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BOSTON - Monday,
December 6, 2021 - Today, Mayor Michelle Wu announced her COVID-19 Advisory
Committee, a group of doctors, public health professionals and multidisciplinary
leaders who will assist in decision-making around tackling new variants and
working to end the pandemic in Boston. The Committee will be chaired by Dr.
Bisola Ojikutu, Executive Director of the Boston Public Health Commission,
who was elevated to a cabinet-level role under Mayor Wu. These leaders have
backgrounds ranging from Medical Director at a large public hospital to
restaurateur.
The full list is as
follows:
Chair, Dr. Bisola
Ojikutu
·
Dr.
Sabrina A. Assoumou, MD, Louis W. Sullivan Professor of Medicine, Boston
University School of Medicine
·
Dr.
Kizzmekia Corbett, Assistant Professor of Immunology and Infectious
Diseases, Harvard School of Public Health
·
Louis
Elisa, President of the
Garrison-Trotter Neighborhood Association, member of the Black Boston COVID-19 Coalition
·
Paola
García, Community Relations Manager, Tufts Health Plan
·
Yvonne
Garcia, Chief of Staff, State Street
·
Temple
Gill, Director of Public Affairs and Strategic Partnerships, Huntington
Theater Company
·
Nia
Grace, co-founder, Boston Black Hospitality Coalition, owner of The
Underground Cafe + Lounge and Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen
·
Dr.
Julia Koehler, MD, Boston Children’s Hospital, Assistant Professor of
Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School
·
Amy
Latimer, President, TD Garden
·
Brian
Moy, restauranteur and owner of Shōjō and Ruckus
·
Dinanyili
Paulino, Chief Operations Officer, La Colaborativa
·
Dr.
Cassandra Pierre, MD, MPH, MSc, Medical Director, Public Health Programs,
Boston Medical Center
·
Jake
Sullivan, Vice President for Government and Community Affairs, Boston
University
·
Tony
Tjan, Chairman and CoFounder, Miniluxe
·
Reverend
Liz Walker, Senior Pastor, Roxbury Presbyterian Church
·
Dr.
Sandro Galea, MD, MPH, DrPH, Robert A. Knox Professor at Boston University
School of Public Health.
·
Dr.
Joseph Betancourt, MD, MPH, Senior Vice President, Equity and Community
Health at Massachusetts General Hospital.
“I’m grateful to
these leaders for their willingness to serve the public in this pivotal
moment. We have both a responsibility and an opportunity to take on our
biggest public health challenges, and take every action possible to protect
our residents and end this pandemic. I look forward to working with and
receiving the wisdom of this dedicated group,” said Mayor Michelle Wu.
“Boston is taking an
aggressive, public health approach that will keep city residents safe, our
children in school, and our local businesses open. The diverse makeup of
this committee is yet another example of Mayor Wu’s commitment to ending
the pandemic and addressing the significant health care inequities in our
city. COVID-19 cases are surging here and across the country, making it a
critically important time to get vaccines and boosters to as many people as
possible, especially in communities where vaccine and booster rates are
troublingly low. I am confident that Mayor Wu’s leadership and the insights
of the Advisory Committee put us in a very strong position to end the
COVID-19 pandemic in Boston,” said Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Executive
Director of the Boston Public Health Commission and Chair of the COVID-19
Advisory Committee.
The current data
send a clear message to our city residents: get vaccinated, get boosted,
get tested if you have symptoms, and continue to take precautions, such as
wearing masks when indoors and while traveling, washing your hands, and
limiting the size of holiday gatherings. There are currently 88,990 confirmed
cases of COVID-19 in Boston. Emergency department visits have increased by
6 percent over the past week, positive tests are up 15 percent over the
last two weeks, and hospitalizations have increased by 28 percent during
the last two weeks. New positive tests are up to 191.6 per day in the last
week, above BPHC’s goal of 67.9 positive tests per week. Community based
testing is also down by 23 percent in the last week. Getting tested
continues to be very important, especially during the holiday season.
There is reason for optimism however, as the number of booster doses
administered increased by at least 15 percent over a one week period
(82,173 to 94,274) and the proportion of fully vaccinated individuals has
increased to 67.1 percent.
Racial disparities
in vaccination and particularly booster rates in Boston remain a serious
area of concern. Black residents account for only 13.4 percent of the
boosters administered and Latinx residents account for just 9.4 percent.
Similarly, over white children account for over 57 percent of vaccinations
for children ages 5-11, as compared to 10.2 percent for Latinx children and
7.8 percent for Black children. Both Mayor Wu and the Boston Public Health
Commission have made reducing these disparities a major priority in the
City’s efforts to end the pandemic.
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