The pandemic from infections caused by the SARs-Cov-2 virus is far from over and, as the year is drawing to a close, a new surge in cases is being observed across the United States.
With A Surge In Cases And Hospitalizations Causing New Disruptions
New York mayor Jay Verma remarked he had never seen such a sharp spurt when he was informed that the rate of people reporting positive in RTPCR tests had doubled from 3.9 to 7.8% in a span of just 3 days from 9 to 12 December.
The John Hopkins University has reported that 1326 deaths from Covid-19 are being reported every day across the United States and that this is a 12% increase over the previous month.
The U.S. Department of Health has confirmed the increase in cases of infections from the SARS-Cov-2 virus by reporting 67.306 hospitalizations across the United States and that this is an increase of 12% over the previous month of November.
Hospitals are once again reporting staff shortages and intensive care units in hospitals across the United States are 78% full. Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute for allergy and infectious diseases, informed CNN on Wednesday 15 December that there are now 117,000 cases across the United States and that observation of the cases of people infected with the omicron variant in South Africa and the United Kingdom indicate that the present strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is highly transmissible.
Dr. Fauci warned that the omicron variant could become the dominant strain in the United States even as the country is still struggling to overcome the delta variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Dr. Fauci pointed out that with the observed rate of the omicron strain to double in 3 days, it could indeed become the dominant strain in the United States. Other health officials including Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, endorsed the observations and said that the United States is already witnessing the early stages of the surge.
Studies and observations of patients are showing that persons vaccinated with both doses are getting infected with the omicron variant and Dr. Anthony Fauci told a news agency that people should get a booster dose of the Covid 19 vaccine for optimal protection.
Familiar closures and countermeasures have already begun across the United States. Several schools and institutions have started shifting back to online classes. Universities have begun postponing or even canceling examinations and student events. Many Broadway shows have been canceled. Some sports league games have begun cancellations of games and sporting events and others are following.
Authorities across the United States are calling for more people to get vaccinated and get the third booster dose as well. A scare of the omicron variant has resulted in an increase in people reporting for vaccination and the result is 1.8 million vaccinations being administered every day for the past few days.
Senior health officials, however, admitted that they are still not sure of how much the vaccines will be effective against the omicron variant. The advisory committee of the CDC has voted for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines and left out the single-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine ax the initial reports of a rare blood clot side effect have been confirmed.
As of now, the best way to prepare for the worst of the omicron variant outbreak is to get all the 3 doses of the vaccine including the booster dose, to remain healthy and continue to strictly follow all Covid protocols.
