The COVID “Next Normal”: Lessons from the NBA Bubble and Vaccine Modeling

Overview

As the coronavirus pandemic enters a new phase, science that can guide vaccination prioritization and business’ return-to-work strategies are more important than ever. In this webinar, we explore the experience of the NBA bubble, in which players were sequestered at the Walt Disney World Resort. Data from this longitudinal testing program has important implications for our understanding of the natural history of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the utility of frequent testing strategies.  In addition, we discuss modeling studies that compare different prioritization strategies for COVID vaccination, and their implications for public health policy.

About the Presenter

Yonatan Grad, MD, PhD is the Melvin J. and Geraldine L. Glimcher Associate Professor in the Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, and a member of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He earned his MD and PhD at Harvard Medical School, trained in internal medicine at BWH and infectious diseases at BWH and Massachusetts General Hospital and did his postdoctoral work in the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics at the Chan School. The Grad laboratory studies how pathogens evolve and spread through populations with the motivation of improving clinical and public health strategies for decreasing the burden of disease, with a particular focus on antibiotic resistance. The lab uses a variety of methods, including genomics, epidemiological tools and microbiology to define the dynamics of spread and characterize the genotypic and phenotypic diversity of the pathogens. His work on COVID-19 has included working on the MA COVID-19 task force, advising the NBA on the 2019-20 season restart, and research on viral trajectory during infection, spread within NYC, statistical frameworks for serological studies, projections of the pandemic and vaccine prioritization strategies, among others.