Originally posted in The Reading Eagle

Written by Karen Shuey

Be prepared. Do not panic. Use common sense.

Those were the key messages during a telephone town hall about the coronavirus hosted by U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan Tuesday morning. 

The Chester County Democrat, who represents the 6th District that includes Reading and many southwestern communities in Berks County, said the purpose of the call was to inform her constituents about what is being done at the federal level to combat the outbreak and highlight efforts necessary to prevent its spread.

What Congress has been doing

Houlahan told those on the call that she joined her colleagues in Congress to approve $8.3 billion in emergency aid last week.

The bipartisan package, which includes nearly $7.8 billion for agencies dealing with the virus, is substantially larger than what the White House proposed last month. It also authorizes roughly $500 million to allow Medicare providers to administer telehealth services so that more elderly patients, who are at greater risk, can receive care at home.

She said she also signed onto a letter along with 60 of her Democratic colleagues in the House urging President Donald Trump to make swift changes to increase the effectiveness of the administration's response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The letter identified flaws in the early phases of efforts to contain the disease including disorganization, a poorly defined chain of command, the spread of bad information, inadequate funding and staffing vacancies. They offered to work with the administration to make improvements, but stressed that lives depend on the president and his team showing stronger leadership.

What the experts are saying

Houlahan then shifted gears to how people can do their part to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

"I know there's been a great deal of conflicting information going around," she told those on the call. "I wanted to convene this call with local health experts so members of our own community can have access to the best possible information about smart steps you can take to prepare."

Three experts — Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Jeanne Casner, director of Chester County Department of Health, and Marie Keim, director infection control and prevention at Reading Hospital — were featured guests on the call and fielded questions from participants.

Offit gave an overview of the coronavirus. He said it appears the virus, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believes is spread mainly from person-to-person through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes, is spreading easily and widely in the community in some affected geographic areas. 

"Over the next few months we will see how this plays out and which ways this is being transmitted," he said.

Casner said not having all the information at this point to know all the ways its being spread is what makes responding to a virus like this so complex. But, she stressed, counties throughout the state have plans in place that are designed to help prevent and mitigate the transmission of an outbreak as well as communicate accurate information to reduce the fear within the community.

"This is a very rapidly evolving situation and we do anticipate the identification of more cases," she said. "And I know this sounds almost too basic considering how widespread this is globally, but we are really stressing the fundamentals: stay at home if you're sick; practice good personal hygiene like regular hand-washing; reconsider community gatherings in particular if you're elderly or have underlying health conditions; and postpone all unnecessary travel."

Casner added that officials from neighboring counties are working together and with the state to coordinate the response because the virus has no borders.

Keim said hospitals are making sure personnel are protected and have the equipment to respond to the outbreak. As the needs of the community change, she said health care providers are monitoring the situation closely and collaborating with community partners to ensure everyone is working with the same information.

"It's important to make sure that we are staying on top of the information because it's constantly evolving," she said. "We're going to make sure our protocols are in line with the latest information that we're getting from the CDC."

What people want to know

Are tests available in Berks and Chester counties? And is testing happening?

Casner said tests are available in those communities.

She added that several people have been tested for the virus in Chester County, but they have not yet received the results of those tests. If the tests come back positive from the Pennsylvania laboratory, she said, those individuals will be considered presumptive positive cases. Those tests then will be sent to the federal laboratory in Atlanta to be confirmed positive cases.

Should I take the same precautions that I do to avoid the flu?

Offit said that is exactly the right course of action, especially someone who is older or has a compromised immune system.

Can I catch the virus from collecting my mail and daily newspaper?

Offit said he believes the danger is extremely low. But he suggested people get into the habit of washing their hands whenever handling items or using devices that many people might come into contact with as a precaution.

Why are we so much more concerned about the coronavirus than the flu?

Offit said that honestly he's not really sure, adding that he believes the coronavirus isn't going to be as deadly as the flu.

"I think we are disproportionately fearful of this virus because it was believed that if you catch this virus you're far more likely to die of it," he said. "And I don't think that's necessarily true. I think we scare people in some ways a little unnecessarily."

Should people be quarantined if they're fearful they have the coronavirus?

Offit said he's not sure it will have an impact.

"If this virus is truly spread by person-to-person contact as some believe then quarantine won't make much of a difference," he said. "I think we're doing these sorts of draconian measures to close schools and cancel meetings all with the hope that this is going to stem the tide. But we're doing these things in an abundance of caution."