ucf doctor is working to help o smell. joining us now is dr. patricia loftot. thanks for joining us. >> thank you for having me. >> how common is loss of smell in covid patients during their illness? >> so actually it's a very common symptom. if you look at the literature, it's a little widespread in terms of the actual numbers. i would say, i would quote around 80 to 90% patients that contract covid experience a loss of taste or smell. >> many are actually having complete loss of smell. some will say it's more of a decrease. most of them notice very big change in their normal sense of smell. >> okay. what percentage do you think still reports symptoms or suffering from that after they recover from covid? >> yeah. so the data is showing that about 75 to 80% of patients who have smell loss of covid will fully recover that sense of smell in the first few weeks. they usually recover their sense of smell as they recover from covid. most patients. then moving on to about the six month mark, more patients start to regain their sense of smell. we get to 95% of patient

ucfs epidemiologists warned we should be concerned about delta variant because it is highly transmissible. >> i wear mask into a grocery store. pretty much any store. i would wear a mask to the movies, indoor performances. it's really on you to be careful at this point. >> in los angeles health officials confirm more than 2500 new cases yesterday. that's 20 times more than a month ago. >>> it is just about 20 minutes before 5:00. growing concerns as water levels drop. >> why one county worries their restrictions aren't allyre rd. , ba a y to ma a returnit's not that simple. the roadblock they're facing. >> where would bay area rank if covid tier system was still in inis live with that answer.. >>> you are looking at san francisco from ou he most bay area are making a come back. >> last year the san jose jazz festival went virtual and fremont festival of the arts was canceled all together. >> reporter: fremont festival of the arts is one of the largest outdoor festivals west of the mississippi relying heavily on all types of vendors to draw crowds. everything from jewelry to clothing as we

the next 20 to 30 years at ucf. amanda mckenzie fox news.t wanted to show a little bit of patriotism since we haven't been able to during the last couple of years due to covid andrew dramatic show of patriotism it is and venetia after the break. what inspired these homeowners to paint a giant u. s flag on their front lawn? today was nice with sunny skies and it looks like our mild weather will continue, even though we've had a little foggy this evening, meteorologist kyla grogan. all of this started when we discovered the benefits of local, raw honey for our family. and then we said "hey, you know what? this is a business right here." we went out and started to sell it. to help us get going, we got the chase business complete banking ℠ account. it's more than a bank account. it comes with quickaccept, which lets us take card payments anytime, anywhere, and get same-day deposits at no extra cost. it's more than honey. it's about building something for our family that will endure. another day, another chance. it could be the day you break the

up next, amazing technology developed at ucf that could change a lot of lives. >>> there is an incredible stroke victims from bay area researchers. it's called neuroprosthesis and it's given people a new way to talk using brain activity. robert handa spoke with them. >> reporter: the project started with a man, a brain stem stroke survivor who lost the ability to speak 15 years ago and could only communicate using a pointer attached to his head to point to letters. that method helped researchers create a 50-word vocabulary. then an implanted brain device recorded his brain activity as he tried to speak specific works. computered translated that and that allowed him to create sentences via brain signals. the person tries to say words and sentences and words and sentences are able to be decoded. >> reporter: right now, the vocabulary is limited to 50 words as a proof of concept. >> one of the next things is to say, how do we get more words into this vocabulary? that's ongoing research. >> reporter: the research team says there will be ongoing research in any areas, admittedly a long way off

let's bring in our infectious disease specialist at ucf. you see it happening here. i asked you the same question a couple of weeks ago. any update on your answer, do you see a mask mandate in the bay area? >> i think it could in san francisco and other places but i doubt it will happen anywhere but california, because the cdc is really, really clear, and dr. fauci and the nih and president biden is clear on their messaging that right now the pandemic shifted its focus. it is really among the unvaccinated. and what president biden and the white house task force is working on is outbreaks, going and getting testing and treatment and -- in places with increasing hospitalizations. and i think that's an appropriate response. dr. fauci and the cdc director was just asked two days ago if they would reinstate masks for the unvaccinated and they said no because i think they're really trying to say the vaccinated ones are safe. >> are you surprised l.a. county made this move beginning saturday night? >> you know, i think that california has always been a little more restricti

people that have those compromised immune systems, ucf says doctors are urging for more research on the vaccine's effect on some cancer treatments. >> reporter: vietnam veteran eric seater is a fighter. no stranger to battles. >> i was nearing death. >> reporter: he was told he would have one year to live in 2016. until his team of doctors at ucsf put him on a drug called intruda. >> i might not have been here right now. >> reporter: he avoided contracting covid. it was roughly two weeks after rafing the second doses of pfizer vaccine in march he started feeling sick. >> i did have an ongoing headache. it seemed like my body functions were trying to shut me down. slowly. >> reporter: after being admitted at ucsf. the team of doctors ran 68 tests. information was found in his brain. but all other tests indicated any fekz came back negative. >> it's hard to know below the vaccine was that kicked him over the edge to develop this reaction or not? >> reporter: dr. lawrence fong the head of immunology at ucsf says there needs to be more research. >> do those treatments, in and of itself, bec

. >> reporter: ucf infectious dr. peter chen hong says in the bay area where vaccination rates are high, most are protected. but with the summer travel season in full swing, people who are not vaccinated are taking a risk. >> the unvaccinated folks, regardless, are going to be at risk, particularly as we have more influx of visitors during the summer months into the bay area. >> reporter: mayor london breed tweeting today, the delta variant is a real concern for the unvaccinated, encouraging people to get the shot. at costco in san francisco tonight, we found the majority of shoppers masking up. >> i'm still taking precautions, because we don't know how dangerous it is, right? even though we're vaccinated. >> if i'm somewhere i feel like cramped and there's a lot of people, i'll leave or put on a mask. >> reporter: at the state capitol, mask rules are back in effect for all staff, after nine confirmed covid cases. four involving fully vaccinated people. dr. hong supports being cautious, 234 what he calls a dynamic sit

they have teamed up with ucf. the meetings are on zoom. the meeting tonight is in english. other interpretations will available if requested. amy hollyfield reporting. >>> the delta variant accounts for a third of-fold creep since may. kate larsen has more. >> reporter: with much of the country reopened, the 4th of july felt a lot closer to prepandemic times. while 50 million traveled by trains and planes, new cases of the highly transmissible delta variant continued to spread as the country came up short of 7 million shots have president biden's vaccine goal. >> there are four states that we're looking at that we're concerned about. utah, nevada, arkansas and missouri. >> i live in a rural area and it's pretty hard hit. you guys here in san francisco seem to be on it. >> reporter: ryan walker is a variis fueling unvaccinated states, he said this. >> i don't think we'll see a national surge. >> reporter: he also said it's too soon to say what surges will have. >> we're waiting to there's an increase in hospitalizations. are you concerned? >> yes. with 20% in a household get

. >> -- >> reporter: head of immunobiology at ucf's a said there needs to be more research on how these interact with vaccines. keytruda boosts the immune system to target cancer. >> those treatments because we are turning on the immune system, put patients at increased risk for some of the side effects or the immune system ends up targeting different tissues in our bodies. >> reporter: dr. vuong said of more cases like this pop-up, a potential solution may be to take patients previously on the drug to take them up to avoid severe reaction. says that is not enough data to support that yet. either option presents a risk, especially as the rapid spread of the delta variant is another threat. now that the cdc has released guidance indicating the shot may not effectively protect immunocompromised patients, he said ucsf is considering where the that group should be first in line to get a booster shop. >> we probably should be assessing cancer patients for what their immune responses are after the second vaccination. if they are not up to the level we would like to see, we might think of givi

peter hung is a ucf professor a of medicine and infectious disease specialist and sis minority groups have taken a watch and wait and some fear a perceived cost with historical precedent and mistrust. >> how we get over covid and keep the smiles on everyone's faces and keep the city and country open is we do our part and we get the vaccine. >> that was million any woodrow reporting. if you have questions about the vaccines, ask those questions to me and the rest of the vaccine team. go a abc7 news.com/vaccine. >>> volunteers will continue to search for missing berkeley man this morning. they plan to meet at foothill high school to share flyers and canvass the area for the father who went for a run in pleasanton ridge regional park last saturday, and he has not been seen since. police in the alameda county sheriff an office ended the official search. his family believes may be on someone's personal property near the park. >>> candidates vying for governor newsom's position have a get their names on ballot by today. the recall elect is september 14th. voters will be sent mail-in ballots

neighborhood by neighborhood on the one to the highest covid positivity rates doctor george rutherford with ucf s ucsf says it's important that you get tested. but before you do anything, just follow the guidelines. that means mask up. >> the more people who are infectious, the more people are walking around with infection, the more likely you are to come into contact with someone was infectious and the and the more likely it is that that will will be seeing breakthrough cases wear masks. if you're in indoor public spaces and 2, if you if you have a known exposure. get tested with 3 to 5 days after that explosion. >> so that's what he said. just like you gyms yet. so many the family gets sick to get tested. john got sick. got tested. turns out not delta just cold. but still, you need to know. meantime, data in santa clara county shows that they have started testing more there. people are out getting tested county public health officials say the plate to expand the fairgrounds testing location now to 7 days a week. so you go there to get tested starting tomorrow. and in contra, costa county, the

on both the health centers as well as the afterbirth and then we will conclude with a click slide on ucfby name is joe chin, public works program manager. i will be doing a quick update on the next two slides about the project updates on what we have done since revision ten months ago both the building by. in building five, we are tracking tiered projects and construction of the space station project. both projects are targeting construction completion by late summer of 2021. and then we had a contract see mgc contract which the total of eight projects being delivered. terry mentioned, we are rebidding three of those projects. we have the seismic upgrade, dialysis and the public health laboratory projects. two other projects we will be bidding by late second order of this year, the then results of these five projects will inform the team on the next steps of funding availability on the subsequent projects and in design. next slide please terry. then on the unity health components for tracking three health projects, southeast center is the new 2022 square feet center that's under construc

on both the health centers as well as the afterbirth and then we will conclude with a click slide on ucfis joe chin, public works program manager. i will be doing a quick update on the next two slides about the project updates on what we have done since revision ten months ago both the building by. in building five, we are tracking tiered projects and construction of the space station project. both projects are targeting construction completion by late summer of 2021. and then we had a contract see mgc contract which the total of eight projects being delivered. terry mentioned, we are rebidding three of those projects. we have the seismic upgrade, dialysis and the public health laboratory projects. two other projects we will be bidding by late second order of this year, the then results of these five projects will inform the team on the next steps of funding availability on the subsequent projects and in design. next slide please terry. then on the unity health components for tracking three health projects, southeast center is the new 2022 square feet center that's under construction. we