COVID-19: Putting Public Health to the Test

The Continued Role for COVID Testing

A panel discussion with Karl Lauterbach, German politician (SPD) and other leading health experts
As air and land borders have opened again and families are planning to get together in person this holiday season, we are going to discuss COVID-testing as a public health tool, and one that may be underutilized in this phase of the pandemic. Currently, in the U.S. COVID testing mostly occurs in persons showing symptoms (test-to-treat). Could we navigate in person meetings, the work place, family gatherings more safely if we were to (rapid) test everyone before getting together (test-to-stay)? Some countries around the world were using this path. And many countries are reconsidering their testing strategy again as COVID cases continue to rise, including in Germany where tests are now being offered for free again.

We will discuss this with one of the most sought after German politicians and health experts as well as with leading and vocal scientists on this topic here in the U.S. What can the different COVID tests tell us, and what not? Where does the science and development of new tests stand? What is the threat from break-through infections and how could rapid testing add to the primary vaccination strategy? And how can we achieve broad acceptance in the population?

Welcome by

Nicole Menzenbach

Consul General of Germany to the New England States in Boston

Speakers

Karl Lauterbach, M.D., Sc.D.

Member of the German Parliament, Professor of Health Economics and Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Cologne

Michael Mina, M.D., Ph.D.

Chief Science Officer at eMed Digital Healthcare

Melanie Ott, M.D., Ph.D.

Director, Gladstone Institute of Virology, Professor of Medicine at the University of California San Francisco

Stefanie Friedhoff

Associate Professor of Practice, Brown University School of Public Health

Moderator

Jan Hartmann, M.D.

President German-American Business Council of Boston, and Chief Medical Officer, Haemonetics Corporation

Partnership

In cooperation with the German American Business Council, Boston, the German Consulates of Boston and San Francisco

Cost

FREE