Coronavirus

WEEKLY ROUNDUP | COVID-19’s omicron variant puts world on alert; it’s still unseen in Ohio

Mahoning Matters staff
COVID-19 Ohio updates

The emergence of the coronavirus’ new omicron variant has spurred travel restrictions in several countries and raised new questions about its virulence and threat level.

There’s much we still don’t know about omicron, which is now deemed a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization. Here’s what we do know.

The variant was first reported Nov. 24 by researchers in South Africa. Officials at the time said it was only a matter of time before the variant was spotted in the U.S. Less than a week later, the first case was reported in California — a vaccinated man who had returned from South Africa just days before omicron was identified.

Omicron has not yet been reported in Ohio.

Genomic sequencing of coronavirus test samples shows the delta variant — which is also a variant of concern, and responsible for a new wave of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths in summer and fall — was identified in 97% of samples in the two weeks ending Nov. 20, according to the Ohio Department of Health. The remaining 3% was for all the “other variants.”

That ratio has stayed about the same since the two weeks ending Sept. 11, except for the two weeks ending Nov. 6, when delta accounted for 87% of the coronavirus samples sequenced, and all other variants had the remaining 13%.

The numerous mutations found in omicron’s spike protein — with which the virus penetrates and infects cells — raise questions about whether the new variant has learned how to evade the defenses offered by vaccines.

Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said last week the vaccine-maker may need to completely reconfigure its shot to account for omicron. The company also announced it’s developing a new booster shot that would specifically target the variant.

Though federal officials last week cautioned omicron may be able to overpower the vaccines, they said the jab will likely still protect against severe disease and death.

“Don’t freak out,” Ugur Sahin, CEO of BioNTech, which developed a vaccine alongside Pfizer, told Bloomberg Law. “The plan remains the same: Speed up the administration of a third booster shot.”

COVID-19 trends in Ohio

Between Nov. 28 and Dec. 4, the state reported:

  • 52,173 new COVID-19 cases, up from 34,426 the week prior, including:
    • 1,130 new cases in Mahoning County, up from 966;
    • 1,140 new cases in Trumbull County, up from 874;
    • 602 new cases in Columbiana County, up from 478.
  • 2,096 new COVID-19 hospitalizations, up from 1,527;
  • 352 new COVID-19 deaths, down from 431;
  • 66,992 more Ohioans received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, down from 67,300.

As of Dec. 4:

  • 6,806,362 Ohioans have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, including:
    • 126,717 in Mahoning County, an increase of 1,467 (up from 1,142 new first doses the week before);
    • 104,928 in Trumbull, an increase of 951 (up from 768);
    • 46,263 in Columbiana, an increase of 458 (up from 411).
  • 58.2% of the state population has received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Mahoning Valley counties continue to lag behind the state rate:
    • Mahoning County: 55.4%;
    • Trumbull County: 53%;
    • Columbiana County: 45.4%.

More coronavirus updates from last week

• Even without a new variant, Ohio’s COVID-19 statistics are now as bad as they’ve been all year. The state late last week reported a record number of COVID-19 cases in a single day, then broke that record the following day. The seven-day average rate of positive coronavirus tests, which has been steadily rising since late October, last week reached a new peak for 2021. On Thursday, the Ohio Department of Health reported an average 15.8% of all coronavirus tests from the prior seven days had come back positive. That rate was reported at 15.9% during the height of the state’s winter surge in the first week of December 2020. The all-time high was 23.6% in April 2020, during coronavirus’ initial wave. Mahoning Valley counties are now reporting a two-week average of new coronavirus cases per 100,000 people that is about eight times higher than the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s threshold for “high” spread.

• Millions of health care workers across the U.S. were supposed to have their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine under a mandate issued by President Joe Biden’s administration. Thanks to legal challenges, they won’t have to worry about it, at least for now, the Associated Press reported. Judges responding to lawsuits brought by Republican-led states, businesses and other opponents have blocked some of Biden’s most sweeping initiatives intended to drive up vaccination rates. Numerous other legal challenges are pending. Here’s where each of those proposed rules stand.

• Three Mahoning Valley residents each took home $10,000 scholarships awarded through Ohio’s Vax-2-School vaccine lottery, a $2 million initiative intended to drive up youth vaccinations. The Valley’s three winners were Evelyn Dukes of Austintown, Emerson Kemats of Columbiana and Anthony Harker of Niles. Vax-2-School awarded $10,000 scholarships to 150 Ohioans ages 5 to 25, five of whom had a chance to win a grand prize $100,000 scholarship. See the full list of winners here.

• COVID-19 booster shots are now available for all adults across the U.S., offering an additional layer of protection against coronavirus variants and severe illness. Children are not eligible to receive booster doses, and it’s unclear when or if federal health officials will expand eligibility for those younger than 18 years old. But experts say the extra shot is unlikely to accomplish much, at least at this time. Children between ages 12 and 15 started receiving COVID-19 vaccines in May, while kids 5-11 years old have been eligible for the shots since Nov. 3. This means there isn’t as much data on how vaccine protection behaves over time in kids as there is in adults.

• The Trumbull County Combined Health District will host COVID-19 vaccination clinics at Eastwood Mall this week. The clinics will be at the former Lane Bryant space near Center Court, next to Pandora and across from Auntie Anne’s Pretzels. Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be available at the clinics, which are scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday. To register for an appointment, click here and bring your confirmation email or text with you to the appointment.

This story was originally published December 8, 2021 at 1:14 AM with the headline "WEEKLY ROUNDUP | COVID-19’s omicron variant puts world on alert; it’s still unseen in Ohio."