OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Oklahoma epidemiologist defends state health department’s move from daily to weekly reporting of coronavirus information.
The daily reports did not provide a true picture of the virus, epidemiologist Jared Taylor said on Friday.
“Quite simply, that doesn’t tell the real story about what’s going on in a community, what’s going on in the state, how we must perceive things, and how we must respond to things,” said Taylor.
Weekly reports, which began on March 17, make up for one day’s changes, Taylor said.
Public health officials have criticized the change, including Bruce Dart, Tulsa’s health director, who has said his agency used the daily data to make virus response decisions.
Dr. OU Health’s Covid Officer Dale Bratzler said he was not happy that counties, cities and zip codes are not being reported now.
“We won’t be able to say so well whether we’re seeing hotspots or outbreaks in the state,” said Bratzler. “Maybe the state health department will be able to do this, but we won’t be able to see it because it’s not transparent at the moment.”
Taylor said if the state sees value in returning to a daily report, it will.
Comments are closed.