Omicron undoubtedly has strengthened its presence all over the United States which is evident from the sudden surge in the number of hospitalizations. Moreover, the officials have spotted that the variant is on its way to the summit in parts of the northeast.
Omicron: States Shows That Early Signs Of Peaking The Omicron Wave
Adding more to it, reportedly, the region has much more cases than any other. According to the recent data, it has come to light that the number of cases in the United States has doubled in the past two weeks adding up to above 750,000 cases.
Though, several states have also witnessed a decline in the number of cases. Wherein Washington, DC, saw a depletion of around 19% of the total cases of the region in the last week.
Also, states like New York, Ohio, Mississippi, and Kansas observed a similar trend.
Such trends point towards an array of hope, that things might take a better turn. While the positivity rate is stable as inferred by the New York City health department; sadly, the number of hospitalizations and deaths of infected patients have been increasing consistently.
Among this state of chaos, several statements have been issued by the New York City health department which concludes to the appeal of following the data regarding the new covid-19 variant to break down the chain and reduce the infestation.
Furthermore, the data from the previous month i.e December recorded a positivity rate of around 45% which observed a drop of about 9% in the month of January lowering it to 35%. To which Dr. Cheryl Bettigole Philadelphia Health Commissioner pointed out a possible peak in the number of cases in the region. Though, she firmly made this point that the projections are not so certain and we might observe a crest or trough in the cases. She also questioned our personal exposure to the new covid-19 variant and that it is very vital for us to protect our own selves.
From the University of Utah, Dr. Andrew Pavia, an infectious disease doctor gave several reasons stating why it is hard to formulate preventions on the basis of data given the uncertainty of the long-term trends. Though the recent data that has been coming to light reports a decline in the cases, there is a possibility that this data is way too exaggerated to ensure a sense of relief among people while the health system is on the cliff.
There are a variety of factors supporting it namely, the shortage in testing. Adding more to the concern, testing is the primary factor on which the latter stages of virus detection and break in the change of infestation relies.
Dr. Pavia also stated that to identify the precise trend in the covid-19 cases there should be a consistency in the testing procedure which surely is missing out currently, as there is a fluctuation in everyday testing numbers. He concluded that we need data for more days in order to carry out any proceedings in the region.
According to the John Hopkins University, though daily cases have dropped in the New Jersey region; the weekly infestation rates are on the rise. The prediction of a possible peak in the covid-19 cases in the northeast region of the United States has been backed up by another epidemiologist Dr. Christina Tan.
Dr. Pavia said that the duration and influence of the variant in different regions would differ on a number of factors, like the capacity of tests conducted, immunity among people, and vaccinated population percentage.
Furthermore, Dr. Rochelle Walensky compared the influence of the variant in South Africa and the United States which indicated that the US has a larger share of the vaccinated population which is an advantage. Though, it was also made clear that the cases are prone to rise as fast as they fall. Also, apart from the reports that say that the Omicron variant is less severe than the Delta variant; there has been a sudden spurt in the number of hospitalizations and deaths.
