Governor Mike Dunleavy held a press briefing on Wednesday, joined by Adam Crum, Commissioner of the Department of Health and Social Services, as well as Dr. Anne Zink, Alaska’s Chief Medical Officer. The purpose of the briefing was to discuss the latest cases of COVID-19 in Alaska and providing updates on how the administration is reopening Alaska’s economy “responsibly.”
The Governor went over the latest COVID-19 numbers, while celebrating that Alaska is in the top-ten per-capita in terms of conducting tests.
He also discussed the closure of the school year to students, saying that the decision is essentially final. He said the decision was made primarily due to smaller towns in Alaska where school buildings are used in other capacities. In future press conferences, he pledged to look at the idea of opening the 2020-21 school year early, but will not commit to the idea at this point.
Dr. Zink was asked by KSRM News about whether the state plans to utilize antigen testing, as opposed to PCR testing, which is the type of testing that has been conducted thus far. She cemented her commitment to only utilizing newer testing methods once it is most efficient and readily available. She did, however, mention the increased accuracy and potential turnaround speed of antigen testing.
When it comes to opening Alaska, the Governor pledged that the state is using science to make decisions. He proposed the hypothetical of someone being scared so all business should still be closed, then asked: “Why?” He said the idea of being “too afraid to open” is not good enough, because the state’s numbers are looking good enough to move forward right now. The Governor feels the baseline that has been laid out is fair, and that if local municipalities and states have reason to move in a different direction, the state is willing to have those conversations.
Dr. Zink also discussed the idea of ‘herd immunity,’ the epidemiological concept that says a sufficient number of people can no longer catch the disease, protecting the rest of the population who has not yet been infected. She said that this concept is not something she strictly believes in, as there are still so many vulnerable Alaskans who could suffer greatly from catching COVID-19.
To conclude the briefing, the Governor addressed how the infections found in meat processing plants in the lower-48 could impact Alaska. He recommended shopping Alaskan, when possible, even though it may be more expensive sometimes – as not only does it offer peace-of-mind, but it helps to look out for the small agricultural industry in Alaska.