIS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THAT COVID TRAVELS EASILY. AND, UH, AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE, THE CHALLENGES THAT WE ALL FACE WHEN WE SEE SO MANY JURISDICTIONS FACING STRESS. UH, IT'S NICE TO SEE THAT ALL OF THEM NOW ARE MOVING IN A BETTER DIRECTION. UH, I DO WANT TO POINT OUT THOUGH, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF, UH, SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVITY TALKING ABOUT SYMMETRY, UH, COMPARING STATES THAT HAVE MUCH DIFFERENT POLICIES AND, AND SUGGESTING THAT, THAT COVID JUST DOES ITS THING. AND, UH, IN WHAT WE DO AS JURISDICTIONS DOESN'T MATTER THAT MUCH. UM, THAT'S NOT REALLY TRUE. AND THIS IS AN EXCELLENT EXAMPLE OF A LACK OF SYMMETRY WHEN IT COMES TO WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING OVER TIME ACROSS OUR OWN STATE AND ACROSS THESE METROPOLITAN JURISDICTIONS. NOW, WHAT I'M SHOWING YOU HERE IS BASED ON DSHS DATA, UH, FOR ACTIVE CASES BY COUNTY. UH, AGAIN, YOU CAN SEE, UH, THAT THERE'S QUITE A BIT OF REAGENT VARIATION, UH, OVER TIME AND, AND, UH, BY JURISDICTION, TRAVIS COUNTY IS THE DARK BLUE LINE AT THE BOTTOM. UH, WE'VE FOUND THE BOTTOM OF THIS GRAPH FOR QUITE SOME TIME. YOU CAN SEE THE PINK THAT I MENTIONED, UH, DISPLAYED ON THE, ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE SCREEN, UH, AND THE GENTLE DOWNWARD TREND. UH, WE CAN SEE THAT'S NOT BEEN THE CASE, UH, ACROSS ALL OF THESE METROPOLITAN AREAS. AND THERE'S BEEN QUITE A BIT OF VARIABILITY AND OBVIOUSLY QUITE A BIT OF VARIABILITY IN, IN POLICIES ASSOCIATED WITH, UH, THE COVID-19 RESPONSE. SIMILARLY, WE SAY, UH, A LACK OF SYMMETRY ASSOCIATED WITH, WITH DEATHS. WHAT I'M SHOWING YOU HERE IS, UH, DEATHS PER A HUNDRED THOUSAND POPULATION BY METROPOLITAN COUNTY. AGAIN, TRAVIS COUNTY AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LIST, UH, UH, IN THE DARK BLUE LINE WAS ABOUT 50 DEATHS PER A HUNDRED THOUSAND. UH, YOU CAN SEE THERE'S A CLUSTER, UH, BETWEEN 75 AND A HUNDRED PER A HUNDRED THOUSAND NOW, WHICH INCLUDES HARRIS COUNTY, TARRANT DALLAS, AND, UH, BEAR COUNTY. UH, AND THEN YOU SEE THIS, THIS CLUSTER AT THE TOP WITH, UH, LUBBOCK COUNTY AND EL PASO COUNTY AT THE TOP. UH, SO AGAIN, QUITE A BIT OF VARIABILITY IN TERMS OF, UH, THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON OUR POPULATION BASED ON JERSEY. THIS IS AN UPDATE OF THE PROJECTIONS FROM UT. UH, AGAIN, THESE WERE UPDATED THAT LAST ON SUNDAY, I BELIEVE. SO WE EXPECT THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE AN UPDATE TODAY. UH, I'LL TELL YOU THAT OUR ADMISSIONS ARE TRACKING WELL BELOW, UH, THE MEDIAN LINE, THE BLUE LINE THAT YOU SEE HERE, UH, RIGHT NOW THAT LINE IS SUGGESTING THAT WE'RE GOING TO, UH, DROP BELOW 60 ADMISSIONS ON THAT MOVING AVERAGE ON FEBRUARY THE 18TH. UH, I BRING UP 60 BECAUSE THE MODELING INDICATES TO US ONCE WE DROPPED BELOW 60, WE WOULDN'T BE SAFE TO TRANSITION BACK TO STAGE FOUR OF OUR COMMUNITY-BASED RISK. UH, SO WE WATCHING THIS CLOSELY AGAIN, WE'VE SEEN SOME SIGNIFICANT DROPS IN THE PAST FEW DAYS. MY HOPE IS THAT WE WILL SAY THAT DROP BELOW 60 SOONER THAN, UH, THAN MID FEBRUARY. BUT AGAIN, NOW THESE MODELS ARE BASED UPON, UH, THE, THE ACTIVITY THAT WE'RE SAYING, UH, THE MISSIONS THAT WE'RE SAYING AND THE MOBILITY DATA, UH, THAT FEEDS INTO THAT. SO IF WE CONTINUE THOSE PROTECTIVE ACTIONS, WE CONTINUE TO STAY HOME WHERE WE CAN. NOW WE CONTINUE TO, TO, TO LIMIT OUR INTERACTIONS WITH OTHER FOLKS. IT WILL HELP TO DROP THIS QUICKER AND, UH, PUT US IN A BETTER SITUATION TO, UH, TO DROP DOWN TO STAGE FOUR. AND WE SEE A SIMILAR TREND HERE WITH HOSPITALIZATIONS. UH, THE MEDIUM, UH, OF DROPPING BELOW 500 IS FEBRUARY 16TH, THE 17TH. AGAIN, YESTERDAY WE RECORDED 510. UH, SO THE, [00:10:01] UH, THE HOSPITALIZATION, UH, ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE TRACKING WELL BELOW THIS, UH, THIS MEDIUM LOOK LINE AGAIN, WE EXPECT THIS TO BE UPDATED AND, UH, AND, UH, THAT IT WILL SHOW A QUICKER DROP, UH, FOR THE, THE DROP BELOW THE 500 MORE. BUT WE SEE A SIMILAR PATTERN WITH THE ICU'S. THE MEDIAN PROJECTION IS, WILL DROP BELOW ONE 40 IN THE ICU ON FEBRUARY 18TH. UH, AGAIN, WE ARE TRACKING BELOW THE, THAT LINE NOW, ALREADY. SO IT, WE EXPECT IT TO BE EVEN BETTER BY, UH, BY MID FEBRUARY, IF WE CONTINUE THOSE PROTECTIVE ACTIONS THAT HAVE RESULTED IN THIS DOWNWARD TREND. UH, THIS IS A GRAPH OF THE, UH, THE HOSPITALIZATIONS, UH, BY RACE AND ETHNICITY AND BY WEEK, UH, YOU CAN SEE THAT, I'M SORRY, THIS IS, UH, BY AGE GROUP, MY APOLOGIES. UH, YOU SEE AN INCREASE IN THE 60 TO 69 AGE GROUP, UH, SOME SLIGHT DECREASES IN 70, 79 AGE GROUP AND THE 80 PLUS AGE GROUP. UH, I DO ALSO WANT TO POINT OUT THAT THERE'S AN INCREASE IN THE PERCENTAGE OF THE 20 TO 29 AGE GROUP, UH, THAT WE REPORTED LAST WEEK. UH, WHEN WE LOOK AT THIS GRAPH, WHICH PROVIDES THE NUMBERS OF INDIVIDUALS IN EACH OF THOSE AGE GROUPS, WE CAN SEE THAT OVERALL, OUR HOSPITALIZATIONS DROPPED BY ABOUT 20% LAST WEEK COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS WEEK FIVE OH FOUR TO 400. UH, WE'VE SEEN THAT SIGNIFICANT DROP ONE OH SEVEN TO 73 IN THE EIGHT PLUS AGE GROUP ONE OH EIGHT TO 83, AND THIS 70 TO 79 AGE GROUP, UH, AND A, A, YOU KNOW, RELATIVE, RELATIVELY THE SAME, UH, NUMBERS IN THE 60 69 AGE GROUP, 86 TO 87. UM, AGAIN, DOWN IN THE YELLOW BAR, WHICH IS THE 20 TO 29 AGE GROUP, WE MOVED UP FROM 28 ADMISSIONS TO 33 ADMISSIONS LAST WEEK. AGAIN, WHEN WE SEE THESE NUMBERS IN THESE LOWER AGE GROUP, IT INDICATES TO US SIGNIFICANT DISEASE TRANSMISSION, UH, IN, IN THOSE AGE GROUPS, BECAUSE THE, THE RISK OF BEING HOSPITALIZED IS SO SMALL. WE NEED A LARGE NUMBER OF ACTIVE CASES GOING ON IN THOSE AGE GROUPS TO, TO TRANSLATE TO THESE NUMBERS. AND ALSO AGAIN, BUT WE'RE REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON OLDER ADULTS. UM, WE DO NEED TO RECOGNIZE THAT YOUNGER PEOPLE ARE HOSPITALIZED, UH, SOME OF THEM, UH, HOSPITALIZED IN THE ICU. UH, SO EVERYBODY, REGARDLESS OF THEIR AGE, REGARDLESS OF THEIR PERCEIVED RISKS NEED TO TAKE THOSE PRECAUTIONS, UH, SO THAT WE CAN FURTHER DECREASE THE TRANSMISSION AND FURTHER IMPROVE OUR HOSPITALIZATION SITUATION. YEAH, THIS IS THE BREAKDOWN OF HOSPITALIZATIONS BY RACE AND ETHNICITY. AGAIN, A SLIGHT INCREASE IN OUR WHITE NON-HISPANIC, UH, HOSPITALIZATIONS LAST WEEK, 43.7% TO 46.9%, A RELATIVELY FLAT FOR OUR LATIN X COMMUNITY. AND IN THE GREEN, UH, 38.6 TO 38.1, A SLIGHT DECREASE IN OUR AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY, 12.1 TO 10.7. UH, SO AGAIN, NOT RELATIVELY FLAT AND THE OTHER, UH, RACE AND ETHNICITIES AT THE BOTTOM. NOW THAT IMPACT, UH, AGAIN, UH, BASED ON THE NUMBERS OF INDIVIDUALS HOSPITALIZED THAT ONE 77 TO ONE 42 FOR OUR, UH, LATIN X COMMUNITY, UH, FOR OUR WHITE, NON HISPANIC 200 TO ONE 75, UH, AND A SIGNIFICANT DROP IN OUR, UH, BLACK, NON HISPANIC, UH, 60 TO 40 LAST WEEK. UH, SO AGAIN, UH, ONGOING IMPROVEMENTS ACROSS RACES AND ETHNICITIES, UH, IN TERMS OF HOSPITALIZATIONS LAST WEEK, OUR POSITIVITY, UH, CONTINUES TO IMPROVE WEEKLY. UH, IT'S A, IT'S A SLOW IMPROVEMENT. UH, SO WE MOVED FROM 13.3%, TWO WEEKS AGO TO 11.7% POSITIVE LAST WEEK. UH, AGAIN, WE SEE RAPID INCREASES ON THE WAY UP AND SLOW INCREASES OUR SLOW DECREASES ON THE WAY DOWN. UH, AGAIN, IT'S STILL MOVING IN A GOOD DIRECTION, ALTHOUGH WELL, ABOVE THAT 5% MARK, UH, AND, UH, THE 3% MARK AS OUR GOALS FOR, UH, GETTING DOWN TO, UH, TO STAGE THREE NUMBERS. WE'RE LOOKING AT THAT BREAKDOWN OF POSITIVITY BY RACE AND ETHNICITY, OUR LATIN X COMMUNITY MOVED FROM POSITIVITY OF 20.3% TO 19.1% LAST WEEK, OUR AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE RIGHT 18.3 TO 19%. AFRICAN-AMERICAN 12.3%, TWO WEEKS AGO [00:15:01] TO 11.4% LAST WEEK, UH, OUR ASIAN AMERICAN POPULATION, 9.3% TO 12.1%. UH, SO AN INCREASE IN THAT GROUP AND ARE WHITE NON-HISPANIC 11.0 TO 9.7%. AGAIN, ALL OF OUR RACE AND ETHNICITIES ARE WELL ABOVE THAT 5% MARK. UH, SO WE HAVE MORE WORK TO DO, BUT AGAIN, THOSE PROTECTIVE ACTIONS THAT MASKING THE DISTANCING, STAYING HOME, IF YOU CAN, UH, ARE ALL HELPING TO CONTRIBUTE TO DECREASING TRANSMISSION. UH, SIMILARLY WE SEE, UH, DECREASES ACROSS OUR, UM, ACROSS OUR AGE, BRUCE, OUR 80 PLUS AGE GROUP MOVED FROM 19% POSITIVE TO MICS GO TO 13.8%. LAST WEEK ARE 10 TO 19 AGE GROUP. UH, 16.0% OF 13.5%, UH, ARE 50 TO 59 AGE GROUP, WHICH IS THE HIGHEST POSITIVITY BY AGE GROUP THIS WEEK, UH, 15% DOWN TO 14.1% LAST WEEK. UH, SO AGAIN, UH, IMPROVEMENTS ACROSS THOSE AGE GROUPS, WE HAVE TO CONTINUE THOSE EFFORTS AS THEY ARE ALL WELL ABOVE THAT 5% MARK. AND WHEN WE LOOK AT THE BREAKDOWN, UH, OF THAT, UH, THOSE YOUNGER AGE GROUPS BY, UH, HIGH SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOL, ELEMENTARY AND PRESCHOOL, WE SEE THE BREAKDOWN HERE, AGAIN, A HIGH SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOL ABOVE THE, UH, THE COMMUNITY POSITIVITY 11.9% FOR HIGH SCHOOL, 13.1% FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL, UH, AND OUR ELEMENTARY AND PRESCHOOL SLIGHTLY BELOW THAT COMMUNITY POSITIVITY, 10.6 AND 10.3%. YEAH, BUT THIS IS A, UH, UH, A TABLE OF OUR, UH, REPORTING CASES FROM SCHOOL DISTRICTS. THE TOTAL OF 183 STUDENTS REPORTED UPON SOME CASES INTO AUSTIN, PUBLIC HEALTH LAST WEEK, ONE OH FIVE STAFF, UH, AND THEN ONE VISITOR TO CAMPUS. UM, AGAIN, RELATIVELY STEADY IN TERMS OF, OF THE IMPACT ON OUR SCHOOLS, AT LEAST IN THE REPORTS TO US PUBLIC HEALTH AND TOTAL OF 289 CASES, UH, IN THE LAST WEEK. AND WE'LL LOOK AT THE QUARANTINE AGAIN. UH, WE SEE THE SUBSTANTIAL IMPACT OF, OF THESE CLOSE CONTACTS IN THE SCHOOL SETTING, UH, 1,834 STUDENTS, 343 STAFF, 2177 TOTAL. UM, AGAIN, DIRECTOR HAYDEN MAY TALK LATER, UH, BUT WE HAVE BEEN PRIORITIZING OUR ONE B TEACHERS SO THAT WE CAN PUT OUR SCHOOLS IN A BETTER TO MAINTAIN CONTINUITY OF EDUCATION. UH, AND WE WILL CONTINUE THOSE EFFORTS, UH, IN THE COMING WEEKS AS WELL. UH, SOME SLIGHT IMPROVEMENTS IN OUR NURSING HOME, UH, CASES TWO 73 IN THE PAST 14 DAYS, SIX 20 IN THE PREVIOUS 28 DAYS. UH, AGAIN, AS WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR MANY WEEKS NOW, AS WE SEE DECREASES IN THE POSITIVITY IN THE COMMUNITY, WE WILL SEE DECREASES IN CASES ASSOCIATED WITH NURSING HOMES AND ASSISTED LIVING FACILITIES. SO AGAIN, WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO PUSH THOSE TRENDS DOWN, UH, AND PROTECT THESE MOST VULNERABLE, UH, MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY, UH, BRIEFLY, UH, OUR FLARE REPORTS CONTINUE TO LOOK GOOD. 1.2, 5% POSITIVITY LAST WEEK AT 1.08% OVERALL, UH, LESS THAN A HUNDRED TOTAL POSITIVE CASES REPORTED TO AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, UH, FOR FLU THIS SEASON WITH MORE THAN 6,700 TESTS BEING PERFORMED. UH, AGAIN, THAT PUTS US, UH, CONTINUES US AT THE BOTTOM OF THE, UH, THE PREVIOUS FOUR YEARS TO TERMS OF FLU CASES AND INFLUENZA-LIKE ILLNESSES. UM, AGAIN, WE STILL HAVE SOME RISK, UH, AS WE'VE SEEN IN THE PAST, WE'VE SEEN SOME PEAKS THAT, UH, THAT HAPPENED IN FEBRUARY, BUT AGAIN, OUR HOPE IS THAT THOSE PROTECTIVE ACTIONS, THE MASKING, THE DISTANCING, THE HAND HYGIENE, STAYING HOME WHEN YOU'RE SICK ARE ALL CONTRIBUTING TO, UH, THE, UH, MAYBE RECORD INFLUENCE A YEAR THAT WE'RE SEEING HERE. AGAIN, UH, WE REMAIN IN STAGE FIVE WHERE OUR COMMUNITY-BASED RISK, UM, WHILE WE HAVE SEEN, UH, SOME RELAXATIONS, UM, FROM THE STATE RELATED TO OUR DECREASING, UH, SURGEON IN HOSPITALS, OUR RECOMMENDATIONS ARE A BIT STRICTER THAN THAT. UH, SO AGAIN, WE CONTINUED TO RECOMMEND NO GATHERING OUTSIDE OF ONCE HOUSEHOLD, UH, THAT DINING AND SHOPPING BE LIMITED TO ESSENTIAL TRIPS, UH, THAT NON ESSENTIAL TRAVEL BE AVOIDED AND THAT OUR BUSINESSES, UH, PRIMARILY OPERATE THROUGH CONTACTLESS OPTIONS, CURBSIDE DELIVERY TAKEAWAY [00:20:03] WITH THAT. I WILL PASS IT OVER TO DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARD. THANK YOU, DR. SCOTT. UM, NEXT SLIDE. UM, WE WANTED TO PROVIDE THIS, UM, ELIGIBILITY FLOW CHART, UM, FOR YOU, UM, AND BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW, UM, WITH FOCUSING ON ONE B, UM, THIS JUST KINDA SHOWS YOU, UM, IF, UH, IF A PERSON ENROLLS IN THE PLATFORM THEY'RE AGE 65, IT DOES LET YOU KNOW THAT IT IS TIME FOR YOU TO RECEIVE YOUR VACCINE. UM, IN ADDITION TO, UM, US FOCUSING ON PEOPLE THAT ARE OVER AGE 50 WITH A MEDICAL CONDITION AND HAS BEEN DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED BY COVID, UM, THAT GROUP OF PEOPLE, IT IS ALSO, UM, TIME FOR THEM TO RECEIVE THE VACCINE. UM, HOWEVER WE KNOW THAT, UM, WE ARE DEFINITELY LIMITED, LIMITED IN THE NUMBER OF VACCINES, AND SO IT'S GOING TO BE IMPORTANT FOR FOLKS TO KNOW THAT, UM, WE'RE DEFINITELY PUTTING PEOPLE ON A WAIT LIST, UM, AND WHEN MORE VACCINE IS AVAILABLE, WE WILL BE REACHING OUT TO THEM. NEXT SLIDE. UM, THIS JUST GIVES JUST AN UPDATE OF, OF WHERE WE ARE WITH, UM, WITH VACCINES. UM, WE RECEIVED, UM, 12,000 ADDITIONAL VACCINES THIS WEEK. UM, LAST WEEK WE OPERATED, UM, THREE SITES, TWO WERE, UM, WERE CLOSED, I MEAN, WANT TWO OR OPEN SIZE DELCO. AND THOSE SCREENS ONE WAS A CLOSED SITE. UM, AS DR F SCOTT SHARED EARLIER, WE ARE CONTINUING TO PRIORITIZE, UM, OUR, OUR EDUCATIONAL, UM, FOLKS, UM, AND WORKING WITH HOTLINE, UM, SCHOOLS, STAFF WE'RE CONTINUING TO, TO WORK WITH THEM, UM, THAT NOT ONLY INCLUDES TEACHERS, IT IS TEACHERS IT'S, UM, CUSTODIANS. IT IS, UM, BUS DRIVERS, UM, UH, CAFETERIA WORKERS, UM, THAT FALL INTO THAT ONE B IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, WORKING, UM, WE SENT STAFF SEND OUT A SURVEY TO CHILDCARE, UM, PROVIDERS. UM, SO WE CAN GET AN IDEA OF HOW MANY FOLKS ARE IN, IN THAT, UM, AREA, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT, UM, THEY CANNOT SAFELY, UM, YOU KNOW, WORK WITH CHILDREN BECAUSE THE CHILDREN ARE YOUNG AND THEY CAN'T WEAR THE MASK. AND SO WE'RE CONTINUING TO HAVE THAT, UM, THAT PRIORITY IS AS ONE OF OUR, IS OUR FOCUS, UM, WITH, WITH SECOND DOSES, UM, AS MOST OF, YOU KNOW, SOME FOLKS HAVE ALREADY, YOU'VE ALREADY STARTED CONTACTING FOLKS ABOUT, UM, COMING IN TO TAKE THEIR SECOND BELLOWS, ONE WORD OF CAUTION. IF YOU HAVE CONSTITUENTS THAT DID NOT RECEIVE THEIR VACCINE WITH AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, THE FIRST ONE, THEY CANNOT RECEIVE THEIR SECOND ONE FROM US, THE WAY THE STATE OF TEXAS IS ALLOCATING THOSE VACCINES IS, IS THAT THEY'RE SENDING THEM TO THEIR, TO US, ACCORDING TO HOW MANY VACCINES WE PROVIDED THE FIRST GO ROUND. AND SO, UM, SO WE HAVE A VERY STRICT, UM, ALLOCATION WITH THE SECOND VACCINE. SO UNFORTUNATELY, YOU KNOW, FOLKS THAT MAY HAVE, YOU KNOW, TRAVELED TO HOUSTON OR SAN ANTONIO OR SOMEWHERE ELSE TO GET THAT FIRST, UM, WE'RE GONNA ASK THAT THEY TRY TO GO BACK TO, UM, TO THOSE AREAS TO RECEIVE THAT SECOND VACCINE, THAT ALLOCATION, UM, SHOULD GO BACK TO THAT AREA. AND SO WE'RE ASKING THEM TO REACH BACK OUT TO THAT, THAT SERVICE AREA AND, UM, GO BACK TO THAT PROVIDER. AND SO WE WILL CONTINUE TO BE PROACTIVE, UM, ABOUT SCHEDULING FOLKS TO GO AHEAD AND COME IN TO RECEIVE THE SECOND DOSE. IN ADDITION, UM, WITH OUR SYSTEM RIGHT NOW, WE HAVE 532,339, UM, INDIVIDUALS THAT HAVE SET UP ACCOUNTS ON SALESFORCE. UM, AND SO AS YOU CAN SEE IF WE'RE RECEIVING 12,000 VACCINES A WEEK, UM, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE ELIGIBILITY OF WHAT I SHOWED YOU FROM THE FLOW CHART, LOOKING AT PEOPLE THAT ARE 50 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER, THAT FIT THAT ONE BIG CRITERIA THAT IS 188,825 PEOPLE THAT ARE ELIGIBLE, UM, THAT NEED AN APPOINTMENT. AND SO, AS YOU [00:25:01] CAN TELL AT 12,000 VACCINES A WEEK, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO BE PROBABLY 16 WEEKS OUT FROM NOW, BEFORE WE'RE ABLE TO PROVIDE, UM, VACCINES. AND THAT'S, IF WE JUST KIND OF STAY UP AS 12,000 VACCINES A WEEK. AND SO IT'S GOING TO BE SO IMPORTANT FOR US JUST TO, YOU KNOW, JUST TELL FOLKS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH OUR, OUR, OUR SYSTEM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE UPDATING THE SYSTEM, BUT THERE THERE'S QUITE A FEW USERS IN THE SYSTEM. AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE'RE GONNA DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO GET TO PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, IN A TIMELY MANNER, UM, WITH OUR MOBILE VACCINES, UM, WE'VE STARTED OUR, UM, CONVERSATIONS AND ARE LOOKING AT WHAT THAT MOBILE, UH, VACCINE TEAM WOULD BE. SO WHEN WE'RE STAYING WITHIN THE 12,000 VACCINES PER WEEK, UM, WE HAVE STARTED TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS, UM, WITH, UM, WITH PROVIDERS. UM, WE HAD CONVERSATION WITH THE, WITH THE HOUSING AUTHORITY. AND SO, UM, WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IS, IS THAT, YOU KNOW, BASED UPON THE FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVE FROM INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE, UM, SENIORS OR PEOPLE WITH, UM, WITH A DISABILITY, UM, THAT WOULD PREFER TO HAVE THE VACCINE PROVIDED AT HOME. UM, WE ARE GOING TO, UM, START THAT PROCESS LATER ON THIS MONTH. THE OTHER, UM, CHANGE WITH, UM, APPOINTMENTS IS, IS ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY ONLY. THOSE ARE GOING TO BE THE ONLY TWO DAYS THAT WE ARE GOING TO RELEASE APPOINTMENTS. I UNDERSTAND THAT FOLKS, UM, ARE, ARE CONCERNED AND THEY'RE CHECKING THE WEBSITE EVERY DAY. UM, SO WE'RE MOVING TO A PLACE WHERE WE'RE ONLY GOING TO RELEASE APPOINTMENTS ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY OF EACH WEEK, IF THINGS CHANGE AND WE GET MORE VACCINES, THEN OF COURSE WE WILL RELEASE, UM, MORE APPOINTMENTS. NEXT SLIDE. UM, WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL, UM, FOR THE CALL CENTER, UM, PARTNERSHIP, UM, ON THE, UM, AGENDA FOR TODAY WITH TRAVIS COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COURT IS A, UH, IS AN MOU AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN. AND SO, UM, TRAVIS COUNTY, UM, STAFF WERE TRAINED ON YESTERDAY. UM, WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE DOING, UM, ADDITIONAL TRAINING, BUT THEY ARE GOING TO HELP US WITH OUTBOUND CALLS, UM, TO ASSIST FOLKS WITH REGISTRATION. UM, AND THEN THEY'RE GOING TO NOTIFY OTHERS, UM, AND PROVIDE THEM AN APPOINTMENT. AND SO, UM, IF THIS IS APPROVED TODAY, UM, THIS WILL BE IN EFFECT UNTIL THE END OF MARCH. AND SO, UM, THIS IS GOING TO SIGNIFICANTLY HELP US WITH INDIVIDUALS THAT THEY HAVE HAD CHALLENGES WITH REGISTRATION OR HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT I'VE REGISTERED AND I DON'T HAVE AN APPOINTMENT. AND SO, UM, THEY'RE GOING TO BE CALLING STAFF AND IN, I MEAN, THEY'RE GOING TO CALL RESIDENTS AND HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH THEM, UM, MAKE SURE THEY HAVE WHAT THEY NEED, BUT THEN EACH WEEK WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO, UM, PROVIDE SOME APPOINTMENTS TO THEM AS WELL. NEXT SLIDE, WHEN WE, WHEN WE KIND OF LOOK AT, UM, PRIORITIES THAT AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH HAS, UM, THESE ARE OUR PRIORITIES AND AREAS THAT WE ARE DEFINITELY GOING TO CONTINUE TO FOCUS IN ON. UM, OUR GOAL IS, IS THAT EVERY WEEK, UM, WE WANT TO, WHATEVER ALLOCATION WE HAVE COMING IN FROM THE STATE EXAMPLE WE'VE BEEN RECEIVING, UM, 12,000 VACCINES, THE GOAL IS, IS TO CONTINUE TO, UM, GET THOSE VACCINES OUT IN A FAST, EFFICIENT, AND EFFECTIVE WAY. UM, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE GETTING OUR DATA ENTRY, UM, INTO THE STATE SYSTEM IN ANY REPORTS THAT WE HAVE THAT NEED TO GO BACK. IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, WE'RE, WE MUST MAKE SURE FROM A DIVERSITY PERSPECTIVE THAT WE ARE REACHING PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTED BY COVID. SO, YOU KNOW, WORKING, UM, WITH, WITH GROUPS AND AGENCIES, RESTROOMS ORGANIZATIONS, UM, TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY, UM, FOLKS THAT MAY NOT BE ABLE TO GET INTO OUR REGISTRATION SYSTEM, UM, IN ORDER FOR US TO SERVE, UM, MORE FOLKS THAT HAVE BEEN DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTED BY COBIA OUR REGISTRATION SYSTEM. UM, MAKING SURE THAT, UM, INCOMING CALLS ARE ANSWERED, UM, AS YOU ALL KNOW, WHERE WE WORKING WITH THE COUNTY THAT'S APPROVED, BUT INTERNALLY WE'VE SET UP MORE FOLKS TO BE ABLE [00:30:01] TO, UM, TO ANSWER CALLS. SO, UM, AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH HAS REASSIGNED SOME FOLKS WITHIN OUR, OUR TRADITIONAL WORKFORCE. UM, AND SO THAT MAY MEAN THAT SOME OTHER THINGS ARE GOING TO HAVE TO BE DELAYED, UM, BECAUSE WE NEED TO MAKE THIS OUR PRIORITY. AND THEN WE WANT TO MAKE SURE TO PROVIDE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR FOLKS THAT ARE ENROLLING, UH, WITH OUR TESTING SITES. UM, RIGHT NOW, UM, WE HAVE OUR, OUR TESTING SITES THAT WE DO HAVE AVAILABLE. WE WILL CONTINUE TO DO HOME TESTING, UH, BUT UNFORTUNATELY, AS OF NOW, WE HAD TO, UM, CLOSE DOWN GIVENS, MONTOPOLIS AND WALNUT CREEK. UH, WE HAVE REASSIGNED, UM, PEOPLE THAT WERE WORKING THERE, UH, TO THE VACCINATION PODS, OUR EPIDEMIOLOGISTS, AS YOU ALL KNOW, WE CONTINUE TO HAVE, UM, A LARGE NUMBER OF CASES COMING IN, AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, THE DATA ENTRY IS HAPPENING IN A TIMELY MANNER. AND SO WE NEED TO, UM, ADDRESS THOSE ISSUES. OUR INCIDENT COMMAND TEAMS WILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR FOLKS IN, IN SCHOOLS, WHETHER IT'S, UM, CHILDCARE, UM, UH, UH, SCHOOL, HIGH SCHOOLS, ET CETERA, BUT ALSO, UM, HIGHER EDUCATION. AND THEN WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO, UH, WORK WITH OUR LONG-TERM CARE FACILITIES. AND THAT'S GONNA BE THE TEAM THAT IS GOING TO BE, UM, HELPING OUT WITH THE MOBILE, UM, VACCINES. WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE OUR ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS BECAUSE WE KNOW WE'RE GOING TO, UM, AS WE, YOU KNOW, THINGS START TO CHANGE AND WE SHIFT BACK TO, UM, TO STAGE FOUR, WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO CONTINUE THOSE EFFORTS. AND THEN WE, UM, JUST NEED TO MAKE SURE ALL OF OUR DASHBOARDS, UM, ARE WORKING PROPERLY. UM, WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF WORKING ON OUR VACCINE DASHBOARD, WHICH WILL ONLY HAVE AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH DATA IN IT. UM, AND SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT DASHBOARD IS UPDATED WEEKLY. UM, AS STATED EARLIER, YOU KNOW, WE'LL CONTINUE TO COORDINATE WITH THE ALTERNATIVE CHAIR SITE AND THE, UM, INFUSION, UM, FOR THE MEDICAL TREATMENTS. UM, THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION AND I AM AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE TIME. THANK YOU, DIRECTOR, HIDDEN HOWARD. WE'RE GOING TO FIRST GO TO COMMISSIONER MARGARET GOMEZ FOR A QUESTION. UM, IS, IS IT POSSIBLE FOR FOLKS TO ALSO CALL THREE, ONE, ONE TO REGISTER, UH, WHEN THEY HAD, UH, SOME DIFFICULT TO GETTING THROUGH, THEY WONDER WHY THEY CAN'T JUST CALL IT THREE, ONE, ONE OR TWO, ONE, ONE, WHATEVER IS AVAILABLE THAT THEY CAN CALL THREE, ONE, ONE, BUT WHAT THREE, ONE, ONE WILL DO IS TAKE DOWN THEIR INFORMATION. IT'S LIKE ANY OTHER KIND OF SERVICE REQUESTS WHERE THEY TAKE DOWN THEIR INFORMATION, AND THEN THEY DAILY, THEY SEND IT OVER TO AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH. IT'S THE AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH WILL CALL THEM BACK OR LOOK, THE OTHER CENTER IS STOOD UP. SOMEONE FROM THERE MAY COME BACK. OKAY. THAT SOUNDS LIKE A NICE SHORTCUT FOR THEM, UH, TO NOT HIT. 'EM TOO FRUSTRATED ABOUT GETTING THROUGH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER FOR THE QUESTION. UM, I, UM, THIS IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE FOR DR. ESCADA AND I, AND I GUESS IT WOULD PRESUME SOME AWARENESS OF, UM, WHAT THE STATE MEDICAL EXPERTS ON COVID ARE RECOMMENDING TO THE GOVERNOR. BUT, UM, I, I SHARE THE DISMAY THAT'S BEEN, UM, RAISED BY OTHER STATE LEGISLATORS. DO YOU HAVE ANY INSIGHT AS TO WHY THE GOVERNOR WOULD NOT HAVE MADE DEALING WITH COVID AN EMERGENCY ITEM? I MEAN, THE STUFF HE LISTED, IT ISN'T, CAN'T EVEN COMPARE TO 30, ALMOST 36,000 PEOPLE IN TEXAS BEING KILLED, PARTLY BECAUSE THERE HASN'T BEEN A GOOD MECHANISM FOR HELPING PEOPLE. UM, AND WHAT DO YOU KNOW IF THE STATE HEALTH DIRECTOR I'M NOT EVEN SURE THE RIGHT TERM WOULD HAVE RECOMMENDED SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO THE GOVERNOR? I JUST, I CAN'T FATHOM THIS. SO ANY INSIGHT YOU HAVE ON IT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL, UH, COMMISSIONER, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT THE COBRA IS OBVIOUSLY A TOP PRIORITY FOR OUR STATE, UH, WHETHER OR NOT IT WAS, IT WAS SAID LAST NIGHT OR NOT. UH, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE'VE GOT TO BEGIN THAT DISCUSSION OF, OF HOW DO WE STRENGTHEN OUR INFRASTRUCTURE. HOW DO WE PREPARE FOR PANDEMICS BETTER IN THE FUTURE? UH, HOW DO WE IMPROVE THE, THE FUNCTIONALITY OF THE FATE, UH, DEPARTMENT [00:35:01] OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES, UH, IN EMERGENCY SITUATIONS LIKE THIS? I THINK WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO, UH, IN, IN PREPARING FOR, FOR THE DECK FOR ME. UH, I HOPE IT'S NOT IN ANY OF OUR LIFETIMES. WHAT WE DO HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT, UH, AS THE WORLD'S POPULATION GROWS, THESE KINDS OF THINGS MAY BECOME MORE FREQUENT. I AGREE WITH YOU THERE, THERE ARE SO MANY COVID RELATED ISSUES, UH, THAT, UH, MY HOPE IS THAT, THAT IT WILL BE A PRIORITY FOR, FOR THIS SESSION. THANK YOU. THANKS COMMISSIONER. UM, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR ALL THE HARD WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE. UH, YOU KNOW, I'VE CALLED YOU GUYS EARLY IN THE MORNING. I'VE CALLED YOU GUYS LATE AT NIGHT, AND YOU'VE ALWAYS RESPONDED AND TRIED TO WORK WITH US. SO I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THAT. UM, MY QUESTION IS, UM, HOW QUICKLY OR WHETHER WE CAN BUILD A SPECIFIC PLAN THAT WILL ALLOW US TO ORGANIZE AROUND COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS IN AUSTIN AND IN THE EASTERN CRESCENT, I'VE HAD A NUMBER OF CHURCHES, BAPTIST METHODIST, SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS, ALL THAT HAVE NURSES THAT WANT TO HELP US THAT WANT TO PRESENT THEIR INSTITUTIONS. I'VE HAD THE NAACP CALL ME, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH TITLE ONE SCHOOLS. THESE ARE AREAS THAT ARE KIND OF OFF THE BEATEN PATH, AND I'M WANT TO DEVELOP A SPECIFIC PROGRAM TO ADDRESS AVAILABILITY IN THOSE AREAS. HOW CAN WE PUT THAT TOGETHER QUICKLY? UH, I CAN, UM, I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND YOUR QUESTION IS THE QUESTION TO PUT TOGETHER. I CAN ASK IT BETTER CHURCHES THAT WANT TO, UH, THAT THAT WANTS TO BE PLACES WHERE, UH, COMMUNITY MEMBERS CAN COME. THEY'RE TRUSTED COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND THEY WANT TO BE HELPFUL. I KNOW THAT THAT WE'VE GOT, WE'VE GOT CENTERS AND OFTENTIMES CENTERS HAVE LONG LINES OF PEOPLE. UH, MANY PEOPLE ARE AFRAID TO COME INTO LONG LINES, SO THEY WANT TO ORGANIZE INSTITUTIONS. SO THAT RATHER THAN BEING WITHIN WALKING PLACE, PEOPLE CAN COME THERE, UH, WHETHER, WHETHER IT'S FOR AFFIRMATION SIGNING UP, EVEN SHOTS, I'M TRYING TO GET A BETTER OUTREACH INFRASTRUCTURE INTO THE EASTERN GRASS. UM, I THINK WHAT PROBABLY WOULD BE HELPFUL, UM, IF, IF YOU AND I BET OUTSIDE OF THIS PLATFORM, UM, JUST TO KIND OF DETERMINE, AND IF THERE'S OTHER PEOPLE YOU'D LIKE TO BE PRESENT FOR, UM, FROM THE COMMUNITY, UM, WE'D BE WILLING TO HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH THEM. OKAY. I WILL. I WILL. UH, I'LL GIVE YOU A CALL TODAY. THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. COULD YOU PUT THE SLIDE UP ONE MORE TIME OF THE FLOW CHART OF THE, WHETHER YOU'RE ELIGIBLE OR NOT FOR THE VACCINATION? I THINK THAT'S PRETTY GOOD. AND I WANTED TO SNAP A PICTURE OF IT SO WE CAN SHARE IT WIDELY. IS THAT POSSIBLE TO PUT THAT BACK UP? I CAN COMMISSIONER, I BELIEVE YOU ALSO RECEIVED IT IN YOUR PACKET. OH, PERFECT. I CAN HAVE IT. THANK YOU FOR MAKING IT VISUAL LIKE THAT. YOU BET. ALL RIGHT. I GOT YOUR HIDDEN HEART. I'M SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THE CALL CENTER AND, UH, THAT YOU AND, UH, DANA AND OTHERS HAVE WORKED TO MAKE, MAKE A REALITY. JUST WANTING TO CHECK IS THE, WHO ARE THEY GOING TO BE CALLING FROM THIS CALL CENTER? IS IT, UH, ARE WE ABLE TO FOCUS IT ON PEOPLE WHO ARE LATINO, BLACK AND HARDEST HIT ZIP CODES, OR IS IT A BROADER UNIVERSE THAN THAT? COULD YOU DO YOU KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT? UH, SO RIGHT NOW, UM, WE'RE GOING TO ASK THEM TO, UM, TO TARGET ON FOLKS THAT ARE, UM, EIGHT YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER, AND, UM, ANYONE THAT WE MAY HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO CALL THROUGH OUR EFFORTS. UM, SO THAT COULD BE, YOU KNOW, A KIND OF A BROAD GROUP OF FOLKS. UM, TH THESE ARE PEOPLE THAT HAVE TYPICALLY NOT BEEN ABLE TO REGISTER FOR THE PROCESS, SO THEY'RE GOING TO HELP THEM TO, UM, SERVE THEM AN ACCOUNT AND THAT SYSTEM AS WELL. SO IT'S GOTTA BE A COMBINATION OF FOLKS. AND SO EACH WEEK THEY WILL BE ABLE TO, UM, TO MAKE THOSE CALLS, THOSE OUTBOUND CALLS TO ASSIST WITH, UM, ASSISTING WITH THE REGISTRATION PROCESS AND THEN ALSO SCHEDULING APPOINTMENTS. OKAY. I'D [00:40:01] LOVE IT. IF WE COULD TARGET THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE TO TRY TO INCREASE THE, THE EQUITY PIECE. I THINK THAT'S, THAT WAS FRANKLY MY GOAL WITHOUT, AND SO I'LL, I'LL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH YOU TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN DO THAT. AND WITH THAT MAYOR, I WILL PASS IT OVER TO YOU, JUDGE. THANK YOU. AND AS I POSTED, WE'RE GOING TO DO THIS IN REVERSE COUNCIL DISTRICT ORDER NUMBER ALTERNATE. GOOD MORNING. GOOD MORNING. AND THANK YOU. UM, AND I APPRECIATE, UM, DOCTOR DIRECTOR, HAYDEN HOWARD MEETING WITH MY STAFF AND I, UM, AND SOME OF HER TEAM YESTERDAY TO TALK ABOUT HOW WE COULD BETTER ASSIST SOME OF OUR HOME BOUND SENIORS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH GROUPS LIKE DRIVE A SENIOR. AND I THINK WE HAVE SOME GOOD NEXT STEPS. SO I JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO WORK WITH US ON THAT. UM, I WANTED TO ASK ONE QUICK CLARIFICATION AND, UM, THEN A SLIGHTLY BROADER QUESTION. UM, I MISSED WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT, UM, HOW WE WERE TARGETING STAFF IN OUR SCHOOLS, UM, LIKE FRAY ISD, UM, WHO HAVE NOT YET BEEN VACCINATED. SO IF YOU COULD, UM, ELABORATE ON THAT A LITTLE BIT. UM, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, AS WE, AS WE STILL HEAR, YOU KNOW, THERE'S DIFFERENT COMPONENTS OF THE REGISTRATION PROCESS, UM, WHICH ARE PROVING FRUSTRATING, UM, AND THERE IS A PIECE OF IT THAT IS STILL THAT, YOU KNOW, TECHNOLOGY, UM, WHEN YOU REGISTER AND THEN YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO KEEP FISHING FOR MORE APPOINTMENTS, UM, WE STILL NEED TO FIX THAT. SO THAT FOLKS KNOW ONCE YOU'RE IN THE SYSTEM, IT WOULD BE MUCH BETTER IF IT WAS JUST ONCE YOU WERE IN THE SYSTEM, YOU WERE IN THE QUEUE AND YOU WERE, YOU WERE CONTACTED AND THERE WAS NO OPTION TO KEEP GOING BACK AND KEEP TRYING, UM, TO GET IN, TO GET YOUR APPOINTMENT. UM, AND THEN THERE'S ANOTHER PIECE WHERE FOLKS ARE WHEN THEY ARE GOING BACK FOR THEIR APPOINTMENT, THEY HAVE TO KEEP RE ENTERING EVERYTHING THAT THEY'VE ALREADY GIVEN BEFORE. UM, AND THAT'S PROVING FRUSTRATING. AND SO, UM, I WANTED TO ASK IF YOU COULD SPEAK ABOUT HOW WE ARE WORKING TO IMPROVE, UM, THOSE PROCESSES GIVEN, ESPECIALLY AS YOU JUST SAID, THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, 10 TO 14 WEEKS, JUST WITH ONE B AT THIS POINT. UM, SO PEOPLE AREN'T SPENDING THAT ENTIRE TIME, UM, TRYING TO GAME THE SYSTEM AND, AND GET IN, UM, IS THERE A BETTER, IS THERE A WAY IN, IN MOTION, UM, THAT WOULD FIX THINGS? UM, SO THE FIRST QUESTION, UM, WAS ABOUT THE EDUCATION PRIORITY. UM, OUR GOAL IS, IS TO, IS THE ONE V POPULATION, UM, IN SCHOOLS PERIOD. SO IT IS, UM, PUBLIC SCHOOL, PRIVATE SCHOOL AND SCHOOL WHERE WE ARE ADDRESSING THAT AREA FOR ONE B UM, FOLKS THAT MEET THAT CRITERIA. UM, THE SECOND, UM, UH, QUESTION THAT YOU ASKED, UM, WHAT WE THINK IS GOING TO HELP, UM, IS, IS WE ARE ONLY GOING TO RELEASE THE APPOINTMENTS ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY AWFULLY. UM, ANY OTHER DAYS DURING THE WEEK, THEY DO NOT NEED TO GO LOOKING FOR APPOINTMENTS BECAUSE WE'RE ONLY GONNA RELEASE THEM ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY. UM, I THINK THE OTHER QUESTION THAT YOU HAVE, UM, THAT IS A PART OF OUR SCREENING PROCESS, UM, WE'RE, WE'RE ASKING THEM QUESTIONS, UM, WHEN THEY GO BACK HERE TO REGISTER FOR AN APPOINTMENT, UM, IT IS, UM, QUESTIONS THAT WE RECEIVED FROM THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES IS ASKING THEM HOW THEY HAD COVID YET, UH, BECAUSE THEY COULD HAVE REGISTERED LAST WEEK AND SINCE THEN THEY MAY HAVE HAD COVID. SO THERE'S THEIR SCREENING QUESTIONS THAT WE MUST ASK THEM, AND THEN THEY'RE ABLE TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT. BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE STILL ASK THEM WHEN THEY GET TO THE LOCATION, BECAUSE THERE MAY HAVE BEEN A DAY OR SO THAT HAVE GONE, BUT WE STILL HAVE TO ASK THAT QUESTION. AND SO THOSE QUESTIONS WILL NOT, WE WILL NOT TAKE THOSE AWAY, UM, BECAUSE THEY THEY'RE A PRIORITY THAT WE ASKED THEM THAT. UM, AND SO I THINK THAT THE CHANGE OF TUESDAY AND THURSDAY ONLY IS, IS DEFINITELY GOING TO HELP THE POPULATION. IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, I, I FEEL LIKE THE CALL CENTER ASPECT, WHERE WE ARE INCREASING THE ABILITY PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO CALL AND LEAVE A MESSAGE AND OUR FOLKS ABLE TO, UM, HAVE OUTBOUND CALLS, UM, THAT WILL HELP WITH FOLKS AS WELL. THANK YOU. AND I APPRECIATE THAT CLARITY ON THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU KNOW, THAT SOME OF THOSE QUESTIONS ARE REPEATS THAT NEED TO BE UPDATED AS YOU GET CLOSER, IF THERE'S ANY DELAY. I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S HELPFUL FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE NOT ABLE TO GET INTO THE SYSTEM AND GET THAT FAR TO EXPERIMENT TO SEE WHAT'S GOING ON. SO, SO I APPRECIATE THAT. UM, [00:45:01] I, I UNDERSTAND HOW JUST LIMITING TO TUESDAY AND THURSDAY SEEMS LIKE IT WOULD BE BETTER THAN EVERY DAY. I JUST STILL WISH THAT WE COULD GET TO A SYSTEM WHERE, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS SOME KIND OF AUTOMATED WAITLIST AND YOU WERE CONTACTED AND THOSE, THOSE, UM, THOUGHTS WERE OPEN FOR THAT GROUP RATHER THAN SENDING 500,000 PEOPLE ON TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS TO CRASH THE SYSTEM. UM, I'M NOT, I'M NOT TECHNICAL LITERATE ENOUGH TO KNOW WHAT THE SOLUTION IS, BUT I AM CONCERNED ABOUT HOW THAT PLAYS OUT OVER TIME. SO THANK YOU. OH, THANK YOU. THANKS VERY MUCH FOR THIS INFORMATION. I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS, BUT THEY'RE EXTREMELY QUICK AND REALLY JUST VERY BASICALLY JUST VERIFYING THE INFORMATION THAT WE'VE HEARD, DIRECTOR AND HOWARD, UM, THE 188,000 OR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE ELIGIBLE THEY'RE SOMEWHERE. IN OTHER WORDS, THERE'S SOMEWHERE ON THE FLOW CHART AND THAT EQUATES TO 16 WEEKS. IS THAT CORRECT? YES. AND THAT'S AS A SEVEN 45 THIS MORNING. THANKS FOR THAT. I THINK THAT IS VERY HELPFUL DATA TO PROVIDE TO OUR CONSTITUENTS SO THAT THEY UNDERSTAND, UM, WHY THOUGH THEY ARE ELIGIBLE. IT IS, I MEAN, TO GET A REALLY SENSE OF SCALE IN TERMS OF THE WEIGHT. AND I ASSUME THAT THE CALL CENTER IS ALSO FOR INDIVIDUALS GETTING ERROR MESSAGES, OR THEY HAVEN'T RECEIVED A SECOND EMAIL REGARDING VACCINE IT'S FOR ALL OF THOSE ISSUES, VACS, JENS ABOUT THE VACCINE, BUT ALSO TECH SUPPORT. THANK YOU. AND THEN MY LAST QUESTION IS THE, UM, DR. S SCOTT ON THE TRAVIS COUNTY SCHOOLS SITE, WE ARE, WE'VE HAD THIS CONVERSATION BEFORE ABOUT, UM, WHAT INFORMATION EACH INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL IS PROVIDING AND THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, AS WE'VE DISCUSSED BEFORE AISD, AT LEAST NEVER IDENTIFIES WHETHER IT IS STUDENT TRANSMISSION OR TEACHER TRANSMIT STUDENT CASES OR TEACHER STAFF CASES WHEN, WHEN WE, AS PARENTS GET THOSE LETTERS. BUT I NOTICED YOU ARE BREAKING IT DOWN HERE. UM, IN THE PAST, YOU'VE MENTIONED THAT MOST OF THE STUDENT TRANSMISSION APPEARS TO BE HAPPENING IN EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES. DO YOU HAVE ANY SENSE OF HOW THE STAFF IN THESE SCHOOLS, WHAT THEIR, WHAT THE TRANSMISSION MECHANISM WAS FOR THOSE STAFF? AND CAN YOU HELP US UNDERSTAND WHY THOSE LETTERS ARE SO VERY GENERAL, EVEN IN TERMS OF IDENTIFYING STUDENTS VERSUS STAFF? SURE. UH, SO FOR STAFF CASES THAT, YOU KNOW, GENERALLY WHAT WE'RE SAYING IS YOU ALWAYS SEE, UH, CASES RELATED TO CAMPUS. UH, IT OFTEN DOES INVOLVE, UH, FACULTY WHO ARE ASSOCIATED WITH EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES, UH, COACHES, FOR INSTANCE, UH, WE SEE TRANSMISSION IN SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS, UM, UH, WHERE TEACHERS ARE EXPOSED, UH, AS WELL AS, UH, AS HOUSEHOLD TRANSMISSION. SO THEY'RE, THEY'RE GETTING IT FROM SOMEONE ELSE IN THE HOUSEHOLD. UM, WE HAVEN'T SEEN ANY, AGAIN, ANY CLEAR EVIDENCE OF, OF TRANSMISSION IN THE CLASSROOM SPACE FROM STUDENTS TO TEACHERS. UM, AGAIN, YOU KNOW, WE ARE ALL CONCERNED ABOUT THE VARIANCE AND THE POSSIBILITY THAT THAT MAY, UH, INCREASE THE LIKELIHOOD OF A CLASSROOM-BASED TRANSMISSION, BUT THE DATA WE HAVE SO FAR IS STILL INDICATING THAT THE MASKING AND THE DISTANCING, THE HAND HYGIENE IS STILL EFFECTIVE REGARDING THE, THE DATA, UH, THAT'S TRANSMITTED BY THE SCHOOLS. UH, IT GENERALLY TENDS TO LACK SPECIFIC DETAIL, UH, THAT WOULD, THAT MAY ALLOW INDIVIDUALS TO IDENTIFY A PARTICULAR PERSON WHO WAS POSITIVE. UH, FOR INSTANCE, IF, IF THERE WAS A TEACHER WHO WAS IN THE CLASSROOM YESTERDAY AND, AND NOT THE FOLLOWING DAY, AND YOU GOT A NOTE SAYING A TEACHER, UH, WAS POSITIVE AND YOU CAN TRACK IT DOWN TO THAT, THAT TEACHER WHO'S MISSING, OR YOU MAY BE ABLE TO, UH, SO THERE TENDS TO BE SOME, SOME LACK OF SPECIFICITY ON THE DAY TO DAY EMAILS, UH, FROM THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO TRY TO PROTECT PRIVACY. THANK YOU. YEAH, NO, IT'S, IT'S ALWAYS VERY GENERAL AND I'VE NOTICED, UM, SOME OTHER STATES ARE PROVIDING MORE, MORE SPECIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT THE KIND, BUT THANK YOU FOR EXPLAINING, THANK YOU FOR ADDRESSING THE QUESTION OF, OF, UM, CASES WITHIN THE TEACHER POPULATION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UM, DR. S SCOTT, CAN YOU TELL ME IF THE TESTING THAT WE'RE CURRENTLY DOING IS ABLE TO PICK UP THE DIFFERENT TYPES [00:50:01] OF VARIANTS THAT HAVE BEEN REPORTED, OR IS THERE A NEW PROCESS FOR HAVING NEW TESTING OR IS IT JUST COVID IS COVID NO MATTER WHAT VARIANCES, UH, SO FAR COVID HAS COVERED, UH, IN TERMS OF TESTING. UH, SO WE DON'T HAVE ANY INDICATIONS RIGHT NOW THAT, UH, THE TESTING STRATEGY THAT NEEDS TO BE CHANGED BASED UPON THE VARIANCE. UH, THERE IS SOME GENOMIC TESTING, WHICH IS GOING ON IN THE AREA TO DETERMINE, UH, HOW MUCH OF AN IMPACT VARIANTS MAY BE PLAYING, UH, INTO OUR, INTO OUR TRANSMISSION. UH, AGAIN, WE MAY SEE SOME REPORTS ON THAT LATER THIS WEEK. UM, WE SUSPECT THAT, THAT IT IS PLAYING A ROLE, UH, YOU KNOW, AS WE'VE LEARNED THROUGHOUT THIS PANDEMIC, IF WE'D SEE IT SOMEWHERE IN TEXAS OR IN THE U S IT MADE SENSE EITHER HERE OR IT'S GOING TO BE HERE IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. UH, SO AGAIN, THIS IS WHY IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO HELP CONTINUE TO DECREASE TRANSMISSION, UH, RIGHT NOW, UH, EVEN THOUGH WE'RE ON THE DECLINE SO THAT WE DECREASE THE LIKELIHOOD THAT, THAT THESE VARIANTS WILL NOW BECOME THE DOMINANT STRAIN AND MAY LEAD TO FURTHER CHALLENGES IN MANAGING THE, THE SPREAD OF DISEASE. NOBODY, WE WANT TO BUY AS MUCH TIME AS WE CAN TO GET AS MANY PEOPLE VACCINATED AND ULTIMATELY SAVE A LOT OF LIVES. THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND IS THERE ANY NEWER GUIDANCE ON THE TYPES OF MASKS THAT ARE MOST EFFECTIVE? I'VE SEEN SOME GUIDANCE THAT SAYS THINGS LIKE BANDANA IS, OR, UM, YOU KNOW, THE MORE HOMEMADE VERSIONS PEOPLE NEED TO UPGRADE THOSE. IF THEY'RE STILL USING THOSE, THEY NEED ONE, THAT'S A LITTLE BETTER FOR PREVENTING THE SPREAD. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT? SURE. UH, AGAIN, THEY, THEY EFFICACY OF THE MASK, THE, THE, THE, UM, LIKELIHOOD IT'S GOING TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF DISEASE IS REALLY BASED UPON, UH, THE NUMBER OF LAYERS AND THE FIT OF THE MASK. UH, SO SOMETHING LIKE A GATOR OR A BANDANA OR A SHIRT PULLED OVER YOUR FACE, IT'S GONNA PROVIDE A SINGLE LAYER DOESN'T FIT VERY WELL. SO, UH, IT'S NOT GOING TO BE THE MOST EFFECTIVE. UH, THE MOST EFFECTIVE ARE, YOU KNOW, THE , UH, THAT HAVE HIGH FILTRATION AND HAVE A TIGHT FIT, UH, FROM THEIR SURGICAL MASKS ARE THE NEXT BEST, UH, BECAUSE OF THOSE MULTIPLE LAYERS IN GOOD FIT. UH, ULTIMATELY IT, IT, UH, YOU KNOW, IT NEEDS TO HAVE AT LEAST TWO OR THREE LAYERS, UH, AND IT NEEDS TO FIT SNUGGLING ON YOUR FACE. SOME PEOPLE ARE ADVOCATING FOR WEARING TWO MASKS. UH, IT'S NOT CRITICAL THAT YOU ARE TO MASS, BUT IF YOU HAVE HOLDING ONE LAYER, SINGLE LAYER MASKS, THEN BEN TUNE IS BETTER THAN ONE NOW. BUT AGAIN, IT'S ABOUT THE LAYERS AND IT'S ABOUT THE FIT. AND ULTIMATELY FINDING ONE THAT, THAT IS COMFORTABLE AND THAT YOU'RE WILLING TO WEAR, UH, A MASK IS BETTER THAN NO MASKS. SO THINGS LIKE COMFORT IN AND, UH, AND, UH, MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE ABILITY TO WEAR THEM FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR THAT. UM, AND JUST, UH, AM I BACK? YES. OKAY. UM, JUST A VERY QUICK REQUEST. THAT SLIDE THAT HAS THE FLOW CHART IS REALLY HELPFUL. IF WE COULD MAKE SURE THAT THAT'S UP ON OUR WEBSITE FOR PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO REFERENCE. I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE WOULD FIND THAT OF INTEREST. COUNCILMEMBER. COOL. THANKS, SIR. NO QUESTIONS TODAY. JUST, UH, A HUGE DEBT OF GRATITUDE. ONE MORE TIME, UH, TO OUR STAFF WHO ARE HERE TODAY, BUT, AND IN ADDITION, ESPECIALLY TO THE ONES WHOSE FACES, WE'RE NOT SEEING HERE TODAY, THIS ISN'T TC, WE'VE BEEN AT IT FOR ALMOST A YEAR. THERE'S PLENTY OF PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY WHO WOULD LIKE TO CRITICIZE OR TAKE POT SHOTS OR SAY THINGS ABOUT, UM, MOTIVATIONS OR THE WORK BEING DONE. AND I JUST WANT TO LAY DOWN A REALLY STRONG FOUNDATION TO SAY THAT THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE BY THE CITY AND THE COUNTY HERE, AND OUR EMPLOYEES HAS BEEN PHENOMENAL. IT HAS BEEN, UM, DILIGENT AND IT'S CONTINUED, AND ESPECIALLY THE, UM, THE GOOD ATTITUDES THAT YOU ALL PROJECT, THE CALM REASSURANCE, I THINK MORE THAN ANYTHING. WELL, ACTUALLY THE CALM REASSURANCE, PLUS THOSE GRAPHS WITH THE, WITH THE, UH, TREND BENDING DOWNWARD, UM, OUR, WHAT OUR COMMUNITY WANTS TO SEE, AND THAT WILL LIFT OUR SPIRITS AND PUSH US OVER THE FINISH LINE. [00:55:01] SO I, I, THAT, THAT'S IT FOR ME TODAY. JUST A HEARTFELT AND GENUINE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER KELLY. THANK YOU, DR. SCOTT AND DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARDS FOR ALL THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING. AND I ECHO LESLIE'S COUNCIL MEMBER POOL SENTIMENT. MY QUESTION CHANGES GEARS A LITTLE BIT. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE TRAVIS COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE REPORTED ITS HIGHEST NEW COVID-19 CASE COUNTS A DATE AMONG INMATES AT THE JAIL THIS WEEK, 49 CASES WITH 46 LAST WEEK, THANKFULLY, NOTHING SERIOUS. BUT I ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT QUARANTINED INMATES ARE IN SINGLE FLOOR AND ALL INMATES WHO ARE NEW, THERE ARE HELD IN SINGLE OCCUPANCY OCCUPANCY CELLS FOR ANYWHERE FROM 10 TO 44 DAYS WHEN THEY ENTER A FACILITY, WE KNOW THAT ISOLATION CAN BE TERRIBLE FOR WELLNESS AS WELL AS WE WANT TO AVOID THE SPREAD OF COVID. BUT CAN YOU SPEAK TO THAT CHOICE OF SINGLE CAPACITY CELLS IN TERMS OF A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO INMATE WELLNESS, AS WELL AS TO WHAT STEPS WE'RE TAKING TO ENSURE THE HEALTH OF THAT POPULATION COUNCIL MEMBER? THEY, UH, THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT HAS A MEDICAL UNIT THAT, UH, HAS DESIGNED THEIR, THEIR POLICY. UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE HAVE CONSOLE, WE HAVE CONSULTED ON IT IN THE PAST, UH, YOU KNOW, PARTICULARLY THE, THE INTAKE OF, OF NEW INMATES AND ENSURING THAT, UH, THAT WE HAD APPROPRIATE, UH, OR THAT THEY HAD APPROPRIATE, UH, QUARANTINE PRECAUTIONS FOR THAT, THAT ENTRY. UM, UH, I'M NOT AWARE OF THE SPECIFIC DETAILS OF, UH, OF HOW THEY'RE PERFORMING, UH, THE REMAINDER OF, OF THEIR, THEIR COCONUT PROTECTIONS AT THIS STAGE. I WILL SAY THAT, UH, I HAVE BEEN IN DISCUSSIONS WITH, UH, THE, THE, UH, PHYSICIAN FROM THE JAIL, UH, AND WE ARE WORKING ON A STRATEGY FOR, FOR VACCINATING, UH, SO THAT WE CAN AVOID SOME OF THOSE, THOSE CHALLENGES, PARTICULARLY FOR THE ONE P INMATES. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UH, COUNSEL, OUR KITCHEN. YES. THANK YOU. UM, I DO WANT TO, UM, ADD MY THANKS TO, UM, TO OUR STAFF. I WANT TO THANK DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARD, UH, FOR THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE TO THE REGISTRATION SYSTEM, UM, AND THE PROCESSES THAT SHE LAID OUT TODAY, UH, TO HELP PEOPLE OVER 80 IN PARTICULAR AND, AND OTHERS, UH, TO GET, UH, TO GET AN APPOINTMENT. UM, I HAVE A QUESTION OR TWO ABOUT THAT SYSTEM. YOU KNOW, WE TALKED LAST WEEK AND THIS FOLLOWS UP ON SOME QUESTIONS FROM COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER. UM, THE, YOU KNOW, LAST WEEK WE TALKED ABOUT THE INCREASED FUNCTIONALITY THAT, UM, IDEALLY WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE, UH, FROM THE SYSTEM AND I'M HEARING THAT SOME OF THOSE FUNCTIONALITIES ARE BEING ADDRESSED, BUT I WANT TO GET STRAIGHT AT THE ISSUE OF HAVING TO GO ONLINE AS COUNCIL MEMBER ALTAR SAID, UH, WITH, YOU KNOW, A HUNDRED OTHER THOUSAND PEOPLE OR MANY, MANY HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE TO TRY TO GET AN APPOINTMENT ON ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY, IT IS CERTAINLY MUCH BETTER TO SPECIFY TUESDAY AND THURSDAY. AND I APPRECIATE THAT, BUT IT STILL IS, IS A VERY FRUSTRATING SYSTEM FOR PEOPLE. AND SO WE'RE LAST TIME WE HAD ASKED ABOUT FUNCTIONALITY TO ACTUALLY SEND PEOPLE AN EMAIL, UH, WITH AN OFTEN, YOU KNOW, WITH, WITH THEIR APPOINTMENT, UH, AND, OR SEND THEM AN EMAIL TO SIGN UP FOR AN APPOINTMENT SO THAT THERE IS SOME KIND OF SYSTEM ABOUT WHO GETS ON TO TRY TO SIGN UP. AND WE HAD SUGGESTED THAT, UH, LEE REACHING OUT TO OUR TECHNOLOGY LEADERS IN THE COMMUNITY WHO HAVE OFFERED TO HELP WITH THAT FUNCTIONALITY. SO, UM, AND THE OTHER REASON FOR THAT IS THAT, UM, THERE JUST HAS TO BE A BETTER WAY THAN ALL THOSE PEOPLE HAVING TO GO ON ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY. AND I HAVE TO TELL YOU THAT MAYBE THIS IS IN THE WORKS, BUT IT IS NOT HAPPENING YET BASED ON CONVERSATIONS I'VE HAD WITH PEOPLE IN THE LAST FEW DAYS, THEY NOT GETTING AN EMAIL THAT TELLS THEM AT THE TIME TO SIGN UP. SO MAYBE THAT'S A NEW FUNCTIONALITY THAT'S GOING TO BE OCCURRING NEXT WEEK OR IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, BUT I HAVE TO TELL YOU IT IS NOT HAPPENING NOW. SO MY QUESTION TO YOU, UM, UH, DIRECTOR, UH, HEN HOWARD IS, UH, DO, ARE WE WORKING TOWARDS OUR, IS THIS STEADY WORKING TOWARDS THE FUNCTIONALITY SO THAT WHEN PEOPLE GET REGISTERED, THEY RECEIVE AN EMAIL THAT SAYS HERE'S YOUR APPOINTMENT. AND THEY DO NOT HAVE TO GO ON AND COMPETE WITH HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF OTHER PEOPLE TO TRY [01:00:01] TO GET AN APPOINTMENT. ARE WE WORKING ON THAT FUNCTIONALITY? UM, WE ARE NOT WORKING ON THAT FUNCTIONALITY. UM, WHAT WE HAVE, HAVE PUT IN PLACE IS THE ABILITY, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ABLE TO, TO SCHEDULE FOLKS, UM, THEY DO RECEIVE AN AUTOMATIC EMAIL THAT SAYS THAT YOUR REGISTRATION HAS BEEN APPROVED, UM, AND YOU'RE ELIGIBLE TO REGISTER. UM, IN ADDITION TO RECEIVING THAT EMAIL, UM, STAFF HAS SENT OUT, UM, EMAILS, BUT AS I, UM, HAVE SHARED IN OTHER SETTINGS IS THAT THAT EMAIL IS SENT OUT. AND, UM, WHEN THAT EMAIL IS SENT OUT, IT'S A HEAD OF, OF, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE KNOWING THAT THE PORTAL IS, IS AVAILABLE. BUT WHAT WE HAVE FOUND IS IS THAT, UM, THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT OF COURSE ARE NOT ON THEIR EMAIL LIKE THAT. AND SO THAT IS WHY WE HAVE IMPLEMENTED THE CALL CENTER, UM, BECAUSE WE FEEL LIKE THAT THAT'S GOING TO BE A WAY TO BE ABLE TO PROACTIVELY CALL FOLKS THAT WOULD LIKE TO BE CALLED AND WOULD LIKE TO GO AHEAD AND SCHEDULE THAT APPOINTMENT. AND SO THEY WILL BE CALLED IN, ACCORDING TO OUR FOLKS ARE ABLE TO HAVE A TIMESTAMP OF WHEN THEY REGISTER. AND SO THAT IS HOW WE'RE GOING TO BE ADDRESSING, UM, THE FOLKS IN HAVING THE COUNTY TO HELP US IN THAT WAY. UM, THAT IS GOING TO ALLOW US TO BE ABLE TO ONE, WE LIKE THE ABILITY OF GIVING A PERSON A CHOICE, UM, WHERE WE, SOMEONE PROACTIVELY CALLS YOU AND HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH YOU ABOUT SCHEDULING AN APPOINTMENT. AND THAT WAY YOU CAN PICK THE TIME THAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU. UM, WE HAVE, UM, REACHED OUT TO, AND I WANT TO THANK MAYOR ADLER. UM, HE DID PROVIDE ME INFORMATION LAST WEEK, UM, AND THERE HE IS A MEETING ON THURSDAY WITH AN EXTERNAL CONSULTANT, UM, TO TALK WITH THEM ABOUT, UM, THE PLATFORM. AND SO WE WILL, UM, OUR, IT FOLKS WILL HAVE THAT CONVERSATION, BUT WE HAVE TO HAVE A SYSTEM, UM, THAT ONE GIVES PEOPLE A CHOICE BECAUSE SOME SENIORS, UM, A LOT OF THEM MAY DEPEND ON SOMEONE ELSE TO DRIVE THEM THERE. UM, AS WELL AS, UM, MAKING SURE THAT THAT, THAT, THAT DATE IS GOING TO WORK FOR THEM. WE, WE HAVE A VERY LOW NO-SHOW, UM, RATE AND WE WANT TO KEEP IT THAT WAY BECAUSE IT'S BASED UPON CHOICE. AND SO WE FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE WITH PEOPLE HAVING A CHOICE OF WHEN THEIR APPOINTMENT IS OKAY, ONE QUICK FOLLOWUP. SO IF I'M UNDERSTANDING CORRECTLY, THERE ARE TWO WAYS TO GET AN APPOINTMENT GOING FORWARD. THAT'S THE THINKING IS TWO WAYS TO GET AN APPOINTMENT GOING FORWARD. YOU CAN GO ONLINE AND REGISTER ON TUESDAY OR THURSDAY AND GET AN APPOINTMENT THAT WAY, YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAPPEN TO GET ONLINE EARLIER AND AHEAD OF EVERYBODY ELSE, SECOND, YOU'LL GET A PHONE CALL. SOME NUMBER OF PEOPLE WILL GET A PHONE CALL WITH AN APPOINTMENT, BUT NOT EVERYBODY WILL. AND THOSE PEOPLE THAT WILL GET A PHONE CALL OR THE OLDER ONES, I THINK, DID YOU SAY OVER 80? I THINK SO. MY UNDERSTANDING CORRECTLY THAT GOING FORWARD, THE INTENT IS THESE TWO WAYS, AND THERE IS NO INTENT TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR FOLKS SO THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO GO ON ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY AND, UH, COMPETE FOR A SPOT WITH HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF OTHER PEOPLE. THERE'S NO INTENT TO TRY TO ADDRESS THAT FUNCTIONALITY. I DO AGREE WITH WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARD, YOU KNOW, ABOUT CHOICES, BUT I'M WONDERING WHY WE AREN'T JUST CALLING EVERYBODY AND SETTING UP WHAT, WHY WE AREN'T JUST CALLING EVERYBODY AND SETTING UP APPOINTMENTS OR, AND, OR, YOU KNOW, INSTEAD OF HAVING PEOPLE STILL HAVE TO, UM, GO THROUGH THE FRUSTRATION, TRYING TO GET SCHEDULED TIMES ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAYS TO TRY, AND THEN MOST OF THEM WON'T BE ABLE TO GET IT. SO, UM, SO DID I, DID I UNDERSTAND THAT CORRECTLY THAT THERE ARE TWO ROUTES, UM, SOME NUMBER OF PEOPLE WILL GET PHONE CALLS, UM, WITH CHOICES OF APPOINTMENTS, AND THOSE WILL BE THE OLDER FOLKS AND EVERYONE ELSE WILL HAVE TO TRY TO, UM, UH, ON TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS, WE'LL HAVE TO TRY WITH EVERYONE ELSE TO GET AN APPOINTMENT. IS IT, DID I UNDERSTAND THAT CORRECTLY? YES, THAT THAT IS CORRECT. UM, BECAUSE IF WE HAVE 12,000 APPOINTMENTS A WEEK, UM, THAT IS [01:05:01] THAT IF WE'RE NOT USING TECHNOLOGY TO ASSIST US AND I'M GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF PEOPLE MAKING THOSE CALLS. AND SO WE, WE MAKE ADJUSTMENTS KIND OF BASED UPON THE CALL VOLUME IN, IN THE QUESTIONS THAT ARE OCCURRING, UM, AND, AND LOOKING AT HOW WE NEED TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF FOLKS THAT ARE ANSWERING CALLS THAT ARE RETURNING CALLS THAT ARE PROVIDING TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. UM, AND, BUT WE KNOW THAT EVEN THOUGH THE SYSTEM HAS HAD MANY CHALLENGES, THE SYSTEM HAS, HAS HELPED US TO SUCCESSFULLY PROVIDE 12,000 VACCINES A WEEK. AND SO WE, WE HAVE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT HAS DONE SOME GOOD, WE CONTINUE TO MAKE UPDATES. UM, WE WILL BE MEETING WITH THE EXTERNAL CONSULTANT, UM, TO SEE WHAT THEY MAY BE ABLE TO OFFER US. UM, AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO, TO, TO WORK ON IT AS WE MOVE ALONG. OKAY. MY LAST QUESTION THEN IS, AND THANK YOU. I RECOGNIZE THAT THERE'S CONTINUED IMPROVEMENTS. I JUST WANT US TO BE THE BEST THAT WE CAN BECAUSE OF THE CITY THAT WE ARE IN AND TO HELP OUR RESIDENTS, UM, WITH THE FRUSTRATION THEY'RE EXPERIENCING NOW. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH, AND I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT YOU WILL BE MEETING LATER IN THIS WEEK. AND I WOULD ASK YOU TO TALK TO THEM ABOUT THE, THE POSSIBILITY OF, OF A TECHNOLOGY SOLUTION THAT WOULD ALLOW THAT FUNCTIONALITY SO THAT PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO GO ON, YOU KNOW, AND THANK YOU FOR THE, JUST TWICE A WEEK NOW THAT HELPS. BUT SO PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO GO ON AND COMPETE WITH THE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF OTHER PEOPLE TO TRY AND GET THEIR APPOINTMENT. SO AGAIN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND, UH, APPRECIATE THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE SO FAR. THE SYSTEM HAS DONE SOME GOOD, THERE'S NO QUESTION ABOUT THAT. THE QUESTION IS SIMPLY HOW DO WE DO BE THE BEST WE POSSIBLY CAN WITH THE FUNCTIONALITY OF THE SYSTEM? AND SO THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE DOING LATER IN THE WEEK, AND THANK YOU ALL FOR THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE SO FAR. THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER KITCHEN, UH, ACCOUNTS IS SAR MAYOR. MY QUESTION WAS VERY SIMILAR TO THOSE RAISED BY OTHERS. AND SO I THINK JUST REEMPHASIZING THAT IF THERE'S ANYTHING THE COUNCIL OR THE COMMISSIONERS COURT CAN DO TO KEEP LEADING INTO MAKING THE WEBSITE, UH, AS ACCESSIBLE AS POSSIBLE, THE SYSTEM AS TRANSPARENT AS POSSIBLE AND MORE WORKABLE, PLEASE DO LET US KNOW, BECAUSE I THINK YOU'VE LAID OUT HERE. WHAT MANY OF THE CHALLENGES ARE, BUT WE CONTINUE TO HEAR, UH, FRUSTRATION AND CHALLENGES FROM FOLKS TRYING TO TRY TO ACCESS THAT SYSTEM. SO PLEASE DO LET US KNOW WHAT ELSE CAN BE DONE TO MAKE IT AS, UM, AS EASY TO USE A WEBSITE AS POSSIBLE, GIVEN ALL OF THE CONSTRAINTS. OKAY. THANK YOU. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, THE 30TH. DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR YOU GET THE MICROPHONE OFF POSER? IT'S JUST TO TRY AND GET A LITTLE CLOSER. OKAY. UH, MY LINE OF QUESTION IS, UH, IT'S LIKE, AND STUFF I HAVE, UH, YOU KNOW, I HAVE FRIENDS THAT ARE TAKING CARE OF THEIR SPOUSE AT HOME, NOT TRUSTING, UH, NURSING HOMES. AND, UH, UH, THEY'D BEEN HAVING SOME FRUSTRATION ON CALL IN. AM I ALREADY ADDRESSED THAT, THAT QUESTION BECAUSE, UH, BUT I, I JUST WANTED TO KNOW HOW WOULD THESE PEOPLE, WHAT'S YOUR RECOMMENDATION ON, ON HOW THEY ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET A, UH, BACKSEAT SHOT, ESPECIALLY IF THEY HAVE SOMEONE THAT'S DISABLED AND NOT ABLE TO MOVE AND BE TRANSPORT OUT OF THE HOUSE. THE, THE, UM, MOBILE, UM, VACCINATION TEAMS WILL BE ABLE TO, UM, BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THOSE SERVICES TO FOLKS AT HOME. UM, AND SO ONCE WE GET READY TO ACTIVATE THAT, UM, WE WILL MAKE SURE TO SEND THAT INFORMATION OUT TO, UM, BOTH BODIES. SO YOU WILL HAVE THAT INFORMATION OF HOW TO GET AN ATTUNED TO GET THAT SERVICE PROVIDED AT HOME. OKAY. THAT'S THAT SOUNDS REALLY GREAT. DO THEY CALL, I MEAN, THEY'VE BEEN TRYING, I HAVE ONE FRIEND THAT CALLED AND HE COULDN'T GET IN, UH, LAST WEEK. AND I WAS JUST WONDERING IF, UH, IS THERE A SPECIAL NUMBER THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE SETTING ASIDE FOR THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE, UH, THE PROBLEM WITH, UH, AND THEY NEED A MOBILE VAN COMING TO THEIR SITE? UH, YES, WE, WE WILL, IT WILL HAVE ITS OWN, UM, NUMBER THAT WE'RE GOING TO USE. YES. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT. APPRECIATE THAT OUR OFFICE NOW, SO THAT WE GET THAT WORD OUT [01:10:01] AS SOON AS YOU ESTABLISH THAT NUMBER. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER. THANK YOU. AND GOOD MORNING FOR A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. AND I DID WANT TO MAKE A COMMENT ON, I BELIEVE COMMISSIONER GOMEZ RAISED THE THREE ONE, ONE CALL LINE AS, UH, AS A RESOURCE FOR OUR COMMUNITY. AND I DID WANT TO FLAG THAT IT WAS BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION TODAY THAT THE COVID INFORMATION THAT IS PROVIDED ON THREE ONE, ONE, AND THE OPENING QUEUE IS ONLY AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH. IT IS NOT AVAILABLE IN SPANISH. UM, AND SO I REALIZED THAT THAT FALLS UNDER MY UNDERSTANDING UNDER AUSTIN ENERGY. SO MY OFFICE IS REACHING OUT TO AUSTIN ENERGY TO REQUEST THAT, UH, THAT THE INFORMATION WOULD ALSO BE TRANSLATED IN SPANISH FOR THOSE WHO DO CALL THREE ONE ONE. UM, BUT TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE IF APH CAN HELP US IN THINKING ALL OF THOSE DIFFERENT ENTRY POINTS, UH, AMONGST OUR DEPARTMENTS THAT, UM, THAT OUR COMMUNITY IS RELYING ON, ARE GOING TO TACOMA OR COVID INFORMATION, AND THAT WE'RE BEING EQUITABLE IN HOW WE PRESENT THE INFORMATION AND ALL OF THOSE DIFFERENT CHANNELS. AND I REALIZED THAT THERE ARE MANY. UM, AND SO I HOPE THAT THE PLAN ADDRESSES THAT. UM, THE OTHER COMMENT REALLY QUICK, I JUST WANT TO MAKE, UH, YOU MENTIONED THAT THE MONTOPOLIS TESTING CENTER IS CLOSED IN ADDITION TO LEE GIVENS AND WALNUT CREEK LIBRARY. UH, FOR THOSE WHO ARE WATCHING THIS, OR WATCH THIS LEADER, WHERE WOULD THEY GO FOR TO GET A COVID TEST? WHAT WOULD BE THE NEXT LOCATION FOR THEM? UM, THE DOVE SPRINGS LOCATION IS REMAINS OPEN. UM, THE, UM, THE LARK CENTER OFF OF AIRPORT AND 12TH IS OPEN, UM, AND THE, THE DRIVE-THRU SITE AT ST JOHN'S IS OPEN AND THEN THE PFLUGERVILLE LOCATION IS OPEN AS WELL. UM, AND SO THE AT-HOME TESTING REMAINS AVAILABLE. AND SO, UM, WE JUST HAVE A FLYER AND, AND FOLKS CAN, UM, JUST SCHEDULE THAT. AND SO WE CAN MAKE SURE THAT YOU ALL HAVE THAT UPDATED, UM, FLYER WITH THAT INFORMATION. THOSE ARE THE, THE LOCATIONS FOR TESTING WONDERFUL THING. UM, AND SO MY MAIN QUESTION IS AROUND THE CALL CENTER. UM, YOU KNOW, I, FROM MY UNDERSTANDING, WE HAD ABOUT 15 OPERATORS IN OUR END FROM PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENTS HELPING ANSWERING THE CALL. UM, BUT WITH THE CALL CENTER THAT WE ENTER IN, UH, WITH THE AGREEMENT WITH THE COUNTY, HOW MANY, HOW MUCH HAS THAT SCALE, OUR COLLABORATIONS, AND ALSO, UM, SO IN OTHER WORDS, HOW MANY OPERATORS WOULD THAT ADD POTENTIALLY? UM, AND THEN, UH, ARE WE STILL DIRECTING PEOPLE TO THAT SAME NURSING HOTLINE? UH, AND THEN, UH, THE OTHER SUB QUESTION IS I JUST WANT TO MAKE A DISTINCTION FROM THE LINE OF QUESTIONING FROM COUNSELOR KITCHEN, UM, FOR THIS NEW CALL OUTBOUND CENTER THAT WE HAVE WITH THE COUNTY. SHOULD IT GO THROUGH, UM, WE'RE SAYING THAT OUR, THE CALL CENTER FOLKS WILL BE CALLING, UH, INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE 80 YEARS OLD AND OVER, BUT EARLIER I THOUGHT I HEARD THAT THEY'RE CALLING BASED ON THE VOICEMAILS THAT THEY GET. AND SO IS THERE A DISTINCTION OF, ARE THEY, WILL THERE BE A LIST OF ALL EIGHT YEAR OLDS AND OVER IN TRAVIS COUNTY AND THEY PROACTIVELY CALL THAT LIST, OR IS IT, WE NEED TO BE DIRECTING 80 YEAR OLD RESIDENTS, OUR SENIOR RESIDENTS TO CALL THAT NUMBER AND LEAVE A VOICEMAIL SO THAT THEY THEN MAKE IT THE CALL BACK TO MAKE THE REGISTRATION TO MAKE THE APPOINTMENT? UM, OUR GOAL WAS TO BE, UM, PROACTIVE. UM, THERE'S, THERE'S GOING TO BE A FEW THINGS HAPPENING. UM, THE INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE REGISTERED AND ARE ELIGIBLE, SO THAT'S THE 188,000 PEOPLE, WHICH, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT AN IT'S ABOUT 11,000 OF THEM THAT ARE 80 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER. SO, SO BASICALLY, UM, FOLKS ARE GOING TO LOOK AT WHO'S REGISTERED IN THE SYSTEM AND, AND BE ABLE TO START CALLING THEM BACK. BUT WE'RE ALSO GOING LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, IF THEY'VE ALREADY REGISTERED, WHEN DID THEY REGISTER, SO WE CAN START CALLING THEM BACK AND THAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN, UM, THROUGH THE COUNTY SIDE. AND THAT WILL MOST LIKELY WHEN THEY START TO RETURN CALLS, UM, TO SOME FOLKS, UM, I IMAGINE SOME OF THOSE ARE GONNA BE PEOPLE THAT ARE 80 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER. UM, AND SO THEY'LL BE ABLE TO DO THAT AS WELL. UM, WE'LL STILL HAVE OUR NURSE LINE THAT WILL STILL BE UP AND RUNNING. OUR HOPE IS, IS THAT AS WE, UM, WORK OUT ALL OF THE TECHNOLOGY ISSUES, UM, THAT LINE WILL BE USED THE WAY IT IS INTENDED TO BE USED FOR FOLKS THAT DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET. UM, AND THAT, UM, ARE, ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY [01:15:01] IMPACTED BY, BY COVID. UM, SO THAT TEAM WILL CONTINUE TO DO THAT WORK AS WELL. UM, AND THEN, UM, AND THEN WE HAVE SOME FOLKS THAT ARE ALSO MAKING SOME OTHER PROACTIVE CALLS. SO, UM, THERE'S 20 PEOPLE FROM THE COUNTY, UM, THAT WILL BE ADDED. UH, AND THEN WE'RE LOOKING AT, UM, IN CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'VE HAD WITH THREE, ONE, ONE, UM, THEY FEEL LIKE WE REALLY NEED TO GET TO ABOUT 45 PEOPLE, UM, ON A DAILY BASIS. SO, SO THE GOAL IS, IS TO GET TO THAT 45 BASED ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM YOU. OKAY. AND SO HOW CAN WE HELP SUPPORT YOU AND GETTING YOU TO THAT 45 COOPERATORS? WELL, I, I HAVE REASSIGNED SOME FOLKS THEN AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH AS THE LAST SLIDE SHOWED. UM, YOU KNOW, THERE, THERE ARE GOING TO BE SOME THINGS THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DELAY THAT WE DO, WHEN IS THE DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE THIS IS THE PRIORITY. AND SO, UH, WE RPE ASSIGNING FOLKS, UM, AND LOOKING AT AREAS. UM, IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, WE'RE LOOKING AT, UM, AS MOST OF YOU MAY KNOW, UH, ABOUT 30% OF THE FOLKS IN THE DEPARTMENT ARE FUNDED BY GRANTS. UM, WE'RE GOING TO BE REACHING OUT, UM, TO DETERMINE, UM, HOW CAN WE ROTATE THEM INTO THE RESPONSE, UM, AND NOT HAVE THAT PENALTY OF USING BRAND EMPLOYEES. SO THERE IS A COUPLE OF STRATEGIES THAT WERE USED IN, AT AUSTIN, AT AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH. IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, WE'VE SENT OUT A REQUEST THROUGH THE CITY OF AUSTIN HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT, UM, TRAVIS COUNTY, UM, UM, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES THROUGH MS. SHERRY FLEMING, UM, HAS OFFERED SOME STAFF. AND SO BETWEEN ALL OF THAT CONFIGURATION OF FOLKS, UM, WE FEEL CONFIDENT THAT WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO COME UP WITH THE 45 PEOPLE, UM, TO HAVE A DAILY PRESENCE, UH, FROM A COSTUME. OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UM, I APPRECIATE ALL THIS INFORMATION, INCLUDING ALL THE, UH, FANTASTIC QUESTIONS FROM MY COLLEAGUES, BOTH AT THE COUNTY AND, UH, YOUR, THE CITY. I, I HONESTLY DON'T HAVE VERY MANY MORE ALONG THE LINES OF THE QUESTION THAT, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER ASKED. I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THE NUMBER, THE AGE 80, HOW WE ARRIVED THERE. UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN 65 AND 80 IS RELATIVELY LARGE. SO I'M JUST, I'M CURIOUS HOW WE ARRIVED AT THE NUMBER 80, UM, AS A POINT OF PRIORITY. UM, WHAT WE LOOKED AT IS, AS WE LOOKED AT THE, THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN, UM, DYING IN THE SYSTEM, UM, GO INTO THE HOSPITAL BEING ON, UM, ON VENTILATORS IN, UM, IN ICU. UM, AND SO THAT WAS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY GOING WITH THE, WITH THE AGE OF 80, UH, BECAUSE THE GOAL IS, IS CONTINUE TO DRIVE DOWN THAT VOLUME OF FOLKS, UM, THAT APPEAR IN, IN, UM, IN THE HOSPITAL, UM, AND THEN DIE. ONE OF THE THINGS AS DR. ASCOT SHARED EARLIER, UM, WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT THAT DATA AS IT'S TRENDING, AND WE ARE STARTING TO SEE YOUNGER PEOPLE, UM, TO SHOW UP IN THE HOSPITALS, UM, AND, AND, AND TO DIE. AND SO 80 IS THE NUMBER AS OF TODAY, BUT AS WE CONTINUE TO WATCH THAT TREND DATA, AND WE START TO LOOK AT, UM, HOW WE'RE, WE'RE SEEING OTHER POPULATIONS TO BE MORE SEVERELY IMPACTED, IT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE. AND SO WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE PROVIDING THIS TODAY AS A STARTING POINT. IT'S BASED UPON, UM, THE DATA THAT WE'VE SEEN IN, IN THE PAST, BUT AS WE'VE CONTINUED TO, TO WATCH THE DATA AND, AND EVEN LOOKING AT, AND THINKING ABOUT THE VARIANTS, UM, THAT ARE, THAT ARE PROBABLY ALREADY HERE IN TRAVIS COUNTY, UM, THESE, THESE THINGS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE, BUT IT IS A STARTING POINT FOR US. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. AND I'M REALLY ENCOURAGED TO HEAR, UH, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT Y'ALL ARE ALREADY ADDRESSING, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE MUCH LIKE MY COLLEAGUES, I'M CERTAIN, UH, MOST OF THE EMAILS WE'RE RECEIVING IS ABOUT THAT FRUSTRATION IS ABOUT THAT LACK OF ABILITY TO REALLY PENETRATE THE SYSTEM OF FRUSTRATION WITH THE IT COMPONENT. I'M REALLY HAPPY TO HEAR THAT IT SOUNDS LIKE WE'RE ON OUR WAY TO, UM, MAKING PROGRESS THERE AND, UH, THE CALLS I'D LOVE TO SEE THAT HAPPENING MORE. UM, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, SOME COLLEAGUES AND I ARE, ARE, UH, AS, YOU KNOW, WORKING TOWARDS, UH, SOME, UH, DIRECT OUTREACH INITIATIVES. AND SO REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO BEING ABLE TO WORK WITH YOU MORE ON THAT, TO SEE WHAT [01:20:01] THAT LOOKS LIKE AS WELL. SO THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU ALL DO. WE APPRECIATE YOU VERY MUCH, UH, DR. HAYDEN HOWARD, AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU'RE DOING. YOU HAVE A MAMMOTH TASK, UH, THAT YOU GUYS ARE DEALING WITH. AND AGAIN, YOU KNOW, AT THE END OF THE DAY, UH, THE MORTALITY RATE IN, IN AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY IS, IS ONE OF THE LOWEST IN THE COUNTRY. AND, AND IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A SINGLE POINT OF MEASURE, THAT'S REALLY TELLING, UH, THE DATA THAT, UH, DR. UH, ASCOT JUST SHOWED AGAIN, WHILE THE TRENDS FOLLOW SIMILAR LINES, THE AREA UNDER THE LINES, WHICH IS THE COUNT OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE DIED AND GOTTEN HURT THIS SO MUCH GREATER THAN OTHER CITIES. UH, SO THE BOTTOM LINE, I THINK THAT'S EVERYTHING IS, IS, IS POINTED TO TRYING TO MAKE THAT NUMBER WORK. AND, AND, AND WE'RE DOING REALLY WELL HERE. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP WITH THAT. I DO WANT TO HIT, UH, SOME OF THE, KIND OF THE TECH QUESTIONS TOO. AND I THINK THAT A MAJORITY OF THE COUNCIL NOW HAS, HAS RAISED THAT KIND OF IT IS AS THE PRIMARY CONCERN THAT THEY HAVE, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HEARING FROM PEOPLE, AS YOU MIGHT EXPECT, AS PEOPLE ARE ANXIOUS TO GET THE VACCINE, AND THERE'S NOT SUFFICIENT SUPPLY, UM, UH, EVERYBODY'S KIND OF DEALING WITH, WITH THOSE SYSTEMS, GETTING OUT THE 12,000, UH, IS, IS BOTTOM LINE A REALLY GOOD NUMBER, ASSUMING WE'RE GETTING IT TO THE RIGHT 12,000, IF WE'RE GETTING IT OUT TO ABSOLUTELY THE WRONG TRIAL THOUSANDS AND GETTING OUT 12,000, ISN'T THE RIGHT MEASURE. UM, UM, I APPRECIATE EARLIER THE WEEK YOU SAID THAT YOU THOUGHT BY THE END OF THIS WEEK, WE WOULD GET THE DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION, UH, THAT WE, WE HAD PARTIAL DEMOGRAPHICS FOR THE FIRST WEEK, BUT WE DIDN'T HAVE THE, THE ADDITION OF, UH, OF COMMUNITY CARE AND PEOPLES AND LONE STAR. MY UNDERSTANDING IS, IS THAT BY THE END OF THIS WEEK, WE SHOULD HAVE THE DEMOGRAPHICS COMPLETE FOR THE FIRST WEEK, AS WELL AS THE DEMOGRAPHICS FOR THE SECOND AND THIRD, UH, TRAUNCHES OF 12,000. IS THAT, IS THAT STILL TRACKING TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THAT FOR THE COMMUNITY BY THE END OF THE WEEK? YES, BUT DEFINITELY BY SATURDAY, WE, IT SHOULD BE AVAILABLE. THAT'S GREAT. BECAUSE I THINK THAT WHEN WE SEE THAT INFORMATION THAT THAT'LL EITHER TELL US, WE NEED TO ADJUST WHAT WE'RE DOING, OR IT'LL TELL US WHERE WE ARE GETTING TO THE, TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE. I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT, THAT ISSUE OF GETTING IT TO THE PEOPLE THAT NEED IT THE MOST. SO I, THE CHART THAT YOU HAD KIND OF HAD THE TRIAGE THING, I THINK IS ALSO A REALLY GOOD CHART THAT HAD THREE DIFFERENT AREAS WHERE WE HAD THE GREEN FLAG. OKAY. YOU YOU'RE ELIGIBLE. UH, DO WE PRIORITIZE THOSE ELIGIBLE FOR VACCINES OR IS EVERYBODY THAT HAS A GREEN MARKER PRIORITIZED EQUALLY IN OUR SYSTEM? UM, THE, THE SYSTEM IS, IS SET LIKE WE DID FOR TESTING. AND, UM, AND THE WAY WE DID PROTESTING IS, IS THAT WE HAVE POINTS, UM, THAT ARE, ARE ATTRIBUTED. AND SO, UM, WHEN FOLKS GO THROUGH AND SIGN UP, UM, THAT'S HOW WE GET TO A PLACE OF WHO IS POTENTIALLY ELIGIBLE. UM, AND SO THAT IS HOW THAT THEY ARE PRIORITIZED, BUT IT IS VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT WE DID FOR TESTING. THE BASIC QUESTION IS DIFFERENT, BUT WHEN, WHEN, WHEN THERE'S, WHEN YOU OPEN UP THE PORTAL AND SAY, OKAY, PEOPLE CAN GO SIGN UP. AND THERE'S AN EMAIL THAT GOES OUT TO PEOPLE WHO ARE ELIGIBLE. DOES THAT EMAIL GO OUT TO EVERYBODY OVER 65? UH, EVERYBODY THAT, THAT, UH, UM, UM, WE HAVE THE COMORBIDITIES, EVERYBODY, EVERYBODY THAT, THAT ONE WAY OR ANOTHER GETS TO A GREEN MARKER ON THAT FLOW CHART, DO THEY ALL GET THE SAME EMAIL THAT SAYS, HEY, THERE ARE APPOINTMENTS NOW AVAILABLE GOING GO AND SIGN UP. NO, IT DOES NOT GO TO, IT WOULD NOT GO TO 188,000 PEOPLE. THEY WOULD NOT RECEIVE THE, THE, THE EMAIL TYPICALLY GOES TO THE FOLKS THAT HAVE THE HIGHEST WEIGHT, UM, THAT APPEAR TO BE IN A POSITION WHERE THEY ARE EITHER DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED. UM, AND WE SEE THEM IN THE HOSPITALIZATION DATA, UM, AS WELL AS, UM, BEING POSITIVE FOR COVID. SO IN A WEEK LIKE THIS, WHERE WE HAVE TRIAL THOUSAND VACCINES, DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL GET AN EMAIL THAT SAYS, HEY, YOU CAN GO ONLINE NOW AND, OR GO ONLINE AND GET AN APPOINTMENT? UH, NO, I CAN'T ANSWER THAT QUESTION. OKAY. I HAVE THE INFORMATION IN FRONT OF ME. THAT'S OKAY. JUST TO KNOW THAT UNIVERSITY, I THINK WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR THE COMMUNITY TO [01:25:01] UNDERSTAND BECAUSE THEY'RE ELIGIBLE, BUT THEY'RE NOT GETTING AN EMAIL. SO BEING ABLE TO TELL THEM, EVEN IF YOU'RE ELIGIBLE, YOU MIGHT NOT GET THE EMAIL BECAUSE WE'RE GIVING IT TO THE PEOPLE THAT NEEDED THE MOST, BUT JUST HAVING A FEEL FOR THAT, THAT UNIVERSE OF PEOPLE THAT GET THOSE WOULD BE HELPFUL. THAT'S ONE WAY WE DO THAT. HOW, HOW, HOW LONG BEFORE THE SIGNUP FOR THE ACTUAL APPOINTMENT, DOES THAT EMAIL GO OUT TO PEOPLE THAT SAYS, HEY, YOU CAN GO ON AND GET IT. UH, WE SENT IT OUT TWO HOURS BEFORE. UM, AND THE GOAL IS, IS OUR HOPE IS, IS THAT THEY WOULD BE LOOKING AT THEIR EMAIL. UM, BUT YOU KNOW, WE, WE ARE CONCERNED THAT THEY ARE PROBABLY NOT LOOKING AT THEIR EMAIL. AND SO THERE, THERE HAS TO BE AN ADDITIONAL STEP IN THE PROCESS WHERE WE'RE FOLKS ARE REACHING OUT TO THEM TO SCHEDULE. AND I APPRECIATE THAT. AND THAT APPEARS TO BE KIND OF LIKE A CALL SYSTEM, PLUS YOUR STAFF REACHING OUT. THAT'S WHERE WE WERE FOCUSED ON THE PEOPLE OVER, OVER 80 OF THE PEOPLE THAT GET EMAIL. ARE WE CALLING ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE? ARE WE ONLY CALLING SOME OF THOSE PEOPLE THAT GOT THE EMAIL THAT SAID, HEY, IN TWO HOURS YOU SHOULD GO ONLINE. WE ARE NOT CALLING ALL OF THEM. UM, BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE, THAT WOULD BE QUITE A FEW PEOPLE TO CALL. UM, THE, THE, THE COWS ARE MORE, UM, THE COWS ARE MORE INTENTIONAL, UM, TO FOLKS THAT HAVE SAID TO OUR FOLKS THAT THEY HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO, TO REGISTER. SO THAT IS THE OTHER PROACTIVE PIECE, UM, THAT IS HAPPENING THAT, UM, IS, IS BASED ON INFORMATION FROM, UM, UM, FOLKS THAT ARE PARTNERING WITH US THAT ARE OUT THERE THAT ARE TRYING TO ASSIST THEM WITH ENROLLMENT IN, UM, TO BE, UH, BE ON THE SYSTEM. SO IT APPEARS AS IF TWO DIFFERENT GROUPS OF PEOPLE ARE GETTING A CALL TWO HOURS AHEAD OF TIME. ONE OR THE PEOPLE THAT SCORED THE HIGHEST PEOPLE OVER 80 THAT HAVE THE MOST POINTS. THEY'RE GETTING A CALL THAT SAYS, HEY, YOU JUST GOT AN EMAIL AND WE'RE FOLLOWING UP ON THAT EMAIL TO SAY, IN TWO HOURS, YOU NEED TO GO ON IN CASE FROM, WE'RE CALLING YOU IN CASE YOU DIDN'T LOOK AT YOUR EMAIL. AND THEN THE OTHER GROUP THAT ARE GETTING CALLED ARE THE PEOPLE THAT ARE HIGH RISK, VULNERABLE PEOPLE, BUT HAVE SAID, WE'RE HAVING DIFFICULTY GETTING REGISTERED AND THEY GET A CALL THAT SAYS, WE UNDERSTAND YOU'RE HAVING DIFFICULT, GETTING YOU REGISTERED. WE'RE GONNA REGISTER YOU NOW AND ALSO HELP YOU GET AN APPOINTMENT. UM, WHILE WE HAVE YOU HERE ON THE PHONE, CAUSE YOU'RE, YOU'RE NOT HAVING THE ABILITY TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT. SO HAVING A FEEL FOR THE KIND OF THE UNIVERSE, THE NUMBERS THAT YOU'RE REACHING IN BOTH, THOSE WOULD BE HELPFUL INFORMATION FOR US TO BE ABLE TO, TO EXPLAIN TO THE COMMUNITY WHAT, WHAT IT IS THAT'S HAPPENING WHEN WE OPEN THE IT'S. SO I'D APPRECIATE THAT INFORMATION. UM, WHEN WE OPENED THE PORTAL AT TWO HOURS LATER, DO YOU KNOW HOW ABOUT HOW LONG THAT PORTAL IS OPEN BEFORE THE 12,000 APPOINTMENTS ARE, ARE, ARE TAKEN? UH, SO WE, WE DO NOT PUT OUT 12,000 APPOINTMENTS OUT AT A TIME. UM, THE REASON WHY WE SELECTED A TUESDAY AND A THURSDAY, UM, IS BECAUSE, UM, YOU KNOW, WE SCHEDULED SO MANY APPOINTMENTS, UM, ON A TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, UM, THE, WE HAVE TO TAKE INVENTORY OF THE VACCINE THAT IS LEFT. UM, AND THEN FROM THERE MORE APPOINTMENTS ARE, ARE PUT OUT. UM, WHAT WE HAVE BEEN SEEING, UM, IS, IS THAT THOSE APPOINTMENTS, UH, ARE PRETTY MUCH THEIR FIELD WITHIN A COUPLE OF HOURS. OKAY. SO THEY GET ABOUT TWO HOURS NOTICE THEY GET A CALL AND THEN THERE'S ABOUT A TWO HOUR BLOCK WHEN THEY'RE, WHEN THEY'RE ABLE TO, TO BE ABLE TO TAKE, TO GET IN. THAT'S ALSO HELPFUL. UM, THE LAST QUESTION I HAVE GOES TO THE ACCESS ISSUE WITH RESPECT TO HOME PEOPLE, AND I THINK YOU'VE ADDRESSED IT. A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE HAVE RAISED THAT. UH, I NOTICED THAT SAN ANTONIO, UH, IS TODAY ANNOUNCING AS OF, I GUESS, LAST NIGHT THAT THEY GOT A SPECIAL 1000 VACCINE ALLOTMENT DEDICATED TO A HOME-BOUND FOLKS THAT THEY'RE ADMINISTERING WITH THEIR MOBILE UNIT. UH, AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE USING, UH, MEALS ON WHEELS TO HELP IDENTIFY WHO THE, THE HOME-BOUND PEOPLE, UH, ARE. I DON'T KNOW IF THAT THOUSAND IS COMING OUT OF THEIR ALLOTMENT OTHERWISE, OR IF THE STATE, UH, IS EXPERIMENTING NOW WITH, UH, UH, A SPECIAL ALLOTMENT FOR, FOR HOMEBOUND, THAT'S HOW, UH, MAYOR NURNBERGER MADE IT SOUND, BUT HE DIDN'T QUITE SAY THAT, UH, EXPRESSLY. UM, SO PLEASE CHECK ON THAT. AS I KNOW, WE'RE SHORTER AND IT TO GET AS MUCH SUPPLY AS WE CAN. THAT'S REALLY THE ANSWER. DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU ANTICIPATE, [01:30:01] UH, ACTIVATING OUR HOME-BOUND, UH, DELIVERY AND THEN HOW DO WE IDENTIFY THE PEOPLE THAT WE'LL BE OFFERING THAT HOMEBOUND SERVICE TO? SO WE, UM, WE'RE ANTICIPATING, UM, TO BE ABLE TO SET THAT UP, UM, NO LATER THAN THE END OF THE MONTH, UM, FOR IT TO BE LIKE FULLY FUNCTIONING. UM, AND SO, UM, THE, THE GOAL IS, IS THAT, UM, WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO MAKE SURE AHEAD OF TIME THAT WE'RE HAVING CONVERSATIONS, UH, YOU KNOW, WORKING WITH OUR, UM, OUR, UM, COMMISSIONED FOR SENIORS. UM, THERE ARE, UH, SEVERAL NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS THAT, UM, ARE GOING TO BE WORKING WITH US, SENDING US LISTS. UM, WE DID MEET WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UM, HOUSING AUTHORITY. UM, THEY'VE IDENTIFIED, UH, FIVE PROPERTIES THAT THEY HAVE AND THE NUMBER OF RESIDENTS THERE. UM, WE DO NEED TO GET THAT INFORMATION FROM TRAVIS COUNTY AS WELL. SO WE'LL HAVE THAT UNIVERSAL FOLKS. UM, IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, WE HAVE, UM, PARTNERS, UM, AS THEY'RE WORKING WITH FOLKS, UM, THEY ARE, ARE KEEPING A LIST OF FOLKS THAT THEY TYPICALLY PROVIDE, UM, SERVICES TO, AND THEY WILL BE ABLE TO REFER INTO US. UM, WE'RE, UM, WE'LL ALSO BE WORKING WITH OUR PARK AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT AS WELL BECAUSE THEY HAVE A SENIOR PROGRAM. AND THEN, UM, LASTLY, UM, OUR HOPE IS, IS THAT, UM, ONCE WE HAVE A FLYER AVAILABLE, UM, WE WILL, UH, PUT THAT OUT TO THE PUBLIC. SO IT IS THE INFORMATION IS OUT THERE AND THEY ARE ABLE TO, UM, TO SCHEDULE SO WE CAN START PROVIDING THOSE SERVICES. GREAT. THANK YOU. IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO TO SPEED UP THAT PROCESS SOONER THAN THE 28 DAYS FROM NOW OR 20 DAYS FROM NOW TO GET THAT DONE, ET CETERA, A PRIME GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT, UH, ARE AMONG OUR MOST VULNERABLE. SO ANYTHING WE CAN DO TO, TO HELP PUSH THAT ALONG, LET US KNOW JUDGE BROWN. I WILL TURN IT BACK OVER TO YOU. THANK YOU, MAYOR. UH, WE'LL GO TO COMMISSIONER GOMEZ. DO YOU HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION? UM, I'M VERY INTERESTED IN SEEING, UH, ALSO THAT THAT SERVICE BE PROVIDED BECAUSE WE ARE GETTING CALLS OF, UH, FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE DISABLED AND, UH, AND, AND EVEN CHILDREN WHO ARE DISABLED, UH, WHO, UH, WOULD, UH, PROBABLY BE IN THAT VULNERABLE GROUP. SO, UM, I'M VERY MUCH INTERESTED IN STAYING IN TOUCH ON THAT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER GOMEZ, COMMISSIONER SHADE. UM, THANKS. AND REALLY APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT EVERYONE'S DOING. UM, WILL THE TUESDAY, THURSDAY SIGNUP START TODAY OR THIS COMING THURSDAY? WHEN DOES IT START? AND THEN I'VE GOT TO FOLLOW, UH, IT STARTS TODAY. SO MOVING FORWARD, I DO SHARE SEVERAL CONCERNS THAT HAVE BEEN RAISED ABOUT THE POTENTIAL FOR ESSENTIALLY THIS CREATING A BOTTLENECK BECAUSE WE'RE, WE'RE NARROWING DOWN TO JUST TWO DAYS WHEN PEOPLE CAN SIGN UP, BUT, UM, IF PEOPLE HAVE TROUBLE GETTING THROUGH, UM, ON THE REGISTRATION, SHOULD THEY CALL THE THREE ONE, ONE NUMBER SO THAT THEY GET ON THIS LIST THAT WILL GET CALLED BACK? OR IS IT, WHAT NUMBER IS IT THAT THEY SHOULD CALL IF THEY'RE HAVING TROUBLE? UH, RIGHT NOW WE, WE ARE A THING WHERE YOU, ONE, ONE, UM, BECAUSE WHAT THEY WILL DO IS GENERATE, UM, UH, A SERVICE CALL AND THEN THEY WILL SEND THAT OVER TO PUBLIC HEALTH. THEY SEND THAT OVER TO OUR STAFF EVERY DAY. OKAY, PERFECT. THAT THAT'S VERY HELPFUL BECAUSE WHAT I'M HEARING, AND I THINK A NUMBER OF PEOPLE HAVE ALSO EXPRESSED THIS IS PEOPLE AREN'T EVEN GETTING AN, AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT THEIR REGISTRATION HAS BEEN RECEIVED. AND SO THEY, THEY GO FOR A LONG TIME, NOT EVEN KNOWING IF THEY'RE ON THE LIST. SO I'LL CERTAINLY COMMUNICATE THAT ONCE YOU'VE REGISTERED, DO YOU THINK YOU'VE GONE THROUGH ALL THE STEPS PROPERLY, BUT YOU'RE NOT GETTING ANY SIGN OR RECOGNITION OR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT YOU'VE, YOUR REGISTRATION HAS BEEN, UM, SUCCESSFULLY ENTERED INTO THE SYSTEM. YOU SHOULD CALL THREE, ONE, ONE THAT SEEMS TO ME LIKE THE ONLY WAY THEY'RE GOING TO, THEY'RE GOING TO BE CERTAIN THAT THEY GET IN THE SYSTEM IF THEY DON'T. AND I DON'T KNOW WHY WE CAN'T SEND SOME KIND OF AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT EMAIL BACK, LETTING PEOPLE KNOW WHETHER OR NOT THEY SUCCESSFULLY REGISTERED THAT, THAT AT LEAST WOULD ANSWER A MAJOR QUESTION THAT WE'RE GETTING, WAIT, THEY, THEY SHOULD BE RECEIVING AN EMAIL BACK TO THEM. UM, THAT CLOSES, THE LOOP, CLOSES THE LOOP TO LET YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE COMPLETED YOUR REGISTRATION, YOU'RE ELIGIBLE TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT. OKAY. [01:35:01] SO IF THEY DON'T GET AN EMAIL ACKNOWLEDGING THAT RIGHT AWAY, THEN THEY DEFINITELY SHOULD CALL THREE ONE, ONE BECAUSE THEY ARE, THEY'RE NOT SUCCESSFULLY REGISTERING WITH, WOULD THAT BE A CORRECT ASSUMPTION? THAT WOULD BE A CORRECT ASSUMPTION IF THEY ARE NOT RECEIVING THAT EMAIL. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. TREVELYAN I'M JUST INTERESTED IN WATCHING THE CALL CENTER BUILD OUT. UM, I, I WANT TO KNOW, UM, HOW PEOPLE CAN BE HELPED. UH, YOU KNOW, I'VE, I'VE GOT 80 YEAR OLD RELATIVES AND THEY'RE NOT GOING TO TINKER ON A COMPUTER, BUT THEY WILL MAKE A CALL AND THEY NEED SOME HELP WALKING. THERE ARE SOME INTERESTED IN THE, IN THE CALL CENTER, HOW IT SET UP AND WHAT OUR EXPECTATIONS ARE. SO I THINK THAT WE WERE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION IN THAT DISCUSSION. I JUST WANT TO UNDERSTAND MORE CLEARLY HOW TO ADVISE PEOPLE TO USE IT, WHERE TO TELL THEM TO GO AND HOW THEY CAN BE SURE THAT THEY'RE ENGAGED. THANK YOU. UH, AND THAT WILL BE ALSO ON OUR, ONCE WE SHIFT BACK TO THE REGULAR COMMISSIONER'S COURT. WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT MORE. AND, UH, HERE A LITTLE MORE DETAIL ON THAT, MR. HOWARD. UM, THANK YOU. I JUST WANT TO THROW OUT THE IDEA THAT ONCE THE CALL CENTER, UH, HAS SOME EXPERIENCE UNDER ITS BELT, MAYBE WE CAN MERGE THE CONCEPTS OF THE PHONE BANK WITH THE LEADERSHIP OF THE CALL CENTER TO UTILIZE VOLUNTEERS, TO REALLY MAXIMIZE THE MESSAGING. THANK YOU. THANKS. UM, TWO THINGS, ONE, UH, FROM OUR IT DEPARTMENT, IT SOUNDS LIKE IF YOU'RE OUTSIDE OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN, I DON'T BELIEVE YOU CAN ACTUALLY CALL THREE, ONE, ONE. YOU CAN, HOWEVER, CALL FIVE ONE TWO NINE SEVEN FOUR, 2000, AND THAT WILL GET YOU, UH, I BELIEVE TO THE SAME PLACE. SO JUST, UH, COMMISSIONER SHEA, ONE AGENDA FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE OUTSIDE OF THE CITY LIMITS, UM, AND FOR, UH, AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, YOU KNOW, FROM, UH, FIRST ONE IS OBVIOUSLY SAY, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK AND YOUR GOOD WORK, AND VERY HAPPY THAT WE'VE CONSISTENTLY BEEN ABLE TO GET OUT 12,000 VACCINES A WEEK AND ESPECIALLY WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO DR. SCOTT FOR YOUR SCIENCE-BASED AND VERY FEARLESS APPROACH TO THIS ENTIRE COVID PANDEMIC. YOU, YOU HAVE SAVED LIVES, AND I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THAT. UM, AND FROM LISTENING TO THE GROUP OF ALL THE LOCAL ELECTED LEADERS TODAY, IT'S PRETTY CLEAR TO ME THAT WE'RE GETTING VERY SIMILAR FEEDBACK ACROSS THE CITY, ACROSS THE COUNTY HEARING SIMILAR REQUESTS, AND FRANKLY, SOME COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS PROCESS. I THINK THAT THE PROCESS IS SO REFLECTIVE OF, OF MANY PROBLEMS THAT PEOPLE HAVE WITH ACCESSING HEALTHCARE IN OUR COMMUNITY. I WOULD JUST ASK AGAIN, AND I THINK THE GENERAL, IT SEEMS LIKE THE GENERAL CONSENSUS TODAY IS TO ASK AGAIN THAT YOU CONTINUE TO LOOK AT WAYS TO INCREASE EQUITY IN THE PROCESS, WHETHER IT'S WORKING TO MAKE THE WEBSITE FUNCTION BETTER LIKE COUNCIL MEMBER, AND KITCHEN, I THINK LAID OUT SO EFFECTIVELY, UH, MAKING IT SEND DIRECT APPOINTMENTS TO PEOPLE SO THAT THEY'RE NOT SCRAMBLING TO SIGN UP ON THE WEBSITE, MAKING THE VACCINE LOCATIONS MORE ACCESSIBLE BY MAYBE LOOKING AT INCREASING HOURS SO THAT PEOPLE WHO HAVE TO WORK DURING THE DAY CAN GET A VACCINE IN THE EVENINGS, UM, USING THE CALL CENTER, WHICH I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT. AND WHEN I THINK DANA, DAVE OFFER FOR HELPING SET THAT UP AND USING THAT AND OTHER MECHANISMS OF OUTREACH TO CALL PEOPLE AND REACH OUT TO PEOPLE WITHIN EACH CATEGORY WHO ARE THE HARDEST HIT. SO IF WERE CALLING PEOPLE THAT ARE 80 AND OVER, CAN WE CALL PEOPLE WITHIN THE 80 AND OVER CATEGORY WHO ARE LATINO BLACK, WHO LIVE IN THE HARDEST HIT ZIP CODES AND WHERE HEALTHCARE IS LESS, LESS ACCESSIBLE, AND MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE GETTING, UH, EXTRA, EXTRA OUTREACH FROM ALL OF OUR COLLECTIVE EFFORTS AND WITH ALL OF THIS, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, JUST MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE, THAT YOU ARE WORKING ON A PLAN TO INCREASE CAPACITY IN A VERY LARGE WAY. I, I HOPE THAT PRESIDENT BIDEN'S, UH, GOAL OF HITTING A HUNDRED MILLION DOSES IN THE FIRST HUNDRED DAYS WILL COME TRUE. AND TO GET THERE, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO, IN MY OPINION, AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS BEFORE SHIFT TO A DRIVE-THROUGH MODEL SO THAT WE CAN HAVE THOSE MASS VACCINATIONS AND MAYBE LOOK AT GEARING UP TO WHERE WE'RE GIVING OUT THOSE 12,000 VACCINES ALL IN ONE DAY, MAYBE, AND MAYBE WE DO A INTO THE EVENING OR A 24 HOUR MODEL TO MAKE IT MORE ACCESSIBLE. I KNOW WE HAVE GREAT OPTIONS AT THE EXPO CENTER AT CIRCUIT OF THE AMERICAS AT OTHER LOCATIONS. AND I WOULD JUST LOVE TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH YOU AND EVERYBODY ON MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE A PLAN TO RAMP UP THE VACCINES IN A, IN A VERY LARGE WAY. LIKE THEY'VE DONE SUCCESSFULLY IN, IN DENVER AT CORE STADIUM, FOR EXAMPLE, OR COURSE FIELD. BUT WE'RE GONNA JUST END BY SAYING THANK YOU AGAIN. I KNOW ALL, UH, ARE, ARE WORKING EXTREMELY HARD AT THIS AND REALLY APPRECIATE, UH, DIRECTOR HIDDEN HOWARD AND DR. ASCOT AND YOUR ENTIRE TEAMS. THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND I WILL PASS IT BACK TO YOU, MAYOR, [01:40:05] JUDGE. THANK YOU. UH, WE'LL GO THROUGH OUR LIST AGAIN. COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER. THANK YOU. UM, I HAD TWO QUICK QUESTIONS. UM, WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH AS A HUB IN OUR 12,000. UM, BUT MY SENSE IS THAT THERE WERE OTHER PROVIDERS THIS WEEK THAT RECEIVED VACCINES ABOVE AND BEYOND THAT HUB. CAN YOU TELL, WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT, UM, THE BROADER AVAILABILITY OF VACCINES IN THE COMMUNITY? IS IT JUST SECOND DOSES OR THEY'RE ALSO FIRST DOSES? UH, THERE WERE A COUPLE OF OTHER ENTITIES THAT RECEIVED THE VACCINE THIS WEEK. UH, ONE WAS THE, UH, UT AT DELL MEDICAL SCHOOL, THERE WERE THEMED 1,950 DOSES. UH, COMMUNITY CARE WAS THE OTHER PARTNERS, UH, TO RECEIVE DOSES, UH, ME ON THAT. THERE REALLY WASN'T A, IT WASN'T MANY OTHER PROVIDERS WHO'VE RECEIVED THAT, THAT COUNCIL MEMBER I'LL I'LL POINT OUT. UH, THERE IS A NEW WEBSITE, UH, THAT IS, UH, CO-HOSTED BY THE TEXAS DIVISION OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES. IT'S AN INTERACTIVE MAP. THAT'S MUCH IMPROVED FROM THE INITIAL VERSION. UH, IT HAS RED DOTS FOR PLACES WHERE THERE'S NOT VACCINE, BUT THERE ARE PROVIDERS. BLUE DOTS MEANS FIRST DOSE IS AVAILABLE AND WHITE DOTS ARE FOUR HUBS. UH, EACH ONE OF THOSE DOTS HAS THE NAME OF THE LOCATION, THE ADDRESS, AND THE WEBSITE LINK, UH, TO SIGN UP FOR, UH, FOR VACCINE. SO THAT'S THE BEST AND MOST UP TO DATE, UH, DASHBOARD FOR DETERMINING OTHER PLACES THAT MAY HAVE VACCINE AVAILABILITY. THANK YOU. UM, AND THEN MY, MY OTHER QUESTION, YOU KNOW, GOES BACK TO, WE HAVE AMONG OUR MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS, WE DON'T HAVE THE DIGITAL ACCESS OR THE DIGITAL LITERACY FOR THE SYSTEM THAT WE'VE SET UP. UM, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT EVEN WITH THE CALL CENTER, UM, THE FIRST GROUP THAT'S GOING TO BE, UM, CALLED ARE THE 3,400 FOLKS WHO ARE 80 PLUS WHO HAVE REGISTERED, UM, AND THAT'S A DOABLE NUMBER GIVEN THE NUMBERS WE'RE HAVING TO GET THROUGH AND, AND TO HELP THOSE PEOPLE. UM, BUT THEN WE HAVE THE WHOLE HOST OF GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ARE HOMEBOUND, WHO ARE 80 AND PLUS YOU DON'T HAVE SOMEBODY WHO'S BEEN ABLE TO NAVIGATE THE SYSTEM FOR THEM TO EVEN GET THEM REGISTERED WHO ARE NOT ABLE TO FOLLOW UP ON THEIR EMAIL AND, AND GO THROUGH, UM, THE SYSTEM. AND I KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, MY CONVERSATIONS, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT SEVERAL WAYS THAT WE COULD IDENTIFY SOME OF THOSE PEOPLE USING SOME OF THE PARTNERS THAT ARE OUT THERE RECOGNIZING ALSO THAT NOT EVERYONE WHO'S IN THAT SITUATION IS WORKING WITH MEALS ON WHEELS OR DRIVE A SENIOR OR FAMILY ELDER CARE, ET CETERA. BUT HOW ARE WE, YOU KNOW, IS THE CALL CENTER GOING TO WORK WITH PEOPLE TO ARE NOT YET REGISTERED? WE JUST CLARIFY THAT. OKAY. UM, THE, THE GOAL WITH THE, WITH THE CALL CENTER, UM, WILL BE SEPARATE FROM THE GROUP THAT IS WORKING TO REACH OUT PROACTIVELY TO FOLKS THAT DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET. THEY, THE, THE, THE NINE SEVEN TWO FIVE SIX FIVE ZERO NUMBER IS THE DEDICATED LINE, UM, THAT IS FOR PEOPLE THAT DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET. AND SO OUR GOAL IS, IS THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE SHIFTING PEOPLE FROM CALLING THAT NUMBER, UM, AND BEING ABLE TO USE IT AS IT'S INTENDED TO BE USED. SO, IN THE MEANTIME WE HAVE, UM, UH, WE HAVE PARTNERS THAT ARE, UM, ARE SENDING US INFORMATION OF FOLKS THAT DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET, UM, THAT OUR FOLKS ARE CALLING. SO ALL OF THIS IS KIND OF HAPPENING ALL TOGETHER. SO THAT'S WHERE WE GET TO THE PLACE OF THE 45, BECAUSE WE USED TO HAVE THE PEOPLE AT THE COUNTY THAT ARE WORKING ON THE LIST FROM THE REGISTRATION PERSPECTIVE, WE HAVE TO HAVE OUR FOLKS THAT ARE ABLE TO ANSWER THE NINE SEVEN TWO FIVE SIX FIVE ZERO FOR FOLKS THAT DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO, UM, THE INTERNET. AND THAT'S ALL HAPPENING THROUGH THE SAME CALL CENTER. OKAY. YES, IT'S THE, YES, IT'S ALL, ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE HAPPENING FROM THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE, THE DIFFERENT STREAMS. SO YOU HAVE, YOU'LL HAVE SOME PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING ON CALLING FOLKS WHO ARE IN YOUR HIGH PRIORITY GROUP FOR WHATEVER WEEK YOU'RE IN. CAUSE HOPEFULLY WE'LL GET THROUGH THAT FIRST BATCH. UM, AND THEY'RE CALLING PEOPLE WHO HAVE REGISTERED AND HELPING THEM TO GET TO THEIR APPOINTMENTS. [01:45:01] WHO'VE BEEN IDENTIFIED IN THE HIGHEST PRIORITY GROUP. AND THEN THERE ARE THE FOLKS WHO ARE GETTING PEOPLE WHO ARE HAVING TROUBLE REGISTERING VIA THE INTERNET TO DO SO VIA PHONE. UM, EITHER BECAUSE THEY'VE REACHED OUT AND SAID THEY'RE HAVING TROUBLE, OR BECAUSE GROUPS HAVE IDENTIFIED, WE HAVE THESE SENIORS, UM, THAT NEED HELP. IS THAT CORRECT? AND THEY'RE, AND THEY'RE NOT JUST, THEY'RE NOT JUST SENIORS. UM, THERE, THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET, SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO BE OVER 80 YEARS OF AGE. THEY'RE JUST INDIVIDUALS THAT DON'T HAVE THIS KIND OF ACCESS. THAT'S GREAT. THANK YOU FOR THE CLARIFICATION. THANKS. THANKS TO OUR STAFF. AND THANK YOU. THANK YOU TO COLLEAGUES OVER AT THE COMMISSIONER'S COURT, AS WELL AS ON THE DIOCESE. I THINK THAT THE QUESTIONS TODAY I'VE REALLY BEEN, BEEN VERY HELPFUL MANAGER LAST WEEK I ASKED, UM, I THINK IT WAS LAST WEEK. I ASKED THAT WE GET IN OUR OFFICES SPECIFIC CONTACTS FOR DIFFERENT KINDS OF ISSUES. AND I'M JUST GOING TO REITERATE THAT REQUEST. I THINK IT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL IF IN TODAY'S TODAY'S EMAIL TO COUNCIL, WE HAD A CA A SPECIFIC CONTACT FOR WEBSITE CHALLENGES THAT OUR CONSTITUENTS ARE FACING A SPECIFIC CONTACT FOR, TO WHOM WE SHOULD SEND NAMES OF CONSTITUENTS WHO ARE WITHOUT COMPUTER ACCESS, WHO NEEDED TO BE AMONG THAT GROUP, THAT STAFF ARE CALLING, UM, A PARTICULAR CONTACT FOR THREE ONE FOR FEEDBACK ON THREE, ONE, ONE, I KNOW COUNCIL MEMBER FLINT. I SAID, SHE'S IN TOUCH WITH AEE ABOUT THREE, ONE, ONE WE'VE WE'VE SENT OUR THREE ONE, ONE FEEDBACK THAT WE'RE GETTING FROM CONSTITUENTS TO OTHER CITY STAFF. IT IS NOT AN ALL EFFICIENT, IN MY OPINION, IT'S NOT AT ALL EFFICIENT FOR ME TO BE FORWARDING SOME OF THESE REALLY PARTICULAR TECHNICAL ISSUES THAT OUR CONSTITUENTS ARE, ARE EXPERIENCING TO DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARD. THAT'S NOT A GOOD USE OF HER TIME. SO IF WE COULD REALLY GET THAT INFORMATION, I WOULD SAY WITHIN THE DAY, EVEN IF IT'S THREE OR FOUR VERY SPECIFIC ISSUE AREAS, UM, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. I KNOW ALL OF VARIOUS PARTICULAR INFORMATION FROM OUR CONSTITUENTS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN I PLUG IN X, I GET INTO THIS LOOP AND THEN THE APPOINTMENTS ARE AVAILABLE OR I'M GETTING THIS PARTICULAR, YOU KNOW, I JUST, I THINK THAT, UM, IF WE COULD FORWARD ON, AS, AS THE IMPROVEMENTS ARE MADE TO THE WEBSITE AND TO OUR, TO OUR, UM, CALL RESPONSE SYSTEM, I THINK THIS PARTICULAR REALLY SPECIFIC INFORMATION WOULD BE OF HELP. AND, UM, ALONG THOSE LINES, UH, AS SEVERAL OF MY COLLEAGUES HAVE MENTIONED, WE DO HAVE OFFERS FROM, FROM OUR TECH SECTOR TO, TO BE OF ASSISTANCE IN THIS. AND IF I COULD KNOW, PREFER THOSE TWO, THAT WOULD ALSO BE REALLY HELPFUL. AND THANK YOU, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO THANK THE CONSTITUENTS. NOT ALL OF US CAN ACCESS THE REGISTRATION SYSTEM AS, AS SOMEBODY, ONE OF MY COLLEAGUES SAID EARLIER. AND SO THOSE CONSTITUENTS WHO ARE TAKING TIME TO REALLY WRITE OUT THEIR PATH, UM, AND EXPLAIN EXACTLY WHAT IS HAPPENING WHEN THEY HIT CERTAIN BUTTONS, THAT IS REALLY VALUABLE. AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT ACT AND THE SUGGESTIONS WE'RE RECEIVING AND THE OFFERS OF TECH HELP ARE MAKING ITS WAY TO THE RIGHT TO THE RIGHT SYSTEM. THIS IS AN ENORMOUS CHALLENGE FOR OUR CITY. I EXPERIENCE, I, I APPRECIATE THE FRUSTRATION THAT MANY IN OUR COMMUNITY ARE EXPERIENCING, BUT WOULD JUST ECHO NO, THIS HAS BEEN AN ENORMOUS CHALLENGE, AND I REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK OF OUR PUBLIC HEALTH. I HOPE THAT THEY'RE BEING SUPPORTED WELL BY OUR CTM STAFF AND OUR INNOVATION OFFICE AND THE OTHER REALLY TALENTED FOLKS WE HAVE AT THE CITY, THE COUNTY. THANK YOU. UM, I THINK IT'S A COUNCIL. YOUR QUESTION. THANK YOU, MAYOR. I WANTED A LITTLE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT HOW BLUE WHO WORKED IN RESTAURANT OR RETAIL MIGHT END UP IN THE FLOWCHART. WE KNOW THE FIRST RESPONDERS OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, NEED TO BE VERY HIGH ON THE LIST, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO NEED TO INTERACT WITH THE PUBLIC THAT MAY NOT BE ABLE TO STAY HOME. AND I WONDERED HOW THEY FACTOR INTO THE TIMELINE COUNCIL OR THE STATE HAS NOT DESIGNATED THE ONES HE LISTS LIKE THE CDC HAS. THEY EXPECT FOR THAT TO COME OUT IN THE NEXT SEVERAL WEEKS. UH, AND ONCE THEY DO THAT AND SPECIFY, UH, GROUPS THAT FALL INTO THAT CATEGORY, THEN WE GO TRANSITION PLANS OR ADOPT THOSE NEW PLANS, UH, AND, UH, AND, AND FOCUS ON SOME OF THOSE ESSENTIAL WORKERS RIGHT NOW, UH, ESSENTIAL WORKERS WHO ARE A PART OF THE ONE BIGGIE, UH, CAN SIGN UP. AND WE ARE HOPEFUL THAT WE ARE GETTING THROUGH SOME OF THOSE, I THINK IN FUTURE WEEKS, UH, WE ARE GOING TO BE WORKING ON PLANS. WHAT'S SOME OF THE MARY'S INDUSTRIES TO BEGIN TO SORT [01:50:01] OUT HOW BEST TO, UM, TO, TO MEET THE NEEDS OF, OF THOSE PARTICULAR GROUPS, PARTICULARLY ONES THAT MAY HAVE LOWER NUMBERS OF, OF ONE B INDIVIDUALS NOW WHO ARE ELIGIBLE. UH, SO THAT WILL BE A WORK IN PROGRESS. AND WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT, THAT THE VARIOUS INDUSTRIES WILL WORK TOGETHER WITH US TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE PLANS TO, UH, TO REACH OUT TO EACH OF THOSE GROUPS. I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF FOLKS THAT AREN'T NECESSARILY MEDICAL WORKERS, BUT ARE STILL HELPING TO KEEP OUR CITY GOING, HELPING TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE WHAT WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO STAY HOME. THANKS. THANK YOU, OUR CUSTOMER POOL. THANKS. JUST, UM, MY APPRECIATION AGAIN, TO ALL THE FOLKS WHO ARE CONTINUING TO WORK REALLY DILIGENTLY. I, I NOTICED THAT A QUESTION THAT I HAD RAISED LAST WEEK ABOUT HOW ARE WE GETTING TO STAY AT HOME SENIORS, PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WHO MAY NOT OTHERWISE BE ABLE TO GET OUT TO ONE OF OUR VACCINATIONS SITES, HOW ARE WE GETTING TO THEM? AND IT SOUNDS LIKE WE HAVE A PLAN FOR THAT. AND I THINK THAT'S A PRETTY GOOD PATTERN. UM, WE CAN, WE RAISE QUESTIONS IN THESE SESSIONS AND THEN SHORTLY AFTER THEY'RE RAISED, THEY'RE EITHER ANSWERED OR, UH, WE KNOW THAT STAFF ARE WORKING REALLY DILIGENTLY IN ORDER TO SOLVE THE ADDITIONAL CHALLENGES THAT, UM, WE'RE CONFRONTED WITH. SO JUST AGAIN, UM, A VERY STRONG APPRECIATION FOR EVERYBODY, INCLUDING EVERY, ALL THE COMMUNITIES WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY, FOR YOUR DILIGENCE AND FOLLOWING WHAT THE, UM, RECOMMENDATIONS ARE, AND ALSO FOR THE PATIENTS, UM, AND THE DETERMINATION THAT YOU ALSO ARE EXHIBITING IN ORDER TO KEEP YOURSELF IN YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS HAVE THE UNSAFE, THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER KELLY. I DON'T HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL THE HARD WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING. I'M VERY THANKFUL TO BE INCLUDED IN THE CONVERSATION. AND I KNOW THAT THE COMMUNITY IS ALSO THANKFUL FOR BEING ABLE TO HEAR MORE INSIGHT ON HOW APH IS WORKING ON THIS CRITICAL TIME. THANKS. THAT'S OUR KITCHEN. WELL, THANK YOU. I HAVE A ONE, UH, FOLLOW UP QUESTION THAT I WANTED TO ASK. AND, UM, THIS RELATES TO THE, THE, UH, UH, OUR, UM, HEALTHCARE WORKERS WHO ARE, UM, CAREGIVERS IN THE COMMUNITY WITH ELDERLY AND, UH, PEOPLE WHO, WHO NEED ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE LIVING IN THEIR HOMES. AND, UM, COULD YOU JUST SPEAK TO WHERE THEY ARE IN THE PRIORITY LIST AND, AND EXTENT WHICH THEY MAY BE INCLUDED AT SOME POINT IN, UM, AND, UH, THE EFFORTS TO CALL AND REACH OUT TO PEOPLE. IT'S DEFINITELY, UM, WE, WE WANT TO, UM, JUST SHARE WITH YOU COUNCIL MEMBER KITCHEN, UM, THAT THE FOLKS THAT ARE AT HOME, UM, THAT ARE PROVIDING SERVICES TO A SENIOR OR CONSIDERED ONE A, AND SO IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THEM, UM, TO, TO, TO REACH OUT TO US BECAUSE WE WANT TO GET THEM SCHEDULED. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID TALK WITH ONE OF THE AGENCIES ABOUT IS, IS, UM, ONCE WE START THE MOBILE PROCESS, UM, THEY'RE GOING TO COUNT THE NUMBER OF, AND THIS WAS A CONVERSATION I HAD WITH, WITH HAKA. UM, THEY'RE GOING TO COUNT THE NUMBER OF CAREGIVERS THAT THEY HAVE THAT ARE WORKING WITH THE SENIORS, UM, THAT ARE, UM, UM, THAT ARE DISABLED, UM, AND OR SENIORS LIVING IN THEIR PROPERTIES. AND THEY'RE GOING TO GIVE US A COUNT OF THOSE PEOPLE. AND SO THAT WAY, WHEN WE COME OUT TO PROVIDE THE VACCINE, IF THE CAREGIVER IS THERE, UH, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND PROVIDE THE VACCINE TO THEM AND THE CAREGIVER, BUT THEY ARE CONSIDERED TO BE ONE A, UH, THANK YOU. SO JUST ONE QUICK FOLLOW UP. SO, UM, SO THAT'S HOW THE CURE, WHAT IF THE CAREGIVER IS NOT THERE AT THAT LOCATION AT THAT TIME? YOU KNOW, UH, A LOT OF SENIORS MAY HAVE MORE THAN ONE CAREGIVER, UH, PARTICULARLY IF THEY'RE A SENIOR LIVING AT HOME THAT, THAT NEED HERE, UM, FAIRLY OFTEN, OR IN SOME CASES, EVEN 24 HOURS. UM, IS THERE A PROCESS FOR, UH, CONNECTING WITH THE CAREGIVERS, ALL THE CAREGIVERS THAT A SENIOR MAY HAVE, OR PERHAPS THEY PROCESS FOR, UH, CONNECTING WITH THE, UM, SERVICES THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT CAREGIVERS WORK FOR AND THEN ARE CONNECTED TO SENIORS? UM, WHAT, WHAT'S THE THINKING OF IN, IN THAT INSTANCE? WHAT I WOULD SUGGEST IS, [01:55:01] IS, UM, IS THAT, THAT, UM, KAREN GIVER IS IF THEY'RE EITHER HIRED BY THAT SENIOR ART, IF THEY WORK WITH AN AGENCY, UM, THAT THEY WILL JUST EITHER REACH OUT TO THREE, ONE, ONE, THEY CAN DEFINITELY SET UP AN ACCOUNT WITH US. UM, THAT WOULD BE FINE FOR THEM TO DO, UM, IF THEY DON'T HAVE THE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET, UM, WE WOULD JUST ASK THEM TO CALL THREE, ONE, ONE, AND SOMEONE WILL CALL THEM BACK, UM, BECAUSE IT'S GONNA BE A LITTLE DIFFICULT FOR US TO, YOU KNOW, BESIDES THE AGENCIES THAT HAVE FOLKS THAT THEY'RE PROVIDING SERVICES TO AT HOME, UM, RECEIVING THAT INFORMATION IS GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, PROGRAMMING, BUT IT'S GOING TO BE IMPORTANT FOR THE INDIVIDUALS THAT FIT INTO THAT CRITERIA, THAT THEY ALSO REACH OUT, UM, TO SEEK THE SERVICE OF THE VACCINE. OKAY. SO IT SOUNDS LIKE FOR A CAREGIVER IN, UM, IN THAT SITUATION, THEY'RE THE MOST EXPEDITIOUS WAYS TO REACH OUT TO THE SENIOR THAT THEY ARE TAKING CARE OF, UH, BUT ALSO, UH, TO THEY CAN INDEPENDENTLY CALL AND I'M SORRY, WAS IT THREE, ONE, ONE S WOULD THEY CALL WHO SHOULD THEY CALL THAT THEY CAN REGISTER ON THE SYSTEM? UM, AND, AND THEY CAN GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS, UM, OR THEY CAN CALL THREE, ONE, ONE AND ASK FOR A CALL BACK AND SAY, I AM A CAREGIVER. I FALL INTO THE ONE AGE CATEGORY, AND THEN THAT INFORMATION WILL COME TO US AND OUR STAFF CAN CALL THEM BACK. SO THOSE ARE THE TWO PROACTIVE WAYS THAT I WOULD SUGGEST THAT THEY, BECAUSE OTHERWISE WE AREN'T GOING TO BE GETTING THAT INFORMATION FROM THE PARTNERS, BUT THIS WOULD ALLOW US TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE IS NOT A GAP IN THE PROCESS. OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY. OKAY. I HAVE SOME FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS FROM, UH, YOUR CONVERSATION WITH THE MAYOR EARLIER, UH, DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARD. SO IT SOUNDS THAT THERE'S 10 OR 11 THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE OVER 80, WHO ARE REGISTERED, AND WE ARE CALLING THOSE PEOPLE WHEN YOU'RE CALLING THEM. CAN YOU CLARIFY, ARE YOU CALLING THEM AND REGISTERING THEM FOR AN APPOINTMENT, OR ARE YOU JUST CALLING THEM AND LETTING THEM KNOW THAT APPOINTMENTS ARE GOING TO OPEN UP SOON? SO THAT PROCESS HAS NOT BEGAN. THEIR PROCESS IS GOING TO BEGIN ONCE THE COUNTY APPROVES FOR THOSE FOLKS TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT. UM, AND SO ONE THEY'RE, THEY'RE GOING TO, UM, THEY'RE GOING TO BE USED IN FOLKS THAT ARE ALREADY IN THE SYSTEM, SO THEY'RE ALREADY REGISTERED AND, UM, AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO OFFER THEM APPOINTMENTS. SO THEY'RE GOING TO OFFER THEM UNEMPLOYED, RIGHT? SO YOU'RE GOING TO ACTUALLY GET THEM SIGNED UP WITH THE TIME YOU CALL THEM, THEY ANSWER AND YOU GET, AND YOU GET THEM SIGNED UP AT THE TIME. AND, AND THEN THE PEOPLE WHO YOU ARE CALLING, WHO ARE HIGH RISK, WHO DON'T HAVE INTERNET ACCESS, YOU'RE CALLING THEM AND NOT SCHEDULING THEM FOR AN APPOINTMENT THAT YOU'RE CALLING AND GETTING THEM REGISTERED INTO THE SYSTEM. SO WE'RE DOING ABOUT, UM, WE'RE CALLING THEM AND WE'RE REGISTERING THEM, UM, IN HIS F HIS, IN HIS F THE TIME WHEN WE CALL THEM, IF THERE ARE APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE, WE WILL GO AHEAD AND SCHEDULE THEM. SO IT'S A COMBINATION OF BOTH. GREAT. THANK YOU. YEAH, THAT MAKES GOOD SENSE TO ME. THANK YOU. AND THEN THE GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ISN'T ALL 180,000, BUT THE SMALLER GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE THE HIGHEST POINTS, YOU SEND THEM AN EMAIL ON TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS, RIGHT BEFORE, BEFORE THE APPOINTMENTS OPEN UP. AND THOSE PEOPLE, IF THEY GET ON IN TIME AFTER SEEING THE EMAIL CAN REGISTER FOR, OR I CAN SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT, AND THEN OTHER PEOPLE WHO ARE A PART OF THAT 188,000 CAN ALSO LOG IN ON TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS. AND AMONGST ALL OF THOSE FOLKS, THEY TRY TO GET THOSE APPOINTMENTS. IS THAT HOPE SO, SO THE POINT SYSTEM EVALUATES WHO GETS THE EMAIL, BUT ALL 188,000 CAN LOG IN ON TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS AND TRY TO GET AN APPOINTMENT, OR IS IT SOME OF THOSE HUNDRED 88,000 CANNOT LOG IN AND GET AN APPOINTMENT BECAUSE THEY, ALTHOUGH THEY QUALIFY, THEY DON'T HAVE AS MANY POINTS. TELL ME IF I NEED TO MAKE THAT QUESTION MORE CLEAR. IT MADE SENSE IN MY HEAD, BUT, UM, SO, SO, SO IT'S A COMBINATION OF THINGS. I THINK THE, THE CAUTION I HAVE TO SAY BLANKETLY, IS THAT WE CANNOT RESTRICT ACCESS. ONCE WE START TO RESTRICT ACCESS. UM, THEN THE STATE OF TEXAS HAS A POTENTIAL STEFFY AND, AND WE CAN NOT RECEIVE THE VACCINES THAT, SO WE HAVE TO CREATE A PROCESS WHERE, UM, WHERE WE HAVE PEOPLE THAT ARE ELIGIBLE, [02:00:01] THAT THEY HAVE A PLATFORM WHERE THEY CAN SIGN ON. UM, WHAT WE HAVE TYPICALLY WORKED ON IS MAKING SURE THAT WHEN PEOPLE DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET, UM, THAT IT MAY EVEN BE WORKING BECAUSE THEY JUST DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF ACCESS. AND DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF TIME, UM, BEING PROACTIVE IN WORKING WITH GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS TO, TO CALL THEM. AND SO WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON IS JUST CREATING A BALANCE, AWARE, UM, EMAILS ARE SENT OUT EARLIER, UM, CALLS ARE MADE, UM, PROACTIVELY. UM, SO IT'S A COMBINATION OF THINGS, AND THAT IS A REASON WHY WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE MORE FOLKS TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THOSE OUTGOING CALLS. WELL, THANK YOU, DIRECTOR. I THINK THAT'S A REALLY HARD BALANCE TO STRIKE, BUT IT MAKES I THINK GOOD SENSE ONCE YOU LAY IT ALL OUT, WHY YOU'VE, WHILE YOU'RE TRYING IT THIS WAY, THE BEST YOU CAN. SO ON TUESDAY AND THURSDAY, IF YOU ARE PHASE ONE, A OR ONE B AND REGISTERED, YOU CAN SHOW UP AND TRY TO SIGN UP FOR A LIMITED, VERY LIMITED SET OF APPOINTMENTS. AND THEN WE ARE PROACTIVELY REACHING OUT TO THE HIGHEST RISK PEOPLE, TO BOTH GET THEM REGISTERED AND TO GET THEM APPOINTMENTS THE BEST THAT WE CAN WITHOUT RESTRICTING ACCESS ON TUESDAYS, THURSDAYS. THANK YOU. OKAY. COUNCIL MEMBER, I ALSO JUST WANTED TO RESPOND AND SAY THAT, UH, THERE WAS A QUESTION EARLIER ABOUT, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT WAS FROM A COMMISSIONER, UH, TREVELYAN ABOUT CHURCHES AND OTHER GROUPS GETTING, THEY DON'T HAVE TO WAIT TO GET INVOLVED. NOW'S THE TIME TO GET INVOLVED. THEY ALL HAVE LISTS OF PARISHIONERS WHO ARE, UH, YOU KNOW, 65 AND PLUS GO DOWN THE LIST COLUMN, OFFER SUPPORT, ASK THEM IF THEY'RE REGISTERED, IF THEY'RE NOT REGISTERED, UH, HELP FACILITATE, UH, THEIR REGISTRATION PROCESS. THERE ARE SO MANY GROUPS THAT HAVE WORKED TOGETHER THROUGHOUT THIS PANDEMIC THAT'S LED TO SUCCESS, AND WE CAN CERTAINLY DO THE SAME THING WITH, UH, WITH THE VACCINATION EFFORT, UH, SET, ENCOURAGE, YOU KNOW, YOU ALL, UH, THOSE COMMUNITY GROUPS TO START REACHING OUT TO THOSE SENIORS IN PARTICULAR WHO MAY STRUGGLE WITH ACCESS AND OFFER TO HELP GET THEM SIGNED UP, SORRY, COUNCIL MEMBER, RIGHT THROUGH TO YOU. YES. UH, THAT'S INTERESTING. I JUST, UM, UH, AFTER THAT SCOTT, ABOUT THESE GROUPS THAT ARE ACTUALLY HELPING OUT, I KNOW THAT I'VE BEEN GETTING, UH, UH, EMAILS AND A PHONE CALL FROM, UH, THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY BECAUSE THEY HAVE THE BAN LIST AND THEY CAN SEE, UH, EVERY ONCE A, SO HOW DO THEY WORK YOUR GATE? DO THEY JUST GET THEIR INFORMATION? ARE THEY, ARE THEY TRANSMITTING THE, UH, TELLING THE CEDARS ON THE ONES THAT ARE QUALIFIED TO CALL IN OR ARE THEY HELPING OUT WITH THE REGISTRATION? SO I'M COUNCIL MEMBER RENT TO REAL. I CAN ACTUALLY ANSWER THAT QUESTION. UM, BASICALLY, UM, WHAT, WHAT IF THE PARTY REACHED OUT AND REQUESTED THAT THEY WOULD CALL ALL REGISTERED VOTERS, UM, THAT ARE AGES OF 65 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER, UM, STARTING WITH, UM, TARGETED ZIP CODES TO, UM, INCREASE THE AWARENESS. SO THEY WOULD KNOW ABOUT HOW TO SIGN UP WITH AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH. SO, UM, SO THEY MADE THOSE CALLS. UM, AND, UM, WHAT THEY'VE DONE IS, IS THAT IF THERE WAS ANYONE, WELL, LET ME TAKE A STEP BACK. UM, WE PROVIDED, UM, A SCRIPT FOR THEM, UM, AS WELL AS AN, UM, AN FAQ. AND THEN FROM THERE, UM, IF THERE WERE INDIVIDUALS THAT HAD MORE QUESTIONS AND WANTED TO TOUCH BASE WITH AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, THEY SENT US A LIST OF WHO THOSE INDIVIDUALS ARE. UM, AND THEN FROM THERE, OUR FOLKS, UM, ARE GOING TO, UM, TO START TO CALL THEM IN TO DETERMINE EXACTLY WHAT THEY NEED. THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME KNOW THAT. AND, UM, I REALLY ALSO WANT TO GIVE MY, THANKS OUT TO YOU AND, YOU KNOW, YOUR STAFF AND DR. SCOTT FOR ALL THE WORK THAT Y'ALL BEEN. UM, I ALSO WANT TO, JUST TO SHARE, UM, THAT WE, THAT WE DID REACH OUT TO, UM, THE, THE REPUBLICAN PARTY AS WELL, UM, AND HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM. AND SO WE'RE GONNA MAKE SURE THAT IF THERE WERE FOLKS THAT WERE NOT REACHED OR MAY HAVE NOT DECIDED TO ANSWER THE PHONE BECAUSE [02:05:01] THEY WERE BEING CALLED BY DEMOCRAT, UM, THAT THEY WILL BE ABLE TO DO THE SAME KIND OF PROCESS AND PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION BACK TO US AS WELL. THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER . THANK YOU. UM, SO I THINK IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL DIRECTOR HAYDEN HOWARD TO, UM, TOUCH ON THE RECENT NEWS THAT OUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WOULD BE DEDICATING FEMA TO COME HELP TEXAS AND ADMINISTERING THE VACCINE. SO TO THE EXTENT OF THE KNOWLEDGE THAT WE'RE AWARE OF, OF HOW THAT FACTORS INTO OUR COUNTY, WHAT CAN BE OUR EXPECTATIONS AROUND THAT? UM, AS OF TODAY, UM, AT OUR LAST MEETING WITH THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES, UM, WHAT THEY SHARE WITH US AT THE TIME IS, IS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO TARGET AREAS, UM, THAT DON'T HAVE AS MANY EITHER HUB PROVIDERS THAT ARE SIGNED UP OR, UM, SITES THAT ARE WILLING TO PROVIDE THE VACCINE. AND SO, UM, THAT MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AS ALL OF YOU MAY RECALL. UM, CURRENTLY, UM, THE PFLUGERVILLE SITE, EVEN THOUGH, UM, AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH IS, IS COORDINATING THAT, UM, THAT IS DONE BY THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AT THAT SITE. AND SO, UM, WE, WE TEND TO HAVE THOSE TYPES OF PARTNERSHIPS, UM, EVEN WHEN WE DO HAVE, UH, AVAILABLE, UM, SERVICES. AND SO WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES AND, UM, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ALMOST. OKAY. UH, BEN 10. THANK YOU. MA'AM UM, SO ONE OF MY CONCERNS, I ACTUALLY BROUGHT UP, UM, DURING A MEETING WITH THE FOLKS FROM THE COMMUNITY RESILIENCE TRUST. UM, AND IN ADDITION TO THAT CONCERN THAT I BROUGHT UP, WHICH WAS AROUND HEARING IMPAIRED INDIVIDUALS, UM, AS HAVING AVAILABLE MATERIALS AND OUTREACH TRAINING, UH, FOR FOLKS WHO BOTH, UM, EITHER HAVE HEARING IMPAIRMENT AND NEED, YOU KNOW, SOMEBODY FLUENT IN AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE, BUT WE ALSO EXTENDED THAT CONVERSATION TO DISCUSS SPECIFICALLY FOLKS WHO SPEAK SPANISH, BUT ALSO ARE HEARING IMPAIRED, UM, WHICH IS A DIFFERENT SKILLSET. UM, SO THAT'S A GROUP OF FOLKS THAT I'M CONCERNED ABOUT AND WOULD LIKE TO ASK SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT ACCOMMODATIONS WE'RE MAKING THERE, BUT THEN ALSO RECOGNIZE THAT WE ALSO HAVE A SUBSTANTIAL VISUALLY IMPAIRED POPULATION OF FOLKS. UM, AND JUST WONDERING WHAT ACCOMMODATIONS WE HAVE AVAILABLE FOR THOSE FOLKS AS WELL. UM, SO WE, UM, WE HAVE STARTED, UM, THE PROCESS, UM, IT, FROM AN IT PERSPECTIVE, UM, WE HAVE BEEN ALERTED AND WE KNOW THAT THERE IS A NEED FROM AN ADA, UH, CAPACITY FOR FOLKS TO BE ABLE TO USE THE COMPUTER TO MAKE SURE, UM, YOU KNOW, IF THEY, UM, ARE VISUALLY IMPAIRED, UM, THAT THE COMPUTER DOES MAKE SOME TYPE OF NOTIFICATION TO THEM. UM, SO THOSE ARE THINGS THAT, THAT WE ARE, UM, WORKING WITH OUR, UM, ADA FOLKS ON, IN ORDER TO IMPROVE, NOT ONLY AT THE SITE, BUT ALSO FOR THE REGISTRATION. SO THOSE THINGS HAVE BEEN, UM, HAVE BEEN MOVED FORWARD IN OUR TEAM IS DEFINITELY WORKING ON THAT. UM, WHAT WE ARE ASKING FOLKS RIGHT NOW, UM, IS, IS, IS WE ARE STILL ASKING FOLKS TO CALL THREE, ONE, ONE, UM, TO ENTER THAT INFORMATION. AND THEN FROM THERE, UM, WHEN OUR FOLKS CALL TO SCHEDULE THAT PERSON TO GO OUT, UM, WE WILL MAKE A NOTE THAT, UM, UM, EITHER THEY'RE, UM, UM, SOME TYPE OF DISABILITY AND THAT THEY WOULD NEED SOME ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE ONCE THEY ARRIVED TO, UM, THE, UH, SITE TO PROVIDE THAT VACCINE TO THEM. I THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. I'M WONDERING IF IT WOULD BE, IF IT WOULD BE PRUDENT FOR US TO CREATE SOME WORKING RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR COLLEAGUES AT THE SCHOOLS, FOR THE BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED IN SCHOOLS FOR THE DEAF, UH, TO HAVE US, OR HAVE THEM RATHER HELP US MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE'RE REACHING THE POPULATIONS OF FOLKS WHO MAY OTHERWISE BE LEFT BEHIND. UM, WE, WE HAVE ACTUALLY, UM, BEEN WORKING WITH THEM. WE HAVE ACTUALLY PROVIDED THEM SOME VACCINES BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE A ONE B UM, POPULATION THERE. AND SO THEY HAVE BEEN WITHIN OUR PARTY POPULATION THAT WE HAVE ADDRESSED. AND SO WE'LL, WE'LL CONTINUE, UM, TO WORK WITH THEM, UM, IN THE SPACE OF US PROVIDING SERVICES. SO WE CAN TALK TO THEM ABOUT THAT, BUT WE HAVE PROVIDED VACCINES TO THEM. AH, THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. I THINK IT'S, TO ME REAL QUICK, UM, UH, DIRECTOR IN HOWARD, [02:10:01] WHEN SOMEBODY, UM, UH, GOES THEN REGISTERS, IF THEY ARE UNDER 65, DO THEY GET AN EMAIL CONFIRMATION IF THEY'RE REGISTERING, BUT NOT ELIGIBLE? I WAS UNCLEAR WHO GOT THE AUTOMATIC EMAIL AFTER REGISTRATION. WAS IT JUST PEOPLE WHO REGISTERED AND WERE ELIGIBLE SAY OVER 65? OR WAS IT EVERYBODY WHO REGISTERED INCLUDING SOMEONE SAYING THEIR THIRTIES? UM, BECAUSE WE ARE TARGETING, UM, ACCORDING THE VISUAL, THE ELIGIBILITY FLOW CHART, UM, THE GOAL IS TO TARGET PEOPLE THAT ARE 50 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER. AND SO THAT IS WHO WOULD RECEIVE, UM, THE VACCINE AS BEING ELIGIBLE. THAT PART I UNDERSTAND, I WAS JUST TRYING TO CREATE, I'M TRYING TO LEVEL SET THE EXPECTATIONS OF PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY. SOMEONE WHO'S 30 YEARS OLD CAN GO TO OUR SYSTEM AND REGISTER. THEY'RE NOT ELIGIBLE. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO BE TOLD TO GO SIGN UP AT THEY'RE IN THE SYSTEM. AND SOMEDAY WE'LL ACTUALLY GET TO PEOPLE THAT ARE 30 YEARS OLD. UH, SOMEBODY WHO IS OVER 65 ALSO COULD GO AND REGISTERED. UH, BUT THEY'RE NOT ONLY REGISTERED, BUT THEY'RE REGISTERED AND ELIGIBLE. YOU HAD SAID THAT WHEN SOMEONE GOES INTO OUR SYSTEM, IF THEY'RE PROPERLY REGISTERING AND ELIGIBLE, THEY RECEIVE AN EMAIL CONFIRMATION THAT THEY'RE BASICALLY IN THE SYSTEM AND THEY'RE, AND THEY'RE ELIGIBLE. THAT WOULD BE SOMEBODY SAY OVER 65, IF SOMEONE WAS 30 OR 40 WITHOUT CO-MORBIDITIES, THEY CAN ALSO REGISTER IN OUR SYSTEM. ISN'T THAT CORRECT? THEY CAN REGISTER, BUT THEY WILL NOT RECEIVE AN EMAIL THAT SAYS THAT YOU ARE ELIGIBLE TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT. GOT IT. SO THERE'S NO CO CONFIRMING EMAIL FOR SOMEBODY WHO REGISTERS, BUT IS NOT ELIGIBLE. SO THEY SHOULDN'T BE WAITING FOR ONE. AND IF THEY DON'T GET ONE THAT DOES NOT MEAN THEY DIDN'T SUCCESSFULLY REGISTER, IT JUST MEANS THEY ARE NOT IN THE UNIVERSE OF REGISTERED AND ELIGIBLE FOR A VACCINE WHEN IT EVENTUALLY COMES. THANK YOU. I WANT TO GO BACK TO A JUDGE. BROWNS ARE REQUESTED AND I'LL JOIN IN THAT, UH, JUST TO HAVE A DECISION MADE ON THE MASS VACCINATION ISSUE. I UNDERSTAND WE'RE NOT PRESENTED WITH THAT YET. AND HOPEFULLY WE GET TO THE PLACE WHERE WE HAVE 40,000 VACCINES TO GIVE OUT. UH, BUT I, BUT, UH, THE JUDGE AND I ARE CONTINUING TO GET QUESTIONS FROM PEOPLE THAT JUST SAY, WHAT IS THE MASS VACCINATION PLAN? I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE A PLAN. IT GENERALLY ALREADY IN THE WORK THAT'S BEEN DONE OVER THE PRECEDING MONTHS AS WE, AS WE GOT HERE. BUT I THINK THE, THE ADDITIONAL REQUEST FROM, FROM JUDGE BROWN AND HE WOULD BE THAT, UH, YOU ACTUALLY TAKE A LOOK AT THE AVAILABLE OPTIONS, MAKE THE DECISION AS TO, AT THIS POINT, WOULD IT BE OUT OF COTA OR WOULD IT BE AT THE EXPOSITION CENTER AND WOULD IT BE DRIVE-THROUGH AND, AND WHO WOULD BE LOGISTICALLY SETTING IT UP? NOTICE, I DON'T THINK IT'S GOING TO CREATE A LOT MORE ADDITIONAL WORK, BUT JUST TO BE ABLE TO RESPOND TO THE PEOPLE THAT SAY, IF WE HAVE 40,000, THIS IS OUR PLAN FOR AN EXECUTION. I THINK THAT PLAN AND HAVING THAT WRITTEN DOWN SOMEWHERE AND HAVING MADE THOSE DECISIONS WOULD BE, WOULD BE HELPFUL. IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU THINK WE COULD GET? UM, AS YOU KNOW, WE ARE, UM, WE, WE HAVE THE PLANS TO BE ABLE TO, UM, MOVE THAT FORWARD. WE ARE WORKING WITH A CONSULTANT, UM, THAT, UM, ONCE WE RECEIVED THAT INFORMATION BACK HIM FROM HIM, THEN WE COMBINE THOSE AND THEN WE MAKE A DECISION ABOUT WHERE THOSE LOCATIONS WILL BE. AND SO BASED UPON THE INFORMATION BACK FROM THE CONSULTANTS, UM, THEN WE CAN PROVIDE THAT BACK TO THIS BODY, THESE BODIES. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, JUDGE. I TURN IT BACK TO YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. SO, UM, THAT, THAT IS ALL WE GOT. I THINK WE'RE GONNA WRAP THINGS UP HERE AND I HAVE GOT, UH, I THINK I'M IN MY SCRIPT. IT SAYS, I TURN IT BACK TO YOU. SO I MAY DO THAT AND THEN LET YOU IN YOUR MEETING. AND THEN I WILL COME BACK HERE AND IN OUR MEETING, BUT I JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU, MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL AND, UH, DR. S SCOTT AND DIRECTOR HIDDEN HOWARD, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EVERYBODY WORKING TOGETHER AND ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK. I KNOW EXTRAORDINARY TIMES IN THIS PANDEMIC AND JUST WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR CONTINUING TO WORK TOGETHER AS A TEAM. I REALLY LIKED THIS APPROACH TO THANK YOU FOR WORKING HARD AND ALL I WANT TO THANK YOU. AND I WANT TO THANK THE COMMISSIONERS COURT, OR WE HAVE MY COLLEAGUES ON THE, ON THE COUNCIL. IT'S ACTUALLY GOOD TO HEAR THE QUESTIONS THAT THE, THAT THE COMMISSIONERS ARE, ARE ALSO ASKING IN YOUR ASKING, UH, THAT HELPS, UH, NOT HAVING TO PUT, UH, DR. S SCOTT [02:15:01] AND DIRECTED DIRECTOR. I HADN'T HOWARD THROUGH THIS TWO DAYS IN A ROW REPEATING THE SAME QUESTIONS HAS NOW GIVEN THEM BACK AN ENTIRE MORNING TO, TO ACTUALLY SPEND ON, ON, ON THE VIRUS ITSELF. AND THAT'S WHERE WE WANT THEM TO BE. UH, AND FRANKLY, THIS IS ONE OF THOSE PROJECTS AND THERE ARE MANY THAT THE CITY OF THE COUNTY DO TOGETHER. UH, SO COMING TOGETHER ON THOSE THINGS THAT WE DO TOGETHER IS IMPORTANT, I THINK, JUST FOR FORM. AND SO THE COMMUNITY CAN SEE HOW WELL WE WORK TOGETHER. I CONTINUE TO READ IN THE MEDIA, OTHER CITIES AND COUNTIES, EVEN AROUND OUR STATE, UH, THAT PROBABLY COULD NOT DO WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE RIGHT NOW. SO WITH THAT, THANK YOU, JUDGE. AND, UH, I WILL, UH, UH, ADJOURN, UH, THE CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL CALLED MEETING TODAY ON FEBRUARY 2ND, 2021 HERE AT 1120, OUR SPECIAL CALLED MEETING THE PURPOSE OF GETTING THE COVID, UH, UH, REPORT. UH, AND WITH THAT COLLEAGUES ON THE COUNCIL, UH, I'LL SEE YOU IN OUR WORK SESSION, UH, LINKEDIN, AS WE, AS WE LEAVE HERE SO THAT WE CAN GET, UH, AN EX BRIEFING. ALL RIGHT, GUYS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND, UH, . * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.