This week, health care workers begin receiving the first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Two doeses are required for maximum effectiveness.
However, public health experts say it is too soon to let our guard, and masks, down. As deaths and hospitalizations continue to rise, a group of Florida doctors and mayors will join forces this week to reiterate the importance of masking up and socially distancing.
The group Doctors Fighting COVID is an advocacy organization consisting of Florida frontline doctors from throughout the state. They recently wrote a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis urging him to pass a mask mandate and ban indoor gatherings of more than 50 people.
Those virtually attending will include the mayors of Atlantic and Miami beaches, infectious disease specialists, and other public figures. The event, held via Zoom, will aim to explain the importance of stopping the spread of COVID-19 by relaying stories illustrating how deadly the virus is.
Dr. Nancy Staats, a board-certified physician in anesthesia and critical care and one of the founders of Doctors Fighting COVID, joined us to discuss the event.
Related: Local, State, And National Coronavirus Coverage
COVID-19 Clinical Trial
A new COVID-19 clinical trial is underway in Northeast Florida for people who have had a mild form of COVID-19. The study, through UF Health Jacksonville, is part of a national clinical trial to determine if a blood-thinning medication can help prevent post-infectious blood clots.
The study is called the ACTIV-4 COVID-19 Outpatient Thrombosis Prevention Trial, and researchers are looking for participants. Dominick Angiolillo, MD, Director, Cardiovascular Research at the University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville, spoke with us about the study and explained how to sign up for it.
Crazy Beans Coffee
A new coffee shop is headed to Downtown Jacksonville early next year. Crazy Beans Coffee, managed by celebrity Chef Erika Cline and co-owned by Herbert Bartley, will be located in the Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center in LaVilla.
The coffee shop plans to serve breakfast, lunch, coffee, and desserts. Cline and Bartley joined us on the program to tell us more.
Katherine Hobbs can be reached at newsteam@wjct.org or on Twitter at @KatherineGHobbs.
