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  • Genomic sequencing to identify COVID variants

    Genomic sequencing to identify COVID variants


    By Andre Hudson and Christa Wadsworth

    The Conversation

    How do scientists detect new variants of the virus that causes COVID-19? The answer is a process called DNA sequencing.

    Researchers sequence DNA to determine the order of the four chemical building blocks, or nucleotides, that make it up: adenine, thymine, cytosine and guanine. The millions to billions of these building blocks paired up together collectively make up a genome that contains all the genetic information an organism needs to survive.

    When an organism replicates, it makes a copy of its entire genome to pass on to its offspring. Sometimes errors in the copying process can lead to mutations in which one or more building blocks are swapped, deleted or inserted. This may alter genes, the instruction sheets for the proteins that allow an organism to function, and can ultimately affect the physical characteristics of that organism. In humans, for example, eye and hair color are the result of genetic variations that can arise from mutations. In the case of the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, mutations can change its ability to spread, cause infection or even evade the immune system.

    We are both biochemists and microbiologists who teach about and study the genomes of bacteria. We both use DNA sequencing in our research to understand how mutations affect antibiotic resistance. The tools we use to sequence DNA in our work are the same ones scientists are using right now to study the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

    How are genomes sequenced?

    One of the earliest methods scientists used in the 1970s and 1980s was Sanger sequencing, which involves cutting up DNA into short fragments and adding radioactive or fluorescent tags to identify each nucleotide. The fragments are then put through an electric sieve that sorts them by size. Compared with newer methods, Sanger sequencing is slow and can process only relatively short stretches of DNA. Despite these limitations, it provides highly accurate data, and some researchers are still actively using this method to sequence SARS-CoV-2 samples.

    Since the late 1990s, next-generation sequencing has revolutionized how researchers collect data on and understand genomes. Known as NGS, these technologies are able to process much higher volumes of DNA at the same time, significantly reducing the amount of time it takes to sequence a genome.

    There are two main types of NGS platforms: second-generation and third-generation sequencers. 

    Second-generation technologies are able to read DNA directly. After DNA is cut up into fragments, short stretches of genetic material called adapters are added to give each nucleotide a different color. For example, adenine is colored blue and cytosine is colored red. Finally, these DNA fragments are fed into a computer and reassembled into the entire genomic sequence.

    Third-generation technologies like the Nanopore MinIon directly sequence DNA by passing the entire DNA molecule through an electrical pore in the sequencer. Because each pair of nucleotides disrupts the electrical current in a particular way, the sequencer can read these changes and upload them directly to a computer. This allows clinicians to sequence samples at point-of-care clinical and treatment facilities. However, Nanopore sequences smaller volumes of DNA compared with other NGS platforms.

    Though each class of sequencer processes DNA in a different way, they can all report the millions or billions of building blocks that make up genomes in a short time – from a few hours to a few days. For example, the Illumina NovaSeq can sequence roughly 150 billion nucleotides, the equivalent of 48 human genomes, in just three days.

    Using sequencing data to fight coronavirus

    So why is genomic sequencing such an important tool in combating the spread of SARS-CoV-2?

    Rapid public health responses to SARS-CoV-2 require intimate knowledge of how the virus is changing over time. Scientists have been using genome sequencing to track SARS-CoV-2 almost in real time since the start of the pandemic. Millions of individual SARS-CoV-2 genomes have been sequenced and housed in various public repositories like the Global Initiative on Sharing Avian Influenza Data and the National Center for Biotechnology Information.

    Genomic surveillance has guided public health decisions as each new variant has emerged. For example, sequencing the genome of the omicron variant allowed researchers to detect over 30 mutations in the spike protein that allows the virus to bind to cells in the human body. This makes omicron a variant of concern, as these mutations are known to contribute to the virus’s ability to spread. Researchers are still learning about how these mutations might affect the severity of the infections omicron causes, and how well it’s able to evade current vaccines.

    Sequencing also has helped researchers identify variants that spread to new regions. Upon receiving a SARS-CoV-2 sample collected from a traveler who returned from South Africa on Nov. 22, 2021, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, were able to detect omicron’s presence in five hours and had nearly the entire genome sequenced in eight. Since then, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been monitoring omicron’s spread and advising the government on ways to prevent widespread community transmission.

    The rapid detection of omicron worldwide emphasizes the power of robust genomic surveillance and the value of sharing genomic data across the globe. Understanding the genetic makeup of the virus and its variants gives researchers and public health officials insights into how to best update public health guidelines and maximize resource allocation for vaccine and drug development. By providing essential information on how to curb the spread of new variants, genomic sequencing has saved and will continue to save countless lives over the course of the pandemic.

    This article is republished from The Conversation, under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

    Andre Hudson is Professor and Head of the Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences, Rochester Institute of Technology, Crista Wadsworth is the Assistant Professor in the Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences, also at Rochester Institute of Technology

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    by The Conversation, North Carolina Health News
    December 29, 2021

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  • Health news | News, Sports, Jobs

    Health news | News, Sports, Jobs

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    UPDATE YOUR LISTING: To update details, resubmit your overall health notes by electronic mail to [email protected].

    Support Group TO Satisfy: The Youngstown Place Scleroderma Help Group will satisfy virtually 7:30 p.m. Jan. 3.

    The meeting is open to the community and focuses on concerns of people afflicted in all strategies by scleroderma.

    For far more facts and Zoom conference figures speak to the team chief Leni Schulz at 330-654-2538, or by emailing [email protected].

    Affiliate of the Ohio Chapter and the National Scleroderma Basis (scleroderma.org).

    SENIORS TO Satisfy: Lowellville Senior Citizens will meet at midday Jan. 7 at Gianna’s. Joann Esenwein from Eastgate Regional Council of Governments will be the visitor speaker.

    Reservations for the meeting and $8 lunch will have to be designed by Jan. 2 by contacting Paula at 330-718-2856. New users are constantly welcome.

    Meetings are canceled if Lowellville Schools are canceled.

    VACCINE CLINICS Open up: Mercy Overall health-Youngstown has opened two new vaccine clinics.

    The Pfizer vaccine will be made available at Mercy Wellness-Wick Principal Treatment at Youngstown Point out University, 330 Wick Ave., Youngstown. The Pfizer vaccine has been authorized for ages 5 and more mature.

    The Moderna vaccine will be out there at Mercy Health-Howland Clinical Middle, 1932 Niles Cortland SE, Warren. Vaccines at this web-site will be offered for everyone 18 and more mature.

    Each clinics will be open weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Every single web page will also provide the two 1st and 2nd doses as properly as booster doses.

    To schedule a vaccination appointment at both clinic, connect with 1-866-624-0366, or use the Mercy MyChart application (https://www.mercy.com/patient-methods/mychart) or log onto https://www.mercy.com/.

    FLU SHOT CLINICS: Mahoning County General public Overall health will be holding flu shot clinics at various areas during the county.

    To get hold of a flu shot at a Mahoning County General public Well being clinic, provide insurance policy playing cards, driver’s license, Medicaid and Medicare cards so the cost of the vaccine can be billed to insurance most private insurances are approved.

    Mahoning County Community Health and fitness is a Vaccines for Kids Plan Company and will have limited chances for little ones that are uninsured or underinsured to obtain the vaccine no cost of cost.

    Obtainable flu vaccines:

    • Ages 6 months and more mature, quadrivalent (four flu virus strains)

    • Ages 65 several years and more mature, high-dose quadrivalent (four flu virus strains)

    • Ages 18 several years and older, egg-absolutely free (cell-based mostly) quadrivalent (4 flu virus strains)

    1st DOSE Available: People today intrigued in commencing their Moderna COVID-19 vaccination key collection can phone Mahoning County Public Wellbeing at 330-270-2855, Alternative 3, to routine an appointment. The initial dose most important series is available on a weekly basis.

    Booster vaccinations are by appointment only and primarily based on a minimal quantity of appointments each Friday. Appointments for a Friday clinic can be created all through the week up until eventually Thursday at midday. Any appointments created right after the midday deadline will be scheduled for the subsequent Friday.

    Appointments can be made by MCPH’s scheduling method, ArmorVax, which can be identified at www.mahoninghealth.org, or you may well connect with 330-270-2855, Ext. 185, for assistance. Recipients are to deliver

    their ID and COVID-19 vaccination card.

    Qualified booster recipients will be questioned to attest they have 1 of the qualifying problems, but precise evidence will not be expected.

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  • Looking behind COVID: Top local medical news of 2021

    Looking behind COVID: Top local medical news of 2021

    Registered nurse Erin Weber points out the large-amount capabilities in an upgraded trauma home inside the renovated emergency department at UCHealth Yampa Valley Clinical Middle throughout a tour in Might.
    John F. Russell/Steamboat Pilot & These days archive

    The COVID-19 pandemic and its repercussions dominated this year’s regional, state and countrywide health care headlines. Continue to, in the Yampa Valley, other medical developments impacted patients’ life during 2021.

    1st in organ donors

    In February, locals figured out Routt County ranked very first in the condition for organ, eye and tissue donor designation throughout 2020, in accordance to the nonprofit Donor Alliance. About 80{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of people browsing the Division of Motor Automobiles business office in Steamboat Springs checked “yes” to introducing their names to the donor registry, rating larger than the condition average of 68.25{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} and the nationwide average of 58{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}.

    “It’s seriously admirable and impressive and these types of a enormous benefit to culture,” mentioned John Gutowski, executive director of transplant providers at UCHealth University of Colorado Healthcare facility. “It’s a terrific issue to be very pleased of for a local community.”

    Urgent Care opens

    At the end of April, just after 3 and half many years of delivering company to the community as a stand-alone unexpected emergency department, the doctor-owned Steamboat Unexpected emergency Center shut. The place was then reworked to develop into UCHealth Urgent Treatment less than the same umbrella that operates Yampa Valley Clinical Centre.

    Leaders at the two medical facilities considered the shift a earn-win for community well being treatment protection and timed the transition in the course of the slower mud time.

    “Access to the correct degree of treatment aids decreased the value of wellness care for every person,” said Soniya Fidler, president of YVMC. “Not every thing calls for a take a look at to the crisis section. Urgent care lets individuals to be viewed in a similarly brief manner but at lowered expenditures.”

    On May possibly 25, the new UCHealth Urgent Treatment opened. The facility delivers treatment for diseases and minimal accidents that do not warrant a excursion to the crisis section but are also crucial to hold out for a main treatment appointment. The several hours are now 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends.

    Crisis place renovation concluded

    On May perhaps 6, YVMC officers introduced the completion of a $10 million redesign, renovation and expansion of the healthcare center’s unexpected emergency division. The work, which commenced in spring 2020, expanded the department by 3,000 square toes and produced 14 personal individual rooms around an economical raceway style. The client rooms include two risk-free rooms, two negative strain rooms and a forensic nurse exam space.

    Smoke brings about well being concerns

    Starting off in late June, people across the mountain location, specifically people with asthma and other lung health conditions, ended up pressured to modify their outside or physical exercise routines because of to wildfire smoke. Through the summer season, citizens suffered from enhanced air air pollution from two wildfires burning in south and north Routt County, as very well as from smoke blowing in from wildfires throughout the western U.S.

    In July, campers striving to remain outside all day in the course of the wildfires visited the urgent treatment going through bronchial asthma assaults, acute asthma exacerbation and upper respiratory issues.

    Quite a few other locals or visitors observed doctors or consulted with pharmacists owing to eye discomfort, runny noses, dry scratchy throats and respiratory issues. Air good quality checking internet sites like PurpleAir.com became an essential resource for the community, and extra PurpleAir displays have been additional locally.

    New clinic introduced

    In August, YVMC introduced options to create a new 7,500-sq.-foot hub on the east side of the campus for a multispecialty clinic in get to raise ease for clients and efficiencies for staffing.

    The floor-ground place will come to be a consolidated property for six full-time area health professionals and two doctor assistants in clinics for endocrinology, neurology, rheumatology, pain management, and heart and vascular care. The initial clinic is anticipated to move into the new area in late spring 2022.

    “We’re lucky to be capable to supply these specialties, primarily in a group of our size,” Fidler explained. “When clients are capable to obtain treatment near to residence, it has a positive impression on their wellbeing.”

    1 year of collaborating

    In early September, leaders at YVMC and Steamboat Orthopaedic & Backbone Institute celebrated the a person-yr anniversary of a effective collaboration for the Steamboat Medical procedures Center. The ambulatory or outpatient medical procedures centre delivers orthopedic, ache management and spine treatments although providing an economical, lessened-price tag selection thanks to decrease overhead charges than in an all-encompassing clinic.

    The 9,150-square-foot surgery heart has two functioning rooms and 9 pre- or postoperative bays. The heart delivers a further treatment alternative for preplanned, elective surgical procedures that has been wanted in the local community for a extensive time, according to YVMC and SOSI executives.

    Wil Schlaff, CEO of Steamboat Surgical treatment Center, and Soniya Fidler, UCHealth Yampa Valley Health-related Middle president, celebrated the Steamboat Operation Center’s a person-12 months anniversary in September.
    Suzie Romig/Steamboat Pilot & Now archive

    Robotic-assisted operation method upgraded

    In Oct, surgeons at YVMC commenced utilizing the upgraded robotic-assisted surgery method da Vinci Xi. The $1.7 million upgraded surgical procedure robotic took the location of the hospital’s prior da Vinci Si in use due to the fact 2014.

    Robotic-assisted operation enables far more regular open surgeries to be laparoscopic surgical procedures, in which devices and a camera are inserted into the client although cannula tubes that are only 8 millimeters in diameter.

    The pros to people for these minimally invasive robotic-assisted surgical procedures are numerous, which includes scaled-down incisions, lessened bleeding, a lot less time used less than standard anesthesia during a lot quicker surgical procedures, more quickly post-medical procedures healing situations, much less overnight healthcare facility stays and reduced soreness.

    Dental care for educational facilities

    In mid-December, nonprofit Northwest Colorado Wellbeing opened a dental clinic inside the Hayden faculty developing to help fill a hole in children’s dental treatment in the group. The dental treatment is open to Medicaid and uninsured sufferers on a sliding-scale basis and will carry on 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. most Thursdays when faculty is in session. The firm is doing work toward obtaining a cell treatment dental bus, funded by an American Rescue System grant.

    Planet-course surgeon dies in crash

    Also in December, the neighborhood mourned the reduction of planet-class spine surgeon Dr. Clint Devin, a associate at SOSI, who experienced a massive lifetime effect on thousands of patients, hundreds of healthcare college students and backbone surgeons across America as a result of his operate.

    To get to Suzie Romig, connect with 970-871-4205 or email [email protected].

  • 12 Steps to the Best Holiday Gift: Health | Health News

    12 Steps to the Best Holiday Gift: Health | Health News

    (HealthDay)

    SATURDAY, Dec. 25, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Give on your own and your cherished ones the items of wellbeing and safety this holiday period, the U.S. Facilities for Disorder Handle and Avoidance indicates.

    The agency outlines 12 approaches to do that, starting with a reminder that washing your arms with soap and clear running h2o for at the very least 20 seconds helps prevent the distribute of germs. That precaution is specially important as the Omicron variant surges throughout the United States and the flu year returns.

    Listed here are some other suggestions from the CDC:

    • When heading outside the house, have on ideal garments these types of as light, heat layers, gloves, hats, scarves and watertight boots.
    • Deal with anxiety by in search of guidance, connecting with other individuals and getting a great deal of snooze.
    • Never consume and push, and do not allow other people drink and drive.
    • Use seat belts when driving or driving in a motor motor vehicle, and normally buckle your small children in the car working with a child protection seat, booster seat or seat belt in accordance to their top, excess weight and age. Buckle up each and every time, no make any difference how short the journey.
    • Will not smoke, and steer clear of secondhand smoke. Smokers have larger wellbeing threats, but nonsmokers are also at chance when uncovered to tobacco smoke.
    • Get well being exams and screenings. Inquire your health and fitness care supplier what tests/screenings you need and when to get them. Update your personalized and household historical past.
    • Get required vaccinations, which enable reduce conditions and help save life. Everyone 6 months and older ought to get a flu vaccine each individual calendar year.
    • Keep youngsters protected by putting probably harmful toys, foodstuff, beverages, home products and other objects out of their attain. Shield them from drowning, burns, falls and other possible accidents.
    • Consider about hearth basic safety. Really don’t go away fireplaces, house heaters, candles or food stuff cooking on stoves unattended. Have an crisis hearth approach and observe it routinely.
    • Guarantee food stuff protection by washing fingers and surfaces generally, averting cross-contamination, cooking food items to good temperatures and refrigerating leftovers immediately.
    • Try to eat healthful and keep energetic. Eat fruits and veggies and limit portion measurements and food items high in fat, salt and sugar. Grownups really should get at the very least 2½ hours a 7 days of bodily activity, and youngsters and teens should be active for at minimum 1 hour a day.

    Supply: U.S. Centers for Ailment Control and Avoidance, news launch

    Copyright © 2021 HealthDay. All legal rights reserved.

  • Georgia helps drive record enrollment in ACA health insurance

    Georgia helps drive record enrollment in ACA health insurance

    By Phil Galewitz and Andy Miller

    A document 13.6 million Individuals have signed up for overall health coverage for 2022 on the Economical Treatment Act marketplaces, with approximately a month remaining to enroll in most states, the Biden administration declared Wednesday.

    President Joe Biden’s prime well being advisers credited the amplified authorities subsidies, which decreased out-of-pocket fees, for the surge in enrollment. They also claimed enhanced private guidance and outreach helped link a lot more people to health coverage programs.

    Some of the biggest increases are in Florida, Texas, Ga and nine other states that have not expanded Medicaid below the Economical Care Act.

    The former marketplace enrollment document was 12.7 million in 2016, the final year of President Barack Obama’s administration. Enrollment largely stagnated below President Donald Trump, who slash tens of thousands and thousands of pounds in funding for navigators, who aid persons indicator up for coverage.

    Open enrollment for the marketplace or trade commenced Nov. 1 and ends Jan. 15.

    Via Dec. 15, enrollment in Florida had soared to 2.6 million individuals, up from 2.1 million in the same period of time a year previously.

    “This is a really massive offer as it means we have produced a dent in the uninsured pool and we are not only insuring folks but trying to keep people signed up,” stated Jodi Ray, software director for Florida Covering Youngsters & Family members.

    Ray has utilised federal grants to support Floridians sign up for private coverage on the market for several years. In the course of the Trump presidency, she claimed, she could enable individuals in only 50 percent the counties in the state simply because of funding constraints. “You simply cannot forget about the effects that one particular-on-one support has in obtaining folks through the procedure,” Ray stated.

    Enrollment has jumped more in states that have not expanded Medicaid for the reason that they have a lot more uninsured inhabitants than expansion states. In enlargement states, persons with incomes from 100{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} to 138{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of the federal poverty level — about $12,880 and $17,770 for an individual — can enroll in Medicaid. In states that have not expanded the method, they can get subsidies to enroll in non-public plans via the Reasonably priced Care Act marketplaces.

    Ga enrollment jumped to 653,990 from about 514,000 the previous yr.

    “That’s the most we’ve ever experienced enrolled,’’ said Laura Colbert, executive director of the client advocacy group Georgians for a Nutritious Long term. She claimed the enrollment spike assists show that Republican Gov. Brian Kemp’s system to scrap health care.gov and substitute it with a privately operate portal isn’t desired.

    The Biden administration is examining that proposal.

    “Hundreds of countless numbers of Georgians nonetheless opt to continue to be uninsured relatively than shop on the federal system,” Kemp spokesperson Katie Byrd claimed Wednesday. “This indicates that the one-sizing-matches-all solution by the federal government is not performing for Ga.”

    The 13.6 million enrollment range incorporates individuals who utilized state-run marketplaces, in addition to all those who enrolled by the federally run healthcare.gov portal that handles indicator-ups for far more than 30 states.

    Texas’ enrollment rose to 1.7 million from 1.3 million.

    Texas, Georgia and South Dakota each individual showed gains of at the very least 20{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}, explained Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, administrator of the Facilities for Medicare & Medicaid Companies. None of those states has expanded Medicaid below the Reasonably priced Care Act.

    In non-growth states, “our outreach initiatives have been so robust this yr,’’ Brooks-LaSure explained to reporters during a press phone. The federal federal government is making use of four situations the number of navigators, or coverage counselors, to assist persons sign up for insurance policies, claimed Xavier Becerra, secretary of the U.S. Section of Well being and Human Companies.

    The huge driver powering the enrollment gains is new bargains on premiums.

    Becerra

    As part of a Covid-19 aid invoice passed this year, Congress greater the subsidies customers get when they enroll in wellbeing insurance coverage by means of the market. CMS mentioned 92{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of people in healthcare.gov states will get the tax credits for 2022 coverage. Becerra stated that for 4 in 5 enrollees, month-to-month premiums price $10 or a lot less, which he mentioned is “less than heading to a motion picture.”

    But conservatives chafe at the plan of better subsidies. Brian Blase, a former Trump adviser and president of the conservative imagine tank Paragon Health and fitness Institute, pressured that the federal authorities is paying out 85{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of people’s month-to-month insurance coverage rates.

    “People will purchase some thing that supplies them with very little value if the just after-subsidy selling price is zero or close to zero, and that’s what is frequently taking place right here,” Blase claimed. “Ultimately, the big winners are the well being insurance policies corporations that are getting billions of bucks in further government subsidies.”

    Yet another driver of enrollment is that some men and women might have missing task-centered coverage for the duration of the pandemic and are in search of insurance policy on their own.

    The marketplaces also offer shoppers a lot more possibilities than in previous years. The regular buyer now has in between 6 and seven insurers to opt for from, up from four to 5 in 2021, federal officers reported.

    Phil Galewitz is a reporter for Kaiser Well being News 

  • Coronavirus Today – Dec 20

    Coronavirus Today – Dec 20


    By Anne Blythe

    The message was dire from Gov. Roy Cooper and Mandy Cohen, secretary of the state Department of Health and Human Services.

    “Get boosted,” they repeatedly told North Carolinians on Monday during a briefing with reporters broadcast on PBS North Carolina.

    In anticipation of a tremendous surge in COVID-19 cases in early January as the Omicron variant looms large on the horizon, Cohen returned to the Emergency Operations Center podium with a sense of urgency in her last days on the job.

    Just a week earlier, Cohen told North Carolinians that she thought her update on the state’s COVID trends, metrics and data would be her final press conference. At the end of the month, she plans to resign from her job and turn over leadership of the state’s pandemic response to Kody Kinsley, the chief deputy secretary at DHHS tapped by Cooper to lead the department as the next secretary of health.

    “We thought last week might be your last time at the podium, but this pandemic continues to throw us curveballs,” Cooper told Cohen on Monday after she laid out what she wants North Carolinians to do immediately before Omicron becomes as prevalent here as it is in New York and other parts of the world. 

    Cohen issued a secretarial advisory on Monday urging all this winter and holiday season to get vaccinated, boosted and tested, and mask up in public places.

    COVID cases are on the rise, and North Carolina health care systems are starting to show strain as influenza circulates and the Delta and Omicron variants pose threats. 

    Cohen and Kinsley said they expected to see record numbers of cases in the peak of the expected Omicron surge. Though Cohen was reluctant to put a specific number on what that record might be, she estimated that it could be as high as 10,000 cases a day. She also declined to speculate what peak hospitalization might look like as a result of the Omicron wave. 

    North Carolina reported 10,541 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID since Friday, Cooper said. There were 1,630 people hospitalized with severe illness related to COVID, 437 of whom were in intensive care unit beds.

    Three days ago, New York reported its highest number of daily COVID cases since the start of the pandemic. North Carolina public health officials are preparing for a similar trend to take hold here in the weeks ahead.

    “I have two messages for North Carolinians today,” Cohen said with a more urgent tone in her voice than typical at press briefings. “First, the newest variant of COVID-19, Omicron, is the most contagious we’ve seen yet and will likely set record-high, daily case numbers in the coming weeks. Second, and most importantly. You can act now to best protect yourself and family and friends.”

    People who received a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine at least six months ago are eligible for a booster and should get one as soon as possible. Those who received a Johnson & Johnson vaccine are eligible for a booster two months after receiving their shot. They can also get a Pfizer or Moderna shot to boost their immunity.

    ‘Do not wait’

    The Omicron variant, which has been detected in “most” hospital labs across the state, according to Cohen, is two to three times as contagious as the Delta variant, currently the dominant variant in North Carolina.

    “Fortunately, early evidence suggests that illness from the Omicron variant may be less severe,” Cohen said. “However, it still can pose a danger for people who are not vaccinated, and particularly those who are at higher risk of severe disease.”

    During the week ending Dec. 11, Omicron accounted for 12.9 percent of all cases in the U.S. and 37 percent of cases in the Southeast. By the conclusion of the week ending Dec. 18, updated data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that Omicron was accounting for 73.2 percent of all cases in the U.S. and 95.2 percent of all cases in the Southeast (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee).

    Instead of throwing hands up in the air, frustrated that the Omicron variant has shown the strength and adaptability of the coronavirus that has disrupted life for 22 months during the pandemic, Cohen urged North Carolinians to take action.

    “Do not wait,” Cohen said, stressing each word.

    Researchers from Hong Kong found that Omicron reproduces itself up to 70 times more effectively in the upper airway of an infected person than Delta did, making it spread that much more widely when that person coughs or sneezes. The good news is that Omicron doesn’t reproduce as effectively in the lungs, those researchers found. That could be why Omicron appears to cause less severe disease overall, the researchers speculated.

    Public health officials in this country, though, say Omicron is too new to the states to predict whether that will remain the case in the weeks ahead.

    As health care systems prepare to treat anyone sickened by the Omicron variant, drugs they’ve used in recent months to help stave off severe illness from the previous variants are not likely to offer much help.

    ‘Diminished’ COVID therapies

    Regeneron, a drug company that created monoclonal antibody therapies that can be used for patients at risk of progressing to severe illness, put out a statement that its current drug has “diminished potency versus Omicron.”

    New drugs are being developed, but they might not be readily available if an Omicron surge comes as expected in the weeks ahead.

    Cohen was asked whether the record number of cases that she expected in North Carolina starting in early January would also mean a record number of hospitalizations.

    “I do not yet know what that will translate into in terms of hospitalizations,” Cohen responded. “What we are seeing with Omicron is, it does seem to be less severe. What we don’t know yet is how it’s going to behave here in the United States. With the level of vaccinations that we’ve had, with the kinds of vaccination that we’ve seen before, I don’t know what that will mean. We are certainly planning to see additional strain on our hospitals. That’s why we are working with our hospitals to be ready, and the more we can act right now, that’s what will protect folks.”

    “Right now,” though, is four days before Christmas Eve, when many families plan to gather to celebrate the holiday together after being forced to spend it apart in 2020 because of COVID. Some families are reconsidering how they might celebrate the holidays ahead, while others have opted to gather despite the variant. 

    “I know people are frustrated and dismayed by this wave of infection right here at Christmas, but it’s important to remember how far we have come in our fight against this disease,” Cooper said. “We know what works. Vaccines, boosters, testing and masks when needed. With every dose, we’re getting closer to turning the tide on this sickness and death brought on by the pandemic.”

    Cooper said his family is vaccinated and boosted. They plan to get tested, “then gather for food, prayer, presents and hugs and time with each other.”

    Testing in the spotlight again

    Kinsley outlined what the state has done in anticipation of Omicron. They have gotten boosters to state-run nursing homes and worked with hospitals to build systems to support them as weary workers and understaffed nursing teams add an even thornier layer for health care systems.

    At-home COVID-19 tests. Photo credit: Rose Hoban

    Kinsley also said the state is looking ahead to make sure that enough testing supplies are available during the expected surge. Testing for COVID will be a crucial element in schools, businesses and other places.

    During the high-water mark of the Delta surge, which occurred in the late summer, North Carolina saw as many as 86,000 tests administered some days.

    With public health leaders advising people who plan to gather for the holidays to get tested in advance, a spotlight has been cast again on whether tests are as easy to find as they should be.

    Many pharmacies have empty shelves where rapid at-home antigen tests once were stocked. Even if the shelves were stocked, at nearly $25 a box for some brands with only two tests included, the cost of home testing can add up quickly. 

    Kinsley stressed that free home-testing is available in North Carolina through DHHS. They’re not the rapid antigen tests, though. The swabs must be sent to a lab to get PCR results, adding a step that could lead to a delay in results.

    “Over the last several weeks we’ve pushed out several hundreds of thousands of tests, rapid tests, to our local health departments to make them available in local communities,” Kinsley said. “Of course we have statewide testing vendors that are providing testing in schools.”

    Coronavirus by the numbers

    According to NCDHHS data, as of Monday afternoon:

    • 19,167 people total in North Carolina have died of coronavirus.
    • 1,599,595 have been diagnosed with the disease. Of those, 1,630 are in the hospital. The hospitalization figure is a snapshot of people hospitalized with COVID-19 infections on a given day and does not represent all of the North Carolinians who may have been in the hospital throughout the course of the epidemic.
    • As of Tuesday, 437 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care units across the state. 
    • North Carolina tracked COVID-19 re-infections in the case counts from March 1, 2021 through Sept. 20, 2021. All told, North Carolina tracked 10,812 reinfections, 200 of those were in people who were previously vaccinated. Ninety-four people who were reinfected with COVID-19 have died. 
    • 1,538,231 people who had COVID-19 are presumed to have recovered. This weekly estimate does not denote how many of the diagnosed cases in the state are still infectious. Nor does it reflect the number of so-called “long-COVID” survivors who continue to feel the effects of the disease beyond the defined “recovery” period.
    • To date, 21,190,766 tests have been completed in North Carolina. As of July 2020, all labs in the state are required to report both their positive and negative test results to the lab, so that figure includes all of the COVID-19 tests performed in the state. Most recently, 9.3 percent of those testing were testing positive. 
    • People ages 25-49 make up the largest group of cases (39 percent). While 12 percent of the positive diagnoses were in people ages 65 and older, seniors make up 74 percent of coronavirus deaths in the state. 
    • 263 outbreaks are ongoing in group facilities across the state, including nursing homes and correctional and residential care facilities.
    • As of Dec. 20, 6,539,752 North Carolinians have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Ninety-one percent of people over the age of 65 have been completely vaccinated, while 58 percent of the total population is fully vaccinated. 2,184,783 boosters have been administered.
    • Children between the ages of 5 and 11 became eligible for vaccination during November. A total of 161,410 first doses have been given to those children, a total of 18 percent of that population.

    This story has been updated with new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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