December 15, 2022 - Get Your Booster Now!

Get Your Booster Now!

December 15, 2022

Greetings. I wrote my last Alabama Covid-19 newsletter on September 25. At that time, daily reported cases were averaging 781 per day and statewide hospitalizations had declined to just 219. I warned then that the pandemic was not over by a long shot, but that enough advances had been made in the prevention, detection and treatment of Covid that it had become a manageable disease.

I still believe that. I have decided to write to you today, however, because Covid cases and hospitalizations are on the rise in Alabama. If you have put off getting the bivalent booster shot that was approved last September, I implore you to do so immediately. Here are the facts.

ADPH’s report of statewide positive cases is now issued every Thursday. Over the past week, ADPH reported 6,465 cases, or 923 cases per day, a rise of 54% in just two weeks. This number does not include the vast majority of at-home positive test results, but it likely includes the most serious cases which require physician notification and intervention.

Meanwhile, there are 366 reported hospitalizations, an 18% increase in the last two weeks. When combined with increasing hospitalizations caused by the flu and RSV, hospitals are rapidly reaching crisis conditions. 

Since it emerged last December, Omicron has completely changed the course of the pandemic in the United States - it is far more contagious though the rate of hospitalization is lower compared to the Delta variant. Omicron has shown no sign of slowing down and continues to rapidly mutate and generate new sub variants with immune-evasive properties, like BQ.1.1, BQ.1, BA.2.75.2 and XBB. So far, these sub variants, which are responsible for about 72% of current U.S. cases, have been similar enough to BA.5 that the bivalent booster has been able to limit their severity.

China is now facing what will likely become the world's largest COVID surge of the pandemic. China's public health officials say that possibly 800 million people will be infected with the coronavirus over the next few months. There are two primary reasons for this imminent surge - first, the draconian lockdowns in China have limited prior infections and corresponding natural immunities; and second, China’s vaccines don’t work as well as the mRNA vaccines that are available in other countries. 

Having traveled to Italy and Brazil this fall, it is clear that mask-wearing is far more prevalent in other countries than in the United States. Nevertheless, each of us has the power to reduce our vulnerability by getting the bivalent mRNA booster shot. As the Christmas season approaches, it is frankly irresponsible not to do so. 

Best wishes to you and yours this holiday season.