Russo was hoping the Delta wave that slammed into upstate New York this fall would subside in early 2022. But then another variant crept in, one that is far less lethal, but much more transmissible.
“Omicron showed up,” Russo continued. “Then I said, ‘Ah, Omicron is going to prolong this.’ ”
For this installment of Pandemic Lessons, we asked epidemiologists to project how much longer Omicron will grip us, and what life will look like when it’s done.
The answer depends on your own health status, where – and with whom – you spend your days, and who else is going. It becomes even trickier when you consider that many infected individuals may not show symptoms.
The projections from when it emerged last month are proving to be true. It is extremely contagious, generally (but not always) mild, and because it impacts so many people quickly, Omicron is loading up hospitals.
Almost 4,000 people tested positive in Erie County on Jan. 5, which is a record – and a misleading number, because it doesn’t include unreported at-home tests.
State officials reported on Jan. 7 that across New York, cases among teenagers have multiplied by 10 in the last few weeks, while adult cases have more than doubled. Pediatric hospital cases for Covid-19 have nearly quadrupled since Christmas, rising from 150 to 570, most of them unvaccinated.
While the vast majority of people infected with Omicron aren’t hospitalized, the spike is still causing people to miss school and work and prompting cancellations and closures. The continued spread also puts people who are immunocompromised or have other health conditions at increased risk, and it is further delaying our ability to reclaim any semblance of the freedom, openness or normalcy that we crave.