By PTI
CHICAGO: More than a year after the vaccine was rolled out, new cases of COVID-19 in the US have soared to their highest level on record at over 265,000 per day on average, a surge driven largely by the highly contagious omicron variant.
New cases per day have more than doubled over the past two weeks, eclipsing the old mark of 250,000, set in mid-January, according to data kept by Johns Hopkins University.
The fast-spreading mutant version of the virus has cast a pall over Christmas and New Year’s, forcing communities to scale back or call off their festivities just weeks after it seemed as if Americans were about to enjoy an almost normal holiday season.
Thousands of flights have been cancelled amid staffing shortages blamed on the virus.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious-disease expert, said on Wednesday that there is no need to cancel small home gatherings among vaccinated and boosted family and friends.
But “if your plans are to go to a 40- to 50-person New Year’s Eve party with all the bells and whistles and everybody hugging and kissing and wishing each other a happy new year, I would strongly recommend that this year we not do that,” he said.
The threat of omicron and the desire to spend the holidays with friends and loved ones have spurred many Americans to get tested for COVID-19.
Aravindh Shankar, 24, flew to San Jose, California, on Christmas from West Lafayette, Indiana, to be with family.
Though he felt fine, he decided to get tested on Wednesday just to play it safe, since he had been on an airplane.
He and his family spent almost an entire day searching for a testing appointment for him before he went to a site in a parking lot next to the San Jose airport.
“It was actually surprisingly hard,” Shankar said about trying to find a test.
“Some people have it harder for sure.” The picture is grim elsewhere around the world, especially in Europe, with World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus saying he is worried about omicron combining with the delta variant to produce a “tsunami” of cases.
That, he said, will put “immense pressure on exhausted health workers and health systems on the brink of collapse.”
The number of Americans now in the hospital with COVID-19 is running at around 60,000, or about half the figure seen in January, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
While hospitalisations sometimes lag behind cases, the hospital figures may reflect both the protection conferred by the vaccine and the possibility that omicron is not making people as sick as previous versions.
COVID-19 deaths in the US have climbed over the past two weeks from an average of 1,200 per day to around 1,500.
Public health experts will be closely watching the numbers in the coming week for indications of the vaccines’ effectiveness in preventing serious illness, keeping people out of the hospital and relieving strain on exhausted health care workers, said Bob Bednarczyk, a professor of global health and epidemiology at Emory University.
CDC data already suggests that the unvaccinated are hospitalized at much higher rates than those who have gotten inoculated, even if the effectiveness of the shots decreases over time, he said.
“If we’re able to weather this surge with hopefully minimal disruptions to the overall health care system, that is a place where vaccines are really showing their worth,” Bednarczyk said.
It’s highly unlikely that hospitalization numbers will ever rise to their previous peak, said Amesh Adalja, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security at the Bloomberg School Public Health.
Vaccines and treatments developed since last year have made it easier to curb the spread of the virus and minimize serious effects among people with breakthrough infections.
“Its going to take some time for people to get attuned to the fact that cases don’t matter the same way they did in the past,” Adalja said.
“We have a lot of defense against it.”
But even with fewer people hospitalized compared with past surges, the virus can wreak havoc on hospitals and health care workers, he added.
“In a way, those hospitalizations are worse because they’re all preventable,” he said.
Several European countries, including France, Greece, Britain and Spain, also reported record case counts this week, prompting a ban on music at New Year’s celebrations in Greece and a renewed push to encourage vaccination by French authorities.
WHO reported that new COVID-19 cases worldwide increased 11 per cent last week from the week before, with nearly 4.99 million recorded from December 20-26.
But the UN health agency also noted a decline in cases in South Africa, where omicron was first detected just over a month ago.
Meanwhile, Las Vegas isn’t cancelling or scaling back plans for big New Year’s gatherings amid concerns about the rapid spread of the omicron variant of COVID-19, regional public safety and elected leaders said on Wednesday.
More than 300,000 visitors are expected in town for events including a New Year’s Eve fireworks show on the Las Vegas Strip that was cancelled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands of ticketholders also are expected at a multi-stage outdoor music event beneath a canopy light show at a downtown casino pedestrian mall called the Fremont Street Experience.
“If you’re sick, stay at home. If you’re indoors, wear a mask,” said Michael Naft, a Clark County commissioner who stood with Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and police, fire and communications center officials to outline restrictions including bans on glass and metal containers, coolers, strollers, backpacks, purses and luggage.
“We encourage everyone to look out for one another, take personal responsibility and proactively take actions to limit the spread of COVID-19,” Naft said.
The safety talk came on a day that a coronavirus surge driven largely by the highly contagious omicron variant pushed new cases of COVID-19 in the US to the highest level on record, at more than 265,000 per day on average.
The previous mark was 250,000 cases per day last January, according to data kept by Johns Hopkins University.
Paris, London, Berlin and New York are among cities that have scaled back or called off New Year’s festivities, and airlines have canceled thousands of flights amid staffing shortages blamed on the virus.
Chicago officials said this week their fireworks show was still on, despite Illinois Gov.
JB Pritzker’s warning during a news conference that, “Omicron and delta are coming to your party.”
In Las Vegas, regional health officials on Wednesday reported 2,201 new coronavirus cases, the biggest increase in one day since last January 11, and 15 new deaths.
New cases and deaths have been trending up, and the number of people hospitalised in Clark County with confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19 has also jumped.
The county’s 14-day test positivity rate, representing a percentage of people tested for COVID-19 and found to be positive, reached 10.1 per cent, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.
The World Health Organization goal is 5 per cent or less to relax mitigation measures.
The Southern Nevada Health District reported 68.2 per cent of Las Vegas-area residents have had at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine, and 55.8 per cent are fully vaccinated.
Goodman, a vocal critic of Nevada mask mandates and restrictions on crowd sizes in the first months after business closures were enacted in March 2020, wore a mask Wednesday but removed it to remind the media that the biggest Las Vegas events will be outside.
“We are saying people (can) feel comfortable to be mask-free,” the mayor said.
“But individually, if you have an issue or you’re concerned, wear your mask. It’s a question of respect.”
Last year, even though fireworks were cancelled, thousands of revelers still congregated on casino-lined Las Vegas Boulevard to ring in 2021.
This year, the National Weather Service predicts a chilly Friday night with temperatures near freezing on the Strip beneath mostly clear skies and winds that are not expected to prevent fireworks.
The eight-minute choreographed pyrotechnic display will be shot from atop eight resort properties bracketed by The STRAT tower and the MGM Grand hotel, accompanied by a soundtrack airing on two FM radio stations in Las Vegas.
Clark County Undersheriff Christopher Darcy invoked lessons learned about police, fire, ambulance and communications cooperation since a lone shooter in October 2017 rained gunfire for 10 minutes from a high-rise hotel into a Las Vegas Strip concert crowd.
Fifty-eight people died that night, and hundreds were injured.
At least two other deaths were later attributed to the mass shooting, which remains the deadliest in modern US history.
Darcy said about 1,200 police officers will be assigned in the Las Vegas Boulevard area, where roads will be closed and hotels also have thousands of security guards.
Several hundred officers will be assigned to the Fremont Street district.
A curfew requires anyone under 18 in both areas to be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
“We encourage folks to take the proper precautions, be that vaccinations or the wearing of face coverings, and to do all the things you can do to protect yourself,” the police official said.
He added revelers should arrange transportation that does not involve driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
“Wear warm clothes and comfortable shoes,” said Deputy Clark County Fire Chief Warren Whitney.
“Stay hydrated, and be prepared to do a lot of walking.”
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority pointed in a statement to the fireworks being visible “on and off the Strip and around the Las Vegas valley.”
“We encourage revellers to take the proper health and safety precautions before they arrive and while they are in Las Vegas, follow the indoor mask mandate and seek medical care if they are feeling unwell,” the statement said.
