Fears of Omicron’s Rapid Spread Are Tempered by Signs of Milder Illness
By: Marc Santora and Megan Specia
Good news??
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
That daunting notion — backed by data from nations where Omicron is spreading rapidly only a month after it was first detected — is tempered by early evidence that the variant causes milder symptoms, with vaccinations and boosters helping prevent serious illness and death.
Experts worldwide have expressed concern that the sheer number of people likely infected could create a flood of patients, overwhelming already stressed health care systems. But that concern is running up against those who argue that it is time to accept that the virus is endemic, and that countries should move away from lockdowns and toward more relaxed rules, including shorter quarantines .
John Bell, a professor of medicine at Oxford University and an adviser to the British government, said that Omicron was “not the same disease we were seeing a year ago.
Britain appears to be a few weeks ahead of most other nations in confronting the first wave of Omicron infection and, for the moment, has decided that the evidence does not warrant new restrictions.
While the latest figures in Britain are incomplete because of the Christmas holiday, data published on Monday indicated that more than 300,000 new Covid cases had been recorded between Saturday and Monday.
But Chris Hopson, the head of N.H.S. Providers, the membership organization for England’s health staff, said that while hospitalizations across Britain had risen, it was not a precipitous jump.
“What’s very interesting is how many are talking about number of asymptomatic patients being admitted to hospital for other reasons and then testing positive for Covid,” he said of conversations with heads of hospitals, in a series of posts on Twitter .
“Some are describing this as ‘incidental Covid.’”
Professor Paul Hunter, an infectious disease expert at the University of East Anglia, said the approach to the current rise is a complicated one.
“If health services are likely to come under such pressure that they could collapse then implementing control measures now would be the right thing to do,” he wrote in a post on Twitte r. “But tighter control measures carry a real risk, and not just to mental health, the economy, etc.” Forcing a change in behavior would not prevent infections, just delay them, he said. So further restrictions now would reduce the peak of a surge in cases and could ease short-term pressure on health services, but also extend the wave, he added.
“So is it better to reduce the peak now but with the risk that because of waning vaccine immunity overall more people may suffer severe disease in the long term?” he asked. “That is what makes this decision so difficult. There is no easy answer.”
And Britain is hardly united in how to respond to the moment. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all added new curbs this week to slow the spread of Omicron, largely focusing on reducing indoor mixing.
Across Europe, divisions can be seen in how to respond to what Prime Minister Jean Castex of France on Monday called a “film without ending.”
The rapid spread of the Omicron variant has seen a record number of cases surge in France, putting extra pressure on intensive care units in public hospitals.
In response, the government will pay intensive care nurses an extra 100 euros, about $113, a month.
“This is about improving attractiveness, training, qualification, working conditions in intensive care units, acknowledging the skills of those who work there,” Mr. Castex said during a visit to an intensive care unit near Paris on Tuesday.
All the tools the world has grown familiar with over the past two years — lockdowns, passes proving vaccination status, limits on private gatherings, mask mandates, social distancing — are being deployed to different degrees across the continent.
And pushback continues to build.
On Monday night, thousands of people took to the streets of Germany to protest new measures under which all nightclubs will be closed, private meetings of more than 10 people will be banned and further restrictions will be put in place on movie theaters and cultural and sporting events.
Rallies on Mondays have had special resonance in Germany since weekly demonstration walks on that day helped bring down the Berlin Wall in 1989.
In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, a northeastern state, about 15,000 marchers took part in protests in several cities, according to police estimates.
With or without regulations to curb the spread of the virus, positive test results are disrupting businesses around the world. Over the Christmas holidays, Omicron wreaked havoc on global travel, entertainment and sporting events.
In an attempt to limit the disruption, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday shortened the recommended time that Americans should isolate after testing positive for Covid-19 if they are asymptomatic — to five days, instead of 10.
The first case of Omicron in the United States was only detected on Dec. 1, but the C.D.C. estimated on Tuesday that it accounted for more than 58 percent of coronavirus variants circulating in the country last week .
That rapid spread and the dominance of Omicron mirrors what has been seen around the world.
In Israel, more than half the daily infections are now estimated to be from Omicron, according to experts, and the variant is expected to overtake Delta as the dominant one in the country within days.
Among those who tested positive for the coronavirus on Sunday was Mr. Bennett’s own daughter, who is 14 and vaccinated, according to his office.
Mr. Bennett, who has tested negative so far, is working in isolation.
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Hoping this is true in all cases.
I read a report today that an omicron infection offers some protection against delta, which would be great news. Omicron may go a long way in helping us live with covid.
I also heard several things on CBS radio today,
#1 Omicron is responsible for a massive surge in reported infections in both vaxxed and non vaxxed people... (being vaxxed is better than not)
#2 Omicron is not generally resulting in more hospitalizations, generally that is, some locations are experiencing higher hospitalization rates but the reasons for that are uncompiled as of yet...
#3 Omicron is not increasing the covid death rate in any major way in fact the current major cause of death from covid is still the Delta variant in un-vaxxed people but the death rate is declining...
#4 Pfizer, in concert with the US Army has identified a foundational gene sequence that is common to ALL covid variants, a required sequence to covid survival... and are working on a way to attack it to potentially create a vaccine that will kill all variants of Covid...
These comments were reported by CBS news radio, they claimed that they were based upon CDC reports... But, I have been unable to find the basis as of yet...
There may be hope on the horizon for a permanent end to this...
Omicron Has Lower U.S. Hospitalization Rate Than Prior Covid Waves
Butt, because Omicron is much more easily transmitted and is way more contagious it is spreading like wildfire among children and the unvaccinated causing many hospitals to be overwhelmed. You always leave that part out!
I didn't leave a damn thing out. I posted information, a link. I didn't write it.
Take your games somewhere else.
They are going to miss the days when they can no longer panic people.....
Here's some data and evidence for you:
The CDC says it overestimated Omicron spread by over 200%
So how is that going to work when it's YOU that reject data and evidence?
Well we all know they only tout the science that agrees with their aims...
This is good news, right?
All good points.
I don't think there will ever be a permanent end to this virus, but just like the myriad of other viruses we already have (which often mutate), we will eventually be able to live with this one, too, once the governmental/bureaucratic fearmongering is eliminated and some Americans start believing real-life physicians instead of pompous, flip-flopping asses.
Well said my friend VERY well said...
I think we will return to a new normal once we see a substantial reduction in infection rates. It does not really matter how people interpret the actions and words of government officials, agencies, etc. The facts ultimately will win out.
Data according to who? Bottom line is that you and other progressives will never ever dictate the terms or tone of a conversation to a conservative. The term agree to disagree stands, your wishes to the contrary notwithstanding.
Agreed, if true then nature (via Omicron) will get anti-bodies into the systems of those who stubbornly refuse to be vaccinated. Be interested to see the efficacy of Omicron-induced antibodies vs. vaccine-induced antibodies. Hopefully it will be enough to have an effect on the pandemic itself.
I read a report today that an omicron infection offers some protection against delta, which would be great news. Omicron may go a long way in helping us live with covid.
I suspect this is true. Mother Nature may have come to the rescue. Couldn’t be better timing. Everyone is so tired of being whipsawed by Covid that they just don’t care anymore. I was at a brewery in PA a couple days ago and it was packed with unmasked people, including myself. If omicron was in there then it’s pretty much guaranteed that it got super spread. I’m boosted and I’d be fine with catching it and getting that over with. It does appear that the mainstream media is not on board with this philosophy though.
Yep...they seem to be in full panic mode.
But the non mainstream media are not buying into the hype.
Morning..Yes it is much the same here...Omicron seems to be extremely infectious but a lot less deadly and has milder symptoms..so far..
Have the usual media hype and build up, but certainly not overwhelming our hospitals etc at the moment...We are now nearing around 94% fully vaccinated in my State and the whole of Australia is not far behind..
I just look at it the vast majourity have done what they can and now it is in the hands of the Gods..
Two days ago the US had 512,552 new cases and 1762 deaths per John Hopkins. Yesterday's figures are not in yet.
Stay safe, shona. The kids and grandkids are texting me on a daily basis to check up on us and they are fully vaccinated as is the vast majority of OZ.