NYC Pushes Indoor Mask Advisory for All as 'Worst' Omicron Strain Fuels 6th Wave
Source: NBC News
All five boroughs of New York City are back in the CDC's high-risk category for COVID community spread as of the agency's Friday update, a reflection of the increasingly infectious national climate as the "worst version" of omicron yet holds its dominance.
Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx and Staten Island had all been in the CDC high-risk category for the latter half of May and transitioned to medium risk through June as viral rates and hospital admissions associated with that wave ebbed. The relief was short-lived, though, with all five boroughs now in a heightened state of risk.
That means face masks are recommended for everyone indoors and in public settings, regardless of vaccination status -- again. It comes as some neighborhoods in Manhattan and Queens are seeing 25% positivity rates (again). City health officials renewed their indoor mask advisory on Friday in light of the updated COVID data.
Read more: https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/cdc-covid-guidelines-isolation-nyc-risk-infection-omicron-variant-ba5/3766416/
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due to the increased ability to spread, thus generating more reinfections and break-through infections. And as always, it is a danger to the unvaccinated and in some cases, partially vaccinated and/or unboosted populace.
The hospitalizations have been going up and that's not good.
because the types of spike mutations suggested that it was now capable of going back to where the higher density of ACE2 receptors are - the lungs - and that means more sickness. Plus it has been able to evade the current antibodies that the vaccines have helped trigger and it's barely affected by monoclonal treatments (which are no longer recommended for it).
This is why the meeting to get some kind of (probably bivalent) vaccine out in the fall that can get to it.
Moderna had presented data back on June 28 that showed their combo mRNA 1273 + 1273.214 was able to generate a good broad response not only to previous variants but to BA.4 & BA.5 (although 1273.214 alone didn't generate as much of a response unless it was done fairly close to a previous 1273 dose).
But I know DU is full of those who make declarative statements without any links.
Omicron's earliest variants did not settle deep into the lungs when compared to Delta, but that is not the case with BA.4 & BA.5, which means trouble.
Watch this like I did when it was running live and learn some things (the slide decks for the presentations are available here - https://www.fda.gov/advisory-committees/advisory-committee-calendar/vaccines-and-related-biological-products-advisory-committee-june-28-2022-meeting-announcement#event-materials (PDF)) -
