>> building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions, this is abc 7 news. >> you are watching gettingtting answers. we asked experts your questions everyday day at 3:00. we talk about travel restrictions easing for international residents and what this means for us in the bay area. we will also talk about domestic travel, specifically hawaii and why you should not be heading there anytime soon. although, there is an even bigger message being put out by the lieutenant governor with regard to getting help from the surgeon general. first, we begin with covid-19 p news in california. but still lots of questions to

get answers. joining us now is michael biology and immunology professor at stanford, dr. robert siegel. great to see you. >> a pleasure to be here. >> i do want to get to the biggest news today, the biggest headline, new study on the johnson & johnson vaccine. it is a one-shot vaccine. and many people think of it as less effective than the others. but this new study puts things in a new light, maybe explain. >> well, i think that this is kind of what we expected. the vaccine is pretty effective after one dose but i think you should, the best way to think about this is one dose of johnson & johnson is about equivalent to one dose of pfizer or moderna. so, there's growing evidence that two doses is the way to go, to put you in an advocacy range well over 95%. >> so, basically

with a second shot the study found, the johnson & johnson is as good as the others. is that how we can think of it? >> for sure. i think the reason, it is important to understand how the vaccines get licensed. you submit a protocol and you have to stick to that protocol. and johnson & johnson thought they could reach the bar with a single shot and the bar was 50% efficacy and they did that. if you want to get to the efficacy of other vaccines you have to add a second dose. >> for what i understand with the second dose and brings it up to 94%. is that again severe cases are just getting covid? >> well, again, this is a changing situation since these studies start before, while the vaccine variants are still changing. i think the 95% is against clinical disease. >> ok. so, another question that came out of this and i do not think i read in full detail but i think

if the johnson & johnson second dose were administered six months later, after the first dose, rather than two months, it seemed like there was a big jump and the level of protection. right? is that surprising, or no? >> no. for any of these vaccines when used amid the protocol, you say i will try three or four weeks or one dose. it turns out in general if you space the doses apart, you get a bigger boost in the response. . even for the other vaccines, if they get spread apart, there were some, some of the original vaccines were spread longer in england because they were trying to get at first doses in. there seems to be more efficacy if you can wait. >> given that, are there currently plans being made to revise the dosing period for not just j&j, if it becomes a two shot. but even moderna and pfizer.

will we look at extending the period? >> we're constrained by how they did the original study. unless they do another study to validate the spacing, it is going to be hard to change it. what really matters is that if you want to get the two doses in fairly quickly if you are in a high prevalence area. in a lower prevalence area, the need for the second dose according to the protocol is less critical. it kind of depends on what the prevalence is. >> got it. we were nowhere near this johnson & johnson becoming a two vaccine-- a twoo shot vaccine. >> i think we're going to see it soon. >> soon? > wit >> within the next few months. again, a lot of this depends on whether the company submits a protocol and requests the validation. >> i'm sorry. do you think they still need

to? i wonder if this vaccine is still relative in -- still relevant in the u.s. and we do not have a supply shortage with just the pfizer moderna that we have, or is this necessary are we talking about making it so that this is what we will be given to the rest of the world where they'd still have a shortage? >> i think there is lots of reasons to make it a two dose protocol. one is from johnson & johnson's perspective, if you get a second dose they want you to get a second dose of johnson & johnson. that is their motivation of putting this through. as far as, for instance, the cold chain that is needed for the mrna vaccines, this does supply a more viable option for a lot of other countries. it is still a very important vaccine. again, there are some people who for whatever reason either have side effects or personal

objection to the mrna vaccine. i think johnson & johnson should move ahead. >> we had kinda forgotten that one of the benefits for johnson & johnson is that it does not need the supercold refrigeration and so that makes it easier to send and distribute throughout the world, really. i do want to ask you, though, for the folks who did already get the johnson & johnson and there are 50 million people in the country who did, what is the recommendation to them now? should they be getting a pfizer or moderna shot as quote unquote a booster. san francisco january allow that. some people are going ahead with it. what would you advise? >> so, locally, i agree with what san francisco is doing. , providing a second dose just to boost people's immunity up to the higher level. there is not an official recommendation, but again as far as the people living locally, i think that is a great idea. >> pfizer says it is effective

for kids five to 11. that came out yesterday. so what you think the timeline will be for that age group actually? i heard by halloween getting their first shot. what do you think? >> i hear the same things you do, i hear halloween is the target tape. i think to be able to vaccinate kids in school be a game changer. >> by the way, i am seeing a viewer comment which i want to touch on quick before we move on to masks. i don't want to mix vaccine so i will just wait for doctor's orders. is there any evidence about mixing vaccines, whether that is worse or better in terms of protection? >> that is a great question. unfortunately we do not have a lot of data on this because most of the trials are run by the specific companies that give the

vaccines. and so, they want you to follow with their vaccine. from an immunological standpoint, there is not a real reason why you could not be able to mix-and-match vaccines. because the data is probably going to be mostly for keeping the same vaccine, that is probably what we'll see the data, the recommendations but from an immunological standpoint it should be fine to change vaccines. again, if you feel your risk is low of being exposed, then, for instance, your need to get vaccinated amida brimah may be less. getting a booster may be less. >> people have been talking about whether in the bay area with our case rates coming down and vaccinations fairly -- high, does it make sense to drop the indoor mask mandates. i want to throw up something for our viewers to consider as we try to answer this question. georgia tech has a good risk estimator.

you can look at the map and they give you an estimate. and san francisco, if you were to and attend an event with 50 people, there was a 23% chance that someone at that event would have covid. if you go somewhere like shasta county, for example, i think your chances are at an event of 50 people, 85 percent chance yet a you encounter somebody who is positive. can you talk about indoor masking and the need for it, given like what we are looking at here? >> personally i think indoor masking is a good idea whenever, wherever possible. because it is such an easy thing to do and because it is so effective. so, for instance in stanford i've been teaching classes, and everybody is expected to be vaccinated but we still wear masks when we are giving lectures and so forth. i think it is a good idea. >> one last question for you, which is how does the flu season play into risks?

i just got my flu shot it i wonder if you are concerned about a twin-demic. experts have different opinions on that. >> first of all, congratulations. that's great. i think we should all get our flu shots as well. i think last year, there, last year there was essentially no influenza pandemic because all the public health measures that were put in place and are masking an hour distancing. so now, as we get back together there is going to be a higher chance that people are going to get more flu this year than they got last year. i think it is useful to get both vaccines because in terms of respiratory dangers, if you have, it put you at risk for more serious complications from the other. >> thank you so very much.. always great to talk with you and learn from you. really appreciate it. >> it is my pleasure. thanks a lot.

>> coming up next we talk about the impact of easing travel restrictions from abroad and the impact it can have on us in the bay area. we wil

>> welcome back. yesterday the biden administration announced that sometime in november u.s. will ease up researches for foreign travelers and allow them and with proof of vaccination. joining us to talk about the impact is the executive vice president of the u.s. travel association. thanks a lot for joining us. >> thanks for having me. >> there was a lot of confusion. enter restrictions are not being lifted for all foreign travelers, only those i think from 33 countries. give us the framework and details. >> so, there were only a certain

number of countries that were subjected to this section 212f, the executive order that was put in place actually about 18 months ago by the trump administration. what the biden administration did yesterday is they lifted the restriction on a country by country basis and applied it across the board for all countries that they will look at the individual risk assessment of the traveler. vaccinated travelers will be permitted to come to the u.s. they will keep in place the testing requirement that is currently required whether you are american or not. this is good news as we seek to reopen in particular countries like the u.k. and the e.u. who have been unable to come to the u.s. for a long time. >> while they have been letting u.s. travelers in. this just makes it reciprocal if you will. but i wonder does the testing rule change? it does, depending on whether

you are vaccinated or on vaccinated in terms of americans who go abroad and then come back. >> no, americans who go abroad will still be required to take a test upon reentry into the u.s. they will be required to take a pcr hours within 72 days coming back into the u.s. the administration is highly recommended that nonvaccinated americans don't travel abroad and if they do travel abroad, when they return they have a test within a day before the comeback. they shorten that time window of 72 hours to one day. the exception would be children traveling with their parents who are vaccinated for those under 12 who have not been able to have a vaccine because there is not one for them. >> what e-cig is the impact of all this, once we kick in these new rules in november?

do you think more formative so call me -- more foreigners will come here or do you think that more americans will go abroad? >> we absolutely think international travelers will come to the u.s. we have been losing $1.5 billion a week just in keeping the lamb border with canada and the eeo and the u.k. borders. we absolutely think key markets that are so important to the u.s., the u.k. is the number one overseas market to the u.s. for many years. and with the ability to have vaccinated brits who over 70% are vaccinated, that will help to allow for them to come here in a more robust fashion. and i think that importantly americans will likely still go

abroad and will still come back but what this helps us do is really reopen that broader global travel environment that is so critical. another thing it is going to do, i am in las vegas for international travel tradeshow. and business travel, international business travel needs to do business to buy american goods and to see all of the important items they might buy whether it is travel services or contractors, they will now be able to come into the u.s. as long as they are vaccinated. that from an economic standpoint will be meaningful for the u.s. >> and for a city like san francisco, a region where 62% of our tourism spending is from international travelers. how long do you think before that comes back? it's certainly not going to be immediate. >> saying that the full recovery of international travel will not be till 2023-24.

we we might be able to expedite -- we hope we might be able to expedite that time horizon because domestic leisure has been propping up the industry but without business and international travel, the whole of the country will not see a full recovery. so we think this is really an important step. there is still critical work that needs to be done. to be able to make sure we are able to reopen in november and frankly there is still some issues around the land borders. the canadian land border, for example, we are losing almost $400 a million a month with the canadian land border being closed. that is something that we will still need to tackle and that is not part of this new announcement. >> i never really understood that, while you can keep flying to mexico but you cannot cross the land border. what is the difference from a medical standpoint? is it something else?

>> so, what we think, obviously, the airlines are the ones that are receiving the current requirement to have a negative covid test to come into the u.s. they will be the collection point for vaccine validation and other contact tracing. we do not have airlines at the borders, at the northern or southern borders. and we do not necessarily have the staffing needs with dbp that would be required. >> the logistics of checking is much harder. i see that. is there something you would like to see? even with this it still feels like internationally it is a patchwork of different rules for who allows whom to come and what they need to meet requirementssies. what would you like to see? >> we would like to see them more consistency across the board and across the globe but

we think this new policy is important because what it does do at least as it relates to international travel coming here is which is what we care about because prior to, a travel trade in 2019, 50 $6 billion surplus. -- a $56 billion surplus. as it relates to international inbound now that we have a one-size-fits-all approach where vaccine travelers will be able to come into the u.s. and we will have to take the test, we like that that is a common approach for eventually, we were going to have to phase out of that. hopefully we get to this end, point in the pandemic. we know that we are going to have other pandemics in the future. we need to stay agile and flexible and we need to be able to phase this out. we do not want to be 20 years from now having to, having a

vaccine requirement to come in, like you had a shoe requirement to take your shoes off to tsa. we need to be practical about it. we think it is a public/private relationship approach to how we solve these issues and we look forward to continuing to work closely with the administration because this is going to have to evolve over time. >> torie emerson barnes, thank you so very much for your time. speaking of travel, we will head to hawaii next where they are asking for help from the surgeon general. hey, i just got a text from my sister. you remember rick, her neighbor? sure, he's the 76-year-old guy who still runs marathons, right? sadly, not anymore. -what, you mean-- -mhm. -just like that. -wow. so sudden. um, we're not about to have the "we need life insurance" conversation again, are we? no, we're having the "we're getting coverage so we don't have to worry about it" conversation. so you're calling about the $9.95 a month plan

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take the first easy step. call today for free information. and you'll also get this free beneficiary planner, so call now. (soft music) ♪ ♪ hello, colonial penn? >> you probably saw hawaii's governor pleading with tourists not to come citing a surge created by delta and a strain on the hospital resources. the state came close to having to ration care. hawaii's lieutenant governor josh green texted the u.s. surgeon general this past weekend to ask for help. lieutenant governor greene joins us now. thank you for your time.

lt. gov. green: you bet. >> what kind of help did u.s. the surgeon general for? lt. gov. green: a couple things. we have been asking for help and he has delivered for us. we asked for nurses. he and fema and hhs have delivered 650 nurses and respiratory therapist. we peaked at 448. with our hospital #september 3 -- our hospital number september 3. what i texted dr. murphy about, we has a state that responded very well w/x and eddie still spiked with delta and still overflowed our hospitals. w thankfullye away from thatbrink now so we do not consider rationing care're what i said to him is whatever he can do to give support to other states like idaho, texas, alaska, any state that ends up in crisis, he should encourage

those governors to ask for the help that we did. that is the way to unite us, because those states that have a much higher rate of covid are in for a really terrible time in the near future. >> well, as you said, hawaii is not the worst out there. many states with much higher case rates. why have they not reached out? has he talked to you that he thinks that they are not there the u.s. government is there is a resource? >> those states have tended to reject support when they could get it. and unfortunately they should have never been political situation. covid should not be political. it really should be about health. yes, i am lieutenant governor but i am an er doctor first. when i take care of a patient i never see them as a democrat, republican or independent and i see them as someone who can barely breathe. those states that have to ration care because they did not have enough people vaccinated, they

did not limit social gatherings and did not wear masks, they are going to see a surge in their hospital icu's that will not be compatible with surviving. they know it and the governors and lieutenant governor's of those states will have to move off of their political positions if they want to save the lives of their constituents. >> part of the reasons you are talking to be as you are hoping that other states will see what you did in hawaii and perhaps draw inspiration. now that cases are going back down in hawaii, there is debate over whether tourism has been driving the searchs.-- the sur ges. the governors please saying don't come. and i see twitter message from people who are hawaiian, saying tourists are responsible. what does the data say? do you believe it is driven by tourists or by locals? >> it is not driven by tourists. 1.5% to 2% of all our cases were from visitor. 13% were from local residents coming back but they were not vaccinated.

there were socializing with friends and coworkers and that was the way the spread occurred. and the rest of it was through community spread. very few cases were from travel. although, i will say this. when we were wide open and seeing our max travel numbers are 32,000 today, everyone was at work. everyone was in the lunchrooms, everyone may or may not have been vaccinated. that of course did make it more likely you would spread. we are at 89% of our state who is eligible having started vaccinations. 66.6% of our state fully vaccinated. we are a lot safer now. i would expect an announcement from our governor and the next week to say, look, ok, we are all right. the hospital numbers are back down to normal we can tolerate a lot of travel. because we miss people. we love tourists. >> we have

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>> thanks for joining us. see you back heretomorrow. [captioning performed by the tonight, the major headline on the one-shot johnson & johnson vaccine. also tonight, the president before world leaders. and the breaking news just coming in in the case of that missing woman. first, johnson & johnson tonight now saying a second shot two months after the first will offer 94% protection against mild to severe covid. and 100% protection against severe disease. so, how soon before americans who got the johnson & johnson vaccine could be getting a sect shot? news tonight on the potential pfizer booster, as well, on the eve of that crucial cdc meeting, deciding whether to approve it for people 65 and older and for those who are at high risk. and what about moderna? what dr. fauci is saying about all of it. also tonight, president biden speaking to world leaders

at the u.n., now