The Issue Is: Dr. Mark Ghaly, Bob Shrum, Mike Murphy, Marty Walsh, Hilda Solis

LOS ANGELES - THE NEXT WAVE?: DR. MARK GHALY ON OMICRON, BOOSTER SHOTS, AND THE POTENTIAL FOR FUTURE LOCKDOWNS

This week, the first confirmed case of the Omicron variant in the United States was detected in California.

As the newest COVID variant, from Southern Africa, is detected in more and more states, what impact could that have on the COVID fight, as well as the future of vaccines, mask mandates, and potential lockdowns?

To discuss, Elex Michaelson is joined on The Issue Is by Dr. Mark Ghaly, California’s Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Also this week, longtime political strategists Bob Shrum and Mike Murphy discuss the politics of rising crime, as well as the political headwinds being weathered by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Then, Michaelson tours a Downtown LA construction site with Labor Secretary Marty Walsh and former Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, now on the LA County Board of Supervisors.

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THE ISSUE IS: WHAT IS OMICRON, AND WHAT ARE THE BEST/WORST CASE SCENARIOS?

GHALY’S CENTRAL TAKE: "Omicron is a strain of the COVID virus. It has changed over time. You heard about the Alpha variant, then you heard a little bit about Beta, we've talked a lot about the Delta variant - each one of those is a slightly different form of COVID with a different genetic makeup that allows you to do different things when it gets into the human body…

"The best case scenario is that simply our bodies recognize Omicron, the vaccines work as well as they have on all the other variants, and that we don't see a significant impact, especially on those who've been vaccinated, those who may be infected in the past, that we don't see a level of sickness, a level infection, and a level of transmission that we were worried about before we had vaccines or even with Delta...

"The worst case scenario is certainly that Omicron does cause a level of sickness, even among the vaccinated, that we really have avoided with other variants. But I think we are increasingly seeing that a number of the people who are infected with Omicron, especially those who've been vaccinated, are experiencing mild symptoms and doing pretty well after a short course of mild COVID…"

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THE ISSUE IS: COULD OMICRON LEAD TO FURTHER CALIFORNIA LOCKDOWNS?

GHALY’S CENTRAL TAKE: "What we are focused on, is having Californians do those things that we know work - that is get your shot, get vaccinated, get boosted as soon as you can, because we know that wraps a strong blanket of protection around California. It's not just around Omicron, but frankly around the Delta variant that we're still contending with. Get tested if you have any exposures or symptoms, wear your mask in indoor public settings and stay home when you're sick. If we do those four things we really believe California is well poised to weather whatever COVID throws at us, so we aren't even talking about what the triggers are around those sorts of restrictions that people were accustomed to early on and, frankly, have grown tired of. So we're watching the scenarios closely and the situation closely, but right now, laser-focused on Californians doing the things we have control over right now…"

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THE ISSUE IS: BOOSTERS, VACCINES, AND PROTECTION AGAINST OMICRON

GHALY’S CENTRAL TAKE: "It's a little bit early to say Omicron's had an effect [on boosters and vaccinations], but what we are seeing: that people who get that third shot, the science shows, the studies show, that your body's immune response to COVID goes way up, takes a really big jump. That added protection is exactly what we need to fight against new strains of the virus, as well as making sure that Delta and some of the other strains that dominate today we're protected against. So that is really the evidence, and I think what we're seeing is, in large, large ways that people who are fully vaccinated, and even those who are getting the booster shot in a timely way, are seeing that level of protection, and even though they might get infected, they aren't getting that sick, they aren't getting hospitalized, and thank God, they're avoiding the worst outcome, which is death…"

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THE ISSUE IS: WHEN CAN WE LIFT THE MASK MANDATES?

GHALY’S CENTRAL TAKE: "In large, large part, we have been laser-focused on this part of the calendar last year, we all remember how bad it was in California - this was the time we started to see radical increase in cases, followed by hospitalizations and deaths, and that took us through largely the month of January. We are laser-focused on making sure history doesn't repeat itself, that we keep these protective measures in place over the next many weeks... Omicron raises some additional questions, requires us to keep looking at more and more information and data, waiting to understand what's happening in other parts of the world, so right now, we are still sort of getting through the winter, reassessing once we get through these holidays where we need to go as a state... we're certainly looking, hoping, that we'll have the evidence, the data, the information to support making some changes early next year…."

The Issue Is: with Elex Michaelson is California's only statewide political show. For showtimes and more information, go to TheIssueIsShow.com.