Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

EDITORIAL:

Strong leadership in Nevada has led to significant progress fighting virus

Governor's COVID-19 Update

Steve Marcus

Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak speaks during a news conference at the Sawyer State Building Thursday Aug. 5, 2021. The governor gave an update on the COVID-19 situation in Nevada.

Nevada’s response to the most recent surge in COVID-19 is an example of good government at work.

In early July, Nevada became one of the first states in the nation to request assistance from special federal government “surge teams” to combat the spread of the delta variant, get more people vaccinated and address a sharp rise in COVID-19 infections.

What ensued was a remarkable vaccination push in which Federal Emergency Management Agency staff, health officials, local residents and volunteers from AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps joined forces. Targeting Las Vegas, where vaccination rates were stagnating in several areas despite the rise in infections, this small army of about 450 people worked across 21 ZIP codes and held 280 vaccination events. The team also worked with community organizations like Immunize Nevada and Mi Familia Vota to disseminate information, counter misperceptions about the safety of the vaccines and encourage residents to get their shots.

The effort, simply put, involved meeting people where they live as opposed to offering vaccinations mostly through “come one, come all” vaccination sites like the one at Cashman Convention Center. The strategy of fanning out into neighborhoods was smart. It allowed officials to ease fears caused by misinformation, provide vaccinations to individuals who lacked transportation, and literally speak to residents in their own language — the teams were multilingual.

It worked. Vaccination rates in the targeted areas went up by as much as 22%, helping raise Clark County’s overall rate of residents who’d received at least one shot to 63%.

Test positivity fell to 6.7% last week in Clark County, only slightly above the 5% target set by the World Health Organization for the relaxation of coronavirus mitigation measures.

Compare that trending to the week before Gov. Steve Sisolak asked FEMA to send in its surge teams. At that time — July 1 — Nevada led the nation in COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents and the rate had rocketed up 108% in 14 days.

The work took time, as tackling an outbreak isn’t like turning off a light. By the first week of August, the test positivity rate was running at 15.7%.

But the persistent effort paid dividends. Last week, Sisolak credited the surge teams and their Nevada partners for playing a key role in putting the state back on the right trajectory. He said the “Get Out the Vaccine” campaign that involved the surge teams was wrapping up, but that vaccination efforts would continue. While Sisolak giving credit to others is admirable, Nevadans must understand that the governor’s leadership was invaluable in getting the state back on track, and this doubtless saved lives and helped the economy.

It’s imperative to keep moving forward on vaccinations. They’re the key to fighting the current outbreak and stopping the emergence and spread of new variants.

But think of where we might be now if our state leaders were in the mold of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and other right-wing extremists who have undermined public health by politicizing the vaccines and feeding anti-vax mentality. Hospitals in their states buckled under the load and citizens died unnecessarily.

Instead, in Nevada, the federal-state-local partnership we’ve seen in action over the past several weeks is a sign of responsible leadership in our state government and our community.

Good government happens when leaders recognize a problem, work cooperatively to address it and devote adequate resources to the effort.

That’s what happened in Southern Nevada, and it made a difference.