Early data shows the omicron variant of the coronavirus is apparently less severe than the delta strain among people who are vaccinated, leading infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci said Wednesday.
People who are vaccinated and boosted also appear to be less likely to be hospitalized if they are infected with the omicron variant.
“All indications point to a lesser severity of omicron versus delta,” Fauci told reporters during a White House briefing.
The U.S. on Tuesday broke a record for the most single-day COVID-19 infections, with 441,278 cases. That surpassed the previous daily record by close to 150,000.
Despite the surge in infections over the past month, however, hospitalizations have not increased nearly as quickly.
Fauci said there’s been a 126 percent increase in cases over the past two weeks, but only an 11 percent increase in hospitalizations.
While hospitalizations and deaths are lagging indicators, the “disparity between cases and hospitalizations strongly suggest there will be a lower hospitalization to case ratio,” Fauci said.
Fauci noted that omicron has some ability to evade immunity, particularly against infection. But people who are vaccinated remain protected against severe illness.
“Importantly, and the bottom line message here, boosters bring back up that degree of protection to a level that is approximately what it was before. So boosters are critical in getting our approach to omicron to be optimal,” Fauci said.
According to a study from the United Kingdom, people infected with omicron are 60 percent less likely to need emergency care compared to people infected with delta and 40 percent less likely to be admitted to the hospital compared to those infected with delta.
Still, Fauci cautioned Americans not to be complacent, because hospital systems are still being overwhelmed in certain areas of the country. An extremely high volume of cases may override some of the impact of the lower disease severity, he said.
……..
- Discussion
-
Fauci: Early data show omicron not as severe as delta for the vaccinated https://t.co/ljpHO9yX45 pic.twitter.com/JAz7PJNjop
— The Hill (@thehill) December 29, 2021
I do believe, however, that the elderly, chronically ill and immunosuppressed are still in danger even from a supposedly mild COVID infection.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.