The holiday season has brought the new, fast spreading omicron variant at the same time that cold weather is keeping more people inside, and families and friends are getting together for celebrations.
Carroll County has seen two additional deaths from Covid-19 in the past week, according to the Arkansas Department of Health. In early December, three additional Covid deaths were reported in the county, raising the count as of Dec. 21 to 80. ADH reported weekly new cases in Carroll County averaging between 35 and 40.
Only one case of omicron has been confirmed in Arkansas, but the lack of genomic testing in the state means there could be many cases of the variant that have not been detected. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports a sixfold increase in the percent of Covid-19 cases in just the past week in the U.S., making it responsible for an estimated 75 percent of new infections in the U.S.
Even people who have been triple vaccinated are testing positive for omicron, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker. Their cases, like most breakthrough cases, have been mild, but cause enough symptoms that people seek testing.
“It may not make them sick enough to be hospitalized, but it can interrupt family lives,” Dr. Dan Bell, co-founder of the ECHO Clinic, said. “Based on how rapidly omicron has spread, it appears to be more infectious. People who are vaccinated are getting it, although it is usually not serious. But because it can infect more people, and only fifty percent of people in Arkansas are vaccinated, it could potentially be a difficult thing for the hospitals to handle.”
Bell said the timing is tough coming at the holiday season, potentially creating the biggest surge of the year.
“People need to take it seriously and get their booster shots,” Bell said. “Most people haven’t gotten the booster. Only 25 percent of people in Arkansas have gotten all three shots. Now is a good time to get the booster. You can get the booster at the Eureka Springs Hospital and at the Carroll County Health Department, Economy Drug and Walmart in Berryville.”
Arkansas has one of the lower vaccination rates in the country.
One of the best early treatments for Covid-19 has been monoclonal antibodies. But health officials suspect that a new monoclonal antibody treatment will be needed for omicron as was needed after delta became the dominant variant during the summer.
Drug companies have applied for FDA approval of new antiviral drugs that the companies say can reduce serious complications from omicron and other variants. While those have not been approved yet, Bell said it appears they will help keep people from needing hospitalization.
Many residents have noticed that a minority of people are wearing masks when shopping or at indoor gatherings for business or entertainment. Bell said that really needs to change during the holidays when we are gathering and shopping.
“We need to wear masks to get ahead of this because it is only going to get worse over the next month,” Bell said. “There are also colds going around. If you have a cold, isolate yourself so you don’t give that cold to someone else.”
The U.S. has four percent of the world’s population and 15 percent of known deaths from Covid.
“We have not handled the pandemic very well,” Bell said. “We have enough technical expertise to have done a lot better than we did. The vast majority of hospitalizations and deaths are in people who have not been vaccinated.”
The year started out very optimistic with vaccines becoming available. But that has faded with the delta and now omicron variants.
“The reality is that covid is going to be with us for years, and we’re going to have to learn to live with it,” Bell said. “It is not just going to be in the rearview mirror. We need to get vaccinated, get boosters, and develop mass testing to stay on top of variants. Then we will have to have these antivirals on board so doctors can prescribe it. The good part is we know more, we know how to fight it with simple practices like masking, social distancing, vaccinations, lots of testing, and developing antivirals to treat it. We know more about what we are dealing with. The influenza epidemic of 1918 was as bad, the death rate was really high. Here more than one hundred years later, we still have influenza. Covid will probably be the same thing.”
At one point, authorities thought once enough people were infected or immunized, a country could reach herd immunity and the virus would die out. But even areas with high immunization rates are now seeing surges. The Netherlands, which has an 80 percent vaccination rate, is shutting down until Jan. 14.
“They thought they were protected but the vaccines are not providing adequate protection against an omicron surge,” Bell said.
He urges those who are not vaccinated to get a PCR test before gathering with family, particularly older members who are at greater risk. Rapid tests can be used but are not as sensitive.